Crossing the Rubicon

by Blade Star

Chapter 6

Shining watched Elusive carefully, searching his face for even the slightest tell. He’d expected him to play his cards close to his chest when he gave hi the news. But quite unexpectedly, Elusive was, for once, seemingly wearing his heart on his sleeve. He smiled with barely contained glee as his eyes roamed over the list that was currently levitating gently in his field.

The two of them, along with Tempest, were in the modest lounge area of the apartment that Elusive had been granted by Princess Cadence, following the destruction of his shop and home. Elusive was seated on a modest sofa, while Shining stood near him in what Tempest assumed was the unicorn’s attempt to be intimidating. She meanwhile, was perched a short distance away on the edge of a coffee table, waiting for the inevitable to happen.

“They’re all dead?!” Elusive exclaimed, finally looking up from the list and meeting Shining’s gaze. Shining was unmoved by the disguised changeling’s sudden happiness.

“I’m guessing you’re not going to be missing any of them?” he asked, with just a hint of sarcasm. Elusive however, was unaffected by the more stoic unicorn and let out another uncharacteristic chuckle of delight.

“Quite the opposite, Captain. I assure you, were the current circumstances not what they were, I’d be celebrating right now,” he told him.

“You knew these changelings then, Elusive?” Tempest prompted, herself curious about who they were.

“Indeed, my dear Tempest. We were all quite well acquainted with one another.” His eyes returned to the list once more, seemingly still not quite able to accept the information presented.

“Fellow infiltrators I’m guessing?” Shining added with a growl. The smile on Elusive’s face now vanished and with a weary sigh, he got up, stepping behind the sofa, placing it between Shining and himself.

“Oh really, Captain,” he said in annoyance. “We’ve been down this road so many times already. I really don’t…”

That was as far as he managed to get with that thought.

Activating his magic, Shining shoved the sofa to one side, making both Elusive and Tempest start. The unicorn was instantly up from her own perch, her damaged horn beginning to spark. Elusive meanwhile, while startled, didn’t seem quite so concerned, even as Shining grabbed him by the waistcoat and hauled him up to be eye level with him.

“Dammit, Elusive!” he roared. “I’ve had enough of your foalish games! I am not your friend! I’m not Tempest, and the two of us aren’t sparring amiably over lunch! Now you dragged me into this investigation, and now you’re going to cooperate and answer my questions!”

Now it was Elusive’s turn to interrupt the still furious unicorn.

“Dragged you into it?!” he fired back angrily. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Shining didn’t even hesitate, though Celestia knew he wanted to. He’d been secretly looking forward to this moment all through the journey back to Canterlot. His ace in the hole. The one piece of information that Elusive had managed to hide from everypony; from Tempest, him, and the most skilled investigators in the city. He tried to hide the elation in his voice as he fired his accusation.

“You blew up your own shop, Elusive!” he exclaimed, pointing an accusing hoof at his chest.

Instantly the argument stopped and a complete silence fell over the group. Shining stood there, waiting for Elusive’s reaction, while Tempest, her horn no longer sparking as her emotions cooled, wore an expression of near complete bewilderment. After all, it was quite an illogical accusation Shining had just made. Elusive blew up the store himself, and nearly got himself killed in the process?”

Shining however, was quick to jump on the changeling’s momentary confusion. He smiled; the silence from Elusive told him all he needed to know.

“Huh, that’s funny,” he said, now in a far more amused tone. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that expression on your face before. Are you surprised, Elusive?”

“Yes! I am surprised!” Elusive replied, bristling. “I’m surprised that you could come to such an insane conclusion!”

It was a poor parry and they both knew it. Now Shining began his explanation. He was going to enjoy this. He was like the detective at the end of a mystery novel, gradually revealing how he solved the crime and unmasked the villain.

“I knew as soon as I spoke with Gerhard that he didn’t do it,” he explained with a smile. “Assassins don’t change their methods unless they have to. He might have been gifted with explosives, but he was more gifted with poison. That’s how he managed to assassinate the last changeling commander he was sent after. He was going to poison you, not blow you up. Why else would he come with that cheap bag of ‘perfumes’?

“I think you spotted him in the city, realised that he’d come for you, and then blew up your shop so that the Royal Guard would start an investigation. Why try to take him out yourself, when you can have ponies do the work for you, letting you stay safely in the shadows?”

“That seems like a very elaborate was of getting the city’s law enforcement involved,” Tempest pointed out, leaping to her friend’s defence. “If Elusive wanted to your help, he could have simply asked for it.” Shining shook his head and turned his attention back to Elusive.

