Vessel

by Lusaminia

Chapter 2 - The Friend That You Need Part 2

“Damn it!” She cried out. Looking up to the sky, something else came to her head. “I don’t even know what direction I came from, do I? Ugh, should have thought this out better. Hopefully they can find me.”

“I think they’ll find you first,” Silvia turned to see a pony, mane a nice shade of purple and coat a vibrant pink. What really caught her attention, however, was the pirate-esq uniform and double lightning bolt cutie mark the mare had. “It’s been a while, Silvia Holveneart.”

“Firefly!” The wolf shouted, shooting up quicker than the pony could react and hugging her, accidentally activating the medallion that was around her neck in the process. She quickly noticed the blue glow emanating from around her chest, and tapped it, causing the light to fade. “Hehe, sorry. It’s been a while since I was down here and I wasn’t sure if you had been fired out of the sky yet or anything. It’s wonderful to see you Firefly.”

“Great to see you too, Silvia,” Firefly said, proceeding to hug the wolf back. Silvia felt a smile creep onto her face, momentarily forgetting her worries and letting the touch of an old friend comforted her. “I’ll be honest, when word reached about Canterlot and Aurora, I knew you would head there and I wasn’t sure if I would see you again.”

“It would take more than that to take me down,” Silvia replied. Her smile dropped for a second. “Though I definitely don’t blame you for thinking that way, with how careless I got,” She shook her head and turned back to the pegasus in front of her. “I guess we felt kinda similar though. Truth be told I thought you joining a pirate’s crew would end up with you dead in a few weeks.”

“Just because the average lifespan of a pirate is a few weeks doesn’t mean you can’t have outliers,” Firefly reminded Silvia, nudging her friend playfully. “Besides, this is Captain Celano we’re talking about, the longest reigning sky pirate alive! I’m only dead if she is.”

“Wait, last I heard you were the second longest reigning sky pirates alive,” Silvia said. “Does that mean that he, you know, finally-”

“Kicked the bucket?” Firefly asked, getting a nod. Firefly giggled a little. “Yep, and with his death all of us treasure is now ripe for the taking. Hope you don’t mind but we might be making a stop to collect our “reward” during the trip, if you know what I mean,” Silvia rolled her eyes as Firefly bumped her with her elbow. “Anyways, I’m pretty sure this isn’t what I’m here to find you for.”

“Let me guess, you are the mare Verko has had tracking Clockwork?” Silvia asked, getting a nod in response. “In that case, let me just gather my companions, wherever they are, and I’ll be right back.”

Firefly nodded and waved as Silvia darted down the street, the smile never leaving the wolf’s face. She wish she got to ask about Luminous, but that could wait for later. No words were needing to know where the wolf wanted to hold the meeting, knowing that Firefly would want a drink just as much as she did. There were thousands of differences between Equestria and Ponyland, that was for sure, but if there was one thing she was more than glad about, it was the drinks. Of all the new and exciting things that had come with being a paradox, that was easily one of the greatest. So great, in fact, that it was half the reason she never asked Silvia to send her home.

--------

“So, how long have we been here now?” Gabriel asked the alicorn next to her, the two still laying in the middle of the street. His answer came not from the pony, but from the sky, as he felt two drops of water hit his head. “Nevermind, I figured it out.”

“If you want in exact, it’s around five in the afternoon. That would also mean that this port we are heading to is… south of us,” Flurry Heart replied. She looked over to the griffon, who was staring at her with wide eyes. “What? That’s what the sun says.”

“You can tell what time it is based on the position of the sun?!” Gabriel asked.

“Look, when you're a bored princess with supposedly dead parents, eternally plotting against the pony you believe is responsible, you have a lot of time on your hooves,” Flurry Heart explained, wildly gesturing as she did so. “I spent that time figuring how the sun relates to time which, may I tell you, is a very difficult thing to explain and would rather not go into it,” She looked back to the sun. Not directly, of course, but close enough where directly could be used to describe it. “How is it still moving now that Celestia is dead… now that she is dead.”

