Training - Chapter 10
Chapter 10
“You’re sure?” Steel asked, his expression serious.
Hunter nodded. “I spent the last hour going through every item on the list, boss. Worse, I got a report this morning that some of the stolen items were recovered at a pawn shop in Baltimare. One of the items was damaged. An earring set with matching emeralds. One of the emeralds was recovered, the other was missing.” He looked Steel in the eyes, putting as much conviction in his voice as he could. “I think our thieves are looking for very specific crystals. I don’t know why, or what they plan on doing with them, but it’s the only item on the list that matches up.”
“And now we’ve got Royal Guard and two of our own crawling all over the crystal caverns, where somepony's wrecked a bunch of crystal growths,” Steel said, hoof to his chin. His eyes snapped up to Hunter. “How much you want to bet that they find a good chunk of those crystals aren’t wrecked, but missing?”
“I don’t get paid that much,” Hunter said, tapping his hat with his hoof. “You don’t think they might still be … That could be why we haven’t heard back!”
“We’d better go check,” Steel said, rising from his seat. “Now.”
“You got it, boss!” Hunter flipped over the back of the couch, leaving his wet saddlebags where they lay. “Want me to grab Dawn and the kid?” He could feel urgency in his tone. What if whoever’s behind this is down there?
“No need,” Steel said, his voice slightly less urgent as he followed Hunter. “They don’t let unicorns in there without a horn-lock anyway. We’ll have the Royal Guard.”
“Fair enough,” Hunter said, throwing his poncho over his head and shaking his wings through the back holes as he left the barracks. Thick drops were already raining down around him, hitting the poncho with enough force to push it down against his body. “Should we take a cloud chariot?” he asked, glancing up at dark skies overhead. A thick rumble of thunder rolled around them, vestiges of far off arcs of lightning crashing through the dark clouds.
Steel shook his head as he stopped next to Hunter. “No, not in this weather. Too risky.” He was wearing his gauntlets on his forelegs now, the heavy metal sinking into the damp grass.
Hunter took one last look at the sky and then nodded. “We run then?” he asked. The rain was already coming down much harder than it had been a moment ago, so heavy that he could barely make out the other side of the field through the thick downpour. The rising wind wasn’t helping either, picking up the water and throwing it in great sheets that slapped against the side of buildings and slid down like a waterfall. The weather pegasi had really outdone themselves this time.
Steel nodded and broke into a gallop, his large hooves kicking bits of dirt and mud into the air as he took off across the field. Hunter tapped his hat one last time, tucked his wings to his side, and head down, galloped off across the field behind him.
* * *
The run down the mountain was perilous. Thick sheets of rain, driven by the rising winds, lashed the pair in the face. Gusts of wind smashed into their sides, so powerful that even Hunter was once or twice almost thrown to one side by their strength. Cobblestones were slick with water underhoof, the paved stone and concrete of the sidewalks even worse. Several times Steel put his hoof down only to find it somewhere other than where he had planned for it to go.
It was fortunate, he reflected, that Canterlot was built on the side of the mountain, otherwise such a downpour would have likely flooded the streets. As it was they passed several streets where the thick deluge of water had congregated into small streams.
As they made their way lower down the side of the mountain, the path became increasingly treacherous. More and more water was cascading down from the city above, turning some of the sharp switchback streets and stairways into nothing more than dirty grey rivers. It was clear that while the upper levels of the city were managing, the sewer system of the lower city was being completely overwhelmed.
Steel skidded to a halt as he rounded a corner and saw the state of the path in front of him. The steep, switch-backed stairway known as the “Stair to the Sky” was nothing more than a churning mass of water, a vicious creek of churning froth that completely obscured the famous steps.
“Boy, they are really going all out on this one!” Hunter said as he slid to a stop next to Steel. His voice was raised almost to a yell to be heard over the roar of the storm. A sharp crack snapped through the air, a brief flash illuminating the darkened streets as if to punctuate his statement.
“I feel sorry for the weather pegasi in charge of this mess,” Steel said as he looked for another way down the mountain. A blast of wind hit them from one side and he saw Hunter grab onto his hat reflexively.
“I wouldn’t,” Hunter said, shaking his head and causing his long, wet mane to slap back and forth against his neck. “At this point they can just ride things out on top of the storm, watching the sunset or whatever. Sometimes they play hoofball!” He looked up at the thick grey and black clouds. “Lucky ponies! I’ve gotta be down in this!”
“Well, you’re about to like it less!” Steel called, yelling as the wind rose in intensity. “There’s no way we can make it down these stairs, at least not on hoof! But we need to get down to the mines ASAP!” The tan pegasus nodded in agreement. “So I need you to carry me!”
