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// Part 3: Lost In Thought 
// Story: Black Gold 
// by Cardinal Dan Productions 
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Gem knew she wouldn’t be able to get a wink of sleep that night. After interrogating Carbon, she retreated to her room where she remained for the rest of the day, away from prying eyes so no pony could see how distraught she was. The little colt’s words burned into her mind and caused her chest to grow heavy with grief. He told her his parents had been killed by changelings. He was orphaned by her kind, and what made the whole situation worse was that she wasn’t sure if she was at fault or not. In her past, she had been the cause of misery for countless ponies. Gem was a killer, and it wasn’t out of the realm of possibilities that she might have been the one to orphan Carbon.

With the sun gone from sight and the moon climbing higher into the night sky, she sat in her bed in her personal quarters and stared up at the ceiling, running over the day’s events in her mind again and again. It wasn’t until she heard a gentle knocking on the door that she came out of her trance-like state. “Who’s there?”

After a short pause, from behind the door came a muffled voice. “It’s me, Azalea.”

Gem wasn’t in the mood to see her, now, or anypony else for that matter, but she couldn’t turned her friend away. “Come in...”

The door opened, and her marefriend walked inside before closing the door behind her. As soon as she saw Gem, her eyes widened. “You look terrible. I know that look, Gem... That’s the same look you wore when you admitted you shared feelings for me. You’re remembering the past again, aren’t you?”

The lieutenant let out a long sigh and rolled over in bed to face Azalea. “You’re perceptive, I’ll give you that.” The look on her marefriend’s face told her she wasn’t about to let it go, so she sat upright and allowed Azalea to sit beside her. “I met a colt today, early this morning. He seemed so charming and sweet, but he turned out to be a little thief. He’s an orphan running around the streets of the empire, getting mixed up in Celestia knows what. Phasmid...” She looked Azalea in the eyes, knowingly using her real name. “While in questioning, he told he his parents died at the hooves of changelings.”

Azalea let out a sigh and closed her eyes. Her horn sparked to life, and her pony form burned away, revealing her true self. Even though Phasmid had metamorphosed like the vast majority of changelings, the scar on her chest was still visible from her near death experience with Gem. “Change for me.”

Gem didn’t want to change. She felt safe in her pony form, like a vail covered her body and protected her from all kinds of harm, but Phasmid coaxed her anyway. She bit her lip and narrowed her eyes, finally giving in to her marefriend’s request. Her own horn began to glow, and in no time at all, Cicada was free from her pony form.

Phasmid and Cicada were once bitter enemies, and both came very close to killing the other. Now, they say in bed together, sharing their love for each other instead of selfishly devouring it. Now, the two mares sat beside each other in their natural forms.

Phasmid looked her over and nodded approvingly. “Very good... Tell me, Cicada. Do you believe you believe you’re responsible for this colt’s situation?”

Cicada sighed and very gently lowered her head. “I do... I cannot forget my past wrongdoings, no matter how much I try or how much good I do to make up for it. My past hangs on my neck like a weight, and there are times when I cannot even breathe. Sometimes, I get lost in my own thoughts, thinking about the ways I could have done things differently, but at the end of the day, those are only dreams, nothing more.” She turned to look Phasmid in the eyes. “If my fears are true, that I am the reason that poor colt is without a family, then I will never be able to live with myself.”

Out of the corner of her gaze, she saw a hoof swinging towards her. Then, she heard a snack and felt the sting of the hoof connecting with her cheek. The burning mark began to throb, and Cicada rubbed tender area carefully. She stared at Phasmid. She was the one who had just struck her across the face, now wearing a dangerous look.

Phasmid glared at her, baring her teeth viciously. “Stop that... Don’t you dare say things like that. Don’t you ever think that.” Then, she wrapped her hooves around the shaking mare. “I understand that you have problems letting your past go, but you have friends now who depend upon you. Whether or not you’re the changeling he spoke of is something we might never know, so don’t put yourself in that position.” The two stared into each other’s eyes. “I love you, Cicada. It’s alright for you to love yourself a little. You deserve it.”

Then, she planted a kiss on her cheek, right where her hoof had made contact moments before. Cicada felt Phasmid’s lips cool the sting and let out a gentle gasp. “You’ve been speaking with Amethyst. I can tell.”

Phasmid kissed her cheek a second time. “I have indeed... Amethyst is a strong and wise mare, beautiful too. If she wasn’t already married to Sergeant Onyx, I would be trying to get into her bed, rather than yours.”

Cicada chuckled half-heartedly as she stroked her marefriend’s mane. “I’ve had similar thoughts about Amethyst, I must admit. There was a time when I even desired Onyx. You, on the other hoof... You are lucky to be granted the privilege to enter my bed with me.”

The kissing ceased, and Phasmid reared her head back and scoffed at her. “Privilege?! Now, that is funny, Cicada. I seem to recall you inviting me into your private quarters, not the other way around.” She pushed Cicada over in such a way that the she landed on her back. With the advantage now in her corner, Phasmid broke free from the older changeling’s grasp and pinned her down, grinning maliciously all the while. “Ha! I guess this proves who gets to be on top tonight...”

Cicada rolled her eyes and blew her mane out of her face. “Now you’re the one who’s having dreams, Phasmid.” In one, swift action, she used her rear legs to knock the rebellious changeling off balance and reverse their positions, efectivly pinning Phasmid down against the mattress sheets. “You seem to have forgotten that I’m always on top.”

