The Long Road Home
The cool fall wind cut through the streets of Ponyville ruffling the fur and mane of Night Court Representative Trixie, causing her to pull her cape a little tighter as she pushed open the gate to her house's yard. She paused before the front door, glancing back at the town around her. All around, ponies were preparing for the Nightmare Night celebration. In two days, Ponyville would be full of tricks, treats and horror.
Decorations were going up all about, with a dark and creepy theme suitable for the holiday, though in Trixie's opinion there were far to many spider webs in the mix; made the decorations far to one note. In Ponyville, the holiday was a time for apple bobbing, pumpkin launching, and trick or treating for candy. Trixie couldn’t help but smirk at that, being from Neigh Orleans. There was a certain art to the holiday down there, but the city had it's own strange rhythm to it in general.
“Hey Trixie!” Came a call from above her head.
Looking up, Trixie spied her friend Ditzy going about her mail rounds.
“Afternoon Ditzy. Any mail for me today?”
Trixie wasn't expecting there to be. Most of her correspondence was with Princess Luna and that was all done through the enchantment on her signature hat. And with her friends living in the same town as her that only left...
“Actually, there is a letter here for you.” Ditzy said as she pulled it from her mailbag with a wing. “Return address says that it's from Moonsinger...”
Trixie didn't wait for her friend to finish the sentence, quickly grabbing the letter and pulling it down to her with a quick telekentic yank. Another application of magic broke the seal and Trixie quickly began to read.
Trixie felt her heart sink lower and lower as her eyes scanned down the page. At her best, she had expected greetings from her family, maybe good news or an invitation to come back for the holiday. At worse, she had expected news that Greengrass was trying to slip Luna's proclamation from the Gala and was striking at her family. But this...
“Trixie?” Ditzy asked, her question cutting through Trixie's shocked haze, the concern evident in her voice. “What's wrong?”
“I-it...I...” Trixie babbled, unable to properly form a sentence. She looked up at Ditzy, the pain and shock of whatever revelation had just been dropped in her lap overlaying a call for help that she couldn't verbalize. Without another word, the blue unicorn turned and disappeared into her house, the door snapping shut behind her.
Ditzy was even more concerned now. The contents of the letter had to be really bad for Trixie to literally be made speechless. Her immediate instinct was to drop down and rush into the house after her; to offer comfort as a friend and the bearer of the element of kindness. However, something held her back.
The expression on Trixie's face was devastated and in Ditzy's opinion that spoke to some kind of personal loss or tragedy and she knew how deeply those wounds could run at times. No, this would take a little more than just her to help pull the unicorn out of her funk.
Giving her wings a powerful flap, she shot off through town, putting on an extra burst of speed so that she could finish her rounds early and round up the proper posse of ponies.
- - - -
Trixie had been staring at the letter for a while now. It sat on her desk, resting atop of the other paperwork that she sometimes had to deal with as the Official Night Court Representative to Ponyville; it's presence was almost mocking in a way, a brick thrown through the window of her life. She sat in her usual spot behind the desk, trying to mentally make sense of it all.
The letter had been curt and to the point. Trixie suspected that it had taken a lot out of Moonsinger to even write it. But the message had been simple enough.
The graves of your mother and grandfather have been robbed...
Trixie stared at the letter again, her eyes reading the same sentence for what felt like the fiftieth time.
The graves of your mother and grandfather have been robbed....
Trixie's right eye began to twitch as her gaze locked on four specific words.
Mother...grandfather...been robbed...
“Fils de salope!” Trixie screamed as she sent the offending letter and the stack of paperwork flying with a quick sweep of her fore-arms; the whole mess hitting the floor with a loud thwack. She could feel red hot tears of anger trying to well up in her eyes even as she tried to fight them back.
Somepony had desecrated the final resting place of her mother and grandpa. And she was livid. In the back of her mind, she wondered if this was what Raindrops felt like during one of her rages. She certainly wanted to get her hooves on the miscreants that had done this and do...something. Something punchy and kicky. Whatever Raindrops would do to somepony who made her angry.
She stood stock still in the center of her office for a moment taking multiple deep breaths before she shook her head and began to formulate a plan. She began to sort through the mess of paperwork, grabbing both the letter and a few different forms, slapping them down on the desk.
Grabbing a pen, she began to fill them out. One was an official request for a temporary leave of absence, more a formality than anything else. The other one was for the Royal Police Bureau, a request to have Twilight Sparkle accompany her out of Ponyville.
The letter hadn't spelled it out, but Trixie was well aware of Neigh Orleans more shameful unspoken secret, the trade of necromancy: The trade of bodies and the summoning of undead creatures. Princess Luna had been working hard to break it, but some traditions in the city ran very, very deep.
And if there was a chance that the bodies of her family had been taken by a necromancer...well, a unicorn that had studied almost every spell she ever got her hooves on could only be an asset.
She had just finished filling out the form when a knock on the door caught her attention. Sighing, she stomped on over to the door and shoved it open, only to take a step back as the forms of her five friends pushed their way into her house.
“Wha?” She blinked. “What are you all doing here?”
“Ditzy told us that you received a letter that left you rather shook up.” Cheerilee explained. “So we all came over to give you our support.”
