//------------------------------// // Chapter 33; A Guard's Duty // Story: The Wander Through Lands Unknown // by Tomas Lutwig //------------------------------// The town was just rousing from their slumber, though the only evidence of this fact was when those few townsfolk emerged, only to back into their houses after seeing me. The stares and glares had no effect on my mood as I walked through town the sun peaking above the Castle of Friendship. 'No doubt I'm late' I thought as I neared the center of town, it's fountain of the dancing pony sputtering to life. I glanced at the town hall behind the fountain before heading down the path leading outside of the town. The brightness of the scenery did little to help my melancholy mood either, prompting me to let my eyes fall to the road. Looking instead to the rocks and dirt that had been walked on for innumerable years, silently hoping that whatever my orders were would take my mind from the disgusting act I had committed. Glancing up I noticed I was passing Rarity's boutique, though the thought of the unicorn did little to interest me, instead only reminding me of our last encounter making me let out a sigh. 'There's another thing I'll have to do I suppose', the thought of my need for some kind of higher knowledge in the field of sewing returning as I let my eyes fall back to the path. The town seemed to pass by quickly, the buildings doing little more than to tell me how close to the edge of town I was. As the barracks came into view, so did a number of other ponies most wearing hard hats and orange vests carrying tools or building materials getting them into place. Two ponies stood out from the rest though, one tan unicorn with what looked like five o'clock shadow levitated a clipboard and a quill, marking off things as he looked over the building and writing things out. The other was a white pegasus stallion who was talking to the builder, though if his body language was saying anything, he was right pissed. As I approached, the golden colored stallion the guard was talking too pointed in my direction, causing the stallion to look in my direction, his look turning to one of anger and annoyance. Unfurling his wings, he took to the sky gliding over to me. “Private Wanderer! Sooo good of you to join us! Two hours later than ordered” the officer said upon landing, “And you're not even wearing your uniform! If you were planning on being a disappointment then you're passing with flying colors!” I looked down at the infuriated stallion noticing the silver bar on his breastplate replacing the normal cyan star before rubbing my eyes, reaching up I pulled the damaged cuirass from the place it was handing on my shoulder before saluting. “I met some trouble in the Everfree Forest sir! It was something that I couldn't ignore.” I said staring straight over the stallion's head. I heard the lieutenant scoff as I put down the salute standing now at attention. “And just what was so important that you had to miss... Celestia alive...” the pegasus trailed off. Allowing my eyes to fall to him a moment, I saw he was staring at the dent in the plate with a slack jaw before looking me over. “What did you do? Piss off an owl bear?” he said looking back up at me. “No sir! A manticore attacked sir” I said simply making the stallion look back at my damaged armor. “At ease private” He said sighing, allowing me to drop attention. The lieutenant was rubbing his head with a hoof, trying to ease a headache, as he muttered something about 'first orders'. After a moment he looked me over, glanced at the cuirass and returning his gaze to me, his eyes narrowing. “And just how are you walking around after taking a hit like that?” “Honestly sir?” I started before motioning towards the armor. “After I got hit, I barely was. Towards the end of it I was crawling, but managed to heal myself after I got out of the forest” I realized it probably wasn't the greatest idea to cut out bits like I was, but decided that if Celestia had thought the rest of the guards needed to know, they would, if through no one then the Captain. The lieutenant raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. “A likely story” he started only for me to grow annoyed with him. My hands lit up and I lifted the cuirass from the ground about a foot before resting it on my shoulder, much to the stallion's surprise. “If you need more proof sir, I could show you to the corpse” I said motioning towards the town with a hand, letting the magic fade. Shock only grew on the lieutenant's face before he shook his head. “I need more coffee” he muttered under his breath, rubbing his hooves down his face. After a moment he stood tall again, “Alright, I'll send a request to have your armor repaired. For now, just leave it with me. Your orders from the captain are to patrol the town, make sure there's no issues from the forest, the normal idea.” I nodded towards him as he pointed back at the town before pulling the cuirass from my shoulder again giving it to him. “The contractors said they would be finished with the barracks in two days, though they said the forge might take them half a day. You have your orders” I nodded again saluting to the lieutenant, an action he reflected before dropping the hoof. The stallion got a bit of a running start before taking off to the sky, the larger cuirass obviously giving him some trouble. “I bet that's going to be interesting to explain to his superiors” I muttered under my breath, starting back for the town, wondering what exactly I would be doing. 