Chapter 8
The deck of the Don’t Panic wasn’t very large and it didn’t take long for Flicker to inspect it. The ship part of the airship was about nine feet in height, about eight feet in width, and a little less then twenty six feet in length. It was a small vessel, little more than a private yacht. Flicker, after his inspection, returned to the doctor and offered an awkward salute, which he felt was the right thing to do.
“Is there a problem, First Mate Nicker?” Doctor Sterling, who was enjoying this joke at Flicker’s expense, somehow held his composure and kept himself from smiling. He rather enjoyed watching Flicker squirm.
“Doctor Sterling… Captain Sterling?” Flicker paused, unsure of what to say. “Captain, there seems to be an issue with the plank. I cannot find it.”
“You mean you didn’t bring the plank?” The doctor made a special effort to look bothered, very bothered. “The First Mate is responsible for remembering the plank. How could you forget?”
“Now we have a bigger problem,” Flicker said, looking dejected and ashamed.
“And that is?” Doctor Sterling asked.
“I have committed an infraction and through my own failure, I do not have a plank to walk myself down. I have failed you, Doctor Sterling. Should I throw myself over the rail?”
Realising that the colt would, in fact, throw himself over the rail, Doctor Sterling’s mouth pressed into a tight, puckered line beneath his silvery mustache. There was just no joking with some ponies. The doctor was both distressed and relieved. Flicker took his duties so seriously, and because of this, the doctor knew that Piper would be safe, but the doctor did worry about the fact that Flicker was oblivious to when a joke was being played on him. The poor colt had been born with an unfortunate condition—no sense of humour to be found anywhere, and the doctor had spent a great deal of time looking. Piper and Hennessy both were going to have no end of laughter at Flicker’s expense.
“First Mate Nicker, as captain of this vessel, I issue forth a formal pardon for your failure.” Try as he might, Sterling could no longer find this funny. “Go and enjoy yourself. See the world down below. Relax on deck. Perhaps spend time with Miss Pie and Mister Walker.”
“Perhaps a plank could be fashioned from something?” Flicker offered.
“Flicker...”—the doctor hesitated after using the colt’s first name—“keep the ship safe from any roving bands of air pirates.”
It took a moment as the wheels in Flicker’s head turned over to process this new information. “Aye aye, Captain.” Adjusting his sword, Flicker turned about and then began to pace the deck, leaving the doctor dumbfounded.
“You do good work, First Mate Nicker… keep us safe.”
Looking into two bright and eager faces, Doctor Sterling held up the mask that was the symbol of his profession. His keen eyes observed their reactions, their curiousity, and in the case of Miss Pie, a keen sense of desire. Like Flicker, she would be a natural for this career, and he had no doubt that she would make for a fine working wizard.
Some wizards lazed about all day in towers, sometimes discussing theory or cracking open dusty old books, other wizards actually went out and worked, making the world a better place. He was determined to make certain that Miss Pie turned into a working wizard, and not some lazy old crackpot, frittering away her great potential.
“The masks weren’t always magical, but they became that way over time.” The doctor had taught this history lesson a thousand times or more, and he still loved the romance and the history of his craft. “In the olden days, the long beak part was filled with aromatic herbs and alchemical talismans that would help to balance the four humours of the body. Also, an orange spiked with cloves was common to help keep out the stink. We’ve come a long way since then, and now the beaks are filled with delicate crystal batteries that hold spells and spell energy.”
“It’s a little creepy,” Hennessy said as he averted his eyes, fearing some act of reprisal. When nothing happened, the colt held his head up a little higher and focused once more upon the mask. “I done reckon it has to be creepy though, and there’s a reason for it. I don’t think a gas mask would get the same reaction from the public, right?”
“Correct, Mister Walker.” Pleased with his student, Doctor Sterling beamed. “These masks carry with them the weight of tradition. Mister Gallows, who ran the Canterlot guild before Mister Chandler, he tried to change the design to something more modern. Princess Celestia herself made a strict ruling that prevented any change. These masks are our history, our culture, the symbols of our profession, and the centuries of use have left an impression upon the public at large.”
