A King's Return

by Maulkin

21 - Of Reclusion and Rescue

As it turned out, selling pure sapphire crystal for a profit was unfeasible; no of us knew anyone associated with the black market, and having mom and dad sell it, even under-the-table, was too risky. Still, Luke knew of a place to get raw aluminum; there was a recycling place near our shop where the homeless people frequented, collecting recycleables and exchanging them for money to buy... well, usually drink. Dad said he'd buy a few pounds when he next went out, and I could convert it to 'food' over the next few days. Before we left. Into the unknown. Possibly for good, never to see our homes or family again

As the date drew nearer and nearer, the full weight of the situation started to settle on me. We were going to leave society entirely, and all of the creature comforts therein. Food was probably going to be sporadic, sleeping would be done without mattresses or any real shelter, and most electronics would be a faint memory. Worst of all, however... no internet. Even if we could keep our phones reliably charged, any governmental agency could easily track us; reluctantly, we left them behind.

The three of us conferred together over the next few days, and decided that setting up a permanent shelter anywhere was a bad idea; we had to keep moving around to minimize the evidence of our presence. We would also move to new locations by means of teleportation, as that was the quickest and easiest way to do so; not all of us could fly, and I could move the others one-by-one along with me as needed. A quick side-along teleport was proof of concept, though Luke was left nauseous from the trip. Repeated attempts began to get him used to the experience, and soon we were able to do so without any problems. At the same time I started trying to teach Mary more about teleportation, explaining the underpinning magical theory and concepts, but it didn't seem to help. If anything it only seemed to confuse her more; belatedly I realized that she didn't have the concepts in her mind yet, the same concepts that a schoolfilly would have been drilled in long before she levitated her first bauble. I schooled myself to patience with her; considering she'd only had magic for such a short time, it was impressive she could even use that.

The night before we had to leave was a somber affair; no one talked much, and I don't think anyone paid much attention to what they ate or what they did. Even so, it went by much too fast for my liking; I soon found myself settling in for the night, browsing the internet for a few more precious minutes before I'd have to leave it for the foreseeable future. I posted a 'goodbye' post to a few forums, claiming I'd be touring the world for a few months with some friends, establishing my alibi. The others did the same for their various forms of social media. All too soon I had to put my laptop away, and closed my eyes. The next moment, it seemed, it was early morning – the sun was just a faint gray glow on the horizon. We had to leave. Luke and I said goodbye to our parents, hugging them as best we could, and then we were gone. I stood beside my brother and my friend, looking about the empty wilderness, and set up camp without a word.

***

I had expected to be busy most of the day, foraging for food, but with our new pony biologies we found that much of the vegetation was edible. We still had to watch for a few plants, of course, but a nibble on the known poisonous ones left an acrid, bitter, unpalatable taste in our mouths that we spit out immediately. It seemed our bodies already knew what wasn't good for eating. I didn't have a much harder time finding the protein portion of my diet, as wild game in the form of rabbits was plentiful. Gripping them telekinetically from afar and lifting them into the air rendered them helpless; a quick twist of the neck put them out of their misery. Indeed, it was more difficult to render the carcass in the meat than it was to actually get the carcass to begin with. I grimaced, carefully working my knife under its skin to remove its pelt, then removed its gut-sack and let it fall to the ground. It was something I'd done plenty of times before, if not on Earth; my past-self had to hunt for his own food after his defeat, and that gave him plenty of practical knowledge on the subject. When it was naught but muscle and bone, I started roasted it with magical heat. We were too close to town to risk a fire, and I didn't feel much like building one up anyway. I ate it then-and-there, not wanting to attract the attention of bears or other wild creatures, and tossed the bones aside... and wondered what to do with the rest of my day.

I wandered back to our tiny camp, and found no one there; apparently Luke and Mary had gone off to fly. At least we were far enough from town that they would probably be mistaken for a bird... probably. Even for the risks, it was a good idea. Soarin had been a Wonderbolt of significant skill; it would be good for Luke to re-learn some of that if we ever encountered Discord in the mismatched flesh. As for Mary, I had no idea what kind of a flier she would be, but it couldn't hurt to learn. As for myself... well, I had centuries of knowledge, but I was out of practice – badly out of practice, if I once had the skill to take on both Princesses at once and nearly win... I shuddered, pushing the memory away. That knowledge had cost me dearly; it would be a waste to not put it to use.