“You looked so upset.” Ditzy said, smiling sadly. “Can we help?”
Trixie opened her mouth to protest, but caught the very even glare that was Raindrop's stare. Her resistance crumbled as she sighed and motioned for her friends to follow her into the living room. They all filed in, each taking their own seats, eyes still focused on Trixie as she walked over to the large couch.
“It concerns my family.” She said as she took a seat on the couch next to Lyra. “I just got word from my aunt, Moonsinger, that my mom and grandpapa's graves have been...robbed.” She finished, her face scrunched up in disgust.
The stares that followed just made Trixie feel even more uncomfortable, the shock at that revelation taking time to settle in on her friends. The silence seemed to last forever in Trixie's mind, before Carrot Top broke it with a question.
“So...Corona?”
Trixie frowned, kicking that possibility around in her head.
“No. At least, I don't think so. There's plenty of home grown sources for this kind of trouble without Corona getting involved. Not to say that it couldn't be Corona, but I'd like to think that she isn't involved...yet.”
“Well, who would it be then?” Lyra asked from her spot next to Trixie.
Trixie sighed. “Truthfully, I don't think that it's anyone we've crossed before. There is an unfortunate shadow market in Neigh Orleans involving the dead, mostly for necromantic purposes...” She trailed off.
The element bearers all shuddered slightly, thinking back to their recent adventure in Tambelon.
“Anyway,” Trixie continued, rushing out the explanation as quickly as she could. “What most likely happened is that you had some ponies desperate for bits that just smashed into the first graves they could really get their hooves on, with the intent to sell the bodies to necromancers. Normally the city guard would handle this, but they're currently slammed with extra security concerns over the tourist influx Neigh Orleans always gets leading up to and over Nightmare Night. So Aunt Moonsinger has asked if I could come in and maybe...find my family's remains.”
Lyra nodded, mulling the situation over.
“Right.” She said finally. “When do we leave?”
Trixie looked over at her friend, somewhat surprised by the reaction.
“What?”
“Oh, don't act so surprised.” Lyra chuckled. “Did you really think we'd let our friend run off to Neigh Orleans to track down stolen family bodies without us?”
“I can't ask all of you to run off to another city with me.” Trixie objected, only to be interrupted by a hoof from Lyra.
“How is this any different from so many of our other wild adventures? This looks almost easy in comparison, I'm sure that we'll be able to handle it. Besides, we can see the famous Orleanian Nightmare Night celebration while we're there!”
“Ooo!” Carrot Top grinned. “I've always wanted to see that! I've heard that the city does Nightmare Night “right”...whatever that means.”
Trixie grinned, unable to resist the urge to show off a little bit. “Well, according to the legends Neigh Orleans is supposedly the most haunted city in all of Equestria! So the art of doing a big scary presentation is deep in the city's blood!”
She looked a little unsure again.
“Are you all sure about this? I mean, I would like all of you to come along but you'd have to walk away from your jobs for a few days...” She looked to Raindrops. “I mean, Raindrops I know how hard it is for you to get time off, and Rainbow Dash screwed up your vacation time last year.”
Raindrops shook her head. “This is important. I think that even Rainbow would be able to work with me on this one.”
Ditzy nodded. “I have some vacation time saved up.” She looked at Raindrops. “Would your parents be okay with watching Dinky while we were gone?”
Raindrops nodded. “Of course. I think that my family would be happy to help.” She looked over at Carrot Top. “What about you Carrot Top? What about getting away from the farm?”
“I think that the Farmer's Union can help support me on this one.”
Trixie bit her lip, weighing the offer. There was a time she would have immediately jumped at having a little entourage for a trip like this. But she had worked hard to gain these friends and she didn't want to risk loosing them. Besides, tracking down some simple thugs would be easy for Trixie, and trivial for Trixie and Twilight.
But on the other hoof, if this did end up being more trouble than just some thugs looking for fast bits it would be nice to have her friends backing her up. And if she was honestly considering bringing Twilight Sparkle, then it would be a poor excuse to leave the other element bearers behind.
Finally, she nodded to her friends.
“Alright. But only if you can arrange everything without causing problems. I don't want all of you to throw your own lives out of kilter for me.”
Raindrops snorted. “Okay, something has gotten into her head. There's no way the real Trixie would be this nice.”
Trixie rolled her eyes. “Well, if we're going to do this, we should get moving. The trail is probably growing cold already, so I want to get down there as soon as possible.”
Nodding in agreement, the other element bearers got to their hooves and headed out the door to make arrangements and pack for a few day trip.
Trixie got to her own hooves after she heard the door close behind them, walking back into the office to grab the documents she had filled out. When she saw the letter again, another stab of anger flooded through her body, but this time it was tempered by the knowledge she had a plan.
Tucking the form for the Royal Police Bureau into her saddlebags and tossing them onto her back, she headed across town.
- - - -
Having dropped the form off at Ponyville's bureau office (and having gotten into at least a thirty minute argument on whether or not her plan was smart.), Trixie headed over to Golden Oaks Library. Stepping inside, Trixie could see that Twilight was busy re-shelving some of the books, humming to herself as she did.
Trixie coughed to get Twilight's attention, the unicorn turning to look at her, smiling softly as she did.
“Oh, hello Trixie. What can I help you with?”