“What?” Hunter yelled, his long mane whipping around his surprised face. “Are you nuts? In this weather?”
‘We don’t need to actually fly!” Steel yelled back, pointing a hoof at the staircase. “The high walls on the side of the staircase should give us some cover from the wind! You just need to glide!”
“You bet I won’t be actually able to fly!” Hunter said, grabbing his hat as another gust of wind rippled the brim. “You do know you’re about twice my weight class, right? This could end really badly!”
“Comes with the job!” Steel shouted back. “Just try to crash into the side of the mountain if anything goes wrong!” He pushed himself up on his hind legs, forelegs held out. “Ready!”
Hunter shook his head and muttered something that was lost to Steel in the storm, but spread his wings and flapped forward, locking his forelegs under Steel’s. Steel gave a slight push up and forward with his rear legs, and the pair lifted forward into the air, and then down the rushing staircase.
A gust of wind swept at them, pushing them to one side and smashing Steel’s dangling lower half into the railing wall around the stairs. He grunted in pain as the rough concrete dragged against his coat.
“Sorry!” Hunter called down at him. “This ain’t as easy as it looks!” They dropped lower, so low that Steel could feel the rushing water of the staircase splashing against his legs, icy cold streams forming and then running down inside his foreleg gauntlets. Another gust of wind struck as they rounded the first switchback, but Hunter was ready, and this time they only bobbed slightly to one side.
“One down,” Steel called as a sign swept past announcing their progress. “Another sixty-seven to go!”
“Stop counting!” Hunter called back. “The ride’ll be more fun if I don’t know how much longer it’s going to be!”
* * *
The sergeant’s face, Sky Bolt decided, was starting to look a lot like the weather outside. At least if the rumbling thunder and puddles of water that had begun growing under the entrance were any indication. The obstinate stallion hadn’t exactly been in a good mood when the Royal Guard had shown up, scrambled from whatever duty they’d been posted at due to Sky Bolt’s request; and as the last hour or two had worn on, the sergeant had shown every sign of seeing the entire situation as a waste of time and Royal Guard talent. He’d even flat out ignored her and Sabra both, giving them dismissive orders to sit and wait by the entrance while a team of “real Guard” did some “real work.” She’d wanted to smack her wrench upside the pegasus' chin right then and there.
Even worse, the Guard hadn’t bothered to take Amethyst or any of the other Geological ponies along with his team to explain exactly what was wrong in the first place. They’d even left a good number of them outside of the cave in the storm, with two guards to make sure that they didn’t enter into the “restricted area.” In fact, the only thing about the whole situation that wasn’t boiling her blood was the fact that whoever had gotten her missive in the first place had at least not sent any unicorns. No matter how mismanaged, an entire group of pegasus ponies wasn’t likely to damage any of the crystals.
“I thought you said this would help?” Amethyst said for what had to be the tenth time. The obstinate sergeant had finally admitted that she did have permission to be in the cave, only to stick her with Sabra and Sky Bolt at the entrance, ordering them to keep an eye on her.
“Sky Bolt is not the root of our problems,” Sabra said calmly before Sky Bolt could open her mouth, a hot-headed retort dying on her tongue. “She had no way of knowing who would be sent to assist.” The striped Zebra looked as calm as ever, carefully sitting on his haunches, his bamboo rod balanced across his back. His bright purple eyes were fixed on something distant, deep in thought. “For now, we must make do with what we have.”
Sky Bolt gave a small moan and flexed her wings. She hated sitting and waiting while the Guard checked out the caves without any of the geologists. She hated the fact that Sergeant Nimbus had told the geology group to stay outside during what was sounding like a truly horrific storm. There was another rumble of thunder, wind whistling as it slid between the cracks in the barrier wall, and Sky Bolt gave an involuntary shiver.
“I hope those coaches are staying dry on the inside,” she said, thinking of the ponies outside. “That storm sounds like it’s really doing a number out there.”
Amethyst sighed. “They’ll be crowded, but at least they’ll be dry.” She gave a little shiver. “And warm. Granite at least knows a good warming spell—” her voice was cut off by the sound of angry shouts from outside, yells too indistinct to make out over the sound of the storm. “Oh no,” the mare said, a look of worry on her face. “I hope Moon Pie didn’t anger the guards.”
