Everfree Forest, 7 months since the Crusaders left.
The princess of the night, Luna was making her way through the Everfree Forest with a solemn look on her face. Ever since she had found out the young fillies had run away from home, she had not been able to feel even a little happiness.
While she didn’t know them personally, she could relate to them on a deep level; they were both shunned and to some extent banished. She had been, but those fillies were exiled by self-decision.
When she found out the element bearers had shunned their siblings, she didn’t know what to feel. Anger was certainly an emotion she felt, but that came later when she realised the fillies were no longer in the place they once called home. The act of leaving once home behind without looking back is one many warriors throughout history have done. Most of them never returned.
She could not get over the fact that those fillies had made their way over to the Badlands.
The princess of the night did realise that the fillies weren’t aware of how dangerous the lands were, but she would retrieve them. They had sent out several parties to the Badlands, but they had never returned and all communication they had with one particular party had seized their messages.
Luna would be lying if she said that she wasn’t a little disgusted that it had taken her so long to realise that she should have gone to search for them herself.
She should have done it the second she heard they were missing. Out of everyone in Equestria, she was the one who could relate to them the most. She was the one who wanted some praise and her sisters’ attention but was eventually shunned and banished to the moon for millennia. These fillies, banished themselves because they had been shunned by every pony in the town.
When she reached the end of the forest, she was met with a desert that stretched for miles.
This was one of the things she was fearing the most; that the three fillies were dead. The Badlands didn’t just have high criminality but it also had intense heat only the creatures that lived here and the dragons could stand.
Speaking of dragons, she prayed to her parents that Spike The Dragon was okay.
The young dragon had asked to be sent with the royal guards' team as a communicator as he could send direct messages to Princess Celestia. The night princess had liked the idea but changed the magic direction so it would be sent to her instead as...
She winced. She felt like she was betraying her sister... and she was...
Her sister, Celestia, was not a good ruler. A thousand years ago she was, but she certainly isn’t now. She had become soft. Luna had seen how her sister seemed to be reliant on Twilight Sparkle in some of the cases they had talked about. Luna didn’t like the insinuations that her sister had of the lavender mare.
Luna shook her head getting off-topic. So she had agreed and had quickly trained him how to fight if it came down to it. He was surprisingly good with a bow and arrow. He was a natural.
When Luna had made it over the tenth or so sand hill, she noticed that airships were hovering over the area and she felt her face become stoic.
Storm King.
She knew precisely who he was and she knew that it was his soldiers who were on those ships looking for defectors or refugees. Both of which would end badly for the poor souls.
Luna quickly cast a spell to make her invisible and watched as the airships slowly made their way towards a town that looked to be far away. She knew the town quite well.
Kludgetown.
At least she believed it to be the town. She hadn’t been here for a thousand years. For all, she knew it could be a new town that was built. It wouldn’t surprise her the slightest. Many kingdoms throw out their subjects when they commit heinous crimes which cause the criminals to band together in these lands and find ways to earn money. No doubt there were a few ponies out here.
She trekked for kilometres without stopping and she was getting tired. She wasn’t thirsty or hungry. She had packed food and water with her, but she did not need it now. Not when she was getting closer to the town she suspected was the one she knew of.
Just five days before she’d sent a letter to Celestia’s contact asking in advance if he could host her and promised she wouldn’t be a bother.
She received a response in a much quicker time than she’d anticipated. She’s used her magic and sent an object that would send a letter if the creature would answer. In response; the creature had said that there would be no problems and to be careful as Storm King soldiers had been getting volatile as of late.
She heeded his warning and was thankful she did.
Kludgetown, an unknown creature's house.
He was preparing to head out to find his guest so he could quickly get her inside his home.
He knew it would be dangerous and had heard rumours that a few Kludgetown citizens had disappeared when it was revealed they had been hiding fugitives of the Storm King. He didn’t want to imagine what would happen to him if the ruler found out he had a princess in his home, from another kingdom.
He wore his black fedora hat and had decided on a black suit with black boots as it was getting late and didn’t want to be spotted by Storm King patrols. While no one in town spoke of it; everyone knew that the Storm King soldiers roamed the streets at night. Pubs and restaurants knew this the most as they were the ones that had secretly told as many creatures as they could, both the workers and the ones that came to enjoy themselves.
