//------------------------------//
// Hawks Circling 
// Story: Dark Matter 
// by moguera 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 8: Hawks Circling

"So...how are you feeling?" asked Shining.
"Better, sir," replied Flash, his lips twitching up in a small smile, "I just wish we'd managed to stop them."
Shining sighed dejectedly.  "I wish that too.  But real life isn't that kind."
"What are the final numbers?" asked Flash.
"Are you sure you want to know?" asked Shining.
"If I'm taking over for you, then it's going to be part of the job," admitted Flash, laying his head back on the pillow, "Besides, those ponies were under my command.  I owe it to them to not look away from the consequences of my actions."
Shining gave Flash a sad smile.  "I figured you'd say that."  He took a deep breath.  "Eight dead, including the two that were guarding the main entrance.  Three more are critically injured.  Of those, there's one who may not survive the night.  The doctors are doing their best, but it doesn't look good for her."
Flash felt his stomach sink and he went back to staring at the ceiling of his hospital room.  The doctors had told him that the damage to his back and head were relatively minor and that he'd be able to leave the next morning.  But that knowledge brought him no comfort now.  "We need to find out who was behind this and make them pay."
"We're working on that," said Shining, "I did notice one important piece of information though."
"What's that?"
"The mercenaries that attacked us, they matched the description of the ponies that abducted my sister from Ponyville."
Flash frowned.  "You think they're connected then."
Shining's eyes narrowed.  "I'd bet my life on it.  In fact, I'm sure that the same pony who arranged Twilight's foalnapping is the one who ordered this little trick.  I'm looking forward to giving whoever she is a little payback."
"We'll have to find her first."
To Flash's surprise, Shining's lips curled up in a smile that could only be described as smug.  "As it so happens, I have a pony on it.  She's former SES and is closing in on the responsible ponies as we speak.  When we find them, I have a friend on the way to Canterlot who is going to put those mercenaries and the pony that hired them through Tartarus."
"I see," said Flash, "Good luck to you then, sir.  I'll join you as soon as I get out of here."
"I'm counting on it," said Shining, making his way to the door, "Also, Hope Spot's here to see you.  She was pretty worried."
Flash blushed slightly.  "I suppose that's only to be expected."
"Good luck with her," said Shining before closing the door behind him.
"Geez," muttered Flash, flopping back down on the bed, "What is it with my superiors and meddling with my love life?"



Perlin's hooves clicked against the hardwood floor of the hallway as he made his way through the mansion.  Depending on the circumstances, he figured it would probably be a bad idea to interrupt Coco when she was talking to Twilight Sparkle.  It was probably best to wait until they were finished.  Perlin had never met Twilight in pony, but he suspected that the Baron didn't have nearly as tight a hold on her as he thought.  If that was the case, Perlin wanted to be sure that he wasn't in a position to trip them up, willingly or otherwise.
"You've been looking more tired than usual."
Freezing in place, Perlin paused for a minute before turning to look at Wight Shade, who seemed to have been following right behind him the entire time.  For all that Perlin knew, he might have been.  Wight didn't seem particularly dangerous, but Perlin got the sense that the strange stallion didn't play by the same rules that everypony else did.
"I've had a lot on my mind," replied Perlin, "As it turns out, thinking too much about things can tire you out just as much as a serious fight."
"That's understandable," said Wight with a smile, "And the young lady...how is she faring?"
"Well enough," said Perlin, "I'm aware that the Baron will probably try to dispose of her when he finishes with whatever he's planning.  I'm trying to figure out how to prevent that."
Wight sighed and shook his head, actually chuckling slightly.  "No wonder you have so much on your mind.  You're overthinking things.  A pony like you shouldn't worry overly much about trying to make complicated plans.  You need to focus on where your strengths lie and what you can do with those."
"My strengths...?"  Perlin blinked and turned his eyes upward thoughtfully.  "But that would mean..."
"See, simple isn't it," said Wight with an approving smile, "You care quite deeply for Ms. Pommel.  Luckily for you, the answer is quite easy.  You only need to kill everypony that is threatening her."
The young stallion's eyes snapped down to meet Wight's, widening in shock as they did so.  "But that's..."
