Chapter 3 -Stranger Danger-
-Stranger Danger-
Sif huffed, walking in the back door and out of the rain, her wet coat making every step she took a slushy one, worsening her mood.
"Raining?" Skyfall asked as he flipped another page in the morning paper.
"Wow, you're good. What gave you that clue?" Sif asked, letting every bit of her feral malice slip through. "All the water falling from the sky, or the fact that my fur is soaked and matted?"
"Nope." Sky said before winking at Sif. "I’m just a good guesser."
"Mhm, and you have the weather section of the paper folded up on the counter, which means you've read it." Sif stopped mid-stride when she saw a dish of potatoes and cheesy eggs. "Are these for me?"
"Yup." Sky flipped another page. "Now that I’m back, you can start eating right."
Sif huffed at his insinuation and sat across the table. She stuck out her tongue, but like always, it looked like a fleshy pink slug surrounded by white spikes. "So, it's supposed to rain all week?"
"Actually, it says it's supposed to be sunny." Sky folded up the remainder of the paper and looked at Sif. "The weather teams don't know what is causing it, and neither do the 'scientists' at the weather institute.”
"Storm Front?"
Skyfall hummed in thought. "Maybe, I haven't talked to him since my accident."
Sif cringed at the mention of the 'accident.' "Listen, Sky, I wanted to talk about how I let you down."
Skyfall booped Sif on the nose. "Eat your breakfast."
Sif chuckled and started rapidly devouring her food. The ferocity at which she attacked her meal made Skyfall chuckle as he stirred hot sauce gently onto his eggs. They had been living on the run down estate for a week, and already things were going back to normal. Sif felt happier now than she had in a long time, almost like she was complete again. The animals of the Everfree provided Skyfall with food from the forest, which was good for the both of them, because he was not in a mood to do much of anything now. Oftentimes, Sif would become so comfortable that she would call Skyfall downstairs to simply flip her over. The only reason she even left the house was to check with her pack; she had to be briefed on the happenings of the forest and the information her pack had relayed wasn't good.
Sif opened her mouth to tell Skyfall the news, but, like always, he beat her to it.
"Timber Wolf attacks up in the past month?"
"Y...Yes, how'd you know?" Sif asked.
Skyfall pointed to the paper. "It was pushed to page three, but the Equestria Daily seems to be stumped with the sudden increase in attacks on trading caravans. Even regular holiday travelers are getting attacked."
"My kin say the same. Every time we try to trap one and question it, they start tearing each other apart so they cannot be questioned. From our brief interactions with them, we have concluded that they are looking for someone.”
Sky consumed another fork full of eggs and turned to a paper pad. "From my studies of the bodies you've brought me, I’ve found very little. The only thing I discovered is that a soul is required to keep their wooden bodies animated. That, and whoever made them is using a very convoluted form of magic, alongside some minor alchemy.”
"So they don’t occur naturally?"
Skyfall shook his head. "Sadly, no. These 'Timber Wolves' were created. The purpose behind it all has eluded me so far." Sky looked out the window and watched a large airship touch down on his new property. "Ah, wonderful, they're here."
"Who's here?" Sif asked, slightly annoyed that her breakfast was being cut short.
"Unicorn construction firm, from Canterlot." Sky said flatly. "I need this place fixed up as soon as possible. We’ve lazed about long enough as it is."
"Won't they cut corners?" Sif asked, slightly put off by Skyfall’s apparent disregard for quality. "They'll use wood that is still wet, weak stone, and old nails."
"Yep, and I’m counting on it." Sky laughed at Sif's look. "You forget who you're talking to. The second they're done, I’m going to fuse all the wood together and push the nails out. The house will essentially be a tree, and there won't be a corner of the house I can’t see."
“What about the stone?”
Skyfall chuckled. “Most of the stone on the property is still good. I gave the company strict instructions to only replace the wood. They came highly recommended.”
"You hired them because they offered to do it for the cheapest price, didn't you?" Sif glared at Skyfall.
"I am both shocked and appalled at your demeaning and accurate accusation." Sky replied, his hoof to his chest in mock offense. Sif shook her head and laughed the way wolves do, in a series of growls and chirps. That or she had indigestion, Sky couldn't tell. "Anyway, they just need to make it look good. I'll make it strong. Plus, I only had to pay them half upfront."
Sif gave a loud snort and then finished the rest of her breakfast in one gulp, upset that her plan to vegetate in the basement all day had been ruined. Sif exited the house through the back door towards the Everfree and shouted. "Be careful the fresh wood doesn’t warp on you before you fuse it.”
Two loud knocks rapped on the front door, tearing Sky’s attention away from Sif’s sulking. I better answer that.
Sky opened his door wide, nearly breaking it, since it only hung on by a single hinge. Laughing nervously, Sky greeted the worker. "Good morning, are you Swift House, the owner of the firm?"
The stallion was a large, dirty, pink pony with a beard. "Close, I’m Swift Build, the co-owner. Are you Mr. Skyfall?"
"That I am. Are your boys ready to get to it?" Skyfall looked at the team of ponies setting up the construction site. "I see the gold I spent went to good use."
Sky looked a little closer and saw that Sif’s prediction had come true: the builders were using soft wood that had yet to be cured and hardened. This was an issue with crooked building firms. The builders tried hiding the stacks of wood under green tarps, but when a wind kicked up a corner, Swift Build blocked Skyfall's vision with his body. "My team is ready to build as soon as possible. We’ll have this house fixed up by sunset, Mr. Fall. It’ll be the best house you’ve ever lived in."
"Ah, good." Lying little shit. Skyfall secured his scarf and saddle bags around his body. "I'll be in town for the rest of the day. I'll be back around sunset. I hope all goes well."
