Collateral

by Ogopogo

Chapter XXIII - Survey

Let me go on record by saying that 235 Blue Row was devilishly hard to find. Not only was it was it one of those back streets which seemed to bend and twist upon itself till it shouldn’t even be called by the same name, but I walked past it a good three or four times till I noticed it. It was a small little place nestled between two massive buildings, like a line of jam between toast. I honestly thought it was a servants' entrance for another building when I first walked past it. It would fit given the appearances of some of the places around here.

Finding it had been as aggravating as untangling burs from a wool scarf. It probably didn’t help at how frustrated I already was; getting out of the castle had been a real bitch. Seriously, after leaving Cadence, everywhere I tried to slip away there had been a guard stationed. There were no quiet halls or empty rooms for me to use. It appeared as though the rest of the guard was finally starting to return to Canterlot, which bode well for me, in some ways. However, it also meant that I had to put up with others who knew next to nothing about me. After the first time I was tackled to the ground, my mood soured considerably. In the end, though, I did manage to get out of the castle, but I’m almost positive questions would be asked when I got back.

That was a problem for later, however. Anyhow, Blue Row was not a neighborhood for the poor, or even for those with a reasonable amount of money. Oh, I’m not talking about rich in the traditional sense: just a few millions bits, oh no. These buildings were almost palaces in their own rights, the smallest of which were mere mansions. Mansions, I should add, which had doors and trim made of solid gold. It made me more than a little wary that this wasn’t a trap. Still, with the disguise I had, it’s not like anyone could really pick me out. I figured with how inflated the self-worth of the ponies living around here, royal couriers must be a common sight. Nicking the saddlebags with the proper symbol had been hard enough, though.

I knocked on the door of 235 Blue Row twice, and waited... And waited. After several minutes, I tried knocking again. I swear, if I came all the way just to have to stand outside like an idiot... Another few seconds passed and the door opened. My spirits sank. It was not Starlight, or Ocean Wind for that matter.

The unicorn had a light yellow mane, with a coat the colour of saffron. “Yes?” Her voice was a not entirely unpleasant soprano.

I hesitated; it was the maid outfit throwing me off... She wore a practical black dress, not the elaborate lacy stereotypes you so often hear of, and it struck me just as so out of place in... Well, a place like this. I glanced up and down the street, just in case I was missing Starlight or Ocean Wind waving me over before I made a mistake.

There was nothing.

“Sir?”

I brought myself back to the moment. “Ermm... Yes.” Might as well go for broke here. “Would there happen to be a Starlight or Ocean Wind at this address?”

“For what purpose are you looking for them, if you pardon my asking, sir?”

I was disguised as a courier, so... “I just have a short message for them. Could I come in?”

The door propped itself open. “I don’t see why not. Would you please be so kind as to follow me.”

I’m was beginning to see why this place was in such a nice part of town. Following her up an immediate flight of stairs, I found myself in a room that would hardly be out of place at the castle. Granted, it wasn’t remotely as large, but the decor style was very much the same. The maid held open another door, and gestured. “They’ll be right in there. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

Immediately upon entering, my eyes fell upon Ocean Wind, or at least, his identical twin save for a clementine orange mane. It was a rather ugly colour which clashed with his coat. He must have heard me coming up, as he had already risen from the chair he had been sitting in, fixing me with a stern glare.

“Wha–”

He cut me off before I could finish. “Drop the disguise, Amethyst.”

“Pardon?”

“If you don’t drop your disguise, I’m going to assume you are not Amethyst and lock you up in the next room no matter what you say.”

I quickly adopted my normal appearance. “Woah, alright! I’m me!”

“Told ya.”

I yelped in fright at the voice beside me, and I swear I nearly had a heart attack when I saw Starlight lowering a crossbow. My mouth flapped uselessly for a moment, like a fish out of water. I finally regained my voice. “Holy Tartarus! You were aiming that at me?”
She snorted as she lay it up against a wall to open a cabinet. I only then noticed her mane had been dyed purple like I had thought.
“What it’s not like I was going to fire it.”

“Couldn’t you have, I don’t know, cast a spell or something?”

My eyes widened as Starlight took a step back, allowing me to see what was inside the cabinet. Swords, bows, spears... It was a practical armoury, even if every one of them looked ornate and outdated. “I had to teleport once already today; I’m kinda running on fumes here.”

“Teleport, when?”

She rubbed at her eyes with a hoof. Only then did I notice the heavy bags beneath them and the droop in her shoulders. “Right after I left you the note. One of the guards you were with started to follow me.”