"You needn't worry about the details," said Wight, "Once this is over, it won't matter who knows what about who or what they say.  Coco was an asset to the Baron and is now a liability to him.  However, she is of no importance to me, whether as an asset or a liability, which means all that matters is what she means to you."
"So then...it's time," said Perlin.
"Nearly," replied Wight, "The Baron hasn't been quite as clever about covering his tracks as he thinks he's been.  Granted, I may have been misinforming him about that.  But things will be coming to a head quite soon."
"I see," said Perlin, turning to face Wight full on, "If that's the case, then I would like to tell you something."
"And what is that?"
"I wish to accept your offer," said Perlin, his tone uncharacteristically serious.
For a moment, Wight was silent.  It seemed, for the first time since Perlin had met him, that Wight was genuinely surprised.  "I was beginning to think that you might," he said, "However, I'm surprised to hear such conviction from you.  I don't really believe that it's absolutely necessary.  As you are now, you are more than capable of achieving your current goals."
"That's true," said Perlin, spreading his wings and looking sadly at them, "As you said, it would be all too easy for me to kill everypony threatening Coco with just these.  But...that's not all that I want anymore."
"And what is it that you do want now?"
Perlin sighed, "I want the strength to keep her safe, to protect her from harm."
"So you desire a better blade then?"
Perlin shook his head.  "No...I don't want to have to tread so carefully around her.  More than a blade, I want a proper sheath."
Wight's eyebrow went up.  "I see...very interesting, Perlin Bluestreak.  Very well, I will follow your request."  He chuckled again.  "It's a good thing I anticipated that you'd been considering this.  I've already taken the liberty of contacting your guardian.  In fact, he should arrive soon."
"The doctor?"  Perlin raised an eyebrow.  "I didn't think you'd bother to contact him."
"Of course I would," said Wight, "I will require his assistance if we are to improve on his work."
"Um..."  Perlin was suddenly looking rather hesitant.  "I hope he takes it well."



The sun had already set when the train from Ponyville pulled into Canterlot's station.  Scootaloo groaned and stretched her wings as she stepped onto the platform.  "Okay...where do we start?"
"We start by securing lodging," replied Arkenstone as he stepped down off the train behind her, "Depending on how things turn out, this could take a few days."
"So we just go to the Palace, right?" asked Rumble, fluttering out behind the stallion.
“That was my plan.”
“Okay…” said Scootaloo, “But if you’re visiting the Palace, then won’t ponies know you’re here right away?”
“Fortunately, I know a few…discrete entrances,” said Arkenstone with a slight smirk, “I will show you one of them now, so long as you promise not to use them for any of your Crusader shenanigans in the future.”
“Fine,” groaned Scootaloo.  Beside her, Rumble was already crossing his heart and sticking a hoof in his eye (after closing it first, of course).
“Good,” said Arkenstone, “Let’s be off.”
He turned and led the foals through the station.  He was a bit surprised not to sense any signs of watchful eyes.  It seemed that the nobles had apparently diverted their attention to other matters, possibly because one of them already had Twilight in their grasp and they no longer felt they needed to monitor the station for arrivals and departures.  It spoke of an almost suicidal overconfidence.
Or… thought Arkenstone grimly, …that they are already in the final stages of whatever plan they have and are already taking action.
As they moved, Rumble accidentally bumped into a passing unicorn who was disembarking from the very same train they’d gotten off of.  “Sorry,” said the gray colt as he helped the chartreuse-green stallion recover his bags.
“It’s fine,” said the stallion with a polite smile, using a hoof to brush back his chartreuse-yellow mane, “I probably should have been watching where I was going more carefully as well.”  His puce eyes twinkled merrily as he smiled down at Rumble.
“Rumble!  Will you hurry up!” shouted Scootaloo as she and Arkenstone were already a fair ways away.
“Sorry!  Gotta go,” said Rumble, spreading his wings to zip after them.
The stallion watched the colt go before shrugging and shifting the brown duster he was wearing.  “Foals…always in such a hurry.”  He chuckled and shook his head, heading out through a different section of the station.