Where to start, I wondered silently, hemming and hawwing over the various fields of magic. Eventually, I settled on a simple scriven enchantment; it was the “baking soda volcano” of magical research, something young colts and fillies would do when first introduced to enchanting, but it was both crude and effective. Moreover, it could be done with readily available resources. I set to work, looking for thaumically conductive and thaumically resistive materials, and settled on a bit of powdered quartz and some river clay, respectively.

I started by shaping the clay into the best sphere I could manage, smoothing it until it was a smooth clay ball. That done, I began lining the quartz into specific, stable formations; they did not need to be touching, but they needed to be as close as possible. I continued the pattern across the surface and made sure it was as even as possible; a tiny spark of magic identified gaps or incongruities, which I corrected. I was making a 'popper' – a simple foal's trick, but a good place to start. The idea was to store as much thaumic potential energy into the system as possible, like spinning up a CD to high speeds; I would then crack in the CD, or in this case the configuration of the storage medium, which would hopefully result in a destructive burst of energy comparable to a cherry bomb. Once the crystals were aligned as best as I could manage, I heat-hardened the clay and verified it was still in alignment. That done, set it on the dirt, retreated several feet, and started charging it from a distance.

It never looked any different to the naked eye, but I could feel it 'humming' with magical power by the time I'd finished pouring energy into the matrix. At that point, if any of the crystals shifted too far out of alignment the whole thing would be ruined; the clay ball would become extremely hot for a few moments, possibly even turning to molten slag as the energy slowly released, but that would be the extent of it. No, I wanted a boom – the energy release had to be sudden. Chuckling, I carefully levitated the ball... and chucked it against a large rock about fifty feet away.

The retort was as loud as a gunshot, and the blast itself was accompanied by polychromatic flash of thaumic-turned-kinetic energy. I grinned, wondering if this is how the Mythbusters crew felt when they got to work with explosives, and trotted closer to inspect the blast site. The damage was mostly superficial, no more than a few scratches and some scorch marks; as I expected, it was approximately equivalent to a cherry bomb.

I grinned like a colt in a candy shop, my boredom forgotten, and scooped up another lump of clay to make another popper... and I would have made an even larger one, had I not heard panicked talking coming from our campsite. Frowning, I quietly approached and listened carefully, hiding behind some bushes. When I was sure it was just Luke and Mary I came out from behind my cover and made my way towards them, shaping the fresh lump of clay into a sphere as I did so.

“Had a nice flight?” I asked, grinning broadly as I stepped into view, eager to show off my new 'toy'.

The flinched, surprised at my sudden appearance but evidently relieved. “We thought you'd been shot!” Mary said, sighing with relief. Luke, however, was distinctly annoyed.

“What the hell was that? We thought some shot you!” he said, looking around nervously as if expecting Elmer Fudd to come out of the undergrowth.

I frowned, levitating the simple lump of clay. “I was just doing... experiments,” I said. “See?” I started to push the quartz powder into the surface, shaping it as I had before. At their nonplussed expressions, I sighed and continued working as I explained what it was and, roughly, how it worked.

Luke mulled over it for a few moments, and grudgingly mumbled, “...Alright, yeah, that's pretty tits. Can I try the next one, or is it a 'unicorns only' thing?”

Even as I considered ways to stabilize it further for safe handling, Mary broke in – and it was her turn to be annoyed. “What?! No! No more explosions! What if someone heard? They could be on their way right now!”

I blushed. In my boredom, I hadn't considered that. “I... Yeah, that could be a problem. It was just one, though, so we should be okay – it was too sudden, no one will know where it came from. They'll probably just think some kids are fooling around with firecrackers.”

She sighed, rubbing her forehead. “Fine. But, please, just no more explosions until we're far away from civilization.” I sheepishly agreed, and they went back to fly while I looked for something quieter to work on.

