Dust
In Colgate’s line of work, loud noises were usually a bad sign.
Enormous metal roars fall within that category, and Colgate, pacing anxiously across the hall of the sleeper car, heard one. With the flicker of her horn, she shifted into fast-time.
Caballeron was caught in mid-flinch, his stubbled face screwed up as if he had smelled something unpleasant. Colgate considered snickering, but decided against it. She turned towards the front of the car, and trotted towards the engine.
She tried to recover her impressions of the blast. It had definitely come from the front of the train, but what caused it? It had been too loud and long for a gunshot. Perhaps a…
Colgate came to the junction between the engine and the car behind it, and paused for a second. The heavy iron door to the engine was hovering, almost motionless, in thin air several feet from its frame. It was deformed, with massive dents to it, as if somepony with an enormous hammer and an unhappy disposition had taken it out on the door.
Orange-white flames flickered out from behind the door into the rest of the car, but slowly, gracefully. Colgate grinned, and stuck her hoof out to touch one.
There was an infinitesimal moment of calm, and then the flame licked at Colgate’s hoof. She gasped—a sharp hiss of air into her mouth—and pulled her hoof away. Note to self, she thought. That doesn’t work. She trotted away quickly, her hoof screaming softly every time she put her weight on it.
All of the crew were in the engine cab, Colgate thought. Shit. There was no point going back for them now. And time was running out for her, anyways. The telltale ache of pushing the time-dilation too far was already lurking at the base of her horn. She looked up briefly. It had been perhaps—a minute and a half? A few seconds more, a few seconds less: in any case, it was a bad idea to press her luck.
She silenced her burnt hoof’s complaints, and galloped back to the car where Caballeron was. The archaeologist was in very nearly the same position Colgate had left him in.
“Okay…” Colgate said, her words lost in the dilation. “How the hell am I supposed to get Caballeron off, or—”
The others. Soarin had gone up to the engine to check it out. If he was smart—well, if he was careful, anyways—he would have seen the warning signs, gotten out before it was too late. And if not, there was no point going back for him anyways.
Luna and Moonshine were probably still somewhere in the back. But Colgate didn’t know, and—
A surge of pain struck at the base of her horn. There was no time to waste. Hopefully Luna and Moonshine would be alright. In the meantime, there was Caballeron.
Colgate was reasonably fit, but there was no way she was going to carry him properly out of the train. Perhaps dragging him?
But Caballeron was standing up straight, and alert, and not exactly in prime dragging condition. Colgate hit the wall halfheartedly. There was the other option. The terrible option.
Colgate trotted to the end of the train, pulling the door to the outside open. Her headache was getting worse now, like her head was being pounded on incessantly. She walked back, just as quickly, to Caballeron. “Swear to Celestia, Caballeron, you better not give me any shit after this,” she muttered as her horn doubled its glow.
The pounding on her head had intensified. She could almost hear it drumming behind her forehead. Caballeron lifted just an inch or two above the floor, and Colgate took a few cautious steps forward.
So far so—well, no, not good—that word wasn’t really applicable in situations like this—but... workable. She walked as quickly as possible towards the door, carrying the inert Caballeron the whole way. She was a dozen feet from the door when the pain throbbed and grew.
Whatever invisible demon was punishing Colgate for having the temerity to warp the space-time continuum—in fairness, Colgate thought vaguely, just time—had decided that pounding Colgate’s head was too subtle, and had apparently resorted to trying to pull Colgate’s horn straight out of her skull.
Colgate’s magical grip on Caballeron faltered, and he dropped for a moment, before…
I am not letting it happen again, Colgate thought. Not like White Peak Eyrie. She shouted silently at her legs to move her, and they did, haphazardly and inefficiently. Still, she was closer to the door, and—sweet sol in the sky this hurts—another shaky burst and she was at the edge of the train.
She couldn’t just drop Caballeron, as tempting as the prospect would usually be. The fall would be at sixty, seventy miles an hour. Colgate gritted her teeth as the pain battered at her brain. “Swear to,” Colgate muttered, without bothering to complete her thought, grabbing Caballeron with her front hooves and shoving off with her rear. They both launched out into the dark.
Colgate tried to extend her field around Caballeron—maybe she could keep him from hitting the ground at the train’s speed—and… with a climax of wrenching pain, as if her horn actually had been pulled out of her skull, managed it.