“Funny story about that actually, according to Twilight one day it just started moving on it’s own,” Gabriel answered, giving Flurry Heart her turn to be surprised at something. “Anytime Silvia wasn’t over to stop or judge a paradox it seemed I was on another visit to Canterlot. Long story short one day we I decided to watch her lower the sun and well… it didn’t work. Now that I think about it, maybe it has something to do with Celestia’s canon allow her that amount of control over it?”

“No, that was her talent, that couldn’t be it unless…” A thought came to Flurry’s mind, one that she didn’t want to answer but knew she had to in the end. “Could it be possible that her talent was connected to her status as an alicorn and that destroy the canon changed… her… oh.”

Both griffon and pony laid there in silence, thinking about the revelation that had just crossed their minds. That said, Gabriel’s mind quickly changed thoughts as he had a long held suspicion confirmed for him in those moments: Flurry’s motives. Past motives, he should say, considering that with Twilight dead she couldn’t carry out her revenge anymore.He was unsure of whether he should be thankful about that or worried for himself, considering he was a close friend of Twilights. At the moment, he would give her the benefit of the doubt, but knew that even if he wanted to kill her in some justifiable act of self defense, he couldn’t.

Less like he couldn’t and more like he shouldn’t, considering Flurry was the only thing that kept the world stable. If he killed her, if somepony else killed her, then it wasn’t just bad for those around her, but for everypony, whether they knew it or not. Most ponies, griffons, changeling, and so on probably wouldn’t even know that they were about to die or feel it when reality collapsed. He didn’t dare think about what it could feel like, or if he for some reason he would still be able to think at all by that point. There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but the only pony, no, wolf that knew the answer to them could never tell him. After all, how could one explain non-existence?

At that moment, Silvia popped around the corner to see they hadn’t moved at all from earlier. She sighed. “Should have known neither of you would move at all.”

“Just so you know, Silvia, you went in the wrong direction,” Gabriel told the wolf, he had a look of extreme disappointment. “The pony had gone to the right, not the left. You should know by now that everything is to the right.”

“Yeah yeah, I don’t care,” Silvia replied walking over and forcing the alicorn and griffon to stand up. “Come on, we got more important things to be doing then setting on our asses, and that goes especially for you empress,” She gave Flurry Heart a strong glare, one which was returned by the alicorn sticking her tongue out at the wolf. “We have somepony we have to talk.”

“So you got passage booked for the unexplored west?” Gabriel asked, getting a head shake in response. He sighed. “So I guess that means we’re running an errand of some kind for Verko.”

“Don’t worry about that too much. He just wants me to do my job,” Silvia told the griffon, starting to walk off. “We’re meeting a friend of mine at a pub called Shipmates Rest near the port. Oh, and they got some good ale there for you Gabriel,” Gabriel put on the griffon version of a smile at that news. “Also, I’m sure we can find something for you, Flurry.”

“I’ll let you know that just because I don’t curse doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a good wine or brew,” Flurry remarked, doing her best to hold onto some semblance of pride. “You got to know a thing or to if you are to get along with some of the nobility. I’m sure that Gabriel can attest to that,” Gabriel nodded reluctantly. “You don’t give me enough credit Silvia.”

“Well you haven’t done anything to earn so of course not,” Silvia shot back, getting a pout in response. Gabriel did his best to hold back a chuckle at Flurry’s expression. “Come on, let’s get moving.”

--------

For the first time since she arrived in Klugetown, Flurry Heart didn’t feel like she was gonna gag at someplace they were visiting. For all that the city had been, being a filthpit (it wasn’t a word, but Flurry saw it as a fitting description) of criminals and beggars, Shipmates Rest was not too bad compared to everything else. Sure, it wasn’t anything beautiful to look at, but she could tell that the floors were lost and individuals running it cared for their establishment. It meant that they weren’t afraid to kick someone out if they were on the verge of fighting or too drunk to control themselves. So, in other words, what had been stated to her as a “pub” was more like a bar than anything else.

That bar met Flurry with another surprise, as she saw Silvia bounce over to a pink and teal pegasus and wrap her in a hug. It wasn’t surprising in the same way the wolf swearing had been, but more so for somepony who claimed to only care about her daughter surviving, she could have sworn this was her if she never met Luminous. The fact it wasn’t her daughter led to questions, but considering the line of work the wolf found herself in, she didn’t need to guess what the pony was.

