“Magic,” Tempest said, skepticism clearly evident in her voice.
Across the table, Abacus Cinch sipped her tea and put the cup down. “I assure you that it's true. Canterlot High School, for some reason, has become a nexus for real magic.”
The two had met at the same all night diner on the edge of town that Tempest had originally discovered the sirens at. Tempest had to admit that Cinch was fairly imposing. Prim, proper, and exuding an aura of complete self control. She didn't seem angry or bitter, but Tempest knew all about keeping one's true feelings hidden from whoever you happened to be talking to.
“What sort of magic are we talking about, exactly, Ms. Cinch?” she asked, trying not to smile. “Blood sacrifices on the school roof? Secret tantric sex dungeons in the basement?”
Cinch gave her a look. “Please don't insult my intelligence, Agent Shadow. I'm well aware of how ludicrous it sounds. If I hadn't witnessed it for myself, I'd be just as skeptical. The only reason I agreed to meet with you is because I did some research on your organization and I felt its mandate would mean you'd be more open to the possibility than other federal or state agencies.”
“I'm sorry, I didn't mean to insult you,” Tempest said. She wasn't sorry, but she could tell Cinch put a lot of stock in manners and decorum. Better to play along for now. “Please continue.”
“In the course of your investigation, have you come across reports of teenage girls with wings?”
Tempest blinked and leaned forward slightly. “What do you know about that?”
The corners of Cinch's lips turned up. “They're all students at Canterlot High. They are brash, rude, completely undisciplined and use the magic at their disposal to cheat in competition. They corrupted the mind of my most promising student, humiliated me in front of nearly my entire student body, and the power they possess nearly caused reality itself to collapse.”
Tempest blinked and she pulled out her notepad. “Please go on, Ms. Cinch. You have my attention.”
The smile on the former principal's face widened. “What exactly did Celestia tell you happened at the Friendship Games?”
–
With everything that had been going on, Sunset had completely forgotten she was scheduled to work that night. She was reminded when Koi Pond had texted her, wanting to know where she was. Sunset had sent back an hurried apology then transferred to the next bus to the mall. She had a spare uniform in her locker and, after a hurried and sincere apology to Koi, got to work immediately.
The shift had not gone well. She was preoccupied with her worries about Tempest Shadow, the invasion of Equestria, and most of all, the terrifying prospect of an Ursa Major roaming in the woods. As a result, she had screwed up several orders, costing her time and tips. Worst of all were the looks Koi kept giving her as Sunset struggled to keep her customers happy.
Mercifully, closing time came and Sunset was able to focus on getting her closing chores done and cash out for the night. As she was computing her tips, Koi came up to her at the register.
“Sunset, is everything okay?” she asked.
Sunset gave her an embarrassed grin. “Yeah, sorry about that, Koi. I've been having some stuff going on and it kinda threw me off. Sorry.”
Koi put a hand on Sunset's shoulder. “Listen, if you're still not up to working on a regular basis, you can take some extra time off. I won't mind.
Sunset shook her head. “No, I'm fine. Plus I can't really afford to take anymore time off than you've already given me for a while. It's just been a really bad day for me. I'll be more focused on my next shift.”
Koi gave her a skeptical look, then sighed. “All right, if you're sure. But try not to overdo it, okay?”
“I won't.” Sunset's tired but geniune smile caused the restaurant owner to smile in return. “Thanks, Koi.”
“You're welcome. Now go home and get some rest.”
Sunset nodded, finished cashing out her tips, and grabbed her things from her locker. She decided to wear the uniform home. It could use a wash anyway.
After texting her friends, and getting a message that Fluttershy would come give her a ride home, she left the mall and stood on the sidewalk outside the food court. She shivered a little and pulled her jacket tightly around her. It was getting colder. Fall was coming in with a vengance.
She winced a little at her word choice. Vengance was what had started all this. Had it only been two weeks ago that Firecracker had attacked her? So much had happened in that time, and things only seemed to be getting worse.
Sunset sighed and pulled the journal out of her bag. She turned back to where she had been talking to Starlight. She had asked her fellow unicorn to write down everything she knew about Ursa Majors. Sadly, access to the library at Princess Twilight's castle was blocked since the invaders had apparently started putting patrols in Ponyville, although they apparently had been unable to breach the doors of said castle.
Probably because it was created from the Tree of Harmony rather than being pony-built, Starlight had written.
The Everfree Forest had also been proving difficult for the invaders to deal with, causing them to leave it alone for now. That was some small relief to Sunset. At least Starlight was safe, and some of Equestria's more magical secrets were protected.
Sunset paged through the book. Starlight hadn't known much about Ursa Majors outside of some basic information. Surprisingly, Trixie had written several notes about Ursa Minors here and there, relating how a couple of her overly zealous fans had accidentally unleashed a Minor into Ponyville. That incident had been what had started her rivalry with Princess Twilight, although Trixie had insisted that was all over now.
