From Dusk to Night

by KuroiTsubasaTenshi

28 - Falls

The Seapony was quite busy tonight, to no one’s surprise. Whenever they had a discount appetizer night, things got a little crowded. However, our table was looking a little barer. Terra was still with Aster, bonding over some cottage repairs. And Mahogany was, of course, working late again. I wondered if I could convince him to go to the spa. With the kind of hours he was stuck with, I wagered he’d get more than a little relief.

This left us with Night, who was doing about as well as he usually does in crowds; Star, who was alternating between her codex and observing the mass consumption of hay fries; and Merriweather. Interestingly, she’d only had about half the alcohol she’d normally have by this point in the night.

I wanted to ask Night about his trip to Whinnyapolis, but I felt like the conversation would be a bit too sensitive for a public place like the bar. Sure, Mint Creme had had her entire reunion with Night out on a hotel patio, but we were lucky enough to have found a quiet little corner. The way things were at the Seapony, the only place we might be able to find that would be one of the back rooms and I was very hesitant to use them. At best, it would elicit lewd gestures from Merriweather, at worst, I’d freak everyone out again. I had no reason to really press the topic, anyway; there’d be plenty of other opportunities to chat later.

So I leaned over a bit and half-shouted, “How’s the tea tonight?”

Night’s eyes snapped into focus as his mind tumbled off of whatever train of thought it had been on. “Oh, i-it’s nice.”

“Well, that’s good. Maybe I’ll have to try it sometime.” I placed a hoof on his withers and he blushed.

The main door burst open. ‘Bubbling’ was about the only way I could describe Terra as she strode over to us. There were clearly words on the tip of her tongue, but none that were coming out, even as she plopped down beside me. She stared expectantly.

I held her gaze for a few seconds, purposefully delaying the question to see if she’d crack first. “I take it you and Aster had a fun time?”

In the interim, Merriweather had already slid two full whiskies across the table to Terra.

“We have a date on Saturday!” she blurted out.

“I’ll take that as a yes. I guess that means you also didn’t get all the repairs done?”

“No, no, we got that done just fine.” Terra waved her hoof. “Saturday is our dinner date!”

“‘Our’, meaning yours and Stalwart Stone’s?” I couldn’t help but smirk.

“And Aster's.”

“What?” I blinked a couple times, waiting for her to declare that she was joking. There would be no such confession. “Terra. I thought you said you have this romance thing down pat.”

“I do!” She grinned widely.

“Says the mare who wants to bring a foal on a dinner date. Look, I can foalsit for you if you want. Just do me a favour and have a proper date, okay?”

“Yeah! How would you even have sexy times with a foal around, anyway?” Merriweather somehow asked with a completely straight face.

Night turned bright red.

“Sister. Such speech is not becoming of—”

“Oh, come on. Lighten up, Sis’!” Merriweather prodded at Star’s side. “Besides, how’s beating around the bush supposed to be more mature? We’re not blushing schoolfillies anymore.”

Star pushed Merriweather’s hoof away. “While that is true, she did not broach the subject and prying into such matters is inappropriate.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Merriweather paused mid-hoof-wave and giggled. “I’m sorry I implied things about the usage of your lady bits, Terra.”

Star placed a hoof to her forehead. Terra burst out into laughter and I think at some point, Night had disappeared under the table. I considered another reassuring hug, but there was probably a fifty-fifty chance that the contact would just make things worse for him.

I cleared my throat. “Anyway, just tell me when and I’ll be there.”

“Okay, okay.” Terra took a swig of whiskey without even breaking pace. “Our reservation is for six, so… five-thirty?”

“Sounds like a plan.” Right at that moment, the wall clock caught my eye. Seemed our little interlude had gone on longer than I’d thought. “Speaking of time, I’ve got a shift in the morning, so I’d better duck out.”

“Aw, but we’re just getting started,” Terra pouted around her glass.

“Yeah! I haven’t even bought you a second cider yet!” Merriweather chimed in.