“Sort of like how wizards wear big floppy conical hats.” Hennessy took a step back, then sat down upon the floor. “How long will Flicker keep pacing the deck?”
“Until such a time that he is relieved,” Doctor Sterling replied. “It’s good for him. He’s a purposeful type and he needs something to do.”
“So these masks are like a police officer’s badge or a firefighter’s helmet. They’ve existed for so long that any attempts to change them would be met with an outcry.” Following Hennessy’s example, Piper sat down. “And no doubt, they create a sense of unity and uniformity, as guild members from any major city would all be wearing the same mask, the same mark of brotherhood.”
“Correct, Miss Pie.” Sterling gave the filly a nod of approval and was rewarded with a warm smile. With a mindful flick of his magic, Sterling kept the ship on course and looked after supper, which was simmering in the galley. “Now, a word of warning… when first putting the mask on, there will be no air to breathe and you may feel like you are going to suffocate. It can take ten to twenty seconds for the air scrubber to kick in. Remain calm and do not panic. The mask will keep out disease, toxic fumes, harmful magical miasmas of most types, and in an emergency, will allow you to breathe underwater for extended periods of time, but the batteries will eventually wear down.”
“Mister Sterling, if I may ask, how much does a mask cost to make?” Eyes glimmering with curiousity, Piper waited for a response, but then posed another question, “How come firefighters and the like do not use magical masks like these to keep themselves safe? I am assuming there is some cost issue responsible.”
“Ah, there is the question hardly ever asked in orientation.” Mustache quivering, Doctor Sterling smiled. “Each mask costs about twenty thousand bits in materials, alchemy, and enchantment. Good ponies, like our guild’s patron, Night Light, he makes some of our masks and only asks for the cost of materials, but does not charge for the alchemical reagents or enchantments required. Some of our most skilled working wizards also make the masks. It is a very involved, very complicated process, and if there is even a minor imperfection, the wearer might die or be compromised.”
“Could I learn how to make the masks?” Piper asked.
“Of course,” Sterling replied. “I shall ask Night Light about it once we return. He might allow you to watch him work so that you might learn. The masks do get damaged from time to time, and sometimes need replacing.”
“Is it true that you can see through walls with them?” Hennessy’s face contorted with incredulity. “That almost seems like a superpower, like something in a comic book.”
“I assure you, the masks allow you to see through walls so that you might find where rats and other vermin are hiding. Dark-vision will allow you to see in total darkness, you will be able to peer through walls, and things like rats and fleas will show up with colour coded signatures. Rats are red and fleas, mites, and lice will be orange. Specialised masks will allow you to see invisible creatures, Night Light is working on perfecting those, as we have had disturbing, troubling reports of invisible rats on the west coast. I have yet to see a confirmed report of this, so I doubt that it exists. It’s probably just some new apprentices panicking and covering themselves for a screw-up of some sort. Still, Night Light believes the technology is worth pursuing.”
“The mask will block out my ability to smell disease, won’t it?” Hennessy gave the mask held in Sterling’s magic a squinty look.
“Mister Chandler is going to speak with Night Light about custom enchantments. I don’t know what is possible, but I do know that we want your talent to be fully exploited.” Doctor Sterling felt a magical tug upon the mask he was holding and he let go of it so that Piper could examine it. He marveled at her sense of wonder, her curiousity, and her glee. She reminded him of a much more animated Flicker. He saw all of the makings of a good soldier in the fight against disease.
“After supper, we’ll try the masks on. Mister Walker, please, go and relieve Mister Nicker from his duties, as he has kept us safe from air pirates long enough. Tell him that it is time to eat. Thank you.”
“I can do that.” Rising up, Hennessy took off, his hooves clopping upon the wooden floor.