“Well this was a complete waste of our time!” Sky Bolt turned from the entrance just in time to see Sergeant Nimbus land on the cave floor, followed by the rest of his detachment. The pegasus immediately began stalking towards her, his wings held high in an intimidating fashion. “You pull us down here and for what? For nothing!” Sky Bolt clenched her jaw as the stubborn stallion strode through the carefully marked off area around the three clawed footprint, his hooves scattering the dirt.
“I don’t know what you ‘Dusk Guard—’” he said the words with a sneer, “—think you’re doing, but whatever game you’re playing isn’t worth wasting my time over. I ought to write you up to your commanding officer, whoever they are. If they’re smart enough to read—” the sergeant’s tirade cut off as the plastic by the entrance lifted, the two Guard who had been stationed outside running in and snapping to attention. “What are you two doing in here?” the sergeant bellowed. “I told you to wait outside!”
The plastic lifted again, and Captain Song strode in, his coat dripping with water and an incredibly displeased look on his face. Sky Bolt began to grin as the captain looked around at the assorted group of ponies, his gaze fixing on the sergeant with a commanding glare that would have melted stone. She winced as she saw blood on his side. Something had cut him.
“And just who the hay are you, walking in here like this?” Sergeant Nimbus asked, giving Steel a dismissive look. “This area is under the command of the Royal Guard—”
“Command?” Captain Song yelled, his voice echoing around the cavern. “You call this absolute disaster of an investigation a command?” Hunter slipped through the plastic behind him, shaking rain from his hat. The pegasus was breathing heavily, out of breath, almost as if he’d flown to the top of the mountain instead of coming to its base.
“Who are you—” Sergeant Nimbus started to say, but Captain Song cut him off.
“I, sergeant, am Captain Steel Song of the Dusk Guard,” Captain Song said, leaning in close to the still unimpressed Sergeant. “And you are the pony that I am about to eat for lunch if you don’t tell me right now why this crime scene doesn’t appear to have the least bit of urgency about it!” The pegasi behind the sergeant were beginning to back up now, some of them snapping to attention and giving nervous salutes.
“You might be Captain of the Dusk Guard,” the Sergeant said, although a little less forcefully than before. “But that doesn’t mean—”
“What it means, sergeant,” Steel said, once again emphasizing the word, “is that I outrank you, and while our divisions of Guard are separate, I can and will give you orders in a situation I deem appropriate.” Captain Song gestured towards Sky Bolt with one hoof. “Specialist Sky Bolt identified a crime scene and called for the Royal Guard to come and assist with her investigation, and what do I find? I find that you—” he jabbed a hoof at the Sergeant’s chest, “—have not only put the ponies who should have been helping you out in this storm under armed guard like common criminals, but you’ve completely ignored the input of the specialist who called you in here in the first place!”
“Well, Captain Song,” Sergeant Nimbus said with a dismissive sniff. “You are not my commanding officer, and I don’t have to take this from you.”
“Colt, I may not be your commanding officer,” Steel said, his voice growing dangerously low. Thunder rumbled outside, adding a natural punctuation to his words. “But I do know him. And he and I are going to be having a nice long chat about your future in the Guard. For now however,” he said, straightening up, “you are officially relieved of command.”
Steel turned to the two guards by the door. “You two,” he said, ignoring the Sergeant’s angry sputtering. “Take Sergeant Nimbus here back to your barracks and turn him in to your CO. I’ll be speaking with him about this event personally.”
“You can’t—”
The Captain spun around. “I can. And I am. And on your little jaunt back to your CO, you can think long and hard about why I did.” The two Guard motioned, and the sputtering sergeant marched for the entryway with as much dignity as he could muster.
“Now for the rest of you,” Steel said, turning to face the rest of the Sergeant’s Guard detachment. “Do any of you have problems with taking orders and doing this job right?”
The detachment played it much smarter than their commander had. There was a chorused “No, sir!” from the group.
“Good,” Captain Song said, and began motioning with his hoof. “You three, get outside and get those civilians in here where it’s dry. Spec Sky Bolt, you go with them and pick out some ponies who’ll know what we’ll need to watch out for. You four, go with Lieutenant Hunter to check out the caves for any signs of further breakage. Take a geologist with you. I want to know exactly how far these thieves went and what they took. The rest of you, you’re with myself and Spec Sabra. Everyone move out!” The Guard scattered into motion as Steel barked out his last order.
Sky Bolt grinned in relief. As she headed for the outside, she managed to swing by the Captain and give him a quick salute. “Thanks for the save, boss. By the way, you know that you’re bleeding right?”
Steel looked down at her and nodded. “The trip down was a little rough in this storm. I’ll tell you about it later. For now, lets get this mess cleaned up and underway.” Sky Bolt nodded, and headed for the entryway behind the three Guard. Maybe this night could be salvaged after all.
