Gliding through Manehattan's night sky, Aphelion did his best to lead Steady towards their target, following the arcane threads only he could see. While Aphelion's spell allowed his soul to temporarily exit his body to guide Steady, he quickly noticed the side effects of his rushed spell: it took Aphelion's entire focus to go straight and to prevent himself from spinning in place. He could also feel his spell burning his magical reserves much faster than anticipated. Aphelion had very little time to find Sandstorm and Misty.
Seeing Aphelion's struggle, Steady yelled to him, his voice louder than the winds around them. "You alright, kid? Seems like this magic of yours' not quite working."
"Y... Yeah, I'm totally fine! But, uh, purely hypothetically, if I wasn't actually doing fine - which is not the case, mind you, I may or may not have to..."
"Just spit it out!"
"My soul's probably going to slingshot back to my body at any moment now. If I go away before we find them, just know that they're straight ahead, in the forest. They aren't going fast right now."
"Alright. When your... Soul is back at the hotel, wait for me. If I'm not back by sunrise, return to Canterlot and tell Celestia everything."
With a nod, Aphelion focused on his breathing, even though he didn't need air in his current form. The exercise helped him stretch his energy more, as Aphelion was hoping to at least have the chance to confront the mares that betrayed him. Ignoring the burning sensation in his body, Aphelion began diving in the forest while Steady followed him just above the canopy. Going through trees, bushes and plants, Aphelion struggled to keep an eye on the threads, losing them a few times as he crossed the woods. Eventually, Aphelion began to hear familiar voices further ahead. Stopping in his tracks, he flew above the tree line to warn Steady. However, as he scanned his surroundings, Aphelion couldn't see any trace of Steady. And now that he had stopped to search for him, Aphelion noticed that he hadn't seen the pegasus ever since he dove into the woods, though he was certain Steady was able to see him as Aphelion's ghostly form emitted some light and left a trail of smoke behind him.
"...Maybe he heard them as well and flew ahead?" Aphelion wondered. Since they didn't have much time left to reach the two mares, it could make sense for Steady to circle around them to cut off any potential escape. Still, though, Aphelion wondered why Steady hadn't communicated this eventuality before acting upon it. "It would make more sense if he just lost track of me... I should try and get him back."
And yet, Aphelion was hesitant. He wanted to have a word with Misty and Sandstorm, that was why he used such a complex spell to be there instead of just letting Steady go ahead. Right now, he had the opportunity to talk to them alone. He could always scream to help Steady locate them if Aphelion felt his spell about to end, or if the mares began running away again. "Sorry, Steady, but I'm breaking one of your rules..."
With a last glance behind him, Aphelion sped up towards Misty and Sandstorm's position.
"I'm telling you, we're fine right here. Nopony's going to find us in the middle of the bucking forest, Misty!"
"You don't know that. They could be sweeping the sky above us right now. It's only a matter of time until they find us!"
"Come on, that's ridiculous. Besides, you can't even walk anymore. Your hoof's all swollen... Are you sure you didn't break anything?"
Misty scoffed, rolling her eyes. "No, I didn't break anything. I'm perfectly fine, and we need to put more distance between us and Manehattan!"
"Stop being so damned paranoid! They have no reason to check this part of the forest. The forest's bucking massive, you know that right?"
"Of course, I do! But what if they used a tracking spell, huh?"
"The only one directly after us is a pegasus. And even then, you know damn well that none of Mud's lackeys can do any fancy magic like you or Aphe..." Sandstorm bit her tongue, already regretting mentioning his name.
"Oh, you mean the Aphelion you left behind? The one that hates us? The one that's probably going to snitch on us for using him as bait? That Aphelion, Sandstorm?!" Misty was screaming at the top of her lungs, venting all her stress and frustration at once, as Sandstorm looked away, feeling guilt.
"He... He wouldn't do that. He's one of the Moonies. They'd rather cut their own hooves than working for the crown."
"You don't know him at all, Sandstorm. Shit, neither do I! We have no idea of how he's going to react. All I know is that he's not as far gone as the other members from the Pact."
Grinding her teeth, Sandstorm resisted the urge to talk back, the situation being venomous enough. Instead, she simply began installing her tent in silence. Misty fumed with anger, frustrated to no end with her marefriend's attitude. "I told you... We are not spending the night here."