After getting Coco Pommel to calm down, Twilight managed to extract the younger mare’s story while she helped herself to the platter of daisy and daffodil sandwiches that Coco had brought.  They were delicious, to say the least, with their elegant cuts hiding a homey, earthy flavor that Twilight suspected came from the fact that Coco had prepared them herself, rather than letting the Baron’s chef try to woo Twilight with something overly fancy.
Twilight learned all about Coco’s past dealings with Elderflower, as well as everything that had come before.  Coco had originally been apprenticed under a designer in Manehattan, who had gotten on the wrong side of a viscount named Eventide.  Eventide arranged for Suri’s reputation to be utterly destroyed and sank Coco’s along with it.  With no place else to go, Coco had been taken in by the Viscount himself and had been forced to work as a member of his staff.  Then, Eventide had gotten into a conflict with Baron Elderflower, which had ended in a brief conflict in the Crystal Caverns beneath Canterlot, where Eventide and his entire host of mares at arms were slaughtered by Perlin Bluestreak.  Coco, who had followed the Viscount down in hopes of finding leverage that would allow her to win her freedom from him, had witnessed the whole affair.  She’d been quickly discovered by the Baron and Perlin.  Elderflower had taken over Coco’s employment and made arrangements for her, which ultimately brought her to where she was today.
"I'm so sorry," said Coco, looking away from Twilight.
"No.  I should be the one apologizing," said Twilgiht, "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be in this position to begin with."
"If it weren't for you, I would still be Viscount Eventide," said Coco, a sad smile spreading across her face, "I wouldn't have gotten the chance to meet Ms. Rarity and apprentice under her.  I learned so much.  She even used my designs in her fashion show for the Royal Warrant."
She sagged down.  "When I worked for Suri, everything I made was hers by default.  It didn't matter if I was just doing the grunt work for her or coming up with a design of my own.  If it was successful, it was hers.  The only things I got to keep were the failures.  Suri used my designs in fashion shows, just like Rarity did.  But Suri always took the credit for them.
"At first, when I saw my dresses on those models during Rarity's fashion show, I was afraid that it was starting all over again.  But then she called me out.  She went up in front of all those important ponies and told told them that those were my designs.  I've never been so happy in my entire life."
Slumping all the way to the floor, Coco began to cry again.  "Th-that only makes it worse.  After everything she did for me, I lied to her and to everypony.  I betrayed her trust!  I sold out one of her best friends to the Baron!  How can I ever face her after this?"
Laying down beside Coco, Twilight gave her an encouraging smile, even if Coco was too busy burying her head into her forelegs to see it.  "You can face her because you know that Rarity is better than that.  Coco, I'll admit that we could have settled things much more easily if you had just gone and told us.  I understand that you were afraid of what the Baron might do and how we would react.  You could have done better.  But the same is true for me.  There are times where I look back and I think about what I should have done better.  Life is full of times like that and you'll have more occasions like that in the future.
"But that's the thing about hindsight.  You can always talk about what you should have done.  But what truly matters is what you do from here.  I know Rarity very well.  I know that, even if she realizes your part in all of this, she's more worried about how you're doing than she is about what you did.  She's not such a shallow pony that she'd throw you away for something like this."
"Y-you're s-sure?" Coco said, her voice hiccuping.
"I'm positive," said Twilight, nuzzling Coco's cheek, "When we get out of this, we'll talk to Rarity and I know that you'll still be able to work with her.  I know that you'll still be friends."
For a moment, Coco was silent.  Then, she looked over at Twilight, her gaze questioning.  "Y-you said...?"
Twilight held a hoof up to Coco's lips.  "Shh."  Looking around, she took in their position.  The mirror was on the other side of the room, so the bed was between them and the mirror.  If it was a window for a concealed room, whoever was inside would be unable to see them now.  However, Twilight couldn't use her magic to look for listening spells, so long as the inhibitor ring was on her horn...
...At least, not her magic on its own.  Twilight began to smile as she made sure her head and, more importantly, her horn were below the line of the bed and out of sight from anypony who might be watching through the mirror...if there was anypony at all.
Twilight couldn't possibly be too cautious in this situation.  One misstep and a carefully planned escape could get violent and dangerous.  That wasn't so bad on its own.  Twilight had studied battle magic under Arkenstone's instruction, learning to cast attack and defense spells under duress and during hectic situations.  She had also worked on streamlining her mental processes to shorten the time lag for casting spells on the fly.  Regardless of how dangerous the situation got, Twilight was fairly certain of her ability to at least get away from here.
