//------------------------------// // Chapter. 4 – Good Day Sunset // Story: My Most Faithful Mortifer // by hamishwarfare //------------------------------// Chapter. 4 – Good Day Sunset It was the sound of muffled bird song that awoke the sleeping filly. Eyes rubbed free of sleep revealed a pair of amethysts that took stock of her surrounding, and could not help but feel confused; nothing looked familiar. The bed she was just sleeping on was a basic wooden frame with an acceptable mattress along with a plain green blanket. The source of light for the room, a window on the wall opposite the bed, revealed to the purple coated filly that her lodgings were located within a forest; as all she could make out from her position on the bed were green leaves and brown branches. A lot of green leaves and brown branches, with extra splashes of colour thanks to a few birds dancing on the branches. Oh, and that it was currently daytime. The room itself was plain and simple; there was a small desk with a chair resting beside the wall containing the window. The wood theme continued on to a dresser and matching small side cupboard next to the bed she was currently sitting on. A simple lamp was sitting on top of the side cupboard. To the right of the door, in front of the bed, was a full length mirror; about the only thing in the room that wasn’t made out of wood. Overall it was a very simple room, but it felt look after; clean and comfortable. Not something a prisoner would wake up in. A small part of herself said she should be scared, terrified, to have woken up in such an unfamiliar place; but she wasn’t. While the logical thought was there, she just could not bring herself to feel scared; or any other powerful emotions honestly. A little curiosity perhaps, but nothing of any great power; she was just here, observing her surroundings and trying to remember how she got to this room. She could not remember how she got here; or where here was. Traveling deeper into her head revealed that more information was missing; that she could not even remember her own name, or what she looked like. Seeing her forelegs revealed her coat was lavender in colour. With the assistance of her hooves she learnt that her mane and tail were primarily deep blue with a streak of pink and purple in each. The rest of herself was harder to see. Thankfully her memory helped here; she remembered seeing a full length mirror between the bed and the door. Carefully extracting herself out of the bed and walked towards the reflecting instrument; honestly she didn’t know what to think when she finally saw her reflection. The image was of a small purple unicorn with a dark blue mane and tail with a purple stripe down both at the third mark; as she discovered while sitting on the bed. Her eye colour was purple, but the eyes themselves appeared lifeless. Not cloudy in appearance, they just seemed to have a distance to them; cold perhaps. Oh, she had a mark on her thigh and it was mirrored on the other one too; a pink circle with a wavy edge surrounded by five white stars, with what looked like white streaks in the center. It took up most of the space available on her thighs. ‘Guess that’s me. Wow I’m short…am I even an adult? I mean I thought I was since I have a child out there somewhere. Guess this is why it was taken from me; I’m a kid as well. I wonder what theses marks are? It doesn’t feel like a sticker or anything. A tattoo maybe? …mark? Oh. Cutie mark; the symbol of my special talent. Umm I don’t know what my talent is either. Who am I even?’ Before anymore contemplation could happen, there was a knock on the door before it started to gently open. Quickly getting out of the way of the door, she made it back to the bed as the person came into the room. It was a tall unicorn mare with a long horn; her mane was styled into a Mohawk and it was maroon in colour as well as her tail. The mare’s coat looked like a redder version of the fillies own. She was wearing a black body suit that clung to her torso and covered that cutie mark thing. Finally her eyes were a sharp jade in colour and the right one had a scare going across it. There was something about those eyes; were they showing respect? Wariness maybe? There was defiantly a bit of indifference. Perhaps a tiny bit of sorrow? It was hard to make out, or even fully understand what these emotions should entail. Wait there was something interesting being carried on her back; a tray. An eye blink of time passed as the young filly processed these thoughts; heck the adult mare probably didn’t even notice the staring. In a more cheerful tone than what was expected the tall unicorn spoke up. “Ah good you’ve regained consciousness. Come over to the desk here, you must be hungry. Here we are. Now on you go, no point holding back for ceremony with me. Dig in” That was more than enough encouragement for the filly to sit down in front of said tray; it was laden with a big bowl of vegetable stew with a few slices of bread on the side