Sunny Starscout and The Mystery of Magic

by OneLonelyPickle

21 - Tall Tale

Sir Curio grunted, the air being pushed from his lungs as his fellow Hoof slammed him into the wall of his personal chamber.

“You foal!”

Sir Bastion maintained his signature smile, but only just so. Its ends vibrated. Veins popped up all over his neck. Sir Curio maintained his grumpy stare.

“How could you let them escape?! Not just the prisoners, but TWO of the Hornhead Guardians as well!”

Sir Curio’s mouth curled upward.

“Are you going to cry, Little B?”

Sir Bastion released his hold on Sir Curio and aimed a shove at his head, but the elder stallion was quicker and dodged. Sir Bastion’s attack left a hoof-shaped hole in the stone wall. Sir Curio scoffed as he turned and grabbed something from the burlap sack sitting on his desk.

“Heel, dog!”

He threw a lumpy, green mass at Sir Bastion’s hooves, which blew up into a brown mist before Sir Bastion could react. The aftermath was a hundred green vines latched onto Sir Bastion, coming from a clump of dirt and soil where the ball exploded. Sir Curio exhaled. Sir Bastion struggled to get away from the ever-tightening snare.

“Trap Weed.” Sir Curio pulled another green lumpy ball from his bag and tossed it up and down. “Even you can’t contend with it. Now that you aren’t trying to pound my face, let me explain.”

And so he did, though Sir Bastion never stopped trying to escape. Sir Curio had to throw another Trap Weed halfway through his explanation, and only when Sir Bastion could barely breathe and most of his body was covered with rope-like vines did he finally stop moving. He glared at Sir Curio, from start to finish.

“Essentially, we’re at a crossroads. The Knights, all of us, have to help Aurelia make a decision. It’s not for just you or me to decide. You know that’s not how we do things.”

Sir Curio yawned, smacked his lips, and leisurely cozied back into his hoofchair, looking at the mass of vines surrounding Sir Bastion with amusement. Though his body was immobilized

“We are going to wait for the other Knights to arrive, and then we will have a meeting around the Stone Table. Like the old days. Lorna and Pepper will take a few more days to get here, Aurum and Seamus should arrive tomorrow. Uhh, and the loudmouth one, I thought she’d be with yo—”

Loud hoof stomps pounded from outside Curio’s door. He grumbled dryly.

“Oh. Speak of the devil.”

Somepony cleared his throat, and then a light knock came at the door.

“SIR CURIO SIR! ARE YOU IN THERE SIR? IS SIR BASTION ALSO IN THERE, SIR?”

The called-for stallion turned to Sir Bastion.

“What’s her name again?” he asked quietly.

“Crusharra.”

“Ah right—seriously? That’s what her parents named her? Parents these days…”

Sir Bastion glared. Sir Curio chuckled.

“Yes, Crusharra. I am here. Sir Bastion is not, however. Go check the Lounge.”

A shuffle of hooves clip clopped outside the room.

“YES SIR SIR YES SIR I WILL THANK YOU SIR HAVE A GOOD DAY SIR GOODBYE SIR!”

And more stomping, quieting as the mare doing the stomping got farther and farther away. Sir Curio looked back to his comrade, who glared questioningly.

“What?” Sir Curio answered the look. “Don’t worry Little B, I won’t let anyearthpony else see you like this. It’s bad for the overall morale.”

He sat down with an old stallion’s sigh and closed his eyes.

“Y’know, I can’t even think of a time we just enjoyed one another’s silent company.”

Sir Bastion’s responses were strained.

“Sadly… it is no longer… silent.”

“Oh, does that bother you? Would you like it if I shut up?”

Sir Bastion exhaled sharply from his nostrils.

“The novelty… of this arrangement is… wearing off. Release me… or I will free myself… and turn every last bone… in your pathetic old body… into dust.”

Sir Curio scoffed and chuckled.