But Coco changed things.  Twilight was responsible for her safety as well.  Thus, Twilight had to be absolutely certain that she could map out the safest way out of this situation that would give her the greatest chance of getting both her and Coco out with minimal risk.  If things got hairy, then Coco, having zero experience with fighting, would be in the greatest danger.
Thus, Twilight made absolutely certain that the bed was between her and the mirror and that the the door to the bathroom was closed as well before going to work.  Reaching out with an arm, Twilight looped it around Coco's neck and pulled the younger mare's face into her shoulder, a gesture of comfort.  However, it also served to keep Coco from seeing what Twilight was doing.
Below the ugly black band of the inhibitor ring, there was a glimmer of silvery light as another ring appeared around Twilight's horn.  It was a band of dark-gold with etchings of glittering silver.  The ring was a gift from Akenstone.  Originally, it had belonged to her older brother.  The ring was forged from arcanasteel, an alloy formed from an alchemical marriage of mithril and orichalcum.  The unique properties of the resulting alloy gave the ring some very useful qualities.  Twilight intended to put one of those qualities to work now.
The ring could be charged with magic, acting as a storage device for the energy needed for spells.  Not only could Twilight use its stored magic to supplement her own raw power.  The fact that the magic was already externalized through the ring, rather than her horn, reduced the burden on the horn itself, allowing for the casting of powerful and complex magic.
Of course, the fact that the magic was already externalized also meant that, since it wasn't being channeled through her horn, the inhibitor ring could not absorb and cancel out the magic.  In other words, Twilight could still use her magic, even in this situation.  Furthermore, because the arcanasteel ring had been bonded to the alicorn of her horn itself, Twilight was able to charge it without having to channel the magic out through her horn, meaning that she didn't have to worry about limiting her usage of the item, lest she run out of stored power.  In other words, the ring functioned as the perfect device to circumvent an inhibitor ring.  Baron Elderflower's precautions were useless.
Unable to keep a triumphant smile from her face, Twilight went to work on shaping the spell.  It was a bit trickier, given that the magic was already externalized.  Instead of manifesting in her usual violet aura, the magic instead formed an aura of glittering silver.  Twilight took that aura and shaped it into a circle, like a lens that she held up before her eyes, carefully looking around the room.
As she had expected, there were listening spells placed in every corner.  That clean meeting of multiple lines at ninety-degree angles was perfect for anchoring spells for an extended period of time.  Assuming that the corners she couldn't see from her position behind the bed also had listening spells embedded in them, Twilight figured that the listening spells had complete coverage of the room.  Fortunately, those spells were audio only.  Picking up and translating vibrations in the air was a much easier process than processing ambient light into an image.  So Elderflower and his lackeys could listen, but not watch...not through spells at least.
The mirror was the next target.  Carefully directing her horn at the floor, Twilight sent a tiny pulse through it.  Her aura vanished into the wood, washing out around her.  It was a concept borrowed from earth pony magic.  Twilight knew that Arkenstone and other proficient earth ponies could sense their surroundings through the ground in incredible detail.  In fact, developing that ability had been what had lead Apple Bloom to discovering her cutie mark.  By sending her magic through the floor itself, rather than over the floor, she concealed the magic itself from observation, which would make her efforts unnoticeable to most unicorns.  Only ones who had studied and applied principles learned from earth pony magic like she had would be in a position to notice.  Here, in the stronghold of an ardent unicorn tribalist, the spell might as well be invisible.
Through the feedback she received from the spell, Twilight was able to construct a rough map of her surroundings.  There was indeed a walled-off, empty space behind the mirror, a chamber for observing what went on inside Twilight's room.  The bathroom was safe, however.  Twilight would have to check it for listening spells later.  But now she knew the true layout of the cage Elderflower had trapped her in.  More importantly, she knew where the holes in the bars were.  Now all she had to do was making an opening large enough for her and Coco to escape through.  I can do this, she thought.
