Scarlet

by Skijarama

Newcanter

Newcanter. After a few more days of uneventful travel, the city finally came into view.

The great capital of New Equestria, the place where ponies started over after The Fall, was just as grand and impressive as Scarlet remembered. Enormous walls of heavily reinforced stone enclosed a practical metropolis that had been built up over the course of four hundred years. At its heart was an impressive castle that towered over the rest of the city and warned off any who would dare threaten its inhabitants.

The various structures that lined the streets were taller the closer to the castle they were, making the city almost look like a mountain as the roofs sloped closer and closer to the ground, with the pointed roofs of the castle being the very peak. Visible to the south was a wide river that caught the morning sunlight, and a large harbor had been constructed there for trade vessels and naval ships.

Scarlet cringed. It had been years since she had last laid eyes on the capital of the country. Specifically, it had been when she was being carted back to Swanrun after her discharge from the military. Her ‘escort’ had stopped in the city long enough to finalize her dismissal and treat himself at the local inn and tavern for the night.

Not the most pleasant memory.

“You okay?” Primrose asked from her perch on Scarlet’s back. “You feel kinda tense.”

Scarlet hummed quietly. “Once upon a time, this city might have made me feel safe and secure. But the last time I was here, I was in chains. And now I am a wanted fugitive, and this is the source of the ponies that hunt us. I’m not exactly thrilled to be here,” she explained simply before glancing sideways at Lens. “Remember. We are only staying here for a day, two at the absolute maximum.”

“I know,” he replied with a curt nod, his expression serious. “I have no intention of staying any longer than that. With any luck, I might be able to smuggle out the tools I need to keep studying the lamp.”

“See to it that you do. The sooner we know what that thing truly is, the better.”

Primrose frowned before propping herself up on Scarlet’s head. “So, uh, are we doing fake names again?” she asked curiously.

Lens raised an eyebrow. “Fake names?”

“It was my idea,” Scarlet said. “Back when we arrived in Shimmervale, we came up with fake names to try and throw Silent off our scent. I was Sapphire, and Primrose was Protea.”

Lens’s eyebrow fell back down. “Well, considering how quickly Silent found us before…” he pointed out slowly.

Scarlet cringed at the implication and nodded. “I am well aware. Our false identities did little and less to hide our presence from Silent. However, it is possible that he knew we were going to you in advance. Our names didn’t slow him because he didn’t have to ask for us,” she reasoned, shuddering at the prospect of the assassin knocking down their door in the night again. “Better safe than sorry.”

Lens was quiet for a second before looking ahead at the capital. “Alright, fair enough… I’ll be Looking Glass, then,” he said, nodding back at his cutie mark for emphasis. “We have to be sure our names are believable, after all.”

Scarlet nodded. “Indeed. I’ll remain as Sapphire, and Primrose shall remain as Protea.”

“Okay,” Primrose nodded quickly before resting her chin on top of Scarlet’s head. “So, uh, what are we doing once we’re inside?”

“Our first objective is to head directly for the academy and have Lens call in whatever favors he has to in order to gain access to the tools he needs to study your lamp in detail,” Scarlet began without even a moment’s hesitation, her mind springing into action and picking apart everything she knew about the city. “Once that is done, our next priority is to secure shelter for the night. A local inn would be sufficient, although we would want one where we’ll blend in.”

“It’s a rather big city,” Lens pointed out calmly. “Finding a suitable place shouldn’t be too difficult.”

Scarlet hummed quietly. “True, I suppose,” she acknowledged before clearing her throat and lifting her head up higher. “Now, everypony hush. We’re almost to the gate.”

The tall and imposing city gates stood open, as did the two layers of heavy, reinforced portcullises, allowing a thick and steady stream of ponies, and even the occasional Hippogriff, to come and go. The gates were made of some manner of heavy metal, and on them was an engraved depiction of Celestia and Luna flying around one another, their horns touching in the middle. The paint that had granted the image color had faded and flaked away over time, leaving only trace amounts left.

It was easy enough for Scarlet, Lens, and Primrose to blend in with the crowd, keeping their heads down and slinking in. A collection of four guards stood watch on the outside of the gate, their eyes sweeping the crowds curiously. Luckily, they didn’t seem to take note of Scarlet and her entourage any more than the other ponies coming and going.

Scarlet let out a quiet sigh of relief once they passed through the gates and entered into the city proper, affording her an unobstructed view of the city up-close. The streets were pristine and well-paved, and the outermost buildings that hugged the edge of the wall were similarly well-maintained—pearly white stone walls with roof tiles of either bright yellow or dark blue. Ornately curving arcane lamp posts lined the streets in even intervals and curved over the street, creating the illusion of a corridor of light.

