//------------------------------// // 15- The tower // Story: Something worth fighting for // by Mr Andrews Pupil //------------------------------// Alec and Luna turned to see a spire of metal and wire poking out beyond the trees and into the sky. Normally Alec would have dismissed it as just another transmission tower. No different than the ones that gave him his radio stations. But this one was different. It was recently erected as Alec would've noticed the moment it went up. Castle way was frequently his "driving spot" to burn away stress as demonstrated not too long ago. The other peculiar thing made itself aware when he shifted his eyes to the ground. In a clearing Alec presumed newly cut, there was a mobile office sitting beside it near the base. Along the perimeter was a razor wire fence giving the area a forbidden feel. A gate in the fence with a guardhouse resided at the end of a crude dirt road that led out of the clearing and onto Castle way. But what was leaving the gate and approaching the main road is what confused Alec most of all. An unmistakable Chevrolet Tahoe was slowly crawling its way towards the road. The light bar and the "RCMP" logo made it's operators a no brainer. "Cops" Alec hissed. The word was a bitter one to utter, for no organization infuriated Alec more than the one that made it's sole purpose to harass every single person in Nova Scotia with a car that "stood out". They would pull over Nissans to check for drugs, Mercedes to check for hostages and finally any muscle car in their sights on suspicion of street racing. That wasn't fair. Alec may do a burnout or two on Castle way once every blue moon but that doesn't make him Vin Diesel. Alecs inner ranting was interrupted by another realization. He was standing on the side of the road with two of their most "loved" vehicles to pick out from a crowd; and then there was the Alicorn. Alec looked at Luna who met him with just as much dread in her eyes as his. He motioned gently towards the Chevelle. "Get inside and hide under the blanket in the back seat" He said through clenched teeth. He shifted his head slightly, not wanting to break contact with the Tahoe and saw Raymond already in his Honda. But it was already too late. The moment the Cruiser emerged from the trees, a fluster of red and blue L.E.D's made clear they had seen them. "Shit" Alec said still without unclenching his teeth. Part of him was frozen to draw attention away from the car. The other part was just out of fear. The Tahoe pulled over a few dozen yards in front of the Chevelle. Raymond had given up on escaping and had joined Alec in front of his car. An officer emerged from the cruiser and slowly began to approach the two young adults. "Why me?" Alec sighed despondently. The office was getting closer now. Alec could make out the objects on his belt. Gun. Tazer. Cuffs. "Why now?" He had just finished the thought when the officer stopped walking just short of the Chevelles hood. Behind the Oakleys, Alec knew he was staring them down. "Afternoon guys" He began with the overused cop greeting that had lost it's effect on the general population decades ago. "Hey" Raymond and Alec replied with less humanity than a concentration camp. Alec noticed his name on his vest. Clayton. Alec wondered why they had to wordlessly announce their names like some sort of unwanted entertainer at a long dead party. Firstly, no one cared. Secondly, Why be formal if you're most likely going to give your audience a fine they (in most cases) didn't deserve. "Just wondering what you're doing on the side of the road. Are ya having engine troubles?" Officer "Clayton" then folded his arms and took on a neutral stance. Alec took this as a chance to divert attention from his car. "No. We couldn't help but notice the tower over in the field" He said casually gesturing at the clearing. Claytons face became dark. "That's classified unfortunately" "Damn" Alec thought. Clayton had shot him down before he got off the inquisitorial runway. Ironically however it was that sentence that alleviated any doubt in Alecs mind that that tower was important. It probably wasn't for HFM either... Raymond then (of all times) decided his two cents needed inputing. Alec was powerless to stop him. "So ya gonna arrest us or not?" he said with more boredom than concern. Clayton chuckled in response. "Heck no, I got more important things to do than busting two dudes for being curious about antennas in the woods" "So... I guess that's our cue to depart?" Alec said inching towards his drivers door. "Almost" Clayton said getting his attention back almost instantly. The authoritative voice reeled him back to the front of the Chevelle in an instant. "I'm just going to warn you guys, that tower is there for a reason. Strange things have been going on here the last few weeks" Alecs stomach flipped. It summersaulted into his intestines and threatened to bounce up and knock a lung off. Alec knew for sure what the tower was there for now. Something came from somewheres far away, and now the government wanted to find out what. The tower was there in case it happened again. A puzzle took shape as Alec attempted to turn and enter the Chevelle. All he wanted was to get his friends out of that spot and back home. "Don't worry sir, We won't go near it" Despite lying to authorities being an offence, Alec let the lie flow effortlessly. He wasn't by any means a frequent lier, he just knew how to if the situation called for it. "Good" Clayton said with a smile. The smile was unsettling, but like a bowl of halloween candy that could have a piece of tampered candy, Alec didn't have time to dig deeper into it. Clayton turned on his heels and went back to the Tahoe. Moments later it turned onto the highway and accelerated out of view. "That was too close" Raymond breathed like he was holding his breath. It wouldn't be surprising if he was. "No kiddin" Alec agreed going to the Chevelle, getting in and starting the engine. A glance in the rearview mirror revealed Luna still covered by a black bundle in the back seat. "He's gone, you can come out now" The mass shifted, letting the head of the Princess pop out with a look of disgust on her face. "When did you last wash this?" "Dunno. I found it in the trunk so I guess a while..." Luna let out a groan as she shoved the blanket clear of her torso. She