“Goodness, pretty cocky for an Earth Pony with enough Trap Weed vines surrounding him to choke a mammoth.”

Sir Bastion’s smile became full and confident again, and a gleam hit his eye like when he fought the Drake days before.

“Curio… you sincerely misunderstand… the balance of power here. I am only entertaining… this fantasy that you outmatch me… nothing more. I am not going to… ask you again.”

Sir Curio sighed.

“Yeah yeah, okay, hold your ponies…”

He looked around his desk and bags.

“Uhh just a… second… my Vine Biters have to be—there we go!”

Sir Curio pulled a tiny cage from the corner of one of his desk drawers. A few small creatures were curled up inside, and when they saw the light, they stirred awake and snapped their diminutive yet sharp jaws about. Each creature was green and had leafy frills about its body. They looked like skinny little walking fish. Sir Curio opened the cage with his teeth and the ‘Vine Biters’ leapt onto Sir Bastion, devouring the vines around him in short order. The sound of their eating was incredibly noisy for such small things.

“Good thing they only eat the vines, huh?”

Sir Bastion exhaled deep once he was finally free enough to pull the remaining vines off. He shimmied in place to let the remaining pieces of vine fall off. The Vine Biters, content with their big, full tummies, curled back up inside the cage, and Sir Curio replaced it in his desk. He and Sir Bastion locked eyes.

“I am going to go find Starscout, Moonbow, and even Tramblower, break their hooves, and drag them back here. Then I will go to Sire’s Hollow and level every building I lay my eyes on before I tackle the Warlock King so hard his grandchildren feel it. And if that does not kill him, I will use his chest as a bucking bag until there is nothing left to kick.”

Sir Curio shook his head.

“And where will your search start? You think you are going to make a difference when we have over a hundred soldiers and volunteers already branching out and searching? The prisoners might be with the Hornheads, and they might not be. We have no idea. Bastion, didn’t this whole event teach you that running off like a madpony is NOT the way we should be doing things? Hay, we don’t even really know if the Hornheads escaped, they might be waiting to see if you skip town again! You’re not being very reliable!”

“The ONLY reliable thing to do right now is to destroy the Hornheads and afford them no opportunity to do any more damage to Rockhoof’s castle, to his realm, to his PONIES!”

Sir Bastion’s brow creased downward.

“How could you insult his memory so vehemently, so egregiously, by letting that disaster occur? The old Curio Brightland would have been able to handle things. You are slipping, old man.” Sir Bastion pointed his hoof at the elder stallion’s chest. “And it has cost the Realm dearly as a result. It is no wonder that the Hooffields and McColts place so much trust in me and my decisions. I suspect the meeting will go in my favor, and I suspect you also know what it is I will propose.”

Sir Curio looked away, becoming sour in the face.

“Aye, I have some ideas. You’re the one slipping. You would leave this place unguarded to go and vent twenty-five years of unresolved frustration, and for what?”

“I will put a stop to everything.”

“Are you going to kill every single Hornhead there is? What about the Featherfreaks, them too? You’re not that strong! Get a grip Bastion!”

“I can, and I will. You simply have to stay here to protect the Castle—that is, only if you think you are up to it.”

“If they attack with a big enough force, I won’t be able to! Noearthpony will, not with you gone! You couldn’t protect it alone either! Bastion, we need to work together to protect what we still have! Stop focusing on what we lost, you can’t bring them back! We only have what’s left!”

Sir Bastion moved so fast even the nimble Eagle Eye did not react in time. He thrust his hoof against Sir Curio’s throat and pressed him against the stone wall, both sets of their teeth gritted. After a moment of gasping for air and strained breathing, Sir Bastion backed off.

There was a heavy pause. Sir Curio broke the silence.

“Please. I don’t want to lose my daughter, or anyearthpony else I care about. If you attack the Hornheads, you’re going to start another war! A war that the rest of us have to fight! Stay here, at least until the meeting. We’ll figure out what to do, the proper way, as Rockhoof intended!”

