A Dance With Death

by Dee Pad

Chapter 6 - Disco-Tech

Limbo and Samba stared at the map of Baltimare on the wall. A new face had been added amongst the photos of the Ghost's victims, but this person was not a victim himself. Limbo had posted a picture of Trixie's kidnapper, Wick Nimble, over Horseshoe Bay, along with a few different sticky notes of information. She hadn't bothered to pin a picture of Trixie up there, partly because she wasn't a victim of the Ghost, but mostly because she didn't want to look at her face any more than she had to.

"So, you're still confident that the Ghost is involved?" Samba inquired, reiterating the doubt still lingering from last night, as well as fighting off her sleepiness with a long yawn.

"Obviously it's not one hundred percent, but we have to take what we can if there's even a chance that it could bring us closer to the truth," Limbo said as she took a sip of coffee.

"But Wick said his contact was avian, right? A creature with feathered wings. I don't know of any creature like that that can use magic the same way unicorns can."

"Well, we can narrow that down at least. I believe our mystery contact was a pegasus," Limbo posited.

"How do you figure that?" asked Samba with an arched eyebrow.

"If the guy was a griffon or hippogriff, he could have passed Wick the envelope with his claw. But instead, he used his wing."

"Maybe he didn't want Wick to know exactly what species he was."

"Then why use his wing at all?" Limbo questioned. "All that does is narrow down what race he is, which makes him a little easier to track down. He could have just dropped the envelope into Wick's booth, or on the floor for him to pick up."

Samba tapped her chin quietly as she thought about Limbo's words.

"Wick also said that he assumed this guy knew who he was, which would imply that he knew at least a little about the kid's personality. I know if it was me in the mystery person's position, I wouldn't trust a guy like Wick as far as I could throw him."

"Wait, so you think he revealed himself as a pegasus on purpose?" inferred Samba.

"And that's why I think this is the Ghost," Limbo asserted assuredly.

"But it's like Owl said: the Ghost wouldn't leave info like that behind, would they?"

"Unless they were deliberately trying to throw us off the scent."

Samba scratched her head, growing more and more confused the longer Limbo went on. "But... that doesn't make sense. How does that push us in the wrong direction? If anything, it only makes it easier for us, right?"

"While the possibility certainly exists that I'm completely wrong about the Ghost's involvement, even if they aren't, there's still a criminal out there that needs catching for acting as Wick's accomplice. But, assuming this is the Ghost, the only reason for putting that information out there would be because they knew Wick would fail and blab to the cops about everything he knew."

"And what do we get out of that?" asked Samba, curious as to where Limbo was going with this.

Limbo looked her in the eye with utmost seriousness. "It's entirely possible that the Ghost could be a changeling and was trying to make us think they're a pegasus."

Samba's eyes widened. "Oh. I, uh... I never really thought about that. Mmm... I hate to say it, but that actually makes sense now that you explained it like that. Is this profiling, though? I'd feel kinda bad for suspecting a changeling."

"It'd be unfortunate if it was. I never liked it whenever I've had to arrest changelings for abusing their shapeshifting magic, but there are always going to be individuals who think they can get away with it, and their whole culture suffers for it. One bad apple spoils the bunch, as they say."

"There are laws in place about shapeshifting, right?"

Limbo shrugged with a sigh. "Yeah, and that's a whole thing on its own. Those laws are deemed by some as being unfair, and those people claim that we're not treating changelings equally. It's not like shapeshifting is outright illegal, but changelings entering Equestria are required to carry I.D. on their person when out in public, and if they do shapeshift, for whatever reason, they also need to be accompanied by somecreature who can confirm their identity. A changeling roaming around by themselves is not, under any circumstances within the kingdom, allowed to shapeshift in public."

"I can't really imagine any circumstances where a changeling would need to shapeshift for any practical reason," Samba said, trying to think of any legitimately application for the ability.

"And that's exactly why some people view the ability as having only criminal purposes," Limbo mentioned with a solemn sigh. "It's unfortunate that we live in a time that some people refer to as a 'golden age,' and there's still this inherent mistrust towards people who are supposed to be our allies—especially considering the changelings' sordid history. Those laws are constantly being reviewed and amended to try and be as fair as possible, but as long as there are those who still use shapeshifting to actively break the law, these rules are going to remain in place. That's the sad reality of it, and I, as a law enforcement officer, have to endure the backlash when I have to uphold those laws."

Samba's ears folded back regretfully. "Well, I hope we're wrong about this."

"Me too, but it's what makes the most sense given the info we have. Trust me, it's an unfortunate catch twenty-two, but you just have to approach it from a purely professional standpoint. Upholding the law is what's important in this situation, even if it means being judged and chastised for it. I'll arrest a law-breaking changeling if it means saving the lives of a dozen people."

"I'm... going to choose to just not think about it," Samba uttered, feeling conflicted.

"Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if this is the lead I've been looking for, then we're gonna have to go with it."

"We can't just interrogate every changeling in Baltimare. There might not be as many of them as there are ponies, but there're still a lot living in this city."

"That's why we need to narrow it down. If the Ghost is a changeling, it would make sense that they'd try to misdirect us by pretending to be a pegasus specifically, as there are certainly more pegasi living in the city than griffons and hippogriffs combined. It'd take us longer to suss them out. At least with this theory we have a better shot at finding them in a reasonable amount of time."

"What's the plan, then?"

Limbo scratched her head, humming in thought. "Hrm... Well, I'd like to try and get more info out of Wick Nimble, but he's probably wrapped up in his court hearing, and no doubt Owl's not done with him yet. So, for the time being, it might behoove us to pay another visit to town hall, maybe poke around the citizen records and see if we can find anything useful."

"Alright." Samba glanced around the apartment, looking for something. "Where's Webber? I haven't seen him today."

