Seeking Hearth and Home

by TessiFlameheart

Chapter Two - Deception, Magic, and Freedom

Twilight talked with Amber for several hours before leaving, politely excusing herself. The interview was not as productive as she had hoped, after all Twilight couldn't learn one of the spells for herself since Amber did not have her scrolls. But at the least the alicorn princess had learned everything she believed she needed to summarize Changeling sorcery.

Unbeknownst to her however, Amber had gotten everything she needed as well. A full meal, kind treatment for the first time in years, and knowledge of Ponyville, Twilight's fiefdom. Amber grinned behind her mask as a guard pushed her back to her cell. 'A place of tolerance and kindness which accepts all comers who just want to live in peace.' Amber gleefully thought, 'I could find a place for myself there.'

She would have to make her move soon though. Doubtlessly Twilight would inform the warden that the current inhibitor only worked to block her shape changing and telekinesis. Fortunately the guard whom Twilight had declined an escort out of the prison from seemed rather gullible. To Amber he seemed like a pony who lived by the rules too closely to see how they might be bent by those cunning enough.

Amber turned her head as much as she could towards the guard who was pushing her back to her cell, “So quick request, the Princess told me how long I have been here for. I missed a rather important religious ritual my people hold once per decade.”

The guard nodded, “I see, and you need to preform it. Is it something you can do in your cell? I doubt I could arrange for you to go to a shrine or-”

“It is. I was taken prisoner as I was coming home from preforming it, so unless my possessions have been destroyed they should be in the... vault or whatever. Would you mind bringing the small wooden box to me? Its dark wood, about the size of a cigar box.” Amber asked doing her best to sound as if she were distressed over the matter.

Her guard silently mulled it over for a while, quietly pushing her along the hall. “Possibly... What dose the ritual entail? I wont let you remove your inhibitor.”

“That's fine, I don't need magic for it. I just need to write a small phrase on a strip of parchment, meditate for a time then burn the parchment. It wont be a large fire, and well my cell is stone. You can watch me of course.”

“I see. I suppose a small flame is ok. What dose this ritual mean to you?” he asked curiously.

“It's a memorial to our first High Queen who united the Seven Hives, she ascended into the heavens upon her death to become our people's eternal guide. The meditation and flame is an offering of gratitude... I believe you have something similar for your Princess Celestia. Sending her a card on the summer solstice?”

“I understand.” He hummed one last time, “Very well. The prison rules do say you are allowed to practice your religion while being held here. I'll get your things, but they will be returned to the impound room directly afterwards.”

“Oh that's fine with me. Thank you mister...” Amber trailed off to prompt her guard to say his name.

“Corporal Willow Taproot.”

“Thank you Willow. I promise I won't give you any trouble.” Amber vowed silently adding, 'At least, not severe trouble.'

Taproot wheeled Amber back to her cell in science. It was a fairly long walk. It took them five minutes of walking across two floors, six corridors, and included one stop for a sandwich at the cafeteria along the way to arrive at Amber's cell. It was a simple stone brick room with a single bed, desk, and bucket of water, made unique by one simple modification. Instead of the iron bars like the other cells Amber's had panels of clear crystal joined together with a tough resin. It was meant to prevent her from draining a guard completely and stealing his keys.

The cell's walls were decorated with parchment drawings Amber had made. All prisoners were allowed some small comforts. Amber had asked for her guitar first but apparently musical instruments which could be used to bludgeon somepony were out of the question. So instead she had taken up drawing. Sketches of her old home, a few friends, and many exotic fantasy landscapes made up most of her work. They ranged in quality from amateur to decent and were pinned up with small splotches of the green resin Changeling pods were made from.

Taproot quickly unlocked the cell and pushed Amber inside, unlocking her chains and straitjacket with one quick, well practiced motion. “I'll be back with your box in just a moment.” He promised.

“Thank you.” Amber said polity, giving him a smile as he removed her manacles.

Taproot nodded, closed the door, piled everything up onto the cart and pushed it out of sight. The moment he left Amber stepped over to the desk and took a pencil and a sheet of parchment and began to sketch out the rout from her cell to the isolation room before it faded from her memory. The rout was fairly complex, as the prison utilized a maze like design for the cell blocks. However, the isolation rooms were meant to be visited by ponies not affiliated with the prison and therefore were arranged in the style of a normal building. From that point heading upwards should lead her out.

The moment she finished her map Amber flipped it over and started to sketch on the back. Within a few pencil strokes a picture of a small village at the foot of a towering mountain began to take shape. She could hear somepony's hoof clicks echoing down the hallway as she sketched, and within a few moments Taproot's voice asked, “Is that where you used to live?”

“No. I lived in the mountain. This is a Batpony town we protected in exchange for food. I did have some friends there though.” Amber set down her pencil and turned to face the cell door. Held in Taproot's right hoof was a small, unadorned, darkly stained wooden box.

“Oh, I see. I have your things.” He informed sliding open the small slit in the plate glass door to push the box through.

“Thank you again. This is very important to me. I owe you big time.” Amber said as she picked up the box in her mouth, walked to the center of her cell, and sat on the floor, setting the box in front of her.

Taproot sat down outside the cell, watching for anything which might be out of the ordinarily. However his face had a curious look to it. Amber gave him a smile as she opened the book and rummaged through its contents. He had always asked her a few questions every time he saw her, usually about Changelings.

“Now where has that satchel of herbs got to?” Amber mused doing her best to sort through the box's contents without looking suspicious. “This is always so much easier by a fire... Ah there it is.”

She took a small pouch from the box which appeared to be made of faded, rotting green silk and set it down next to her. The smell of dried herbs quickly filled her cell. After a few more moments she took a small glass bottle filled with a red liquid from the box, as well as a small strip of white parchment, a quill and ink, a flint, and a small steel rod.