“Miss Pie, please, help me serve dinner. Thank you.”
“Right!” Motivated and in a hurry, Piper gave the mask back to Doctor Sterling, and then sprinted for the galley.
With a satisfied sigh, Doctor Sterling placed the mask back into his trunk, shut the lid, and then with a smile, he joined Piper in the galley.
Flicker seemed more subdued than usual and he watched every move that Piper made. Supper was over, the dishes were done, and the galley was ship-shape. The excitable filly had a dishwashing cantrip and had made short work of the cleanup. For Hennessy, living with unicorn magic was a miraculous thing and he needed time to adjust.
“So, I just put the mask over my face, it’ll grab me, and then I won’t be able to breathe for a few seconds.” Piper blinked and her excited face showed signs of fear. “I guess the mask is making a good seal and getting its protections up and running.” More fear showed up and her ears drooped. “I almost drowned once in a vat of molasses. Please don’t think less of me if I freak out.”
“No one will think less of you,” Flicker said in a flat voice that held no trace of feeling.
As it turned out, Flicker’s cold reassurance was just what Piper needed. She turned to look at him, saw her own reflection in his eyes, and without knowing how she knew, she knew that he would save her. If there was trouble of any sort, he would save her. He wouldn’t panic, he wouldn’t hesitate, he would act.
And that was very reassuring to the worried filly.
Sucking in a deep breath, she pulled the mask from Doctor Sterling’s magic, held it in her own, and after closing her eyes, she slipped it over her face. Right away, her heart began pounding as the mask formed a vacuum and all breathable air just vanished, leaving nothing for her to take in. She was even smart enough to understand why the mask did this, as it was purging any bad air that might’ve been taken in when the mask was put on.
Feeling a sense of creeping terror, she waited for life giving air, and as she did so, she reached out her foreleg as the seconds stretched into an eternity. She felt a strong fetlock close around her own and she guessed that it had to be Hennessy that was holding her hoof. Just when she thought she could bear it no longer, there was air, sweet, wonderful air, and she sucked it into her burning lungs. Her own panic had robbed her of precious oxygen.
Now, everything was fine. She blinked and peered through the lenses of her mask, looking at her companions. Where Flicker had felt purpose, Piper felt power. Wearing the mask, she would be free to fling out dangerous spells like confetti without fear of reprisal. She would be able to wield hazardous life snuffing magics, and thinking about this made the little filly shudder as shivers ran up and down her spine, running from her dock up to the base of her skull.
For Piper, staring through the mask allowed her to see a whole new world, a world full of endless possibilities, a world where the only limits would be her own potential. The mask gave clarity to her vision, her own special view of what she wanted her future to be. For the first time in her life, she had tasted the sweet, sweet nectar of power, and she wanted more.
The price of power was a few moments of suffocation, which she could live with.
There was something peculiar about Piper after the mask had been pulled off, but Hennessy didn’t know what it was. The filly was weird and she didn’t make much sense to him. The colt looked up into the kind face of Doctor Sterling, who held the mask. Hennessy didn’t have any fancy unicorn magic to help him put the mask on, so he had to do it with his own two hooves.
Flicker was looking at him in a way that made Hennessy feel faint. He liked the heavy, blunt stare of Flicker, and something about his companion made Hennessy’s belly feel warm. Distracted, the colt thought back to what his life had been like back home, and for a brief second, a fantasy tickled his mind, a dreadful, wonderful fantasy of Flicker defending him from the taunts and jeers of his family, his neighbors, and the ignorant hicks that had tormented him all of his life.
No doubt, Flicker would rip them a new one, and that made Hennessy feel good.
For Hennessy, the mask represented escape.
With the mask on, he would be a rat catcher, a plague doctor, he would be one of the faceless few that worked in the shadows to the betterment of society. He would no longer be Hennessy, the effeminate colt that was beaten almost every day, or stuffed into the outhouse basement, or having his tail set on fire, or the colt whose father had once in a drunken, bellicose fury, tried to ‘beat the queer outa him for his own good’ while his many brothers cheered him on or joined in.