and a big glass of water. Grabbing the glass with her magic, she paused moments before taking a drink. For some reason, the young filly could not explain, but she felt that something wasn’t right with the water. She looked back to the other occupant in the room, who just smiled and indicated that she was free to drink. It was with a few sniffs of the clear liquid the glass contained, before the filly drained the glass of its contents in a matter of moments; the food followed quickly after the water. “Well someone was hungry, weren’t they? When was the last time you ate?” It was obviously meant to be a joke, but that one sentence hurt more than a little. It was faint, a quiet mumble that no one was expected to hear “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that?” “I, I don’t. Remember.” “Oh, well that’s ok. It would have probably bee–” “Or anything else.” Small eyes looked up to the tall mare standing a little away from the table, closer to the door. There should have been tears in those eyes with a statement like that, but there was nothing; no emotion at all. It was almost creepy. “I don’t remember where I am, or how I got here. I don’t even remember my own name. Or your name, or anything really.” “Oh dear, we didn’t expect this as a possibility. Come on, let’s get you checked again by the doctor and I’ll try and fill you in as we walk to the infirmary.” With that the unicorn left the room, and the small unicorn filly followed. Much like the room she had woken up in, the corridors were made out of wood and were sparse, but almost tastefully simple. The roof was pointed off and had the occasional support beam crossing the gap between walls. The walls themselves had a pale wooden beam dividing the midway point and ran the length of the corridor; under the beam was painted pure white. Above the divide were intermittent windows, retractable wooden doors for said windows and white wall sections. The floor of the corridor was a very nicely waxed wooden floor with the lengths of wooden planks following the direction of the corridor. “Well my name Tempest Shadow and I was supposed to begin training you into an agent today; but it looks like that might not be happening. You were late arriving, so we sent scouts to look for you. Turns out your escort and yourself got ambushed by a wondering manticore; you fell out of the wagon when it was struck, and hit your head against a rock on the ground. Free Fall, your escort, managed to hold off the manticore from injuring you further until the scouts arrived, between all of them they managed to turn away the beast. “We found that, though you had taken a nasty strike to the head, our diagnostic magic revealed only a concussion; so we patched that up and let you rest in the chambers prepared for you. Or so we thought. “Sigh, as for who you are. Your name is Sunset Shimmer; an eight year old orphan with a magical talent that would benefit us greatly; so we adopted you. From what I have gathered, your time at the orphanage was not a pleasant one. Perhaps that is a silver lining to the situation you find yourself in?” It was a simple story, but one that could easily be true. ‘Sunset Shimmer, that’s my name? It doesn’t sound right, or does it? There is something about it that feels right, defiantly something that connects me to it. Sunset Shimmer, yes there is defiantly a connection there, it feels right. Mostly.’ “Ok so, my name is Sunset Shimmer. That sounds familiar. I think? And I was brought up in an orphanage? I take it I was the youngest there?” Tempest raised eyebrow, but nodded along regardless “It’s just that I don’t think I had any friends my own age. I’ve got this strange feeling of always having to look up, I think? It’s really, really hazy.” “Yes, it does collaborate with what I heard about the place you were found. It sounds like there is indeed a silver lining to this tragic event. I would put it out of your thoughts for now; if your memories come back then we can deal with them at that time.” “Yeah I think that maybe for the best, it really hurt trying to think that far back.” “Well, we’ve arrived at Doctor Heimlich Maneuver’s office.” Knocking on the door, the two unicorn’s had to wait a moment or two before there was a response granting them entrance to the room. This office had a similar feel to the room that Sunset had woken up in, though with filing cabinets and a tall examination bed, than a cupboard and a standard bed. The doctor himself was a middle aged earth pony; he had a light red coat, with a yellow and black stripped main and tail combination. He also had a goatee facial feature coloured the same as his mane. The doctor had on a white lab coat that covered his tail and cutie marks. “Ah, little Sunset Shimmer has awoken, I see. How are you feeling? Any headaches?” his accent was deep and a little harsh, but his tone was a friendly one. Before Sunset Shimmer could say anything; her future teacher spoke up for her. “I’m afraid she seems to be suffering