Limbo knit her brow. "He's not coming today. I'm putting him on timeout for encouraging you last night, so he's locked in the closet."

Samba frowned with regret and concern. "That's a bit harsh, isn't it? What if he gets hungry?"

Limbo flicked her hoof apathetically. "Don't worry about him. He stashes most of the flies he catches in a web in the closet, so he's got a stockpile that's more than enough to last him the day. He'll be in a foul mood when we get back, but he's more bark that bite." She downed the last of her coffee and headed for the kitchen. "Lemme just get a refill and we'll get going."

***** ***** *****

After a brief stop at a local coffee shop for a bite of breakfast, Limbo and Samba arrived at town hall and made their way to the mayor's office. It wasn't surprising to see Bubble Gust as busy as a bee, but she was fluttering here and there at a rather brisk pace for a creature her size. She was lugging papers around that threatened to carry her away, like moving a sheet of plywood on a windy day, except there was no wind.

"You seem busy, Gust," Limbo commented, distracting the breezie from her work.

Seeing that she had company, Bubble Gust touched down on her desk to take a breather. "Hm? Oh, no, I am just reorganizing some things to kill time."

"Slow day?" Samba presumed.

Bubble Gust shook her head with a smile. "Just the opposite. I have a full day ahead of me. Leaf and I are attending the Magi-Tech Expo shortly."

Limbo cocked an eyebrow. "Magi-Tech? The hay is that supposed to be?"

"It's an annual convention held here every year."

Limbo and Samba turned around to find Loose Leaf entering the room.

"It's basically an event where experts in the fields of magic and technology share new findings or patents or what have you," Leaf continued. "The two communities used to be rivals, always scheduling their conventions at the same time and the same place, and they'd argue with each other over it. Until one year when they decided to try splitting the convention center between them. Went over pretty well, and the two communities started working together from there to arrange the annual Magi-Tech Expo."

"You sound like you know a lot about it," Samba inferred. "Are you a regular attendee?"

Leaf shrugged somewhat indifferently. "I kinda have to be. My brother usually has a panel there every year and he always asks for my help."

Samba frowned at his apathetic tone of voice. "You don't want to help your brother?"

"It's not that, it's just..." He sighed, shaking his head. "We've been over this before. I'm happy to help him out and everything, but it just becomes, 'Oh, it's so nice of you to come to support you brother,' or people asking me if I have any insider knowledge of what his company is doing. It gets a bit tiring, you know?"

"Right, I guess I can understand that," Samba said sympathetically.

"So, what, you two are just taking the day off to go hang out at a convention like a couple of nerds? You guys gonna cosplay too?" Limbo teased with a chuckle.

"It's not that kind of convention, Limbo. It's more of a business thing. More professional. Probably wouldn't be up your alley," Leaf corrected with a mocking smirk.

"Hey, professionalism is the reason I quit the force. I bet you I could out professional all the dorks at that convention, including your brother."

"Right, because calling people 'dorks' is real professional," Samba deadpanned with an eye roll.

"And we're not taking the day off," Gust added. "I am going in order to do a little reconnaissance for Mayor Highstrung."

"Reconnaissance? How's that?" Samba questioned.

"Like Leaf said, Mango Career is going to be there. I am scoping out the competition for the reelection. It may be a magic and technology convention, but considering he is running for mayor, I expect the topic of politics will be brought up at some point."

"Sounds like a fun day," Limbo commented disinterestedly. "Anyhoo, we were hoping to have another look at the citizen records. Can you help a girl out?"

Bubble Gust shook her head as she fluttered up into the air. "No can do. Leaf and I are about to leave, so we are locking the office until we get back."

"What about the mayor?" asked Limbo curiously.

"He is out on other business right now. I am sorry, Limbo, but we cannot help you. You will have to wait until tomorrow," Gust stated firmly. She then flashed a friendly grin. "You are welcome to join us at the convention. I'm sure Leaf could get you two some extra passes."

Leaf grimaced at her assertion. "Really? You're just gonna put that pressure on me, Gust? How much pull do you think I have?"

Bubble Gust glided over to Leaf, tapping his muzzle with her tiny hoof. "If your brother is as helpful and handsome as you are, I am sure it will not be a problem."

The comment elicited an awkward blush from the stallion.

"Don't know what being handsome has to do with it," muttered Samba.

"I think Limbo and Samba have better things to do than hang out with a bunch of business creatures at a crowded convention hall," Leaf presumed.

"You're right about that. We're hot on the trail of the Ghost, so I ain't putting that on the backburner just to listen to people argue about why the new version of the spellphone is worth an extra hundred bits."

Bubble Gust shrugged, flittering toward the door. "Have it your way, but you have to leave now."

Limbo and Samba followed Gust and Leaf out of the office.

Limbo sighed as they walked down the hallway, a little frustrated. "Man, this sucks. We've made so much progress on the case since last night. Now we can't browse the citizen records, and Wick's too wrapped up in his stuff. We're gonna lose momentum at this rate."

"I mean, if there's nothing else we can do about it, why not just go to the convention with Leaf and Bubble Gust?" Samba suggested.

Limbo observed the small smile on Samba's face and the eager look in her pink eyes. "Got your own interests in mind there, do ya, just like with Trixie's magic show?"

Samba blushed, a little embarrassed that her intentions were so easily discerned. "Um, well... I-If there's gonna be magic related stuff there, I might get something useful for Pira, that's all."

"I really don't want to have to put this off just because it looks like we can't proceed. And I'm just not interested in sitting around just to see what superficial tech Mango Career is gonna dangle in front of his shareholders to boost his stock prices."

Samba pursed her lips in thought. "Speaking of Mango Career, you guys said that his company makes those inhibitor rings, right?"