* * *
Nova pushed the door to the barracks shut behind him, letting out an exasperated breath as the latch finally clicked, cutting him off from the horrendous weather outside. Good thing I spent the last few days studying shield spells, he thought as he tossed his bag of books on the common room table. He didn’t know what the Canterlot Castle Librarian would do to him if he managed to get any of the library's irreplaceable tomes wet, but whatever it was, it would be bad. And then he’d have to deal with Steel.
But that wasn’t going to be a problem, thankfully. It still felt odd, using so much of his magic. Especially in public. But then again ... Better cold and dry with a faint headache than cold and wet with a much worse headache. Nova took one last look at the still dry saddlebags to make certain that nothing had gotten through his shield, then picked up the bag and wandered towards his quarters.
They really made this place pretty rad, he thought as he wandered out of the common room, saddlebags floating behind him. The common room was one thing with its tables, some couches, a small kitchen, and plenty of space. Not to mention the ping-pong table. But the personal rooms were even better. Sure, Nova thought as he pushed the door to his quarters open, they’re a little sparse on the decoration, but that’s only because I’ve never had so much space.
He really never had. The largest place he’d ever owned hadn’t been more than a simple studio. Single bedroom, a bathroom, and a small living room and kitchen combo. After the event four years ago he’d been on the move so much that he’d never had time to amass much in the way of personal possessions, and what little he’d kept had been confiscated when he’d been arrested. He’d found out later that some of it had been resold to help pay off his crimes. It hadn’t bothered him too much. It had been his stuff, but he couldn’t really think of a single item that he’d truly valued.
Well, Nova thought as he carefully sorted his borrowed books out onto the table. Almost. He’d regretted losing one thing and one thing only, but fortunately it was something that a quick stop at a local Canterlot store with a hoof full of bits from his first two paychecks could replace.
Captain Song had been kind enough to let him make a withdrawal of funds from his paychecks, although each time he’d reminded Nova that it would increase the amount of time he spent paying back his debts. Not that he cared. What was he going to do once he was done? Go back to working odd jobs? No, better to be purposeless with steady work then purposeless with no work.
He stepped back and admired his handiwork. There were now at least twenty or thirty books stacked on the table, arranged by subject and the order he wanted to go through them in. The ones he’d taken with him to his practice room that afternoon were all sitting on top, ready for him to grab tomorrow afternoon, with an exception for the one that he’d finished poring over which was to the side. Another stack was nothing but tomes he needed to look through to see if there were any useful spells to learn.
Nova turned away from the stack of books and tossed himself onto his bed. Easily one of the best perks of this place, Nova thought as he telekinetically wrapped the blankets around himself. Still, having to learn magic ... He rolled onto his side, looking at the stack of books. I could have put those in a drawer, or up on the shelf, but instead I leave them just sitting there, reminding me about four years—no! Nova rolled towards the wall, trying to keep his mind from jumping back. The last thing I want to think about is that night.
But he couldn’t stop thinking about it, especially now that Steel had him learning magic that he’d never used before. Magic that could be used to hurt somepony. Sure, he’d hurt ponies before, occasionally he’d had to give a close pursuer a good whack with a levitated board or something, but never anything of the magnitude that had given him his cutie mark.
He threw the blanket back and twisted to look at his flank. There was his cutie mark, two crescent scythes of color. He had no idea how it had related to magically almost killing someone, but what else could it have been? He’d been over that night again and again.
Nova shook his head, which made his light headache pulse. This wasn’t helping. He needed to get his mind off of magic. Onto something … different. He rolled off of the bed and walked over to his dresser. Most of the drawers were still empty, just like the walls. But one drawer held the only things he owned, the same items he’d bought a few days earlier.
He slid the drawer open and pulled the record player out, setting it on top of his dresser. It hadn’t been cheap, but music and what came with it had always helped him relax. The cost was worth it. The records came out next, some of them so new they had never even been out of the soft cardboard sleeve. Nova smiled as the first vinyl record slid out of its sleeve and floated over to the record player. Then he paused. He hadn’t seen anyone when he’d come back, and the noticeable thump that said Sky Bolt was at work in her workshop was absent.
He set the record down and did a quick check of the barracks. Nopony was in Steel’s office, and a quick knock on the door of each of the ponies' quarters revealed that nopony was there either. Or not answering the door, which was unlikely. He was completely alone in the barracks.