'Who knows, maybe I'll find a purse snatcher' I thought. I let out a sigh, rolling my eyes at the ponies, a number of them having moved their blinds or curtains to look at me as I walked through town. The streets were empty devoid of any life beyond a small anthill that bustled with action of ants flowing in and out of the hill. Making my way to the empty town square I took a seat on the edge of the fountain looking out over the empty town. “Jeeze this sucks” I said, almost expecting an echo only for the sound to die. “Maybe I can patrol the outskirts of the town or something, that way these weirdos can do something without fear I'll eat them or something” Getting up from my seat, I started back out of town. A gasp from behind made me stop before I could get over a foot away from my seat however. Turning I saw a pink blur for only a moment before I was staring into a pair of light blue eyes making me step back. “What in the...?” I managed to say before realizing who the blue eyes belonged to. “Wanderer! It's soooo good to see you again!” She said wrapping her hooves around me trapping my arms at my side before squeezing. “Pinkie... Pie?” I manage to wheeze out as a few vertebrae in my back pop back into place. The compression stops suddenly allowing me to breathe once again as Pinkie falls back to the ground. “Well then again I saw you yesterday, so is it really all that good to see you?” she said as I refilled my lungs with oxygen. Looking up at the mare she pulled at her chin with a hoof a few times, a contemplative look plastered across her pink face. “What?” I managed to ask after my breath returned to me, knocking her out of her contemplative stupor. “What?” was her only response though making me stare at her like she had sprouted a second head for a few seconds before I realized who I was talking to. “N-nevermind” I said waving my hands, trying to distance myself from that insane line of thought. “What are you doing out here? Everyone else seems to be hiding from me” “I think you mean 'Everypony' there Wanders” she said tapping me on the nose with a hoof. “I was just baking away with the cakes before I felt my take shiver, my horseshoes tighten, and my withers itch! That either means there's going to be a changeling attack...” she trailed off looking around for any of the shape shifting insectoids. After a moment of searching the area with her eyes her smile returned twofold “Ooooor! One of my friends is around and needs somepony to talk too!” I blinked at her, questioning my sanity perhaps by just being in the vicinity of the mare, “Well, besides the fact that my duty as a guard seems to be going swimmingly as everypony, seems to be enjoying themselves in their houses” I said motioning with a hand to one of the houses which the curtains closed quickly as the pony who had been staring noticed. “Hmmm, you're right! I wonder what they're doing in there!” Pinkie said putting a hoof to her chin and narrowing her eyes. “Come Wander over yonder, we will find out!” Pinkie Pie pulled herself to the ground before rushing over to the fountain I had been sitting at moments before. After I blinked however I found that the mare was nowhere to be found. Looking around, a psst sounded making me look up at the statue to see the pink mare now in it's place standing perfectly still. “What're you doing? Hide!” she said seemingly without moving her mouth. I raised an eyebrow before shaking my head, a smile growing on my face. “Ohhh Pinkie Pie...” I muttered under my breath. Reaching into my pack I pulled out the ring of fog before putting it on my finger. After the magic had taken effect and I was nearly invisible. Knowing that the ring could only do so much, I dashed into an alley between two houses fading into the shadows. Looking back at the pink mare, I only found that she had been replaced by the pink statue once more. “So what's the plan?” I heard from behind me making me jump whirling around to find the pink mare wearing a black spandex suit that covered every inch of her besides her face and tail. I looked at her, mouth gaping for a second holding my hands open silently asking 'Why?', but my expression fell on blind eyes as she looked right past me, or possibly through me. “Oh hey! It's Luckette!” she said pointing at a pink pony with a blonde mane. Next thing I know Pinkie Pie is running out, hood