Limbo's ears suddenly perked up.

"Weren't you speculating that the Ghost—or at the very least, Wick's contact—might work for Mango Inc.? I wonder if we could get Leaf to ask him about that."

Limbo blinked as the notion sunk in. Without warning, she bolted ahead to catch up to Leaf and Bubble Gust. "Hey, guys! About those passes!"

***** ***** *****

The Magi-Tech Expo was being held at the Baltimare Convention Center, an enormous building used often to host large events. It was still fairly early in the morning, but even so, the place was bustling with activity. Hundreds of people were gathered there already, inundating the area with the loud and unending drone of countless incomprehensible conversations.

Akin to what Leaf had described, the expo appeared to be nearly split down the middle. All the booths pertaining to magic related stuff were set up throughout the west wing of the building. That area was populated mostly by unicorns, with the scatter kirin or changeling in the mix. But magic was a broad field, and extended to things like potions and artifacts, making the field accessible even to those who couldn't naturally use magic on their own, so there was still a healthy mix of other creatures hanging about as well, maybe even people similar to Samba who just had an interest in the subject.

Conversely, the east wing was like watching a sci-fi movie. Booths and cases showing off the latest tech were lit up brightly, nearly every piece glowing with built-in lights cycling through different colors. Computers were still a relatively new advancement in Equestria, but it seemed like the tech used to build them was progressing at an exponential rate, and enthusiasts were always looking to upgrade whenever new, better parts were released.

Either way they were to go, Limbo felt very out of place there. To the left were mostly uptight, scholarly historians, while to the right was just a heaping helping of tech geeks.

"Yeesh, look at this place," Limbo complained with a grimace. "Just nerds stacked to the nines here. Doesn't help that I can smell every one of them. Probably didn't even need my perfume this morning. I'd blend right in anyway." A particularly sweaty stallion brushed past her as she said that, eliciting a grimace and a wrinkled nose from her. "Ugh. My natural odor might even be more pleasant that this."

"You consider 'coffee-scented' your natural odor now?" questioned Bubble Gust, gliding above them.

"Yeah, sure, that's what I meant."

"You're exaggerating. It's not that bad," said Samba. She swept her hoof around, taking in her surroundings with almost child-like wonder. "This place is amazing! Imagine all the cool stuff they have here! I kinda wish I could've brought Pira. She'd love this stuff. I might keep my pass as a souvenir," she giggled, flicking one of the two lanyards around her neck that Leaf had graciously provided for them, the second belonging to their diminutive companion since it weighed more than she did.

"She is not wrong, though," said Gust. "We breezies are a little more delicate than I care to admit. The atmosphere in here might shrivel my wings if we stay too long."

"I figured you'd stick with Leaf while you were here, and not just because of Mango Career," Samba tittered with a coy smirk.

"Trust me, I would, but he has special privileges since he's helping his brother with his presentation. I will have to wait until the Q&A to ask him anything."

"What's his presentation about anyway?" asked Limbo. "I mean, not that I care about all this nerdy tech stuff. Just curious since he's one of the biggest wigs in business."

"I cannot say exactly what it is, but I did manage to get Leaf to spill that his brother is supposedly unveiling something 'big.'"

"'Big'? That's all he said?" Samba repeated, feeling a little unsatisfied.

"He did not want to be responsible for information being leaked." Gust rubbed her hooves together menacingly. "But I will probe Career for as much info as I can squeeze out of him when I get the chance."

Samba drew back slightly. "You can be scarier than a spider I know sometimes, Gust."

Gust quirked an eyebrow. "Spider?"

"Don't listen to her, she's crazy," Limbo interjected, giving Samba a reprimanding jab in the withers, receiving an apologetic look in response. "So, when's this presentation anyway? I actually have a few questions for Mr. Career myself."

"I believe it should not be long from now. We have time to look around first. There should be an announcement when it is about to begin, then we can head to the main stage."

Bubble Gust pointed across the convention center. Past all the booths and displays and the sea of people was a large stage—the only one not confined to a conference room where the event's other panels were to be held. Limbo and Samba both began to wonder if they should just start making their way over there now, since it looked like it would take at least an hour to weave through all the displays and wriggle through the dense crowd of people.

"I'm not really interested in partaking in the local 'culture,'" Limbo expressed with slight disgust, grimacing at several of the unkempt convention-goers. "So I guess you're in charge on this one, Samba."

Samba grinned eagerly. "Well, I definitely wanna check out some of the magic stuff. I'd like to have some things to talk to Pira about during our monthly weekend together."

"Sure, whatever, let's go."

While they didn't have a particular destination in mind, the trio began to meander toward the west wing of the convention center looking for something that at least caught Samba's eye. It was a little surprising to them to see just how many people were gathered on that side of the building in comparison to the tech wing. Considering Equestria's technology progressed at a much quicker pace, whereas magic has been studied for countless years already, leading to some degree of stagnation, anypony would expect the latest inventions and technological advancement to garner more attention.

But the further into the area the three went, the denser and louder the crowd became. It was starting to get difficult to even move without brushing shoulders with another creature.

"Uh, maybe this was a bad idea," Samba admitted as she and Limbo managed to squeeze into an open space on the floor large enough for the two of them to breath. "I didn't expect it to be this crowded. Are conventions always like this?"

"I have not been to many, but I have never seen a crowd this large congregated in one area outside of a panel," Bubble Gust noted. "Let me see if I can spot a better route."

Gust then fluttered up higher to get an aerial view of the convention center. Samba and Limbo watched as she looked around, but eventually it seemed like she was just staring off in one direction and no longer moving.

"You see something?" Limbo called up to her.

"I, uh... I definitely see something," she replied in an awestruck tone. Gust floated back down, an incredulous look on her face. "You two are going to want to see this."