***

The next month passed in much the same manner; I would hone my magical capabilities, and Luke would practice flying and the various skills involved. Surprisingly, I didn't miss the creature comforts as much as I had expected; my tough hide was as at-home on a pile of rocks as it was on a soft bed, and the other two were able to fashion simple hammocks out of cloud. However, while they were able to roughly manipulate clouds, it wasn't with the finesse and skill I remembered as commonplace among pegasi; something was missing. I tried to convey to them what I knew of pegasus magic, insisting it was possible them to move and reshape clouds on a large-scale, but I didn't expect much success on that front. Unicorn magic was an act of mind and will, and was largely taught. Earth pony magic was mostly inherent to their body and could not be 'switched off', as evidenced by the verdant grass around where Mary slept (for, indeed, she was all three races in one). However, pegasus magic was predominantly an act of the instinct. It had to be felt, and was as much an aspect of the body as of the mind – or so I understood it. Either they would get it, or they wouldn't – and I couldn't help him or Mary on that front. They'd just have to feel it out.

Mary split her 'training time' roughly equally between flying and practicing magic, and I once again had to school myself to patience explaining basic thaumaturgical principles to her. It was difficult, at first; I had to beak down concepts I took as basic knowledge and explain it as best as I could, as she was basically a blank slate. In time, however, some of it seemed to 'click' – what she could feel and sense became clearer as she associated it with the concepts and terms, just as people can discern colors more easily when they can name them distinctly. We were... Well, happy, and we were starting to remember our skills.

Unfortunately, things didn't stay tranquil for long; when we retired to our tents one evening and drifted off to sleep, we found an unwelcome guest waiting in our dreams.

“Ooooh hello my little ponies!” the mishmash monster chuckled, leering down at us. All three of us found ourselves in a garishly colored mockery of our campsite, every shape twisted as though by funhouse mirrors. “Enjoying your little camp? I'm sure yours is a good deal better than the camp holding the others...”

I groaned – apparently Luna was too busy to shield us from him, or was otherwise incapacitated... “Whatever you came here for, we're not playing along,” I grumbled, glowering up at Discord.

He theatrically slapped a hand over his chest, adopting an offended expression so fake a foal could see through it. “Really now, you wound me! And to think I was trying to help... Well, I suppose you don't want to hear what kind of camps the other ponies are locked up in,” he said, turning to leave.

He was right, I didn't. Not from him, anyway; I didn't trust a word that came out of his lopsided mouth. I was fully ready to pinch myself awake, or do whatever I could to leave that nightmare, but Mary...

“Wait!” she called to his retreating form, “What other ponies?”

“Don't encourage him!” I hissed, but it was too late; with a maneuver that can only be compared to a condom reversing itself through its own ring, Discord stood snout-to-snout with a suddenly unnerved Mary. She took a step back, but it was too late.

“Why, the other ponies, of course,” he crooned, keeping pace with her and cocking his head. “The crystal ones. You know – your subjects,” he then nodded towards me and smirked, “and his slaves.”

I bristled, glowering, and gently tried to pull Mary away. “It's a trap. It's such an obvious trap, we need to get out of here, don't listen to him-” I hissed, but she cut me off.

“Of course it is,” she replied darkly, glaring at the mad creature. “Isn't it, Discord?”

He rolled his eyes and snorted, still smirking. “Well, duuuuh! Obviously it's a trap,” he chuckled, amused at his own antics. “But it's also true – and it's not a trap in the way you think.” He tittered darkly before continuing. “Besides, Princess, I know you can't turn this down, it's not in your nature... And nor will you.” He turned to me again, pushing his snout forward and forcing me back, away from the group. He was no longer smirking. “After what you did to them, how can you not? Oh yes, I know you're back,” he reached out and poked at my head before I could avoid it, and I bristled.

He just chuckled, amused as he continued, slowly pushing me further and further back. “100% certified Sombra. And, dear me, it seems we've switched places, haven't we?” He looked over his shoulder at the other two, leering at them briefly before turning back to me. “Really, it's amusing how these things work out; Are they your Fluttershy? Is that why you're still hanging around them?” He tittered again. “That's adorable. What, do you really think you can do better? Do you think you're one of the good guys now?” He threw back his head in a mirthless laugh, then fixed me with a predatory gaze.