Sir Bastion inhaled deeply. He straightened himself and his smile. He strode toward the door.

“You speak of Rockhoof as if you are following his wishes.”

Before leaving, he stopped, his hoof on the door handle.

“I will keep the Realm safe by eliminating its threats. And that is all there is to say about that.”

He slammed the door behind him. Sir Curio flopped forward onto his desk, his eyes closed.

That was about what I expected, but at least I got him here. No matter - I already prepared for this.

Sir Curio looked to a small portrait on his desk of a tiny, off-white filly. She had her mother’s eyes. Sir Curio forced a smile.

There isn’t a chance I will lose you. No matter the cost.

He groaned.

“I do wish I could get a decent nap in these days though. I wonder how the sunlight and breeze is up on my tower right about now?”

* * *

The day approached its end amidst a fiery orange sunset. The vast sky, bathed in all shades of purple and red, stretched on and on above Sunny Starscout. She looked behind her to the forest.

“Do you think we’re being followed?” she asked the others. Hitch looked back and shook his head.

“I didn’t see or hear any signs of a tracker. This doesn’t look like a path normally taken to the city either. Those soldiers veered way off awhile ago.”

Sunny squinted. She scanned the forest, which had become darker as the sun’s light above the canopy died down. Here and there a bird called out, or an insect clicked as it flew about, or a woodland critter (one that wasn’t following Hitch) scurried around. But nothing else stirred.

All three ponies looked forward. Tall Tale was laid out before them, with only a steep, wooded hill separating the space between. The city stretched into the distance, its many lamps and lanterns starting to glow orange with tiny fires as dusk approached. Most of the buildings, none larger than what Sunny was used to in Maretime Bay, had purple clay tile roofs, and those that did not had flat roofs where, sometimes, a pony or two could be seen.

Sunny homed in on one rooftop, where a small foal and a parent were excitedly preparing a telescope. Sunny smiled warmly. Hitch breathed in.

“No reason standing around here, ladies. Let’s get back into the cover of trees and decide our approach. As much as I love trekking, I need to see some mares other than you two for once, and not a mare who can beat me with a sharp stick.”

“Hitch, we’ve been out for like one day.”

“That’s a long time for me! I’m going into withdrawals over here…”

Sunny rolled her eyes at Izzy, who giggled.

The three were at an open field of space between the forest behind and the wooded hill that led to Tall Tale. Though the sky was a pretty sight to be admired, they were exposed. Izzy stepped in front of the others, smiling.

“I agree. We don’t make very good ponjas standing in the open.”

Sunny smiled as well.

“Nope! Alright, onward ponies!”

Hitch raised a hoof.

“You know Izzy, the mushroom makes it really hard to take you seriously.”

Izzy stroked her newest appendage.

“Don’t insult Shroomie!”

They made down the hill slowly, picking up the pace somewhat once they hit the wooded area, where the trees could be used for stability purposes. Hitch was ever vigilant with watching around them. He called to the tiny critters following him.

“You guys better be helping out if you want to tag along! Holler if you smell something weird, okay?”

The squirrels and birdies chirped and chittered excitedly. Hitch smiled. Sunny patted his shoulder.

“Why’d you choose sheriff? You could have done better as a forest ranger!”

Hitch shrugged.

“I pretty much am one anyway, despite being sheriff.” He cleared his throat. “Former sheriff.”

He paused.

“I’m not sure how widely known it is in Maretime Bay, and anyway you never listened much to anything except your parents’ crazy stories.” He smiled sideways at Sunny who puffed her chest out and smirked back. “But my family’s always been made up rangers and explorers, that sort of thing. It was only the last few generations we have switched to the law enforcement field – what with how things have been going here. The Realm doesn’t really need rangers anymore. And I guess I wanted to be… y’know… Halter…”

Sunny hung her head and ‘mhm’d’ a response. Izzy looked between the two of them. Hitch noticed and managed a smile.

