Sigil of Souls, Stream of Memories

by Piccolo Sky


Nightwatch: Epilogue - Dawn of a New World

One Week Later


Fancy Pants took one last puff from his cigarette before he stamped out the butt, trying not to look stilted or nervous as he did. No sooner had he extinguished it than he went for another one, but once he had his case out and open he noticed that it was empty. Frowning a little, he collapsed it and slipped it back in his suitcoat pocket.

His office had quite the assembly that morning. Several of his higher-ranking officials were gathered, including the director of national security, the director of defense, the director of the interior, and the several of the top brass of Manehattan’s military including the army and navy. Many of them looked about as antsy and uncomfortable as he did.

As they stood silently in the chancellor’s office, a mob of officials and a select few reporters waited in the hall outside for the first word. Even more were gathered outside, in a much more unruly group. With them was a mob that had been doubling every day for a week demanding answers as to not only the situation with Equestria but with the mysterious “epidemic” of individuals growing symbols on their hands. Tensions were high among all of them, as was the case throughout the rest of the country and Greater Everfree.

They had riled up just a little while ago when both the director of state and the northeastern field 1st colonel had arrived, forcing the guard to step in. Now, for those within, it was just a matter of waiting for whoever would be escorted first through the crowd.

A few seconds later, they got their answer. The door opened and in walked the field colonel. Like with most military figures who patrolled the border, she was rather young. She sported a dressing across her nose and was still dirty from the field, appearing as if she barely had time to get a clean uniform before coming. The dressing in particular caused several of those in the room to stiffen.

She quickly removed her hat and went up to the director of defense. She gave her salute, which was returned, and then turned to face the chancellor and did the same. “General…Chancellor.”

He nodded back. “We’ve all been waiting for you, colonel. What were the results of the survey?”

The young woman took an uncomfortable moment before answering. “We managed to organize five separate companies and entered territory formerly covered with the…‘Night’ 48 hours after noting the change over Equestria. I won’t bother with the details of the exact geographic locations, but suffice to say the locations were roughly ten miles apart and closest to the Fillydelphian and Griffonstone borders. During the daylight hours, no resistance was encountered and we confirmed the shadow over the area had fully lifted. The 5th company managed to make it to the former gun emplacement we lost three years prior at Sterling Pass.”

She took a deep breath.

“When night fell, however, we confirmed, at the cost of the 2nd and 5th companies, that the Nighttouched still inhabit the areas and arise when its dark. The 1st, 3rd, and 4th companies had only made inroads across the border about two miles and were able to retreat with some casualties. However, no Light Eaters were sighted. Although the Nighttouched pursued the companies back across the border after nightfall they were suppressed and, on dawn breaking, retreated again.”

She rubbed for the top of her nose, just above her dressing.

“Following the first night, the remaining three companies changed tactics. Heavy guns were authorized for use and the companies were relocated to the main roads. Speed was lost as we had to bring in the engineering corps to work on making the roads suitable for heavier traffic before we could proceed. Nevertheless, after two days of work, during which we retreated each night, the 4th company was able to make it all the way to the Equestrian border and cross into the former country. We confirmed the situation is the same there. The night is gone. We authorized the first flyover yesterday. The airship only went in 40 miles before turning around, but no attacks in daylight.”

Fancy Pants bowed his head and thought for a moment. “And…the Castle of the Two Sisters?”

She shook her head. “We’re still too far away to even look at it via a scope. We’ll need to push more inland.”

“And how long,” the director of defense spoke up, “do you think that will take, colonel?”

“At our current rate of progress and state, difficult to assess. At the moment we can’t make any permanent inroads into Equestria, and the days are getting shorter at this time of year. We’ll need the ability to set up landed encampments that can withstand Nighttouched attacks or exterminate all Nighttouched in the area to be able to progress. We don’t have the weaponry or manpower for either maneuver, and the Fillydelphian military has been silent in regards to our requests. Right now…months.”

The director frowned while the chancellor sighed. “And I don’t suppose there’s been any sign of our…special strike team, has there been?”

She shook her head. “The most we’ve come across so far were human remains from past surges. All of them had been dead at least two years.”

The director opened her mouth to ask a question, but was cut off as another knock rang out from the door. It opened soon after, allowing the director of state to walk in next. The colonel quickly stepped to one side to allow him passage as he entered giving nods to each individual.