I shook my head. “Sorry. I really would like to hang out more, but fatigue and storm clouds don’t mesh well together; that’s how someone gets hit by lightning.”

“Oh, yeah. That’d be bad.” Terra frowned.

“V-very bad,” Night added. He was standing at full height again. “T-take care of yourself, Dusky.”

“You too.” I leaned in for a quick nuzzle. “See you later, everyone!”

---

The evening was cooler than usual, the slightest of chills touching my back. The streets were largely empty, as it was too early for the vast majority of the Ponyville night crowd to be headed home, and too late for most potential newcomers to bother.

So I was left to my thoughts, which turned to the challenge ahead of me: coming up with activities to keep Aster in check for an entire night.

The road crunched beneath my hooves, the fine grit giving way in stages. It was a good thing we had that storm scheduled—otherwise, the next stiff Everfree breeze might have run off with the whole road.

A loud groan stopped me in my tracks. My ears twitched as my eyes scanned the sides of the road. I was still in the commercial district, which really left little area to search. And yet, I couldn’t spot anything.

A second groan—louder this time—pulled my head to my right. The alley was wide, letting in some of the light from the nearby businesses, though not enough to see more than a couple silhouettes. The nearest appeared to be pony-shaped and lying on the ground. The other was larger and boxy, perhaps a cart or a low stack of crates.

Blood rushed through my veins and my senses heightened. It could just be someone too drunk to stand or something equally unruly that I wouldn’t want to approach. But it could also be someone who was genuinely hurt, so I couldn’t just turn away without checking.

I crept forward, resisting the urge to call out. Initial assessment would be easier if my presence was unknown, especially since I needed to get quite close. The moon was rather weak that night and it wasn’t until I was barely five feet away that I could make out the stallion’s short, grey mane and reddish-brown coat. Behind him was indeed a cart, overturned in such a way that I almost couldn’t make out the yellow ‘Equestrian Parcel Service’ lettering on the side.

My blood ran cold.

“Mahogany?!” I called out. No response.

At first I was angry. He should know better than to booze up before a delivery. Any pegasus knew that flying was already difficult when intoxicated; add an unwieldy cart full of heavy parcels and a crash was almost inevitable.

But when I got really close—close enough to see his face, to see the tape on his lips and the ropes around his legs—that’s when I wished a few too many drinks were all I had to worry about.

I had my blade on my wing as quickly as I could, while each sound, each shadow, sent my mind into a frenzy. It has to be the Cartel. No random mugger would do this. But Lockbox said...

“Nothing gets past you, hmm?” The voice, which was distorted to sound like both a young and old stallion, was smug. Despite the distortion, or rather, because of it, I recognized it almost instantly. There was no doubt anymore.

A twisted visage stepped from the shadows, his coat a smooth blue-grey conflicting with a wrinkly green-yellow. A slicked black mane cut through fading grey. His cutie mark was a stylized hand-held mirror—the kind preferred by Griffons, yet also a brown shepherd’s cane.

“Smokey Mirror.” The words, ones I hadn’t spoken in years, escaped my lips.

“Oh, so you do remember me, though I suppose anyone privy to my true form could never forget such beauty.” He grinned wickedly.

“Back off.” Through shaking limbs, I drew myself as tall as I could and leveled my wingblade at him. Instinctively, I shifted, placing myself squarely between he and Mahogany.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that. Contract and all that, you know. Nothing personal, of course.” Dim grey light washed over his horn and two metal discs, each about the size of a hoof, hovered above his head. Their edges glinted in the moonlight. “But you know, if you were to cooperate, I could promise that no harm would come to your friend.”

I gritted my teeth. Were this a true one-on-one, perhaps I could win. It wouldn’t be easy, but at least his illusions were useless against me. But Smokey Mirror wasn’t the kind of pony to start a fair fight. The real question was: how many goons did he have in hiding? If it was low enough, perhaps I could run and carry Mahogany to safety. Both my mind and body knew that was a complete lie, but it didn’t matter. I needed something, anyway, to get me through this.