ruffled her wings and clambered between the seats. "I take it as he was one of the people you warned me about" Alec nodded as he started the engine. He then nodded to Raymond, who wasted no time in coaxing the Honda to life and leading the way home. Alec followed closely, his hands held the wheel in a death grip. Luna could've been captured or worse back there and Alec knew that this along with the tower and the heightened security around it, meant they were running out of time. "What do we do, Alec?" Luna asked. "We need a plan" "A plan?" "Yep. And I got something in mind" ////////////////////////////// Twilight was despondent. Luna had been gone for a month and all efforts to reach her had lead to dead ends. Pacing in her library, she had lost more than one favourable nights sleep. She still had come up with next to nothing in terms of how the resolution to this epic drama would play out. What concerned Twilight more was the fact that Celestia had sent her home only a few weeks after she had arrived. Despite her protests, Twilight, her brother and pretty much all other beings in Equestria had been shut out by their Ruler. "She knows something" Twilight confided to herself. "But why won't she tell us?, even me for that matter?" Twilight let out a frustrated groan as she flopped down onto her bed. The sheets were freshly washed, and she soon found herself drifting off spread eagle at the foot of her bed. At least until she heard spike. It mattered not that he wasn't in the same room as her. It didn't take long for her to be able to tell when her got a message from the princess by listening. The flaming belch was as good as any Mailpony walking up to the door and tooting an air horn. The sound of Spike scurrying u the stairs seconds later got Twilight off the bed and at attention. Normally a letter from the Princess was important. At these times though, a letter was that and more. Inside she knew it had to be about Luna. "You would not believe how close I came to torching my house of cards" Spike stated reaching the top of the stairs. Twilight playfully rolled her eyes and took the letter in her magic. She tried her best to read it slowly, but the message was too short for that. Come to Canterlot at once. Something has happened. Twilight was heading down the stairs in a flash. She had been waiting for news like that, and now that she had been called back, hopefully she would get some answers. "I guess I'm dragon of the house again?" Spike called after her with a noticeable amount of eagerness in his voice. "No parites" Twilight said as she exited into the night. "Darn it" Spike grumbled in defeat as he returned to his slightly singed house of cards. //////////////////////// The train to Canterlot was the longest she had ever taken. Sleeping was impossible and the only other ponies in her car were an elderly couple who were sleeping and a teenager who had probably been to a not so clean social gathering. He tossed and turned on the seat across from her mumbling things that hinted towards hard cider being more popular than the fountain drinks. ".....Theres no way they can........... build a robot out of chocolate............" Twilight shook her head. That's all the evidence she needed to prohibit Spike from hosting anything remotely similar. She rested her chin on the window sill, watching the castle grow closer each time they went through a tunnel. Upon arriving, Twilight opted to teleport directly into Luna's bedroom, where she found Celestia mumbling to herself not unlike the teenage colt on the train. She didn't even notice her arrival. Twilight felt nervous. Her mentors mane was a mess and there were what looked like bags beginning to form under her eyes. The purple mare announced her presence as decently as she could. "Ahem" The sun goddess stopped and locked eyes with her. "Twilight, how good of you to come" she said in an voice that failed to hide her exhaustion. "Yes I... got your message" Twilight said walking over towards the portal. It had been turning for a month, and yet she had never really considered how important it was to the whole situation. Celestia had barely managed to regenerate it. Had she lost it it may have taken years to conjure an new one, and at that point it would've been pointless to even hope of finding Luna alive. "Indeed" The Princess said as she finally stopped pacing. Twilights presence was clearly easing her stress. "So what is it that happened?" Twilight asked. Celestia opened her mouth for a moment as if to answer but quickly closed it. It wasn't a solid theory, but somehow Celestia knew that there was only one way it could've happened the way it did. "I got in contact with Luna a few hours ago" Twilight exploded into a verbal snowstorm of questions. "Is she ok?" "Who helped her?" "Did you figure out what that music was?" "Do you know how to get her back?" Celestia smiled and raised a hoof. Twilight blushed as she realized what she had done. "Sorry, I guess I really miss her" "You are not the only one" Celestia said warmly. She approached the portal and looked into it. Lunas fate would be decided in the next few hours. "Your questions will be answered" she said without turning. "But first, we must wait till midnight tomorrow" "Tomorrow?" Twilight blurted. "I only barely managed to hear her. We must wait till the most favourable circumstances are present" She went up beside the Princess and voiced her concern further. "I really am confused. Is there somepony helping her?" Celestia nodded. "Who?" "I cannot tell you unfortunately at this time. I shall say this however. Something has occurred that hasn't happened in a long time my pupil. And if my suspicions are true, both Luna and her friend are in grave danger" Twilight gulped; It wasn't often that the Princess used such negative words. "You should fetch your brother in the meantime. We have much to do" Twilight wasted no time in setting off. Celestia sat and pondered what would unfold in the coming hours. She whispered the lines from the book that now made more sense than ever. She even knew who it belonged to. "In plight of loving them They bleed And willingly surrender themselves to death For with death Comes emancipation" Night fell peacefully over Equestria. On Earth the same night fell onto Alec's house, in which a plan was quickly taking shape. A plan to get Luna home.