“Chancellor Fancy Pants…gentlemen…general, colonel…”

The chancellor nodded back. “Good to see you, doctor. What’s our situation?”

His face grew visibly uncomfortable. “Would you like the good news or the bad news first?”

“Bad news. Always better to be rid of that.”

“Very well,” he muttered as he folded his hands, “based on what we’ve found, we can now confirm beyond any doubt that whatever eliminated the unnatural ‘Night’ over Equestria was linked to something that caused a spike in the known individuals who possess a hexagonal emblem on their hand. Thus far, we have been totally unable to establish a pattern or way of predicting it. Nothing related to geography, surroundings, proximity to landmarks or to the border, personal traits…nothing. They happen seemingly purely at random. Some of our own officials now bear these marks.”

“Some officials?” one of the directors spoke up. “Which ones, exactly?”

The director of state looked to him, giving him a slightly raised eyebrow, as if he clearly picked up on the urgency and suspicion in his tone. “I don’t feel I’m at liberty to say, but at least three. Two within the civil department, and one…well…one…”

With that, he held up his own hand, letting his suitcoat sleeves slip and expose the back of it.

Over half the people in the room let out a mild gasp, for that was the first time they had seen one of the emblems in front of them. Several of them recoiled. The two guardsmen at the front actually reflexively went for their weapons before stopping themselves.

The doctor glanced around the room. “I figured as much would happen, so I thought why try and hide it and stall the inevitable.” He looked forward; his face growing a bit downcast as he sighed. “Chancellor…shall I continue? Or would you like to remove me from office and place my hands in manacles first?”

Fancy Pants stared at him quietly for five full seconds. The others in the room grew silent and looked to him—knowing whatever he would say would decide a great many things for how the nation would proceed from this day forth. The doctor patiently waited for whatever would come.

“That…won’t be necessary.”

About half of the room looked surprised in one way or another. Two individuals looked at the chancellor as if he was crazy. Everyone else, however, eased.

“I see no reason to remove you from office provided that you’re still able to carry out your duties as director of state, doctor.”

He lowered his hand and nodded it. “Thank you, chancellor…in more ways than one.” After giving a cursory glance around the room to quickly assess who was normal and who was still staring at him uncomfortably, he continued.

“I planned my revelation intending that this altercation would take place as a result to demonstrate a point. Namely, in that it’s hard to assess just how many individuals now bear these marks due to paranoia and fear. Following the incident with the kerosene plant, to say nothing of the gossip and rumors, most individuals who have these marks are going into hiding. Some of them have been reported to us as if we were expected to go on a modern-day witch hunt. Even data from other countries has proven to be an affair. Griffonstone gave no response to our query, but Fillydelphia is what distresses me as they outright refused to share the information.”

This caused no small share of uneasy looks around the room, but the doctor went on.

“So far, we’ve accounted for 47 individuals all together. That being said, we’ve done some estimates based on what statistical data we have available and guesses based on the newer individuals we’ve found. Based on the assessment, including and accounting for the individuals who arose as a result of what happened over Equestria, we estimate that there are anywhere from 200 to 300 residing in the Manehattan province alone. Extrapolating across Greater Everfree and accounting for reduced population density, there’s likely anywhere from 1,700 to 2,000 all together.”

He folded his hands.

“And now for the good news. Even accounting for people refusing to come out with their symbols, our current assessment based on discoveries of these individuals is that no new individuals have arisen since then. Perhaps the event didn’t so much cause the new individuals to arise as simply ‘got them out all at once’, so to speak. Even better is that we haven’t reported a single incident of any of these individuals having a psychotic episode.”

Fancy Pants nodded back. “That is good news.”

“Chancellor, I hope you’ve realized from all of what I’ve just told you that we can’t go on like this much longer. I’m afraid ignorance will no longer suffice as a reason for inaction.”

He took a deep breath and nodded. “Quite right.”

“I have to say I must push back a little on the doctor’s comments,” the director of national security spoke up. “Keeping paranoia down is important, especially now more than ever. Yet the fact remains that we still haven’t perfected the means to restrain an individual who has one of these strange episodes, and that until we do they will become homicidal and we will have no choice but to use lethal force. Letting them go free is not a terribly viable option.”

“Well, neither is scaring everyone so much that they both drive these individuals into hiding so that they claim as many lives as humanly possible before we’re able to restrain them,” the doctor drolly responded, “while simultaneously asking people to believe whatever they want to about these individuals until they decide to inact lynchings or vigilantism.”