"I am. If you wanna run away alone in the woods with a bucked-up hoof, no sleep, no food, no direction and no weird ass voice in our head, be my guest. You're an adult, you don't need mommy's authorization."
"...Screw you, Sandstorm," Misty whispered while holding back tears. So many things had gone wrong the past couple of days, putting a large strain on their relationship. She knew Sandstorm didn't mean the things she said, but it still hurt nonetheless. Deciding to walk away, Misty needed to spend some time alone to clear her thoughts. She wouldn't go too far, finally accepting silently to spend the night there, but Misty couldn't stand to be with Sandstorm right now. With a last glance towards her marefriend, Misty stepped away from their camp.
As soon as she was gone, Sandstorm let out a sob. She was feeling the pressure from their situation as well, feeling like it was all her fault. Since Sandstorm was never good at making her emotions known in a calm manner, she often lashed out at those around her. Internally, Sandstorm begged for Misty to come back, wanting to apologize to her, but her body remained focused on a single task: installing a tent, for her to spend the night alone and cold.
Suddenly, Sandstorm felt a cold sensation in her back. Somepony was approaching her. Since she couldn't feel any vibrations in the ground, Sandstorm assumed it must be a pegasus. "...Shit," she mumbled. Immediately turning back, Sandstorm expected to see Steady Travels coming to arrest her, or one of Mud's lackeys, but the pony she saw floating in her camp was completely different. 2 meters above the ground, a phantomatic unicorn was looking at her, his body faintly shimmering in the wind. His expression was conflicted: there was anger and rage, but sadness and pity as well. While the ghost was in black and white, Sandstorm immediately recognized Aphelion. Making a few steps back, her mouth was wide open in surprise as she was unable to say anything.
After what felt like an eternity, Aphelion broke the silence.
"...Hey. A word?"
Shaking her head violently, Sandstorm then slapped herself in the face in case she had somehow fallen asleep. The spirit remained in front of her while the pain in her cheek confirmed she was indeed awake. "But... But how?"
"It's... A long story."
"Are you dead?!?"
He chuckled. "No, I'm not. Listen, I don't have much time. Mud is probably already trying to find you and Misty. You're in danger."
Sandstorm frowned. "Oh yeah? How do you know that? And why would I trust you?"
"Listen, I... May have revealed you were acting in dissent. I had no idea your whole plan to rob the castle was improvised... Which brings me to another point I want to clarify."
With a sigh, Sandstorm maintained her defiant gaze. "You want to know why I left you behind."
"Basically, yes."
"...I did it because you're a dangerous fanatic who deserved to be imprisoned."
"But you were fine working with me to steal some documents?" Aphelion raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. I used you like a tool, because you're an idiot who trusted everything I told you. Let me guess, you're going to tell me it was unfair?" Sandstorm rolled her eyes, while quickly trying to perceive if anypony else was on their way. For now, however, Aphelion seemed to be the only one around them.
Looking sideways, Aphelion took a moment before replying. "I... Can't really fault you for thinking that way. Until very recently, I had a similar thought process."
"Oh, so you're a changed stallion, now? A couple of nights in jail and you're suddenly a good pony? I'm not buying it."
"Hey, I'm not the only one who did bad things in the past. You and Misty aren't inno..."
"Shut the buck up. You have no idea what we had to deal with. Don't you dare act all high and mighty just because you got off easy."
Anger swelled up within Aphelion. This conversation wasn't going anywhere, and it was clear that Sandstorm did not regret leaving him behind. He frowned and gritted his teeth, thinking about going back to find Steady to lead him here, but something was preventing him to do so. A small voice in his head, the same that made him skeptical of the Crescent Pact's true nature, echoed in his mind. The voice only flared up for a short moment before disappearing in the sea of anger inside Aphelion, but its few words were enough to make him stop.
"They deserve a second chance, just like you."
Closing his eyes, Aphelion thought about what he would say next. Sandstorm was bracing herself, still unsure if Aphelion could do anything to her in his current form. Finally, Aphelion opened his eyes and looked at Sandstorm.
"...Listen. I'm going to lead Steady in another direction, and I'll see what I can do with Mud. Just... Get Misty and run."
