//------------------------------// // XV - Maverick // Story: Mortal Coil // by Reeve //------------------------------// I woke up the next morning, lying in the corner of my old bedroom and workspace, clutching my father’s items while clinging tightly to an old curtain that had been ripped from the window, one of the only things left behind when the house was ransacked. It probably hadn’t been wise to sleep in my old room as it only elicited more memories and tears before I was finally able to drift off, but I had chosen it mainly for being one of the few rooms with an intact ceiling and whole walls. Once I was awake I simply sat there for what felt like the longest time, completely at a loss for what to do next. It felt as if my journey was over, and at the end I had received no reward, only misery. Where I went from there was a mystery to me, I had plenty of plans that hinged on my house being whole and untouched. I was going to write home, get back to work, start living a normal life again, but most of all I planned on returning to Pivot and inviting Grass Snake and her family to come and stay in my home with me. It was certainly big enough for all of us, and after seeing how much better Mule was than Pivot, life could only have been better for them here. Well that plan was certainly out of the window, which left me clueless as to my next move. I could always return to Sweet Apple Acres, I had no doubt Applejack would welcome me back with open arms and let me stay as long as I wanted, but I hated the idea of being over reliant on her family’s kindness. Maybe there was work to found within the city, preferably some that didn’t require me to invade Equestria. It was possible that I might find work relating to my old profession of tailoring and fashion design, at least with that I knew I would be good at it. I would work hard and save up my bits, then maybe one day I could buy a home fit for my family. That wasn’t much good either, it didn’t matter how hard a worker I was, I would never earn enough to support both my family and Grass Snake’s, and I had no intention of leaving them to fend for themselves. Maybe I should travel further across Panchea, find fortune elsewhere, but then where in this chaotic land was unmarred after the war? Where could I possibly go where there were no factions messing things up for everypony? It occurred to me that pretty much all my problems could be sourced back to the things Mashed Potato told me about how the Rebellion split apart, perhaps the key to fixing my problems was dealing with the trouble the factions were presenting head on… I shook my head at that, trying to rid myself of such a ridiculous notion. What could I, a single mare who hadn’t even been present during the war do to solve such a massive crisis? Well, while the road ahead wasn’t clear, I did have a few questions I wanted to ask Mashed Potato before I turned my back on this place, so without further thought I stood up and made my back through the house to the parlour. Jumping down to the first floor entrance hall was much easier than having to hoist myself up to the second floor landing the night before. As I entered the parlour, I found Mashed Potato sitting in the same spot I had left him in, staring blankly into space. “Mornin’,” He murmured to me as I took a seat in the second armchair. “Good morning,” I replied, although there was nothing good about it. “Suppose you’ll be leaving soon,” he stated matter-of-factly. “I… I guess I will be,” I answered after a moment’s hesitation. It was the only thing I knew for sure, that I wanted to get away from this place. “I just had a few things to ask before I went, about what happened here.” “I’m surprised you didn’t ask last night,” Mashed Potato pointed out, as if he knew exactly what I planned on asking all along. “I was… a bit overwhelmed last night,” I answered honestly. “It was hard to get my thoughts out.” “Understandable,” he agreed, nodding slightly. “Well, ask away.” “What happened here?” I began. “Why are the houses in this district so badly damaged? Why is the rest of the town being fixed up while these are being left to lie?” “I imagine it wasn’t long after you left,” Mashed Potato replied. “You’ll find most of the ponies who accepted Equestria’s offer of asylum lived in this district; many ponies who were loyal to the rebellion saw that as a betrayal. I’m sure you can imagine what they did as an act of punishment for those ponies, although you don’t have to imagine since you’ve seen it for yourself now. They destroyed homes indiscriminately, whether its occupants had fled to Equestria or not, from what I hear some still had ponies living inside when the mob stormed through. “They stole everything that wasn’t fixed down,” he continued. “If you’re wondering where all your possessions are now, you’ll probably never see them again. I imagine those pictures outside were only left behind because the only value they had was sentiment, not monetary. Once they took everything they could lay their hooves on they proceeded to set fire to a number of the houses, others they took their time with and basically demolished.” “I had thought as much,” I replied