//------------------------------// // Messages // Story: Moonwing // by Samey90 //------------------------------// Icewind groaned, rolling out of her bed. Against her hopes, she was “protected” in a house other than the one where Cygnus and Stellar Dust were kept. Four guards were with her all the time, preventing her from running away. She received no signals that her message reached the cult leaders. Icewind hoped that the guards didn’t know that she was trying to contact them. The fact that, despite her pleas, she hadn’t been given any newspapers wasn’t, however, a good sign. “Hey, sweetheart,” she said to the brown guard with blonde mane who entered her room. “Any progress?” “The investigation is still in process,” the guard replied. “Too bad,” Icewind said. “I’m getting kinda bored here.” “It’s for your safety,” the guard muttered and left the room. Icewind sighed and went back to her bed. Outside the house, Riot Shield joined Boysenberry and Scootaloo. Scootaloo just finished telling Boysenberry about Rosier the Ignominious and other things she’d learned from Twilight and both of them were waiting for news about Icewind. “What’s up?” Boysenberry asked. “She’s getting suspicious,” Riot Shield replied. “She said she wanted some newspapers. I guess they don’t write about that murdered toilet granny anymore?” “I don’t think so,” Boysenberry replied. “But we’ll need to check everything we give her. What if they send messages in the small ads?” “You read too many novels,” Scootaloo muttered. “I think we need to focus on the bigger problem: a bunch of some crazy guys who believe that a thing living in Canterlot and making ponies eat other ponies will bow to their will if they give it a filly.” “Now they read too many novels,” Riot Shield said. “By the wrong authors. Do we know where they live? Maybe they had some books delivered to their houses?” “I don’t think so,” Scootaloo replied. “All I know is the name of the guy who first tried to do that. Rosier the Ignominious.” “So, can we arrest him?” “He’s long dead,” Scootaloo replied. “But I was wondering... Maybe he had some relatives? Or maybe we can find some books about him in the Canterlot Library.” Boysenberry sighed. “Great... I’ve dreamed about going to the library to look for information about some old nutjob.” “Coffee?” Riot Shield asked, raising his head from some dusty tome. “We’re not allowed to bring food and drinks here,” Scootaloo replied, pointing at the sign on the wall. “We need to find something about this guy...” She looked at the book she was holding and sighed. “Damn. I was never a bookworm...” Boysenberry was playing with her mane unconsciously, looking at some old manuscript. “I don’t think it’s what we looking for,” she said. “It’s even earlier history... Before the tribes were united.” “Boring,” Scootaloo muttered. “I guess it’s in some forbidden part of the library. Maybe we should ask Princess Celestia?” “Yeah, because she has nothing else to do...” Boysenberry banged her head against the desk, causing the librarian to give her a nasty look. “Hmm, Rosier the Ignominious, right?” “Yeah,” Scootaloo said. “Did you find him?” “It’s in this scroll,” Boysenberry replied. “A small mention... Something about him trying to prove the existence of Arcturus...” “Who?” Scootaloo asked. “Please, tell me that it’s not another guy we’ll have to look for...” “Oh, it was a leader of the bat pony tribe, more or less at the time when the tribes united,” Riot Shield said. “I learned that when I was interrogating Lyra Heartstrings. Octavia Melody has a statue of him in her living room.” “And I had to talk to that old drunk…” Boysenberry muttered. “Where did Heartstrings learn about Arcturus? And why does Octavia have his statue in her house?” “Do you think it may be important?” Riot Shield asked. “Maybe it was Lyra?” “I doubt it,” Scootaloo said. “I mean, Lyra somehow attracts weird stuff, but I don’t think she’d make her best friend’s daughter a sacrifice for that thing.” Boysenberry nodded. “Yeah, I remember when Babs Seed killed someone in her basement. She’s kinda like Archer, minus the weapons.” She shrugged. “I don’t think she did it. Most of those guys aren’t exactly bright or subtle. I haven’t seen her wearing a black cloak…” “But still, there are a few smart ponies behind them,” Riot said. “What if she’s one of them? She seemed nice, but she may be a skilled actress, pretending to be dumb while–“ “No way,” Scootaloo