Skyfall found the walk friendlier than he would have liked. Swift Build was still trying to block Sky’s view of the building materials, even though Swift was a foot shorter. Sky stopped abruptly at his property line. "Mr. Swift, I don't care about the quality of the wood, just make it look good and we'll be fine."
The pink stallion looked like a colt with his hoof caught in the cookie jar. He tried to respond with a rebuttal, but failed to come up with anything but sputtering.
"All I ask is that you leave the foundation, stone walls, and surrounding forest untouched. You do that, and your company will be paid the other half."
Sky gave Swift Build a threatening glare, then started toward Ponyville without another word. He hated when ponies tried pulling the wool over his eyes and acted smug about it, even if the tricks benefited him. Unfortunately, when he procured the construction firm's services, they had already known the reputation the estate held. Years prior, the Mayor had accidentally told them about the haunting when she sought them out to destroy the house and these shifty ponies used that as an excuse to hike up the price for rebuilding.
Sky noticed a family of farmers had occupied much of the land between his place and Ponyville, and made a mental note to try to make friends with them, or at least be cordial if he was going to pass their place every time he walked to the village.
Ponyville finally broke through the trees, allowing him exhale with relief. His muscles were sore enough as it was, and the distance he had to walk only made the pain worse. Throwing himself onto the first bench he saw, Sky let out a small, pained squeak. "Wow that hurts."
Sky massaged his legs before moving to his flank. The thousand years he spent in the Vale did nothing to improve his physical condition, and now he was paying for it. While looking around, Sky noticed that ponies were still wary of him. Nopony ever came within 10 feet of his bench. The ponies that walked the road in front of him were practically cantering to get away, never making eye contact.
What a way to make a stallion feel welcomed. Sky thought to himself. Almost immediately, he saw a familiar filly walk by the bench. Applebloom was walking and chatting with two other fillies, presumably going to school. "Good morning, Applebloom."
The sudden deep voice shook Applebloom and her two companions from their conversation. They cringed, their tails twitching in anxiety, as if they had been caught doing something wrong. Applebloom was the first to break the silence, mistaking his voice for somepony else. "Y...Yes, Big Mac?"
As the filly spoke, she turned to see the speaker before visibly perking up. "Oh, ah didn’t see you there! G’mornin’, Mr. Skyfall!"
The two other fillies looked a little scared of Skyfall due to his immense size. Skyfall readjusted his wing when he noticed the Pegasus filly gawking at his scar. "What are you three up to today?"
"Oh, we’re crusadin’ fer our cutie marks!" Applebloom announced.
Sky remembered that a cutie mark was like a rite of passage for a pony; it was like the first hunt for a Griffon or a Dragon starting its first hoard. Unlike the hunt or the hoard, cutie marks were supposed to be used to guide ponies into what they would be happiest doing. Most ponies, however, didn't see it that way. Ponies now used them to class themselves, and, at times, put others down. Sky didn’t want to ruin their fun with his outdated musings though. "That's nice. I hope you three are successful in your endeavor."
Applebloom cocked her head to the side. "End...ever?"
"An endeavor is goal that is achieved through hard work." The small, white filly answered from behind Applebloom.
"Right you are, little lady. Did you learn that in school?" Sky smiled at the filly, who only shied away at the sudden attention.
"N...No, but that is where we should be, right Applebloom?" The small unicorn nudged Applebloom and shot her a look.
"Heh, yer right." Applebloom looked back at Skyfall. "Ah guess we're goin’ now. Bye, Mr. Skyfall!"
Skyfall watched the three fillies run off toward their destination. Sky put huge stock in education, and rightfully so. A good education can open doors and can never be taken from you. I wonder what they teach foals nowadays? he thought, chuckling to himself. I should find that jeweler the Mayor told me about. I have some gold I could sell him... After getting up, he stopped a few feet from the bench, spacing out, as another thought came to his mind. I should also get a map so I don't have to keep asking for directions.
“Maybe one of the vendors in the market could tell me where the Jeweler is?.”
All of a sudden, the sky opened up and started raining, causing the ponies in the market scurry inside for cover. Sky also took the hint and made a beeline for shelter in a nearby cafe. "Guess the market will have to wait."
The coming torrential downpour forced the Cutie Mark Crusaders into the nearest shop. Fortunately, the nearest shop was the Carousel Boutique.
The top mounted door-bell rang, signaling that new customers had arrived. "Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique, and magnifique." The store owner struck a pose before realizing it was only her little sister along with her two friends. "Oh, hello, Sweetie Belle. Why aren't you in school, and why are you drenched?"
"Well, Rarity." Sweetie Belle squeaked, all too familiar with her sister's use of rhetorical questions. "It’s raining really hard outside so school is cancelled." Sweetie Belle answered happily. Rainy days meant one important thing; she got to spend all day with her friends.
"Well, you three make sure to be quiet. The girls and I are having lunch together and prefer it to remain peaceful." Rarity said before trotting back upstairs to her workshop.
Sweetie Belle watched her sister trot away and turned to Applebloom quickly. “Who was that just now?”
"Uh, that was yer sister Rarity?" Applebloom answered sarcastically.
Sweetie Belle smacked the end of Applebloom's nose. "That's not what I meant. Who was that enormous stallion earlier?"
"Oh, that was Mr. Skyfall. He's new to Ponyville." Applebloom answered without much concern. Her attitude changed, however, when she saw looks on her friend's faces. "What?"
"He's kinda scary." Sweetie Belle said quietly.
"You thought Trouble Shoes was scary," Applebloom deadpanned.
"Because he is and..." Sweetie couldn't finish her statement.
"And what?" Applebloom tried to continue the conversation before Scootaloo finished her statement.
"And his scars."