after contemplating his answer for a moment. “As for why they haven’t been rebuilt,” Mashed Potato picked up. “Do you recall what I said last night about the Liberators breaking this place down and harvesting it for materials?” “Yes, you said that’s what they’re using to expand the fort,” I recalled. “Indeed,” he confirmed. “Why pay for materials and pay for repairs when you can hit two birds with one stone? And with how big the Liberator army is becoming, it’s no wonder why they would need a larger fort.” “So eventually this place will be dismantled too?” I asked, knowing full well what the answer was even before he nodded. “Nothing like putting salt in the wound.” “So what will you do now?” Mashed Potato asked, causing me to sigh. “Where will you go?” “I honestly have no idea,” I stated with all honesty. “I think the best thing for me now would be to go find my friend and figure it out from there.” “Well, wherever you end up and whatever you end up doing,” Mashed Potato began, standing up slowly from his chair. “I wish you all the best.” “What about you?” I asked as we shook hooves. “Are you just going to wait here for the Liberators to come find you? And what do you eat anyway?” “Don’t you worry about me,” he assured me, his voice suddenly very serious. “My time with the Rebels has taught me to look after myself, just focus on finding your own way now.” “Alright, goodbye Mashed Potato,” I said awkwardly as I began walking towards the parlour door again. “Maybe we’ll see each other again someday.” “Maybe,” he replied quietly. At that, I opened the door and stepped out into the entrance hall. I waited there for a brief moment before walking over to where the picture frames lay in the dust. Bending down I used my magic to free each individual photo from its damaged frame, once I had them all collected I stored them safely inside my sketchbook before standing up and making my way to the front door. It was still early morning when I stepped out into my old front yard; it looked even grimmer in daylight. Choosing not to hesitate there any longer, I quickly strode to the iron gate, intent on getting away from the old house and finding somewhere I could get a bite to eat and think about my next move. Once I reached the gate however, I stopped dead. There, pinned between the two gates was a sheet of paper, a very familiar symbol drawn on it. I quickly glanced around me, worried that the mysterious stallion might leap out of nowhere and I would end up like those soldiers at the farm. I was completely alone thankfully; there was no sign of anypony in the yard or in the street beyond the gate. Turning my attention back to the paper, I reached out with a hoof that trembled slightly, taking hold of it and quickly ripping it way from the gate. The first side bore the same wreath of thorns, still drawn as intricately as always. However, for the first time there was something on the other side of the paper, there was writing! My heart beat rapidly as my eyes scanned over the note, reading the elegant, curvy, joined up letters. The note read ‘Go to the harbour, find a red barge, it is time for us to meet face to face. If you do not arrive by midday you will be declared our enemy and you will be eliminated.’ I stood, absolutely frozen as my eyes unfocused. The stallion was summoning me to a meeting, but why? Perhaps he found out I stole from that lockbox, or he knows I was looking into that coded letter. Asking these questions was pointless, the only way I would get any answers is if I went to the meeting, but was that wise? If these notes really had been left by that stallion from the farm, then I was dealing with a killer, going to meet him could be suicide. Then again it didn’t sound like I was being given a choice in the matter, the letter made it very clear what would happen if I didn’t attend. So I was faced with a choice, attend a meeting that seemed suicidal, or don’t attend which was also suicidal. It was a tough choice, but after almost no time spent thinking about it I knew what my decision was. So as I stepped out through the iron gate I began making my way out of the Botanic District and back through town until I reached the Harbour District. As I walked, one thought repeated itself in my head, over and over again, why on earth was I not running as far away as I could? Okay, two thoughts, how was I ever supposed to find a single barge in the harbour of Port Mule? The place was always filled to the brim with boats and ships of various sizes and colours. Indeed when I arrived in the Harbour District I found that today would be no exception, but the last thing I wanted was having some assassin hunting me down just because I spent to long looking for the meeting place. Luckily the harbour was packed enough that nopony paid me any heed as I trotted through the crowds, scanning my eyes back and forth over all ships, trying to find the red barge mentioned in the note. In the end it wasn’t the barge I spotted first, as I neared the western end of the harbour and began walking down a relatively empty jetty, I caught sight of a pony. While I had only seen the stallion the one time, I could never have forgotten