Embers of an Empire

by Beware The Carpenter

4 - Free Real Estate

Holding her own phylactery Daring heard… nothing. No voice of confirmation. No flood of memories of another life. Somnambula reminded her that she trusted no one without proof, and that the sword would open up when Daring had earned it’s trust. The only real question then was whether to look for Sombra’s phylactery or find new hosts for Somnambula and Welkin?

Honestly, Daring felt little or no loyalty to either of her supposed sister-wives. She doing this for Sombra, a desire that had increased sharply now that she had the sword and so she chose his phylactery. Pawn Picker was still at their camp but she ignored him. There was a fight that she only vaguely remembered and then he’d left, probably for the best. She worked to repair the scrying pool with Somnambula. It was frustratingly slow but they had almost gotten it working when they both heard the cry.

Phylacalrties couldn’t eat to regain their power, and when they weren't connected to a host they had very limited stores of energy which Sombra must have exhausted to give a short, clear message: Enemies close, impending capture with coded approximate coordinates.

Daring and Somnambula were airbound within a minute and flew for hours before they managed to sneak onto a train heading the right direction where they got a meal and some rest but they were too excited to sleep. They were heading into the heartland, maybe even Canterlot, making Somnambula nervous. As the sun rose there was a second signal, weaker but much closer and easier to pinpoint.

They got off the train as it began it’s ascent up the Canterhorn and followed the river south to the banks of Froggy Bottom lake before it turned into a bog near Ponyville and by early afternoon they spotted a small tent. Using cloud cover to get close, Daring saw a blue and green pegasus mare, dripping wet next to her campfire, leaning on a spear she’d probably brought to protect against hydras. She was in excellent physical shape but the bags under her eyes told of exhausting weeks of diving every daylight hour but the unmistakable grin of triumph with which she clutched something to her chest showed that her labors were over.

Daring set down casually a few yards away with a congratulatory grin which didn’t budge as the filly rose and pointed the spear at her. “Relax.” Daring smiled, shrugging her wings, “My name’s Daring Do, pleased to meet you.”

“Pearl-er- I don’t care who you are. Go away.”

“That’s a nice amulet you found there.” Daring noted, without needing to see what she was hiding in her left wing, “Unfortunately, you have absolutely no idea what it really is.”

“I know what it is. Freedom.” hissed Pearl between ragged breaths, “My brother got framed and now they’re hurting him in prison, if I give her the cursed amulet then he can go home at his retrial.”

“Whose she?”

The mare paused, looking like she would bite off her own tongue, “I can’t tell you.”

“How about I take you to a bank right now and give you a hundred thousand bits. That’s more than enough for a great lawyer and bribe a judge with money left over.”

“I can’t. She’ll find out and then”

“She is not here.” growled Somnambula through Daring’s mouth, “I am. There is nothing she could ever do to you or your family that I won’t do worse if you don’t give me-”

Before Daring could shut Somnambula up and defuse the situation, Pearl hurled her spear at them. Daring sidestepped with ease and apparently had drawn Jeapordy from her sheath though she didn’t remember how or when. Pearl pivoted and launched over the lake, looping Sombra’s amulet over her neck and abandoning everything else. She was fast, Daring had to admit, but she was still wet from diving and Daring gained on her with ease.

When she saw she couldn’t win with speed Pearl diverted to a small island in the middle of the lake, hoping to lose her in the dense trees. Daring smiled, fell back slightly, gained altitude and waited until Pearl was almost to she island shore and then dove unto her, plunging her into the shallow waters.

As they crashed together Daring lost her grip and overshot her. She circled back and saw Pearl target spitting out a mouthful of water. She’d almost managed to catch another breath before Daring fell on her again, grappled her onto her side with her head under water and waited… and waited. Pearl struck her wing against Daring’s back and it hurt but not nearly enough. She grabbed a sharp rock and tried cutting Daring’s hoof off her neck, but Daring stomped on her, forcing tiny bubbled of air out her nostrils. Pearl never gave up, and even as her death seemed inevitable she seemed bent on hurting her enemy in any possible way, no matter how petty as her eyes thrashed with desperation. Daring simply stared back, breathing calmly through her own nostrils feeling like she was forgetting to do something but couldn’t for the life of her remember what.

“Stop.” ordered Somnambula, “Let her live.”