of the stealth suit down. “Heya Luckette!” was the last thing I heard before the mare was out of earshot. The pink pony in question, noticed Pinkie before immediately looking around like something was about to bite her. The two started talking, and after a few moments 'Luckette' started to calm down. Pinkie nodded saying something before starting back in my direction. I watched as other doors started opening ponies started pouring back out in a small trickle before the mob ideal started taking over and the others turned the trickle into a steady stream before the doors closed and the ponies started going about their day to day lives. “It seems they're scared of you” Pinkie Pie said seeming to just fade out of the crowd, the stealth suit simply gone. I blinked at the mare for a moment before shaking my head. “I could of told you that, Pinkie. I mean no offense, but normally you don't hide in your house when someone walks by if you want to be their friend” I said shrugging my shoulders. “Waaaait, if you already knew, then why wonder what they were doing in their houses?” She asked, giving me a scrutinizing eye. I raised an eyebrow at her, “Um, weren't you the one wondering what they were doing in their houses?” I asked. The mare's eyes went wide for a moment before she started giggling, “Oh yea, silly me” she said sticking her tongue out the side of her mouth. “Aaaanywho! Maybe you should find out a way to make them not scared of you anymore?” I raised a finger to protest before thinking about it and letting the finger fall. “You have a point, though the question would be what...” I said, now my turn to put a hand to my chin in thought. Pinkie looked down at her hoof before gasping, “Oh no! My break is over! I gotta go! Okay I love you buh-bye!” she said reaching up and kissing me on the nose before hopping off into the crowd. A few moments passed as I stood there shocked before the reference hit me. “Wait what?” I managed to blurt out looking back to where the mare had disappeared to in the crowd. Sneaking around the now bustling town didn't seem to be much of a problem, sticking to the shadows, climbing onto roofs using the weird decorations on some of the buildings, though keeping from falling through seemed to be more troublesome than in Canterlot. After a few instances of the thatching nearly giving out from under my weight, I found that sticking on the supports was the safest idea. 'Maybe talk to Twilight about it?' Pinkie Pie's suggestion sticking to my mind. The thought should have been an obvious one, but my mind had been on the course of: Oh they'll get used to me after a while. 'Shoulda known after the incident with Zecora' I thought scaling down the building I was on. 'Twilight might be able to help though, if I can catch her when she's not busy, well and if she's willing' I thought peeking out from the alley I was in only to find the street was nearly empty. Thanking God for the luck, I stuck close to the wall of the building next to me, trying to keep from being seen by the few of the ponies that walked the street. “Aiee! Help!” The scream sounded behind me making me whirl around. From a second story balcony, a earth pony colt hung, his hind legs swinging wildly, desperately trying to find some kind of grip, but the air gave none. “Mommy!” he screamed again. I felt butterflies start in my stomach, their fluttering sending uncomfortable waves out from it. The colt wasn't far away, across the street, but the few ponies that were on the street simply stared. He looked around for some kind of savior and I saw the fear in his eyes, setting my resolve. Rushing across the street, brushing past a few ponies who seemed to freak out at the ghost that just touched them. The echo of a door opening sounded right as I stopped underneath the foal, the jarring of the door to the balcony enough for the foal to slip off. “Shady!” the voice of a mare was heard above the screaming colt. Seconds felt like hours as I readied myself to catch the falling colt, arms outstretched, ready for the impact of the small horse. The moment it came, it was almost anticlimactic, my arms bent for a moment under the weight of the impact before springing back out straight. 'Huh, lighter than I thought' ran through my head as the colt continued screaming, even as I bent down, putting him on the ground in front of me. As he felt the earth on his back, he stopped, opening his eyes. “Wha?” sounded from him for a moment before he realized I had caught him, his eyes going wide. “Are you alright?” I asked, still on one knee from when I put him down. “You shouldn't play around balconies” A smile was on my face, one that I thought was of sincerity, the colt however simply stared at me with saucer sized eyes. “Hey, c'mon kid, falling like that isn't that bad” I said worry entering the look. The door of the home burst open, a lavender colored mare with a dark blue mane rushed out searching her colt for injuries, gushing over the foal that 'she would string him up by his tail if he ever did that again'. 