him. I recognised his peach coat and spikey rose coloured mane. Of course he was standing perfectly straight at the bottom of a gangplank that led up to the deck of a red barge. Taking a deep breath, and questioning my own sanity one last time, I began marching down the wooden jetty towards him. “Well,” I began, trying to quell the fear in my voice. “Here I am.” He didn’t reply to my statement, he had of course been watching me ever since I had caught sight of him, possibly even before that. Now that I was directly in front of him and talking to him, watching me was all he did, it was quite eerie considering he didn’t even blink as he surveyed me with the most unreadable expression I had seen on any pony ever. “You summoned me here,” I reminded him. “Well here I am, so what is you want?” Still he said nothing, just stood statue still and stared directly into my eyes. “You saved me at Sweet Apple Acres,” I pointed out. “But you also killed all those ponies, didn’t you?” Again I was met with only silence. “Why won’t you answer me?!” I demanded, fear ebbing away to be replaced with frustration. “You called me here so why won’t you talk.” “He won’t talk,” a voice called out to my right. “Because he cannot talk.” My head snapped to the right, and as I stared up the gangplank at the figure who had appeared on the deck of the barge my jaw dropped. “Come aboard,” Sufferthorn commanded, looking down on me with cold eyes. “Your presence is required.” I quickly snapped myself out of my shock, glanced once at the stallion who still had not moved before beginning up the gangplank. Once I set hoof on the deck I looked directly at Sufferthorn who was still looking at me with undisguised hatred. “I thought you advised me not to cross paths with you again,” I reminded her bitterly. “And now you want to talk to me?” “Hold your tongue!” Sufferthorn ordered. “I have no desire to talk to the likes of you… but the master does.” With that she turned on the spot and began walking towards the door to the cabin while I was left to try and figure out what she meant by ‘master’. As I stood there I felt a gentle prodding in my back, and glanced back to see the stallion standing directly behind me, still looking at me with that passive expression. I jumped slightly, I hadn’t even heard him walk up the gangplank after me. It was clear he wanted me to follow after Sufferthorn, so rather than antagonise anypony further I did just that. As I walked up to the door where Sufferthorn stood, she threw it open, beckoning for me to go in first. As I walked into the dimly lit cabin, I heard both other ponies follow me closely before the door was shut. The room was lit by an oil lamp that hung in the centre of the ceiling, its light revealed a very bare room, containing a single table with two chairs, and a ladder in one corner that led below deck. One of the chairs was empty, which I quickly guessed was for me while the other was occupied by the pony I assumed to be the master Sufferthorn was talking about. The unicorn stallion was grey all over, grey coat, grey mane, grey suit. The only things that weren’t grey were his red bowtie and circular spectacles that completely obscured his eyes. “Welcome Miss Rarity,” the stallion greeted. “Please take a seat, there is a great deal to discuss.” I briefly glanced behind me at the two other ponies who were both flanking the door, the stallion remained as blank as ever while Sufferthorn’s glare made it clear that I should obey this stallion’s command. At this point there was no getting out even if I wanted to, so the best thing for myself was to do as I was told, so I walked forward and sat myself down on the wooden chair opposite this new figure. “Thank you for cooperating,” he said, giving me a sickening smile. “I really want this relationship of ours to get off to a good start.” Maybe I was feeling particularly brave after I sat down, or I realised that there wasn’t much I could do to make my situation any worse so I might as well stick it to this guy. “Considering my interactions with your two goons there,” I began, even as the rational part of me screamed to stop. “I’d say we’re off to a pretty bad start already.” “Would you?” the stallion asked, not at all put off by my statement. “My mistake, I was sure that after Sufferthorn punished those stallions who assaulted you in Pivot, and Stranglethorn saved your life at Sweet Apple acres, you would be feeling more favourable to them.” Stranglethorn? Was that the name of the stallion? It would make sense considering the wreath of thorns, but then why was his name so similar to… “Yes, that’s right,” the stallion said as if reading my thoughts. “They are brother and sister, and my two most loyal agents.” “Your agents?” I repeated, as everything began to piece together in my mind. “Wait, does that mean you’re…” “Oh goodness, where are my manners?” the stallion cut in. “Miss Rarity, my name is Maverick; I am the leader of the Rebellion.” I sat in silence as I tried to comprehend what was going on, I was sitting in a darkened room, speaking directly to the leader of the Rebellion while his Marshal and her brother stood guard. I think the one thing that really