“Shut up!” I hissed, but I was powerless – I couldn't do a thing to him in that dreamscape, he was too powerful. “I don't have to justify myself to you, demon!”

He just chuckled, amused. “Stop pretending, Sombra. You and I both know you'll go back to your old ways. I know you will, because you're a coward. You're afraid of death... and you'll finish what you started.” His eyes flicked towards Mary, and he smirked. I stared at him, my stomach turning cold as I realized what he was suggesting.

“What was it again? Essence of vitriol, lunar caustic, quicksilver – why, those are just names for sulfuric acid, silver nitrate, and mercury, aren't they?”

“You can't be serious,” I growled, putting on a brave front.

He ignored me, tapping his chin as if considering, then grinned broadly. “Oh, but you needed something else, didn't you?”

Without warning, he lunged forward and sank his teeth into my leg. I screamed in shock and pain – even though it was a dream, it felt like it was really happening – and writhed as he bit deeper and deeper, down to the bone. I would have passed out if I could, but I remained horribly conscious as he lifted me up bodily and began worrying me like a dog with a toy, pounding my body on the hard ground. I could feel bones break and organs rupture, but I couldn't pass out; my world began to dissolve in a haze of pain. I dimly registered Mary and Luke shouting and trying to pull me from his grip, but it was like a couple of mice standing against a python. I didn't stand a chance.

I was broken and mangled when he flung me away, the dream already starting to fade. All sensation except the pain gradually dimmed to nothing, his laughter echoing in my mind. I woke up with a strangled scream, drenched in a cold sweat.

My breath was labored as I sat bolt-upright, my eyes darting at shadows and my ears twitching at the tiniest noise before I realized I was safe. It was just a twisted vision brought on by Discord – that was all. I wasn't mortally wounded; I was fine. None of it was real I told myself. I was fine.

...But, if I was fine, why did I smell blood? I cautiously tried to climb to my hooves, but yelped and fell back down to my plot when one of my hind legs blossomed with pain – the same leg Discord had mauled in the dream. It was nothing like the pain from before, though, just a faint echo. Even so, I was terrified of what I'd find. What had he done to me? I lit my horn and sat down carefully, looking down...

My leg was bleeding from several puncture wounds, matching the shape of the creature's jaw. My stomach turned as I looked it over; I hoped there was no venom or disease in his bite. On instinct, I selected an Order-based healing spell, one that would encourage the expelling of things unlike my body while encouraging the flesh around the wound to return to its natural, whole state. I sighed with relief, the pain going away as the holes sealed up one by one... but one wound resisted. Something was stuck in it.

I already knew what it was, but I wanted to deny it as long as possible. It resisted the Order magic, holding the wound open until I telekinetically pulled it out with a grimace. It was a tooth – a draconequus tooth. With the source of primal chaos removed the wound began to seal itself just like the others, but I felt no better about it. I stared at the tooth for several long moments. Essence of vitriol, lunar caustic, quicksilver, and primordial chaos – those were key ingredients for the ritual I'd intended to use on Celestia and Luna. The ritual to kill an alicorn and steal their immortal life. All of the other ingredients were easily available on earth, but primal chaos...

I wrapped the tooth in a bit of paper and put it in my pack, and pushed all thought of it from my mind mind. It was a powerful thaumic ingredient, I rationalized, climbing to my hooves as I heard the others rousing in their tents. Just a valuable reagent, I told myself, even as I felt a familiar coldness settle in my heart.

Just in case.

***

It was still the middle of the night, and my leg was mostly healed by the time I stepped gingerly out of the tent. I had taken a few moments to clean the blood off my leg, but I'd have to clean my sheets later. In any case, we wouldn't be sleeping any longer that night – that much I knew. Instead, I started heating water in a pot and added a packet from our precious coffee to the mix, and set out mugs for everyone.

“So, that was fucked, right?” Luke chuckled nervously, breaking the silence. Mary chuckled as well, and I smiled wanly – it was all I could manage. “What was that he said? Something about Luna being caustic?”