“And you got away by teleporting? Isn’t that suspicious?”

She glared at me. “And what you do isn’t? Besides, I was out of sight when I teleported.”

I started to say something in reply, but stopped when I heard the sound of a key turning a lock. The squeak of the front door opening was apparent. “Who’s that?” I whispered, turning to Ocean Wind.

He took off his helmet, pausing to sniff the air. “Supper, if I’m correct.” I cocked my head and sniffed the air. Odd, but true; indeed there was a fragrance of spices and tomatoes drifting through the air.

I shook my head, and returned my focus to more pressing matters. “Who has supper then?” I shot back, preparing to disguise myself.

The steps creaked as whoever it was came up. “Calm down, Amethyst; he’s helping us.”

I blanked for a moment, before realizing what he meant. “What!” I exclaimed. “I thought I said that you weren’t supposed to tell anyone! Not go blab it to the first pony to meet.” I realized something else I should have recognized immediately. “Wait, what about the maid? Is she–”

Something inside Ocean snapped. He rounded upon me, his mouth twisted in a soundless snarl. “Are you really that stupid, or is it just an act! Huh!?” He prodded me in my chest, forcing me back a step. “So, you want us to find a stallion, one very specific stallion? Sure, we could do that, if there was nothing else.” He prodded me in the chest again; harder this time. “You are a changeling. We’re not! We can’t just change our appearance with at a whim, and he already knows what we look like!”

Right, the inn. Still, my eyes rose to his mane, then back down. I really couldn’t help myself.

He looked like he wanted to slap me. “For all things holy, could you trust us to do our job for once! It’s not like you don’t know who we’ve asked. You’ve already have met Gallant Warning.”

I blinked; I hadn’t expected that. “Gallant Warning? The same guy who I made look like a changeling? He was willing to help?”

“Damn right I was,” Gallant Warning said, striding into the room. “Here, catch.” A cylindrical object, little bigger than my hoof flew at me. The white wrapper have little red tacos on it. I looked back up at him as he passed Ocean Wind and Starlight each one.

“How did you they manage to talk you into this?” I asked.

He snorted. “Wasn’t much of a problem for them. It took them about two minutes to convince me.”

“And what’s this place?”

Gallant Warning suddenly looked uncomfortable. “Amethyst,” Ocean began, “Gallant is the son of a minor lord. This is one of their several houses.”

“This one is more of a cottage,” Gallant offered weakly.

I glanced back at him. “You’re rich?”

He grunted. “Yes, I am.”

“So why are you serving in the guard then?” The words had left my mouth before I could spare them any thought.

“Unlike some around here, I would not rather not leech off my birthright, thank you very much.”

I bit back a retort; I had probably deserved that. “That didn’t come out right. What I meant to ask was why aren’t you out helping your father or something? If your father is a lord, wouldn’t that make you a–”

“Young lord, yes, but I’m sure father and mother need plenty of help placing their bits into slot machines or drinking martinis by the poolside. After all, I hear Las Pegasus is lovely this time of year. Besides, nearly an eighth of the guard has ties to nobility some way or another. My case is really not all that uncommon.”

I got the picture pretty clearly. Still, there was one thing which begged to be asked. “And just how rich are we talking about?”

Gallant Warning glanced at me from the corner of his eye, and grumbled. He walked over and opened up a set of blinds. “See that?” He asked pointing to a floating yacht.

Sitting outside the window, off in the distance, was a frankly outrageous yacht. Ever from where I stood, I could see the trim which had been carved into every piece of word, and the gleam of precious metals from the railings. A beautiful rose had been stitched into the gas envelop, something I don’t even want to fathom how long it took. “Yes... They own that!” I could probably spend my entire life working, and still not have enough to purchase so much as even half of the gas envelopes

He shut the blinds. “No, they own two. Can we please get back to business?”

“Gallant is right,” Ocean Wind said. “Either way, we can talk about this more after we start working.”

I hesitated, forming another question in my mind, but the moment was lost. The others had gathered back around the table, leaving me standing, holding my supper. I peeked inside the wrapper and was greeted by the sight, and more importantly, smell of a burrito. I took a bite. Make that a rice and bean burrito.

A stack of papers thumped against the floor, as Gallant undid the straps tying them to his back. I took a step closer. “What’s that?”

Gallant tore open the covering, the same sort of paper stores would use for groceries bags. Inside were a bunch of different newspapers. He offered one to me. “Here.”