“Well, Twilight...how would you like to go to Neigh Orleans?”
Twlight blinked, as she finished shelving the book she was on. “It's been a little while since I've been to that city. Am I...allowed?”
Trixie nodded. “I cleared it with the RPB. And honestly, I could use another magical talent on this one, just in case.”
Twilight nodded slowly. “Some kind of problem, I'm guessing?
Trixie nodded back. “Twilight...how much necromancy have you studied in your travels?”
“Not much, admittedly.” Twilight said as she walked over to Trixie. “It's a very dark art. A lot of what it can do makes my coat crawl. I mean, even compared to that spell I used with the Ursa Minor...” She trailed off for a moment, taking a deep breath. “I did make sure to learn some necromantic protection spells, however. ...I am assuming that you asked me this for a reason?”
Trixie sighed. “The graves of some of my family members have been robbed. I'm afraid that they might wind up in the hands of necromancers. So, that's why I wanted to know.”
Twilight nodded slowly, a slight smile crossing her face. “Well, if you think that I can help...okay.”
A genuine smile crossed Trixie's face. “Thanks Twilight. With the Elements of Harmony, yourself and the Great and Powerful Trixie on the case, these thieves won't stand a chance!”
Twilight just raised an eyebrow. “If you say so, Trixie.”
- - - -
Raindrops gently dove, swooping through the entrance to the Weather Patrol Station before coming to a soft landing on one of the few platforms that were actually built inside the structure.
She hadn't been able to find Rainbow Dash in any of her usual sleeping perches, which meant that she must have actually gotten off her tail to come in and do some work today. Sure enough, she could spy the rainbow-maned pony coming out of her office.
“Rainbow Dash.” She called out as she walked over to her. “I need to talk to you about something important.”
Raindrops motioned her head towards Dash's office. Rainbow picked up on what she was hinting at and nodded, turning and stepping back into her office. Raindrops followed, kicking the door closed behind her.
Rainbow Dash gave the closed door a slightly nervous glance before looking at Raindrops, their somewhat tumultuous relationship still on her mind.
“So...what did you want to talk about?” Rainbow Dash asked. “...This isn't about vacation days, is it? You know that I can't give you anymore, right?”
Raindrops shook her head slightly. “It's...a little more complicated than that. It's not for me, it's to help Trixie.”
Rainbow frowned. “Look, my hooves are kind of tied. Unless this involves official Element business I can't really give you time off...”
“It's not, no.” She sighed. “Rainbow, if I'm going to fill you in here, I need you to keep it under your hat. I don't like spreading other pony's business behind their back.”
The confusion was quite evident on Rainbow's face, but she nodded anyway. “All right Raindrops. I promise.”
“Trixie got a letter from her relatives in Neigh Orleans. The bodies of some of her family were stolen. She's going down there to find them, and I'm going to help her.”
It was a simple statement. Straight forward and to the point, just like Raindrops herself. Rainbow Dash frowned, running that statement over in her head. Raindrops stared right back, her expression her usual stoic one. After a few minutes of thinking, however, Rainbow Dash nodded.
“All right Raindrops. Go. We'll cover you here.”
Raindrops blinked. “Just like that?”
“Look, if somepony stole my parent's bodies, I'd want to have friends backing me up to go get them back.” She sighed, shuddering. “We'll be able to handle things here. Even if does mean...a little extra work.”
She then made a face like she had just licked a toad. Raindrops shook her head, smiling ever so slightly. Rainbow Dash really was something else at times.
- - - -
Carrot Top trotted along, quickly cutting across town and back towards the farms. She just needed to pack some things up and then she could see about getting somepony to help watch her farm while she was gone.
“Howdy Carrot Top.”
Carrot Top glanced over at the voice, seeing the familiar form of the local leader of the Apple Trust.
“Hello Applejack.” She nodded, noticing that the farmer's saddlebags looked rather full. “Been shopping?”
“Ah, just pickin some things up for Nightmare Night. A ready for it yourself?”
“Actually, it looks like I'll be going out of town for it. Trixie asked me for some help on...something...down in Neigh Orleans. I need to pack and get someone to watch the farm for the weekend.”
Applejack nodded, biting her lip as she mulled something over in her head. After a moment, she seemed able to spit it out, however.
“Well, Apple Bloom and I could watch it for ya if ya want.”
Carrot Top blinked, looking over at the orange earth pony. “Are you sure?”
Applejack nodded. “Yup. Ya helped save my kin at the Great Equestria Farm Competition. So I owe ya one.” She grinned nervously. “Sides. Granny's been pushin me to be more neighborly as of late.”
Carrot Top smiled back. “All right. Thank you Applejack.”
- - - -
The riverside nature of Neigh Orleans made it an ideal shipping and trade hub, which in turn had lead to a veritable army of warehouses lining the city's riverbanks. While most of them were owned by legitimate shipping concerns, the sheer number lead to more than a few of them having been abandoned and used by smugglers.
In one of those abandoned warehouses, two smugglers were currently stuck playing the waiting game. They were a pair of earth ponies. The first had a muddy brown coat, short mossy green mane and tail and was wearing a light tan gatsby hat; his cutie-mark a series of swamp reeds.
