Lynched
Colgate wasn’t stingy with her liquor, and Lyra greatly appreciated it. “So,” she began, “somepony was waiting for you. Why is that a problem?”
“I don't mean to insult your workers,” Lyra said as she accepted a glass with half a hand of whiskey in it and took a small sip. “Good stuff,” she remarked. Her hooves played a few chords on her lyre while she managed the drink with her magic. “Most Companions don’t have a taste for good whiskey.”
“You’re dodging the question,” Colgate teased. “What’s the matter, Captain? We’ve all got needs, even former Companions. There’s no shame in it.”
Lyra shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Having needs isn't the issue.”
Colgate sat next to her, gripping her own glass in one hoof. “There’s no shame in that either. I don’t judge. I must say, I’m surprised that more of you haven’t taken us up on our hospitality.”
“Well, we’re an odd bunch.” Lyra began listing off the members of her crew, raising a hoof to count them off only to realize that she could only count to one. “We’ve got two married ponies, a Shepherd, and a mechanic that can't look at anything but our medic.”
“And the medic?”
Lyra grinned and sipped her drink. “I figure he’d have to relax for thirty seconds, which would be nothin’ shy of a miracle. Besides, he’s as taken with Derpy as she is with him.”
“What about you?” Colgate asked. “My girls are clean and kind-spirited if that’s more your way. They don’t judge, either.”
“I’ve just got the job on my mind.” Lyra focused on her music in an attempt to keep from blushing. She drained her glass, and it was immediately refilled. “It’s a distraction I’m not keen on with all that's goin' on around here.”
Colgate’s smile, which had been warm and comforting until now, became just a little predatory. “I was a Companion, Captain. I’m very good at reading ponies. You spent more time looking at my pistols than you did the mares downstairs.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Lyra asked.
Colgate shrugged and took a little drink, savoring the taste. “Just that you and Bon Bon have a lot in common. She’s quite a mare, you know. She took to the training even better than I did, and I was practically a prodigy.”
Lyra nodded, remembering the many clients that Sereneighty's “ambassador” had entertained over the years. “That sounds about right. She’s good, no denyin’ it.” She glanced at the case containing Colgate’s pistols. It was tempting to change the subject again, but she decided against it. "I guess you’d know her better than me, going through training together like you did. How are we alike?”
“You hate complications.” Colgate’s face brightened as the music’s melody changed. “I recognize this one! I learned to play it on the dulcimer at the Academy. It was part of my training.”
“And you don’t have a dulcimer anywhere in your room,” Lyra noted. “I guess that means the training didn’t take.”
Colgate’s glass nearly ran empty, so she floated the bottle over to top it off. “You could say that,” she said. “You could also say that I nearly became the first mare in history to use one as a murder weapon.”
“That must have been quite a sight,” Lyra chuckled. “Who was the intended victim?”
“My music teacher.” Colgate frowned and sipped her drink, upset over the memory but not overly so. “He kept telling me that I was playing the music, but not feeling it. What does that even mean?”
Lyra noticed that she was sitting a lot closer than she had been a few moments before. “Could mean a lot of things,” she said, wondering if she should maintain a respectful distance. She decided not to, since she had a pretty good idea of were all of this was going. “In the interest of self-preservation I won’t go into it.”
“I think that might have been the beginning of the end for me as a Companion,” Colgate mused. “Before long the Border was the only place left for me. I learned to say ‘ain’t’, packed up my things, and set out for a life of adventure.” She indicated the house around them with a look of bemusement. “This is what adventure looks like. Life’s full of disappointments.”
“You turned it into a nice place,” Lyra said.
Colgate snorted into her glass. “It was a hellhole. Putting a stop to all the terrible things happening here might be the greatest thing I ever did. Berry was a big help when I needed her, and I owe her a lot.” Her eyes became slightly unfocused as an errant thought crossed her mind. "We used to be closer than this. It was actually a bit unprofessional of us, I suppose. We were never good at following rules."
