//------------------------------// // Chapter 9: Old Friends // Story: To Earn One's Wings // by HollowPony //------------------------------// To Earn One’s Wings Chapter 9: Old Friends The first thing that Thunderbolt noticed about Onyx was his size. He wasn’t particularly tall; he was about the same size as Thunderbolt, but he did have forelegs the size of tree trunks and shoulders that made Thunderbolt suspect that he could pull several wagons at once. “So, what unit are you from?” Onyx’s voice was a deep, soothing timbre. “Excuse me?” Thunderbolt raised an eyebrow. Onyx chuckled. “A guardsman should be able to recognize a fellow guardsman on sight, shouldn’t he?” Onyx pounded his chest. “I’m from the 76th regiment, Ponyville Guard.” “Used to be 1st Recon. Doing some freelance work right now.” “Really? Well, try not to stir up too much trouble.” Onyx leaned over and whispered into Thunderbolt’s ear. “And a tip from one guard to another, that guy’s been staring at you since you got off the train.” He tossed his head back to indicate a chestnut stallion leaning against the ticket booth that took up half of the train platform. The stallion was gigantic, at least a head taller than Thunderbolt and with legs comparable to Onyx’s. On each side of his hips was a picture of a green Erlenmeyer flask layered over two interlocking gears. When his warm brown eyes met Thunderbolt’s silver-blue ones he nodded at him with a friendly smile. “Thanks for the heads up.” “A pleasure.” Onyx glanced over to where Lyra was chatting with Aurum and the beige earth pony mare with a blue and pink mane. Bon Bon, if Thunderbolt remembered correctly. She gave a wide yawn. “Now, if you don’t mind, I need to get these lovely mares inside. Have a nice night.” With that Onyx walked over to Lyra, gave her a chaste peck on the forehead and whispered something into her ear. She nodded, said something to Bon Bon and the trio left the train station. Lyra turned around and waved at Thunderbolt and company before disappearing in the still Ponyville night. “You know, Mags, you don’t have to look like a stalker when you pick me up at the train station.” The stallion leaning against the ticket booth shrugged. “I didn’t want to interrupt your conversation. Do you know those ponies?” “Nah, met them on the train. Aquamarine mare’s Lyra. Beige is Bon Bon. Stallion’s name is Onyx.” The stallion snorted. “Corporal Onyx. The bane of my existence.” “You know the guy?” “Not personally. I haven’t really mingled with the rank and file since moving to R&D. But Onyx’s name often appears on reports about broken equipment. The colt doesn’t seem to know his own damn strength at times.” A draconic head peeked over Thunderbolt’s hood. Char narrowed his emerald eyes at Thunderbolt. “Who is this pony?” “Sorry, Scales I should introduce you. This is Magnum O. Hooves. He’s my best mate.” Thunderbolt pointed to Aurum. “Mags, this is Aurum Quartz. She’s a jeweller from Manehattan. And this guy,” Thunderbolt pointed to Char perched on his head. “Is Char.” Magnum inclined his head. “Charmed.” Aurum waved with the tip of her hoof. Char snorted. “So, Mags, what are you doing out here?” “I, uh.” Magnum licked his lips. His eyes darted around in his skull like a gecko on a frying pan. “Ah, fuck it, I’m rubbish at making up stories.” He looked at Aurum with an apologetic smile. “Sorry for the language, Miss Quartz. I’m supposed to pick someone up from the Ponyville train station. Some sort of mission for Celestia.” Aurum’s eyes lit up. “We’re on a mission from Celestia!” “Quiet,” Char hissed. “What is the point of your Princess’s request to be discreet if you loudly proclaim to be working for her.” “Oi, stop it you two. So, Mags, who told you to find us.” “Princess Celestia. Convenient, I know, but some of my assistants have been noticing some magical anomalies all over Equestria the last couple of days. I sent a message to my superiors and didn’t think much further, but not an hour ago, a message from the Princess herself arrived telling me to pick up some ponies from the train station.” “How do we know you’re telling the truth? As you said, it is rather convenient that you receive a message from your Princess to pick us up.” “Listen here you overgrown lizard, this here is my best friend. I’ve never lied to him and I’m not about to start. Especially not right to his face.” “Still, Mags, Scales has a point. Even if you’re not lying, it’s still too bloody convenient. Too many questions. For example, how do you know Celestia sent that letter?” “Do I look like the type of pony that gets letters from the Princess often? I don’t know her hoofwriting. It’s signed Princess Celestia, so I assume that she sent the bloody letter.” Thunderbolt scratched his neck. “I guess that without any contradicting information we have to assume Celestia did, in fact, send the letter.” “And,” Aurum interjected. “Since there’s no one else here, we have to assume that he’s telling the truth.” “Unless I murdered the poor bloke that was supposed to meet you.” “I thought that this was a clandestine mission. Is it wise for us to