“But you couldn’t be sure that any investigator would take you seriously, never mind help you. And we all know you have a secret to keep. You needed me, since I already knew what you were. That’s why you did it when Cadence was there, to make absolutely sure I’d take charge and start digging. And, speaking of my wife…”

With one deft movement, Shining caught Elusive with a solid right hook that sent him flying over the sofa, before coming to rest on the ground with a thud. The changeling let out a hiss of pain as Tempest helped him get back to his hooves, while he rubbed his now sore jaw with a hoof.

“That,” Shining declared in a dark tone. “Is for using my wife, and the mother of my child, in your twisted games.”

“We both know she was never in any danger,” Elusive said, his own tone now become cold and callous as some blood streamed from his lip. “And as I said before, Captain. If I wanted her dead, you wouldn’t even have time to feel the blade at your neck.”

Shining seethed as Elusive once again instantly managed to get under his skin. His reaction was visceral enough for Tempest to place herself between the two stallions. Still, there was one more card he had to play.

“That always was where your talents lay,” he admitted. “You never struck me as a tailor. That’s why you did it, isn’t it? You secretly enjoyed destroying your store.”

Elusive’s anger too seemed to cool a little at this.

“I’ll admit,” he confessed. “Watching it burn wasn’t exactly tragic.”

“Whether or not you want to admit it, Elusive, you pulled me into this. Now you’re stuck with me. I want to know who these changelings on this list were, and how you’re connected to them.”

Shining wasn’t entirely sure he’d succeeded, but he could sense a change in Elusive. Just as he had when he’s pointed out those foals outside the ruined store. At last, he was going to break. The changeling held his gaze for a few moments longer, before turning away and walking over to the modest balcony that looked out over the city.

He stood there for several moments, a silent battle going on inside him. Both Shining and Tempest watched as he wrestled with his conscience. Finally, he seemed to come to a decision, and rejoined them. Walking over an armchair, he allowed himself to rest his forelegs on its back, folding them across his chest as he did so.

“We were all associates of a changeling called Mandible,” he began.

Tempest started. She knew that name well.

“Mandible?” she repeated. “The former head of the Infiltration Bureau?” Elusive nodded.

“He retired in the aftermath of the queen’s departure,” he explained. “And I use the term ‘retired’ euphemistically. He wasn’t exactly a popular fellow after that little fiasco. Though, having said that, he was the only head of the bureau to ever last long enough in his position to actually retire and draw his pension.”

Elusive now began to slowly pace around the room, clearly uneasy at divulging such information. Still, he continued. And Shining and Tempest listened.

“For many years, we were his most trusted infiltrators. Whenever an operation could not be allowed to fail, or if the queen herself required somepony...removed. We would be sent. In time, we became influential within Chrysalis’ inner circle.”

“Any idea why the griffons would suddenly want you all dead?” Shining asked. Elusive shook his head.

“No. Though, Celestia knows we conducted enough operations within their borders over the years. But I can’t see why they would choose to strike now. Mandible, however, might.”

“That’s assuming that he also didn’t suffer an ‘unfortunate accident’ as well,” Tempest pointed out. “If the griffons took out all of his best soldiers, it makes sense that they’d follow through with a coup de grace.”

“That is a very distinct possibility, my dear,” Elusive agreed grimly. “He was always clever, always one step ahead. But so were my other late former associates.”

“Is there any way you can reach out to him? Covertly, I mean,” Tempest asked. Elusive paused and thought for a few moments.

Against one wall of the suite was a rather large mirror. A round, ornate thing that helped make the room seem even more spacious that it already was. This seemed to catch Elusive’s eye, and he quickly trotted over to it. He then turned back to Shining, who’d watched the changeling with some mild amusement.

“Captain,” he asked. “Would you object to me using a little magic on this charming mirror?”

The request caught Shining off guard. He shrugged his shoulders.

“Go ahead, Elusive,” he said. “Provided you don’t damage it.”

With that, Elusive activated his magic, his unicorn horn glowing a sickly green colour, one of the few indicators of his true nature that no changeling could mask.

The mirror itself was soon glowing too and the reflection, which previously showed Elusive standing in front of it, now began to distort, seeming to show something along the lines of static, with brief flashes of seemingly another room. Tempest had a rough idea of what he was doing. She’d used a similar trick, albeit without her own magic, to communicate with the Storm King. Shining too, recognised it. It was certainly a step up from sending letters by dragon flame. And from what he could tell, whatever spell Elusive was using not only broadcast their image while receiving another, but also dampened its own energy signature, making it unlikely to be detected by anypony sensitive to ambient magic, like unicorns.