Samba and Limbo shared puzzled looks, but decided to follow Bubble Gust to a spot where their vision wasn't obscured by booths and displays. And it didn't take long for them to spot what had caught her attention, similar expressions adorning their faces.

Some distance away, at the epicenter of the cluster of people where the gathering was densest, a lone figure stood out from the crowd. They stood out because they were so much naturally larger, their long, graceful neck craning above the other con-goers. It took absolutely no guess work to discern the person's identity: an alicorn with a coat of lavender, long, flowing mane that resembled the sky at dusk with its soft blue coloration and pink highlights, and her golden royal regalia emblazoned with the image of her cutie mark—a six-pointed, pink starburst.

"Holy crap!" exclaimed Limbo in shock. "Is that Princess Twilight?!"

"Now I really wish I could've brought Pira," Samba breathed, star-struck. "I guess that's as good a reason as any for this place to be so crowded."

"What in the world is she even doing here hanging out with all these sweaty nerds?" questioned Limbo suspiciously.

"You don't know much about her, do you, Limbo?" Samba inferred.

"As much as I need to," she huffed in response. "Why?"

"From what I've heard, Princess Twilight is both an ingenious scholar of magical arts and a pretty big techie in her own right."

Bubble Gust nodded. "Ya, and I hear she has some connection to Mango Career as well, and even had a hoof in inventing the modern spellphone."

"Huh. Really? Didn't know that," said Limbo.

"Come to think of it, do you even have a spellphone, Limbo?" asked Samba. "Pretty much everycreature has one these days, but I've never seen you use one."

Limbo scoffed with a flick of her hoof. "Pfft, nah. I'm pretty tech illiterate, if I'm being honest. I can't even figure out how to fix the color settings on my T.V. I tried using Poe's phone once and 'bricked' it. She didn't even know how I managed that with just a few taps, but I had to buy her a new one regardless."

"What about you, Gust?"

The breezie just cast a deadpan stare back at Samba.

"Oh, right. Probably a little impractical for you, huh?" Samba chuckled awkwardly. She turned back to the princess, still pretty flabbergasted by her unexpected presence. "I wonder if we could get the chance to meet her."

"She seems to be happily indulging all those people around her," Gust noted.

True enough, Princess Twilight appeared perfectly content conversing with the myriad creatures intruding on her personal space. She didn't even have any royal guards to hold back the masses and was smiling and chatting like this was her natural environment.

"But we would probably be here 'til next week waiting for our turn," Limbo presumed. "Probably better to not waste our time holding out hope."

"Well, just in case we don't..." Samba took out her spellphone, reared up on her hind legs to hold it above the crowd, and snapped a pic of the princess. "Pira's gonna be so jealous," she giggled as she stared at the picture.

"Well, maneuvering around here looks like it's gonna be a pain in the patootie as long as the princess is here," Limbo complained, beginning to lose interest at an ever-increasing rate. "Any other suggestions?"

"I have one," Gust chimed in. "We have obviously all come here for different reasons, so why not just split up for now? We could just do whatever takes our fancy and meet up at the main stage when we hear the announcement for Career's presentation."

Limbo shrugged. "As good an idea as anyway. You cool with that Samba?" She glanced to her partner, but she was no longer there. Limbo only managed to catch sight of a wavy, blonde tail disappearing into the crowd in the general direction of the princess. "Okey dokey, then. Guess that's settled. I suppose I'll see you when the presentation starts, Gu—" But Bubble Gust was already fluttering away over the crowd like a leaf on the breeze. Limbo sighed with a roll of her eye. "Yeah, sure, that's fine, whatever. Now I've just gotta find something to occupy my own time. Almost wish I wasn't already dead so I could look forward to dying of boredom..."

***** ***** *****

With a plan to reconvene later in place, Samba was more than willing to make an attempt to meet Princess Twilight in person now that she knew she wasn't holding back her companions. They could do whatever they wanted to do in the meantime, which meant she could impatiently navigate the labyrinth of creatures surrounding her. She wasn't even bothered by the stench of sweaty people mixing their body odors; she'd developed a tolerance to that sort of thing working at the pub and dealing with people who stunk of booze and occasionally vomit.

The only problem Samba had to deal with now was what she was going to say if or when she did get to meet the princess. She didn't exactly trust herself to not develop a case of mush mouth in Her Highness's presence. So what should she say? Princess Twilight seemed like an accommodating and down-to-earth individual for royalty. Samba didn't doubt that she'd give everypony who wanted to talk to her a spare minute, but she also didn't want to waste the princess's time with inane gushing.

Samba poked her head up above the crowd to gauge her location relative to the princess. It really felt like she wasn't getting any closer. Forcing her way through a crowd like this felt like swimming upstream; it felt like you were moving forward, but the current was actually holding you in place, or even steadily driving you backwards.

A sigh escaped from Samba's lips, and she managed to squeeze herself out into a small space to give herself some room to think. She was beginning to think that maybe this wasn't a great idea. Princess Twilight may have had a smile on her face, but that was probably to be polite to all the people who were so honored to meet her. More than likely, she was pretty worn out by the deluge of questions. Maybe the most courteous thing Samba could do right now was leave her alone. There was no need for Princess Twilight to waste her valuable time on somepony as insignificant as her. Samba didn't feel like she deserved even a second of the princess's time anyway.

Now that Samba had sufficiently tanked her own self-esteem, she figured it was just as well to shuffle her way back and try to meet up with Limbo again.

Samba turned around to do just that, but ended up bumping head first with another con-goer. "Oop, sorry, I—grk!" Samba felt a tight tug on her neck, finding that her two lanyards had become intertwined with the other person's in the collision. "Oh, shoot. Uh, I can fix this." The dancer began to fumble with the tangled lanyards, but her haste and clumsy hooves only resulted in an even more elaborate knot. She blushed awkwardly. "Uh... Maybe not..."

