A Goblin's Greed (#11)

by LightningStar626

Chapter 1: The Round Hole

E.Q.U.E.S.T.R.I.A Spies: A Goblin's Greed (11#)

Chapter 1: The Round Hole

~Gold. Lots of shiny bright gold glittered in the flickering candlelight. A fat green goblin sat crossed-legged among his treasures. He ran his bony fingers through the pile of precious stones. The goblin's name was Ingeus and his eyes were greedy with desire.~

"Such pretty things…" he breathed. "So shiny, and so...mine!" He licked his hungry green lips as he drooled over his hoard. "But you are not enough. There is something more that I want- and I intend to have it!" A soft knock on the door disturbed his thoughts. Ingeus glanced up from his treasures. "What is it?" He demanded.

~The heavy door opened, allowing a thin slit of light to fall on the stone floor. A scaly salmon-pink claw held a small lantern.~

"I am sorry to trouble you, your Eminence, but the visitor has arrived."

~The goblin grunted at his servant's message. With a backward glance at his treasure hoard, he rose and went to meet his guest. Ten minutes later, Ingeus granted an audience to his visitor in the topmost room of his island fortress. There were no lights except for the moon, and the cold stone walls were shrouded in heavy black shadows. The air was as still as death.~

"I believe the time is near and soon you shall have your heart's desire." said the visitor.

Ingeus' eyes gleamed yellow in the moonlight. When he spoke his voice was husky. "Good. If what you say is true, your reward shall be great. Tell me your plans." Ingeus nodded from time to time as a dark scheme unfolded.

"It will not be difficult to take her captive." the shadowy guest concluded.

"Excellent, Excellent!" Rubbing his hands together, the goblin paced the room. "Then it will be mine. How I have desired that jewel! You bring good news tonight and I am pleased...thus far." He turned sharply to his guest. "But I warn you, do not fail me. I must possess that magic marble. Failure means death, do you understand?"

"I shall not fail you," the visitor answered. "The plans are all made. Nothing can go wrong."

~Ingeus nodded curtly. The interview was over and the visitor departed as silently as he had come. Far below, the eerie howl of a wolf chilled the night air.~

---

~Lightning Star was completely lost in thought. She should be learning what the volume of a cylinder was, but she couldn't think about that. Her mind was distracted. She couldn't stop thinking about her last adventure, and Joskye White, the boy she met. She remembered him well. His similar blue eyes, his sweet smile; like his sister, Swift, his brown hair; like his brother, Argie, and finally, his personality in general. She even remembered the kiss. She began to smile.~

"Hmm..."

Karly Crystal, her best friend and partner, sat beside her. "Soooooo…?" she smiled, noticing her mood.

"So what?" Lightning asked, looking up from her maths book.

"What's with the sudden happy mood?" Fierra Mortal, a friend of theirs, said, raising her brow suspiciously.

"Fierra, I'm always happy." answered Lightning.

"But, are you always suddenly happy?"

"That sentence you just said didn't make any sense, Fierra." Karly shook her head.

"I'm talking to Lightning here, Karly!"

~As Fierra went on, the other three Pixels- Arianna Blairet, Jace Donar and Mirus Hallot- arrived on the stone step they were sitting at. They had just finished their detention with their maths teacher, Mr. Says after Mirus accidentally head butted him while trying to get a pen back from Duko Bandit and Palhio Neale, the bullies of Pixel High. Mr. Says, not for the first time in Mirus' experience, had entered the classroom at just the wrong moment. Since it was the late morning, he had given Mirus, Duko and Palhio breaktime detention and made Mirus write a letter for his mother, recommending that when the boy left school, he should consider becoming a battering ram, since he seemed incapable of using his head for anything better! Jace and Arianna got dragged into the mess since they were also fighting and trying to help Mirus retrieve his pen. They all stared down at Lightning and, for some shocking surprise, heard her humming beautifully.~

Arianna bent low. "Lightning, are you feeling alright…?" she breathed. "You do seem distracted and...head over heels."

"Humming too." added Jace.

The young spy looked up and addressed them. "Is it that obvious?" she droned.

"Yeah…" Jace whispered.

"Come on, buddy, pal, amigo, friend…" Mirus giggled, winking and nudging at Lightning uncontrollably. "Give us the sweet gossip!"

~He stretched out his hand and Lightning felt a thrill rush through her. She knew that if she didn't tell them what's happening they won't stop bothering her until the end of time. She could see all their eyes sparkle. Seeing that there was no other choice, she sighed.~

"Alright. Let's move to a more private place." She said, as she stood up and led the way.