“That’s an interesting way of sending a message without anypony noticing,” he commented with a hint of ruefulness. He didn’t much care to admit that he was impressed by the changeling.

“Yes, Captain. I though you might appreciate it. On an aesthetic level,” Elusive replied teasingly. He then turned his attention back to his work.

“Ah! Here we go,” he declared as the image began to come into focus.

At first it was just a blurred mass of colours, but slowly, the reflection began to coalesce into a clear image. It wasn’t the room in which they stood, it wasn’t even Canterlot. From the surroundings, it was clear to Tempest that the image they were seeing was of the hive in the Changeling Kingdom. It was quite different from the dark and dingy place it had once been, now teeming with life. What caught her eye though was the changeling that appeared in the centre of the image.

Tempest couldn’t be sure if it was a female, but judging by the body, and the shape of the eyes, it looked like it. Changelings were much harder to pin down than ponies or griffons on that front. This was, like so many, was now reformed, with a light blue body and a ruby red carapace concealing the wings on her back. Her mane, at least as far as changelings had manes, was a soft pink that reminded her somewhat of Fluttershy, as did the teal coloured eyes. Even without visible pupils, it was clear she was looking at whatever was displaying the image on her end.

She was surprised, startled, understandably so. After all, Elusive’s method of communication did seem to force itself on, instead of giving the recipient a chance to accept or decline. When she saw Elusive though, her surprise gave way to something else. Was it relief, amazement? Tempest wasn’t too sure, but it was clear that this changeling knew her friend.

“Nirx!” the drone exclaimed with a gasp, now clearly a female judging by the voice.

Elusive too seemed to change in response. Gone was the playful trickster, and certainly the ruthless infiltrator. For the first time in quite a while, Tempest saw Elusive without his mask.

“Hello, Ocellus,” he said in a kindly, gentle voice.

“I never thought I’d see you again. But I recognise you, even through that pony disguise. It’s been so long since I saw you.”

Again, Elusive smiled, and Tempest got the impression that he wanted to say something to the young drone. A moment later though, he collected himself.

“I need to speak to your father,” he said in a more serious tone. “It’s very urgent.” Ocellus shook her head.

“You can’t,” she replied. “He isn’t here.” That didn’t sound good.

“Where is he?” Elusive asked, his tone now more hurried and with a note of genuine worry in his voice.

“I don’t know,” Ocellus said, her own voice sounding even more worried that Elusive. “He left yesterday in a rush. He grabbed just a few things and went. He wouldn’t tell me where, or how long he’d be gone. We haven’t heard anything from him since. Mum’s starting to get really worried. You know his health hasn’t been great these past months.”

“Maybe he realised somepony was coming after him,” Shining suggested. Elusive frowned.

“He’s in trouble again, isn’t he?” Ocellus said worriedly. “Nirx, you have to help him! I know...I know you’re still bitter and angry because of what happened between the two of you but...you must help him!”

There were now visible tears in her eyes, and her voice was cracking.

To Tempest’s surprise though, Elusive seemed to be faring little better. Whatever there was between these two, the simple act of talking to her was taking a massive toll on Elusive’s emotions. He too seemed to be struggling not to outright weep. And there was still something he was holding back, something unspoken between the two of them.

“If you speak to him,” Elusive managed to force out through almost gritted teeth. “Tell him to reach out to me in the usual way.”

“Promise me!” Ocellus demanded. “You’ll help him! Promise me, Nirx!”

“I promise.”

And with that, Elusive let the spell he was manifesting taper off. The image quickly blurred, and a few moments later, it had returned to reflected himself, Tempest, and Shining, just as it ought to.

Tempest’s mind was once again whirring with questions. While she doubted she would ever fully uncover anything about her strange friend, that didn’t stop her curiosity. Not that she would ask him though. Not out of politeness, mind you, more out of a mutual understanding. That and she knew that any answer she got would be just him messing with her at best. Shining on the other hoof…

“So who is she to you?” he asked bluntly. Elusive turned to him. For a moment, he cast a cold scowl in his direction, but a moment later, it was replaced with his usual mask. The vulnerable, even hurt Nirx vanished, replaced once again by Elusive.

