Previous Chapters
Close
4-8-8-41,736 words
Coal-fired 40142,146 words
Fits The Name, Don't It?2,982 words
Royalty Visits Utility3,363 words
It Is What It Is Or Is It?936 words
Downsizing 40141,696 words

Downsizing 4014

In Celestia's opinion, Twilight had greatly understated the sheer size of the locomotive in her letter. She had been more than able to see it on the way into Ponyville and now that she was up close, she realized what a monolith of a machine this locomotive was. She had seen the inception of steam as a power source some-what was it?-20? 30? Maybe 40 years back when trains were but a novelty. Over those years she had seen many different designs to improve the railroad as needs grew and requirements changed, some of which she had personally seen brought to her court by some enterprising inventor.

None of them, however, looked like this engine before her and she felt her pride in the two ponies that brought it here swell in her chest.
It was short lived as a white flash came from the corner of her vision. Another camera pony. Probably some pegasi reporters trying to avoid the Royal Guard.
She bit down the alight bit of annoyance she felt. The attention was partially her fault. It was in the nature of her ponies to be curious and with her making use of her Royal order to all but quarantine the area added fuel to the fire. After they were done with the locomotive, the coaches would need to be searched and after tha...

"You Majesty." A voice brought her out of her thoughts as a guard marched beside her. "We have sent the messengers to CU & Baltimare headquarters and the Tri-Council R&D division back in Canterlot. We should receive replies by days end."

Celestia nodded, her eyes going back to the train. "Good work."

"Your Majesty?"

"Yes?"

She didn't miss the hesitant, almost nervous pause the guard made before he continued speaking. "Is it dangerous?"

And there was the million bit question. Her instinct was to say 'No' but over her long life she had seen many things and she was well aware that not all dangers came from sentient beings.

But... now that she thought about it...

"I don't know, private." Celestia took a step closer to the locomotive and felt the warmth of the boiler waft over her face. "But I intend to find out."

She igniter her horn and prepared a spell. The spell was an ancient one that she herself developed shortly after Nightmare Moon. Though not powerful, it was meant to detect magic and it's intent behind it. Just like words or actions, the pony's reason for saying or doing something transfers into how it could be felt. It is much like the how difference of emphasis in a sentence can change it's meaning.

I didn't steal your money.

Compared to: I didn't steal your money.

Spells are no different. When a pony casts one with malice or intent to do harm, it leaves a mark on the spell and it's residual energy. If this train was brought here for dangerous reasons, Celestia would find out.

She concentrated, forming the spell and gathering it together on the very tip of her horn before letting it fly to the locomotive.

At least, that what it had meant to do. Instead, as soon as her magic touched it, the locomotive latched onto it, linking with the tip of her horn before it began siphoning out her magic by force. The locomotive began glowing as it sucked away at her magic, energy whipping and crackling in the air between her and the engine. The white alicorn balked in surprise, having not felt something like this since... She felt her heart go cold and immediately tried to extinguish her magic.

What happened next, she couldn't put into words. The link between her horn and the machine...snapped, sling-shooting the energy back in to her horn with such force that her head snapped back like she had been punched. The locomotive's glow changed then, turning from a pure white, to an angry hot red. It began to creak, shuddering on the rails like a pony would shiver in the cold. Then it began to whistle. It started low, almost mournful before the pitch raised higher and higher, turning into an shrill wail. Celestia didn't even have time to lay her ears flat to shut out the sound before the large driving wheels began moving. Only...it wasn't right. The forward eight spun free, the running gears turning into indistinct blur as they turned faster than they had any right to. The train might have moved if it hadn't been for rear eight driving wheels grinding against the rails independent of the foreward, turning clockwise and counter clockwise at random intervals, it was probably the only thing keeping it in place.

With a heavy groan as if from the strain of what was going on, the boiler began to swell, the metal forced into unnatural and dangerous looking bulges. Celestia ducked as a bolt whirled past her ear. Rivets began popping, bolts turning into deadly projectiles as a wall of steam evacuated it's values with such violence that it blew off her crown.

"GET BACK!" She bellowed, charging off the platform and away from the station. Any guard that had been mesmerized by what was happening quickly followed the princess' example. The pegasi took to the air as the earth ponies and unicorns alike scattered in every direction. Once the station was in between her and the train, she raised a barrier over the station as an extra wall from the blast. She could just make out the sounds of glass shattering as the windows of the station blew out one by one.

Somehow, the locomotive's whistle pitch continued to raise that was painful to hear even from this distance. The chugging followed suit, growing louder and louder as the smoke and steam began to mix, the orange-red glow visible from behind the barrier.

Every sound combined into one thunderous crescendo of noise.

There was one more heavy WHOOSH of steam then...

Silence.

Celestia waited for the other horseshoe to drop.

It didn't.

Slowly and carefully, she let the barrier fall and approached the station.

The smoke and steam was thick to the point she needed to fan her wings to clear away some of it as she climbed back onto the platform. Normally, she would have use her magic to clear it but after what just happened there was no way in Tarturus she wasn't touching anything that was even residually connected to that train. Finding her crown, she picked it up in her magic and put it on her head.

As the smoke began to clear the parts of the train closest to the station were revealed. She expected to see the locomotive still there, albeit with some extensive damage. It was only when the tender appeared with nothing connected to it that her thought's completely stalled.

She didn't even have a moment to question where it was before a light breeze carried away the remaining smoke that her composure went with it.

Standing alone in the middle of the tracks, the empty space in front of the tender where the locomotive once stood was the largest stallion she had ever seen in her life.

The black colored pony had to be taller than Luna at the very least. Her eyes scanned over his heavy-set form pausing at the cutie mark on his flanks, where the numbers 4014 were stamped in bold white numbers. As the guards began to move back in, they surrounded the stallion, spears at the ready. The large pony didn't seem phased by the weapons being aimed at him at all. In fact, her hadn't so much as twitched a muscle, keeping his gaze forward, only his grey mane moved and that was because of the wind.

Celestia, hopped off the station platform and stepped in between the guards, who parted for her but didn't take their eyes off of the mystery pony and came to a stop right in front of him. Only then did she realize that he wasn't just taller than Luna, this pony was as tall as her, she didn't need to even bend her head down to look at his face.

Despite them being at eye level, however, he didn't look at her. He didn't even blink. Just stared into the space before him blankly as if seeing past her. Not even the Royal Guard were this still, it was unnerving.

The alicorn made sure her face was set with authority and spoke clearly to him. "Who are you?"

The stallion's ears swiveled towards her but beyond that there was no sign that he even heard her.

"Who are you?" She asked again, a bit more firmly this time. Her tone was one she usually reserved for difficult nobles or unruly diplomats from other nations for when she was losing her patience. One that carried the weight of the power she held and the experience she had. It's effect was visible...on her guards. There was a moment of uncomfortable shuffling of hooves from them.

But no effect on the stranger. The pony might as well have been a statue.

Celestia was reluctant to use magic on him to get his attention so she decided to poke him on the shoulder. Her touch was brief as a poke should be but in that instant she had snatched away her hoof even faster than she had meant to.

The stallion was hot. In a literal sense, the heat having warmed up her slippers in the brief contact. What was this stallion?

Reluctantly, she summoned her magic and cautiously scanned the pony.

She then took a step back, in shock. What she just felt...It wasn't possible. Without taking her eyes off the pony, she spoke to her guards. "I need the fastest flier to summon Princess Sparkle here now."

2,595 views

Previous Chapters