"Ooo. It's secretive…" hissed Mirus to Jace from the side of his mouth.

~The Pixels strolled down the cobblestone steps as slyly as they could. It would be wise not to talk where they were since it was full of people and any of them could overhear their conversation and discover Lightning and Karly's secret. They were eyeing the people carefully by the time they reached the nearest door to the school building. Slipping inside, the six walked along the hallways until they spotted an empty classroom with no teachers or students insight. Lightning opened the door, eyes still darting warily as her Pixel friends allowed themselves in the room. The giggled excitedly, impatient to hear what Lightning had to say.~

"Shh. Keep your voices down, Pixels." she commanded. "You never know if someone may come in or, at least, come nearby."

"Right. Sorry." Mirus continued to snicker.

"Sit down, guys…" Lightning pointed to a desk. They obeyed. "Come closer." They leaned forwards. Then, without wasting any more time, Lightning muttered the words. "On my last adventure, I met a boy."

"YOU MET A BOY?!" Fierra screamed.

~In an instant, Lightning leapt on Fierra. She almost slammed her head on the table in shock. Dragging her to her feet and clamping her hand over her mouth, Lightning glared at her.~

"I said be quiet…!"

Fierra pulled Lightning's arm away. "Sorry! I couldn't resist! No need to be violent about it, however!"

~Lightning released her friend. She looked at the rest of the Pixels for their reaction, but all were too shocked to say a word.~

Arianna recovered her voice first. "Oh my god…"

"So, let me get this straight. You actually picked up a boy?!" asked Fierra.

"Technically, he picked me up." Lightning said, blushing hard red. She suddenly snapped back to existence. "Oh, What am I saying?- No, we're not dating! We're just merely acquainted, but...he said he likes me."

"So, do you like him back?" Karly quired, shrugging her shoulders.

"I...I don't know. I have to know more about him before I, you know." replied Lightning.

"Yeah, I get it."

"But, what's he like?!" Fierra smiled, wanting to know.

"Yeah, girl, give us details! But, go slowly…" Arianna grinned. Suddenly, all Pixels began gambling questions all at once.

"Is he totally handsome?"

"Is he tall and strong?"

"Is he kind and sweet?"

"Is he athletic?"

Lightning answered them slowly. "Totally; I say we're about the same height and size; very kind and sweet; and he seems physically fit."

"Wait...do you know his name?" asked Karly.

"Yeah, you gotta know his name!" Fierra exclaimed.

"Yes, of course I do. His name is…" Lightning took a breath. "His name is Joskye White."

~The Pixels gasped. They couldn't believe what they were hearing. They let out quiet cheers and laughs as they hugged around Lightning. They have always wanted her to find a man ever since they turned to high school.~

"This is...This is no hoax. You actually met someone." Karly breathed happily.

"And she's falling in love with him!" Fierra screamed at the rooftop.

"Oh my gosh, shush, Fierra!" shouted Lightning. "Do you want the whole school to know?!"

"Maybe…" she smirked with one hundred percent seriousness.

"Don't tell anyone, okay?! If you do, I will get my memory eraser."

~They piped down and nodded silently. After dismantling from the hug, Lightning's wrist calm began to buzz. Checking it, she saw that there was a voice call from Sunset Shimmer on it. She clicked to it to hear what she has to say.~

"Lightning! We've got an emergency at the beach! Meet us there as soon as you can!" her voice called out from the speaker.

"Well, gotta run! Tell the chief about it for me!"

~Before anyone could speak, Lightning was out the door. The five Pixels raced towards it and waved as they saw Lightning turn the corner.~

"I'll get your English homework for you! I guess!" called Karly. "Still not allowed on any missions, you know?" She then whispered grumpily under her breath.

---

"It's so...deep." declared Fluttershy.

"Yeah, no fence around it either." observed her sporty friend, Rainbow Dash. "Definitely wouldn't like to be walking across here in the dark."

"Imagine though," exclaimed Pinkie Pie, the hyperactive, bubbly girl of the group, "You could be skipping across the sand chased by a ferocious sea monster and suddenly, you see this in front of you, and you swerve out of the way at the last minute, and the monster goes 'Aaaagh!' Splash! And crashes to its doom!"

"There aren't any sea monsters on the beach," retorted Applejack.

"What about in the ocean?" Pinkie challenged her.

"Not here."

"Wanna maybe bet there are?" Rainbow smirked.

"How much?" Applejack smirked back.

"A million! Or all the apple cider in the world!" Rainbow responded, as she made an unsuccessful swipe at Applejack's arm.