"What? He don’t have any scars!" Applebloom defended. "And why are ya girls so worked up anyway? He ain’t that scary."
"Who ain’t that scary?" Applejack asked as she trotted down the stairs, on her way to get a box of apple juice. "Are you fillies in a fight with one of yer school friends?"
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle shared a look and answered in unison. "No."
Applebloom giggled. "There is a new stallion in town and ah think he scared these two by accident."
"Oh, you mean that Skyfall fella?" Applejack said uninterestedly.
"Ya know him?"
"No."
"...But." Applebloom was cut off by Applejack's blank stare.
"Twilight told us. Apparently he bought that ole, broken down place by the Everfree."
Sweetie Belle stared at Applejack in awe. "Do you mean the De Cerulean estate? Are you sure?"
Applejack returned a shrug. "If ya mean that run down piece a land, then yeah. Twilight and yer sister were talkin’ about it. Why don't ya ask them?"
Nodding their heads in anticipation, Sweetie Belle and the other crusaders walked up the stairs, Applejack in tow, to ask Twilight about the strange stallion. However, Twilight and Rarity were already in the midst of a deep discussion about said stallion.
"Nothing like it is in any book that I could find, nor was it in any archives that the Mayor had."
Rarity put her fetlock over her face. "Twilight, darling, there wouldn't be any documents of it, because it was never reported."
Rainbow Dash set her mug down. "Hey girls, since I grew up in Cloudsdale, can somepony fill me in on this haunted place that you two keep yammering on about?"
"I don't know about it either." Fluttershy added meekly.
Rarity looked around. "You two don't know the story?"
Rainbow raised her hoof. "Seriously, I don't." Fluttershy, Twilight, and Scootaloo followed suit by raising their hooves before Dash continued. "And I would really like to be filled in now, since I’ve sat here for the past thirty minutes listening to you and Twilight go back and forth."
"Well." Rarity huffed at Rainbow's blunt statement. "I guess I could tell you. I don’t think I’m very talented at telling stories, honestly, but I’ll give it a whirl anyway."
"Pretend it's gossip, yer real good at that." Applejack quipped, poking fun at Rarity’s past time.
"Oh, ha ha." Rarity stuck her tongue out at her farmer friend before tapping her chin. "Where do I start?"
Sweetie Belle loved Rarity’s stories, even scary ones, so she was very familiar with this story. Rarity used to tell her stories when she was younger, and among all the scary stories that she told to her over the years, only three frightened Sweetie Belle: The lost town in the Everfree, the soul stealing Forest Spirit, and the tale of the missing heir to the De Cerulean estate.
Sweetie Belle bounded over and lay down next to her older sister. "Oh! Start with why the estate was built."
"Oh you remember the story?" Rarity asked.
"Mhm." Sweetie Belle gave Rarity a large, beaming smile.
Rarity smiled, and the storm raged outside, setting an atmosphere for the story. "The De Cerulean estate was built around ten years after Ponyville was founded-"
Still no documentation to prove that. Twilight noted.
"- and was the seasonal home to the House of Cerulean, a noble Prench family. They came here, and the head of the family gave the estate to his heir, Noble Gaze. If I remember the story correctly, he lived in Ponyville on and off for almost ten more years, until one day he just never came back." Rarity said, her friends listening intently.
"Big deal, Prenchy probably just went back to Prance." Rainbow said.
Rarity nodded. "Maybe, but that would be odd considering that his family came over looking for him, and nearly caused a war accusing the royalty of Equestria that they had him...disposed of. Of course the Princesses denied this, and the matter fell from the public eye."
Fluttershy knew what was coming, and hid behind her cherry blossom mane, shivering uncontrollably.
Rarity saw Fluttershy’s reaction, and continued delicately. "Over the years, many families tried living there, only to be chased out by something sinister. The most recent tenants lived there back when I was younger than even Sweetie Belle. I remember a stallion and a mare running through the town, screaming and banging on doors, frantically looking for help."
Rainbow Dash's eyes were the size of plates. "You lie."
"Never, ask my parents, or even Applejack, I’m sure she remembers." Rarity crossed her forelegs in offense.
Twilight cut in before anypony else could speak. "So you didn't actually see anything? So there's no proof."
Twilight looked at Applejack for support, but the farm pony shook her head. "Ah'm with Rares on this one, Twilight. Granny Smith says she seen things movin’ in the windows that couldn't be explained. So, if Granny Smith says it's haunted, it's haunted."
Rainbow let her hooves hang in front of her limply. "Wait, this stallion bought the place? Even after hearing it was haunted?"
Twilight nodded. "That's what spurred him on. It's like he wanted to live in a haunted house."
"That's an odd stallion." Applejack said.
"He ain't that bad." Applebloom interjected on Skyfall's behalf. "He actually seemed really sweet."
"You've met him?" Twilight asked, intrigued.
"Yeah, how d’ya know him Applebloom?" Applejack asked with slightly more ire than her lavender friend.
"He stopped by our apple stand and asked me and Big Mac where to find the Mayor. Big Mac had me take him to her before crusadin’." Applebloom said.
Applejack, the overprotective sister, bared down on Applebloom. She put her mug down after taking a swift gulp. "Mhm what'd ya talk about? Was that weird stallion sayin’ anything weird?"
"No." Applebloom shied away from her sister. "We just talked about the town, you, and Big Mac, and the crusaders."
"Applejack, darling, I’m sure Big Mac asked her to escort him as a show of goodwill." Rarity chirped happily.
Applejack rose an eyebrow. "Big Mac asked ya to go with him?"
"Ah said that already." Applebloom huffed.
Looking around the fashionista's workshop, Applejack saw others nodding their heads. "Right, ah guess ah missed that part, sorry."
