//------------------------------// // Leads for Lunch (T) // Story: My Little Investigations: Marehunter // by Metool Bard //------------------------------// December 14, 12:23 PM Canterlot Castle Royal Dining Hall *** "Ah, Twilight. I'm glad you got my invitation." When we got to the dining hall, Celestia was already there waiting for us. Not only this, but the table already had an abundance of food prepared for us, including a chalice of gemstone for Spike. It was rather extensive for a meal just for the five of us, but I get the feeling that was by design. Although I don't know whether it was so that I could take a break from investigating, or we just had that much to talk about. I guess there was only one way to find out. "Ms. Raven said you had something to share with me," I said, sitting down next to her. "In a moment, in a moment," said Celestia, pouring herself some tea. "I want to hear from you first. How's the investigation coming along?" I shrugged. "We've made some progress here and there, but there's still a lot to be done." "At the very least, we know what happened to Blueblood last night," Shining added. "It took a while for him to be truthful with us, but Twilie managed to get past his ego." Celestia sighed. "He always was a stubborn stallion. I do hope he wasn't too much trouble." Spike chuckled. "Aw, c'mon, Princess Celestia. Twi's tackled stuff a lot more challenging than Prince Blueblood." I was about to admonish Spike for the insult, but Celestia didn't seem to mind. Instead, she let out a slight giggle. "I suppose that's true." Not wishing to continue this conversation, I cleared my throat. "Actually, there were a few things I wished to discuss with you as well." "Oh? Such as what?" "We heard from the Royal Guard that a prisoner named Pine Talon was attacked last night. You wouldn't happen to know about this, would you?" Celestia's pleasant smile slowly turned into a troubled frown. "I was informed, yes. I suppose you plan on speaking with him." "Well, he is our best lead right now," I said truthfully. "Which is why I need to know as much about him as I can." Celestia nodded. "I see. Well, there isn't that much to tell, really, but I'll tell you what I know about him." Kibitz adjusted his spectacles and gave Celestia a concerned look. "You seem pained, Your Highness. Does something about Pine Talon trouble you?" "You could say that," said Celestia somberly. "First, let me ask you this, Twilight. How much do you know about the Tengu Dynasty?" "Only what Mare-Do-Well told me," I answered. "That and I do know a few details regarding Pine Talon's trial. He was charged with trying to assassinate the Wonderbolts, correct?" "Yes," said Celestia. "Although in his own words, he didn't actually try that hard." Spike raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?" Celestia heaved a great sigh. "As you may already know, the Tengu Dynasty was a barbarous culture of savages that betrayed each other for power or simply to survive. It should be noted, however, that Pine Talon's worldview is considerably different from a typical tengu. For that, he was considered a pariah amongst his brethren. The only reason he survived this long is because he didn't try to change the flawed society he came from." "So, all he was doing was carrying out the orders of the Tengu Empress," I mused. "More or less," said Celestia, sipping her tea. "Although he didn't claim that this justified his actions in any way. Not that it would, of course." I nodded absently and poured myself some tea. "Did he say anything else at his trial?" "Only that he's willing to be reformed," said Celestia, knitting her brow. "Personally, I'm still having trouble sorting that out. The Tengu Dynasty is almost a complete antithesis of Equestrian society. Even if he's willing to adapt to our ways, I don't know if he's able. Which is why I sentenced him to be imprisoned until further notice." I have to say, it's very uncomfortable to see Celestia be so, unsure about something. Maybe it's because I'm biased, being her student and all, but I was always under the impression that Celestia had an answer for pretty much anything. I mean, I know she doesn't really, but part of me can't help but cringe whenever she simply throws up her hooves and says "I don't know." "Okay, so is this guy going to be easy to talk to, or not?" Spike asked bluntly. "That depends," said Celestia. "Pine Talon is a very jaded and cynical individual, though most of that comes for his distaste for the practices of the Tengu Dynasty. His tongue can be quite sharp, but keep in mind that