I looked at the title as I took it from him, Mayham in Canterlot. The picture depicted a building being burnt to the ground. At closer examination, I realized it wasn’t Marmalade’s inn. I glanced back up to Tangled. “And what is this supposed to show me?”
Picking something up from the table, which was an utter mess of cut papers and paperclips, Ocean Wind took a few steps towards me. In his hoof he held a newspaper clipping. This was also about another recent incident in Canterlot, a result of the invasion, if the first few sentences were correct. I gave the clipping back.

“The first thing we need to do if we have any hope of finding the stallion–”

“Pitz,” I interrupted, “his name is Pitz.”

Starlight nearly choked on a bite of her burrito. “And how do you know that?” she demanded.

“At the meeting this morning. Didn’t you hear him talking to Cadence?”

Starlight shook her head. “I had to clear out of there before anypony recognized me. I hung around just close enough to follow you and make sure to drop off that note.”

“Regardless,” Ocean Wind began, “if we are to find Pitz, we will have to figure out the extent of the riots in Canterlot, and the causes behind them.”

“Wouldn’t you already know some of them?” I asked. “And is this really the best way to find out?”

“For the basic stuff, sure, but that doesn’t change everything else. And do you really expect just the three of us to be better at finding information than the press? They make a living off of finding and writing about news. Unless we had the entire guard, we’re not even going to try to keep up.”

“Will you do some searching on your own, though?”

“Will you be alright with us bringing more ponies in on this?” he shot back.

I sighed. As much as I hated to admit it, I could see where he was coming from. It’s just... I’m not sure if I could trust them. Heck, I even realize I didn’t want to trust them. Gallant Warning might be alright, but for any others? They might just go right to the princesses and end our little investigation, not to mention the changeling council inevitably finding out. Ultimately, though, Ocean Wind was correct; there was no way they could find Pitz if they didn’t have help. “Fine,” I relented. “But only if I could meet them. Who are you even thinking of asking anyway?”

“A couple of friends, reservists and some others who’ve almost recovered from their injuries,” Starlight supplied. “Heck, I’m pretty sure I could get my brother to see if the fire department has anything that could help us. They probably have a better record of each incident then the guard does.”

“And in the meanwhile, you can give us some help,” Gallant Warning said, offering me a pair of scissors. “We still have a lot to go through, and you can tell us about Cadence’s speech while we are waiting.”

Well, it wasn’t like I had anything better to do.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of the evening passed by slowly. At the end of the few hours, my horn had started to ache something fierce from all the cutting. Granted, it wasn’t like I had cast all that much magic, but I had been holding those scissors for an awfully long time. I could handle bursts of magic fine, even over a long period of time, but teacher had never really drilled me on constant use of magic. Sure the disguises were constant in a way, but those were hardly the same thing.

The small pile of cut articles had grown into a mound. Starlight had started to sort them a little while ago, instead of cutting, given that she was still feeling the effects of her teleportation earlier. There was something else she was making marks on, but I couldn’t see it from where I sat.

Anyway, I had quickly tired of reading the articles, because so many of them were the same. The Equestrian Times and the Cloudsdale Post, for instance, covered largely the same material, but it was their viewpoints which were important. One newspaper might make note of something that the other failed to mention, or go into greater detail on a specific point. I was just paging through a magazine when Starlight plopped a map onto the table: what she had been working on.

It was quite clearly a map of Canterlot, that much I could gather from looking at it. It was the massive sized map that you might hang on the wall of a bedroom, and it had ample room to make markings, which Starlight had taken advantage of. Here and there were small scribbled markings around streets and buildings.

Fire at this location...

Rioting and looting...

Destruction of property...

“What’s this?”

“A really, really rough crime map,” Starlight answered wearily.

“So what is it showing?”

“Each of the markings show events or crime which are related to changelings in some manner or another. If what you say is true, and Pitz is forcing at least some of these, then there should be things which stand out. Just take a look.”

“Right...” I glanced down at the countless scribbles and markings, before looking over to Ocean. “What’s this?”

Honest to god, Starlight actually growled at me. The look she gave me... Well, to be quite blunt, pissed would be an understatement. “Fuck you too, Amethyst.” she snarled. “Just because you are too stupid to see it, doesn’t mean we can’t.”

Where the hell had that come from? Ok, so maybe that had been a bit rude of me. “Sorry,” I blurted. “I didn’t mean for it to come out like that.”

“And Amethyst admits he doesn’t think before he speaks. Woooo, shocker.” I don’t think she could have laced her words with any more sarcasm.