Nova grabbed the stack of records from his room and headed for Sky Bolt’s workshop. Might as well take advantage of this while I can, he thought as he walked into the workshop. The place was huge, although at least half of the available space had been taken up by the airship that Sky Bolt had spent the last week working on. Not every day that I can use Sky Bolt’s speakers to get the full effect. While the record player was nice, one of Sky Bolt’s requirements for her workshop had been a truly impressive speaker setup that would have rivaled a good number of the dance clubs Nova had been to.
He took a quick look around to make sure that he was, in fact, alone and then wrapped the nearest workbenches in a pale blue glow, carefully pushing them back until he’d cleared a decent sized amount of floorspace for himself. Then, he dropped the needle onto the first record and hit play. Music flowed out of the speakers, and Nova felt himself begin to move as the sounds carried him away.
* * *
Dawn sighed as she peeled her poncho off, giving it a good shake to dislodge any last bits of water before she hung it by the door. It was nights like these that she always regretted not learning some of the more basic spells that most unicorns tended to pick up, such as projecting a small shield, or at the very least a basic laundry spell that would’ve let her keep the rain off of her poncho. The closest she had to something like that was a spell designed to keep liquids from running past a small barrier, but that was surgical magic, and little use in such a storm.
She ran a hoof down her wet sides, frowning in distaste as water swelled with its passing. Some good that poncho had done her. She’d been dry right up until the moment she’d walked out of the hospital doors. After that, her poncho had become nothing more than a damp trap for all the rain that had blown into her face.
She gave her wet mane a slight shake, grimacing as it slapped against her neck. Ugh, this is going to take at least an hour to get fixed again, she thought, running her hoof through the wet clumps of dull orange and feeling the water run down down her back, soaking into the few dry spots of her coat. She gave her head one more shake, more to try and keep her mane from sticking to the back of her neck more than anything else, and headed for her quarters.
A few minutes later, she had one towel wrapped around her mane and a second rubbing her back, once again glad that she was a unicorn. She didn’t know how in Equestria she would have been able to handle not having telekinesis to dry herself with. Dawn wandered into the common room's kitchen, munching on an apple as she tried to decide what to do with the rest of her evening. The barracks seemed deserted, or at least she hadn’t run into anypony yet. Which was surprising considering the ferocity of the storm outside. She’d halfway expected Nova to have been lounging around in the common room when she’d arrived so he could make some comment about her mane. Or in his quarters, if not out training.
Still, given the storm outside, she thought as she heated up some water with a quick spell. Whoever was in charge of stocking the barrack's pantry was doing something right. There were always a few packets of chocolate mix sitting in the same cabinet as the mugs. While it wasn’t exactly what anypony wanted during the height of the summer heat, on a night like tonight with the wind doing its best to knock down every door in Canterlot, a warm cup of chocolate would do nicely enough. She would have preferred tea in a proper cup with a saucer, but nopony was around and she wasn’t about to be that picky.
The weather crew went all out with this one, she thought as she sat down on one of the den couches, wrapping herself in her towel and sipping her hot cocoa. Not bad cocoa either, she thought as she took another sip. Not a 'quality' blend, but it could certainly be worse. She leaned her head back against the back of the couch, listening to the sounds of the storm. The rain was beating a steady, faint rhythm on the barrack's roof, a sort of blank noise that was almost relaxing. Every so often a particularly strong gust of wind would kick a sheet of rain into the side of the barracks in a rush, making a sound not unlike a bucket of water being thrown onto a wall. Then there would a be a brief lull, a momentary pause before the rain took up its steady rhythm again, all its force burned out in one swift stroke of wind.
It was during one of the pauses that her ear twitched and she sat forward. For a brief moment, she had thought she had heard … something. She wasn’t sure what. She leaned back into the couch, only to sit back up as another lull in the heavy rains brought the faint noise to her ears.
What is that? Dawn though, setting her mug carefully on the table. She perked her ears, glad that she was skilled enough to wrap her towel around her mane above them. Another lull, and this time the faint sounds sounded familiar. Is that … Trotkovsky? She climbed to her hooves, head turning as she tried to identify the origin of the faint sounds. She took a few steps down the hall past her quarters, waiting for a lull in the rain.
There it is again! she thought as the faint music reached her ears. That’s Trotkovshy’s Waltz of the Flowers! I’d know that tune anywhere! She wandered further down the hall, stopping at each door to the private quarters and putting her ear up against them. The melody was louder now, loud enough she could hear it over the sounds of the storm outside.