Sandstorm blinked. "...What?"
"You're not working with Mud by choice, right? That's why you kept acting behind his back... To raise funds to run away. To get in his good graces so that he won't look at you two as closely. Am I right?"
She narrowed her eyes. "Even if that was the case, why do you care?"
"I... Don't really know. I just feel like it's the right thing to do."
"So, you'll just let us go, like that?"
"Yes. But..."
Rolling her eyes, Sandstorm scoffed. "Of course, there's a 'but'."
"...But please, consider surrendering yourself to the guards."
"Ha! Are you crazy? They'd put us in a cell for the rest of our lives! We did some... Some bad things, Aphelion. They won't just let us walk away."
"I know. But I'll vouch for you. I'll talk to Celestia. I'll explain your situation. If you do surrender, I'll do everything I can to lessen your sentence... I promise."
Hearing Aphelion mention Celestia's name so casually surprised Sandstorm, as she expected him to hate her with a burning passion, like every other member from the Pact. Furthermore, Aphelion mentioned talking to Celestia herself. "Oh, so now you're buddies with the princess you wanted to overthrow just a week prior? Don't think I'm an idiot."
"As I said earlier, it's a long story," he replied. His body then began to waver, the spell reaching its limits. Feeling a burning pain across his entire body, Aphelion winced in pain. "...I don't have much time left. Just, promise me you'll at least consider it."
"...Sure, if that tickles your fancy. We're still getting the buck away from you and the other stalker."
"That's all I need. Go find Misty and run. I'll divert Steady. See you soon, in better circumstances hopefully," his voice grew quieter as his spirit was already floating above the canopy, searching for Steady.
Left alone once again, Sandstorm looked at her hooves, then at the sky. "...Thanks," she said towards the place Aphelion stood. With that, she began running towards Misty, only bothering to take the bare minimum with her.
When Steady saw Aphelion dive underneath the tree line, the pegasus immediately struggled to keep an eye on the ghostly form of his colleague. Barely keeping up, he attempted to call out to him multiple times, asking him to slow down, but Aphelion couldn't hear him. It was as if his only goal was to find the two mares, and nothing else mattered.
"Dammit, kid, slow down!" he yelled, his words never reaching Aphelion. Steady groaned and started observing the area around them. Their target had to be nearby. They left Manehattan by hoof, probably carrying food and survival gear with them, slowing them down further. However, what caught Steady's attention wasn't any potential hiding spot or trace of the mares' passage, but a set of faint lights behind him, piercing through the tree line. A group of ponies were following them, carrying torches. Steady swore, as he immediately knew what was going on. In their rush to reach Sandstorm and Misty, Aphelion and he took little care in trying to be stealthy. Mud had spotted them and began following them some time ago, slowly crossing the forest. When Steady turned back to warn Aphelion, he was unable to locate the ghostly unicorn.
"Dammit. Guess that part's up to the kid," he thought. Unable to track him down, Steady flew in the opposite direction he last saw Aphelion. Even if they did capture Sandstorm and Misty, with Mud searching for them in the forest, the way back would be too perilous if Steady didn't do anything to delay or change their course. Since they were following him, he just needed to lead them somewhere else, then figure out a way to find Aphelion back.
Slowly gliding through the sky to let the group see him more easily, Steady flew in a circular motion across Manehattan, as if he was scanning the area. With his slower pace, Steady remained in the sky for ten minutes, leading Mud's group astray. Then, as he was just about to begin a maneuver to lose them, a barely perceptible fog floated in front of him, which he recognized as Aphelion.
His spell just about to run off, his spiritual form became less and less focused, his traits becoming increasingly undefined. Focusing on maintaining the shape of his head, he spoke to Steady with a tired voice, panting. "I... Searched for them... Threads were a red herring... They're not here..."
"What?! Where are they, then? I thought you could track them down with your spell!"
"Misty... Used her own magic... Hid their real position... Prevented me or any other unicorn from finding them."
Steady sighed. "Fine. You go back to the hotel. I'll be back soon. We'll see where we go from here tomorrow."