be discussing it in the open like this?” “Ah, yes. Of course. Let’s get you inside. My home is a short walk away.” A short walk away turned out to be the other side of town. Magnum stopped in front of a small single storey house. The walls were white with a red door in the centre of the façade. There was a window on either side of the door. Under one of the windows was a small rose garden. The property was surrounded by a white picket fence. Next to the gate was a mailbox that read ‘Hooves’. Behind it, the forest loomed like an ogre over a gingerbread house. “We’re here,” Magnum announced. He opened the gate and walked onto the cobblestone walkway that led to the door. He opened the door with a flourish. “Casa Dolce Casa. Make yourselves at home.” He entered the door. Thunderbolt followed him. Through the door was a small foyer. Next to the front door was a coatrack with a thick brown coat hanging on it. The room itself was painted a soft cream colour. In each of the walls were a plain wooden that led, Thunderbolt presumed, further into the house. Once Aurum was inside the house, Magnum slammed the door shut. From behind the door across from the front, a shrill shout of “Daddy” could be heard. The door was thrown back and Thunderbolt gasped and took a step back. Green eyes framed by a black fringe stared up at him. They were filled with excitement. Filled with life. The beige unicorn filly had a large smile on her face. For a moment Thunderbolt saw the Captain from his dream standing in front of him. He shook his head. When he looked back up the filly was gone. “SNOWY!” a shrill voice shouted from further inside the house. “STRANGERS ARE AT THE DOOR!” Magnum swore and squeezed past Thunderbolt. “Give me a moment. I didn’t tell them you’re coming yet.” “That was interesting,” Char snorted. “Who’s the kid?” “His daughter.” “How do you know?” “She looks just like his wife, just smaller.” Something tapped Thunderbolt on his flank. He spun around and looked into a pair of red eyes. They were in the skull of a milk-white pegasus mare. Even her mane was the colour of snow. The only colour on her body was the picture of a blackboard on the back of her flank. Around her neck hung a small blackboard. Attached to it was a piece of chalk on a string. The board read: Hi. Would you like anything to drink? It was written in steady, neat letters. “Uh, hi. Who are you?” The mare cocked her head to the side. She then wiped the board clean with a wing, took the piece of chalk in her mouth and started writing on the board. I’m Snowflake. Assistant to Maj Hooves. Would you like anything to drink? “Coffee. Milk and one sugar. Thanks.” Thunderbolt turned to Aurum. “You want anything, Rosie? “Tea. Just milk.” And the dragon? “I’m fine. Can’t you ask me yourself instead of writing everything on that damn board?” The red-eyed mare sighed like she had heard something like that countless times before and opened her mouth. The group cocked their heads in confusion. Then they noticed something missing. Something that sat so comfortable in their mouths that they almost forgot it existed. She had no tongue. “I see,” the dragon responded, looking away. If that is all, please make yourselves at home. With that last message and a nod, Snowflake disappeared through a door at the right side of the foyer. The door Snowflake came through hung wide open. Thunderbolt could see a four-piece lounge set arranged around a low table. The corner of a small liquor cabinet was visible. Magnum sat on one of the chairs and invited Thunderbolt to join him with an enthusiastic wave. Char hopped off of Thunderbolt’s head and started growing in size. A snap of cold filled the room as the dragon grew to Magnum’s size rather than that of a housecat. “That’s better,” Char sighed in relief. “Fascinating,” Magnum exclaimed. “Not only can dragons alter their size at will, but they also seem to draw in thermal energy when the expansion of the body takes place,” he rambled. He looked at up at Char, his eyes shining with excitement. “Could you please enlarge yourself again? I want to test if the if it works the same in the other direction. Would you give off thermal energy if you contract your size?” “God,” Char exclaimed in exasperation. “Not another one,” he turned to Thunderbolt. “I swear, all of you ponies incessantly ask the most inane questions. What the hell is he on about?” “I think he’s just asking about your dragon traits,” Thunderbolt answered with a chuckle. “I’m not subjecting myself to your enquiries any longer. I’ve dealt with enough of this with that blue pony on the train.” Thunderbolt chuckled to himself as Magnum tried to coax Char into answering a couple of questions or donating a couple of samples for testing. The dragon was adamantly refusing his requests. Especially the ones regarding samples. Thunderbolt looked around the room and saw that Aurum had sunk into the couch on the far side of the room. He sat down across from her. “How you holding up?” he asked. “I still see the dream when I close my eyes,” she said with a shudder. “It was more like a memory than a