Dawn put her ear up against the last of the doors to the personal quarters, but the tune wasn’t coming from there. She frowned. That only left the armory—which should have been empty—and the workshop. She trotted down the hall, the music growing louder as she came closer and closer to the workshop entrance. She passed the armory already knowing it wasn’t inside, she could hear the strings of The Waltz of the Flowers clearly coming through the heavy shop door. It was odd, the only thing Dawn had ever heard Sky Bolt play over her excessively powerful sound system had been the beats that so many young ponies seemed to enjoy listening to. She put her hoof on the door. It wouldn’t hurt to say hello, if at least so that Sky Bolt knew that someone else appreciated her taste. Then she paused and looked down at herself with a frown. A quick orange glow enveloped the two towels, pulling them off of her body and sending them floating back towards her quarters. She ran a hoof through her mane, straightening it. Best to always make a good impression, she thought, pushing the doors open just as the music hit its final crescendoing moments.
Her jaw dropped. There, swaying away in a fairly talented—if solo—waltz, his eyes closed to the world as “The Waltz of the Flowers” built to its grand finish, was Nova. Dawn stood dumbstruck as Nova finished with a final twirl, coming to a stop as the piece finished. Before the next piece could start, Dawn began to politely clap, tapping one of her front hooves on the workshop's concrete floor. Nova opened his eyes and looked at her in shock.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, his voice strained. His horn lit up and the first few swelling movements of the next piece cut off as he pulled the needle from the record. “Tartarus, I didn’t know anypony else was here!” The record slid off of the turntable and into its cardboard sleeve, wrapped in a pale blue glow.
“Now hold on,” Dawn said, stepping forward and grabbing one of the other record sleeves with her own magic. “I didn’t come in here to tell you to keep it down. I wanted to see who was listening to Trotkovsky.”
“Well, I was,” Nova said, his voice calm. “But I’m done now.” He held out his hoof, motioning for the record that Dawn was holding.
“Why now?” she asked, stepping past him and sliding the record out of its sleeve.
“Because it’s just something I do to relax,” he said, still motioning for the record. “The last thing I expected was for somepony else to be here.”
“Well,” Dawn said, giving her slightly damp mane a toss. “I happen to enjoy many of the classics myself. In fact," she said with a tinge of pride, "I can play the piece you were just dancing to.” She paused for a moment, hoof over the play button. “I understand the need to be private, Nova. But don’t you think you’re taking it a little far?” Her question made him step back, his mouth open but no sound coming out. His eyes darted back and forth as he looked at the floor.
“Perhaps it’s unfair of me to ask that,” Dawn said, lowering the volume on the player and hitting play. “However, I must say that for someone with a reputation such as yours, your skill with the waltz was quite surprising.” She cocked one eye at him as the first swelling strains of “Blue Danube” began to fill the workshop. “I must ask however. Wherever did you learn to dance, much less appreciate the classics?”
For a moment Nova looked as if he was going to simply take his remaining records and walk out of the workshop, and Dawn held her breath. Then he sighed and shook his head.
“I guess there’d be no harm in telling you,” he said. “There was a while when I was a young colt in Baltimare where I lived under the eaves of one of the music halls. I heard a lot of music staying there, and I saw a lot of dancing when I snuck in. Sometimes I’d practice it, on my own, although I never got very good. It just ...” He shrugged. “It helped me relax, even if I wasn’t good at it.”
“Well,” Dawn said, raising the volume on the music slightly. “You can hardly be blamed for not being perfect, although you are good. But the Waltz is designed to be done with another pony. And as I hardly ever get the chance to waltz anymore ...” She raised her left hoof and held it out.
Nova looked at her for a minute as if he was waiting for her to bite him. She put a polite smile on her face and gave a gentle cough.
“Nova,” she said, looking the young stallion in the eyes, “a young pony never leaves a lady waiting, regardless of what he may think. Now are you going to let me give you pointers on your waltz technique, or are you going to go back to whatever it was you were doing before this?”
Her question seemed to shake him out of his hesitation, and he stepped forward, grasping her left hoof with his right. The two began to step back and forth, first with a sort of stiffness, but then with a smoother gait as the music moved on.
“No, don’t let me lead,” Dawn said, correcting him. “Keep your elbow up, there, like that. And now step … good.” She smiled. He may be an absolute pain, she thought as the pair waltzed around the workshop, but he has some taste I can agree with. She grimaced as his hoof collided with hers. If I can get him to dance properly.
* * *
Steel looked up as Hunter swooped into the cavern, followed by three of the four Guard he’d left with. Steel turned his attention back to the unicorn standing in front of him as the geologist continued to explain the delicate nature of the crystal formations deeper inside the cave, a discussion that he’d hoped to wrap up minutes ago. With Hunter landing nearby though, he finally had a good reason to end the discussion early.