The mask would make him faceless, hide him, the mask would make him just another pony. Hennessy, feeling a tightness in his chest, looked over at Flicker, Flicker who was very much like a knight in shining armor. Flicker, who didn’t seem to care or even notice that Hennessy was the way he was. Flicker, who stared at him in a most marvellous, alluring way while trying to paint. Flicker, who really wasn’t handsome, not in the least, but there was something attractive about his ferocity and his blunt, direct approach to everything. With Flicker, you knew where you stood, there was no duplicity, no pussyhoofing around, no say one thing but do another.
Reaching out, Hennessy took the mask in his hooves, sucked in a lungful of air, and without further ado, he crammed his face into the mask. Right away, the lack of air was alarming, but he knew that it would pass. He waited in the vacuum, he could feel his eyes going dry in the airless environment, and he began to count just like he would when a thunderstorm started to roll in from the swamps.
One one thousand… two one thousand… three one thousand…
When he reached nineteen, the cold sensation of air graced his face and he inhaled, filling his lungs with much needed air. After a short season of suffocation, being able to breath once more, it was like being born again. Hennessy felt his spirit soar as he embraced his new life, his new opportunities, with each breath he took, filling his lungs, he felt hope returning, he felt like he could have dreams again, and he knew that he could be himself.
For the first time in his life, Hennessy felt as though he was able to breathe free air, air that was free of the bigotry, hatred, and willful ignorance, the miasma of reprehensible foulness that permeated the land of his upbringing. Gasping, he filled his lungs with sterilised air, thankful for the opportunity he had been given.
- For just five bits a day, you too can help the poor unfortunate souls born without a funny bone.
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The proverbial one track mind:
One day, when I have the finds, I'm going to build the 'Continuous Coaxial Helix', where the train goes up the outer helix, crosses to the inside helix going down, then crosses to the outside, goes up, crosses to the inside, goes down, crosses to the outside, goes up, crosses to the inside, goes down, crosses to the outside, goes up, crosses to the inside, goes down, crosses to the outside, goes up, crosses to the inside, goes down, crosses to the outside, goes up, crosses to the inside, goes down, crosses to the outside, goes up, crosses to the inside, goes down... While at the same time, the whole Continuous Coaxial Helix structure is on a turntable that spins at just the right speed that the train only appears to go up and down, but never goes forward or back!
I wonder what would happen if Flicker met Pinkie.
Flicker.
breathe
Am I being dumb or has there been no description of Piper's mark/talent?
Damn, that is a glimpse at their souls right there. I wonder how the Dr. is under that mask.
7743745 The universe would implode at her trying.
7743756
Not directly, but her name hints at the pied piper who charmed the rats of Hamelin with his flute playing and led them out of town.
7743763
My brain is just not wired to make that connection on it's own. Now that you say it I totally see it. Especially since she is a Pie and Pinkie has done something similar with Parasprites.
7743756
Soon.
Since you missed the Patreon chat, I'll give you a rundown.
Piping Hot Pie, AKA, Piper, has a super-cute flute cutie mark. (Say that three times fast!) She can create her flute as a magical construct. If she shapes her flute like a rat, and plays her flute, she summons rats. If she shapes it like, say, a cat, she summon cats from the nearby area. It's not a super powerful talent, like, say, having a talent for magic, but it is a practical talent.
7743766
That was the source of my inspiration with Piper's character.
7743756
Explicitly, no.
But she was called Piper only after she got her cutie mark.
Her name is a nice play on words, too. I like it.
Edit: apparently I am late to the party.
7743731 Stop, I'm getting seasick on your helix mobius train ride. Please Zip it!!
This just got deeper.
No innuendo intended, but they're certainly welcome!
So there are rumors of invisible rats, but no one's actually seen any.