The drop still wasn’t fun. They hit the dry desert earth heavily, the exhausted ex-spy and the archeologist coming apart instantly and rolling for a moment on the dirt.
Colgate’s eyes were probably closed. Or she couldn’t see. Or there was nothing to see, on account of being dead. It was difficult to tell, although being dead probably didn't hurt like this. She tried to keep her breathing steady, and reached a hoof up to her forehead.
She mustered a small amount of joy that her horn was there and evidently untouched. Did you expect anything different? Think, Colgate.
Go away, Colgate thought, waving the thought away. But her leg barely rose off the dirt. The pain was lessened, but not to any degree that mattered to Colgate. She was aware, vaguely, that Caballeron was muttering incoherently in his native language, trying to get his bearings.
“Off train,” Colgate managed, and let herself drop into oblivion.
“Colgate,” Caballeron said. “Can you speak?”
Colgate’s eyes opened. “Yes,” she said softly, rubbing her head. “How long was I out?”
“Not long.” Caballeron said, his eyes flickering towards the wreck of the train. The fire crackling among the broken and bent pieces of the engine cast a baleful glow on the plain. But most of the archaeologist's face was still in shadow.
Colgate sighed in relief. Anything longer than a few minutes would have been ominous. “What happened to the train?” she asked weakly.
“It exploded,” Caballeron said. “And it appears to have derailed, at least in part.”
Colgate glared, or tried to. “I knew that it exploded.”
Caballeron didn’t respond.
“Did any of the others make it out?” Colgate asked.
“So far—” Caballeron started.
“Colgate’s awake?” Soarin’s voice came from somewhere to the spy’s side. She considered turning her head to look at him, but—no, she was okay right where she was. “Why didn’t you tell me?” Soarin asked.
“She has been conscious for ten seconds,” Caballeron said.
“Oh,” Soarin said. “Okay. Hi, Colgate!” Soarin said, his smiling face coming into her view.
“Hello, Soarin,” Colgate said curtly. “What about Luna? Moonshine?”
“We haven’t seen them yet,” Soarin said, his eyes wide.
Colgate nodded. “We should search the cars,” she said, glancing over towards the wreck. “Although, realistically...”
“Got it,” Soarin said. “Now?”
Caballeron said, “That would probably be best.”
“Gotcha,” Soarin said, flipping in midair towards the wreckage of the train. “Don’t get eaten by changelings or stuff like that, guys!” he called.
“You got it!” Colgate said, rolling her eyes. “Hey, Caballeron. It okay if I pass out now?”
Caballeron shrugged. Colgate didn’t notice, crumpling onto the soft desert earth.
A flutter of midnight blue wings, almost invisible in the night, and the heavy thump of alicorn hooves on the sandy earth. Luna lowered Moonshine gently onto the ground.
The assistant looked around. “Is everyone okay? What happened?”
Luna could have been on the Moon.
So much was the same. The insidious dust that got everywhere—the only thing that was missing was the acrid stench of moondust, like spent gunpowder—and there was the hot and unforgiving sun shining down on the landscape that never really changed, no matter how long she trudged through it—save in the most banal details of rock and dirt and dust.
She had been on the Moon for a thousand years, of course—a millennium of dark bloody madness. There was nothing that could compare to that, to a mind as black as the long night and as empty as the ancient craters.
Still, having to endure Doctor Caballeron was surely its closest rival.
“This is absurd,” he said. “We could have arrived in Appleloosa by now if we had headed in that direction.”
“If I am unmistaken,” Luna said, “there are no changelings in Appleloosa.”
Caballeron stopped in his tracks. “Princess. If you care to cast your mind back to, oh, perhaps six hours ago, you might recall that our train exploded. Five ponies are dead. We have no supplies capable of sustaining us a two-days journey to the hive, much less while we’re in it. It is over.”
Colgate and Soarin stopped, and stared at him. Moonshine glanced at Luna.
“The events of the last day,” Luna said deliberately, “have, if anything, increased my resolve.”
Caballeron chuckled without any humor. “You have no idea what you are getting us all into.”
“You haven’t told us everything,” Soarin said.
“I have told you everything of relevance,” Caballeron snapped. “This is a hopeless endeavor without additional supplies. It was foolhardy enough before the destruction of the train.”