Fancy Pants bowed his head again and pulled aside his monocle long enough to rub at his eyes before replacing it. “I will have to side with the director of state on this one. We can’t afford any more half-measures. I would like a summary of everything we conclusively know about these individuals so far and to release a press statement regarding them publicly.”

A few of the officials looked uneasy at this. Even a bit stunned. Some began to protest. “Chancellor…!”

“I put this off for far too long to begin with. At least we can prevent any further damage, I hope. We put our trust in six of these individuals to save our continent; I think we can let a bit more leeway for-”

He was cut off as the door to the office suddenly opened without a knock. Everyone looked up and saw the building’s telegraph operator burst in clutching a scrap of paper in his hands. He didn’t look to the two guards who immediately moved to accost him. “Chancellor! Chancellor!”

The two men grabbed him and nearly pushed him back out, but before they could Fancy Pants held up a hand. “Wait, wait! Let him go!”

The two soldiers paused, but then stepped back. As if hardly noticing them, the operator quickly stepped forward. “We got a breaking wire from the Appleloosan embassy! They just got the news from Trottingham!”

“Trottingham?” the chancellor echoed back in puzzlement. The operator tried to bring him the telegraph, but his aide quickly stepped in and took it from his hand before he could. She brought it back to the front and passed it off to Fancy Pants soon after. He quickly claimed it and began to read, as everyone watched him keenly and waited for the word.

It wasn’t long before he looked stunned. Even shocked. He kept reading a bit more before he passed it off to his aide. She quickly read over it as well as he let out a long exhale and turned to face the window outside. Sure enough, her own jaw began to hang soon afterward.

“Chancellor?” one of the officials finally asked.

The aide looked up to him. He kept facing the window, but he made a gesture to her with one hand. She swallowed as she lowered the telegram.

“The Dragonlands have signed a non-aggression treaty with Trottingham.”

Surprised looks passed around the room, although more bewildered than shocked. “How is that possible?” the director of defense spoke up. “They’ve been constantly at war almost for the past eight years and all our sources said that neither side was in a position to give any ground.”

The aide swallowed uncomfortably. “The message further states that this is in the wake of an aerial battle that took place two days ago. Trottingham claims…” She paused, steadying herself. “They’re claiming that in a battle that involved sixty aerial warships in all from both sides that…that the battle was over within fifteen minutes and all Dragonlands airships were destroyed.”

Now the surprise was more of the shocked kind. A period of silence hung over the room. Everyone with military experience couldn’t help but stare baffled.

“Impossible…” one of the lesser officers finally spoke up. “How could anyone have managed that? Was it that ‘Fire Witch’ from Trottingham that keeps-”

The director of defense shook his head. “No, it can’t have been her. One of the wires we intercepted almost a week ago said she was officially MIA with no change. This had to be the new commodore appointed by the admiral.”

“New commodore? Who?”

“Unknown. The informant who reported on her wasn’t able to catch her name and only glimpsed her briefly. The only distinguishing characteristic she was able to report was a prominent scar over her right eye.”

Another moment of silence throughout the chamber. All eyes gradually moved back to the chancellor. He stared out the window a moment longer before he finally turned back to the room.

“With Equestria now free of that shadow, I think it’s high time we scheduled a new summit,” he finally stated. “I’d like to meet with all of our current leaders as soon as possible. Have our embassies start wiring theirs as soon as this meeting is over.”

He took a deep breath.

“I myself will wire Trottingham and the Dragonlands directly.”

Yet another round of surprise in the room, as this had been the first act of diplomacy from Manehattan to those two nations in the better part of six years. It garnered even more suspicious looks, but the doctor nodded in approval and the colonel looked all too ready to execute it. Even the aide readily began to take the memorandum.

Taking out his pocket handkerchief to wipe at his brow, Fancy Pants looked back out. “Colonel, I’m afraid you were cut off. Is there anything else you wished to report?”

“Nothing as monumental as what we just heard, sir. We dispatched a steamboat to try and hit the northern limits of Greater Everfree. Since we’re still in the summer months, we reasoned above the Arctic Circle we can be in an area of 24 hours of sunlight and would have a shot of being able to round the upper limits of the continent at least. The ice should be thin enough that they can navigate through the islands.”

“What did you find?”

“Nothing yet, sir. They’re two days past due.”