“A friend of a friend,” he replied easily. “Now, I have an idea where we need to go next to get ourselves to the bottom of this little problem.”

“And where’s that?” Shining asked suspiciously.

“I need to go to the Everfree Forest,” he said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world. “Would it be too much trouble if I said I’d need to borrow one of your charming chariots?”

“We’ll need to borrow a chariot,” Tempest corrected him. “There’s no way I’m letting you go in there on your own.”

“Agreed,” Shining said. “I’m coming too. If you’re going to be using Royal Guard transport, it makes sense for there to be at least one guard aboard.”

“Actually, Captain,” Tempest said carefully. “It would probably be a better idea for you to stay here.” Shining snorted at that.

“I’m not saying you won’t be an asset,” she went on carefully. “But the three of us are the only ponies who have even a clue as to what’s going on here. It isn’t a good idea for all of us to go into a hornets nest. If something goes wrong, we’re going to need backup.”

The unicorn frowned at that. Tempest could understand where he was coming from. He was a soldier, who believed in leading from the front. After all, this was the stallion who had fought against Sombra when the Crystal Empire returned, and who had stood toe to toe against Tirek when he escaped Tartarus. Had he been in Canterlot when Tempest mounted her own attack, she had no doubt that she would have faced a much tougher fight. So to be told that he needed to sit by and wait had to be frustrating. Still, after wavering for a few moments, he agreed.

“I’ll get two of my best guys to fly you out to the Everfree,” he told them. They can drop you somewhere close to wherever you think this Mandible guy might have gone, and they can provide a means of escape if things go south.”

“Thank you, Captain,” Tempest said sincerely.

---

A short time later, and Elusive and Tempest found themselves in the large hanger bay that held the various transports used by the Royal Guard and others to travel around Equestria. The far wall was an open space, allowing several craft of varying sizes and enter and leave, without risking collision. In one corner, Tempest saw the large ‘flying throne’ that served as Princess Celestia’s personal transport. Princess’s Luna’s more sleek and intimidating craft was a little further off, currently being worked on by a couple of unicorns. Beyond there were several chariots and carriages capable of holding between two and six passengers. Each was designed to be pulled by a pair of pegasi working in tandem. Their innate flight magic allowing the decidedly unaerodynamic craft to fly.

It was one of these that Shining led the pair to. A smaller design, with an open top and two large wheels instead of four smaller ones, as seen on larger designs. The two pegasi hooked up to the front promptly saluted, which the unicorn returned.

“These two will be able to get you where you need to go,” Shining explained. “They’re both experienced flyers with combat experience. They were part of the group that evacuated the Saddle Arabian embassy last year.”

“Ah, yes,” I remember it well,” Elusive said with a nod. “Quite tricky to pull all those civilians out so quickly, and with a sandstorm bearing down no less. A little jaunt through the forest shouldn’t be too much for them.”

“We’ll get you where you’re going, sir,” one of the pegasi assured him.

“And get us out?” Tempest prodded. “There’s a good chance we may need to leave in a hurry.”

“They’ll drop you off and then orbit discretely a safe distance away,” Shining explained. “Just fire a magic flare and they’ll come down to grab you.”

“Still, it might need to be a quick dust off,” Tempest went on.

“Come now, my dear Tempest,” Elusive said with a smile. “I’m sure these two boys are no strangers to making a quick exit. Thank you, gentlecolts.”

With that, he climbed up onto the chariot, settling himself into the seat at the rear of the craft. As he did so, a large airship passed by the hanger; the moorings were not too far away from the castle after all, and fly-by salutes were common practice for cruise ships. The engines affixed to the gondola made quite the roar as she passed though.

As Elusive turned back to Tempest, she was once again talking with Shining, though what she said he could not make out over the noise. And with her back to him, he couldn’t read her lips either. Whatever it was seemed fairly inconsequential, as Shining simply gave her a brief nod, before she turned and climbed aboard to join Elusive.

“Everything alright, my dear?” he asked her.

“Just promising Shining that I’d keep an eye on you,” she replied with a grin.

“Oh, he’s concerned for little old me?” Elusive asked with a sly smile. Tempest chuckled.

“Something like that.”

With that, the two pegasi began their take off, and the chariot quickly took off into the air. Moments later, they had left the hanger, and indeed the castle, behind, and were descending down the mountain heading towards Ponyville and the Everfree Forest.

The only question was, what would they find in there?

Author's Note:

Ooh, plot twist!

Comments

[harts fire]

well this shines a hole new light on things.

amazing chapter.