screamed out at me was, what have I gotten myself into?! “There’s no need to worry Miss Rarity,” Maverick assured me, still talking in a voice that was practically dripping with caramel it was so sweet. “You’re in no danger here, we simply asked you to come here today so that we could talk.” “Talk about what?” I asked, unable to hide my nervousness. “About your recent exploits of course,” Maverick answered. “You’ve done quite a lot since you got back to Panchea, wouldn’t you agree?” “Have you… been spying on me?” I asked, really panicking now. “We never intended on watching you specifically,” Maverick replied. “But we had our eyes on all the ponies who returned from Equestria, you just happened to catch our attention. And from the sounds of things, we’ve caught your attention as well.” “Hard not to,” I responded, trying to brush it off. “I mean, the Rebellion is pretty big at the moment, it’s only natural I’d hear about you.” I tried to keep my voice calm, but I could feel anger bubbling up inside me. The Rebellion was at the heart of everything that was wrong with Panchea, and now I was sitting opposite one of the ponies who was directly responsible for all that. It was taking all my willpower not to scream in his face, but I think he knew that, hence what he said next. “You don’t like us, do you?” he stated. “Why don’t you tell me why that is and maybe we can come to some sort of understanding?” I bit my lip, it was tempting to let it all out there and then, but I was still wary of the two ponies standing behind me, one of which I knew was a professional killer. “Where do I start?” I asked rhetorically. “How about what happened at Glean? That pony you had killed, I know what you did, I read the letter.” “Yes, you did read the letter,” Maverick agreed. “Remind me who it was who helped you do that again.” I quickly shut my mouth tight, realising I could end up putting Mashed Potato in danger if I outed him. “Never mind, we know exactly who helped you translate it,” Maverick said after a moment of silence. “It doesn’t matter though. You read the letter, yes, but then you will also have read that we offered the innkeeper a chance to help us. Needless to say he refused…” “So you killed him?!” I exclaimed, furious. “And for what? Who was this target that was so important it justified killing an innocent pony?” “I’m afraid that is none of your concern,” Maverick said flatly. “Not yet at least, we’ll see how this meeting goes first. And while you may not like it, know that even with the war ended we are still living in dangerous times, times which require extreme actions to be taken for the good of the country.” “Is that what sabotaging that crane in the woods was?” I asked in a cold voice as I glanced back at the Stranglethorn who still hadn’t reacted to anything that was being said. “For the good of the country?” “Ah, that was an unfortunate accident,” Maverick said, sounding genuinely put off. “I can understand your thinking, but I can promise you that act of sabotage was performed weeks before your caravan arrived in those woods. We had lost control of that checkpoint to the Equestrian forces, Stranglethorn damaged the crane in order to set them back should they ever try to use it. Since they never did, the crane was left in its damaged state for when you arrived, like I said, it was an unfortunate accident.” “Maybe less unfortunate accidents would occur if you weren’t so quick to destroy things just because the Equestrians might have got hold of them!” I snapped. “Ah, you’re referring to the fire at Sweet Apple Acres,” Maverick said, grimacing at the thought. “Now that I can promise you was not our doing, the order had been given by Sufferthorn’s predecessor without our knowledge, it was one of the reasons he is no longer the Marshal of this Rebellion. He was responsible for similar incidents in the towns of Glean and Brine as a matter of fact, burning crops to keep them out of Equestrian hooves.” “Well what about Pivot?!” I cut in. “You won the war, why the heck are you allowing Pivot to collapse under your regime?!” “Oh come now, you know better than that Miss Rarity,” Maverick responded with a smirk. “We don’t have a regime and you know it, the Rebellion has no power as long as those who split from us continue to undermine us. You must know that the Liberators here in Mule are actively trying to break our hold over Pivot by destroying its economy.” “Well I don’t see how you’re helping matter by keeping a corrupt pony in as mayor and using him to steal from the coffers,” I pointed out, that made Maverick flinch ever so slightly and I smiled at the knowledge of having won an argument. “True…” Maverick said very slowly. “We haven’t been managing the Pivot situation as well as we could. We needed that money to help support our remaining forces and we needed Pen Pusher to stay in office so we could maintain control over the city. I’m not going to lie, they’re dirty tactics, but we’re running low on options. The Rebellion is losing strength fast, everyday troops either desert us or we’re forced to send them away due to… disgraceful behaviour. So we’re forced to take desperate measures to keep what