//------------------------------// // 8. No Direction (The Red Parade) // Story: A Study in Silver: A RariTwi Exquisite Corpse // by SigmasonicX //------------------------------// “You have a lot of explaining to do.” Rarity coughed, still stunned from the explosion and barely hearing Trixie. The room was still dark and hazy, smoke clinging in the air from Trixie’s sudden entrance. Her armor gleamed like a small star in the darkness. “I–” Rarity coughed several times, trying to regain her composure Beneath Trixie the two stallions were stirring. The Canterlotian shot a glance at the Manehattanite, who gave a small nod. “Care to explain why you’re spying on two wanted criminals?” Trixie asked, leveling a glare at Rarity. “Yes, yes,” Rarity stammered. “I can explain it all, but… has Twilight or Diamond Tiara found Silver Spoon?” Trixie only raised an eyebrow. “What? You have a lot of explaining to do.” “Cross, now!” shouted one of the stallions. The two lit up their horns simultaneously, flooding the room in a bright surge of light. Trixie instinctively lit up her own spell, but was too late to block out the spell. Rarity stumbled around, trying to make out what was happening in front of her. She vaguely saw three bodies flung about, the sounds of punches and grunts filling the air. Rarity grit her teeth and tried to make her way towards them, desperate to help Trixie however she could. She nearly tripped over something, and when her vision cleared she recognized it as a foreleg. Rarity gasped in shock as Silver Spoon’s mother groaned and hefted herself up onto all fours: apparently still alive from the explosion. “Enough,” she whispered. “Where. Is. My. DAUGHTER!” With a yell loud enough to shatter the sun itself, she fired a spell directly towards the dueling unicorns as Rarity stood helpless to watch. Two pegasi were waiting for Twilight by the canyon edge. The first was wearing a Wonderbolts flight uniform and the second a sleek black raincoat with lettering printed on the back. “Thank Luna you’re here,” muttered the Wonderbolt. “Princess Twilight, Sergeant Fleetfoot. This is–” “Senior Special Agent Strawberry Sunrise,” chirped the mare in the raincoat. “The best that SMILE has to offer. Since Bon Bon retired, anyways.” “More like Annoying Agent who doesn’t shut up,” Fleetfoot muttered. “That was my nickname in high school actually!” Diamond Tiara eyed the two wearily. “It’s okay,” Twilight reassured her. “I asked them to be here.” “Are you sure this is the place?” Diamond whispered. Twilight nodded. “I’ve triple checked my calculations, the triangulation algorithm indicates she has to be here. We don’t know who Filthy Rich hired to guard her, so Mrs. Fleetfoot and Mrs. Sunrise will go in with me. You stay back here, okay?” Diamond frowned uncertainly but sensed she didn’t have a choice in the matter. Twilight turned to the canyon and spread her wings. “Okay. Fleetfoot, I asked for the best scout the Wonderbolts had and Spitfire sent you. We’re not exactly sure what to look for, but I’d guess that any little thing out of place is a clue. Fleetfoot nodded and pushed ahead, goggles keeping the rain out of her keen eyes. “Of course, Princess. Nothing gets by me.” “That’s because your head is so big,” Strawberry mused, tugging the brim of her ball cap to keep the water away. “Agent Sunrise, please try and be professional,” Twilight lamented. “We have a missing pony at hoof.” Strawberry shrugged. “This is me being professional. You should see me on a Friday night.” “I’d prefer to never see you again actually,” Fleetfoot called. “Got something below.” The three descended, landing at a small alcove surrounded by trees. Fleetfoot leaned into a small grouping of rocks, poking at it with a cautious hoof. “Seemed odd from their positioning,” she muttered. “Guess it’s just a weird formation.” Twilight lit up her horn, running a sensory scan of the area. “Nothing I can see.” “The most dangerous things are the ones that know how to stay hidden,” Strawberry muttered, poking at the dirt with a hoof. Fleetfoot shrugged and took to the air again, the other two following soon after. Over the next half-hour they would repeat the pattern, their morale quickly spiraling after the repeated failures and the endless downpour from the sky. “Are you sure you’re the best scout the Wonderbolts have?” Strawberry asked, leaning against the entrance of the cave Fleetfoot had pointed out. “If you’re the best scout they have then I’m the Princess of Strawberries.” “Shut up!” Fleetfoot squinted into the darkness, wings fluttering at her sides in agitation. “It’s hard when I have no idea what I’m looking for!” Twilight frowned, ignoring the two as she squinted inside. “Wait, wait.” Her two companions stopped talking and listened. “...Help!” “That’s her!” Twilight shot like a bullet into the cavern. “Princess, wait!” Strawberry swore as the two raced after her. Twilight ignored her, lighting her horn to guide the way through the cave system. Rocks and dirt kicked at her hooves as she moved, purple light bouncing off the walls. She came to a halt when the cavern split, and she whipped her head back and forth between the two tunnels. Before she could make a choice, Strawberry seized her shoulder. “Princess, wait. This is dangerous!” “What? How so?” Strawberry pointed to a small group of colored plants growing from cracks in the wall. “You see those? Those are Archemaredis’ Nightmares. Plants that give off a gas that gradually makes ponies lose sense of direction. We’re going to get lost without protection.” Twilight bit her lip, but before she could respond the voice called out again. “Please, help!” “No time,” Twilight decided. “Just stay close to me!” She galloped off one of the tunnels. Fleetfoot shrugged, moving to follow. She barely heard Strawberry’s protest as she raced through the hall, heart pounding in her chest. The tunnel grew narrower and narrower, and before long she came to another split in the cavern. “Which way Princess…” Fleetfoot spun around only to realize she was alone in the cavern. “Wait… But she went through the left one! Or… Or was it the right one?” Her eyes widened when she realized she was alone. She turned to retreat back to Strawberry, but to her horror a fog had clouded her mind and she couldn’t remember which way she had come from. With no other option, she held her breath and made a choice.