from amnesia. She cannot remember anything at all; not even her own name. And she seems to get a headache whenever she tried to remember something. As we were walking down to your office, she got a vague sense of only having to look up at people and never had someone eye to eye. This gave her a bad headache.” The doctor paused at hearing this before turning to the young filly to confirm what was dais to be true; which she agreed with. “Oh dear. So more than just a moderate concussion then; well hop up onto the examination table and we’ll have a look at you. Give me a moment; I just need to get my nurse.” Before long a mare unicorn nurse walked into the room and the examination of her head began. It was a long and drawn out series of questions and answers, reactions to stimuli, memory tests and even cognition tests, and all the while the unicorn nurse was scanning her head with magic and taking notes of the reactions. However, after far too long a time, the session came to an end. He took the notes from the nurse, who at this point looked quite tired, and began to read through them. As he read a frown appeared on his face. “Right, well this is looking a little problematic. As far as I can see with the initial readings your amygdala have been damaged somehow; this may help explain the memory loss, as it is the place where memories and emotions are processed. I shall need to do some more research, but this is a solid lead.” He flipped through a few more pages of notes before he stopped again, this time with his eyebrows rising to the sun. “It seems like your hippocampus has received an enhancement, as the activity there is tremendous. Suffice to say you’ve got quite the pupil now, Tempest.” For the first time in an hour Tempest Shadow was addressed. Honestly Sunset thought she’d have left by now. “What do you mean doctor?” “Simply put her ability to experience most simple emotions – anger, fear, surprise for example – has been hampered; by how much I cannot say right now but she most likely will have acute alexithymia because of this. While on the other side of the coin, her cognition has been boosted beyond what was already looking like an intelligent filly. “It is unlikely she will do very well at espionage, perhaps just the infiltration aspects. But she will learn everything you give her like a sponge soaking up water. Add that to a very impressive magic well and we may have our first viable AK agent on our hands.” “So is she cleared for training, doctor? If what you’re saying’s true then I’ve got my work cut out for me.” The tone of voice quivered slightly, it was subtle but Sunset guessed the quiver was excitement, possibly anticipation. “Most everything should be fine; though keep it to moderate, if you can. Nothing that causes head injuries for the next seven day; I want to see her again then to do a secondary scan. If nothing has changed in that time and I see no difference in the scan results at that time then she will be able to do everything.” Tempest Shadow looked upon the wall and found a clock, telling her there was still a lot of sunlight left to burn for the day. “So, what do you think Sunset? Think you’re up to start showing your worth to us?” Sunset Shimmer, the young filly who was suffering from acute amnesia, simply shrugged her shoulders “Do I have much of a choice?” “Nope, but I felt it best to be civil. Follow me out into the court yard and well go through some basic drills for today. We’ll focus on them until the doctor gives you the all clear and then we’ll hit the books.” They were walking along the same wooden corridors as before. There were a few more ponies walking around at this point, but all of them were giving Tempest, and thus Sunset, a wide berth. “I’m pretty sure the doctor said I couldn’t do anything that may involve head injuries. Not reading.” That made Tempest laugh, “My philosophy is that you cannot train the mind without training the body; when I say hit the books I almost mean it literally. You’ll be studying written material at the same as say push ups, sit ups, and eventually close combat. This will help with quick thinking on the go as well retaining the information. You won’t forget the formula force equals mass times acceleration when you see it in action with my hood to your face. “Though if you’ve got as much potential as Heimlich claims you have, then I will not be your only teacher. But that is quite a few years down the road; for now we still have a few hours of day light remaining so let’s start on those push ups and sit ups I mentioned.” The courtyard was spacious and clean, the vast majority was flat and dirt covered. There were a few ponies training and what Sunset assumed were their trainers watching over them. Some were unicorns using magic blades; others were pegasi and what appeared to be them trying to shoot lightening through their wings. There were even a few earth ponies and one in particular appeared to be trying to harness her earth magic to create spears