The music rose in volume after they had both fallen silent. Colgate hummed a few bars and reached up to dab her eyes. “This song always makes me cry,” she said after a while. “You’re a very talented musician.”
“And you’re a remarkable mare,” Lyra replied. “I hope that’s okay to say.”
The former Companion chuckled, a little tipsy now that they had been drinking for a while. “As long as it’s you saying it and not my fine whiskey.”
“It takes a lot more than this to blur my judgment.” Lyra turned to the side and tried to strike a heroic pose. “What about me? Am I gettin’ any prettier?”
“By the minute,” Colgate said. A moment of silence passed as they looked at each other. “Everypony’s asleep, Captain. I'm sure that Morning Glory has given up on you by now. If you like, you can go back to your room.”
“Or?”
Colgate rolled her eyes impatiently. “Jen mei nai-shing duh FWO-tzoo! Or you can kiss me, you silly mare!” Without hesitation, Lyra did just that. She hadn't kissed anypony in a long time, and was worried that she wouldn’t be very good at it. Colgate obviously didn’t mind, and by the time they parted both of them were out of breath. “I’m not Bon Bon,” she warned. “And you aren’t Berry. We have to understand that.”
“Yeah,” Lyra agreed. She floated their glasses aside, setting them on the bedside table where they wouldn’t be in the way. Her lyre hadn’t missed a note yet, and probably wouldn’t for the rest of the night. “I know. You and me are the only two here.”
*****
Most mornings caught the town of Forgeright by surprise. The sleepy little town would wake just after the sun rose, as though doing a double take before realizing that the day had already started. Wives would wake husbands, parents would wake children, and the streets would be noisy for a few busy hours as everyone tried to make it to work on time. The mines would soon echo with the cries of foreman and the orders of line bosses as indentured workers pried ore from the selfish planet with precise tools and slightly less precise sticks of dynamite.
Today was not like most mornings, and it made Dr. Stable nervous. The town was dead quiet. He met Mjolna for coffee at the Salt Lick, just as he had every morning for the last several years. He liked the routine, while Mjolna... accepted it. He wasn’t convinced that she could actually enjoy things in the same way that other ponies could.
As usual, she sat ramrod straight. Doctor Stable hadn’t realized that it was possible for good posture to look so uncomfortable until he met Mjolna. “How are the teeth?” he asked, desperate for conversation. Mjolna wordlessly opened wide to show him. Every tooth on the right side of her mouth had been replaced with an unbreakable crystalline replica that was surgically bolted into place. “Oh, good. Be sure to let me know if they start hurting again.”
“Of course,” Mjolna said. She went back to her coffee, and the silence returned. Doctor Stable couldn't remember the last time he’d been this uncomfortable at breakfast. It probably had something to do with the angry crowd forming outside.
The rest of the townsfolk were gathering in the square, led by an angry pegasus. “Aren’t you worried?” Stable asked. “Something’s wrong here. I don’t like the way Boxxy’s getting everypony all riled up.
“I am not paid to worry,” Mjolna said calmly as she added sugar and cream to her coffee. “My job does not begin for another hour. Mr. Brown is still grieving for his late wife, and I don’t feel like stopping him. Let the Sheriff and his wife take care of it if he gets too belligerent.”
“Do you think they could?” he asked. “There are a lot of angry ponies around here.”
Mjolna showed a rare hint of amusement. “We both know what he is capable of. He and Screw Loose are good at what they do.”
“They aren't bulletproof,” the doctor pointed out. “As far as we know, they aren't immortal either.
“Close enough.” Mjolna sipped her coffee, and that was the end of the conversation. Doctor Stable sullenly went back to his own cup, wrestling with the sense of dread brought on by the growing tension of the last few weeks.
A gunshot startled them both. Mjolna grabbed her hammer as they ran to the door and pulled the curtain of iron beads aside for her friend. “Thanks,” Stable said as they hurried outside. He stayed behind her as she scanned the street for danger, but neither of them could see anything amiss. “Where did it come from?”