"Let me," said the mare she'd bumped into, smiling patiently.

The three lanyards became enveloped in a golden aura, and in only mere moments the knot came undone, allowing the two unicorns to space themselves more than a few inches apart.

"Sorry about that," Samba apologized with an embarrassed grin.

"No problem. Bound to happen in a place this crowded."

Now that Samba wasn't all up in this mare's grill, she could see that she was a rather young mare, maybe not long out of high school. She had a vibrant pink coat and golden irises. Her mane looked a tad unkempt, but something told Samba that that's how she preferred it, what with how it was partially tied into a small ponytail. The coloration of her mane and tail was a subdued orange and yellow, matching her cutie mark of a sunset over a watery horizon.

The young mare glanced down at the lanyards around Samba's neck. "Two passes? You have a split personality or something?" she giggled.

"Huh? Oh, no, one belongs to my friend. She's a breezie, so it's a little heavy for her. Now that I think about it, I guess she probably shouldn't be wandering around without me. She might get in trouble."

The other mare waved it off. "It's probably no biggie. If she needs it, she can track you down. You said she was a breezie, so it shouldn't be hard for her to fly up and call out to you, right?"

"Fair point. Oh, my name's Samba." She politely held out her hoof to the stranger. "Sorry, for bumping into you."

"Like I said, don't worry about it," the mare responded, shaking Samba's hoof. "I'm Luster Dawn."

Samba paused, tilting her head after hearing the mare's name. "Luster Dawn... Why does that name sound familiar?"

A slight, bashful blush tinged the younger mare's cheeks. "Well, it might be because I'm Princess Twilight's student."

A lightbulb clicked on in Samba's head suddenly. "Oh, yeah, that's right! I heard the princess had a protégé. That's you?!"

"Uh, 'protégé' might be a bit much. We just have a close student-teacher relationship," Luster claimed, though her body language suggested she may just be being modest.

"That's quite the coincidence, though. I was just trying to see if I could meet the princess, and I end up bumping into her student. Uh, literally."

"Really? Cuz it kinda looks like you're headed in the opposite direction."

Samba glanced over her shoulder. Indeed, Princess Twilight was some distance behind her, still entrapped within the legion of creatures bombarding her with questions. Samba's ears folded back slightly. "Oh, yeah, well... I... changed my mind, that's all. She seems busy, and I figured she didn't need me distracting her more than she already is."

"Psh, you kidding? She loves talking to people. Making friends is how she became a princess in the first place."

"I guess, but still..." Samba responded with a resigned sigh. "I don't want to bother her. I'm guessing she has an important reason for being here."

"I dunno about 'important.' Mango Career invited her, so she came to watch his presentation." Luster leaned in to whisper to Samba, smirking playfully. "But just between you and me, I think the real reason she was so eager to accept the invite was because she just loves all this tech stuff."

"Yeah, I heard she was into that stuff."

"No, like, you have no idea," Luster insisted with a chuckle. "I know she might seem all regal and poised when she's out in public, but behind closed doors, she's a huge dork. It's probably taking all of her willpower not to geek out over all the junk here."

Samba glanced back at the princess again. "I mean, that's all the more reason why I shouldn't bother her. Sounds like she wants to enjoy the convention just as much as anypony else."

Luster tilted her head with an inquisitive smile. "So, what exactly were you planning on talking to her about anyway? You a fan of hers?"

"I guess you could say that. I have so much respect for her, it would be an honor just to meet her, or take a picture with her. Plus, my ex-husband and I are going to try enrolling our daughter into Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns later this year. Might be nice to get some encouragement from her, you know?"

"Oh, yeah, it's a great school. Princess Twilight went to that school when she was young too. I used to go there, but nowadays I'm attending the School of Friendship in Ponyville." Luster's eyes lit up suddenly. "Hey, you know what? Why don't I just introduce you to the princess myself?"

Samba felt her chest tighten, excited, yet nervous in response to the sudden suggestion. "What?! Uh, th-there's no need for that. I shouldn't be given special treatment. I just want the princess to enjoy her time here."

"Well, then why not meet after the convention's wrapped up, or something?" Luster's spellphone popped into existence with a flash of golden magic. "Give me your number and I'll text you when she's got a free minute."

There was no conceivable way for Samba to keep the grin off her face. "O-Okay, sure."

The two mare's quickly exchanged numbers. Then, Luster gave Samba a friendly wave as they prepared to part ways. "I'll catch you later, Samba."

"Yeah, sure. Looking forward to it."

Samba waved back as Luster Dawn disappeared into the crowd to attempt to reunite with the princess. Samba stared at the number in her spellphone's contacts list, knowing that that number was the indication that she wasn't just going to meet Princess Twilight, but might even get some one-on-one time with her. She giggled gleefully like an excited school filly, prancing off back through the convention hall to find Limbo or Bubble Gust and brag about it all day.

***** ***** *****

Limbo was struggling to find something to occupy her time. Most of her time was spent occasionally asking a random stranger what time it was so she could determine how long until Mango Career's presentation started, but no matter what they actually said, the only answer she could hear was, "Too long."

So all she was really doing was meandering around the tech wing of the convention center, eyeing up all of the weird gadgets and computer parts like they were artifacts salvaged from an alien spacecraft. Every single one of them glowed with colorful lights, for which she could not, for the un-life of her, comprehend any possible practical purpose. Combined with the dim lighting in the area otherwise, it just made her feel like she was in a nightclub as opposed to what was supposed to be a business convention according to Loose Leaf.