The other was thinner, light gray with a dark blue mane and tail. His cutie-mark a collection a small pile of stones, his disposition was quite nervous.
Bayou Runner sighed, adjusting his hat as he watched his partner pace back and forth in the warehouse. Scrabbler had been pacing for the last twenty minutes, his unease of waiting in the riverside warehouse clear.
“Boy,” He drawled, using the term despite no family relation between the two, “if you don't sit down and calm down, I'm gonna come over there and smack you upside your head.”
Scrabbler stopped his pacing and glared right back at him before sitting on his haunches.
“There. I'm not pacing anymore. Happy?”
“Quite. Now just sit there and wait for our client.”
Scrabbler managed to sit still for all of two minutes before he jumped back to his hooves and began to pace again. Runner rubbed a hoof across his brow, an exasperated sigh escaping his lips.
“Luna's sake son. I've seen toads being chased by alligators less jumpy than you.”
“Oh, my apologies. We've only just engaged in grave robbing for hire and we're sitting in a big old warehouse, waiting for the buyer to get off his sorry flank and get here...”
“We're fine, son. None of the guard saw us.”
“Cept that Luna has been cracking down on the trade since the last Gala.” Scrabbler shot back. “I heard that they got Viscountess Moon Beam last week.”
Runner opened his mouth to respond, but paused as he heard one of the doors to the warehouse open. “Hush son, I believe our client has arrived.”
Scrabbler frowned as he took a seat besides the cart with the bodies, while Bayou Runner stood in front, a wide smile on his face. A moment later, four ponies came walking into view.
The first, and the leader by Runner's knowledge, was a white coated unicorn stallion with an almost ridiculously poofy and wavy light purple mane and tail; a cutie-mark that resembled not much more than a blot of ink stood out in contrast to his coat. We wore a nicely tailored gray jacket, a white cravat, and a well made top hat.
Runner had done some digging on his client, back when the unicorn had first approached him to steal the bodies. He was a minor noble by the name of Night Shade, a name that did not fit the pony in his mind.
And elderly unicorn mare wrapped in multiple shawls stood on his right, a crystal ball cutie-mark standing out on her pink coat. Her mane and tail were gray, but not naturally, so much as having lost their color with age. Most shockingly, her horn looked like it was snapped in half, as instead of coming to a point, it ended in a jagged and broken section. Her deep blue eyes were still sharp, however. And those eyes never stopped moving around the room as they took in every detail.
To his left, was a pegasus mare and earth pony stallion pair. The pegasus was a very, very pale yellow color, with a light green mane and tail and a sickly frame. Her cutie-mark was a trio of gray and puffy clouds. Runner couldn't help but think that said cutie-mark was a particularly cruel joke. Her wings looked so stunted that he doubted that she had ever flown. She stood close to the earth pony, almost as if she was trying to protect him, insanely enough.
The earth pony was a massive work horse, his slate gray coat color, and black mane and tail making him look all the more intimidating. His cutie-mark was a lump of coal, hinting at some skill in industry. His red eyes seemed unfocused, however and they would randomly focus on the more innocuous objects in the room. It took Runner a moment to determine why. His naturally gray coat color helped hide the jagged scar that ran across the full of his forehead. A pair of simple brown saddlebags rested across his back, stuffed full from the looks of it.
The white coated unicorn coughed as he took a step forward, smiling graciously.
“Mister Runner! Punctual as always! Shall we conclude this transaction?”
Bayou Runner nodded slowly, motioning to the covered cart. “Do you want to inspect the merchandise, Mister Night Shade?”
Night Shade nodded, moving around to the other side of the cart as Scrabbler yanked the cover back with his mouth.
The two skeletons were laid out next to each other, with as much dignity one could provide to stolen bodies.
Night Shade looked to them, and then back to Bayou Runner.
“And you are sure that these are them?”
“Perfectly. I had my man in the records office triple check the burial order, and my contact in the city guard informed me that Moonsinger filed a report on the theft two days ago.”
Night Shade smiled even broader. “Very good. Very good indeed.”
Pulling the tarp back over the cart with his magic, Night Shade turned and faced Bayou Runner. Pulling a pouch out of his coat pocket, he casually threw it to the earth pony. “Four hundred silver bits, as promised.”
Runner picked up the bag, feeling the weight in his hoof. “Much obli-”
“That's not enough!” Scrabbler interjected. “You had us rob bodies related to an element bearer, and then haul it around town for four days instead of just delivering it right away. We want triple that.”
Runner caught the slight twitch in Night Shade's right eye, but the unicorn just smiled wider.
“Hmm. Yes. You did take no end of undue risk on this particular project. That seems quite fair to me.”
Reaching into the saddlebags of the gray pony, he pulled out two more bags of silver bits, dropping them before Bayou Runner. “Now, if there's nothing else, my companions and I would like to take our leave.”
Runner shrugged. “Stiffs are all yours, boss. If'n you need anything else, you know where to find me.”
“Yes...I certainly do.” He smiled.
The pegasus gently nudged the gray earth pony in the side, pointing towards the waiting cart.
“Come on brother. Like we talked about before. Cart.”
The earth pony smiled, a big goofy grin. “Cart!”
Quickly running over to the cart, he slid into the pulling harness, that same goofy grin still plastered across his muzzle. “Cart!”