“Firefly, I would like to introduce to you Emperor Gabriel Derev of the Griffon Empire and Empress Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire,” Silvia said, the biggest smile on her face. “Gabriel, Flurry Heart, I would like you two to meet one of my oldest friends and one of my first contracts as a paradox hunter on this Equestria, Firefly Phoenix.”

“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance Ms. Phoenix,” Gabriel said with a bow, earning a giggle from the mare. “Is there something funny about what I said?”

“Neither in Ponyland or here have I been called “Ms.”,” Firefly explained. “Honestly, I would prefer to just be called Firefly in the future. Besides, shouldn't I be calling you two Emperor and Empress?”

“If it didn’t make us sound like a married couple,” Flurry Heart said, not realizing exactly what it was she had implied. She and Gabriel looked at each other, before facing away gagging and coughing. “Oh Celestia no, please no, I don’t want to think of that.”

“I swear if I ever, and I mean ever have to marry a griffon with your attitude I’ll…” Gabriel went back into a coughing fit. “I actually don’t know what I would do, because I can’t imagine marrying anyone like you. It’s so… so-”

“Horrifying,” They said at the same time. The griffon and alicorn then noticed that Silvia and Firefly were laughing at them. It was Flurry who spoke up in. “This is a very serious matter.”

“Oh, I’m sure it is, love doves,” Silvia replied, having to hold in the urge to laugh as Flurry Heart keeled over in disgust. “You’re right though, we have work to do. You have seats ready Firefly?”

“Yep, and drink. Booth near the back,” Firefly said, motioning the group to follow her. They sat down, Gabriel taking notice of the fact she had already gotten drinks for Silvia and herself. “I would have gotten you two something but I didn’t want to get it wrong.”

“Completely understandable,” Gabriel said. He shouted to the barkeeper what he wanted before turning back to the mare in front of him. “So, Firefly, I take it you aren’t exactly from Equestria, are you?” Firefly nodded. “Then, if you don’t mind me asking, what is your home like?”

“Well, if you know I’m not from Equestria I’m sure you're aware of Silvia’s, ahem, work,” Firefly replied, getting a nod from both the emperor and empress. “Thought so, it isn’t exactly something she keeps hidden from the public, regardless if I think she should or not,” She shook her head. “Anyways, I’m a paradox as I’m sure you are aware, for a place called Ponyland. It’s a very nice place, though just like Equestria it isn’t always perfect. Like, we also had an incident with Grogar, though I heard your encounter with him wasn’t actually with him, if you know what I mean.”

“A draconequus with too much time on there hands and trying to “test” my aunt?” Flurry Heart asked, shaking her head. “Yeah, that was a thing that happened, and right before her coronation as well. I was only two at the time I think, can’t remember specifically,” A thought came to her head as she said that. “Hey, Silvia, this might be private but how old are you?”

“Physically? When I got here I was how I looked at twenty three years old. That was twenty five years ago, so I’m forty-eight now,” Silvia said, ignoring the shock on the alicorn’s face. It seemed impossible that somepony that old could look as young as she did. “Technically, if we count how old I was when I died back in my Equestria? Seventy-four.”

“Seventy what?!” Flurry Heart said, standing up and leaning over the table. The sound of the pub going quiet, caught her attention, noticing all the eyes that were all on the alicorn now. She sat back down, feeling uncomfortable at the whispers she was hearing as conversations picked back up around her. “Silvia, I’m sorry to doubt you but that is not the body of somepony, or somewolf, that is physically forty-eight.”

“Wise wolves can live twice as long as ponies can, don’t be surprised,” Silvia replied, once again ignoring the fact the alicorn’s jaw was hanging open. “Anyways, we have business to get to. Firefly?”

“Right, I assume Verko has already told you who and what we are dealing with?” Firefly asked, getting a nod from her friend. “Right, I’ll just go over some of the stuff again for these two,” She turned to Gabriel and Flurry Heart. “We’re dealing with a paradox, a rather strange one as well. Showed about two weeks ago, killed one of Verko’s men, and has been on a murder spree ever since. The paradox in question has been referred to as Clockwork, which was given to them because they’re… not exactly self thinking.”