“I do not know,” Mjolna admitted. “A single shot is difficult to pinpoint.”
The angry cries that came soon after, however, were very easy to follow. “I will be back,” she said.
Doctor Stable reached out to put his hoof on her shoulder. “Be careful,” he warned. Mjolna flinched at his touch, and he quickly pulled away. “Sorry. I forgot.”
Mjolna tightened her harness. “I am not angry. Stay here, doctor.”
*****
Lyra couldn't remember the last time she hadn't woken up alone. She smiled at Colgate’s sleeping form and quietly crept out of bed. The former Companion’s perfume clung to her coat, and her lips still tasted faintly like whiskey. All in all, it wasn’t a bad way to start the day. She ran a hoof through her mane in a futile attempt to straighten it, grabbed her coat and gun belt, and began to get dressed.
“Busy morning?” Colgate mumbled sleepily.
“Morning before a fight is always busy,” Lyra said. “I’d better get to it. I’ll see you downstairs.” She kissed Colgate’s forehead and threw on her coat before slipping out into the hallway.
Bon Bon nearly ran into her, and took a few startled steps backward. “Captain!” she exclaimed. “I’m terribly sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going.” She slowly took in Lyra’s half-buttoned coat and messy mane. “I take it you’ve acquainted yourself with Colgate?”
“W-what?” Lyra stammered. She subtly nudged Colgate's door closed with her hoof. “I was just, uh, talking. We were talking about… stuff, and things. Big fight today!”
“Lyra, please.” Bon Bon put a friendly hoof on the frightened unicorn’s shoulder. “I’m glad that you and Colgate kept each other company. She’s a dear friend, and probably in need of some comfort right now."
Through sheer force of will Lyra swallowed her embarrassment for the moment. “I-I didn’t want you to think I was takin’ advantage of your friend,” she said.
Bon Bon flashed a mischievous grin. “I certainly hope you did; Colgate is worth taking advantage of.”
“So you’re alright?” Lyra asked. She smacked her forehead. “Yeah, of course you’re alright. Why wouldn't you be?”
“Not entirely,” Bon Bon admitted. “I’m a little appalled by her taste.” She sashayed past the Captain and nudged her with a shoulder. “Ponies in my profession rarely feel embarrassed about sex. I’d recommend that you try it, but judging from what I see here the training would kill you.”
The Companion ducked into the first room she came across, careful to keep the smile on her face. She shut the door behind her and took deep breaths, anxiously trying to find her center so that she could meditate.
Lady Rarity would be very disappointed if she could see her student now; a Companion needed to be at peace with herself whenever possible, and Bon Bon was anything but. She felt wretched, and hated herself for being so selfish.
Lyra was happy. That should have been reason to celebrate, especially since the Captain had lived such a hard life for so many years.
Bon Bon sank to the floor, desperate to keep quiet lest somepony overhear her. Lyra was happy, and it was with somepony else. For a long time she sat in the dark, alone and heartbroken for reasons that she didn't fully understand. There were tears at some point, but she wasn't sure when they began or ended.
After she had finally started to calm down, the door opened and Colgate stepped in. She was surprised to see Bon Bon at first, but quickly put the pieces together. "Oh, la mei, I'm sorry! I didn't know you felt the same."
"It's nothing," Bon Bon insisted, but she knew it didn't sound very convincing. "Please don't tell Lyra." Colgate hugged her, and she began to cry all over again.
*****
When morning came, Octavia woke even earlier than normal. She carefully climbed out of bed, shifting her weight as slowly as possible to avoid waking Vinyl, and immediately tripped over the pilot’s discarded flight suit. All pretenses of stealth abandoned, she set about getting ready for the day. She brushed her teeth, brushed her mane, and then brushed her coat for good measure.
Sometimes she wondered if the sophistication of a pony could be measured in brush strokes.
"Hey, 'Tavi?" Vinyl mumbled sleepily as she was zipping up her vest. "Are you scared?"