Runner kept his expression neutral, but internally he couldn't help but feel a stab of sadness. The poor pony had obviously suffered some kind of brain damage, judging by that scar across his forehead.
Scrabbler, however...
“What in Luna's name is wrong with you?”
The pegasus spun to face him, her expression livid.
“Don't speak to him like that!” She shrieked. “Don't you ever dare speak to my brother that way!”
She looked ready to throw herself at Scrabbler, but Night Shade placed a hoof across her withers.
“Night Cloud. Take a deep breath. He doesn't know.”
Night Cloud still shot a venomous glare at Scrabbler as she stalked over to her brother's side nuzzling him. Night Shade glared at the pair of smugglers and thieves.
“While I commend your associate on his acidic tongue, you might wish to be careful on his deployment in the future.”
He motioned for his group to follow, the gray earth pony bringing up the rear with the cart of spoils.
Bayou Runner shook his head as he glared at Scrabbler.
“One of these days, your mouth is going to get you killed.”
- - - -
Trixie looked over her assembled group of ponies in their private car. It would be a two night train ride to the city, which gave them plenty of time to work out a course of action. While her friends were all looking directly at her, Twilight was reading one of the books she had packed for the trip, Necromancy by the Numbers.
“All right,” Trixie began, “We'll be getting into Neigh Orleans around eleven in the morning. We'll check into a hotel, and then I'll go talk to my aunt to figure out what she knows. Then it'll be a matter of knocking on doors and kicking over rocks.”
Cheerilee frowned. “Seems like we'll be kind of poking into the criminal underground, Trixie. This could be dangerous.”
“Which is why no one goes around the city alone. Groups of two at the bare minimum, more when we can.” Trixie explained as she nervously looked out the train window. “Now, both to our benefit and detriment, Princess Luna has really been increasing the pressure on the smuggling rings in the city, since the Gala.”
“Well, isn't that a good thing?” Ditzy asked. “Fewer possibilities to chase down.”
Trixie nodded to her friend. “You'd be correct. But on the other hoof, those groups that are left are going to be a lot more suspicious. Unlikely to just trust anypony that comes along.”
“Which is where I can come in.” Twilight mentioned, not looking up from her book. “I was a wanted criminal not to long ago.”
Raindrops frowned. “That's a dangerous ploy, Trixie. She will be in violation of her house arrest for sure then.”
Trixie winced as she squirmed slightly in her seat. “I know...and I hope that it won't come to that. But it's a backup plan, at least.”
“What about the city guard?” Carrot Top asked. “Can't they help at all?”
“Well, if we can give them a direct location to raid, sure...” Trixie sighed. “But Nightmare Night is big business for Neigh Orleans. We get creatures from all across Equestria and beyond coming in. The guard will be making sure that they're all safe and that they're not causing any problems themselves.”
“Is it really that much of a problem?” Lyra asked.
“You ever seen a group of griffins drunk?”
“...No, I haven't.” Lyra was forced to admit.
“Sounds like a good time to me.” Raindrops smirked.
Trixie rolled her eyes as she looked out the window again. “Anyway...thanks again for the assistance. I appreciate it...really.”
Cheeriliee chuckled. “Trixie. We're your friends. You're not pushing us away. Stop being so paranoid.”
“We're about to engage in a hunt for the bodies of my family. This is hardly normal friend circumstances.”
“Our friendship didn't start off under normal circumstances either. We are here, and we will help back you up.”
Trixie couldn't help but smile as they the rest of her friends, and Twilight nodded in agreement.
- - - -
Night Shade watched as Coal Black pulled the cart with the bodies around the back of his manor house, Night Cloud leading the way. It had been surprisingly easy to get across the city with Coal Black pulling the cart. The guards seemed unwilling to stop and bother the mentally stunted stallion and his “family”. The two-mile walk from there had been quiet, aside from the sounds of the cart's wheels on the ground.
Crystal Gazer frowned as she watched the pair disappear around the back of the house, as she pulled her shawls tighter around her ancient body.
“I still hope this plan of yours will work.” She croaked. “There is very little room for error.”
Night Shade waved a hoof her way. “You will be casting magic again soon my dear. Just help them unload the bodies, then gather the others in the drawing room. I have preparations to make.”
Crystal Gazer nodded, heading around the back of the building as Night Shade strode in via the front doors, heading up the main stairs and to his grand bedroom. Striding across the room to a large oak desk, he looked up at the painting that hung on the wall.
It depicted an elegant looking white-coated unicorn with a wavy black mane. She had a slightly sad smile on her face but still reflected a refined elegance. Nodding to himself, he picked up a well worn cane that was resting next to the desk. It was carved from dark mahogany, topped with a black diamond that almost seemed to actively eat the light around it. Picking it up, he channelled his magic through it, dark tendrils of power rippling from the diamond and flowing into the room.
With a gesture the magic tendrils swept across his face, leaving behind a black painted mask of a pony skull over his features. Reaching out with his power, he called upon the the hidden places scattered about his manor, brushing against the pools of necromantic energy contained within. Pulling the magical power with him he calmly walked over to where a separate table had been set up.