“Ah, did we mention it before? I don’t like to be a sob story – I mean it works well with the ladies, don’t get me wrong but… anyway, I never knew my folks, so Halter is all I got. And I just wanted to stay close to him and whatever he was doing.”

Hitch looked up toward the sky as the last fingers of the sun’s light broke through the tree leaves. Izzy’s face drooped sadly and her ears flopped over.

“Halter is a few years older than me. He knew mom and dad, and they told him all about it. Trailblazer used to mean something. Of course, with Halter gone, I’m just muddying that name up, as usual.”

Sunny shoved him.

“Hey! Keep the Hitch confidence up, buster! We’ll find Halter, don’t worry!”

He smiled at his companion, and Sunny’s own smile became cheeky. She leaned in.

“And you Trailblazers are fine - it’s the Trashbashers that need to watch out.”

The mares giggled and Hitch went deadpan.

“Yeah that whole shtick is getting really old. I bet he’s still doing it, that Bastion. He just met you a few days ago and doesn’t forget your name, but me?” Hitch worked himself into a frenzy. “You think he could remember it just once, just once! Oh why do I even care about that guy anyway?!”

WHOOOOOOOOO

Everypony stopped. Hitch’s pupils shrank. He deftly looked around the wooded hill. Izzy bent down somewhat as if to get lower and safer. Sunny did not hide the fact she was prepared to buck whoever made themselves known.

WHOOO WHOOOOOOO

“It’s an owl…” Hitch whispered. “Just an owl.”

“Then why are you whispering?” Sunny replied.

“T-the moment just seemed… whispery.”

Izzy chimed in.

“I like whispery moments!”

WHOOOO I AM NOT AN OWL WHOOOOO

All three ponies jumped up like frightened cats, Izzy yelping. The Earth Ponies made defensive stances. No matter where they looked, they saw nothing but leaves or branches. No sign of anything up high, despite the voice coming from higher.

“W-well, what are you then? You sound like one?”

Izzy stepped forward, her ears twitching.

“C-could it be…?”

Sunny and Hitch looked at one another and then back to Izzy, who was sniffing around.

WHOOO ARE YOU SUNNY OF THE STARSCOUT FAMILY WHOOO?

Sunny put a hoof to her chest.

“I might be. Who’s asking?”

Hitch grabbed her shoulder.

“Hey don’t be giving your name out so freely! Unlike me, ponies actually know yours!”

The strange voice cried out again.

WHOOOOO I AM A FRIEND WHOOO

Some twigs snapped and leaves crunched nearby. All three pony heads turned to see but saw nothing. More snapping and crunching at another spot behind them drew their gazes there, and again all they saw was empty space.

“Whoo. Hello ponies.”

All three jumped up as the voice came from behind. Sunny looked, holding her heaving chest.

“C-can you NOT?!”

The creature before them, by all appearances, was in fact an owl – although it was about the same height as a pony, and he had a monocle over his one eye for some reason. His face was plain and owl-like – he had a neutral expression upon his face. His down was a milky blue, and his eyes were completely black except for a ring of yellow around his massive pupils. He bowed and stretched a wing across his chest.

“I am Westley. Whoo.”

Izzy’s mouth dropped. She hopped around on her hooves and shuffled around as if unsure what to do.

“Y-you guys! I can’t believe it but, he’s a Night Owl! Here, in the Earth Pony Realm!”

Hitch scoffed.

“What? It’s not even dark yet, I’d hardly call him a night owl.”

“No I mean… remember I told you about them? From Unicornia!”

Hitch blinked, then his face lit up with remembrance.

“Oh! I do, I do remember! Wait, WHAT?! Why here?”

Sunny looked from friend to friend, her face hiding nothing of her confusion. Westley saw this and mimicked her expressions.

“Someone care to fill me in – what’s with the talking bird?”

“Whoo. I resent that, whoo.”