I snapped out of my reverie, and shook my head. “No – lunar caustic. It's an archaic name for silver nitrate.”

“Yeah, what was that about?” he asked, puzzled.

Another deception. I wondered if I'd ever be able to stop. “I have no idea why he says half of the things he does,” I grumbled, putting on my best 'grumpy, sleep deprived, and annoyed' look. “He's insane.”

That seemed to satisfy him, and he gave it no more thought. “So... trapped ponies.”

“Yes,” Mary said, her mouth set in a hard line as she glanced at me. She seemed more determined than I'd ever seen her. “And yes, we know it's a trap, and yes, we're going anyway. I feel... responsible for them.”

I didn't doubt it; she had been the beloved leader of the Crystal Empire, and it wouldn't surprise me if those bonds survived the curse. I nodded sheepishly. “I... Yes. Yes, I agree. We need to help them, or at least try.” I'd fucked up so often, and those ponies... most of them had lived through my reign of terror. I'd wronged them and their families deeply and personally; even if we did manage to break them free, it wouldn't even come close to balancing the scales. I had to do it. Still... a rescue was a nice sentiment, but no good if it didn't work.

“But...” I flinched as she narrowed her eyes, but continued. “But, we're going to do it smart, and in an unexpected manner. Whatever trap Discord has set up there, we need to find out what it is and avoid it if we can, or spring it in a favorable manner if we can't. At the very least, we can't do what he's expecting.”

She nodded, her expression softening. “I'm glad to hear that – honestly, I'm surprised you're going along with this so easily.” She paused. “Was it... was it really that bad, what you did to them?”

Dead, hopeless eyes. Broken wills and broken families. An empire of puppets, driven by fear. I shivered, pushing the thoughts aside. “Let's just say I'm glad they can't remember.”

She nodded grimly. “Right. Well, he gave us an idea of where we'd find the camp...”

***

The ponies were being held surprisingly close by – the next town over, in fact. Having been secluded from the world at large for a month, however, we were taken aback by the state of it.

We approached at night, sticking to the shadows, and took turns looking through binoculars. No one was outside except the occasional military patrol; presumably a curfew was in place. Several businesses seemed closed, with biohazard signs hung on the front. We even spotted a billboard with silhouettes of the three races, along with the phrase “If you see something, say something”, all in black and white. What really made my blood run cold, however, was when a lone pegasus took to the air. Luke had the binoculars and tracked him, and we prepared to intervene, but it was too late; there was a muffled burst of an air cannon, and the pegasus was suddenly wrapped in a net. He fell to the ground out of sight, and we didn't know his fate. It seemed, for whatever reason, that town had a large number of ponies in it... And they were prepared for pegasi.

“Well,” Luke gulped, “looks like flying's out of the question...”

I nodded grimly – reconnaissance would be difficult without alerting the patrols. Even at night, there was no way to sneak in on hoof or by wing. But...

“Do you think they know about teleportation?” I asked aloud, already knowing the answer. Only a small percentage of unicorns had even had the skill. As far as I knew, I was the only one who had regained their memories. Unless another unicorn had somehow managed to retain both their memories and had the skill to begin with, it was almost certain I was the only one. At the very most, they had sporadic fits of telekinesis. But teleportation? That would be new. Even so, I didn't look forward to having to sneak around like that.

Mary was silent for a few moments, then nodded slowly. “That's the only option, isn't it?” She wasn't wasting any breath telling me it was dangerous, or insisting we find another way.

“Pretty much,” I grumbled darkly, and began concentrating before my courage fled me. I focused on a spot in the shadows of a backyard, and teleported into darkness.

I'd learned several useful survival skills during my habitation of that icy cave, including how to sense things I could not see, hear, or smell. When winter came, I still had to eat – and meat was the only thing on the menu, as few things grew in the snowy tundra. I did not have a sense of smell keen enough to detect their hidden dens, and I certainly couldn't see them. But, even with a layer of snow and earth between us, I could sense the faint magic given off by their slumbering bodies. Once I'd found them, it was a simple matter to drag their sleeping bodies out of their burrows and turn them into dinner.