Twilight sighed; Applejack's overbearing big sister instinct was something that she would never suspect her of having until she saw it for the first time when Applebloom was walked home by one of the local colts. Applejack chased that colt off like he was a rabid dog, and embarrassed her sister until she crying.
Applejack, having calmed down, felt embarrassed, so she retook her seat at Rarity's table and coughed into a hoof. "So Twilight, ya met this stallion? What's he like?"
"He's okay. I didn't talk to him for that long." Twilight took a long sip of her Merle Grey tea. "I said he looked like Shining Armor."
Rarity almost slammed her cup onto the marble table. "Twilight!"
"What?" Twilight asked in a placating manner.
"You never tell an attractive stallion that they look like a relative!"
Twilight squinted. "Okay, and how can you tell that he's attractive? You’ve never met him before."
Rarity stammered and tried to recover from her statement as Twilight pointed a hoof at her.
"Aha, I knew it, you do like my brother!" Twilight had been trying to prove this since the big Canterlot wedding, and now she sat there, victorious.
Rarity's head sunk into her hooves. "Fine." In an effort to change the topic, Rarity turned to Rainbow Dash. "What do you think of the new stallion, dear?"
“I don’t care.” Rainbow Dash sat back in her pillow looking really annoyed. "I don't have an opinion. The town does this everytime a new pony moves here. I really don’t care at all, I’m just not into gossip.”
"I wanna throw him a party!" Pinkie Pie shouted.
"You want to throw everypony a party, darling." Rarity said.
"We should go and introduce ourselves!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.
Twilight spoke quickly to cut her off from that idea. "No. I think that's a bad idea Pinkie."
"Why?" Pinkie's mane deflated slightly.
"He looked really tired when I saw him. I think we should put off any parties." Twilight explained before launching into other reasons. “He has probably traveled a lot to get here and wants to relax.”
"We can at least say ‘hi’." Pinkie grumbled.
"Ahm not going near that house." Applejack stated. "He's probably a hoodlum from one of them big cities."
"Maybe he's a secret agent!" Sweetie Belle said, earning a chuckle from the others.
Applebloom remembered overhearing Big Mac's conversation that Skyfall was retired, but wanted to play along with her spunky friend. "Ah think he's a pirate."
Scootaloo sat in silence. Seeing Skyfall’s scar upset her, and not because it was a little gruesome, but because she had one in a similar area under her wing. She looked out the window at the rainy sky, ignoring the conversations of the others, I wonder if he had the same problem I do?
Skyfall sneezed into his cappuccino, and instantly regretted it. "It had just the right amount of foam."
"You want another one, dearie?"
"Hm?" Skyfall turned from his window to meet the owner of the voice, to see the newly acquainted shop keep, Mrs. Cake.
"Would you like another cappuccino with foam?" Mrs. Cake asked happily, completely ignoring the fact that she was covered in flour and other baking ingredients.
"No ma'am, I’m good with what I got." Truth be told, Skyfall still didn't have any money to make small purchases with. He had paid a representative of the construction company in gold bars to rebuild him a new house. The construction firm's agent informed him that transactions like that are meant for larger purchases. He just hoped that the jeweler could exchange his gold for coin, because he doubted that many places, such as Sugarcube Corner, would accept gold as payment.
Sky took a moment to observe Ponyville from his window. Even though it was pouring outside, some ponies were still trying to go places, presumably to finish their errands. Every few minutes, a thunder clap would strike and scare a pony or two. Sif was right; these ponies were terrified of everything. He brought the cappuccino to his lips. "They are indeed a sheltered lot."
"Mommy, why is that stallion talking to himself?" A colt pointed at Skyfall, who stared at the little Pegasus with a dumbfounded look.
"Pound Cake! Don't bother the customers." Mrs. Cake quietly scolded her foal and turned to Sky. "I'm terribly sorry, sir, my boy has just started talking recently. His father and I are working on teaching him to speak with a filter."
Why? Sky shook the question from his head. He was still new to this world. Most of what he had come to know has been swept away by time; the ponies, the places, and even the customs. So far, Ponyville, and the ponies that inhabit it, struck him as reserved and xenophobic. A fact brought up by the first Ponyville filly that he had met, Applebloom. Knowing all this, he went with the safest response.
"It's okay, Mrs. Cake; I’m just going through my errand list that's all." Sky looked outside, the storm had not let up in the slightest. "I better go because this storm isn't looking any better."
Sky tightened his scarf around his neck, and stood to his full height. "When is the tab due?"
Mrs. Cake shook herself from her apparent daydream. "Whenever you can pay it."
"Wonderful. You have a nice day, Mrs. Cake. You too, Pound Cake."
Mrs. Cake gave a short wave. "Bye, Mr. Skyfall."
"Bye bye, wacko." Skyfall chuckled at the toddler’s remark.
Skyfall exited the shop door before hearing Pound Cake’s mother scold him for name calling. The jeweler wasn't very far from Sugar Cube Corner, only about three blocks north. Mrs. Cake knew the owner, but in a village this small, knowing other ponies is a given.
Water soaked deep into Skyfall's coat and scarf, making him considerably more heavy. Luckily, his saddle bags were water resistant, so they didn't weigh him down any further. "Where is this- Aha!"
Skyfall found the jewelers business, The Silvertail. It was strategically placed between the bank and Ponyville's office for Canterlot affairs. It was also in plain view of the train station. Anyone with money would see the jewelry store and want to purchase something, especially rich officials visiting the office of Canterlot affairs.
Taking a deep breath, Skyfall entered the Silvertail and was met by a short, yet thin, stallion with a grey coat and silver mane. He walked around the counter daintily to meet Sky, but held his nose up in a haughty manner.