Izzy smiled at Westley and scratched the area under his chin. He cooed and closed his eyes, his little talons thumping against the ground. Izzy giggled.

“Yep! He’s a Night Owl alright! They’ve been disappearing all over! How did you get here, cutie patootie feathers?”

Sunny waved a hoof in front of Izzy’s face, and when the Unicorn noticed, she blushed.

“S-sorry Sunny! They’re a species of magical creature from Unicornia, they look like normal owls, but they can mimic ponies and other creatures, even the way we speak. I think they understand it, too, for the most part.”

Sunny lit up.

“MAGICAL?!”

Her tail wagged excessively. Westley’s bushy brows creased above his worried eyes.

“Oh no, whoo. She scares me.”

He turned to Izzy.

“To answer your question, whoo, I escaped from one of the science facilities where the Voice is testing on my kin, whoo.” He looked down sadly. “I could not escape with any of them, whoo…”

Izzy pouted.

“Poor guy. I’m sorry to hear that… my brothhhhher’s friend, who uhh knows the Voice, would say that he is a pretty mean guy sometimes.” She looked back to Sunny and winked without a shred of subtlety. Sunny rolled her eyes but couldn’t stop her giant grin.

“Listen! Why don’t you come with us, Westley? You can tell us all about your magicalness! Do you do any magic, like, can you cast SPELLS?!”

Westly cocked his head.

“Whoo. Me? No. No spells. Whoo.”

Sunny frowned.

“Awww…”

Hitch rubbed his face.

“We’re talking to an owl. A talking owl. This is never going to be a normal journey, is it?”

Sunny jumped and turned.

“I know, right?! It’s great!”

Westley twitched and threw up his wings.

“Whoo but there is no time! Sunny of the Starscouts, we must go! It is not safe, not safe at all! We have to get you to safety, whoo!”

Sunny shook her head and raised an eyebrow. The sun’s light was all but spent.

“Inside the city?”

Westley rapidly nodded.

Whoo yes! Come, we must go! Your grandmother will explain, whoo!”

Hitch rubbed one of his temples.

“I hope she will explain who, I am very confused. Is anyone else very confused?”

Sunny hopped between looking at Hitch and Izzy and Westley.

“Confused? Definitely! Excited? Also definitely! Lead the way magical talking owl!”

Westley smiled an owly smile and started waddling away. Sunny happily followed behind, Izzy in tow soon after. Hitch couldn’t find the right words.

“B-you—ahhh forget it Hitch, just go with the flow. Remember: mares are in the city. Mares. Real mares! Just keep the mares in mind.”

As the ponies followed their slow-moving guide, Sunny leaned into Izzy.

“Umm, Izzy, what makes these guys magical if they can’t cast spells?”

Izzy’s mouth became a slanted line.

“You don’t need to cast spells to be magical, Sunny. Remember my horn?” Sunny nodded. “That’s magical, wouldn’t you say?”

“I guess so, yeah.”

“The Night Owls are magical in another way, that they can talk and learn what other animals do.” Izzy looked further down and frowned. “Sadly, that’s why my brother wants to have the scientists perform experiments on them…”

Hitch trailed back with the others as Westley took the lead further ahead.

“How the horseshoe did he get all the way this far west? First chance an Earth Pony got I’m sure they’d throw this guy in a cage and make a killing charging bits to see him and hear him. And I bet you could teach him to do funny dances and sing songs!”

Sunny shook her head.

“I’m not sure. Maybe we will find out, but I am almost positive he is telling the truthl.”

Hitch squinted.

“Oh, that another one of your powers, lie detecting? That goes along with the voice thing?”

Sunny flipped her mane and smiled.

“Might be.”

“Joking aside, Sunny, we need to be careful. We can’t rely on a Unicorn attack involving giant metal octopuses to get us out of the next mess.”

“Octopi.”

“What’s an octo pie, is it food? Yuck, we don’t eat meat, Sunny.”