Phasmid’s playful glare softened into a far more seductive look, and she batted her eyes up at her. “So you are... Very well, then. Ravish me, my love.”


***


The following morning, Cicada awoke to an empty bed, cold sheets, and a small note. It read:

Cicada, I have gone back to the mare’s bunk room to change and shower. I will see you on the field at drill practice. Thank you for the lovely night. I look forward to the next time you can put me in my place.

Yours and yours alone, Phasmid

She read the note twice more before holding it tightly against her chest. It wasn’t the first time Phasmid had left her before she woke up, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last, but just once, she’d like the chance to actually wake up beside the mare she care so much for. Cicada folded the little note in two before opening her bedside drawer and placing it inside with the others she had received from her lover. She then quickly rose from her bed and stumbled to the shower on wobbly legs in order to ready herself for whatever the day offered.

Minutes later, she emerged from the steamy shower dripping wet. Staring at her full and healthy form in the mirror, she smiled. The love from her friends had made her constant hunger a thing of the past. Now, she never feared starvation. Cicada closed her eyes and concentrated on her pony persona. When her eyes opened again, Cicada was gone, and Gemini stood in her place.

Gem quickly worked with a brush to fix her mane the way she liked it and left her room behind. With a new day before her and a fresh sense of clarity, she sought out Amethyst. There was something weighing on her mind that needed to be addressed. It was Carbon. He was still being held in captivity, but she wanted to change that.

Out on the practice fields, a dozen squads of guards were already hard at work. Unicorn teams fired volley after volley of magic bolts across the field at targets made of wood and straw, pegasi fliers soared overhead, performing all kinds of intense maneuvers and tricks, and the earth ponies matched off against each other in hoof to hoof combat games. The captain of the Royal Guards, Amethyst, stood on a stone platform overlooking the fields.

Gem approached her from behind and cleared her throat, capturing Amethyst’s attention. “Good morning, captain.”

She smiled back, holding up a steaming cup as an offering to the changeling. “Good morning, Gem. Would you like some? You look like you’ve just crawled out of bed.”

Gem nodded her head and accepted the delicious gift. “I did... Azalea failed to wake me... It won’t happen again, I promise.”

Amethyst wasn’t the most strict disciplinary. Before she was a leader, she was a rebellious rule breaker herself. “Well, you haven’t missed much. Everypony is performing admirably, but I do enjoy watching Onyx chew out the new recruits.” She pointed towards the unicorns on the field. “Some have been missing their mark, and he feels the best solution is to yell in order to help them concentrate.”

Gem let out a light chuckle. “Your husband sounds like he’s the one who could use a little coffee. Why don’t you offer him some?” The two mares shared a laugh before returning their attention to the guards in training. Gem took a long sip from her beverage, pondering on how to proceed with her idea. “Captain, I have a question regarding Carbon.”

Amethyst let out a sigh. “I’m sorry the interrogation didn’t go the way you wanted, but I can’t allow you to question him again. He’s to be processed today and moved into foster care.”

The changeling shook her head. “No... That wasn’t what I was about to ask. I don’t wish to question him again, but I think sending the colt back into foster care would be a bad idea.” Amethyst raised an eyebrow at her. Now that she had her attention, Gem took in and let out a deep breath. “I would like to take Carbon into my custody. I could take full responsibility for him and keep him out of trouble.”

Silence filled the space between them as Gem impatiently waited for a response. The longer the silence lingered, the more nervous she became. Wanting to take care of Carbon was not an easy decision to come to, but deep down, she felt like she owed that much to the little colt.

Amethyst looked thoughtful, but the frown on her face told her that she was not thrilled by her notion. “Gem, that’s a big request. If things went wrong, and there’s a lot that could go wrong, you could be put in prison. I don’t want that to happen to you because of this colt. You need to let this go.”

Gem shook her head. “I can’t... I feel responsible for his care.” She wondered if Amethyst knew about her revelation, about Carbon being orphaned by changelings. “I mean... What I’m trying to say is that this is really important to me. I have a house outside of the palace I’ve never had a use for until now. I can keep him there, clothe him, feed him, and be in charge of his care. Please, Amethyst, allow me this.”

She was on the verge of pleading, hoping to change her captain’s mind. To her amazement, she did.

Amethyst held up a hoof to cut her off. “Alright... Alright, Gem. Meet me in my office after practice, and we’ll talk about this some more. I’ll need approval from Princess Cadence, to give you custody of the colt, but once I do, you should be able to take him.”

Gem’s heart exploded in her chest, and she threw her hooves around Amethyst’s neck. “Oh, thank you!” Then, she planted a big kiss on the captain’s cheek. “Mmmmmuah! You won’t regret this. I’ll turn him around before you know it.”

The three-legged unicorn couldn’t help smiling in response to her joy. “Glad to hear it.” She turned and pointed towards the training ponies. “Feel free to step in wherever you feel is necessary. I’m going to head down there and make sure Onyx isn’t being too hard on them.”

Gem watched as Amethyst stepped down from the platform and began walking down the hill towards the practice field. Now that she was alone, she could stare at the guards as long as she pleased, but she couldn’t bring herself to focus on them. Her thoughts were with Carbon, and she wouldn’t rest until he was safely in her clutches.


***Up Next: The Guardian***