'Shady' on the other hand simply stared at me the entire time, finally his mom shaking him from his stupor after hugging him. “Mom, I thought you said ghosts were an old foals tale” he said making his mother pull away from him. The mare seemed stunned for a moment before a smile formed on her face, “Well they are ghosts don't exists except in... fairy tales....” She said trailing off as she followed her son's hoof which was pointed directly at me. I raised an eyebrow at the pair for a moment before the realization hit me, 'You're still wearing the ring moron' I thought smacking myself in the forehead with the palm of my hand before removing the ring. “Sorry about that, forgot to take it off” I said with a nervous smile, returning the ring to it's pouch. “O-oh! You had me worried there for a moment” The mare said, the relief obvious in her voice. “Are you the one who saved my little Sade?” I nodded, “It's nothing to worry about though m'am, I was just doing what anyone w-” hooves interrupted me as once again my oxygen was cut off by a mare trying her best to crush my internal organs. “Oh thank you so much! I don't know what I would do if I ever lost my Shady!” The mare said squeezing me harder. “Like... I said... no biggie” I wheezed out, trying to get air patting the mare on the back with my free arm. The mare released me after a moment turning around to face her son, “Shady Daze, if I ever catch you doing something like that again...” she trailed off ushering her colt back into the open door. “Hey Mom can I have a ghost ring too?” I heard from the colt. I blinked a few times before turning around to see a small ring of ponies staring at me with mixed looks. Some gave me the same fearful glances as before, looks of appreciation, and even a few simply confused looks were sprinkled into the mix. The crowd simply stared at me, making a feeling of unease work it's way into my stomach, eyes darting for some way out of the situation. Seeing my escape in the form of a gap between the ring of ponies and the building next to me, I started edging towards it. “Well, uh, stay safe everypony, eat your vegetables, and don't forget to tip your wait staff” I said before running for the exit of the group, taking the ring of fog back out from the pouch and slipping it back on before doing my best to disappear once again. The rest of the day went by without a hitch, sticking to the shadows, letting the ponies do their business. Much to my surprise there were no other incidents in the town, despite the show's history of throwing seemingly random occurrences between simple stories of friends having issues and stories of adventure, sprinkling in some kind of monster here and there. 'Can't complain though' I said as I watched from a tree branch as the sun started to set. Ponies bustled back to their homes, or pubs to drink away their worries from work. A temptation to follow a few stallions to the local watering hole formed, but was almost immediately shot down. 'I still need to talk to Twilight, though I'm hoping she's not as busy at the end of the day' Hopping down from branch to branch before finally landing on the earth below I looked around wearily, checking to see if anyone was around, smiling as it seemed to the coast was clear before moving to the nearby bridge. Making my way through the quickly emptying town was nearly idiot-proof, allowing me to simply walk the streets like a normal human being instead of dashing to and fro for cover from the eyes of the skittish ponies. 'Though technically I didn't really need to do that' I reminded myself shaking my head at the ridiculousness of the situation. 'Had I just done this in the first place, I probably wouldn't be in this situation anyways' The sun sunk below the mountains as I neared the giant tree shaped castle, casing a shadow across the town. Light from the setting sun shining on the crystalline castle making it sparkle and reflect some of the light on the surrounding ground and buildings. Shielding my eyes as I passed through one of the reflected beams of light, I walked up and knocked on the door. After a few moments of no response, I knocked again. 'It's a pretty big castle, I mean they might be doing something in the library' I thought knocking again. After a lack of response I sighed shrugging before heading back down the stairs. 'I'll get ahold of her some other time or something' I thought tucking my thumbs in my belt. Looking the town over, I stood there admiring the view. The cluster of houses spread out far, only to thin out and completely die as it reached the outskirts. Looking farther, I wondered if I could literally 'see my house from here' only to find that the shadow of the mountain hid the barracks and the construction that was going on there. Shrugging my shoulders again I headed back for the Everfree Forest and the bonfire within.