However, now was not the time to escape just yet.  True, she could probably manage an escape and take Coco with her.  But that wasn't enough.  After everything that Elderflower had done, Twilight knew that simply escaping wouldn't be the end of the matter.  Even if she did escape and bring the full force of the Princesses and the Royal Guard down on Elderflower, there was still the chance that he might get away and continue whatever he had planned elsewhere.  Elderflower wasn't the kind of pony to take defeat lying down.  Nor was he the complacent sort who would remain content with simply eluding justice.  Elderflower would not stop until either he realized his plans for Equestria or somepony stopped him.  Twilight fully intended to be that pony.
But first, that meant learning just what Elderflower was up to.  In order to do that, Twilight needed time.  Whatever the Baron was planning, it was obvious that she was a part of it.  Depending on what he wanted, he would need Twilight to be aware of at least the basic gist of his plan, even if he chose to leave out the minute details, if Twilight could get at least some idea of what Elderflower was up to, she could work out how to stop him...for good.
Her work done for the time being, Twilight loosened her grip, allowing Coco to pull her face away from Twilight's shoulder.  Twilight smiled at Coco, who gave her a questioning look.  "It's going to be okay," said Twilight, "I'll figure a way out of this.  There's no way I'm leaving without you."  A vague assurance like that was relatively harmless.  Baron Elderflower knew better than to believe that Twilight would go along with his plans without an iota of protest.  A defiant statement like that was only to be expected and the Baron would undoubtedly believe that Twilight's attitude would soften once she appreciated the full reality of her position.
"Can you really?" asked Coco.
"I'm sure I can," said Twilight, "But I don't want you to put yourself at risk.  So just do whatever Elderflower needs you to do.  I'll work out how to get us out of this mess."
"O-okay..." said Coco.
There was a polite knock at the door.  Twilight got up from behind the bed, looking towards the door.  She wondered if Elderflower had come to speak to her again already.  "Who is it?"
The door opened and a young, cream-colored stallion, dressed in a black cloak, leaned in.  "Excuse me.  I was told that I could find Coco here."
"Perlin!"  Coco shot up off the floor, her expression somewhere between surprise and relief.
Twilight's eyes widened as she looked at Perlin Bluestreak for the first time.  After everything she had heard from the ponies who'd met him, she was surprised by her first impression of the young stallion.  Perlin seemed considerably different from the blithe, flippant, and casually violent pony her friends had described.  He seemed...softer than she'd imagined, warmer, more equine.  Maybe he's changed.
Her suspicions became more acute when she saw Perlin's eyes lock on Coco and a faint hint of pink beginning to tint his cheeks.  Looking at Coco, Twilight could see a similar blush on the younger mare's cheeks as well.  Oh...  Ironically, in spite of her situation, a very large part of Twilight simply wanted to squeal at the sight of those two...
...
...
...Then Twilight remembered that Perlin had once cut her brother's horn off.  Her expression soured and she began to glare at the young stallion.
"Oh...right..." said Perlin, suddenly remembering that Twilight was still in the room.  He dipped his head politely to her.  "Twilight Sparkle, it's nice to meet you.  I am Perlin Bluestreak."
"I'd never have guessed," Twilight deadpanned.
Perlin didn't seem overly bothered by the chilly reception.  "I understand that news of current events are hard to come by here," he said, his lips twitching up in a smile, "I can, however, report that your brother was in excellent health, when last I saw him."
"My brother...?"  Twilight's anger was forgotten as cold feeling settled in her stomach, "You didn't...?"
"We did fight," said Perlin, "He managed to acquit himself much better this time around.  I wasn't able to get in a single hit against him."
"Perlin!"  There was a stern tone in Coco's voice and Twilight yanked her eyes away from Perlin to look at Coco, who was looking at Perlin with a hardened expression.
“Um..."  Perlin stepped back, looking altogether like a colt who didn’t quite understand why he was being scolded.
Coco sighed.  “I’m sorry, Ms. Twilight.  Perlin…isn’t used to thinking about what he says.”  She returned her attention to the young stallion.  “Please wait outside.  I’ll be there in a moment.”
“…All right,” said Perlin, his ears lying flat against his skull as he slowly backed out of the room.
When the door closed again, Twilight stared at Coco.  “Wow…Are you sure you used to be afraid of him?”