Eventually, Limbo spotted a miniscule form gliding above the crowd. A relieved sigh escaped her decayed lungs, and she called out. "Hey, Gust!"

Bubble Gust fluttered over to the detective flagging her down. "Hello, Limbo. Having fun?" she inquired, though her teasing smirk suggested she already knew the answer.

"About as much fun as a rabbit in a fox den," she deadpanned. "I tried entertaining myself by pretending to know what this stuff was—you know, for a laugh—but I kept getting stares from people that looked like they were trying to tell me I should leave before something happened to me. Not that I'm afraid of a bunch of tech nerds."

Bubble Gust giggled. "Well, it should not be long until the presentation now, maybe we should head over to the stage."

Limbo shrugged. "Sure. So, you have any luck?" she asked as they wormed their way to the main stage.

Gust shook her head with a sigh. "No. I was hoping that Leaf could get me in to see Career early, but apparently he is too busy helping his brother prepare."

"Think we'll actually get a chance to question him?"

"I am not even sure if he will be fielding questions about the election, but I am going to go for it anyway if I get the opportunity."

"Hey, guys!"

Limbo and Bubble Gust spotted Samba skipping over toward them, a surprisingly chipper grin on her face. Limbo cocked an eyebrow at her perky attitude. "Hey. You seem like you're in an even better mood than earlier. Did you meet the princess?"

Samba shook her head, but her smile never faltered. "Nope. But lookit!" She held out her spellphone to show them the latest number registered. "I ran into her student, Luster Dawn, and she said she's gonna text me when Princess Twilight is free so I can meet her one on one! How cool is that?!"

Limbo shrugged rather indifferently. "S'pretty cool, I guess."

Samba's mouth hung open, aghast. "'Pretty cool'? Since when has meeting a princess been only 'pretty cool'?"

The zombie mare held up a hoof at her defensive response. "Alright, whatever. Congratulations on being the thousandth person she'll meet today."

Samba knit her brow at her. "Why are you being such a grump?"

"I think she is just bored and impatient," Gust presumed.

"Two very true descriptors, yes," Limbo groaned. She managed to at least force a smile. "But maybe whatever this big reveal Career's got planned will at least be interesting. Probably just some new version of the spellphone or something. One that's a little bit smaller, or one that's a little bit bigger. Either way, everypony's gonna applaud and praise him like it's the most ingenious thing ever."

"I think you need help," Samba quipped, though there was a touch of seriousness to it.

As the trio were approaching the stage, an announcement rang out from the building's speaker system alerting the con-goers that Mango Career's presentation was about to begin on the main stage. While a sizable crowd had already gathered preemptively as Limbo, Samba, and Bubble Gust were, thankfully they were still able to find a spot relatively close to the stage, though the crowd was packed pretty tightly, much to Limbo's chagrin.

Samba spotted somepony moving through the crowd not far away, recognizing the tall form of Princess Twilight poking up above the shorter masses. The people around her respectfully made room for her, although she didn't walk right up to the stage, likely too considerate to block the view for everypony else. Presumably Luster Dawn was with her as well, but Samba couldn't quite see her through the crowd.

A large screen at the back of the stage turned on, displaying the logo of Mango Incorporated: the oblong silhouette of the company's namesake fruit with a single clean bite taken out of it. It appeared that this was the signal that the presentation was starting, as the people gathered at the stage suddenly fell quiet.

After a moment, a unicorn stallion with a shiny, silver coat walked out onto the stage. His mane was mostly a pure white, but with some dark grey streaks and slicked back with hair gel. He was dressed in a very business-casual sweater vest, teal with a white undershirt, a thin pair of glasses, as well as a discreet ear piece with a tiny microphone. His cutie mark was uncovered, displaying the same image depicted on the large screen behind him, but with the red and yellow coloration of an actual mango. The confidence with which he carried himself suggested that he was well accustomed to speaking in front of large crowds.

It was pretty obvious who this stallion was. It didn't take a genius for even somepony who'd never seen him before to deduce that this was Mango Career, one of the most influential—and wealthy—businessmen in the world. He took a moment to look out over the crowd, his eyes lingering slightly on Princess Twilight, before addressing the people affably.

"Good morning, everycreature. Nice to see you all here. For those of you who may not know, I'm Mango Career," he greeted casually, his voice carrying through the speakers on the stage. He began to pace slowly back and forth across the stage as he continued. "As you know, we at Mango Incorporated dedicate ourselves to the furtherment of Equestrian technology, doing everything we can to make life for every creature smoother and more convenient. Our claim to fame, of course, is the modern spellphone. You're more likely to see a person with one than without one these days."

Samba cast a teasing glance at Limbo, who grimaced bemusedly back at her as if to silently say, "Shut it."

"Our aim when developing the modern spellphone was to make long-distance communication convenient for everycreature instead of relying on sending letters via mail. Of course, we're constantly updating the spellphone, releasing new versions with more functionality."

"I knew it..." Limbo muttered quietly. "Here it comes. Another new spellphone with minimal differences, but is a hundred bits more expensive."

"A lot of people may not know this, but I'd like to clarify that I did not invent the modern spellphone, nor did anypony at my company. The design was actually given to me by our very own Princess Twilight Sparkle."

Career gestured to the alicorn standing amidst the crowd, all eyes turning to the princess. The look of surprise on her face suggested that she hadn't expected him to reveal that, a modest, yet somewhat awkward smile creasing her lips, along with a deep, bashful blush.

"So, among the myriad things that our beloved princess has done for Equestria, you can also thank her for the phones you all carry today. Truly a generous ruler to devise such a revolutionary item, yet refuse the credit or profit that comes with it."

The crowd applauded the princess gratefully, causing her blush to deepen further.