“No it’s—bahh!”

Sunny picked up the pace, then Izzy after. Hitch shook his head.

“Mares… seriously.”

The three ponies and their owl guide reached the end of the wooded area after slowly making the way down the hill. A tight alley led right into the city from the woods. They could hear voices down the alley.

“Whoo. We need to be quiet from now on, whoo.”

Westley led the ponies down a few different alleyways, all lined on either side by red brick walls. He was careful not to expose the ponies to the streets, where citygoers were still abundant. The lanterns lighting the cobblestones would have exposed any ponies sneaking past.

Finally, Westley led the ponies to a wooden door in a dark corner of a backalley.

“Whoo, in here!”

Hitch stopped Sunny.

“Sunny… you sure about this?”

She beamed.

“Nope!”

She rushed inside, Hitch and Izzy entering more slowly. It was pitch dark, but Westley shuffled about and eventually blew in the dark. A fire sparked at the end of a wick in a lantern and filled the tiny room with light. Izzy ooo’d. Sunny was like a frantic puppy.

“See see! Magic! He just started that fire!”

Hitch looked sideways at Sunny.

“Actually Ms. Starscout that’s what we call a blow wick. Pretty simple Earth Pony design – you blow on it, it ignites.”

“Earth Ponies have magic?”

“It’s not magic, it’s science!”

“How does it work then?”

“I don’t know I’m not a scientist!”

“Whoo, shh! We must keep quiet until morning, whoo.” Westley moved over to a cupboard and retrieved some loaves of bread. “Sorry but this is all that is in this safehouse, whoo. Everything will be explained tomorrow. For now, whoo, stay here and rest. Do NOT go outside!”

The ponies settled into some cots strewn about the room. The square windows were shuttered, and the walls were bare panel. Westley opened the door to leave.

“I mean it, whoo. Stay inside. I will be back tomorrow.”

Sunny went into her bags. She pulled out some of the berries from the mountain. Hitch gasped.

“Hey hey! Don’t eat those yet, they’re supposed to be for when we don’t have anything else!”

Sunny frowned and put the berries back.

“Aww, but they’re so fruity.”

Hitch comfied himself on the cot and curled his hooves by his belly.

“I think we should take turns keeping watch – just in case.”

Izzy raised her hoof.

“I can take first shift. I’m not really all that tired.” She grabbed a piece of bread and stuffed it in her mouth. “Pwus Iwm rwellwy hwungwry.”

Sunny reassured Hitch with a smile.

“It’s okay buddy, you go to sleep, I’m not tired either. When we are ready for bed, Izzy can take the first shift, then I will, and I’ll wake you for yours.”

Hitch yawned and turned over.

“Oh alright then… you just… lemme know…”

Sunny and Izzy giggled. They went on for some time that night, talking about their lives before their adventure began and snacking on bread.

Comments

[Phetiamwantip]

That's okay, I enjoyed it by the way. This new chapter is starting to get pretty good. I'll be looking forward on reading your next upcoming chapters. The heart and soul of good writing is research; you should write not what you know but what you can find out about.

[AllenVth]

I like the budding friendship between all three, and it's because it feels like Izzy has fully integrated with them. Sunny is one thing, but Hitch has come full circle to be comfortable with her.

First off, Sir Bastion is a loose cannon, The Voice is sounding more evil the more we know of them and now I'm understanding why Izzy didn't want to immediately go back, and Westley is a fun character.

[Booster Spice]

Wesley is maybe related to Owlowlowlicious?

sir Bastion is going insane due to being the element Bearer of Laughter and he has ALL the voices in his head while demanding to be taken seriously?

[OneLonelyPickle]

11221293
Thank! I enjoyed writing Westley! I am sure we will see his kin at some point, but not for awhile.

11221665
Haha I don't think there is an relation. It's sort of like asking if Wynona (normal dog) is related to the Diamond Dogs - while the species are similar in appearance, they are not the same.