"I thought I wrote your boss a letter telling him I need the equipment moved next week." His voice was laced with great disgust.
Well hello to you too. Sky readjusted his scarf away from his muzzle and stared at the shop owner with a blank expression. "I believe you have the wrong idea there, little guy. I’m here to conduct my own business."
The store owner bowed his head in apology. "I'm sorry, my good stallion. Welcome to the Silvertail." He bowed lower and extended his hoof for a formal introduction. "I am Silver Coin, the owner of this shop."
Sky looked at the stallion's formal greeting, and copied his exact movements. "I am Skyfall. I’m new to Ponyville."
"And you chose to visit my shop?" Silver Coin smiled widely. "We have a wide selection of necklaces and accessories, though you don't seem like the stallion who wears jewelry. A gift for a mate perhaps, maybe an engagement ring?"
Sky stared at the stallion with a pained expression. Silver couldn't have known, but bringing up a mate conjured terrible memories for Sky. Whenever his family came up, Skyfall took great lengths to avoid the subject. "No no, nothing like that. I am actually here to ask some questions."
"About?" Silver Coin asked.
"Exchange rates."
"Exchange rates?"
Is there an echo in here? Skyfall raised an eyebrow at the thin stallion. It didn’t seem to be an odd request. "Yes, I need to know what the exchange rates are for gold in Equestria."
The stallion nodded in understanding. "How much do you have?"
Skyfall leaned over to get what the stallion was curious about. He searched for the neat pile of gold bars amidst the mess of paperwork that was the inside of his saddle. The small clink sound signaled that they had been found.
Silver Coin made a small hissing sound and walked over to a mare looking through the jewelry. "I'm sorry ma'am, but we're closing now. If you have anything in mind, let me know and I’ll give you ten percent off next time you’re in." The mare attempted to argue, but was immediately cut off by the prospect of a potential discount.
Skyfall just sat there, slightly confused. Why did Silver Coin change his demeanor so quickly? Before he could think of anything else, the mare passed by him, leaving only the two stallions in the store. Coin walked to the front door and looked around suspiciously.
"Follow me." Silver Coin said after locking the door. "My office is upstairs."
Whooow, stranger danger. Sky walked into Silver's office and saw a filly laying on the floor. She was facing away from them and reading a magazine. She had the same mane as her father, but wore large glasses.
"Silver Spoon, honey. Daddy needs to have a business meeting."
"It's okay, I don't mind." She said matter of factly.
"You aren't grown up enough for this, go to the kitchen." Silver Coin pulled the age card.
The filly whined. "You never let me see your meetings. How am I supposed to run the business when I grow up if I can't learn how you do business?"
Silver Spoon turned to Skyfall to plead with him, but jumped when she saw him.
Why do they always jump? Sky mused.
"Silver Spoon. Go to your room, now." Silver Coin ordered with authority. Sky could tell this was abnormal for their household.
“No!” Silver Spoon shouted. “I say I’m staying.”
“Silver Spoon, please, you aren’t old enough to understand yet.” Coin said.
“But I am! All I need is a chance to prove it!” Silver spoons voice cracked as she looked back and forth between her father and skyfall, looking for support from either of them.
“Maybe next time, hunny.” Coin stated firmly, breaking her resolve. He then patted her on the head, signaling it was time for her to leave. She left the room muttering under her breath about how unfair it was that she was always left out.
As soon as the door shut, Silver Coin trotted over to his large stone desk. "You know, Mr. Skyfall, my family has been in this trade for almost 600 years. I like to buy all types of metals, even the more mundane kinds like raw nickel, on occasion. I have never once seen a pony walk in to trade bars of gold. Well, real bars of gold, that is."
Silver Coin leaned forward, letting the shadow cast by desk lamp obscure his face as if to seem threatening. "Any fake gold is punishable by a year or more per ounce in the Pegasi Bay Royal Prison. So tell me, what do you really have?"
"Gold." Skyfall answered abruptly, ending Coin’s train of thought.
"Huh?"
Skyfall lifted his saddle bags and rested them on Coin's large stone desk. Skyfall leisurely opened one of the bags and gave him a small bar the size of a deck of cards. "I'm sure it won't be an issue once you check the authenticity." Skyfall sighed; he knew this may be an issue. Gold has always been a problem to trade with.
Silver Coin looked at him skeptically; the trade of gold was a long dead tradition used only in large country to country transactions, or the black market. When a pony traded gold in this day and age, the gold was usually a counterfeit, a cheap metal covered with a spell. It became such a problem that Princess Celestia made the punishment more severe by hard time in the mines.
Silver Coin looked over the gold bar and hurried over to a drawer to get a small card used for authenticating materials. The card was covered in runes, and the second it touched the bar it sizzled, leaving a number behind: 24k.
"I don't believe it."
"Believe what?" Sky questioned.
Coin grabbed the bar and looked at it once more. "This is 24 karat gold. How did you get this?"
Sky contemplated telling him the truth as a joke, but telling Coin that he stole the treasure from Griffonstone would have given Coin more of a reason to find him suspicious. "I just retired and my family has a thing for gold. Unfortunately for them, I don't hoard it. I spend it."
"Then this is a very good thing. I’ll admit, at first I thought you were trying to pass off altered copper, but now I fully understand." Coin winked at Skyfall as if to convey a message of understanding. "Don't worry; I'll exercise discretion and keep our transactions strictly confidential."
Skyfall nodded. "That's all I ask."
Coin beat his hooves on his desk in approval. "Excellent, so you want to trade the gold for bits or jewels?"
"Bits will suffice." Sky responded firmly, he had no use for jewels.
"How much gold do you want to sell?"
Skyfall reached over and pushed his saddle bag down, letting the stack of gold bars fall out onto Coin's desk. "I have a lot more where this came from, but I don't want to trade it all at once."