“What is in that vial?” Taproot asked concerned.

“Incense, meditation is the biggest part of this.” Amber lied.

“Ah. Carry on.” He gave her a nod.

Taking her quill, Amber wet it with the ink, and began to write a complex series of arcane runes, marks, and symbols in a fine spidery script. She started on one side of the parchment and carried over to the other, filling in as much space as she possibly could. Every so often she glanced up at Taproot, she could see the interest in his eyes. He wanted to ask her about what he believed to be a religious ritual but was clearly too respectful of her faith to do so, despite not being a part of it. 'Ponies,' Amber giggled mentally, 'It's amazing how respectful and trusting a people gets when they haven't had a war in a thousand years.'

As soon as she had finished the parchment strip Amber opened the pouch and removed three dried flowers. Each flower had a bright radiant look to it despite being dry, the deep amber colors and light pink rippling lines colored each of the three heart shaped petals still seemed to be alive. Amber placed the flowers on the parchment strip and rolled it around them tightly before taking the flint and steel in her hooves and striking them to produce a spark. The parchment lit instantly as the spark touched it, a ghostly green flame quickly consuming the offering.

Amber took a deep breath, inhaling the smoke. For a brief instant a blue-yellow glow enveloped her, as if she were a piece of silver in the moonlight. The moment the glow vanished Amber smiled, her eyes glow brightening visibly as a rush of energy shot through her body. Knowing Taproot would realize something was up she quickly snatched the glass vile up, pulled out the stop, slid the opening into a slit in her mask and drank the red liquid down, her eyes brightening even further.

Taproot jumped up, “What are you doing?” He demanded, a hint of fear in his voice.

“Ah! It's good to have some mana again.” Amber smiled, stood up on her hind legs and thrust one hoof into the air. With a sound like glass raindrops hitting leaves a mass of blue-white energy built up around her hoof. In a single motion she threw the ball, and let another form around her other fore-hoof, spinning and letting the second fly after the first.

The first ball streaked through the air with a sound like cracking crystal and slammed into the glass door shattering it into countless shards and throwing them every which way. The second ball smashed directly into Taproot, exploding in a wave of concussive force and throwing the pony into the iron bars of the cell across the hall with a sickening crash.

Taproot slid to the ground, the cell's bars dented inwards. As Amber trotted over to his side the other prisoners in her hall started shouting. Cries of, “By Celestia! Let me out too!”, “Woo! Go get 'em bug!”, and “Quick get his keys!” filled the hall.

Amber laughed and called down the hall, “In a moment everyone.” She placed a hoof on Taproot's neck, frowning as some blood dipped down his forehead. He had a pulse but it was very feint, he could die at any moment. Working quickly Amber took his right hoof and placed it against the inhibitor ring on her horn. With a magical spark the ring's adhesive burned away and the mask's straps unbuckled, allowing her to slip off the ring and the mask. “There we go. Now then I think I promised not to hurt you buddy, but I needed your hoof so sorry about that.”

A deep green magic aura lit her horn as Amber levitated her box to her side and pulled a small pale yellow gemstone. “Here have a lifegem, that should pull you through.” Amber placed the gem on his chest with her magic, took his hoof in her own and crushed the gem with his hoof. As the gem cracked Amber felt his pulse grow just a little stronger. “There you are, you should live now.”

“What are you saving the lock jockey for?” a voice asked.

Glancing over her shoulder as she searched Taproot's unconscious body for the prison key, Amber noticed the Batpony stallion across the hall and to her left sticking his head as far as he could through the bars to see. “Because, I plan to do this...”

Amber concentrated on Taproot's form. His colors. His size. His movements. His voice. In a flash of green fire her form quickly twisted, stretched and morphed, leaving a copy of Taproot in place of her usual self. Whistling happily Amber quickly stripped Tap's armor, dressed herself in it, grabbed her map, tucked her box into a saddlebag, then opened the Batpony's cell with a wink. “Remember Corporal Willow Taproot let you go.”

The stallion winked back, “Why of course you did sir.” He reached under his mattress and pulled out two crudely made lock picks and walked off, whistling as he went.

Amber smiled and then quickly frowned. She desperately snatched the wooden box from her bags, opened and rummaged around inside, her right foreleg impossibly thrust into it up to her shoulder. After a few seconds she pulled a guitar out of the box, somehow the large instrument unaffected by the narrow box's opening. “Oh thank god! I don't have to look all over this place for you.”

She gave the guitar a loving pat. It's black neck had silver frets with pale green metallic arcane runes decorating the spaces between them. It's unusually flat body was shaped like the out stretched wing of a bat and made of a deep near-black purple wood. In place of a hole and chamber to amplify the sound was a silver magic circle surrounded by more arcane runes.

Tucking the guitar back into the box and ignoring a prisoner's confused cry of “How did... what?” Amber pushed Taproot into her cell and started to unlock all the doors in the hall way. With each door she reminded, “Remember Corporal Willow Taproot let you go.” and winked.

With the chaos of an entire maximum security wing loose in the prison Amber figures she could slip away in the form of a guard easily. Also with Taproot taking the blame well the investigation should buy her a few days to get out of the city.

'It's so sad these people think they can make it out.' Amber thought. As the last door clicked open and a jet black unicorn mare gleeful bolted down the hallway Amber smiled. Slipping the map from her saddlebag she looked over her sketch, got her bearings, and headed upwards.

Comments

[TessiFlameheart]

5390554 Luckily for you I also like this story and am writing more :3 As for my spelling... I'm mildly autistic, this as good as I can do. If you know any editors let me know!