“We’ll be very careful, Mr. Granite,” he said, cutting the unicorn off. “You have my assurance that we won’t be doing anything without a member of your team there to supervise. Now, my lieutenant has returned and I need to hear his report. If you need help with anything else, speak with Specialist Sky Bolt, and she’ll help you out.” He turned and headed for Hunter as quickly as possible, hoping the unicorn wouldn’t follow him. It wasn’t that the unicorn hadn’t been helpful, it was more that he’d been so long-winded about it.
“Hey, boss,” Hunter said as Steel trotted up. “Looks like you’ve got everything squared away.” He looked around at the crowded cave entrance. “Is this everypony?”
Steel nodded. “The storm’s pretty wild out there, and most of the geologists don’t want to travel the two miles back to Canterlot in this weather, so they’re waiting out the storm in here. Did you find anything?”
Hunter shook his head. “Not much, whoever busted into this place only went about a quarter-mile back. We left our geologist friend back with a guard so he could take a closer look at some smashed crystals, but whoever was here looks to have cleared out a while ago.”
Steel frowned as he digested the new information. “About how long ago would you say they were here?”
“Judging from the type of disturbances and the condition of the rest of the caves?” Hunter said, rubbing the back of his head with one hoof while he thought about it. “I’d say five weeks, maybe six, tops.”
“You’re sure?”
Hunter nodded. “You can learn a lot from cobwebs.”
‘Alright,” Steel said. “And you’re sure they didn’t leave any surprises behind?”
Hunter shook his head. “No, and I’m kind of glad. You have any idea what some of these crystal chunks weigh? They must have had some serious muscle in here helping out.”
“Granite—he’s one of the chief geologists—” Steel motioned back at the grey unicorn, who was already speaking with Sky Bolt, “—mentioned something about some really bad magical residue that had messed with the remaining crystals.” He looked back at Hunter. “He might have some suggestions as to what kind of magic did the damage. After that though, Sky Bolt mentioned some really funny footprints, did you find any?”
Hunter nodded. “I did, but before you ask I haven’t the faintest idea what might have made them. They don’t look like any footprints I’ve ever seen before. In fact, they don’t look like a real footprint at all. They’re too regular.”
“A misdirection?” Steel suggested.
Hunter shook his head. “I don’t think so, there’s too many of them. Maybe boots of some kind?” He gave a half-hearted shrug and turned to the three Guard behind him. ‘What about you guys, anything to add?” The trio ruffled their wings for a moment, one by one shaking their heads. Hunter shrugged again, turning back towards Steel. “I’ll get a better look at them. You got any other requests?”
Steel shook his head. “No, for now I think all we can do is wait out the storm. It's supposed to let up late tonight, and then we can get these ponies back to Canterlot. Until then, see what you can find out about our thieves.”
“You still think it’s related?” Hunter asked.
Steel shook his head. “On the one hoof, it seems pretty plausible. On the other, I don’t know. If they could steal from here, why bother with the other jobs?”
“Maybe they needed the different types?” Hunter suggested.
Steel shook his head. “We’re still missing a piece of the puzzle. Something doesn’t add up, but I’ve got an idea. Anyway,” he said, stepping back. “Get looking at those footprints and see what you can figure out.”
Hunter snapped him a salute and he returned it, breaking off to go find Sky Bolt. It was true that they were still missing pieces of the puzzle. But he did have an idea on how they could get them. Maybe right from the source.
“Excuse me,” he said as he walked up to Sky Bolt and Granite, the latter of which was chatting away about something. “I need to speak with my mechanic.” Granite nodded and stopped talking mid sentence. “Alone,” Steel added when the unicorn made no move to leave. Granite gave a sudden nod of realization and scampered off, hopefully to speak to one of the Royal Guard, or better yet, one of his own geologists.
“What’s up, boss?” Sky Bolt asked.
Steel smiled. “I’ve got a little engineering project I wanted to ask you about. Could you make a crate that when scanned with magic, said it was something other than it was?”
“Hmm...” Sky Bolt hummed, rubbing her chin with one hoof. “I think so. I’d assume you wouldn’t want it to be obvious that it was concealing something?” Steel nodded.
“Alright, then in that case I think I could, given a day or so,” Sky Bolt sat back on her haunches, idly sketching in the dirt with one hoof. “How big do you want the concealed compartment to be?”
“Well,” Steel said. “How hard would it be to fit two ponies inside it but still make it look like any other shipping crate?”
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Trojan crate :) Since it's Equestria, Trotjan crate?
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Thank you for the information
Yay to another great chapter
PS
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I prefer that reaction! It tells me I did something right!