"Yes." Octavia had never been very good at sugarcoating her words. "Why do you ask?"
Bleary red eyes stared up at her, a hint of shame hiding behind them. "Because I am, too. Mjolna sounds like a tough customer. She's, like, Nega-Lyra."
"Nega-Lyra?"
Vinyl nodded. "Yeah, like how superheroes always have an evil version of themselves. Mjolna's been through the same kind of awful stuff, but it turned her evil instead of good. She probably wears a scary dominatrix version of Lyra's outfit with the colors inverted."
Octavia rolled her eyes. "Somehow I doubt that."
"I'm allowed to dream." Vinyl grabbed Octavia's shoulder as she passed. “Be careful.” She didn't try to ask what the chances of survival were; there was an unspoken agreement between them that such things were Octavia’s concern.
"I will be," Octavia promised. She kissed Vinyl's nose, collected her gear, and tied her bow-tie. After quickly checking her weapons, she set off to examine the house's defenses.
Most ponies were still asleep, but she encountered a few early risers as she trotted downstairs. The first was a small changeling that fluttered down from the building’s attic. She was surprised to see that the creature wasn't in disguise, since all the others were quite careful to stay in character. They probably felt safer that way, given the unfriendly sentiments around town. Maybe a client had made a special request.
Octavia suddenly remembered that there was only one paying customer in the house at the moment, and felt a little sick to her stomach. There were some things that she didn't want to know about Thunderlane, and this was definitely one of them.
She inspected the windows on the first floor, making sure that they were secure. Satisfied, she made her way outside to find Derpy hard at work on Sereneighty’s bow. It was still dark, but the pegasus had set up work lights around the ship. A large water tank had been attached just behind the bridge, looking for all the world like a gaudy necklace around the ship’s neck. “It is very early to be so busy,” Octavia noted. “Did you have trouble sleeping?”
“A little,” Derpy admitted. “I got nervous. I thought that working might help.”
“I know the feeling,” Octavia said. “A distraction can be quite comforting sometimes.” She turned to face the sunrise and tried not to think about the odds they would face later in the day. She and Lyra had faced worse in the past, but never without losing a friend. Horrible as it was, Octavia found herself hoping that it would only be one of the prostitutes that died, and not one of her adopted family. She very nearly hated herself for thinking that way.
The morning slowly grew brighter, revealing the miles of dusty hills that surrounded the Heart of Gold Ranch. The landscape was painted a dim orange, the overcast purple sky draped over it like a protective blanket. It was a pretty sight, and both mares stopped to take it in.
Derpy happened to glance at the ranch’s oak tree. She squinted suspiciously and angled one of her work lights to better illuminate it. She was sure that something was off about the shadows in the branches.
A brown mare with a blond mane was hanging from her neck, twisting slowly in the morning’s breeze. Octavia ran over to investigate, ignoring Derpy’s screams for the moment.
A heavy iron hammer was dangling from the mare’s harness, speckled with dried blood. Her mane was full of grit, and her face had been scraped raw in some places. Somepony had dragged her here, probably by the very rope that now held her up. A grimy old rag had been stuffed in her mouth, and a folded note was pinned to her harness. “You must be Mjolna,” Octavia sighed. She drew a small knife from her vest and reached up to cut the rope. "I wish we could have met under better circumstances.”
Mjolna’s hooves snatched her own, and her eyes snapped open. Octavia's startled scream was even louder than Derpy's.
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Sorry I haven't commented recently (I used to be Avenging Moose, had to change my name) lookin' good so far though! And my god Thunderlane! "They're whores." "I'm in." Best line of the series. Your adaptations work well with the series, and you got me even more invested some how. Good job Mr. Pen!
I remember reading this story before I signed up late last year and then I found it again recently. Took me a few days to reread the story and as a firefly fan myself, I love your version of the firefly story. I even just recently watched firefly on DVD so reading some of the familiar quotes is fun to read.
Keep up the awesome work, I'm excited to see what happens next in this story.