Primrose shifted on her back before speaking quietly into her ear. “Hey, what’s with all of the banners and decorations?” she asked softly.

Scarlet blinked before giving the city another, more critical look. Sure enough, there were tapestries, banners, and a whole assortment of decorations lining the streets, connecting the roofs of homes with their neighbors across the street, and livening up the homes themselves. They were all themed after the rising sun, making the city practically glow. And with that sight came the most unexpected of sounds; music. Somewhere farther ahead, ponies were playing a piece of lively music with harps, violins, an upbeat drumbeat, and flutes.

The realization came to her after a moment, and her eyes widened. “The Festival of Foundations…” she whispered, somewhat awestruck, but more just shocked that, out of every day of the year, they got to arrive in Newcanter today.

Primrose tilted her head. “What’s that?”

Scarlet’s lips slowly managed to twitch up into a soft smile. “It’s… it’s a festival almost as old as New Equestria itself,” she said, slowing down somewhat. “See, when Newcanter was first formed, it was really little more than a refugee camp made by ponies who fled the encroaching armies of griffons. For a long time, we were not recognized as our own sovereign nation. We were just a splinter faction to be brought to heel. But when the Griffons finally deigned to follow us, we were able to drive them off long enough to wear them out and be officially recognized as our own country. This festival was started to celebrate that day, the official beginning of New Equestria… and the beginning of a new dawn for ponykind.”

Lens shifted closer to Scarlet’s side to avoid getting lost in the energetic mass that was the crowd. “Well, we picked a good day to show up,” he said with a smile of his own growing. “It’ll be a lot harder for us to be noticed in all of this happy chaos.”

The group soon exited the thoroughfare that served as the entrance to Newcanter and entered into an enormous, sprawling plaza. Three ornate fountains formed a triangle shape around the edges, each one themed after night, day, and the twilight hours, respectively. In the center of those fountains was a grand statue, depicting Celestia, Luna, and Twilight, their backs pressed together, their wings fanned out, and their heads held high to look down on the ponies below with serene smiles.

But more than that was the sheer volume of activity in this plaza. A collection of stalls had been set up, each one continuing the theme of sunrise, the ponies who managed them calling out to be heard over the roar of the crowd. Market stalls selling food, trinkets, knick-knacks, and a whole host of other things were accompanied by services, competitions, and games. Foals flocked between them in a mad rush, their parents desperately trying to keep up.

Primrose’s eyes locked onto one such group of fillies and colts as they went storming past, giggling and laughing to one another in absolute delight as they chased after what appeared to be a pony dressed up as a manticore. After a moment, she tapped Scarlet on the head a few times. “Um… Scarlet?” she asked timidly. “Can we stay here for a while? I wanna look around…”

Scarlet paused mid-step to glance up at the filly, her expression hardening. “It’s Sapphire in public, remember?” she hissed, glancing briefly around to ensure they hadn’t been heard. Luckily, nopony else seemed any the wiser. Satisfied, Scarlet gently lifted Primrose off of her back and set her down so she could look into her eyes. “And secondly, Protea, no. I’m sorry, but we don’t have time right now. We need to get to the academy and-”

“Actually,” Lens cut her off softly with a tap to her shoulder. Scarlet turned to look at him and found him grinning at her. “It might do you two some good to stay here for a little while and relax. I can get to the academy faster on my own, anyways. I know the streets pretty well from when I studied here, but having to guide you two there would slow me down.”

“Splitting up is dangerous,” Scarlet pointed out with a frown. “We need to stick together here.”

“Hey, you’re a lot better suited to guarding her than I am,” Lens countered without missing a beat. “I deal in shields, barriers, and wards. None of those would last long against Edge or his men. Besides...”

He crouched down to be closer to Primrose’s eye level and ruffled her mane with his smile widening, making her giggle. He looked up at Scarlet. “Both of you could use some stress relief. And you can even look for an inn around here if you want to.”

“Come on, Sapphire, please?” Primrose all but begged, reaching up and hooking her hooves into Scarlet’s cloak so she was practically hanging off of the taller unicorn. “Please, please, please?”

Scarlet hesitated. On the one hoof, they weren’t here to play games or see the sights. They were only going to be here for a day or two at most, and then they were leaving. Getting mixed up in the local festivities would make their departure all the more grueling and unpleasant. But on the other hoof… she looked down at Primrose and into her eyes, thinking back on the journey they had shared thus far.