The table had a magical circle carved into it, in which seven specially forged daggers rested. The blades had a blood channel running down their center, that continued onward into the handles themselves. A few pages, neatly cut from a spellbook lay next to the ritual circle.
Night Shade checked the instructions for the magical circle again, making sure that everything was properly constructed before nodding and beginning to channel again. Tendrils of necromantic power began to flow around the room, circling and flowing into the magic circle and into the daggers. As he continued to channel, tendrils of magic from the other schools flowed out of diamond and into the daggers which almost began to thrum with power. Only when they were so stuffed with magic that they were in danger of exploding, did he tie off the spell.
The glow around them faded at that point, leaving them looking normal, if not for their strange construction. Sweeping them into a velvet lined box, Night Shade trotted downstairs to the drawing room.
Night Cloud, Crystal Gazer and Coal Black had come back in from pulling the cart around the back of the manner house. They were joined by the three other members of Night Shade's little conspiracy.
A young earth pony mare- Fall Fields was her name- was pacing back and forth near one of the windows. Her very pale tan coat was contrasted strongly by her deep red mane and tail, her cutie-mark a bundle of wheat. Her whole body was tense and on edge, like she might explode and start swinging at someone.
Sitting across from her was an older earth pony mare, her light yellow coat pockmarked with patches of gray, her once vibrant light blue mane now more of a wispy silver; her cutie-mark three medical crosses situated in a loose triangle. In contrast to Fall Fields, Tender Care was calm and collected.
The last member of the his band sat at the old antique piano that was tucked into the corner of the room. The caramel colored pegasus idly hammered at the keys, her white mane and tail frayed and unkempt. Her violin cutie-mark stood out, if for no other reason than the fact her right foreleg below the knee was gone. Rising Note just continued to occasionally poke at the keys, with her one good hoof.
Night Shade rapped his cane against the hardwood floor, bringing the room to attention as he calmly strode towards the center of the room.
“Well, my friends, everything is in place. The bait is ready and the element bearers should be on their way.”
“Ya sure about that?” Fall Fields growled as she paced. “It's a heck of a chance we're taking.”
“I'm quite sure. Moonsinger made her report to the police, they will have given her the standard response considering the Nightmare Night preparations. She will have reached out to the only other connection she really has left, her family.”
Pausing for a moment, he raised his cane a little higher, letting the light catch off it's diamond head. A slow smile crossed his muzzle, made all the more sinister by the skull pattern currently adorning his face.
“After all. There are necromancers all over this good city that would just love to defile her poor family's remains.”
The lamps in the room flickered at his deep laugh, the shadows almost seeming to smother the flames for a moment.
“Anyway. Assuming that she left today, I would expect her crew to get in the morning after tomorrow. Night Cloud, you, Coal Black and Rising Note will stake out the train station with a few of my pets. When you see them come in, send one back to let me know then follow them to find out where they're staying. We'll need to know where they are to isolate them.”
Night Cloud twitched her wings.
“Can't I just take the my target when I'm there? You enchanted the blades already. If I take Raindrops place, then I'll be able to help direct and twist them from the inside.”
Night Shade frowned as he considered Night Cloud's statement. There was merit in her position. Nodding slowly, he levitated one of the blades over to Night Cloud and one to Rising Note.
“Very well. But only take your chances if you can guarantee you won't be caught. This can't go wrong. Am I perfectly clear you two?”
Rising Note nodded, carefully taking the dagger by the handle with her mouth and placing it into her violin case.
“I hear you Night Shade. I've waited for a year already, I can wait a little bit longer.”
Night Cloud growled as she dropped her own dagger into her saddlebags. “Yeah. I understand. I won't screw anything up.”
“See that you don't.” Night Shade glared as he looked to the rest of his crew. “As far as the rest of us are concerned, we have to go plug a potential leak. I don't want Trixie and her friends to find our body movers. He knows who I am, and if Trixie finds him, she can find us.”
He channelled power through his staff, two small amorphous shadows coiling into view. With a simple gesture the two flitted over to Night Cloud and disappeared into her mane, hiding themselves from view.
“You lot get moving. The rest of you wait outside. I'm going to summon us some backup.”
As his crew walked out the front door he headed for the back, and to the family crypt that was at the back of his property. The bodies of Quartermoon and Crescent Starshine had been laid on the floor, ready to be worked on.
“About to defile a few more poor souls? Who is unlucky enough to suffer my son's tender care?”
The voice was angry and acidic, an ethereal glow filling the crypt as a ghostly unicorn rose right through the ground, to glare down at Night Shade. She looked just as elegant and refined as she did in the paintings in the manner house, though significantly more cross.
Night Shade continued to work, beginning to conjure necromantic energy as he responded to the ghosts' comments.
“They're relatives of the bearer of the Element of Magic, mother.”
The ghost frowned deeper.
“So, you insist on continuing with this insane plan? How many lives are you willing to destroy to get to Princess Luna?”
“It's not insane, mother. With the power of an alicorn at my hooves, I'll finally be able to bring you fully back to life, instead of just as a ghost. Aren't you happy about that?”
“Oh, I am dearly overjoyed that you've continued to ignore my wishes to just let me go, son. Especially now that you're about to extend my cursed existence onto two other innocent ponies! I'll just swagger on down to the Nightmare Night celebration and strut my stuff, I'm so damned happy!”