"Oh, pack it in, you two!" cried Rarity, the fashionista of the group. "It's not a competition."

~The seven Rainbooms- Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, Sunset Shimmer, Fluttershy, Applejack and Rarity- were on a day off from their secret agent jobs and school, so they decided to go to the beach. It was a warm day, so how could they not? Rarity took out some sun cream from her beach bag and rubbed it onto her arms and stomach between her skirt and purple crop top. Suddenly, she heard commotion not far from where she and the other Rainbooms were sunbathing. The adults were clutching their children's hands and muttering carefully to them. Some were even dragging them away. The Rainbooms barged through the crowd until they came to the problem. That's when Sunset decided it would be best to call Lightning. The seven stared at a broad round hole, which they reckoned was about thirty-five metres across and as many deep. It was sunk into the low, grass covered cliff of the sandy bay. At the bottom of it ran an arched tunnel dripping rock that led to sea. A steep track of grass, mud and rock led to the bottom of the hole. Lightning Star suddenly arrived and joined her Rainboom buddies on the lip of the hole.~

"Hey! Rainbooms! What seems to be the problem?" she puffed.

"This hole." answered Twilight. "The adults state it could be dangerous for their children to play nearby."

"What do you suggest we do about it?" asked Rarity.

Lightning took a peek inside. "We can go into it and check if it's safe." she decided. "Come on, it doesn't look too steep."

~Without further ado, Lightning and the Mane 7 descended into the hole. Lightning went first and slithered rapidly to the bottom. Fluttershy followed the track more cautiously.~

Come on, Fluttershy," urged Rainbow from behind her.

"I'm trying…" she gasped.

"Don't rush her, Rainbow Dash, or she'll fall." Sunset said.

"This feels dangerous…"

"You're doing fine," Lightning shouted, being like the big sister in charge. "Come on, It's all right."

~A couple of minutes later, the Rainbooms slid down the last few metres one by one and joined her.~

"Wow! It doesn't half make you grubby!" said Pinkie, studying her dirty hands and the seat of her costume. "Whoo-hoo!"

"Just mind you don't wipe them on your swimming outfits." Her fashion friend, Rarity, retorted. "You know how I moan about my designs being messed up."

"Let's go through the tunnel," said Lightning, pointing to the split rock ahead of them.

"Come on then," cried Rainbow. She raced off, but soon slowed down when she found out the hard way just how slippery the sea-washed rocks were. "Ow!" she cried as she picked herself up from a pool of water. "Aw man! My shorts soaked!"

~They picked their way along the passage, shouting as they went to make their voices boom off the damp walls, and trying to keep their feet dry- though it was too late for Rainbow Dash and she just sloshed through the pools. The tunnel brought them out to a wild coast if close packed broken rocks between which ran the remains of low tide. Behind them stood the sheer cliff face of the coastline.~

"Oh. I suppose the hole was alright after all." said Lightning.

"Well, that was worth our time." sighed Rainbow in sarcasm.

"Hey, since we now got it out of the way, let's go rock hopping!" cried Pinkie. "The tide's still low, so we've plenty of time!"

~For the next quarter of an hour, Pinkie enjoyed herself clambering over the barnacled rocks. The other desperately tried to keep up. In fact, they were too caught up that not one of them noticed the silent mist seeping across the sea towards them. At least, not until Lightning realised with a jolt that she could no longer see Fluttershy, and the air had turned cold.~

"Hey, what's happened?" she called. "Fluttershy, where are you?"

"Over here." Her voice sounded muffled in the mist.

~It took only a couple of minutes to find one another, but even after such a short time the mist had grown so thick that the cliff was no more than a dim shadow behind them.~

"We'd better head back, I think." Sunset muttered anxiously.

~They groped their way towards the cliff, but discovered to their dismay that they could no longer find the entrance to the tunnel.~

Twilight frowned. "Thats funny. I'm sure it was here," she said.

"Well, we've lost it, haven't we?" Rainbow answered.

"What do we do now?" Applejack pondered.

"Only one thing for it," Lightning replied. "We'll have to follow the cliff round until we come to the beach. Lets just hope the rocks go all the way and we don't have to swim for it."

Rarity began darting her eyes left and right. "Wait, Where did Fluttershy go?"

~They all looked around but Fluttershy was nowhere to be seen. They frantically called her name. She was surrounded by the mist alone and thought.~

"Hello? Girls? This feels really odd, this mist…" Fluttershy said quietly. She shivered, and knew it wasn't just because of the cold.