Silver Coin sucked his teeth. "I'm afraid that trading what you have here won't be a possibility."
"Why not?" First you're all happy, now you're backing out? What gives?
"I don't keep that many bits on hoof. If you want to trade gold with me, you'll have to sell me them over time."That makes sense. Silver Coin rooted through his desk drawer. "Let's see. The exchange rate for 24 karat gold in Equestria is about 50 bits a gram."
Coin put the bar on a scale and hummed. "Each bar is about 200 grams."
Skyfall nodded. The price of gold dropped since he got it. That's what I get for waiting to sell it.
"Comes to." Coin jotted down some numbers. "10,000 bits per unit."
"Wonderful. How many bars can you buy a month?" Sky began putting the gold back into his saddle, signaling that the transaction was over, and all that remained was the exchange.
After a few minutes of hums, Silver Coin looked over his financial records one last time to give his newest client an accurate estimate. "I can buy two bars a month, either one bar bimonthly or two bars at once at the beginning of each month."
Skyfall placed two bars onto Silver's desk and smiled. "Let's go with the lump sum at the beginning of the month."
Silver shook Skyfall's hoof and got him a large sack of bits. He could tell that trading with his new client would be lucrative for his business, and even more so for his family’s reputation.
With bits in tow, Skyfall walked out of the Silvertail, and was instantly covered in a torrent of rain. Oh, right, it's raining...
Sky looked back to see Silver Coin waving bye. "Hey Silver, where's the library?"
Coin stopped mid wave and shook his head. "It was blown up a year ago by a villain named Tirek. If you want to rent a book, you can go to Princess Twilight's castle. She's turned her personal library into the new town library."
"Thank you." Skyfall turned and looked for the castle, but saw nothing until Silver coughed gaining his attention.
"That way, you big lug. Big crystal castle, can't miss it." Coin giggled and pranced into his shop.
That stallion creeps me out. Sky thought.
The rain started to lighten up, giving Sky the perfect chance to trot to the library before it poured again. After a minute, his muscles started to scream at him. Fortunately, he found the castle soon after he felt the pain radiate up into his thigh. If running gives me this much pain, I should start working out with my wings.
"Someone has good taste." The castle stood high and reminded Skyfall of architecture he hadn't seen since the first age of Equus. He heard another bombardment of rain coming and knocked on the large door with urgency.
"Alright, I’m coming. Relax."
A small purple dragon opened the door in a Prench maid outfit, which made Sky cock his head in confusion. Kinky.
The small dragon looked up and flinched when a thunderclap shook the building. "Um, can I help you?"
"Yes, I’m here to check out some books."
"Oh, that's right, we're a library. Come on in, mister." The small dragon opened the door wide allowing for his customer to enter and get out of the rain. Not much was said between the maid and his new mystery guest until they reached Princess Twilight's library.
Skyfall whistled at sheer amount of books lining the walls. From end to end, each shelf was organized and cleaned, ready for anyone to come along and make a selection.
"Like what you see?"
"Oh yes, yes I do."
The dragon extended a claw. "I’m Spike."
"Skyfall."
Spike shook his hoof and cocked his head. "Say aren't you..."
"The stallion who bought the haunted house? Yes." Skyfall was getting a little tired of the same question popping up everywhere he went. Apparently, all the ponies gossiped in Ponyville.
"Well I don't think it's haunted, that's just a silly rumor." Spike chuckled while walking to a table in the center of the library's floor. He stopped in front of a large book with many different colored bookmarks jutting out from all sides. "This is the directory. Any topic or genre will be in here, and it will direct you to its place."
Still not as good as Minerva's library. Twilight and the spirit of knowledge would probably be fast friends... or hiss at each other like a couple of rabid cats. Sky thought while fighting off a fit of laughter.
"Sadly, since you're new, you can't check out a book." Spike said before giving Skyfall a form. "Until you fill out this sheet and get a library card."
Skyfall looked over the paper and raised one eyebrow. "Why does she need to know my hoof size?"
Spike shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, I’m just Twilight's assistant."
"How about just a name and address?"
Spike nodded after taking off the maid outfit. "Is there any book I can get for you while you fill that out? The application is what Twilight calls a formality on 'the road to learning!'"
Sky smiled and shook his head at the ridiculous impersonation. "How many history books do you have?"
"A lot."
Wow, thanks for being specific. "Do you have ones that focus on world affairs for the last thousand years?"
Spike nodded.
"And ones that focus on Equestria for the same period of time?" Sky asked while flipping the directory’s pages. Sky placed Twilight’s application between one of the pages, trying to avoid filling it out. I better get some random books so it doesn't seem too weird. "Also, some books on airships."
As soon as Skyfall finished with his demands, six large books were plopped down on the table beside him. "There, four history books and two books about airships. Do your foals like stories?"
Skyfall blinked at Spike. Why do creatures assume I have children?
Spike thought he asked an awkward question, so he gave Skyfall a thick, worn book labeled:
Spirits
The Truth Behind the Tales
Written by Fairies Tail
"What's this?" Sky asked.
"It's one of the most checked out books in the library. It’s about the Spirits and how they came to be. Parents love to come in here and check it out to scare their unruly foals with some of the stories in it." Spike chuckled. "Doesn't fool me, though. I know Spirits don't exist. Well, except for Discord. I’m convinced he made that to spread chaos before he became good."
Skyfall was staring at the book for a long minute as he ran his hoof over the cover, questions racking his mind. Spirits are evil now? Doesn't believe in Spirits? Discord is back? He's good?
"Hey, are you okay?" Spike asked, shaking Sky from his thought-driven spiral.