remaining force we have together, for if we don’t the Liberators will have nothing standing between them and declaring a second war with Equestria, and that’s not even mentioning what the other divergent factions will do without us keeping them at bay. “It was our main reason for having Stranglethorn eliminate the deserters who attacked Sweet Apple Acres,” Maverick continued. “They had been causing trouble down this way, and so long as they wore our armour it made our relationship with the Liberators, as bad as it currently is, even worse. No doubt you heard what they did to the bridge outside of Mule, if they had been allowed to terrorise this area much longer like that then the Liberators would no doubt have marched on Pivot and finished us off by force. So I had them cut down, you were probably going to use that as an argument against me, but I stand fully behind that decision.” “Why are you so concerned about the Liberators?” I asked. “You went to war with Equestria just to get them out of this country; I figured you had no real love for them.” “I never wanted a war with Equestria,” Maverick said solemnly, shaking his head. “I never even wanted the civil war to occur. The aim of the Rebellion was never to make enemies with Equestria; we always intended to remain allies with them. But if the Liberators go to war, then Equestria will never wish to ally with us.” I was a little taken aback by that, I admit I never realised the Rebellion had intentions of forming relationships with Equestria after the war. “So Miss Rarity,” Maverick said, regaining his composure after a long pause. “Are there any concerns I’ve failed to address?” “Yeah, one,” I said in a neutral voice. “Why are you telling me this?” Maverick smiled at that as he placed his forehooves together under his chin. “Tell me Miss Rarity,” he began, his voice turning sickly sweet once more. “What are your views on the goals of the Rebellion?” “I… never really thought about it,” I answered, not sure I would like where this line of conversation was going. “I guess I can understand why ponies here would want to be able to govern themselves, rather than Equestria ruling over them despite the massive distance. And yeah, a local government would probably be able to work more effectively since it would know more intimately the issues this country faces.” “Now what do you think of the Liberators?” Maverick asked. “Knowing that their aims are quite similar to ours, having split off from the Rebellion to begin with, but that they wish to overthrow Celestia and colonise Equestria for themselves.” I took a long sigh, knowing exactly where Maverick was going with this. “I don’t agree with them at all,” I stated, knowing what I was resigning myself to. “Now, you know that the Rebellion is currently struggling,” Maverick continued. “Ponies who I once considered to be my friends have betrayed me and formed opposing factions that now threaten to destroy everything the Rebellion was trying to achieve. We’re beginning to take decisive measures to ensure the safety of this country, but these measures I can only entrust to certain individuals whom I trust wholeheartedly. Sufferthorn and Stranglethorn have proven their loyalty to me and our cause time and time again, but the things that are to come, we can’t do alone. So I need to know, can I trust you among our number?” “Maverick,” Sufferthorn began, almost in a growl. “We still can’t be sure that she’s not…” “Keeping in mind,” Maverick said loudly, cutting off his Marshal. “That the things you do could help build a safer world for those you care about. Your family, the farmers from Sweet Apple Acres, those orphans in Pivot, they would all live better lives if you helped us finish what the Rebellion started. You could see to it that a war that was never supposed to happen, and all the death and tragedy that came along with it, was not in vain. So what will it be, Miss Rarity?” I didn’t respond immediately, the offer echoed in my head and for the longest time I simply reflected on it in disbelief. Just that morning I had been trying to figure out what I was supposed to do with my life, and now this opportunity had just presented itself to me, but was it the right path for me? I wonder what my friends would think, those who had turned their backs on the Rebellion, Applejack, Hammerhead and Mashed Potato, would they hate me if I accepted Maverick’s offer. And who could even say that Maverick was telling the truth, as much as I prided myself in being able to read ponies I couldn’t be entirely sure that everything he had told me was genuine. What if he really had given the order for Sweet Apple Acres to be burnt to the ground? What if he was taking money from Pivot, not out of any kind of necessity, but simply because he could? And what if he was telling the truth about everything? What if I really could help bring about some positive change, not just for the ponies I cared about, but for the country as a whole? That morning I had convinced myself that I couldn’t do anything on my own to fix things in Panchea, but what if I could… “Maverick,” I said at long last. “Just call me Rarity, and what do you want me to do exactly?”