Daring got off Pearl, hoisted her to the shoreline and watched as she spewed mouthfuls of water onto the beach, too weak to even try stopping Daring from taking the amulet off. It looked like an alicorn except for the distinctive tattoos on one of the wings while the other wing seemed deftly familiar and the horn had a notch entirely unlike Sombra that she assumed must be Welkin’s. ‘Are we good to go?’ Daring asked Somnambula.

“Take me off, put me on her.”

“You think Pearl’s your reincarnation?”

“No, but finding my new body could take months and this mare’s mistress will send someone looking for her long before then. This body will suffice in the meantime.”

There was a small struggle when they realized Pearl’s ears weren't already pierced but Daring rectified that with the spike at the end of Jeopardy’s pommel. She put Somnambula’s earrings and headdress on her and stood back as Pearl broke out in a series of curses, and hitting herself before grabbing the headdress and throwing it into the dirt. Daring had to restrain her again, more to keep her from hurting herself than Daring, and put the headress back on.

“She’s resisting.” said Somnambula, muttering the obvious. “Tie her to that tree and leave her. I have an idea but we’ll need some supplies.”

Daring obeyed and they headed to the nearest town. To say that Somnambula’s shopping list was… unusual would be an understatement. Most of the pharmacies had never even heard of some of the objects but eventually there was an apothecary who when shown the list asked if they were picking up Zecora’s special order and accepted their word in response. It had everything they needed plus more and had even been paid for in advance.

Daring took the packages back to the island and spent the night being guided by Somnambula into how to make a potion while Pearl entreated for her life. She spent the first hours begging, telling them about the qualities of her brother, nephew and pregnant sister-in-law and all the reasons they should be spared but when it became obvious pity would get her nowhere she tried her best at fear; detailing all the gory ways that her mistress would mutilate them and then tried to get her to doubt by saying whoever Daring was working for would simply kill her rather than deliver what he promised.

Around midnight it must have occurred to her that Daring obviously wanted her alive for something and so faked a seizure, hoping Daring would untie her to resuscitate her, giving her a chance to escape. When that didn’t work she tried bribing her with anything and everything she could think of on behalf of her backer. Money, political connections, drugs, unchecked freight, access to unregistered alpha unicorns and the forbidden magics they wielded, but when she said she could offer dates with any of the wonderbolot stallions, sex guaranteed, Daring couldn’t help but laughing and saying she had no interest in the wonderbolt stallions she misinterpreted and offered the wonderbolt mares and then finally herself.

All the while Somnambula listened with a cheeky grin on her face growing more and more pleased with the creative determination showed by her future host. Daring blacked out for a bit and when she came too Pearl was wet and crying again and Somnambula seemed more pleased then ever at the courageous loyalty shown in not saying anything about her mistress. As the sun rose and Pearl was telling them about heaven and hell, the potion was ready. Daring once again placed Somnambula’s phylacteries onto Pearl, reached for the potion and… what the hay!?!?

Daring looked at Pearl. She wasn’t a mare she was a freaking teenager! Bruised from where she’d been struck, wheezing from nearly drowning, who’d spent the night begging for her life and the lives of her family now thrashing against an invisible enemy. Daring took a step back, heart pounding; she didn’t remember everything about why she’d done this she just knew that she needed to free her.

There was a sword on the makeshift table behind her covered in goop; she grabbed it to cut the ropes… and remembered where she was again. Daring cleaned her blade and sheathed it snugly to her side and then picked the memory potion back up, and forced the memory potion down Pearl’s throat.

After a few minutes Pearl seemed to calm down. She looked confused, like a child who didn’t know who or where she was. “Did-did I do something wrong?” she asked shyly, “Am I under arrest?”

“Yup.” Daring nodded, “Drunk and disorderly, can you tell me your name so I can get your parents to come take you home?”

The filly shook her head, a tear rolling down her cheek. “Can you… untie me? I promise I’ll be good.”

Daring relented and let the filly have a bathroom break. She came back and collapsed exhaustively be the fire, then exploded in a blood-curdling scream of agony. Her flesh burned and tore as the glyphs Daring had seen in her dreams came to life across her body which went limp as death.

“Somnambula! Somnambula can you hear me!?”

At first there was no response, but as Daring knelt beside her to administer CPR her eyes cracked open and Somnambula whispered, “You may have fucked my husband but I was his queen. You will address me as either ‘Queen Somnambula’ or ‘Your Majesty’.