"Huh? Yes, I just... love books." Skyfall opened the book slowly. What person/spirit/pony wouldn't want to read about themselves? He looked in the directory and from page 84 to page 192 there his name sat, 'Shattered Skies' in bold black letters. Why so many pages?
"My favorite Spirit to read about is Sakurajima, the Volcano Spirit who..."
"What?!" Spike was cut off by Skyfall's shout.
"Ah... what?" Spike imitated in a quieter voice.
Sky flipped through the pages rapidly. Each page was either a half-truth or a complete lie. They documented how Shattered Skies was a major villain during the Spirit war and how he would devour the souls of any creature to fuel his own malice. This book went as far as to list victims of Shattered Skies’ corruption and even suggested he was responsible for both King Sombra's evil army and Luna turning to Nightmare Moon. The last page of skimming referenced a memorial erected in Canterlot to the last batch of victims over eight hundred years ago.
Skyfall looked at Spike who was standing in a defensive way. "Sorry, I just... remember this book from my foalhood and have been searching for a copy for a long time."
"I'm glad you found it, then." Spike walked over and placed the new library card in front of Skyfall. "Here, in case you want to check the books out and any more in the future. Just bring this card and write down the book numbers in the tablet next to the directory. Each book has a seven day rent limit before you have to recheck them out."
"Wow, Twilight has the system down pat huh?"
"She's... very organized." Spike cringed while thinking about her obsessive rearranging.
"Well, Spike, I will be renting these." Sky started putting the books into his saddle bags, stuffing them to capacity. It's a good thing that Silver Coin had large denomination bits to save space.
"Well remember, Skyfall." Spike grabbed Sky's face and got muzzle to face. “In seven days you must return them, or Twilight will be at your house on the eighth day at sunrise."
"I'm guessing she freaks out over her books like a duck over her ducklings."
“Worse.” Spike shivered in fear. “Much, much worse.”
Skyfall took back his face and laughed. "I'll be sure to do that. Goodbye Spike, I have a lot of reading to do."
With that, Skyfall left the library and took the quickest route through Ponyville to go home. Ponies still veered away from him, but that's something he felt he would have to get used to.
As Skyfall walked, he saw a recognizable group of fillies waiting in front of a carousel type building.
The three fillies were staring at the door waiting for somepony, or multiple someponies. Sky quietly walked behind them and greeted them with his deep voice. "Hello, you three."
The Pegasus and Unicorn jumped and ran behind a giggling Applebloom. "Hiya there, Mr. Skyfall."
"I see you three had a relaxing day." Sky smiled.
"Yeah, how'd ya know?"
"You're all clean and not soaked to the bone like me." Sky hoofed to his mane as an example. "I've been running around all day without an umbrella like a dummy."
Appleblooms two friends giggled at that, visibly less scared of Skyfall this time around.
"Well, I must be off. Tell Big Mac I said ‘hey.’" Sky said, before walking onward.
"Wait!" Applebloom yelled. "Do you wanna come out tah dinner with us?"
"Not tonight Applebloom, I must get home and make dinner." Skyfall smiled and took another step before hearing Applebloom's voice again, but louder.
"It’s not just us, it's mah sis and her friends. Princess Twilight'll be there, too."
Sky thought for a second and sighed while looking at Applebloom's eager expression. Sif would bite my flank if she didn't get the double chili cheese pepper stuffed hot dogs I promised her. "I'm sorry Applebloom, I have somepony waiting at home for me to make dinner."
Sweetie Belle smiled widely as if she just found out some huge secret.
"Ah understand, I’ll talk to ya later, mister Skyfall! Goodnight!"
"Goodnight, Applebloom."
The second Skyfall rounded the corner, the front door to the Carousel Boutique swung open.
"Ugh finally, it took Rarity forever to find the right outfit." Rainbow lamented.
"’Perfect ensemble’ are the words I would have chosen." Rarity said.
Applejack saw how her sister and her friends were gossiping in a circle. "Okay you three, what are ya up to? Hopefully you didn't get in any trouble while you were waitin’."
Pinkie looked at the ground and found a large set of hoofprints. "Woowie, what pony made these?"
Applebloom Smiled widely. "Guess who we just saw!"
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Yes!!!!!!
Hmm... something seems wrong with this sentence, but I can't exactly place it.
I like the revisionist history, though I hope the story doesn't turn into an evil Luna and Celestia story.
6472223 Thank you for pointing that out. I thought I collected all the editorial notes.
encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSYLmWRuhUmiIpjNv5hiM2yQVFBFOON6MZG82taNUHoks8iW1XATA
Like the original story, it swings in that direction for Celestia, but she isn't evil, just lied too and fearful.
6472223 HA HA HA OMG OH MY FUCKING GOD YOU MEAN HE DIDNT DELETE THAT?! HELL YEAH! XD
Oh my god i've been trying to get him to stop using commas before quotations and have been coming up with VERY creative ways to do so. This of course was my latest invention and it seems that despite our very long conversation that's linked to the sentence he STILL didn't get it!
HUZZAH!
Edit: Delete that comment and i will go on strike, that piece of comedy gold needs to be enshrined forever.
Now for the funny stuff
Working title:
Chapter 3 -Stranger Danger- I NEED AN ADULT I DO NOT KNOW HOW TO ADULT
Shit, meet fan, you'll get along nicely.
Skyfall has both earned and lost his guy credibility here.
So i guess we are at an impass >:(
what a cock block
or maybe it's a pussy plug in this case...
Btw these are in no particular order
This has some really really funny ramifications if you actually realize what they had for breakfast. Poor Arctikfox STILL hasn't gotten the joke.
Oh well...