said. “You don’t know her. This is probably somepony who lives in Canterlot, has lots of money and knowledge of ancient history…” “Which is like most of the town,” Riot Shield muttered and sighed, staring at the books in front of him. “Can we think about it during the lunch?” Archer groaned, turning her face to the window. Something had just obscured the view, scaring her. She tried to get up and defend herself, but it only end with a sharp pain in her stomach that made her fall back on the bed. “Hello,” Schwalbe said, landing on the windowsill. “How are you?” “I feel like shit,” Archer whispered. “Since I felt like a fuckload of shit, you may call that an improvement.” She noticed that Schwalbe was breathing heavily, clutching her chest. “What happened?” “Nothing,” Schwalbe replied. She went through the room, searching for something. “Do you have any spare bandages here?” “Normal ponies go to the doctor when they’re sick,” Archer muttered. “Like, they use the door. Who did that to you?” “Same guys who did that,” Schwalbe replied, pointing at Archer. “And that little bitch in a uniform. The yellow one.” “Boysenberry?” Schwalbe nodded. “Idiots. They’re close to catch those guys, but they can’t put things together…” “And you can?” Archer asked and coughed. “Why did you even come to me?” “Let’s say that I like you,” Schwalbe muttered, her expression remaining unchanged. “The orange one comes to you often?” “Every day, when she has time,” Archer replied. “And I’m waiting for Button, actually.” “The dumb one. Good,” Schwalbe said. “When your cousin comes, tell her to think of Heart Beat’s cute-ceanera, but not about things ponies were doing, but what they weren’t doing…” “That’s kinda cryptic,” Archer muttered. “Why don’t you tell her that yourself?” “The yellow one told me that she’ll kill me,” Schwalbe replied. “And I don’t want to kill her.” She stood in attention, her ears perking up. “Gotta go. Somepony’s coming.” Before Archer could reply, Schwalbe left the room through the window and flew away. Archer lay back in her bed, listening to the hoofsteps on the corridor. She could easily recognise their pattern – she was hearing it everyday at home. She raised her head and looked at the door. “Hello, Button,” she whispered when the door opened. She coughed and reached for a jug of water standing on the nightstand. “Hello,” Button replied. He walked to Archer and poured her a glass of water. “Thanks,” Archer muttered and took a large sip. “How are you?” “Fine,” Button replied, avoiding Archer’s gaze. “I was just thinking...” “What?” Archer felt her stomach twist. It had nothing to do with the wound. “I was wondering if you thought about what we talked about the last time,” Button said, finally turning to Archer and staring at her. Archer sighed and shook her head. “Listen, Button... I don’t know if you noticed, but I’m not exactly in a mood for making life decisions. Just... Give me some time, okay? I’ll get out of here, lie down on a couch, have a beer, and think about getting a new job. How does that sound to you?” “I don’t like it, to be honest,” Button replied. “You’re clearly hoping that I’ll forget about it.” Archer raised from her bed, piercing Button with her gaze. “I am hoping that you’ll forget about it?” she shouted as loud as she could before wincing and clutching her stomach. “I almost got shot. That’s not the best time to make decisions.” “It’s simple,” Button said, lowering his head. “Me or work. It’s really not a hard decision.” “It is!” Archer exclaimed, sinking her face in her hooves. “I mean... Can’t it be like at the beginning?” “It’s okay,” Button said, hugging Archer. “I’m sorry... I’m just afraid that you may get yourself killed one day.” “I’ll be careful,” Archer replied. “No more going to shady bars and getting myself shot. I promise.” The door opened and Dr. Stable walked inside. “Is everything okay?” he asked. “I heard shouting.” “Sure,” Archer replied. “How’s your kid, doc?” Dr. Stable sighed. “She doesn’t want to talk. Even to me and Octavia. All those guards in our house don’t make the psychologist’s work easier.” “I can imagine,” Button said. “How about that mare who tried to foalnap her?” “Hidden with her daughter,” Archer replied. “Only a few ponies know where exactly.” Dr. Stable nodded. “It’s strange, but I can understand her. After I nearly lost my daughter I can imagine how she felt when they came to her... Promise me that you’ll catch them.” “Well, I