Career looked out over the audience with a coy smirk. "Now, you might be wondering why I bring this up, and it might surprise you to hear that I do not plan on announcing a new version of the spellphone today."

Quiet murmurs broke out from the crowd, people speculating what exactly the purpose of this presentation might actually be, then.

"I mention this because Princess Twilight's altruism is a great source of inspiration for me and my colleagues. We at Mango Incorporated produce many things, but the spellphone is by far our company's most noteworthy product. But I've always wanted to make something that's more than just a simple convenience. I wanted to make something that could very well change lives—something that could help people who really need it."

Career gestured to somepony offstage. A moment later, his own brother Loose Leaf emerged, wheeling out a small table with something on it, but was covered by a cloth. Career gave his brother a grateful nod and an almost dismissive pat on the shoulder. Leaf said nothing before taking his leave of the stage once more.

"To that end, I'd like to reveal to you all Mango Incorporated's latest piece of innovation..."

Career swept the cloth off the table with a graceful flourish of his teal magic.

"The Spellmet!"

One might have expected applause from the audience. However, everycreature present was dead silent, puzzled and uncertain looks on their faces.

Upon the table was a bizarre-looking device, its drab, grey frame vaguely resembling a hat, but looking like a cheap prop from a bad sci-fi movie, or a little kid's science fair project. A few wires were sticking out of it here and there, and there appeared to be a sleeve of two plastic rings on the front designed to fit around the horn of whomever was wearing it, assuming they had a horn.

The confident smile that had been upon Mango Career's face finally faltered, the crowd's underwhelming and confused reactions making him a touch nervous. He grinned rather awkwardly, clearing his throat. "I-I should mention that this product is still in development. The design is nowhere near finalized yet, so shareholders reserve judgment please," he chuckled jokingly, though tugged uneasily on the collar of his sweater vest.

With that addendum, many relieved sighs could be heard and Career finally received some satisfied applause.

Mango Career composed himself once more, continuing his presentation now that everypony seemed to be curious as to what this item did. "Magic is something that many of us—especially unicorns, kirin, and changelings—rely on in our daily lives. But, unfortunately, magical aptitude does not always come naturally."

That particular statement piqued Samba's interest.

"In other cases, injury can prevent one from properly utilizing one's magic. It was my aim to invent something that could alleviate such issues. As so, the Spellmet was born," Career exclaimed, pointing to the device. "The Spellmet is the culmination of magical knowhow and the advancement of Equestrian technology. When wearing it, any spells performed are logged in a storage device built within the Spellmet as data, like the photos you all have on your spellphones. From there, those spells can then be performed by anycreature else that wears it."

Impressed "Ooh's" and "Ahh's" rolled out from the crowd. One could practically hear Mango Inc.'s stock prices soaring already.

However, there was one particular person who just stared in quiet awe and disbelief with mouth agape. If her heart could still beat, it would be pounding with anticipation right about now.

Career looked out over the crowd with a playful smirk. "But I imagine some of you still have doubts. So, how about a demonstration?" He set his sights on the lone alicorn in the audience. "Your Highness, I would be honored if you could assist me."

Princess Twilight was caught off guard by the request, but after only a moment of hesitation, she made her way up onto the stage with a smile to join Career. "This is certainly unexpected, but I'm happy to help a friend," she expressed with a giggle.

"Well, I just figured the people would be less skeptical if their ruler were the one demonstrating, you know? To assure them that they're not being mislead."

"So, what do I have to do?" Twilight asked curiously.

"First of all..." Career passed the princess the Spellmet. "You'll need to wear this."

There was a touch of trepidation in the alicorn's eyes, but she did as requested and slipped the bizarre-looking device onto her head, threading her long horn through the two rings at the front. Frankly, it looked rather ridiculous sitting upon the princess's head. However, Twilight didn't seem too bothered by it. "Huh. It's surprisingly flexible despite its appearance."

"It had to be designed to fit a multitude of people and creatures, so flexibility and comfort are important. And I'd like to reiterate that this is by no means the final design. I simply couldn't wait any longer to reveal this to the public. Now then, I'd like to ask you to perform a spell that you believe not many other people would know."

Twilight curled her lip as she contemplated which spell to perform. "Hmm... How about similo duplexis?"

"Whatever you wish."

The princess nodded. "Very well, then."

Twilight's horn lit up with vibrant, pink magic. Interestingly, as she was preparing the spell, the bands of the Spellmet began to glow with the same pink color. A moment later, a second Princess Twilight suddenly split from her form, standing next to her, but was not wearing a second Spellmet.

"How's that?" the alicorn asked in stereo.

"Perfect," Career confirmed with a satisfied grin.

The second princess then joined back with the first, leaving just one alicorn remaining onstage. "So, what now?"

"We'll need another volunteer, somecreature who doesn't know that particular spell, which I would imagine is not many. It seems like a high level spell."

"Well, if it helps, I know my student, Luster Dawn, doesn't know that spell yet."

Both Princess Twilight and Mango Career turned their gazes to Luster standing amongst the crowd, causing the young mare to reel in surprise. "Uh, me? Really?"

"It'll only take a moment," Career assured her.

Luster Dawn gulped nervously, now suddenly aware that all eyes were on her. But she made her way up onstage anyway, finding at least some solace in standing beside her mentor.

"Alright, now, give the Spellmet to her, Your Majesty," Career instructed.

Twilight did so, Luster Dawn receiving the Spellmet and placing it onto her own head.

"So, to clarify, Miss Dawn, you do not know this... What was it, similo duplexis?"

"No, I don't. Well, not yet anyway, but maybe someday," answered Luster with a slight, nervous hitch in her voice.

Career smiled at that statement. "How about today?"

"Huh?"

"As I mentioned previously, the Spellmet allows even those who don't know particular spells to perform them so long as they are logged in the device's memory."