Wow! You've been moving through this! Not that there's anything wrong with that!
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Thank you!
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Ok, so I have to say I don't dare say anything at all about anything (for fear that I may inadvertently confirm something or give an errant idea) but I will say that these comments make my day. I love seeing what theories you guys come up with, and I love the amount of thought you're putting into them and the story. I can't say anything about them, but I really enjoy seeing them crop up.
And I—nope. Not saying anything about this next chapter. Just that you're all going to really want to read it.
Ahhh Strauss.... I normally don't go for music links in the middle of a chapter, but in this case I found it appropriate.
I cannot wait to see where this goes. Still wanting to find out what's making Steel's sister less than friendly to him.
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As you may see in stats of the story, 75% of all visits are from place full of manchilds slightly crazy upon war, explosions, spaceships, creative abuse of fictional laws of physics and, sometimes, pretty ponys.
I am one of said manchilds, and your fic was recommended in pretty pastel pony preferred fic thread. So, it got into my read later list (120 things currently in) and from there, when I began to read it, into favorites.
It is quite good. Methodical in worldbuilding and establishing it's OC. One may say slow, but they would say that because nothing dies in fiery explosions every two chapters and no one gets verbally whipped every three. And it updates good.
Do continue!
For some reason I read the Kick-the-Sarge-in-the-ass-with-words four times.
I loved the verbal whipping Steel Song gave the Sargent. That was epic.
Yay, squabbles over command. Also, the sergeant is a bit of a dunce, eh? Sends in a group of guards who have no idea what to look for, and ignores the characters who actually know stuff.
Eventually Nova is going to need to come to terms with that night. In the mean time, music! If they can develop circuits, eventually the'll get to compressed music players. Heh.
The doctor dances. That is all.
Now who's going into the box? Heh.
She's twice his age... And how much older is Steel to Cappy?
pegasus's
It's a weird conjuwhatsit, I know.
thought
Shouldn't be too hard, seeing as most shipping around here involves two ponies...
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I second that. She could almost be his grandaughter yet everypony acts as if they were fated to be together, to the point his own sister bucked him in the face quite likely because he left her behind.
3223512 that reason was: It was pure, undiluted awesome!
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u forgot the "and they're not compatible with one another." part, guys.
I don't know the particulars about ranks in the Guard, but it would have been quite satisfying to see Song address Nimbus as a private after relieving him of command.
Also, I don't get this, why on earth would Nova (or anypony else living alone) need more living space than that?
4147960 I know.
I have to second what's already been said: you're clearly shipping Cappy and Steel even though he's twice her age!
As if that ever stopped the Twilestia/Twiluna shippers. Or, for that matter, those whose headcanon involves immortal Cadance.
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The classical music scene was a nice touch. Great little bonding moment there.
ok my theory on the fact that steel is twice cappy's age is this, steel is old and has the body of someone twenty years younger who's to say cappy isn't older then she look's?
ps: im reading this story after it has bean completed so the future has already bin written, still this was just a thought i thought to throw out there
I do like the interaction between Dawn and Nova in this scene. Dawn's a little reminiscent of
, I guess - a little bit of a high society pony with a nice mane and a borderline maniacal attitude to her work. It was almost expected that she would have a few higher tastes like dancing and such, but Nova? I had no idea what he was playing on the stereo before you mentioned it, let alone what he was doing. The part where Dawn 'catches' him is a great moment of vulnerability that shows a very well-written character that you don't often see in fics.
So far, this fic has been comparitively brilliant compared to absolutely everything that seems to sneak into the feature box these days. I hope the rest of this fic goes just as well!
There are no breaks on the shipping train
Speaking of trains. I think we're about to see the whole Dusk Guard undercover on a train :D
oh, and I loved the scene with throwing out the Sargent. Hope we see somd comments from Shining Armor, it would be fun to see how Dusk Guard is seen from the outside.
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Think about it.
30 & 60 is odd.
20 & 40 is strange.
15 & 30 is downright creepy. ... and probably illegal.
6330317 I believe the author put Steel Song's age at early 50s or late 40s. He's graying and has the start of wrinkles, but only a little bit. Physically, he seems to resemble Big Mac, but he is aging.
somepony's
pegasus's
Sergeant
library's
poring
ponies'
Equestria
the common room's kitchen
if he were
Specialist
Nova is an absolute dork, and I love it.
I'm calling either nova likes stallions and ends up with (I tried 4 times to write his name the zebra fellow) or with sky bolt as a unlikely paring but one that makes sense since they can work well together in the field