“And if I don’t?”

Smokey Mirror’s smile dropped into a hard frown. “Well, then I’m afraid your friend is going to have a little... fatal accident. As for you, you’ll just have to arrive a little roughed up.”

Arrive a little roughed up? The words lingered, even as I watched six large stallions, three of which were earth ponies and three of which were pegasi, step out of the surrounding shadows. Their muscles were highly visible, even in such poor lighting. They also wore Guard helmets, but now that I knew about the magic, they appeared much like Smoke Mirror—blurred images of Guards overlapping their natural form.

There was no way I’d get away on my own, never mind with Mahogany on my back. But those words, they gave me a strange sense of hope. The Cartel clearly wanted me alive. If I could only ensure that Mahogany lived, then perhaps I could find a way to escape captivity. It was an absurdly high-risk gambit, but I couldn’t see anything else I could do. Which left me with the obvious question.

“How do I know you haven’t already killed him?”

“Mmmmph!” Mahogany’s muffled cry drew my eyes down to him. Fear was written on his face as he squirmed. It wasn’t survival instinct, though; it was the same look as Silent Vigil, telling me, ‘Don’t do it. Get out of here!’

Every fiber of my body agreed, wanted to resist. But I had no choice. Even if they’d been some of the worst fighters in Equestria, seven against one is just impossible odds for someone of my caliber. No, enough people had already died for me. I could not, would not, allow Mahogany to be added to that number. I had to save him. And then maybe, just maybe, they’d get complacent.

Smokey Mirror tapped his hoof on the ground. “There’s your answer. Now then, how about mine?”

“You promise you’ll leave him unharmed?”

“Yes, yes. I’ve no quarrel with him.” He waved his hoof.

“Fine. Then I surrender,” I said, just barely masking the tremble in my voice.

“Mmmmph! MMMMMMMMMMMPH!” Mahogany flopped up and down.

As I looked back toward my wing, I caught his eye. “I’m sorry.”

I whispered the magic word and my blade departed. It hit the ground about the same time as my heart. There were a thousand ways this could end and maybe a dozen that could do so in my favour.

Nevertheless, I stepped forward, into the ring of thugs.

First came the bag, rustling loudly as it engulfed my head. My nostrils strained within the stifling confines, the struggle only getting worse as I felt the satchel tighten. As the light faded to the dimmest of leaks, what I’d done fully set in.

Don’t panic. Don’t panic. Don’t panic.

Instinct told me to thrash and buck, to flail until my opponents lay sprawled upon the ground—or I collapsed from exhaustion. My heart pounded and my hooves itched with every second that I didn’t. Thankfully, my lungs were more obedient, allowing me to concentrate on not doing anything stupid. It wasn’t worth wasting the energy—and Celestia knew I’d need all of it if I wanted to get out of this. Hair brushed against my belly as I was placed onto one of the thugs’ backs with careful precision.

I expected them to move as soon as they had me, but my carrier remained still. Smokey Mirror’s mock whisper, though muffled, cut through the thick sack walls. “Don’t look so glum. I’m not going to kill you. But not because of her. No, I want you to relay a message. Tell your friends that you are helpless before the Cartel, that this is what happens when you cross us.”

---

The journey was long and I spent the entirety of it in the back of an enclosed cart. The walls were thick, which, in conjunction with the bag, made it difficult to make out any sounds. Best I could tell, there were no city sounds, so they were likely taking a secretive route along the countryside. Of the possible destinations, the two closest major hubs were Manehattan and Fillydelphia. The former was unquestionably Mob territory, so they’d have to be insane to go there. And while the latter was set to be a war zone, that also meant that unless they wanted to go further out to Trottingham, this was their only choice. These kind of lengths meant that their leader very likely wanted to see her vendetta through to the end, face-to-face. To take me somewhere smaller would likely be a mistake on multiple levels.

