//------------------------------// // Loose Ends // Story: Truthseeker // by RB_ //------------------------------// Shaking the last dregs of sleep from her mind, Lyra dragged herself out of bed and walked over to her dresser. It had been three days since she had been given the gift of the gods, and life had returned to, admittedly relative, normalcy. Her meeting with Sea Swirl had gone well. Octavia had tagged along, and the grey mare’s calm presence had helped avert another full-blown panic attack. The changeling and her family had been very relieved to learn that they weren’t going to be run out of town. Explaining things to Bon Bon had gone about the same. Lyra had admitted to the nature of her newfound ability, but had adamantly refused to explain why the town was awash with gossip about her fleeing for her life through the market, much to the confectioner’s annoyance. Still, the ex-special agent knew the importance of secrets, and had let the subject drop. Lyra hated keeping things from Bon Bon, but these weren’t her secrets to tell. And she was still waiting on that visit from her patron deity. She had questions that needed asking. But apart from that, life had been rather mundane, even by non-Ponyville standards. It turned out that, besides Sea Swirl, Pinkie Pie, and that strange filly, nopony else was anything or anyone other than what they claimed to be. And there had been no monster attacks, attempted takeovers, or disasters for a few weeks now. Honestly, Lyra was getting a little restless. She had the feeling that some large-scale catastrophe had to be on the horizon. The small explosion of confetti behind her still caught her off guard. Picking herself up off the floor, Lyra examined the bright pink envelope that had seemingly materialized out of thin air onto her bed. The color, and its sudden appearance, left Lyra with no doubts about the identity of the sender. Inside was a short message asking her to come over to Sugarcube Corner. ----- A nervous-looking Pinkie Pie was waiting outside the bakery when Lyra arrived, along with Ditzy Doo. As Lyra trotted over, Ditzy stared at her for a moment, whispered something into Pinkie’s ear, and flew off. Whatever Ditzy had said immediately cheered the eldritch pony up, her worried look changing into several wide smiles. “Hey Lyra! Come on in!” Pinkie led the Lyra into the same back room they had been in previously, now fitted with a small table and chairs. A pair of steaming mugs of what smelled like hot chocolate were set on the table. Pinkie locked the door, then placed her hoof on it, whispering a few odd words that Lyra couldn’t quite make out. Satisfied, she gestured to the table, and the two sat. Pinkie spoke first. “So, how’ve you been?” “Not bad,” the green mare replied, and took a sip of her cocoa. Sweetened to perfection. “I’ve mostly gotten used to the whole Truth thing. Being able to tell when ponies are lying is useful. It’s saved me a few bits in the market.” “That’s good.” The two took long drinks from their mugs. “So was there a reason you called me out here? I mean, it’s not like I don’t appreciate you looking out for me, but…” Pinkie sighed. “Lyra Heartstrings, I’m going to make you an offer. I want you to know that you are under no obligation to accept this offer. Neither I, nor anypony else, will think any less of you if you say no. Do you understand?” The sudden change in demeanor caught Lyra off guard; she had never heard Pinkie sound so serious before. “…Alright. What is it?” she cautiously replied. “Equestria isn’t a safe place,” Pinkie began. “There are things in this world that could do great harm to us ponies. Dangerous things. Things you wouldn’t see in your deepest nightmares. Things that would keep even the most secure of ponies awake at night. If they knew about them. “The royal guard isn’t well equipped or experienced enough to deal with these threats. The royal mages don’t have the knowledge to combat these threats. The Wonderbolts don’t have the expertise necessary to keep the populace safe from these threats. She stood up. “And so it falls on us to keep Equestria safe.” “Us?” Lyra asked. “Us. Ponies like you and me, who have the unique gifts and talents to deal with these dangers. I am a member of a secret underground network of ponies, and other creatures, who work in secret to protect Equestria. And I’d like to ask you to join us.” “Why would you want me?” “Well, to be honest…” Pinkie said sheepishly, breaking character, “The nearest pony who’s any good at passively detecting shapeshifters lives in Vanhoover, and he’s too paranoid to travel. The best we can do around here is Octy’s nose, and that’s only useful if they untransform. Which is how we found out about Sea Swirl.” Octavia’s… nose? “Wait, so Octavia is—” “Ap-ap-ap! I’m not telling you who’s in unless you are!” her eyes widened. “Unless the curiosity would influence your decision! Oh, I’m not very good at this…” “So… what sort of things would I be doing? I don’t think I’d be any good in a fight.” That’s more Bon Bon’s thing, Lyra added mentally. “No need to worry about that; we’ve already got a couple of heavy hitters in Ponyville, and we can always call more in if we needed to. You’d mostly just be making sure everypony in town is who they say they are, and maybe helping out in case anypony else was dealing with shapeshifters, glamour-wearers, or anything else that you can see through.” Lyra breathed a sigh of relief. “And if you ever did want to learn to fight, I’m sure I could get Fle— I mean, I’m sure I could get somepony to give you a few pointers.” Pinkie turned back to the green mare. “Any other questions? Would you like some time to think? There’s no rush.” Lyra shook her head. “I’ll do it.” Pinkie blinked, surprised. “Really? Just like that? Are you sure you don’t need even a few minutes to think?” “I’m sure.” “Wow. I know Ditzy said not to worry, but I wasn’t expecting…” Pinkie muttered. “A-hem. In that case,” she said, slipping back into her serious demeanor. She was, however, unable to hide the huge smiles that had erupted across her features. “Welcome to the Vigilant Owl, Truthseeker.”