He knew if he was caught, he’d no doubt face severe consequences.
Just when he was about to leave, he heard a knock on the door. He cringed. Tax creatures. Stealing his money yet again.
He walked over to the door and peeked through the peephole and burst open the door and ushered the creature inside. Slamming the door behind him, he locked the door and closed the peephole in case the soldiers were nearby.
“Princess Luna?” He asked while bowing to the princess before him.
The mare smiled at him.
“Yes, Capper it is I. I wish we would have met under better circumstances,” She added grimly while glancing around the small house.
Capper was a cat who lived in the Badlands in the town of Kludgetown. He felt sheepish as he’d realised he had not made a single effort to tidy the place up even remotely.
“Sorry about the mess,” He mumbled while frantically trying to tidy the place up at record speed. Luna simply giggled.
“It’s fine, Capper, I do not mind. I’m the one intruding.” She smiled again before it disappeared once again off her face. “Capper I must ask you; have you run into three young fillies while here? One of them is yellow-coated with a red mane and tail named Applebloom. Another one is white-coated with a light pink and light purple mane and tail named Sweetie Belle. The final filly is orange-coated with a dark purple mane and tail named Scootaloo.”
Capper nodded grimly and looked ashamed of himself.
“I ran into the last filly you mentioned. I had made a deal with a blacksmith about a few weapons that I had planned to sell for a higher price to The Revolution. She was the one who gave me the weapons and I paid her good money for them.” He couldn’t meet her gaze, but he knew that she was shocked by what he said.
“Wait, ist thou telling I, that she sold weapons to thou?” Luna didn’t realise she had spoken in the old dialect. Luckily, the cat knew what she meant.
“Yes, I had made a special order from the Blacksmiths and paid extra for a delivery which she had taken for extra bits I presume. She didn’t speak much, I did try to pry but she told me it wasn’t my concern.”
Luna thought long and hard about this. So miss Scootaloo was a blacksmith and weapons dealer. If she would be honest, she never believed that the young pegasus would do that. Instead, she imagined her to be more of a stunter and would earn bits through her stunts.
Maybe being shunned had worse consequences than they thought.
“What of the others, what are they doing?” She asked, hopeful that they hadn’t taken similar jobs. Capper smiled at this.
“The first one you mentioned, Applebloom, is a baker and earns good bits from it. Her bread became very popular here in Kludgetown as she bakes with love compared to other bakeries.” He explained. Sensing the other unasked question, he laid it on her. “The second one, Sweetie Belle is a model here in Badlands. She hasn’t left Kludgetown to my knowledge, but I know she is very popular and sought after because of her beauty.”
Luna sighed in relief.
“That is good news. Is there anything I should be concerned about?” She asked with uncertainty in her voice. She saw how Capper’s eyes darted towards the windows and door as if trying to find eavsdroppers. He found none.
“I have been... following miss Scootaloo and have observed she’s been studying the airships of the Storm King. I do not know if it means anything, but don’t be surprised if you find something related to it.”
Luna let out a shaky breath. This was suspicious and dangerous.
Even if the studying of the airships meant nothing, it was still something that Luna knew her sister would have overlooked as ‘young filly curiosity’ which, Luna would admit, is what she believed to be the case. The difference here, is that she’s opened minded that something might be going on.
“Thank you, Capper for allowing me to stay here. I promise I will not be a bother.” Luna said with respect.
Capper smiled. “You will not have to worry about it princess, we will get them home.”
“I hope so,” Luna responded before the cat showed her the way to her small room he had prepared in time for her.
Same night, Kludgetown, Badlands.
Scootaloo was working tirelessly through her journals of information that she had accumulated over the last few months. She had learned that the airships flew over their apartment at a certain time in the night which was always four-thirty-seven AM.
Now, If she managed to find a weapon like a rocket, she would be able to shoot it down. You see, when they flew over, the airships let out a poisonous gas that was highly explosive if put in the right circumstances.
Scootaloo grinned. Soon, Storm King’s tyranny would be over and she would become the rightful ruler.