“In other words, this Clockwork is a machine working off some sort of directive,” Silvia continued. “It doesn’t talk, it doesn’t think, it just kills. Anything that goes near it is certain death, you two got lucky,” Flurry Heart swallowed and Gabriel nodded in understanding. “If we are going to destroy this thing we are going to need to get me close to it. Flurry, how powerful is your telekinesis?”

“Your asking a magical prodigy whose magical power was on par with her aunt at age fourteen how good she can levitate things?” Flurry Heart asked with a smug smile on her face. When Silvia scowled at her, that smile dissipated and she sighed. “I can left forty spears at once, plus ten sets of armor, and that’s holding back…” She looked away. “If I didn’t hold back with my magic, I could hurt everypony around me.”

“That will more than do,” Silvia replied. “Gabriel, Firefly, you two better get used to spotting together. Firefly is part of Celano’s crew, and as the two with no magic and wings, anything that involves scouting is going to be your duties,” Gabriel nodded and looked to Firefly. “I don’t think you two will have much problem though.”

“As long as the emperor can pull his weight,” Firefly replied, smiling.

“Ditto,” Gabriel said, holding a talon out. The two shook before looking to Silvia, who motioned them for them to leave. They did so, Firefly grabbing her drink as she did. “Speaking of which, since I know Silvia here can read memories, what exactly can you do.”

“Something that won’t be very useful around a bunch of wooden buildings,” Firefly explained. “The last name Phoenix is literal, or at least it was when I came to Equestria. I can set myself on fire and, while it doesn’t me, everything around me is typically less fortunate.”

“Yikes, but that’s still pretty sweet,” Gabriel responded, winking and giving the mare a thumbs up. “Have you, uh, ever thought about going back?”

Firefly nodded. “Yeah, sometimes, but at the end of the day I don’t think I’m needed there. Besides, Ponyland, even with it’s problems, was nowhere near as interesting as Equestria. I mean, I’m part of a pirate crew! A. Pirate. Crew! What could be cooler than that?”

“I Would say waking up safe on the ground but I think my entire race would denounce me,” Gabriel replied, the two sharing a good joke as they walked out of the pub. Firefly took to the air first, followed by Gabriel.

--------

After the pegasus and griffon left, the table grew eerily quiet. Flurry Heart ordered a drink, Silvia finished hers, but neither spoke a word. The alicorn could see something was on the wolf’s mine, but was unsure if she was rightly able to ask something that could possibly be private. She was, if the wolf was to be believed, nearly twice as old as the mare after all, even if not physically. To a pony, seventy-four was just entering the elderly stage of your life, though that only counted for all tribes not called alicorns. That alone was reason enough for Flurry to not bother asking, but if Silvia’s sigh was anything to go be, that question on her tongue was rather obvious.

“Go on, speak,” Silvia said, though Flurry Heart only looked away. “Look, if the age thing is making you concerned, seventy-four is basically thirty-seven to a pony. We’re a lot closer in our lives than our ages lead on,” When she still didn’t get anything, she put a paw on the alicorn’s drink. “I drink the rest of it on you if you don’t say anythi-”

“I’m more concerned about what's going on in your mind,” Flurry Heart finally said, though Silvia couldn’t tell if it was thanks to the drink or something else. “Something’s troubling you, isn’t it Silvia?”

“Well…” Silvia looked away as she contemplated answering or not. With a glance back to the alicorn, she sighed. “Yes, something has been going through my mind. I’ve been doing all I can to hold it back but… perhaps you would understand,” Flurry Heart cocked her head. “Flurry, am I a good mother to Luminous?”

That caught the alicorn by surprise. Surprise that was only doubled when she saw Silvia look… vulnerable, she thought, for the first time in her life. To those that knew her, the idea of Silvia showing any form of weakness seemed impossible. She was a paradox hunter, trained by a pack of others like her to kill without remorse. They did whatever it took, Silvia had made that much clear to her, and they didn’t care how low they needed to stoop. Yet, as that thought came to mind she remembered something from that fateful night. The night Twilight had been doomed to die, and the former princess and Flurry’s aunt, Celestia, was killed protecting the one mare Silvia care for more than anything.