can’t do much here,” Archer said, shrugging. “But I’ll definitely tell Scootaloo once she comes to me.” “Thank you.” Dr. Stable walked to the door. “I have to see the other patients. Take care, Archer.” “Sure, doc,” Archer replied. Looking into Button’s eyes, she thought that she’d have a lot to say to Scootaloo. “So, are we going back to the library?” Riot Shield asked. They were sitting with Boysenberry in a small restaurant on the other side of the street. Their “lunch break” lasted over two hours and eventually Scootaloo excused herself, telling them that she had to visit Archer. Boysenberry was pretty sure that it had something to do with Shady Daze, but she didn’t say anything about that. She thought about Tootsie Flute and sighed. “Boysenberry?” “I’d rather not,” Boysenberry said, snapping out of trance. “Just like I told you when you asked me about that before. Twice. We’re not going to write a paper about ancient Equestrian history, but to catch a bunch of psychos here and now. What else did Lyra say to you about Arcturus?” “Not much,” Riot Shield replied. “The statue, leader of the bat pony tribe... She seemed slightly off, like everyone on that party.” “Don’t remind me,” Boysenberry muttered, rubbing her temples. “But didn’t she say anything more about this guy? Did she read about him in some book? Or maybe Octavia told her about it?” “No, she didn’t read about him in a book,” Riot replied. “She... Wait, I know! She talked about him with somepony!” “Who?” Boysenberry asked. “C’mon, think... Who was that?” “Don’t worry, I made notes,” Riot said, producing a piece of paper. “Panic... Dusk Dancer kicking Hoity Toity... Dusk Dancer talking with Fleur about Arcturus... Note to self: check who is this guy.” “Dusk Dancer?” Boysenberry asked. “She lived in Ponyville but moved out when I was a little kid.” “Really? Why?” Riot leaned closer to Boysenberry, his ears perking up. “It probably had something to do with ponies trying to burn her house down,” Boysenberry replied. “How about Fleur dis Lee?” “Rich, noble... But why’d she do that?” Riot asked. “She’s a model. Models don’t usually try to start the apocalypse.” “Yeah. Poisoning their friends – that’s what models do,” Boysenberry deadpanned. “There’s surely more of them,” she whispered. “But if she’s one of them... She’s probably very high in the hierarchy...” “We need to find the rest and arrest them,” Riot muttered. “All of them at once. If we cut off the head...” The door to the bar opened. Boysenberry immediately reached to her pocket, where she held a knife. Only then she realised how stupid it was to talk about that in public. “Why are you so scared?” Scootaloo asked, approaching them. “I hoped that you’re still here. I figured it out.” “Fleur dis Lee?” Boysenberry whispered. “I don’t think it’d be wise to talk about it here... Too many ponies.” “H-how did you know?” Scootaloo asked, looking around. There weren’t many ponies in the restaurant – just the owner, a bored waitress, and two ponies sitting in the corner – but any of them could be a member of the cult. Boysenberry and Riot stood up and they walked out of the bar. It was slowly getting dark outside; ponies were wandering alone or in small groups, rushing to their homes to avoid getting cold. “Never mind how did I know. How did you know?” Boysenberry asked, looking around and seeing that nopony was following them. “Archer gave me that idea. We focused on what ponies were doing when Heart Beat was kidnapped,” Scootaloo replied. “Most of them rushed to save her, right?” “Like Dusk Dancer,” Riot Shield said. “We think it could have been her...” “Well, but she was trying to do something.” Scootaloo waved her hoof. “Even Minuette tried, and she was drunk. But who didn’t do anything?” “Fleur,” Boysenberry replied. “Fancy Pants... Hoity Toity...” “Damn,” Riot muttered. “You do realise what’s the worst thing? We can’t prove shit. Many ponies know about Arcturus and he’s not even connected with the case. And they may say that they were busy at the party. Or that they panicked.” “We need to find a proof...” Scootaloo muttered. “But how?” “Icewind,” Boysenberry replied. “We need to push her. Break her wings and lock her in the fridge if that’s necessary. She knows more than she told us.” “Damn those ponies...” Icewind muttered, checking the window of her room once again. It was locked – she knew about that well, but she was still checking from time to time. She