“Star,” Ocean Wind exclaimed sharply.

Starlight held the bridge of her nose and nodded slowly. “Alright,” she sighed.

“Just hold in there a little longer, ok?”

Starlight gave him a weak little smile. “Ok.”

Ocean turned back to me, though he didn’t seem very pleased with me. “The point of this, Amethyst, is to determine the epicentre of the crimes, and to narrow down which areas are spontaneous, and which are unusual in some form or another. Got it so far?”
I nodded.

“Now, I know you say that Pitz controlling mobs, but for all we know, he could just be after you.” I bristled at the comment, but held my tongue. “If that is the case, then nothing should obviously stand out against the yearly crime maps.”

“Let me get this straight, you’re going to see if I’ve been telling the truth just through a couple of maps?”

“There are patterns to crime, just like there are patterns to everything else. The study of crime is called criminology”

“And you’re a criminology-ist .”

“It’s pronounced, criminologist,” Gallant cut it. “Ocean Wind isn’t, but both Starlight and I have taken a few courses on the matter.

“A few...” That really inspired confidence. “Can’t we just focus on finding–” Next thing I knew, all I could see was stars. When I recovered enough to make sense that I was lying on my back, looking up at the ceiling. My muzzle hurt something fierce, and I probed my tongue around my teeth to make sure none of them had broken. By the time I raised my head, I saw Mirra panting slightly, a dark scowl upon her face. Both Ocean Wind and Gallant Warning looked at her in shock.

“What the hell was that for?” I said. I suddenly realized my nose was bleeding as the coppery taste filled my mouth. “All I asked was if we couldn’t just focus on finding him?”

Starlight made a show of slapping her forehead. “How could I be so stupid! Of course; it is just a matter of finding him. It’s not like we know where to look, or even have the ponypower to do it. I mean, clearly, there is no reason we shouldn’t have him bound up in chains right now.”

I wisely chose to keep my mouth shut, partly because of the glare I was receiving: nothing less than murderous. I’m guessing Starlight’s day went very poorly, or something. “You’re always doubting us; always finding some reason to assume us ignorant.” The table shook as she pounded a hoof against it. “Just for once... Just for once, I would like to be heard and trusted, not just ignored. Is that too much too fucking well ask?”

I couldn’t muster a reply that wouldn’t sound half-assed and a lie.

Walking around from his side of the table, Ocean Wind drapped a hoof around her shoulders, pulling her into a one legged hug. “Star, why don’t you get some rest. I know you’re more exhausted than you are letting show.”

Starlight deflated as though she had been a balloon popped by a needle. Suddenly, she just looked incredibly tired, more tired than I have thought was possible. Ocean’s words seemed to have reached her, though, as the scowl fell from her face as she wearily rubbed at her eyes. “Thanks, Ocie.” She leaned up and kissed his cheek. Colour me surprised; ignoring what happened in the cell, that’s the first kiss I’ve seen between them, even if it was just on the cheek.

The door she took was only a few steps away, and from the solid thump a moment later, she must have just straight up collapsed into her bed. Ocean Wind turned and walked straight passed me to the door, and held it open.

“It’s time for you to held back to the castle,” Ocean said, his tone offering no room for argument. “We can finish up without you.”
Though I opened my mouth to say something, nothing came out. Instead, all I could was meekly nod my head. I summoned a disguise and walked through.

Before he shut the door, however, Ocean Wind added one last comment. “You know, she’s not wrong.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By the time I got back to my castle, it was late. The moon was rising, and the Solar Guard had passed off their duties to the Lunar Guard. Getting in the castle had been easy enough, but Ocean Wind’s words still echoed in my head.

You know, she’s not wrong.

Many thoughts flew through my head, but I didn’t dwell on any. I could piece everything together when I wasn’t so tired, otherwise I’d be up all night. I hope Marmalade was still awake, however; I wouldn’t mind talking to her for a little bit. The walk to my room wasn’t long, and before I knew it, I was opening the door to my room, grateful for the day to be over.

From the dimmed lights, and the gentle rise and fall of the lump in the bed covers, Marmalade was already asleep. Sighing to myself, I took a quiet step towards the bed.

“I am really disappointed in you, Amethyst.”

The words caused me to freeze; to seek out the sound of the voice. I hadn’t seen her when I had come in, but Mirra sat at the table, her forelegs crossed. She did not look pleased.

“I expect many things of you, but being so sloppy is not one of them.”

Ah, she must be talking about me leaving the castle. “Teacher, I know it was a rough job, but I was in a hurry.”

