//------------------------------// // Epilogue: The Crow // Story: A Murder Of Crows // by Kaidan //------------------------------// It was a bright and sunny day in Maretime bay, the clear skies extended in every direction as a lone crow circled in the air, looking down on the town. The streets were still damp from the recent tsunami, the flooding had washed ashore all manner of debris from the ocean. Sunny was grateful for the many pegasi guards that had come to help the town recover from the disaster. They had greatly sped up the efforts to clean up the town and helped organize the locals. The crow glided down, landing on top of the Sheriff’s office as Sunny walked inside. The mood was somber as Dawn talked to Sprout. The pegasus had recovered from the birds attacking her, though her feathers would take several more weeks to regrow. “See to the funeral arrangements for Dahlia and Hitch, that’ll be all for today,” Sprout said. “Thanks, Sheriff,” Dawn replied. Sunny tensed up at the conversation she’d walked in on, feeling the same pain she had felt when her father had passed. “He could still be missing.” Sprout and Dawn noticed she’d walked in on the conversation at the same time. Dawn looked down at the ground, ashamed, while Sprout took a deep breath and glanced at the calendar with Hitch’s photo on the wall. “I’m sorry, Sunny.” Sprout apologized. “The last time anypony saw Hitch, he was heading out to make sure everypony had gotten to shelter during the tsunami. I tried to get him into the storm shelter sooner, but he refused until he made sure nopony was left outside.” Dawn came up to Sunny’s side and gave her a hug. “There are only thirteen ponies still missing, we’ll keep looking but we need to start preparing for the worst.” Sunny wiped her cheeks and nodded. “I know… I just don’t want it to be true. I think I should go work on salvaging my smoothie cart, so I won't dwell on this.” Sprout nodded. “I’ve got some big horseshoes to fill, but I’m here for you Sunny.” “Me too,” Dawn added. “Thanks, everypony.” Sunny smiled at them before turning and walking out the door. Above on the roof, the lone crow let out a sorrowful “caw.” Sunny tensed for a moment, before glaring up on it, then walking away. The crow flew across the street, staying perched where it could keep an eye on the orange mare. Sunny only made it halfway to her cart when she noticed Zipp and Phyllis talking. She drifted over to check on her friend, and listened in on the conversation. “I went through some of the books in our library,” Zipp explained. “There’s no records of any creatures matching the descriptions or photos that Hitch sent me. You know what the weirdest part is? I found an old tome of something called Grimm’s Fairy Tales, and it did describe some of the creatures.” Phyllis nodded along excitedly. “Probably the changeling, right?” “Yeah, how’d you know?” Zipp asked. “Canterlogic didn’t always produce products to protect from pegasi and unicorns. I was able to find some old records from my Grandparent’s time. X-ray goggles to detect shapeshifters, and notes on a race of bugs that could suck the love out of a pony, and the rumors got weirder from there. Flying yeti’s, golems, bat ponies, and more.” Zipp laughed. “Sounds about right, there were also stories about giant dragons that ate crystal ponies in the book I found. But what are the odds, right?” Phyllis shrugged. “Well, non-zero given the photos Hitch sent, and some of the debris the storm washed ashore. I just wish the storm hadn’t washed away all the best evidence.” Sunny finally spoke up. “Hey, how’s it going, Zipp? Phyllis?” “Okay,” Phyllis shrugged. “I’m glad to see you!” Zipp gave Sunny a hug which comforted the earth pony greatly. “Caw.” The three ponies glanced up at the crow, now perched on a closed umbrella and watching over them. “Ignore it, don’t encourage it,” Sunny muttered. “I’m sorry about Hitch,” Zipp said. “If you want to get away to Zephyr Heights for a while, take a little vacation, maybe we can get you smiling again.” “That does sound nice, but I have to stay until I know for certain.” Sunny looked out over the bay, noticing the large chunk of the cliff that had been knocked out by the massive wave. “I hate not knowing. Hitch could be washed to sea, or he could be trapped somewhere in town.” “Sunny!” Izzy shouted. The unicorn, followed by Pipp, were hurrying over to join them at the table. Phyllis smiled, “I think I better go check on the repair crews. You girls have fun.” Izzy and Pipp both embraced Sunny to comfort her for the loss they were all feeling. Izzy let go first, something catching her eye. “Caw.” “Oh look at that!” Izzy pointed up at the crow. “It’s got a silver sparkle!” “Huh?” Sunny asked. “I’ve never seen an animal with luminescence before. Do you think it’s a special crow?” Izzy asked. “It’s the only one left in town,” Sunny complained. “I for one have seen enough to last a lifetime.” Everypony sat down at the small table that overlooked the ocean. There was a gentle breeze coming in from the bay, and they were all happy to have a little time to relax after the busy week trying to put a town back in order. “So, what are you up to today?” Pipp asked. “I was going to repair my smoothie cart,” Sunny explained. “Maybe Zipp is right though, once we clean up the town a vacation might be nice.” “Oh!” Pipp beamed. “I know the perfect place for a makeover, and a masseuse that could work the knot out of a boulder without breaking a sweat.” “Do you want to help with my cart?” Sunny asked. “It’s got a lot of water damage.” “Sure, we can help,” Zipp said on behalf of herself and her sister. “How about you Izzy?” “Huh? Oh I’ll catch up,” Izzy stated. She was still staring up curiously at the crow. The other ponies crossed the road to the smoothie stand while Izzy sat for another minute before speaking up. “So you seem like you have something to say?” The crow tilted its head and let out a long chirp, pointing a wing across the street. “Either your wing itches or you want me to follow you.” “Caw!” The crow glided across the street and landed on a sign outside a coffee shop, looking back intently at Izzy. She got up from her seat and galloped across the street, humming a tune to herself. As she approached the bird, it flittered onto the next sign, then the next. Before long, it was guiding her down a series of alleyways into the heart of the town. If Izzy had tried to wander this way on her own, she would have gotten lost or turned around several times. The crow seemed to know exactly where it was going. It finally landed on a sewer cover, leading into a series of storm drains that fed into the ocean. “Oh, there must be something important inside?” Izzy asked. “Caw!” Izzy’s horn lit up, levitating the metal cover and the crow up into the air and setting it down beside the hole. She peered in, her horn casting some light into the inky black and a glint caught her eye. “This is interesting.” The bird landed on her back, perching just behind her mane. “In we go.” She carefully climbed down the ladder into the sewer and renewed the flow of magic to her horn, lighting up the small chamber. There was a carved channel in the floor through which water was trickling, flowing downhill towards the ocean. Most of the stones were stained and slick with algae, except for a large patch that appeared painted black. The blackness reflected no light from Izzy’s horn. In the middle of the dark patch were several bits of emerald glass, and a silver badge. The Sheriff’s badge had Hitch’s name engraved on it. It took Izzy a moment to pry it from the ground with her magic and realize who it belonged to. “Oh, no…” Izzy frowned as she looked back at the crow. “We’ll have to go show this to Sunny.” The crow seemed to deflate a bit and let out a sorrowful “caw.” Izzy glanced from the crow to the badge and back again. “You know, Hitch’s sparkle was silver too.” The bird looked up at her. “Caw!” The unicorn climbed back out of the sewer, and the bird took off again to guide her back to Sunny. She followed along, wondering about the strange week it had been. Now Izzy had found a rather interesting crow, deciding to keep it as a pet until she could figure out this new mystery. Every single crow had vanished, except for this one, and it had led her to Hitch’s badge. Maybe in some small way, their friend was still watching over Maretime bay.