7744003
A corpse to dissect would go a long way towards proving they exist.
I never added my two cents to the chapter. Or five bits, in this case, I guess.
Hennessy's part is just heartbreaking. Poor little fellow.
Methinks Flicker will give to and/or receive from Hennesy his own special 'funny bone' later.
7744088
One shudders to think about Flicker's approach to romance.
7743295 oh thank you.
I thought I made a major L right their.
7744103 He will be eficient and methodical...always looking for improvement and practice using the right tools...
- Flicker...oh sweet Celestia...that was...that was...
- Adequate. You need to work on your moans. Also, you need a better grip to produce better friction...as for me...it´s clear I need to work on my stamina and range...I´m sure I can reach deeper with some practice...
- I´m terrified and horny at the same time...
7744103
I would imagine it would be less an 'approach', and more 'screaming jet on fire crash landing from the air'.
I'm starting to think Flicker is less overly dedicated and more a high functioning sociopath. . .
7744103
Flicker: Romance? Is that practical? Just tell someone what you want to do, then do it if they agree. You don't need the rest of it.
7744290
You assume there is always a difference. ;)
7743767
In this profession, it's OP as hell. Need to clear an entire building? Just place a bundle of alchemical candles in the lobby and play the rat flute for a few minutes.
7744589
Every pony has something that they are truly gifted at, some greatness lurking within them. Something that makes them special and worthwhile.
"At last I am complete"?
7744592
I have the feeling that between them, those three are going to enact hell upon all pests and plague in the world.
Poor Flicker is too certain about things, that's his problem. He badly needs to be confused.
Dang, I definitely wasn't expecting little Piper to be so hardcore.
I really connected with piper here, power is earned through suffering. Being a practitioner of multiple martial arts, I've been ran till I puked, slammed, punched, choked, been left bloody and bruised, had my extremities bent and twisted to the point of almost breaking, more times than I care to count... but it was all worth it in the end.
I'm curious as to how much training Piper actually has. She seems to be privy to the RCG's modus operandi and has quite the repertoire of spells for a nine year old. But she also doesn't appear to have had any field training, e.g. never having worn a mask. Long story short, I can't wait to see how this mission plays out!!
7744228
This is pretty good, though I think the art of moaning isn't something Flicker would focus on. The rest was sufficiently Flicker-esque though*
* in my opinion, which may or may not have any weight, bearing, nor value.
7744460 There is ? Is there ? They never told me ´bout it...
This is far more interesting than I expected from the general premise, though I suppose I should have expected that. The Dickens feel of it, the deeper problem that is developing with the rats, Night Light as a patron of the guild (which makes a lot of sense considering the goals of his secret society), just very interesting.
The characters are pretty fun, too, especially Flicker.
You know, if and when Hennessy and Flicker hook up, there is going to be a lot of angry rednecks knocking upon the rat catcher guild's door. I expect they'll last about three seconds (five tops) before they are either poisoned by the good doctor, beaten to death with candles by Wicked, skewered by Flicker, or obliterated by Piper.
I think Hennessy is going to be fine.
Am I the only one hoping for a Love Triangle here? <.<
7769127
I predict a Quadrangle.
I love the technical details of your Masks.
Flicker sounds like a classic authoritarian personality, of the sort who can either do great good or great evil depending upon whom he follows. I've known people like that. I would say that Flicker is more inclined to good than evil, but that's largely because of the fact that he's been under the tutelage of Sterling, a fundamentally good Pony.
Piper is just freaking adorable.
Hennessy reminds me a little bit of someone we both know.
Is Flicker sociopathic or autistic?
Is it even something you care to put a label on?
7925856
Neither.
He has a cutie mark issue.
You and Estee, man.
7925878
He has Fallen into his mark.
I ship Flicker and Hennesy
Oh god, I just realized what must be up with Flicker. It's like Flam, isn't it? His Cutie Mark is messing with his head.