"Okay... Thanks..." Aphelion whispered, before finally dropping his spell. Another side effect of the botched incantation revealed itself, as instead of simply slingshotting his soul back into his body, a huge flash of yellow light bursting right in Steady's face. The night sky was illuminated in a yellow glow for a short while, as if a powerful firework just went off. Steady immediately began yelling and cursing, his eyes burning due to this sudden blinding flare, causing him to fall. By the time Steady noticed he was in a freefall, he unfurled his wings in an attempt to gain back control of his descent. Still blinded, he felt pain across his entire body as he impacted leaves, then branches, then the ground in quick succession. Thankfully, the fall was lessened due to his wings, though they were heavily damaged. Without even looking at them, Steady knew he wouldn't be able to fly for a while. As his vision slowly returned, he noticed the congregation of ponies all around him, snickering as Steady stumbled around. A voice rang behind him, the voice of somepony he knew too well.
"Well, if it ain't a pleasure to see you again, detective Steady Aim."
Slowly turning back to see Mud smirking at him, Steady spat on the ground. "It's Steady Travels. And the pleasure's not mine, Mud."
"Still usin' her last name, huh? By Celestia, that's pathetic," multiple ponies around Steady began laughing at their boss' insult.
"Right. So, lads, what are we doing tonight? Looking for a good ass-beating?" he replied, steadying himself. While he knew his odds were extremely slim, especially with his damaged wings and the injuries from the fall, Steady knew there was no other way out.
"Feisty, tonight, aren't we? Well, then, don't let me get in the way of your fun! Newbies, get him."
Suddenly, four ponies from the group lunged towards Steady. Quickly gauging their relative distance to him, Steady turned around and bucked the first one mid-jump, right in the chin. He then let himself drop to the ground, the second lackey passing just above him and falling two meters to Steady's right. Rolling to the left behind the third rushing pony, Steady dodged the fourth attacker, a pegasus attempting to drop-kick him from above, before jumping back up and grabbing the third pony, a unicorn, from behind at the midsection as soon as he was close enough.
Standing on his hind legs, Steady slammed the unicorn by bending back, making the unicorn fall violently on the ground, horn first. As soon as Steady stood back up, the pegasus struck him in the ribs by throwing himself recklessly at Steady, sending him a few meters away. Spitting blood, Steady saw the pegasus charge him once again. This time, however, Steady waited for the pegasus to be right in front of him before throwing some dirt with his right wing directly in his eyes, throwing the pegasus off-course, leading him to impact a tree at full speed.
Then, the second attacker, an earth pony, ran back towards Steady while holding a knife in his mouth. Already feeling exhausted, Steady dodged too late and felt the knife's blade sink deep in his right shoulder. The earth pony twisted the blade before Steady grabbed his green mane with his mouth and yanked as hard as he could, ripping a mouthful of hair. As the earth pony screamed in pain, no longer holding the knife with his mouth, Steady turned around and bucked him in the face. While this was enough to knock the earth pony down, Steady fell to the ground after putting all his weight on his forelegs due to the intense pain in his shoulder. He groaned as he stood back up, panting heavily.
Mud had begun stomping his hooves on the ground, applauding Steady. "Damn, not bad for an old bag like you! Fun's not over yet, though," he turned towards the rest of the group, nine ponies watching Steady struggle to stay up, before growling. "Alright, boys. Newbies had their chance. Now, kill him."
The remaining ponies lunged towards Steady, who instinctively closed his eyes, expecting a wave of strikes, stabs and hits to flood all over his body. Instead, however, all Steady noticed was multiple soft 'thuds' followed by another, horrible sound Steady knew too well: the sound of bone breaking. When he opened his eyes, he saw a semi-transparent gray wall all around him, with nine confused ponies on the floor next to it, each showing signs of injuries caused by a sudden impact. Further away, where Mud once stood, there was instead a yellow mare with blood on her hooves. On the ground next to her, the limp body of Mud, his jaw dislocated and bent at an unnatural angle, blood pooling underneath him.
Stepping out of a bush, a pink unicorn walked towards the yellow earth pony, her horn glowing with gray energy. The nine ponies on the floor next to Steady looked at each other, before Sandstorm spoke up.
"Get the buck away, or I'm killing every single one of you," she yelled with bloodlust in her eyes. Steady blinked a few times, before chuckling.
"Guess I was right to trust the kid," he thought before his vision went dark, his unconscious body impacting the ground.