“Don’t tell Luminous about the barrier,” She had said. “or I’ll find some way to permanently scar your body till there isn’t a shed of pink to see”

That strange pegasus, Luminous Oracle, coat as black as the night and mane and tail as bright as the sun. A pony who, for all Silvia knows, could possibly be in an eternal coma, fated to never again wake up because Twilight died. A pony who was another Twilight from the same Equestria as Silvia, though with a different name, life, tribe, and childhood. Most importantly, however, it was the pony that Silvia had taken in as her daughter so many years ago. Of course she would doubt herself now, seeing her own child, blood or not, dying in front of her eyes. At the same time, Flurry didn’t know what to say in response.

“Go on, you know better than me,” Silvia said. “I know I’m out here, fighting for her, putting my life on the line so she doesn’t have to but… my work might have nearly killed her. Maybe it did kill her and she will never wake up,” The wolf hung her head. “I feel like I’m a terrible mother.”

“You were still there for her,” Flurry replied. The wolf looked up in time to see the alicorn’s head drop. “I envy her, having an actual mother that cared for her all of these years. Though I guess that doesn’t really make me the best pony to ask does it?” She forced herself to laugh. “You’ll just have to ask her when she wakes up. It’s that simple.”

“And if she doesn’t?” Silvia replied.

“She will, I know it,” Flurry said, though she wasn’t even sure of her own words. As Silvia said, it was entirely possible that Luminous would never wake up, but there was still hope. “Ask your daughter. She would know better than somepony like me.”

Silvia sighed, and the vulnerability she had shown dissipated. That was replaced with the all too familiar and stoic look Flurry remembered from her one interaction with the wolf in the Crystal Empire. When her drink was finished, the wolf motioned for her to get up, which she did without hesitation. It was surprising how easily Silvia was able to mask the pain on her face, but Flurry knew it was probably just another skill of her job.

“You don’t seem too worried about the paradox, considering it’s a killer,” Flurry asked.

“It’s a machine, one that doesn’t think at that,” Silvia replied. “The greatest enemy for a hunter are emotions. It’s harder to kill something that can feel fear and terror than something made to destroy and harm,” Silvia gestured with her head towards the door. “We better get going before we are unable to find those two.”

--------

Gabriel followed Firefly rooftop to rooftop, watching the pegasus as she scanned the streets below. Each time she came up empty she would open her wings and glide across the street just in case. She was a daredevil, the griffon had figured that out the moment she started using the water wheels as vantage points, standing on the very end of some of the highest buildings in the city. He couldn’t help but be reminded of the few times he had met Rainbow Dash, the element of Honesty and a retired member of the Wonderbolt.

“Aha!” Firefly said, pointing down into a nearby alley.

Gabriel followed her hoof, and found exactly what she was looking at. Standing as still as a tree was the same mechanical pony from earlier, Clockwork no doubt. It didn’t look up to them, didn’t move, though at this point he should have expected that. There were questions on how it deactivated itself, or why it hadn’t killed him, but he knew he would get in answer. Clockwork didn’t think after all, whatever directive it had was known by it and only it.

“Now what?” Gabriel asked.

“Now-” Firefly replied, holding her hoof out. It ignited into flames, and Gabriel could help but squeal in surprise. She wound her arm like she was about to throw a ball, and then sent a fireball into the air. “-we send the signal.”

--------

It hadn’t taken Silvia too long to notice the fireball her friend had used to signal their location. As it fell through the air, she saw said pegasus take the fireball head on to keep it from hitting any of the buildings below. It did take a moment to reassure the alicorn behind her that Firefly would be fine, but once she did they were off to where the pegasus and griffon had signaled them to. As they approach the alley, Gabriel and Firefly glided down to join them.

“The paradox is in there?” Silvia asked, getting a nod in response. The wolf looked to the alicorn. “Prepare yourself. Even if it doesn’t attack right away, it will fight back,” She looked away and walked past Gabriel and Firefly. “They… always do.”