How many times had she gotten to see Primrose get to be a filly? How many times had Scarlet been able to say that she had seen the foal she swore to protect really have fun, laughing and enjoying herself? Only a few times came to mind, and they were few and far between. Of those times, one stood out to her. They had been walking through the woods and had both devolved into a fit of laughter after making dumb faces at each other. Among that moment of levity, Primrose had said something that stuck with her.

“I think you should smell the roses more, too.”

Scarlet’s uneasy expression eventually softened with a small smile. “Okay, I’ll tell you what,” she began in the ‘motherly diplomat’ voice she had used on Crystal in the past. “Let’s find an inn first. Once we’ve cleaned ourselves up a bit and done something to make us less recognizable, then sure, we can spend some time here. Does that seem fair to you, Protea?”

Primrose’s eyes lit up with elation at the prospect, and she suddenly jumped up to hug Scarlet tightly around the neck. “That sounds great! Yes, yes please!” she squealed, her hind legs kicking enthusiastically underneath her.

Scarlet tilted forward slightly from the weight now dangling off of her neck, her expression becoming pained. “Gah! Hey, down, you’re hurting my neck!” she protested indignantly.

Primrose let go, dropping back to the ground with a big, eager grin. “Sorry! Now come on, let’s find an inn!”

“Not so fast, little one,” Lens interrupted her with a laugh, catching her on his hoof when she tried to go sprinting into the crowd to find an inn. “I need something from you first, remember?”

Primrose paused at that, the joy on her face slowly diminishing. She looked up at Lens with an uneasy expression. Then, with a hesitant nod, she took off her saddlebags and passed them to him. “Just… take good care of it,” she whispered to him. “Please. It’s all I have left of my mom.”

Lens nodded quietly as he took the bags in his magic. He carefully transferred the lamp from her saddlebags and into his own, using the pouch flaps to hide it from any prying eyes. Once it was secure, he passed Primrose her bags and smiled at her. “I’ll protect it with my life, you have my word.”

Primrose was quiet for a second before backing up to stand under Scarlet.

Scarlet leaned down to offer Primrose an affectionate nuzzle, then turned her attention to Lens. “Be careful,” she said simply. “And don’t draw any attention.”

“You have nothing to fear,” Lens confirmed before stepping forward and wrapping her up in a warm hug. “You two just focus on having fun, yes?”

Scarlet stiffened from the suddenness of the embrace, her mind stalling. It didn’t take her long to recover and return the embrace, nodding into his shoulder. “We’ll try.”

Lens seemed satisfied with that answer. He pulled back, smiled down at Primrose, and then turned to march off deeper into the city. Scarlet and Primrose watched him go until, after a few moments, he became completely obscured by the shifting mass of ponies that formed the crowd.

Primrose shuddered and went to take a step after him, but Scarlet put a hoof on her back to stop her. “It’s alright,” she whispered sincerely. “We can trust him. Your lamp is safe with him.”

Primrose was quiet for a second before nodding. “I hope so…”

Scarlet sighed before gingerly lifting Primrose back onto her shoulders with her magic. “Come on, let’s find an inn room since you’re so eager to have some fun,” she said, hoping that the promise of a good time would be enough to assuage Primrose’s concerns over her family heirloom.

A hope that proved to be somewhat successful. Primrose focused ahead and nodded, albeit with slightly less energy than before.

Scarlet turned and began to walk, her eyes scanning the buildings for an inn. She was rather eager to find a place to stay so they could get to playing around in the festival. As much as she wanted to just keep moving, she had to admit… spending some time just horsing around with Primrose in a fair?

It sounded like a lot of fun, and she couldn’t find it in herself to feel anything but excited by the prospect. As she disappeared into the crowd, she began to bounce slightly with every step she took.

Comments

[The Voice in the Water]

Hopefully we get to see Prim get to be a regular filly for a little while before the next big kerfuffle.

[JMP]

Wonder if Lens can get any answers about the lamp. It's not like he has any more time than when Scarlet visited him and Silent showed up.

[Skijarama]

9965221

Either this was scheduled, or New Equestria isn't as adept at controlling the elements as the old.

They pretty much only actively control the weather over populated areas. Without a mobile weather factory like Cloudsdale, controlling the weather over the whole nation is practically impossible to do reliably.

[tom117z]

With any luck, I might be able to smuggle out the tools I need to keep studying the lamp.

Right. Because that'll happen without a hitch, as demanded by the conventions of storytelling.

In the center of those fountains was a grand statue, depicting Celestia, Luna, and Twilight, their backs pressed together, their wings fanned out, and their heads held high to look down on the ponies below with serene smiles.

Cadance:
i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/732/425/7ee.gif