his resentment is not directed at you per se." "Wait, how do you know this?" asked Shining Armor, helping himself to some salad. "Did you talk to him after the trial?" "We've spoken a few times," said Celestia nonchalantly. "Again, I'm trying to see if he can be reformed despite his upbringing." I smiled. "I'm sure it's possible. After all, we were able to reform Discord, right?" "Yeah, but I don't remember that being easy," said Spike, folding his arms. I didn't really have a response to that, so I just shrugged. It's true that Discord's reformation was a constant uphill battle, but something tells me it's easier to reform someone if they're willing to cooperate. Until recently, that wasn't the case with Discord. But, I feel we're getting off-track. "Well, is there anything else we should know?" I inquired. "Just one more thing," said Celestia. "He is blind." At first, that seemed to be a rather arbitrary thing to bring up. But I know Celestia. She doesn't say things like this without a reason. "Blind in what way?" I asked. "Simply that," said Celestia plainly. "His eyes are completely useless to him." Ah-ha. I think I get what Celestia's trying to say. She means Pine Talon is literally blind, and because of that, he won't be able to tell us what he saw. I can't say this is ideal, as we still don't know the identity of the intruder. Nevertheless, that little fact just might've saved me some awkward embarrassment. "Thank you, Celestia," I said with a nod. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind when I talk to him." "Of course," said Celestia. She then turned her attention to a large layered cake at the center of the table. She sliced off a piece and levitated it in front of me. "Care for a slice?" "Oh. Uh, not right now, thanks," I said, opting to take some mashed potatoes instead. Celestia shrugged. "Suit yourself," she said, taking a huge bite. "Now, Your Highness. Remember what we talked about," Kibitz scolded. "You can't keep indulging yourself like this. It's not good for your glucose levels." Celestia gave Kibitz a bemused grin. "Oh, very well. If you say so, Father," she said mockingly before setting the cake down. Spike was roaring with laughter. I'd be lying if I didn't find it amusing myself. I can't tell which is more interesting: The fact that Kibitz can actually scold Celestia and get away with it, or that Celestia can take said scolding in stride. Something tells me this isn't the first time they had this conversation. "I fail to see how keeping the ruler of Equestria healthy is humorous, Mr. The Dragon," Kibitz grumbled. "I do believe we have more important things to discuss than my health, Kibitz," said Celestia, dabbing her muzzle with her napkin. "Is there anything else you wanted to ask me, Twilight?" "Yes, as a matter of fact," I said, clearing my throat. "Did you get a chance to speak with Luna yet?" Celestia's face darkened. "I have. That's actually what I wanted to speak with you about." I gulped. I had a feeling that was the case, but even with this foresight, I don't think I'm ready to hear this. "Wh-what's all this about, Your Highness?" stammered Kibitz, wiping sweat from his brow. "First the good news," said Celestia. "Despite the appearance in the photos, this is not the work of the Nightmare Forces. It's merely a close facsimile." Spike swallowed. "Th-there's bad news?" "That all depends on if this is true or not," said Celestia. "Twilight, you mentioned that this new Mare-Do-Well is a ponunculus, correct?" I blinked. "Um, yeah. She is. I don't remember telling you, though." "You didn't, but Pine Talon did," said Celestia. "Apparently, Mare-Do-Well has paid him a few visits herself." Now this is odd. I'm not wondering why Mare-Do-Well didn't tell me about Pine Talon; that's her business. And I suppose they both had their problems with the Tengu Empress, so it's very likely for a friendship to develop between them. What I don't get is why Pine Talon would tell Celestia any of this. Mare-Do-Well swore me to secrecy; surely she did the same with Pine Talon. So why did Pine Talon break that promise? I guess that's another question I'll have to ask him. "I'm not really following you on this, Your Highness," said Spike, biting hard into an orange gemstone. "What does that have to do with the photo?" "I was getting to that, Spike," said Celestia, taking a roll from the bread basket. "Now then, I'm sure you're aware that a ponunculus is bound to their creator, yes?" "Of course," I said. "Well, except for Mare-Do-Well, but even then, I don't know how she managed to disobey her creator." "It's