“Doctor Caballeron!” Luna yelled. “You will silence yourself.”
Caballeron sneered. “I don’t think you will find—” And his eyes suddenly fixed behind her, towards the hills to the south. He blinked a few times, vision focusing. “It can’t—how could she...” He was silent.
Colgate waved a hoof in front of his face. “Hey. Earth to Caballeron. You okay there?”
Caballeron didn’t respond for a long moment. He looked around, glancing at the others. “Yes?” he asked.
“You kind of...” Soarin said, trailing off.
“I was merely thinking,” Caballeron snapped.
Luna felt a foolish tremor of fear.
The light from the campfire flickered over stained pages, yellowed with age. Caballeron carefully turned them, glancing over the scribbled notes and rushed sketches—lingering for a moment on one sketch, more carefully rendered than the rest—
Caballeron shut his journal, the binding creaking softly. “Ms Moonshine,” he said, looking behind himself.
She smiled. “Caught me. How are you doing?”
“I am fine,” he said shortly.
Moonshine hesitated. “I wanted to check up on you after the, you know, thing today—”
Caballeron stood up and spun around to face her, training a glare on her wide eyes. “I am fine,” he hissed, loudly enough for Moonshine to flinch. A frown flickered across his face. “I appreciate your concern,” he said evenly, “but it is unnecessary.”
“If you say so,” Moonshine said, picking up the archaeologist’s journal and flipping through it. “Who is she?” She held up the journal, opened to a sketch that spread across two pages—a pegasus mare with a cocky smile. “She looks just like—”
“She is nobody!” Caballeron snapped. “Please, leave me."
Moonshine looked hurt, a frown spreading beneath her wide eyes. "Okay. If you want to talk—"
"I will certainly avail myself of the opportunity," Caballeron said. "Good night, Ms Moonshine."
Moonshine looked at him for a moment, hesitating. "Good night, Caballeron."
He nodded once, slowly. “We reach the hive tomorrow. Rest yourself well.”
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4541460
If you thought Colgate was awesome before, you really need to read the newest chapter.
4906885
I know I did, and that was quite impressive
Proofing error, line is doubled.
Otherwise, cool chapter. Though really, you make us wait for literally eons for an update and then only give us 2,000 words?
Just kidding, of course.
I am really liking the characters you're building up in this story; my curiosity is particularly piqued regarding Caballeron. 
4907941
I'm really sorry about that. This chapter was an absolute bitch to write.
I'm hopeful that the next one will be out by this time next month.
4909162 Aw, don't be sorry. I wrote that line as sarcastically as I could (heck, I even abused the word "literally"
). I think I'm more than getting my money's worth out of it, after all (you know, the $0 investment). 
I love this chapter. I gotta say though, between the town being kidnapped/possibly eaten, and 5 innocent ponies dying, shouldn't this story have a dark tag?
4910531
It did for a while. I took it down, though. It's not really that much darker than, say, The Avengers, to pick an arbitrary example. I'm not writing this to spook people.
4909549
I do prefer to deliver for my readers, though.
4910731 Hmmm, reading this I felt more like an "Aliens" vibe than anything, but part of that is just the whole "they show up in town and everyone's gone" thing. Now Aliens was definitely Dark, but if going forward it's more of a "Lunatics beating up changlings" focus than a "Lunatics enter the hive and discover ever - more horrifying things about changlings and what they've done to ponies" then it still fits as a straight adventure. Don't get me wrong, either approach is great, but the second one is definitely a Dark story.
Colgate is absolutely awesome.
4910877
It's absolutely more of the first than the second.
Don't get me wrong—if I do this right, the changelings should be pretty damn scary. But that's not going to be any more of a focus than it needs to be for the story to be effective.
4911461 ok action adventure instead of action horror. Either way, I can't wait to see what comes next. Especially Caballeron, I really love your take on him.
4911092
You have no idea how much fun she is to write.
4911487
There will be more done with Caballeron's backstory. Oh. It's going places.
edit: lol never mind
The 'the' after the em dash should be 'he.' And the repeated line mentioned by TheAccidentalBrony is still there. Don't see/remember any errors besides those.
What does temerity mean?
No such word as "unmistaken" replace with "not mistaken"
You mean Equestria to Caballeron.