Firefly stepped to the side, giving Flurry Heart a look. That look, she knew, meant “keep her safe”, and Flurry knew she had to. Silvia believed her parents dead, but that wolf might be the key to finding out if they were or not. So many years without closure, and with Twilight dead she had no idea who she could pin the blame on. Her aunt was the only pony she thought possible to do such a thing, given that her father was Twilight’s brother and-

She shook her head; this wasn’t the time to be thinking of such things. She gave Firefly a smile as she walked past the pegasus to Silvia's side. The two stood in quiet for a time as they walked through the narrow alley, the only sound being the clops of Flurry’s hooves. Silvia made a mental note to not bring either the empress or Firefly on anything involving stealth. That said, part of her doubt that this would in any way require stealth. As the alley widened at its center, Silvia took note of the stationary bronze colored pony staring at the wall, never blinking.

“That’s… the same pony from earlier,” Flurry Heart said. She walked up to it, but didn’t touch it, remembering what had happened to her and Gabriel earlier. “It’s kinda creepy how real the fur looks.”

“Don’t touch it,” Silvia warned her. “Something tells me that it’s waiting to catch us off guard.”

“Make sense, that did seem to be what happened with Gabriel earlier,” Flurry Heart replied, taking a few steps back. “You think it won’t react to magic though?”

“Maybe, but we don’t really have a choice,” Silvia told the alicorn. “This isn’t my first time dealing with a mechanical paradox before, and they aren’t as simple as their flesh and blood counterparts. I got a spell to send a paradox back home, but unlike us a machine’s body is simply a shell,” She pointed to Clockworks chest. “I need you to break it up enough to get me to its core. Know that it will try to resist once it knows what is happening.”

“R-right,” Flurry Heart replied, taking a deep breath as she mentally prepared herself. “Let’s get this done with?”

With a nod from the wolf, Flurry Heart lit her horn. Her magic felt the body of the pony in front of her, or at the very least tried. She could feel it in her magic’s grasp, but she couldn’t sense a hold on it. Something was keeping her from pressing on the body, a sort of force emanating from the machine’s chest. It was resisting her as best as it can, as if it knew the fate that awaited it if she succeeded to pull it apart. Flurry gritted her teeth, and looked to Silvia.

“It’s soul is in it’s chest, or at least that’s what I’m guessing it is, but it has some sort of magic trying to push me back,” Flurry Heart explained to the wolf. “I’ll be able to overwhelm it, just gotta put a little more force into the spell. Just be aware that if it doesn’t feel me now, it most definitely will one I amplify it.”

“Do it, I’ll be prepared,” Silvia replied, standing between the alicorn and pony.

Flurry nodded in reply, and once again lit her horn, though the wolf could now visibly see the glow Clockworks body. In that second, after her spell finally managed to wrap itself on the, Silvia saw the body jolt. Flurry stopped in hesitation, but continued on when she saw nothing else happen. She felt for a separation, a screw, a gear, anything that could allow her to pry the chest open for Silvia. After minutes of anticipation and wait, she found it and pulled, only for the machine to come to life.

As if it was merely waiting for her to do so, Clockwork launched at Flurry Heart, only to be blocked by Silvia as the wolf forced it to the ground. A hum vibrated from her throat, and a forcefield appeared under her paws, keeping Clockwork in place. That did nothing to stop it from pushing against her magic, and Silvia now realized what the alicorn had meant about it pushing her magic back. It was known that certain alloys and materials had a resistance to magic, obsidian being one most familiar to Equestria. Bronze, she was remembering, was another such material.

Not only did Clockwork seem to be pushing the forcefield apart, but Silvia could see something strange happening to the walls. Small sections of them stretched out into points, the tip seeming thin enough and pointy enough to pierce skin. She looked behind her, almost losing focus on the barrier as she did, her humming being strained. One such needle was aimed at Flurry Heart’s chest, slowly pushing further and further outwards, and closer and closer to the alicorn’s body. If it was anywhere else it had been aiming she wouldn’t be worried, but the angle, the location, it meant one thing to her.

This thing, this Clockwork, had been programmed with knowledge of the canon. It knew how to kill an alicorn, and that made it too dangerous to send back.

“Flurry, more pressure!” Silvia shouted to the alicorn, though she was unaware of the feedback sound currently playing in Flurry Heart’s ears.