“No!” she snapped. “Calling it rough would be a compliment. Pathetic, maybe, a dismal failure, absolutely. Do you know how many ponies saw you, and knew that you had taken a disguise?”

“Why were you even following me?”

“Do I really need to explain that, or are you going to answer the damn question?”

“Fine. A couple of ponies saw me.”

Her eyes narrowed. “A couple... Is that really all you can tell me? Had you been paying any attention to those around you, you would have realized that three guards, a butler, and a cabinet minister saw you. Granted, the cabinet minister was too busy reading a book to really recognize it, but the fact remains that you failed.”

My ears drooped as I sighed. “So, let me guess, the Princesses know about my little excursion into the city.”

“No, they do not.” That got my attention. “I took the liberty of erasing your mistakes.”

“How?” I was starting to get worried. I wouldn’t put it passed teacher to employ slightly less than ethical means to ensure something remained hidden.

Rather than supply an answer, Mirra let her magic speak for her. A surge of dim yellow fire raced over her, altering her appearance, to...

To me.

A carbon copy of myself, right down to my mane length, and the sheen of my fin, stalked towards me. I should have known it was going to be something like this. “And how long you were disguised as me?”

I (Mirra) answered the question. “Well, you have a lesson with me tomorrow. Luna wants to sit in on it. I had supper with Marmalade; she even gave me a kiss. A few guards thought it would be fun to harass me, so I threw them into a wall. I don’t think they will spend that long in the infirmary, though. I did have to put up with the acting captain of the guard for a little bit, after that; he thought it prudent to lecture me and threaten to throw me into a cell. Thankfully, he seemed to back off after I told him to go shove it up his ass.” Mirra tapped a hoof against her chin. “Hmm what else... Oh yes. Celestia thinks your favorite food is pickled beets. You told her as much, at least.”

Of course she did. I hate pickled beets. I wanted to go find a wall to pound my head against in frustration. “Why?”

“Quit whining,”” she ordered, finally returning to her normal appearance. “I didn’t do anything you wouldn’t have done yourself.”

Unfortunately, she was probably right. That is, except–

“Except for the pickled beets,” teacher added. “So tell me, what was so important that you had to run off into the city?”

I almost told her. Honest to the masters, I almost opened my mouth and told her everything. It was only as the first syllable was beginning to form that I realized my mistake. I might trust Mirra immensely, but ultimately, she answered to the council. She wasn’t one to shy away from her duties, so if I told her, rest assured she would tell the council.

I shook my head. “Can’t say.”

“Well, next time perhaps I won’t feel so obligated to cover for your mistakes. Understand?”

I could only nod.

“Well, in that case, I will be taking my leave. I shall be seeing you bright and early in the morning.”

I couldn’t prevent the groan from escaping. “How early?” It took me a long time, when I was younger, to understand that when Mirra said early, she meant early.

“Seeing as how we don’t want to inconvenience Princess Luna, oh, say roughly four o’clock.”

Great... Less than seven hours of sleep. “Night, Mirra.”

I could hear her smirk as she walked past me. “Night, Amethyst.”

Author's Note:

I was really trying hard to finish the editing last night, but I just couldn't get it done before a reasonable time. So instead, I held off publishing the chapter, and looked over it today.

On that note, I would like everyone to take a look at my latest blog post. It will explain why the last few entries of my story have been a little rougher than the earlier ones, and there is a bit of a request in it as well.

Comments

[Unknownlight]

My muzzle hurt something fierce, and I probed my tongue around my teeth to make sure none of them had broken. By the time I raised my head, I saw Marmalade panting slightly, a dark scowl upon her face.

Yup, you need an editor.

Woah, Amethyst seriously took some heat this chapter. Why are they even friends with him, again? Also, Mirra is aggravating. I'm not sure what she expects from a changeling she abandoned years ago.

Looking forward to the next chapter.

[theRedBrony]

“It’s time for you to held back to the castle,”

[Barbecue Sauce]

Starlight was a fucking cunt this chapter.

[Ghrathryn]

4341205

To be fair to Star, she's been putting up with Amethyst practically since he got himself caught and she's probably had about an hour's sleep over the past 2+ days the way she's written, I'm not really surprised she's a bitch when she's all but drunk on fatigue and having a civilian that knows basically nothing about her job questioning everything she and Ocean are doing to find the guy that's trying to cause a problem with the changelings.

[paul]

By the time I raised my head, I saw Mirra panting slightly, a dark scowl upon her face.
Emm, I suppose it should be Starlight ?