quite simple, actually," said Celestia. "Although I'm afraid none of your books mention this, as it's a bit of an unwritten rule." "Well, what is this unwritten rule?" inquired Shining Armor. "A ponunculus is unable to take another life." I did a double take. "How does that qualify as an unwritten rule? That seems pretty important to the creation of a ponunculus." "Oh, it is important, to be sure," said Celestia. "However, for all intents and purposes, a ponunulus is a pony shell filled with life-giving magic. And there's a basic principle that I do believe you know, Twilight." "Wait, but you just said that my books wouldn't know anything about this," I said, blinking in confusion. "Because you're thinking about the wrong books," said Celestia sagely. "Alchemy books don't cover this because it's a fundamental principle of all forms of magic, and restating it would be redundant." Hold on. A principle of magic, specifically having to do with life... Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?! "If you use magic to create life, that same magic cannot be used to bring about death," I said, remembering Professor Inkwell's lecture quite vividly. Celestia smiled. "Exactly. And that's why Mare-Do-Well defied her creator. An order to kill is a paradox to a ponunculus. And since she was designed after the heroic deeds of you and your friends, she knew subconsciously that her creator had to be stopped." "Wait, wait. That still doesn't make sense," said Spike, holding up his claw. "Wouldn't Gypsy Moth have known this already?" Celestia shook her head. "My guess is she didn't take that into consideration when she was the Tengu Empress. The Tengu Dynasty is all about death and killing; it's not unreasonable to say that she forgot about this basic truth behind her craft." "I'm afraid I'm still lost, Your Highness," said Kibitz, stroking his chin. "What does this have to do with the photos?" Celestia let out a muted sigh. "There is a way to get around this unwritten rule, but it involves a lot of dark magic," she said gravely. "If Mare-Do-Well's impostor is a ponunculus herself, she probably was created using such spells, which explains why it's present in the photo. I didn't know it would be this powerful, though." So, we're either dealing with a powerful dark sorcerer, a stronger-than-average ponunculus who was created using dark magic, or both. None of those options sound particularly appealing for Equestria's future. This goes beyond crashing the Gala or whatever mischief has been caused in the other locations. Once again, the fate of Equestria (and possibly the Griffon Kingdom and the Neko Shogunate) hangs in the balance. You'd think I'd be used to this kind of pressure by now, but trust me, it never gets easy. "I understand that you're worried, Twilie," said Shining Armor, placing a hoof on my shoulder. "But I also know that if anypony can put a stop to this, it's you." I gave Shining a smirk. "Not just me, BBBFF. I'm counting on all of my friends, too. This is a team effort, and we're all going to solve this mystery. For Mare-Do-Well and for Equestria." "Well said, Twilight," said Celesita with a nod. "Now, I suppose you don't wish to be detained any further..." "Uh, actually, I'm still kinda hungry," said Spike, cutting across Celestia. I sighed. "Spike, we'll have time for food later. Right now, we have to go see Pine Talon and keep moving." "C'mon, please?" Spike begged. "No," I said sternly. "I'm sorry, Spike. But you know what they say. There's no rest for the weary." Spike looked as his chalice of gemstones, which was already half-gone. "Can I at least take these gems with me?" I let out another sigh. "Oh, fine," I conceded. "But be ready to take notes when I need you to, alright?" "You got it," said Spike, scooping up the chalice. "Good. I'm holding you to that," I said before turning to Celestia. "Thanks for everything, Celestia." "You're very welcome, Twilight," said Celestia warmly. "Keep up the good work, and best of luck. Oh, and one more thing before you go." "Yes?" Celestia leaned over and whispered in my ear. "Try not to let Kibitz get to you. I'm sure you've noticed that he can be a bit of a worrywart, but he means well." It's times like this that I envy my mentor. Even in dark situations like this, she finds the time to crack a lighthearted joke. I don't think I'll ever be able to do that. Oh well, at least I still have Spike and Shining Armor to keep my spirits up. "I'll keep that in mind," I said with a nod. "Thanks again." With that, we left Celestia to her luncheon and headed off to the dungeons.