“I was,” said Coco, “And I still am…for different reasons now.”  She shook her head.  “Perlin doesn’t really understand how the things he does hurts others because he didn’t really start learning how to care about others…until recently.”
“You mean…when he met you,” said Twilight, a small smile returning as she saw the return of Coco’s blush.
“Well…yes,” said Coco, looking away from Twilight, “That’s why…I think he can get better.  I’m sorry that he hurt your brother.  I hope you can forgive him.”
“I think I can,” said Twilight, running a hoof through Coco’s mane, “After all, if we can forgive Princess Luna for snapping and trying to plunge the world into unending night, I think I can forgive somepony like Perlin for putting my brother in a hospital for a while.”  Her smile faded.  “But, he’s hurt and even killed other ponies.  He will ultimately have to answer that someday.”
“I understand,” said Coco, “I think I should probably go now.”  She picked up the tray and its cover before making her way to the door.
“Stay safe,” said Twilight softly as she saw Coco out.
Now that she was alone, Twilight turned her full attention to formulating a plan to get her and Coco out of this mess.



"So..." said Dawn hesitantly, looking across the table at the bright-orange mare, "...this is what it feels like."
In spite of the dire situation, Melon Cream couldn't help but giggle, her fuchsia mane bobbing.  Melon was practically the spitting image of what Scootaloo would probably look like...if she were an adult earth pony.  Even if the filly got her pegasus nature from her father, she obviously took after her mother in the looks department.
Dawn and Fluttershy were now in Melon's house, sitting across the table from her in the kitchen.  Dawn wasn't exactly happy to be there, not because he disliked Scootaloo's mother, he was actually quite fond of the mare.  Rather, he was not happy to be the bearer of bad news.  Dawn had taken it upon himself to tell Melon that her daughter had apparently snuck off to Canterlot to partake in what promised to be a dangerous rescue mission.  Dawn felt particularly responsible, given that his current condition had probably been what had inspired Scootaloo to decide to go "in his place" as it were.
"I guess so," said Melon, remembering the times she'd had to console her daughter when Dawn had disappeared on some dangerous endeavor or another.  While she was indeed worried about Scootaloo, she had to admit that she was a little amused by Dawn's bemused feelings about being on this end of a situation for once.
"I'm sure that Arkenstone will look after them," said Fluttershy.
Dawn frowned.  "If he has any sense, and I know that he has more sense than me, he'd tie them up and send them back on the next train."
"Maybe," admitted Fluttershy, "But Arkenstone's still recovering from the fight, isn't he?  Maybe he thinks he needs their help."
"Even so..." muttered Dawn, trying to imagine Arkenstone being willing to put the lives of two very inexperienced ponies at risk simply because he wasn't at the top of his game.
However, the greater amount of his concern was reserved for Scootaloo and Rumble.  Scootaloo had at least some experience in battle now, having dealt with a cultist who'd tried to attack her and even traded blows with Perlin Bluestreak once.  However, she didn't have even remotely the level of experience that Dawn did.  Not to mention that, for all her rapid progress in the past months, Scootaloo was very much a novice in the Gale King.  She had only just begun to figure out how to use the art's rapid-movement technique.  Dawn was worried that it wasn't nearly enough to help her through a real battle.  At best, Scootaloo could probably bull through any obstacles through brute force.  But it was very much up in the air as to whether or not she would last long enough to resort to those methods in the first place.
Rumble was an even greater concern.  Dawn didn't envy Applejack’s position right now, thinking about what she must have been experiencing having to reveal to Thunderlane, Cloud Chaser, Flitter, and Storm Front what Rumble was doing.  Unlike Scootaloo, Rumble had no experience in battle.  When it came to using the meteor hammer, Rumble was still a complete beginner, having not graduated from using his practice weapon yet.
Still, Dawn was in no position to either help or hinder them.  He simply had to put his faith in Arkenstone's judgment and hope that he would still be able to see those two when all was said and done.  However, that didn't stop the frustration from bubbling up inside of him.  After our last fight, I thought that she would know better, he thought petulantly, She won't accomplish much at all if the only thing she's thinking about is proving herself.  That's not the proper mindset to...