I used much the same technique in that town, but to hide rather than to seek. I could tell roughly where they were, even around corners or behind walls, and hide or teleport as appropriate. There were a few close-calls, but I was mostly successful. I had no luck finding the ponies, however; I had expected to see something out of Red Dawn, with spotlights and guard towers, but there was nothing of the sort. I frowned, at a loss, and looked around for a moment to fix my location in my mind before teleporting back to Luke and Mary.

Belatedly I realized it probably wasn't a good idea to suddenly appear out of nowhere; their nerves were already on edge, and the sudden noise and sound had made Luke jump into the air and Mary give a shriek of fright. “Err sorry about that,” I mumbled sheepishly. “I just needed to know where did Discord say they were keeping the ponies, again?”

Luke dropped back down to earth, grumbling. “He didn't say exactly – he just gave us the town.”

I looked back at the town... It was quite large. There were so many places, I couldn't cover them all in one night – maybe a week, but not a single night. “This may be a problem,” I muttered, thinking. My ears and tail flicked – something was agitating me. Oh, right – I hadn't turned my 'radar' off, and it was putting my nerves on edge to be so close to 'danger'. Before I switched it off, however, I noticed something – Luke and Mary's magical signature was much different from the humans I had been avoiding. Whereas a human's was thin and dull, like the sun seen through deep, murky water, a pony's was much brighter and of many different hues. “Hang on,” I said, grinning to myself, “I have an idea.”

I teleported back to the spot I'd just left, and cast my net as wide as I could to sense the faintest tingle of Equestrian magic nearby. Hmmm... no. None there. Disappointed, I began to methodically move throughout he city, moving from hidey-hole to hidey-hole and staying out of sight, until...

“Ah!” I felt something nearby – something behind me, actually. I carefully turned around peered around the wall, moving slowly so as not to attract attention, and found myself looking at a school. I should have realized sooner; they usually put people in schools during emergencies. And if the hospitals were over-crowded, why not quarantine the 'infected' there?

There were indeed ponies there, but unfortunately the whole place was crawling with military patrols. I couldn't find a safe place to teleport. True, I could try teleporting directly inside, but that was almost guaranteed to get me seen – and then the element of surprise was lost, even if I managed to escape before being shot. I sat there for several minutes, looking over the place, considering... And then I saw a supply truck pull in. Of course, they'd need regular supplies; it took a lot of supplies to keep any military force up-and-running, if they had captives.

I 'ported back to Luke and Mary, explaining the situation – where the captured ponies were being kept, about the guard patrols, etc.

“Did you see Discord, or any signs of a trap?” Mary asked.

I shook my head, lowering my ears nervously. “No... Whatever he has planned, I couldn't find it. But, well, I'm sure he expects me to use certain... abilities, to make this easier. Evil abilities.” I looked away. While I'd sat there watching the school, a thought had occurred to me; it would be so easy, simply taking control of the facility myself. First the patrols, one by one, then use them to get inside... Then take over the commanding officers, then those below them... Before the night was over, I could have had my own military force under my command. If I had any trouble, well, I would have plenty of meat-shields to soak up bullets and return fire. But... No. I wouldn't use that, not if I could help it.

She didn't inquire further, for which I was grateful. Instead, she nodded grimly and asked, “I assume you had a different idea?”

I nodded, grinning mirthlessly. “So... you guys ever read The Hobbit? Sorry – Mary, have you ever read The Hobbit?” I ignored Luke's disgruntled snort, but cut him off. “Oh come off it, you never read the classics. What about you? No?” Mary just shook her head and shrugged. I sighed, grumbling. “Damn philistines. Fine, how about The Hobbit movie? Remember how they escaped the prison in barrels...?”

***

“This is stupid. You're stupid.” A crate was talking to me. It was not a happy crate. I glowered through the handle holes, miffed. Luke never liked cramped spaces, and his new pegasus instincts probably compounded his dislike of cramped, restricted places.

“Fuck off, I didn't hear you come up with any better ideas,” I hissed from my own crate.