Now I hate to be a cock block but i did have some issues with this certain piece of text if you check the doc
I'm a dirty dirty boy
6472821 I thought I got it. It was fixed the minute canary spotted it.
Awesome chapter as always n.n keep it up, and ..... I actualy read the Author's Notes, it is good to hear that you got amazings editors n.n hope to see more chaptes soon
6472858 -Cough- i get deserved credit -cough-
img10.deviantart.net/efcb/i/2015/111/3/a/luna_squee_by_heavenschaos-d6ax5f7.png
6472886 He speaketh the truth.
6472886 TRUE! Because I forgot to mention you .... and because you are cool ( > 3 * )
, HERE! HAVE SOME SPAGHETTI WITH THIS COOL SKELETON! pbs.twimg.com/media/CPIaefSWwAAZ6J8.png:large
6472942 OH DEAR GOD A SKELETON! KILL IT! KILL IT WITH FIRE!
new2.fjcdn.com/thumbnails/comments/You+_35e87df5c355f487ce326efe7edb2d86.gif
6472982 NOOO PAPYRUS! TT _ TT why? he was a good skeleton .... being serious, the chapters and the story so far is very cool ( *-*)=b.
Do you have a schedule on when new chapters come up or you upload them once they are well reviewed?
And talking about Papyrus did any of you ( or whoever is reading this n.n ) played or is playing Undertale?
6473107 No schedule, i'm allergic
Yes he puts them up once i'm done fucking them up
No, never even heard of it
6473119 Oh ok, I'm cool with it, I'm also allergic to them. And is a very good RPG, I recommend you try it someday, well, only if you like RPG
6473153 mmm not much interested in role playing games, better at strategic ones.
Who doesn't read the authors notes? There are secrets hidden in them, like who to thank for error catching. Usually. Or predictions on when the next update shall happen.
6473234 -whistle- or maybe it might hide a simple fact that i'm taking suggestions for things i should catch.
This may include 'flutter romance'
or 'don't make him a pussy'
or 'explore the relationship with sif'
i do more than fix things, i also make them nice and pretty and help plan when need be.\
Also, the update shall happen when i happen to get around to editing the next chapter, but yes, it's written. However there is the simple fact that we end up taking a day or two to finalize my edits and things he might need to pay more attention to.
6472896 Do you happen to have the transcript of the old version of the story? I kind of want to read it one last time before I put it to rest for the new one.
I was skeptical about the rewrite of the story at first, but after seeing that you are taking a more slow pace on the story, like giving Skies a period of adjustments in living in Ponyville and the inhabitance to adjust to him is good in my opinion. I a little disappointed that the ponies seem to be scared of him, but this is part of the course. I also think that it is good that you introduce the mane six to him more progressively to Skies, it allow the readers to saver the moment in seeing them making an opinion of him. I a little annoyed that Skies has decided to live in the out scurtes of Ponyville near the Everfree Forest in stead of of in the forest itself near the water fall, so there is not going to be any bikini scene this time around.
6473940
He has a big property, so I wouldn't count on not having one ;)
images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/32900000/my-little-pony-swim-my-little-pony-friendship-is-magic-32943347-1400-788.jpg
6473050 the more fluttersupport the Better, I've been watching the story for a long time because of her. . .
6473050 They had to be eaten. They threatened my sausages.
6475573 You won't be let down
6473779 If you want, I can send it to you. :) Or put them on a doc for you to read.
6478573 I know it is a weird request, but thanks for listening. Could you please send it to me? And if so, do you need my e-mail, or would you just PM me the story?
6479313 I'll send it whichever way you want it. I could upload it to a google doc for you to read.
I am noticing a definite lack of skydash in this story. I am enjoying it.
6482447 Itll be there, just taking things a little slower.
6479508 Could you send it to me via e-mail? I'll PM you my address if so.
6482469 Mkay :) Pm me and Ill get it to you sometime tomorrow
love this but still can't get over old story. love it. but story is start to get good.
Interesting work so far, looking forward to more.
Discord committed genocide on the Alicorns...
All I ask is that this is not swept under the rug...
I have read one too many stories where the author does not balance out the second chance properly for villains.
Kill millions...but leave the species intact...second chance.
Commit genocide on one or more races...something major must be lost or changed for the villain to make a second chance viable.
Otherwise this is a pretty good story.
my eyes thank you
Only issue is making Scootaloo crippled. WHY DO SO MANY PEOPLE GO THAT ROUTE! THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO PROOF OF IT AT ALL!
And oh boy. Skyfall is not going to be happy about that. But who started these lies.
i.ytimg.com/vi/AMRhOtBvPwQ/hqdefault.jpg
Skyfall / secret agent? Now, why does that remind me of something?
I'm enjoying this so far. Interesting character.
authors note "no one reads these"
*looks down at shirt. "no-one" it reads* huh who knew.
Starting to get a feeling that Celestia and/or Luna intentionally made Skies a villain for some reason after Luna tried to murder him. Wonder how long it will be before the Mane 6 try to kill him just on G.P.
7043503
Defiantly not a 007 reference;)
Haha. We read your author notes every chapter Arctikfox. Though, we art confused about the relation ship of Shattered Skies and Sif. Are the merely friends who tease each other, or something more? We await your response.
'Pretend it's gossip you're real good at that.'
Made the whole chapter.
Uh?
OK... I didn't expect that
I am liking this story. I'll keep reading
Bimonthly? Don't you mean bi-weekly?
6572819
Yeah to be honest, shattered skies seems like he's probably not going to be happy that someone who was basically Hitler (to him) is treated as a good guy now, and the spirits that fought to preserve life against him are vilified.
Also I can't imagine he (or sif in his defense) will react well to Luna (who was basically his murderer)
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vdhF4O54YjU/maxresdefault.jpg
*Bon-Bon kicks the door in*