It was normal to hear that when dealing with magical resistance, but with how loud it was, and how much it was grating the alicorn’s ears, it was almost unbearable. She had no choice but to close her eyes under the painful ringing in her ears, having to use her own magic to feel the piece she had latched onto. With a push, she felt a piece of Clockwork’s chest push outwards slightly. With part of her magic focused on pulling that open, she used the rest to search inside the opening she had already made, pulling out what bits and parts she could in an attempt to reach the center.

Silvia looked back to Clockwork to find that the pony had more than push through her forcefield, and was tackled to the ground. It once more leaped for the alicorn, but Silvia got her muzzle around it’s leg before it got too far. She bit down and threw Clockwork back in front of her, the action seeming to loosen his exterior a large amount. Silvia, seeing the opening that Flurry had made and was using to empty the mechanical pony’s insides, reached with her paws towards it. That momentum was stopped by Clockwork putting it’s hooves on her chest and neck. It kicked her stomach, but Silvia fought through the pain.

Suddenly, a talon came into her view, and she felt the hoof on her fall away. Silvia dared to look, seeing that Gabriel was by her side, and dared to look behind her. Behind Flurry she could barely make out the form Firefly, but the orange glow told her that the needle aiming at the alicorn’s back was more than dealt with. Turning back to Gabriel, they nodded and watched as the opening in Clockwork’s chest opened enough for them to see into it. She could see a glow illuminating its insides, seeming to be centered right where the heart would be; Clockwork’s core. The glow got brighter and brighter as Flurry’s magic continued to remove the gears, bolts, and other things blocking it. Finally, after another minute of waiting, she saw a clear shot.

“Gab, now!”

Gabriel shot a talon into Clockwork’s chest and pulled out the core, which was hooked to the pony with various wires. With his free talon he effortlessly sliced through the wires, and Clockwork’s body once more went limp. The griffon threw the core to Silvia who caught it in her mouth. With a single bite, her teeth crushed the core and the light died. A burst of energy went through the bodies of everyone in the alley, the spikes that had formed from Clockwork’s ability, or anomaly as Flurry called it, retracting as the walls returned to normal. With a heavy breath outwards, Flurry Heart collapsed to the floor.

“Ugh, my head,” She groaned. Firefly helped her up, a look of concern on her face. “Did… did I do it?”

“Yes, we did it,” Silvia replied, sitting down and leaning against Gabriel. She felt more exhausted than she should, her throat dry.

--------

An hour or two later, back at Verko’s place

“And once again, my furry friend, you have whisked away my troubles!” Verko said, shaking Silvia’s paw. “As promised, I will inform Captain Celano of your intentions as soon as she lands in port. Sorry to say however, that I don’t have a place for you to stay in the meantime.”

“Don’t worry too much about that,” Silvia replied. “I’m sure your contact would be more than willing to give us a room for the night.”

“Ah, of course. You two definitely have an interesting history,” Verko replied as he reached for a nearby cabinet. He pulled out a glass bottle of some unmarked alcoholic substance, probably rum if Silvia knew anything. “Want some?”

“No thanks, promised Firefly we’d all celebrate together,” The wolf said, moving towards the door. She bowed to the mole rat. “It was a pleasure seeing you again Verko, stay safe.”

“Ha, now we know that won’t happen, don’t we?” Verko asked the wolf, breaking into a laughing fit.

Silvia rolled her eyes as she opened the door and left the house, seeing her companions, her crew as it was, talking. Talking, she quickly realized, wasn’t really the word to describe this situation, and more like the harassment of a certain empress’ dignity. Silvia couldn’t help but smile, this little adventure telling her that she had more than chosen the right individuals for the job. They looked to her as the door closed, each smiling though Flurry slightly more peeved than the rest.

“Everything’s ready?” Firefly asked.

Silvia nodded. “Yep. You all ready to relax? It’s gonna be are last opportunity to before journeying to the League.”

“I think anyone would be ready to chill after stopping a serial killer robot,” Gabriel joked, turning to the alicorn and pegasus beside him.

They nodded, and made their way down the street, Firefly taking the lead and Silvia taking the rear. The wolf looked one last time to the north, the smile fell from her face as she thought of her comatose daughter. She shook her head. As Flurry said, she will wake; a mother should never outlive her daughter.