could hear the guards downstairs, walking and talking to each other. She had to act quick. Icewind got out of her room and trotted downstairs. “Where are you going?” one of the guards asked, raising his head from the book he was reading. “I wanted to get a glass of water,” Icewind replied, trotting towards the kitchen. “I’m feeling a little dizzy from lying there for a whole day. Are you protecting me or keeping me hostage?” “You can walk around the house, you know,” the guard muttered. Icewind shrugged and walked to the kitchen. Luckily, nopony was there. She opened the cupboard and took a saltshaker from it. She then poured herself a glass of water and put three spoons of salt in it. She thought for a moment and added another one, just in case. Waiting for the salt to dissolve, Icewind looked at the door to check if the guards weren’t coming, and opened the fridge. She smirked, seeing that the bottle of tomato juice was there intact, just like she remembered it. Icewind opened it and drank about half of it in one go. She winced – tomato juice wasn’t her favourite drink. Despite that, she finished it and went back to the glass of salty water. She drank it and went back to the room where two guards were sitting on the couch. “Are you okay?” one of the guards asked. “Sure,” Icewind replied, feeling her stomach twitch a bit. “I’m just not used to sitting at home for days.” “Me neither,” the guard said. “But well, your friends still want to kill you, so it wouldn’t be wise to leave that house.” “Yeah,” Icewind replied. Her stomach twitched again. She winced and rubbed it, feeling another cramp coming. The other guard looked at her unsurely. “Are you sure you’re okay?” Icewind nodded. She inhaled loudly and felt a violent twitch of her oesophagus as she threw up on the floor right in front of the guard. She staggered, resting herself on the couch and threw up again, panting heavily. “Is that blood?” Icewind asked, opening her eyes and looking at the floor. “My... father had an ulcer...” “I don’t know,” the guard replied. “We’d better call the doctor...” “It’ll be hard,” the other guard said. “When that kid caught cold, we could just go on the other side of the street and call Ventricle, but here...” “So, are we going to transport her?” the first guard asked. “We can’t leave her like that.” “I don’t know. It’s just a gastric flu, I think.” “What if she bleeds out? The boss won’t be happy...” The guard nodded. “Let’s go to the carriage. We’ll take her to the hospital.” Icewind barely stopped herself from smirking. She waited as the guards put a blindfold over her eyes and led her to a small carriage without windows. One of them sat inside with her, while the other pulled it through the streets of Canterlot. “Sir?” Icewind asked, looking at the guard. “Yes?” “Can we stop? I think I’m gonna be sick again.” Icewind leaned forward to the guard. “Wait a minute, I’ll call–” The guard was interrupted by Icewind’s hoof connecting with his jaw. He hit the wall of the carriage with his head and went limp. Icewind felt that the carriage slowed down. “Is everything okay there?” the other guard asked. Instead of a reply, Icewind kicked the door open and took off. She turned around to see the carriage stopping and the other guard looking at her. She turned sharply, avoiding the magic beam, and hid behind the nearby house. Feeling her stomach twitching again, she darted forward, above the clouds. Loud snoring echoed through the small, dirty bar in the outskirts of Canterlot. The bartender, a tall, brown unicorn walked to the only patron, sleeping in a puddle of spilled booze and levitated him out of the building. He then grabbed a broom and started to sweep the floor, listening to the radio. Through the heavy layer of static, he could hear the late night news about somepony being chased by the guards. The unicorn lifted his head, seeing somepony landing in front of the bar. The door opened and a grey pegasus walked in. “Icewind,” the unicorn said. “Where were you? The pony they talk about on the radio seems awfully like you.” “I gave the message to Mouthwash,” Icewind replied. “Didn’t you get it?” The bartender stopped sweeping the floor. “Haven’t you heard?” he asked. “Mouthwash is dead.” “Damn,” Icewind muttered. “But it doesn’t matter now. I know where they keep the filly.” She leaned closer to the bartender. “We need to check where Dr. Ventricle lives. She lives on the other side of the street...”