Dawn's body jolted, sitting up straight, his ears stretching towards the ceiling as an idea struck him.  Beside him, Fluttershy and, across from him, Melon Cream both jumped at the colt's unexpected behavior.
"Dawn?  What is it?" asked Fluttershy.
"I need to check something," said Dawn, pushing away from the table and rushing up the stairs to Scootaloo's room.
"What is he doing?" asked Melon, looking over at Fluttershy, who could only shrug.
From above, they could hear the sounds of Dawn rummaging.  Melon would have normally been rather irate at the idea of a colt searching through her daughter's things.  But she trusted Dawn, even if she had no idea what he was looking for.
After several minutes, the sounds from Scootaloo's room died down and Dawn came back down.  Fluttershy noted that he looked much better.  He was completely empty-hooved.  Despite that, a massive weight seemed to have been lifted from his shoulders.  As he came back to the table, Fluttershy could pick up a faint mumble escaping from Dawn's mouth.  "She took it with her."
"What is it?" asked Fluttershy.
Seating himself at the table, Dawn looked up at his mother and gave her a relieved smile.  "I think...while we have plenty of cause to worry, I feel a bit more confident about Scootaloo's reasons for going now."
Fluttershy and Melon exchanged confused glances, wondering just what Dawn was talking about.



Scootaloo glowered at Arkenstone's rump as she and Rumble followed him down the hallway.  Discrete entrance my flank.  She'd been expecting the blind stallion to show her and Rumble some concealed passageway, maybe something that could only be opened by tapping a secret code on a particular brick or something like that.  That's how it worked in the Daring Do books she'd read.
Instead, Arkenstone had taken them around to the back of the Palace, where an impressive array of warehouses, holding all the myriad supplies needed to keep the place running, were set.  There, amongst those warehouses, Arkenstone had simply let them in through a small entrance normally used for the delivery of parcels.  From there, he led them down clean, but unadorned hallways, the secret highways of the Palace that the servants and staff used to move about without bringing their hustle and bustle to the attention of various nobles and dignitaries.
Finally, they emerged into a section of the Palace that Scootaloo recognized from the time she and her friends had spent exploring the place while they'd stayed their over the Hearth's Warming season.  It was a hallway that ran along the outside of the Palace, its windows overlooking the city and the land beyond.  At this point, night had fallen and the city twinkled with lamps, while the towers and spires were faintly outlined by the glimmering light of the stars above.  As she admired the view, Scootaloo felt a faint breeze stir her feathers.  Her wind-sense allowed her to immediately zero in on the source of the draft.  A pair of windows had been broken.  There was even some shattered glass still laying strewn about the floor.
"What the hay happened here?" she asked, looking around.
"I'm not sure," said Arkenstone, taking a moment to sniff the air, "I can smell a fair bit of sweat...traces of ambient magic...and...blood."
"Blood?" gasped Scootaloo, looking around for any splotches of red.  As she did, she noticed that the floor and walls along the hallway looked chipped and pitted, as though pieces had been chiseled or cut out of them.
"The scent of blood is coming from somewhere farther away," said Arkenstone darkly, "Some ponies were killed here today."
Rumble gasped, his face going pale.  Scootaloo felt her own limbs begin to shake.  In spite of her confident words earlier, she couldn't help but feel the fear in her gut.  For the first time since she and Rumble had snuck aboard the train to join Arkenstone, this truly felt real.  Some sort of fight had taken place in the Royal Palace and ponies had died.  There really were lives on the line.  If either she or Rumble made the slightest mistake, then they might be the ones who ended up dead.
Arkenstone sniffed and his ears swiveled towards the foals.  "Afraid?"
Scootaloo puffed herself up, ready to deny it with all her will.  But, even though he wasn't facing them at the moment, she could still see the stony expression of Arkenstone's face.  Her breath left her and she sagged slightly as she realized that lying to him would do no good.  "Yeah."
"Good," said Arkenstone, his words taking the filly off guard, "If you truly were indifferent about this or were too immature to admit you were afraid, you'd be on your way back to Ponyville."
