My Little Investigations: The Gemstone Godfather

by Metool Bard


Scorched Earth

July 13, 3:01 PM
Everfree Forest
Northern Timberline
***

"There you are, Sparkler! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

As soon as Derpy and I returned to the surface, Pinkie Pie was there to greet us. Strangely enough, Ife was right by her side. Pinkie seemed to be in a pretty good mood (as she normally is). Ife, not so much.

"Madam, I do wish that you would inform me of things like this," Ife said sternly. "This area could become a war zone at any moment. I can't in good conscience let you ponies waltz through the territory like this."

"Hey, don't look at me. I'm just as surprised as you are," I said with a shrug. Actually, that was only partially true. I had a feeling that Pinkie would seek me out once she found something important, but I didn't know she'd go as far as the northern timberline. Ife snorted indignantly.

"Well, whatever the case, I expect you all to leave if things become too dangerous," said he. "I hope you understand."

"Don't worry, we do," I said with a nod.

Ife returned my nod and went on his way. While I see his point, I think he might be overly cautious. There actually wasn't an sign of trouble as far as I could see, meaning the Jadevest pack was certainly doing a good job of defending the place. Still, I'm probably gonna take his advice if things do heat up.

"I like him. He's the most polite Diamond Dog I've ever met," said Pinkie. "Well, actually, I haven't met that many Diamond Dogs, so that might not be saying much. Still, I don't really know what he was talking about. He kept saying he was defending this place from Dodger Dragonvest, but I have no idea who that is. It's a weird name, though. Seriously, a vest made out of dragons? Who does that? I mean..."

"Alright, Pinkie. Calm down," I said, interrupting her bizarre tangent. "You came to see me for a reason, right?"

"Mmm? Oh, yes! Thanks for reminding me," said Pinkie, clearing her throat. "Well, after some thorough investigation of the rock farm, I think I've reached a definitive conclusion."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"Turns out the tiger was telling the truth!"

Derpy blinked. "Tiger? Ammy, what's this about a tiger?"

I blushed. "Sorry, Mom. I meant to catch you up, but I kept getting distracted," I said sheepishly. "And I suppose I should explain some things to Pinkie, too. Alright, here's the thing..."

I then took some time bringing Pinkie and Derpy up to speed, summarizing the best I could so that we didn't waste any time. Pinkie rubbed the side of her head.

"Wow. That's some pretty weird stuff," she said (which is ironic, coming from her). "I wonder if Twilight knows anything about this."

"As far as I know, she's been kept apprised," I said. "Still, I wouldn't get her involved until we know exactly what we're dealing with."

"Aren't we dealing with Diamond Dogs, dragons, and talking tigers?" said Pinkie.

"Yes, but those are just suspects," I said. "We still don't know the identity of the culprit."

"Well, we can cross the tiger off the list, because his alibi checks out," said Pinkie. "Here, take a look."

She then reached into her saddlebag and pulled out two chunks of plaster. They were both casts of pawprints, and they both looked vastly different.

"After you left, we checked the West Field and found that there were a lot of pawprints," she said. "So we took a cast of the pawprint in the East Field and made a comparison."

"And?"

"It's not a match," said Pinkie. "They're not even close. I even went to Fluttershy for a more detailed comparison, and she agrees."

So, Byakko was telling the truth. There was another intruder on the Pie Rock Farm last night, and he was simply there looking for, something. I still don't know what that something is, but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

"What did Fluttershy say about the prints?" asked Derpy.

"Well, this one we found in the West Field is feline in nature," said Pinkie, hefting up the plaster in her left hoof. "The one from the East Field, however, is clearly from a canine. At least that what Flutters says, and I'm taking her word for it. When it comes to animals, she usually knows her stuff."

Now we're getting somewhere. Limestone Pie's kidnapper must've been a Diamond Dog using Shroud Emeralds. However, that brings us to a problem. The pawprint in the East Field wasn't all that close to the house. Plus, it was the only one in the East Field. I can understand the culprit leaving a few pawprints before the Shroud Emerald took effect, but only one? How is that possible?

