Enigma

by steampunkwatchman

Chapter 2: Smiles All Around

It took me only a few minutes to attach my wings and put on my suit, prepared for both gentlemanly and detective-like escapades (it was the capital after all). I wanted look decent around royalty and the rich snobs who lived there, that way they don’t call the guard on me again, for dirtying up the streets or something like that. Now when I got there I was stopped by two ignorant guards, saying my kind’s not allowed here (which you can imagine pissed me off). Especially, since I was summoned. Before I could tell ‘em to up theirs, however, they were told to let me in. So, I strutted past them to a see what mystery awaited me.

When I got there, Twilight welcomed me in with open wings and wrapped me in a hug, saying it’s been awhile. I simply replied “Yes, yes it has.”

As this was no time for small talk though, she explained to me how they found “it”. “We found it out in the alley. There were no witnesses that we know of, and our only lead is, well... see for yourself…” She didn't finish that sentence and I understood why, no words could describe this horror as accurately as it was, but what I saw was the nearly ripped-to-shreds carcass of a pony, its organs removed in what appeared an almost surgical manner, lungs, heart, everything surrounded by a pool of blood.
Then the face, oh, the face it was all gored blood, drenched, the eyes missing from their sockets, so bad that it was unidentifiable. The worst part of all was the mouth, someone had carved a permanent smile into its face; the almost perfect smile. It was eerily perfect. Too perfect for just some common criminal. I could see why she needed my help. This murderer was clever and confident, leaving a calling card on his victims like this. That only strengthened my fear because I knew it would happen again, to some poor, unsuspecting victim. That's when I asked how old the corpse was. The guards said about 2 days. I would need to examine it closer to see exactly how the victim died, and if I could identify who it was.

We took it the morgue and I began the procedure with the help of the surgeon, who told me what should be where. I didn't learn much that I didn't already know, but I did find out that the murder (whoever it was) had steady hooves. According to the doctor, the organs were cut out in such a way as to have the victim alive the entire time. Besides that, the victim’s body contained some kind of plant residue. Therefore, I took it to a botanist to ask what it was, and what I found was… well, peculiar to say the least.