"Oh," said Scootaloo, her ears perking.  Actually, now that she thought about it, she remembered Dawn telling her about how important fear was, how it could help her avoid danger.  There was nothing wrong with being afraid, so long as you didn't let it control you, which Scootaloo would be doing if she gave into her fear of admitting that she was scared.  Part of her was incensed that Arkenstone had apparently used his words as a way to test her maturity and resolve.  But, at the same time, she felt somewhat pleased that she'd passed.  She figured that Arkenstone hadn't completely given up on finding some excuse to send her and Rumble back to Ponyville.  However, if he was truly set on that purpose, Arkenstone didn't need that excuse.  He could have very well done it, whether or not they'd shown how serious they were, regardless of what agreements they might have made earlier.
Does he really think we can help or is he having that much trouble? mused Scootaloo, watching the Knight warily.
Arkenstone tilted his head, his ears twitching as he turned all the way around to face the foals.  However, his muzzle and his attention were focused past them down the hall.  Following his lead, Scootaloo and Rumble turned around as well, surprised to see a familiar pink alicorn trotting up the hall towards them.
"Arkenstone?"  Cadance came to a stop, blinking as she looked them over.  "Scootaloo?  Rumble?"  Understandably, the rising intonation of her voice indicated her increasing surprise at the presence of the two foals accompanying Arkenstone.
"Cadance...what happened here?" asked Arkenstone, choosing to ignore her confusion for the moment.
Cadance froze at the sound of Arkenstone's question, her ears pressing flat against her skull.  "We were attacked?"
Arkenstone's entire body went tense at that.  "Tell me everything."



The stallion looked around carefully, trying to spot any ponies who might have been tailing him.  However, he saw nopony.  That didn't confirm anything.  After all, given his choice of profession, he wasn't particularly adept at skulking and sneaking...or finding out if anypony else was skulking and sneaking nearby.
Turning his eyes upward, he surveyed the rather nondescript building before him.  It was a small house, one that could have belonged to practically any member of Canterlot's upper-middle class, only a couple economic tiers down from the nobility and their mansions.  While this building was indeed rather small and understated by Canterlot standards, the price of property and associated taxes on it made it comparable to a small mansion practically anywhere else in Equestria.
However, he wasn't here to observe the decor.  He was here to do a job and he fully intended to do it.  The comfortable life he'd made for himself out in Trottingham practically depended on it.  Raising a chartreuse-green hoof, the stallion rapped a series of knocks against the door in a particular pattern.
A minute or so later, the door opened and the stallion found himself facing a cream-colored colt wearing a black coat.
The stallion smiled, feeling a faint sense of fondness rising up within him.  "Hello there, Perlin.  I see you've apparently been trying out some new fashions since we last talked."
Perlin Bluestreak smiled in return.  "Hello Doctor.  It's been a while."
Doctor Kombu chuckled and followed as Perlin turned to lead the way inside.  "Why don't you tell me what I've been called here for.  I'm a bit confused about it."
"Gladly," said Perlin, looking over his shoulder at Kombu, "However, there is somepony you need to meet first.  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised."
"Well now, this is a surprise," said Wight Shade as they arrived in what must have been the house's living room, though it didn't look anything like a living room right now, "All this time, I wondered about just who was responsible for this young stallion's impressive set of wings.  I should have realized that it would be you."  He sat in the middle of the open space, waiting patiently.
For a moment, Kombu's eyes narrowed in confusion as he stared at Wight for a long moment.  "Do I know you...?"
Wight said nothing, merely waiting patiently as the doctor looked him over, examining him closely from the tip of his tail to the point of his strange, off-white horn.
Slowly, recognition began to dawn on Kombu as he looked closely at Wight.  The color of his coat, his mane, and his eyes were nothing familiar.  However, the way Wight spoke, his posture as he sat...all of it was hauntingly familiar.
Kombu blinked and settled back on his haunches so he could raise his forehooves to rub his eyes.  "I must be seeing things," he said, "This can't be right...You-"
"Your eyes do not deceive you," said Wight, his smile widening slightly, "I've changed a great deal since we last met.  I am very impressed that you, of all ponies, are able to recognize me."  Wight inhaled deeply and heaved a relaxed sigh.  "It's good to see you again, Kombu."
For a long moment, the doctor fought to find the words to say, to express his feelings.  When he next opened his mouth, he found that there was only one word he could use.  “Teacher..."