made out of the soil. The final most notable thing that drew her eyes was an outer wall with the letters P.R.E.D.A.T.O.R pasted in big bold letters along the wall. It took half a dozen attempts before Sunset finally achieved the correct posture according to her teacher. After getting the first couple were completed successfully, Sunset asked about the letters on the wall. “I never did say where we are did I? Well we are predator, a secret organisation that can trace our founding all the way back to before the nightmare rebellion. We help keep the kingdom on the straight and narrow, by working in the shadows and doing what needs to be done. It is not gratifying, everyone hates us, but it is a job that must be done to keep Equestria from anarchy; be it snubbing nobles, to breaking up invasion forces before they can rally. Now that’s enough push ups for the time being; get on your back and start with the sit ups.” The young purple unicorn Sunset Shimmer was already in a puddle of her own sweat but she followed the orders without complaint. “Huff, Acronym?” “Yes it is an Acronym. It stands for: Ponies Reparation of Extremely Deadly Agents Tactically Operating Remotely. Once your training with us has been completed to our satisfaction you will be placed as either a sleeper agent or an active one, decided at the time of you completing your training. These may be quiet times but that is only thanks to our hard work removing cancers before they can metastasis. “Anyway, a few more and that will do for today; you’re not the worst I’ve seen, but still got a long way to go. I shall finish giving you a tour of the place before dinner. But be ready for dawn where we start your time in hell.” “Do you have a library here?” Sunset was clearly tired from her light exercise session, but apparently her thirst for knowledge does not require such mortal things as rest. “Well then, I guess that is the first place to show you. We have books on everything you are likely ever going to need and/or want to read. We’ve got books that even the Royal Archives do not possess, though you won’t be getting access to those tomes for a long time, if ever. We’ll get you introduced and then you can return after the tour and after dinner to brows. Just remember training starts at dawn so make sure you’re ready for that. This is your one and only warning that I get creative when it comes to getting students out of bed.” The tone may have been light, but the look in her eyes said she was serious. Sunset took note of this information, but did nothing more than nod in confirmation as they walked deeper into the complex to resume the tour. This was how home now, they were kind enough to adopt an orphan like herself, and she would make them proud; ‘I will repay that kindness.’ The search for Twilight Sparkle has surpassed the twenty four hour mark and things were feeling a lot less hopeful. Many of the guards had to return to prior duties to ensure the safety of the capital, especially considering the search of Canterlot revealed more than a few areas that demanded investigating. If there was any form of silver lining to this crisis, it would be the shutting down of two separate smuggling operations and even a pony trafficking scheme. Those thoughts did little to help the small family whose member is still missing. They had finally moved themselves from the private dining room of Princess Celestia and were now trying to rest in Princess Cadances chambers. Spare mattresses, pillows and blankets were taken to her room to allow all of the ponies most affected by this tragic event to stay close. Even First Lieutenant Shining Armour was off duty at this time, being granted leave thanks to the ongoing family emergency. Truthfully he did not know if it was a blessing or a punishment; he was desperate to find his sister, or to be out there doing something to help. But his family needed him, and Twily would be mad if he wasn’t there for their family. It had taken a long time but finally both of his parents were asleep on Cadances bed, using Spike as a surrogate daughter to fall asleep with. Currently Shining was sitting next to Cadance on a sofa in front of an unlit fire separated by a small coffee table. Random books were scattered across the coffee table, some even open revealing pages; but all of them were currently forgotten. Shining Armour was trying his very best to comfort his marefriend by now all that he could do was hold her tight. She was crying into the crook of his neck, his own eyes flowing almost as freely. Something had happened to Twilight. Something beyond words. There was a gentle knock on the door before a sorrowful princess walked into the room; she had been summoned some time ago and it had taken all this time for her to finally arrive. “I heard you needed to see me. Has something happened to Twilight?” her posture was immaculate and stiff, her voice devoid of inflections, she was the picture of a princess; she was expecting the absolute worst news