“Oh, mother!” Night Shade chuckled, his mother's acidic sarcasm completely lost on him. “You know that you can't travel into the city! I had to limit your movement because you were being so unreasonable.”
Moon Shade threw her fore-legs up in exasperation. “You are a fool my son. And this path will destroy you in the end.”
Night Shade ignored her as he threaded necromantic power around and through the skeletons at his hooves. They twitched slightly, the necromancy causing a slight stirring of the bones. This is where most necromancers would be satisfied with just animating the skeletons, but Night Shade had surpassed that level years ago.
Forcing the magic to go further, he exploited the natural connection between the bones and the spirits that once occupied them. He could feel the spirits in question struggling against his magical grasp, but with a strong yank he pulled them forward.
The ghosts of Quartermoon and Crescent Starshine were dragged forward into the physical world with a horrendous shriek. The earth pony and unicorn looked around, blinking in confusion at being summoned back to the living world.
“What's going on?” Quartermoon asked as he glared at Night Shade. “Who are you to disturb our rest?”
“I, am your master.” Night Shade responded.
Before they had a chance to react further, Night Shade lashed out with his magic. Ghostly chains erupted from the gem of the staff, wrapping around the legs of the pair. Their eyes glazed over and their expressions went slack as Night Shade exerted his control.
“Congratulations, son.” Moon Shade drawled. “You've achieved another fine violation of the laws of nature and taste.”
Night Shade held his cane forward to the two ghosts. “Into the gem while I head through town you two. We're going to go pay somepony a visit.”
The ghosts slowly floated into the gem, Night Shade turning and trotting out of the crypt. “I'll be back later mother. Don't worry. This will all be worth it in the end.”
Moon Shade shook her head. “Where did I go so wrong...”
- - - -
Bayou Runner sighed as he headed trotted through the streets of Neigh Orleans red light district, taking a circuitous route back towards his and Scrabbler's house. Another pile of debts paid off, and with quite a bit of money left over, thanks to Scrabbler's hard negotiations with Night Shade.
Still, he felt uneasy. The sun was beginning to go down and he couldn't shake the feeling that somepony or some thing was watching him. Pulling his gatsby cap forward he glanced behind him to make sure that he wasn't being followed. An empty alley greeted his eyes.
“I need to get out of this line of work.” He growled to himself as he stepped out of the alley and over to his house.
He froze in place. The door to his house was open, swinging ever so slightly on it's hinges. Frowning, he quickly ran inside and grabbed the heavy wooden club he kept stowed just inside the door.
Taking a firm grip of the handle with his mouth, his ears perked up at the sound of a loud crash upstairs. He ran up the stairs, taking two at a time. Hitting the upstairs landing, he could now hear the muffled shouts coming from Scrabble's bedroom at the end of the hall.
He bolted into the room thoroughly prepared to give the beating of a lifetime to anypony that was trying to cross him and his partner. Or at least that was his original plan. He actually dropped his club in shock at the sight of Scrabble being lifted into the air by a pair of ghostly figures.
An elderly earth pony stallion had him in a death grip, holding Scrabble a full foot off the ground, while a unicorn mare had her hoof shoved deep into his body. Bayou Runner could only gape as Scrabble's coat grew faded and patchy, his mane and tail turning white, age lines appearing across his face; the ghosts draining the life right out him.
“How nice of you to join us. I was afraid that I'd have to search the whole city for you, Mister Runner.”
Bayou Runner snatched the club back up as he faced the figure that stepped from the shadows in the corner, which seemed to melt and pull away from his form. Runner recognized him as Night Shade, but he looked infinitely more intimidating.
The jovial smile was gone, replaced with a remorseless glare of smug superiority, the pony skull mask painted onto his fur making it look all the more deranged. Runner threw himself at his former client, aiming to bring the club down on his smugly smiling head.
The shadows in the room moved in response, darting between Runner and Night Shade as they blocked the strike. He could hear the sound of Scrabbler's body hitting the floor behind him, as Night Shade's laugh cut through the room.
“Sorry Mister Runner. It's nothing personal, mind. Just can't have you possibly blabbing about who I am to Miss Trixie once she starts looking for who stole the bodies of her family. Just business.”
“You sick...”
“Monster? Freak? Murderer? All of the above? My dear sir! You are a grave robber and a smuggler. I don't think that you are in any sort of position to throw stones. Now please face your death with some manner of dignity at least.”
The shadows and the ghosts surged forward, their mournful wails filling Runner's ears. Dropping his club, he bolted from the room in a blind panic, rushing back down the stairs. If he could make it to one of the city guard stations...
So focused on escaping the ghosts he was that as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he didn't notice the cloaked figure that stepped out of the living room blocking his path to the doorway, holding a scythe. He tried to skid to a halt, even as the figure swung the blade.
It pierced his side, slicing into his organs and dropping him with a loud thud. Fall Fields grinned as she flipped her hood back.
“And loose ends tied. Looks like we're good to go boss!”
Night Shade came downstairs, the ghosts following him as he looked over the dead pony. “Excellent. Now it's just a matter of cleaning up.”
Calling upon his necromantic power again, the body of Bayou Runner shakily rose to it's hooves. Night Shade motioned to the pool of blood on the floor.