"Pinkie, you didn't happen to find any other pawprints in the East Field, did you?" I inquired.

"Nope," said Pinkie with a shake of her head. "Just the one. Trust me, I don't get it, either."

"Well, what about the West Field?" I said. "Did you find anything the talking tiger would be interested in?"

"No, but we're still looking," said Pinkie with a pout. "Although it would help if we knew what we were looking for."

"Yeah, I wish I could help you there, Pinkie," I said with a sigh. "But like I said, he wouldn't tell me. I even offered to help him look for whatever it was, and he just brushed me off."

"Huh. Interesting. Very interesting indeed," mused Pinkie, stroking her chin in thought. "His alibi is airtight, but he's still hiding something. If he comes by again, I'm probably gonna as him a few questions. I'll let you know if anything comes of it."

"Thanks, Pinkie," I said. "Actually, since you're here, would you mind helping us with something?"

"Are you kidding? Of course I wouldn't mind," said Pinkie with a warm smile. "What do you need?"

"Well, remember how I said that my mom was attacked by a dragon three days ago?"

"Uh, duh! You said that like five minutes ago when you were bringing me and Derpy up to speed. What about it?"

"I have a theory that the dragon that attacked her was underground at the time," I said. "If we can prove that, we'll have more evidence."

"Hmm. Tricky," said Pinkie, furrowing her brow. "Three days is a long time to leave a clue like that just sitting there. It could be gone by now."

"I realize that," I said. "But, you know what they say. Nothing ventured, nothing gained."

"True, very true," said Pinkie with a nod. "Alright, I'll do what I can."

"Thanks," I said. "Mom, you remember where you were attacked, right?"

"I, think so," said Derpy, rubbing the side of her head. "A lot of it was blurry, but I might have a rough idea. And I'll try extra hard to know where I'm going this time."

"I suppose that's the best we can do," I said with a shrug. "Lead the way, then."

Derpy nodded and took off into the sky while Pinkie and I followed.

***

Much to my surprise, it didn't take long for Derpy to lead us to the spot. In fact, it was only a matter of minutes before she stopped at what appeared to be a tall molehill sticking out of the ground. And you know what else? Not once did she stop and change direction, or get confused about where she was going. So you see? Derpy can be a competent flyer sometimes.

"Well, this is the place. At least from what I remember," said Derpy.

Pinkie got right to work, looking over the molehill with her magnifying glass. "Hmm. I've seen this before." she said. "When Rarity was ponynapped by Diamond Dogs, they filled the tunnels up so that we couldn't follow them. The mounds of dirt looked a lot like this."

That, didn't tell me anything. At least nothing that pertains to the mystery. Sure, it's possible that the tunnel Crackle attacked from was filled in as a coverup, but it could also just be something the Redvest pack left behind. Man, I hate ambiguity like this. I'm really not sure if this is a clue or not, and that irks me to no end.

"I think we needed to look for something a bit more definite," I said.

"Yeah, I hear you," said Pinkie, walking around and around the molehill. "But keep in mind that it's already been three days. It's not very likely that we're gonna..."

She trailed off as she stopped pacing and sniffed the air a couple of times. "Huh. Do you two smell something burning?"

Derpy took a few whiffs and shrugged. "Kinda, but not really."

I sniffed the air a few times myself. There was something, off in the air. But I couldn't quite put my hoof on it.

"It could just be the dragons fighting the Jadevest pack," I said with a shrug.

"I don't think so. I don't hear any fighting," said Derpy.

Pinkie continued sniffing the air until she leaned down towards the base of the manhole and took a huge whiff. Her eyes sparkled.

"Oh-ho~! What have we here?" she said, a big grin on her face.

"The smell's coming from there?" I asked.

"Sure seems like it," said Pinkie. "Sparkler, you and Derpy give me a hoof. We need to know for sure."

With that, she started digging. Derpy and I quickly joined her. As soon as the molehill was cleared away, an oppressive stench of charcoal mixed with sweat assaulted my nostrils. The smell itself wasn't the worst, but there was a lot of it. I groaned as I recovered from the experience. After taking a few deep breaths, I took a peek down the hole we made, using my horn to illuminate the area.