What concerned Sunset the most about the information she had received were the observations about the relative sizes of the Major and the Minor. The Ursa Minor Trixie had mentioned had easily dwarfed most of the two story structures in Ponyville. Even allowing for the height difference between ponies and humans, the Major Celaeno had described seemed about the same size, even though Ursa Majors were at least three times larger than Ursa Minors. If that was the case, it raised questions about whether the thing in the woods was an actual Ursa Major at all.
Aside from the size, it certainly sounded like one. Maybe it shrank when it came through?
No, that was ridiculous. If an Ursa of either kind had come through the portal, somebody would have noticed long before now. There would have been more reports of attacks and damage. At the very least it was likely the plinth would have been damaged if not destroyed outright if something that big came through.
But if that's the case, where did it come from? They don't exist on this side of the portal. Unless maybe, the rogue magic infected it somehow? Is that possible? So far it's only infected objects which were channels for other people to use. Why would it settle on an animal? It makes no sense.
A car horn beeped and Sunset looked up to see Fluttershy's smart car pulling up to the curb. Sunset put the journal away and climbed into the passenger seat.
“Thanks for the ride, Fluttershy,” she said, buckling her seat belt.
“It's no problem, Sunset.” Fluttershy put the car into gear and they made their way out of the parking lot.
“I really need to figure out a way to get my license,” Sunset said. “I can't keep calling all of you for rides all the time.”
“Why don't you just register for Driver's Ed next semester?” Fluttershy asked. “I'm a little surprised you haven't yet, honestly.”
Sunset sighed. “My paperwork is good enough to keep people from asking questions, and Miss Bookbinder overlooked a few things when it comes to my lease,” she explained. “But as far as getting a legit form of documentation, they won't really stand up to that kind of scrutiny. Makes getting a license a little difficult.”
“Oh, I see,” Fluttershy replied. They drove in silence for a moment, then: “I think have a lead on the thing in the woods.”
Sunset looked up. “Really?”
“You know Harry?”
Sunset blinked. “The bear you hang out with?”
Fluttershy nodded. “He visited me just before you called. His mate Frank has been missing for the last couple of weeks. He searched the woods for him, but no luck. He came to me asking me to help.”
“Okay,” Sunset said, her tone urging Fluttershy to continue.
“Well, he said Frank has an old den in the woods on the east side of town. Those ones just past Sweet Apple Acres. I said I would go check it out and see if Frank was there.”
Sunset stared at Fluttershy. “You're sure he said near the woods by Sweet Apple Acres.”
“Yes,” Fluttershy confirmed. She glanced over at Sunset. “What's wrong?”
Sunset told her about her meeting with Celaeno and what the gang lieutenant had told her.
“So you think Frank might be this... Ursa Major?” Fluttershy asked.
“Maybe,” Sunset said. “I'm not sure. Frank wasn't twenty feet tall was he?”
“Oh no. He was about Harry's size. Maybe a little bigger, but not by much.”
Sunset frowned and folded her arms, lost in thought. It made too much sense, and seemed to confirm her theory that something over here had become infected with magic. But what didn't make sense was the idea of Frank, an ordinary bear, being transformed into an Ursa Major.
You turned into a seven foot tall rampaging she-demon, her brain taunted. So did Twilight, Juniper, and let's not forget Firecracker Burst.
Sunset huffed through her nose. Okay, maybe it made some sort of sense. But if that was the case...
Maybe the transformation isn't complete yet. Maybe the magic is taking Frank through the Ursa life cycle. Maybe he started off as a Minor but he's becoming a Major?
Sunset swallowed as her train of though chugged along. If Frank was infected with magic and it was sending him through the physical changes that an Ursa went through from Minor to Major, then he might not be finished.
He might get even bigger.
Sunset's head snapped toward Fluttershy. “Are you working tomorrow?”
Fluttershy shook her head. “No, I have tomorrow off.”
“Okay, good.” Sunset pulled out her phone and began composing a text in the girls group chat. “If what's happening is what I think is happening, we need to deal with this sooner rather than later.”
“What do you mean?” Sunset could hear the worry in Fluttershy's voice. She looked up and smiled at her friend.
“Don't worry, if it is Frank, we'll try not to hurt him. But we need to deal with him. Tomorrow.”
Sunset glanced down at the text she had sent.
Emergency! I think I know what's going on with the thing in the woods and where we can find it. But we'll need everybody to deal with it. If you have plans or work tomorrow after school, cancel them or call in sick. My place. 4 o'clock. Bring your geodes.
Sunset sighed and finished the text.
And be ready for a fight.
She tapped “Send.”