Luster turned her eyes up at the weird thing on her head, then to Princess Twilight. "But there's a method to performing spells, right? It's not as simple as just thinking about it."

"Why not try it anyway?" Career asked confidently.

Luster stared at her teacher, who just gave her a shrug and a smile, suggesting she just go with the flow. "Uh, alright."

Luster Dawn closed her eyes and lit up her horn. Just like when Princess Twilight had worn it, the Spellmet began to glow as well, but it didn't match Luster's golden aura, instead emulating the alicorn's pink magic. And when Luster opened her eyes again, she found a mirror image of herself standing beside her. There was suddenly a look of shock and confusion on her face as she frantically looked around like something didn't make sense. A moment later, her copy rejoined her and the young mare calmed down, blinking rapidly as if her eyes were readjusting to the lighting of the room.

"Okay, that was weird," she said, rubbing her temple.

The crowd was abuzz with interest and discussion over this, and even the princess was impressed by what she saw. But Career was quick to interrupt and quiet everycreature down.

"So, as you can see, even though this lovely, young mare has never performed this spell before, she was able to do so effortlessly thanks to the spell being logged within the Spellmet's memory."

The crowd erupted with impressed applause.

"My primary goal with this product is to allow those with magical disabilities—such as a broken horn—to regain what they had once lost, or perhaps never had to begin with. And I'd like to add that we have working prototypes of the Spellmet that can also replicate other types of magic, including kirin, changeling, etcetera. So, for example, a unicorn could use kirin fire, or even changeling shapeshifting."

Another round of excited applause roared out from the crowd.

"Unfortunately, we can't even give an estimate as to when this product will hit the market. There are still a lot of aspects that need tweaking, so I hope you can all be patient while we work fervently on this, but perhaps I'll be able to answer some of your questions during the Q&A session later. Thank you all for coming today. Enjoy the rest of the expo." Career bowed graciously as the audience applauded one more time and he thanked both Princess Twilight and Luster Dawn for their assistance as they returned the Spellmet and took their leave of the stage.

The screen behind the stage faded out, and Mango Career exiting stage right, signaling the end of the presentation. It took only a fraction of a second for everycreature to start loud and exuberant discussions about what they had just learned as they dispersed.

Samba was amongst those who were awestruck by what Mango Career's latest invention was capable of. "Wow! That thing's amazing, isn't it?!"

Bubble Gust nodded in agreement. "Ya, certainly something revolutionary. It could help a lot of people who have disabilities."

Samba grinned interestedly. "I might have to get one myself when they start selling them. Assuming I can afford it, that is. Something like that is probably gonna cost a horn and a hoof—ironically. Just wish I could get one before Pirouette went off to school, but it probably won't be available any time soon."

"You have trouble with magic?" inquired Bubble Gust.

"Yeah, I've got funnel horn. I've been able to get by without magic, but the worst part is not being able to help my daughter practice."

"I am sorry to hear that. Maybe you could convince Career to give you one in advance," Gust joked. "Speaking of which, I really need to see if I can meet with him myself."

"Oh, right, you wanted to talk to him too, right, Limbo?"

Limbo didn't answer. She was just continuing to stare up at the stage, slackjawed, despite the fact that there was nothing and nopony left up there.

Samba tilted her head. "Limbo? You okay?"

The detective suddenly turned to her, a manic and incredulous look in her one eye. "This is it!"

Both Samba and Bubble Gust drew back at her outburst, and several other nearby con-goers passed her odd looks.

"Wh-What are we talking about?" Samba stammered, concerned for Limbo, but mostly for herself.

Limbo pointed to the empty stage. "Don't you get it?! The Spellmet—which, by the way, is the stupidest name for a product I've ever heard—is what the Ghost must be after!"

Samba blinked. "Uh, you really think so?"

"It has to be!" she insisted belligerently. "It can't be a coincidence, right? The Ghost has been kidnapping people who know unique and complex spells and Mango Career and Princess Twilight just demonstrate something that does just that?"

"But he literally just announced it," Samba pointed out. "How could the Ghost know about it beforehoof?"

"You were the one who convinced me to come here because of the inhibitor ring thing, remember? We speculated that the Ghost might have some connection to Mango Inc., and this pretty much clinches it. They must have had inside knowledge of that..." Limbo grimaced slightly. "...thing's existence."

"You think they preemptively kidnapped all those people to prepare for the Spellmet's public release?"

"Effectively, yes. Let's be real, the sorts of spells that the victims knew require a great deal of skill and power to perform. But, as we just witnessed, that monstrosity can circumvent that. They don't have to learn the spells themselves, they just have to make their victims log those spells in that atrocious-looking thing. Career even mentioned that it can copy kirin and changeling magic, so now Sizzle Conifer's disappearance suddenly makes a lot more sense too!"

As much sense as Limbo was making, Samba couldn't help but still be a touch skeptical. "I mean, yeah, but couldn't anypony do the same thing once it hits the market? Why go through the trouble? And this is still just another one of your theories, right?"

Limbo stood her ground adamantly. "I am one hundred and one percent sure that the Ghost is after that abomination of technology—with a one percent margin for error. You can't convince me otherwise. But this just makes it all the more imperative for me to meet with Mango Career. I have several important questions I need to ask him about this."

"I wanted to talk to him too, but I guess I will just have to wait my turn," Bubble Gust chimed in with a grumpy huff.

"Don't give me that. I think investigating a kidnapping is more important than the election," Limbo argued back at her. "The real issue is actually arranging an audience with him."

At that moment, Samba's spellphone vibrated in its sleeve. She removed it to check her notifications, a big, goofy grin spreading across her lips all of a sudden. "Guys, I might have us an in."