possible. If Princess Mi Amore Cadenza could no longer feel the presence of ones she loved, it could only be because they have moved on. What she got, while no doubt disturbing, was not what she was prepared for. It took a moment to receive the news as there was a silent talk between the unicorn stallion and the small alicorn princess. Eventually Princess Cadance looked up to her adopted aunt. “She’s still alive, thankfully. But, she must have gone through something I wouldn’t wish on anyone. It was horrible. Her love…” A moment passed while Cadance regained her composure. “I could feel it as one by one her love for all of us just disappeared.” Her voice was quiet and soft, cracking in places as she fought valiantly to keep her composure. This was not what Celestia had prepared to here at all. While relieved her student was alive, just what corrupting powers could do that to her love? “Were the bonds tainted or corrupted in some way?” “Sniff, no not tainted, her love for us didn’t change; they just disappeared. Vanished. The only one that remains is for Spike; but it is so faint.” That made Princess Celestial pause. “They just disappeared? And you saw nothing that was influencing these effects? I’m sorry, I’m afraid I have no idea how such a thing is possible. But it is another lead that I shall make sure is fully looked into. Have you mentioned this development to…” her eyes travelled to the doors separating the bedroom from the rest of the suit. “No, only Shining and myself knows this happened. Well you too, now. I don’t want to give them any more grief than I have already.” Princess Celestial could see the sudden frustration appear in Shining Armor’s posture as he embraces the young alicorn all the more firmly. It was clear that she wasn’t the only one that wished Cadance would stop blaming herself. “Very well, I shall keep this only as a need to know. I have arranged some refreshment for you all and they should be arriving within the next half hour. If you wish I will allow you access to the information gathered so far, though I must warn you there is not a lot. Though I have to wonder, why was the love for Spike not completely lost?” “My only guess is because she sees herself as his mother. Even though she’s only eight years old, she tried her very best to be his mum. There were lots of problems that would not have happened if she were older with more life experience that we needed to fix; but she dose love him like a child. Whatever happened to her could not break that bond; just wear it out greatly.” “Then we shall honour her thinking on the matter. I was hoping to try and have Spike imprint on one of us as a mother figure, perhaps even Mrs Velvet while Twilight was not here, but no longer.” “I can’t believe you were hoping to use this situation like that.” Cadance’s voice was cracking due to the complete turnaround of emotions. A torrent of fire was rapidly building within her as she looked at her aunt. “I was hoping to avoid a teenage to young adult dragon losing his mother in eighty to one hundred years from now. You know this and we’ve discussed this at length; I am guilty of still trying to look out for him. But, the dedication Twilight must have to the role went beyond what I had suspected a child capable of. I promise you I shall not interfere in their relationship any further, other than what is asked of me from now on. Now if you’ll excuse me.” Princess Celestia turned on the spot and simply walked out of the room, closing the door gently behind her. “You know she only said that to force your anger away from yourself and onto her, right?” “Sigh, yes, Shiny. I realised that when she gently closed the door.” “Did it work?” There was the smallest hint of hope held within his voice that Cadance picked up on, and not just because of her ability to feel love. “…yes it worked a little. I still feel bad, but I no longer want to beat myself up over it. Shiny, when the intelligence reports get here, do you think you can show me how to connect the dots and find a pattern of events?” Shining Armor sat up and looked directly into his marefriend’s eyes. It was small, but there was indeed a spark of Cadance within those light purple orbs once more. He choked back a sob of relief as a slight smile appeared onto his face. “Sure. I can teach you that and together, hopefully, we can see something that other ponies have missed… “Cadance. Please don’t scare me like that. We’ve already lost one. I don’t want to lose another.” His voice was suddenly raw and full of emotions betraying the tough First Lieutenant look he tries to portray. It finally dawned on Cadance that she had been hurting him just as much as herself. It was her turn to support and be the reassuring partner; she pulls him into her own comforting embrace. “I’m sorry Shiny; I can’t promise this won’t happen again. But we’ll get through this, together.” “Together.” They lean in for a small gentle kiss full of reassurances, apologies and promises of a better tomorrow.