“Stop bickering!” a third crate snapped. Mary was probably the worst off among us by the simple fact of being the largest. Indeed, she barely fit in hers, and we had to pack some material down around the handles so her wing feathers didn't poke through. I winced, predicting many cramps and bruises for her by the end of this ill-conceived trip.

We had hidden in wait by the roadside for an hour or two, watching a steet-light near the school for a military supply truck to stop. After making sure the cargo bay was empty of any humans and had enough room for all of us, I side-along teleported the other two in. Mary and I then opened the crates with careful application of telekinesis, and dumped the contents out the back when no one was looking. Then it was just a matter of sealing each other into the crates, and hoping they wouldn't notice the presence of live ponies inside...

The rumble of the deisel engine finally stopped, and we knew we were at our destination. We stayed as quiet as possible, steadying ourselves in our crates, and continued to wait. Soon enough, we were lifted onto a dolly and carted out, only to be set down again a few minutes later – fortunately near one another, though I couldn't communicate that. We waited several minutes in silence, just listening while I 'pinged' for life nearby. When I was reasonably sure it was just the three of us, all human signatures faint and far away, I popped the lid off my crate and rapped on the other's lids. “We're good,” I whispered, helping Luke out of his while Mary popped her own with more telekinesis. She was becoming proficient at that – I was impressed.

It would have been good to have two sets of 'eyes'... “Can you feel them nearby?” I asked her. “Try to feel their magic.”

She paused a moment, closing her eyes and concentrating... and shook her head. Ah well – maybe some other time. I shrugged and pointed them in the general direction – judging by the size of the group and the fact that they weren't segmented into groups, I suspected they were all together in one large room. “I think they're in a gymnasium, or something like it,” I whispered. “Look out for any signs so we can get our bearings.”

Luke and Mary nodded in silent agreement, the latter carefully igniting her horn. I followed suit, and looked about – it seemed we were in a classroom that had been modified to be a storage room. I turned my attention to the hall outside the door, extending my awareness in both presumed directions to make sure it was empty... and extinguished my horn, motioning Mary to do the same. Her light went out immediately. A few moments later footsteps approached... and passed by. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“All clear,” I whispered a few moments later, opening the door. “When we get to the gym, see if there are any places to perch up high – they probably have the pegasi restrained, and won't be looking up.”

We made our way quietly down the hall, having wrapped our hooves in cloth to muffle their clacking on the hard tile, and made our way to the mass of assembled ponies. We came to the doors... and stopped. It was difficult with the interference from the highly magical ponies, but I could make out two human signatures flanking the door. “Two guards on either side,” I whispered softly, pointing to their rough positions. “I can knock 'em out, unless either of you have a better idea...”

Mary bit her lip, reluctant... but nodded. I turned my attention back to the soldiers on either side, and concentrated. It was much harder to 'grip' something you couldn't see, so I took several moments to 'feel them out' properly. Then, I pushed them forward, and quickly pulled them back– and was rewarded with two sickening cracks on the wall, several startled yelps from the ponies in the room.

Now or never, I though grimly, my horn blazing to life as I flung the door open and ran through the threshold, ready for a fight. But... there was none. No one lifted a finger to stop us; there were no other guards on duty. Luke and Mary followed soon after, and were equally confused by the sight.

We'd found the ponies, and they did indeed look terrified – but not of the soldiers, of us. A quick glance around showed that none of them were restrained in any way; the few pegasi present were hovering a few feet off the ground to get a better look at the intruders, and the unicorns were awake and alert. If anything, it looked more like a refugee camp than a prison. No, not even that – there were several creature-comforts about, like televisions and books and various forms of entertainment. I looked about, confused... but my thoughts were cut short by a terribly familiar chuckle, and my blood turned to ice. I stopped in my tracks, scanning the room, and saw a lanky man in a full hazmat suit languidly climb to his feet. All I could see of his face was his shaggy white eyebrows and beard, and his bottlecap glasses – glasses that gave the impression that one eye was larger than the other. “Really,” the man chuckled, a powerful magical signature flaring up around him, “I didn't expect new patients for at least a few days.”

I think we found the trap.