Occasionally, we would stop dead, usually for about an hour at a time. That was when they would come back to give me rations and water while three of the stallions watched over me. I ate slowly, trying to get more details while my ears were free of the bag, but I got little more than random wildlife. There were also no windows, so there wasn’t much else I could do.

My mind turned to thoughts that had fallen behind the wall of adrenaline. How did this happen? Why was Lockbox wrong? Had he been fed false information? Or worse?

I shook the thought away. Lockbox had less than no reason to sell me out. While it was generally best to regard people in that line of work with suspicion, Lockbox was the definition of the exception I could trust.

More than anything, I think I was more angry with myself; the rumour mill is a fickle beast that hardly ever presents the whole picture and sometimes, fixates on the wrong part. I should have known better than to let my guard down. Then maybe there was something I could have done. There had to have been something I could have done—because the alternative was that the universe had conspired against me.

When we finally arrived, I was escorted, still bagged, through a series of halls, then up several flights of stairs. I heard the distinctive creak of iron gates once, then twice. They commanded me to stop and the bag was pulled away, leaving me blinded by white light. It wasn’t until long after the gate shut behind me that I’d regained my sight.

The instigator of my blindness—a wide, but short window that I wagered even a bunny wouldn’t be able to squeeze through—sat high upon the wall. The walls, with the exception of the one behind me, were the natural grey of cement, as was the floor. Several chunks were randomly missing from each surface, which were probably responsible for all the grit on the floor. The wall behind me was not cement, but entirely bars, with a heavy gate worked into its left side. If the guards were paying any level of attention, any sort of skullduggery was going to be very hard.

There were scant few furnishings in the cell: a dingy toilet and sink set, as well as a cot that was carelessly tossed atop a frame of unpainted two-by-fours.

I felt my rump hit the cold floor. It was all I could do to keep myself together. Thoughts of my friends flooded over me. They’d be worried. I wondered if I’d ever see them again. I had to. I couldn’t let them down. I’d find a way. I just didn’t know how yet.

For now, all I could do was breathe.

Comments

[Yami Vizzini]

Well, that's one fall anyway.

Terra being a surrogate mother to Aster is one thing, but the dating thing came up pretty suddenly.

[Zephyr Ward]

I'm not the only one who knew it was a trap from the instant dark, abandoned streets were mentioned, right?

[Meta Four]

Oh no...

Now who's gonna foalsit Aster? Terra's hot date will be ruined!

6719641 Do you mean it wasn't foreshadowed well, or that in-universe, Terra and Stalwart are moving kind of quick? Because I suspected this would happen all the way back in ch 15.

[Yami Vizzini]

6720353 Both, I guess. Props for a plausible theory panning out, but none of Terra and Stalwart's interactions have had that tone yet. (Apologies to the author for waiting until publication to bring this up- not used to doing more than proofreading on Google Docs.)

[KuroiTsubasaTenshi]

6720537
No problem. I'd be totally okay with you bringing it up during proofreading. For this particular case, do remember that Terra is far, far less reserved about shippy things than Dusky is (and she knows this). I'll try to be better about reminders for things like that in future chapters too.

[A Joe in the Bush]

I finally catch up with all the published chapters, and get stuck on a cliffhanger? Ugh. This is why I don't read incomplete stories. Looking forward to the next chapter. Liked/fav'd.

[KuroiTsubasaTenshi]

6745795
Hehe, sorry about that. The kind of frustration you describe is why I try to use cliffhangers very sparingly (been on the receiving end too). Glad you're enjoying this, though.

[StormyVenture]

6719641
Well to be fair, having her 'sexy' back probably isn't helping in that regard. Besides getting old is clearly a concern, maybe she's just afraid of ending up alone? Or maybe she thinks you can't play a mother figure without being someone's mother. Have to remain inscrutable until I read more, I guess.

Poor Dusky, always on the wrong end of a hostage situation... I guess the guard being so prevalent makes them a perfect target for infiltration since they can go most places unhindered or even really noticed.