“Clean your own blood up, then immolate yourself and your partner.” He paused for a moment. “In the fireplace, please. Show a little bit of class in death.”
Bayou Runner's body shuffled into the kitchen for a towel, Night Shade motioning for Fall Fields to follow.
“Now it's time to wait.”
- - - -
Trixie stretched as she stepped off the train, her friends following behind her. The Neigh Orleans train station was a little busier than normal for this time of night, a small crowd of ponies likewise leaving the train and breaking off to gather their luggage or go about their own business.
Despite the circumstances, Trixie couldn't help but feel a bit of warmth in her core at returning to the city of her birth. Old connections, could stir the heart she supposed.
Glancing around, she noticed a beggar sitting by the benches a harmonica in her one good forehoof, a cup by her side. A pair of workers, a large earth pony and a sickly looking pegasus stepped onto the train to clean it. But what most stood out to her was the pair of city guard who were watching by the entrance, stopping each pony leaving the train station with a few questions.
“Everypony have their stuff?” She asked, motioning to the guard ponies. “I have a feeling we'll need to declare.”
Twilight and Trixie's friends nodded, their saddlebags neatly secured on their bodies, with the exception of Raindrops. She looked slightly embarrassed at her saddlebag-less form, which for Raindrops meant a slight frown.
“You go ahead.” She said. “Start talking to them and I'll catch up.”
Raindrops turned and walked back into the train. Trixie nodded to the others.
“Come on then. Let's get this over with.”
- - - -
Raindrops frowned as she walked back towards the the private compartment where she had presumably left her stuff. Peering into the compartment, her frown deepened. No saddlebags.
“Play!” Came a muffled male voice to her right.
Looking that way, Raindrops blinked at the sight of a very large earth pony holding her saddlebags in his mouth. His goofy grin a stark contrast to his dark coloring.
“Hey! Give those back!”
He shook his head, turning and running further down the train.
Raindrops growled, running after him, the cramped nature of the train keeping her from using her wings. She chased him all the way back into the baggage car, where he spun around and faced her goofy grin still plastered on his face.
The sound of the door closing behind her caught her attention and she turned to see a frail and sickly looking light yellow pegasus blocking the door. Her smile was manic, the kind of joyous grin that a foal would display upon getting a particularly expensive toy.
Raindrops frowned. “All right. I don't know what you're trying to do. But I suggest you let me out, before I make you let me out.”
The pegasus shook her head as she giggled, her eerily airy voice making it sound all the more creepy. “Nah. That won't be happening. Bro?” She pointed to Raindrops. “Hug!”
Raindrops felt herself seized from behind, the large earth pony wrapping his forelegs around her like an iron vice. Raindrops struggled, flexing her muscles as she tried to break his grip. The giant of an earth pony just hugged harder matching her strength.
The pegasus darted forward with an ornate dagger in her mouth, slashing it across Raindrops' leg. Raindrops winced at the cut. She had experienced worse in fights, but this was proving their ill intents even further and she didn't want to see what other plans she had for that dagger.
Much to Raindrops shock the pegasus didn't continue stabbing or slashing at her. She just tilted her head back, letting the blood on the blade flow down its channel, through a similar one on the handle, and into her mouth. And as the pegasus swallowed Raindrops blood, the dagger began to glow and Raindrops screamed as she felt a pain unlike anything she had felt in her life before.
It was a stabbing pain that drilled straight to her core, almost like something was being ripped right out of her spirit. She glared at her attacker, panting through the pain, only to be shocked as she began to transform before her eyes.
The pale yellow of her coat began to darken to Raindrops' own jasmine color, even as her mane and tail likewise shifted blue. She laughed, her voice deepening as her sickly form began to swell with muscle, her crippled wings snapping into full and healthy ones.
At the same time, Raindrops felt her own wings snap and crunch, her strength draining away as her own body became smaller, thin and sickly. She managed a glance downward, noticing that her own coat color remained the same, despite her now withered form. It was like her attacker was passing off her own flaws while she stole Raindrops' appearance. Glancing back up Raindrops watched in horror as her attacker's cutie-mark changed, the gray clouds turning into her own three raindrops.
Raindrops gaped at her double, her brain locking up at the sight.
“What...are you?”
She took a step closer to Raindrops, grinning wide. “I'm you.”
The last thing Raindrops saw as her own hoof connecting with her head, the impact knocking her into unconsciousness.
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First thing that came to mind (hoping that was intentional):
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Oh, it completely and totally was!
I pretty much have been writing this story with that song on my playlist.
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Glad to know I'm not the only one with a fic based on a Voltaire song! Just for that, I'm checking this out.
Well this is really interesting, not to mention creepy.
I await more chapters with bated breath.
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Thanks Talon!
I wanted to go for a whole kind of creepy, New Orleans style story.
I also liked your more humorous story for the event, by the way. The costume becoming real take is always cute.
Wow impressive first chapter, the scenes were very well described, the story and plot interesting and every felt quite in character with a great cliff hanger. I do feel the Nightshade scene suffered a bit from tell over show though, but besides that this was great!
After reading this chapter, I cannot understand why something as wholesome as necromancy is illegal.
Moon Shade is best snarky ghost pony.