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// Chapter 9 
// Story: Weakness of the Flesh 
// by totallynotabrony 
//------------------------------//

	The loud music negated any advantage Golden’s sensitive hearing might have had.  It was difficult to pick out individual noises from the crowd when the bass was thumping so hard.
“This is really what your job is like?” she asked Cheerilee.
The older mare laughed.  “No, not all the time.  In fact, not usually.”
“So we’re just going to sit here and look for somepony who seems suspicious?”  Golden frowned.  “That seems like it leaves a lot of room for error.”
“Figuring a problem out requires a lot more than just using your senses,” Cheerilee told her.  “You have to take what you know and use it to come to a conclusion.  Here, let’s play a game.  Point somepony out and I’ll tell you about them.”
Golden nodded towards a dressed-up mare who lounged nearby, watching ponies move to the music on the dance floor.
“I remember that she came here alone,” said Cheerilee.  “I don’t see her looking around trying to spot somepony she knows from across the room, so she isn’t expecting company.  She doesn’t seem sad or depressed.  Based on a few other factors, unfortunately including smell, I think she’s just looking for casual sex.”
Golden’s eyes went wide.  “Um, wow.”
“You asked.”  Cheerilee shrugged.  “Anyway, we need to be looking for a few things to spot our sorcerer.  Probably a stallion, but don’t rule anypony out just yet.  He’s most likely alone and not dancing.”
“That’s it?”  Golden looked worried.
Cheerilee reassured her.  “Just make sure you investigate anypony that seems strange.  Maybe things will be easier than you think.  If somepony smells like death, odds are he’s our necromancer.”
The two of them sat back to watch.  Golden took a sip from the glass in front of her.  Cheerilee had dropped a tablet of something into it to change the color, concealing the fact that it was just water.  It was the little things that completed their disguise.
The white mare used the lessons Cheerilee had taught her, trying to find a logical choice for a suspect among the crowd.  It took quite a while, but she managed to narrow her choice to one, indicating him to the mare beside her.
“Grey pegasus stallion over there,” said Golden.  “I haven’t seen him talk to anypony since he showed up, and he looks a little…predatory.  I didn’t want to consider him though, because he isn’t a unicorn.”
“If he can manipulate the dead, I’d say it’s also possible that he can shapeshift.”  Cheerilee nodded.  “I’ve been watching him too, and I agree with your choice.”
“What do we do?” asked Golden.  “Should we go over there?”
“Unless we need to force things to move more quickly, it’s better to observe.  Let them think they’re in control up until the point that they suddenly aren’t.”  Cheerilee sat back and took a sip of her colored water.
It took quite a while longer before their target began to move.  He headed for the door without a word to anypony.  Golden followed Cheerilee’s lead and started after him.
Outside, the bright moon shone on the street.  Cheerilee nodded towards the sidestreet where the stallion had disappeared to.  The buildings were closer together and the narrower thoroughfare was in heavy shadow.
A white unicorn appeared at the corner, bracketing the stallion between her and the vampires behind him.  “Stop right there!”
Rarity, the dressmaker? thought Golden.  The fashionable mare fired a blast of magic at the stallion, stripping away his disguise to reveal a cloaked unicorn beneath.
The sorcerer seemed momentarily surprised, but answered the attack with one of his own, slamming the white unicorn against a brick wall to get her out of his way as he ran.  There was no way to know if suspected the two vampires, or if he was merely being cautious by fleeing the scene as quickly as possible.
Cheerilee paused by the unconscious Rarity.  A little blood trickled from the back of her head.  “She’ll live, but she needs help.”
Golden stared at the unicorn.  Cheerilee snapped her out of it, pushing her shoulder.  “I need you to go to the Ponyville Library and find a mare named Twilight Sparkle.  Tell her that her friend Rarity is hurt.  Try not to talk about yourself too much, but you can tell Twilight if you absolutely have to.  She’s somepony you can trust.”
“I don’t know if I can do this,” said Golden, glancing at Rarity’s injury again.
“Get moving!” ordered Cheerilee, shoving the pegasus in the direction of the library.  “I’m going after him!”
The schoolteacher turned and ran in the direction the stallion had gone.  Golden forced herself to keep moving, temporarily suspending her breathing to avoid the smell of blood that followed her.
The white mare hoped Twilight wouldn’t be alone and vulnerable.  She didn’t want temptation there, either.  The list of ponies Golden could trust was already very short.  She wasn’t even on it.


▼▼


Princess Luna had checked into the Ponyville Hotel hours before and was now out for a walk.  The moon seemed to be doing fine, not needing a subtle adjustment, so she was able to keep her Cheese ponysona intact.
The Princess decided to stop by the library and see if Twilight was still awake.  At her knock, the door opened and a dragon stuck his head out.  “Oh, what a surprise.  Come in.”
Luna stepped through the door, shedding her disguise.  “It’s good to see you again, Spike.  Is Twilight around?”
“No Princess, she was on her way to relieve Rarity.  They set up a rotation to watch the club.”  Spike shrugged.
Luna was about to speak, when there came a sudden hurried knocking on the front door.  The Princess stepped into another room and closed the door while Spike went to answer.
The dragon swung the door open, revealing a young pegasus.  She seemed surprised at the sight of him, but said, “I’m looking for Twilight Sparkle.  I was told she was here.”
“Sorry, not right now,” said Spike.  “Can I help you?”
“It’s really important that I talk to her,” insisted the pony.
“Well…I guess you can wait here for a couple of hours.  There are plenty of books to keep you busy.”  The library was officially closed for the day, but Spike saw no reason why the mare couldn’t come in.  Her business sounded important.  He paused for a moment, wondering about Princess Luna, but it should be all right; she could pass herself off as Cheese.
The white pegasus came in, looking around nervously.  “I don’t think it can wait.  There’s somepony who needs help.”
“Who is it?” asked Spike.  “Where?”
The pony was just about to speak when there was another knock on the door.  The dragon rolled his eyes.  “Again?”
He pulled the door handle, peering at a bronze-colored earth pony.
“Sorry if it’s late,” said the newcomer.  “I saw the lights were on and thought I’d come see about a few resarch books.  Something about mythical creatures, if you have it.”
Spike stepped back, motioning the visitor in.  The stallion looked past him, surprised.  “Golden Ring?”