As soon as I got a good look at the tunnel, I knew that this was what we were looking for. The hole itself was rather shallow; no more than a meter or so deep. And in the tunnel were tracks made by a large reptilian creature. There's no doubt in my mind: This was Crackle's hiding place when she attacked my mom three days ago.

"I think we just bust this case wide open," I said with a grin. "All we gotta do is follow these tracks, and that'll lead us to the culprit."

Derpy blinked. "Just like that? Are you sure, Ammy? If those tracks do belong to that Crackle dragon Mr. Silvervest mentioned, they could lead anywhere."

"Hmm. You're right," I said. "Hang on, I'm gonna take a closer look."

With that, I leapt down into the hole and knelt down over the dragon tracks. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that there was some sort of footprint embedded within the dragon's footprints. It looked kinda like a hoof. Now, that's funny. What would a pony be doing down here with a full-grown dragon? These tracks were very suspicious.

"There a hoofprints down here, too," I hollered to Pinkie and Derpy. "I'm gonna follow them."

"Not alone, you're not!" Derpy proclaimed, swooping down into the hole. "I'm not letting you wander off like this, Ammy. It's too dangerous."

"Hang on, I'm coming with you," said Pinkie. "Let me just..."

"Madam, what are you still doing here?!"

I heard a gruff voice echo from the surface, and recognized that it was Ife.

"What? What do you mean?" asked Pinkie.

"The dragons are pushing us back!" barked Ife. "This area is too dangerous for you to remain here! For your own safety, I must ask you to leave!"

"But what about...?"

"There's no time for debate! Go!"

Pinkie kept trying to reason with Ife, but he was having none of it. I couldn't see what was happening, but I could hear them bicker and argue as Ife shooed Pinkie away. I sighed. Pinkie would've been very helpful in this situation. After all, she's the one with the magnifying glass. I guess not everything can go my way.

"Looks like it's just the two of us, then," I said. "C'mon, Mom. Let's see where this trail goes."

"Right behind you, Ammy," said Derpy. And with that, off we went.

***

We trekked through the tunnel for Celestia knows how long, and there seemed to be no end in sight. The smell was getting worse and worse by the minute, but my determination to solve this stupid mystery kept me going. The strangest thing about all this was that there wasn't a single torch or lantern lighting the place up. Had it not been for the illumination from my horn, everything would be pitch black.

"I wonder where we'll end up," Derpy said nervously, staying close to my side.

"I dunno, Mom. But we have to be ready for anything and everything," I said. "Don't worry. We'll protect each other."

Derpy smiled. "I know, Ammy," she said softly.

Just then, the tracks stopped dead at a wall of solid rock. It appeared to be a dead end. But then, I felt a warm light radiating from above. Looking up, there was a hole just above us. I smiled.

"I think this is where Crackle ended up," I said. "Give me a boost, Mom."

Derpy complied, hefting my up onto her shoulders so I could climb out of the hole. When I poked my head above ground, I almost lost my grip and fell. Standing before me (or floating, more accurately) was a large, golden dragon. It was an eastern dragon, just like Seiryu. Same short stubby claws; same mane; same whiskers; same long snake-like body. But it was at least five times Seiryu's size, and it had glowing red eyes that looked like they could stare right into my soul. I-I have no words.

"Ammy? What's wrong?" asked Derpy, climbing up herself. "Did we find the...? Great googly moogly!"

That got the dragon's attention. His eyes narrowed as he stared at both of us. I felt every hair in my coat bristle and my heart pound in my chest.

"Curiosity abounds," said the dragon in a loud, booming voice. "Answer these questions in order. Who are you? Where did you come from? Why have you interrupted this meeting between myself and my hierophant? And what business do you have with me?"

It didn't take long for me to put the pieces together, but when I did, I found that I simply couldn't speak. Any words I wanted to say were just stuck in my throat.

"I suggest you answer those questions quickly, Momma's Girl," said the slick voice of Dodger Dragonvest as he emerged from the shadows. "The Great Kohryu doesn't like to be kept waiting."