dream.” The clattering of cups interrupted Aurum. Snowflake had returned with a tray balanced on her wings. Several steaming mugs were on it. The filly bounced up and down behind her. Behind them was an unfamiliar mare. Her fur was white and her mane a shining black, like an insect’s carapace. Her eyes were a brilliant emerald green. Strangely enough, her flank was bare, devoid of any markings like those of the other ponies. “You should be in bed,” Magnum scolded the filly sternly, having caught a glimpse of his daughter’s bouncing form from the corner of his eye. Char took advantage of the earth pony’s distraction and sat down on a couch to Aurum’s left. Snowflake put the tray onto the table and sat down next to Aurum. “But Snowy made cocoa,” the filly complained. “Fine,” Magnum relented. “Drink your cocoa and then straight to bed.” The filly bounced forward, thank-yous pouring from her mouth like water from a broken faucet. She latched onto her father’s leg in an excited hug. Magnum nuzzled the filly affectionately. “Go on, drink up before it gets cold.” The filly let go of the leg and bounced off toward the couch Char was sitting on. Showing no fear she hopped onto the couch. She stuck her tongue out as she lit her horn with a cheerful green aura. A similar aura appeared around the smallest mug on the tray. It had a picture of a dog printed on it and little hearts had been painted all over it. The mug moved millimetre by millimetre towards the edge of the tray. A silver-blue aura covered the green one. “Let me get that for you,” Thunderbolt offered with a good-natured smile. The filly excitedly received the mug and started sipping the hot, sweet liquid as she snuggled up to the living heater named Char. The dragon didn’t seem to mind her presence. Magnum narrowed his eyes at the unfamiliar mare. “You’re supposed to be at home. What are you doing here?” “I, uh, wanted to ask you something about the data I collected.” Her voice was deep and soothing. “And it couldn’t wait until tomorrow?” “No” Magnum sighed. “Fine, but you’re sleeping in the guest room. No way I’m sending you home this late.” Thunderbolt raised an eyebrow. “I thought that Ponyville was one of the safest towns in Equestria. Wouldn’t she be safe, even if it’s the middle of the night?” “If she lived in Ponyville I’d agree with you, but…” “I don’t live in Ponyville. I live in a quaint little hut made out of a hollow tree with a zebra who speaks in rhymes.” “But it is a ten-minute walk from the edge of town into the Everfree forest. Manageable during the day, but I’m not letting you take the risk.” “Ok, Mags, not to sound rude, but who is this?” Magnum rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry, I haven’t introduced you yet. Her name’s Chitin. She’s an entomologist researching the insects of the Everfree. I’m helping her gather samples. Chitin, this is Thunderbolt. I call him Sparks. He used to be in the guard with me.” Magnum pointed to Aurum. “That’s Aurum, she’s a jeweller from Manehattan, and over there.” Magnum pointed to Char, who sat scowling at them. “Is Char.” Chitin smiled politely. “Nice to meet you all.” Thunderbolt inclined his head politely. “Likewise.” Char nodded his head almost imperceptibly. Aurum waved Chitin over with a smile on her face. The white mare made herself comfortable between the two pegasai and turned to Magnum. “Do you have any stories about when you two were in the guard?” Magnum scratched his chin. Thunderbolt started chuckling. “What about the time you blew up the officer latrines.” “HEY! That was an accident,” Magnum protested. “You threw a bunch of grenades into the place.” “I thought they were smoke grenades. Damn things looked the same to me at the time. Besides, if I remember correctly, you threw one or two as well. What was your words? ‘If you are going to get chased up and down a parade ground you shouldn’t do it alone.’” “If I knew they would make the entire squad run laps around the parade ground in full combat gear I would have just left you alone. Not that it would have saved you from the pounding that the squad gave us after the laps.” Thunderbolt blew out a lungful of air. “It’s a bloody miracle we weren’t court-martialled.” Magnum laughed from his belly. “We almost were. I overheard Sergeant Breastplate asking Major Feather Plume for one. Old bastard shot him down.” “Still got fined though.” “Better than a court-martial.” A comfortable atmosphere settled over the room. Magnum and Thunderbolt reminisced over memories from their time in the Guard. Across from them Aurum, Chitin and Snowflake shared a seemingly one-sided conversation. However, the fact Snowflake was writing excitedly on her board in between sips of whatever was in her mug, told Thunderbolt that she found the conversation stimulating as well. Char told the filly at his side stories to her wide-eyed delight. The filly suppressed a yawn. Her mug slipped from her hooves. Char’s claw shot out and caught the falling mug. “I think that someone needs to go to bed,” the dragon commented as he put the mug onto the table. He gently picked the filly up with one of his claws and placed her on the floor. Magnum and Snowflake got up from their seats. “I’ll take her to bed,” Magnum told Snowflake. “You can go home. Have some rest. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.” Snowflake nodded. She nuzzled the filly, waved to the rest and left through the front door. Chitin got up with a yawn. “I think that I’ll turn in as well. Which way’s the guest room?” Magnum pointed to the foyer. “Into the foyer, take a right, down the hall, second door to the left.” He turned to his daughter and gave her a loving nuzzle. “Come on, my darling, let’s get you to bed.” Magnum picked up the filly and put her onto his back. She was fast asleep before Magnum had even left the room. “I thought you didn’t care about ponies,” Thunderbolt said with a chuckle. “I don’t,” Char snorted. “But whelps are the future of any race. They must be protected. Even if the whelp is a soft and weak pony.” “Soft and weak, huh? Remind me, who kicked your arse?” “If I remember correctly we never finished that fight.” Char shifted on the couch. He looked like a cat ready to pounce. Thunderbolt leapt up from the couch and planted his hooves shoulder-width apart. Exited smiles played across both their faces. Aurum’s protests went unheard as dragon and pony looked each other in the eyes, seeing who would pounce first. “If you’re going to fight, do it outside,” Magnum grunted as he came back into the room. “Sorry, Mags. Got a bit carried away.” Thunderbolt sat back down. Char relaxed as well. “So, Sparks, how’d you find this motley crew?” “Celestia threw us together. Char’s been offered amnesty, I’m trying to clear my name and Rosie… Celestia wants us to keep her safe.” “Well, I guess we should get to work then. Follow me.” Magnum led them through a small door hidden just inside the hall and down a narrow, winding set of stairs. Char had to shrink himself down the size of a cat to fit comfortably. At the bottom of the stairs was a large, white room. Crystals and equipment were scattered across the counters that lined the room’s walls. In the centre of the room was a round table with a diamond-shaped crystal suspended between two thin rods at the centre. Magnum tapped the crystal and light started shining out of it. Slowly the light covered the table. A picture filled with landscapes, forests and towns began to form on the table. Magnum sighed. “I’m going to level with you guys. Until recently I didn’t even think that The Sage existed.” Thunderbolt raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?” “I thought that he was a bogeyman, meant only to scare the new recruits to the Military Intelligence branch.” “And now?” “I’m not sure. Some of Military Intelligence’s records date sightings back to the founding of Equestria. My working hypothesis is that it’s a title passed down from one pony to the next.” “What if it isn’t?” “What do you mean?” “What if The Sage isn’t merely a title, but a single pony.” “An immortal? You have got to be kidding me, Sparks.” “It’s not impossible,” Char chimed in. “Among the dragons, it is common to live for several centuries. And your Princesses have both lived at least a millennia, if not more. If this pony found a way to replicate their long lives…” “Don’t even finish that thought. If we’re up against an immortal, we don’t have a fucking chance. A foal has a better chance of getting out of Tartarus than we have of capturing a nigh immortal pony.” “This is all just speculation. We should see if we can’t get more information before we start crafting theories.” Magnum nodded. “Right. Information. Data.” He pointed to the picture on the table. “This is a map of Equestria and this.” He tapped the crystal and green dots started appearing across the map. “Is magical anomalies catalogued by Military Intelligence over the past year.” He tapped the crystal again and the green dots disappeared until there were three left. “These are anomalies that were detected or changed over the last week. I’m hoping that if we investigate each one can discover something about The Sage or his plans.” Thunderbolt nodded. “Ok. Where do we start?” Magnum tapped the crystal and the map zoomed in on the green dot on the north side of Equestria. A large city with a central tower was to the left of the anomaly. “We could go north. The anomaly appeared just outside the Crystal Empire, but the entire area was hit by a blizzard right before the anomaly appeared, so we don’t have any more details on it.” He tapped the crystal and the map zoomed in on an area filled with volcanic islands. “There’s an anomaly in the Dragon Lands, but the area seems to be under heavy guard. Whether this is deliberate or merely a coincidence is unknown.” Next, the map zoomed in on a ruined castle surrounded by a forest. “That only leaves the Castle of the Two Sisters. It’s located deep in the Everfree forest. I know my way around the area, so I can lead you around the most dangerous areas.” “We can hit up the castle tomorrow and plan from there. Any objections?” No one responded. “Good. Get some sleep. We leave first thing in the morning.”