• Published 18th Mar 2013
  • 1,938 Views, 32 Comments

Broken Sky - hahatimeforponies



A restless ruffian pursues purpose in the shards of a shattered land.

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The Siege [Part I]

Oval paced outside the window of The Liberty Belle, gasping at the sooty dockyard air. Pedestrian traffic picked up as shifts ended. As she huffed and stomped and muttered curses on the very idea of their journey, her scarf trailed to Key, still tied to his. He sat bolt upright near the door, occasionally looking over his shoulder at the window and keeping the most respectable distance he could from anyone's way and anyone's gaze.

"Maybe it won't be so bad!" Oval said with a chuckle. Key's eyes remained wide as they followed her. The smile slid from Oval's face. "Okay. You're right. Maybe we could just... tell them to turn around? Convince Spike to take something else in exchange!" Key grimaced and scooted away from the door as a pair of dockers staggered past, yelling and slurring. Oval slumped to her haunches in front of Key, and then on to her belly. She shivered from the cold condensation on the concrete. "Oh, it's hopeless... we're going to die, Key. I know it."

"Maybe we don't... uhm..." Key gibbered.

The doors swung open again, and Key hopped four inches to his right. Sweetie Belle emerged from the diner. She looked at both of them with a gentle smile and a tilt of the head. "How are you kids doing?" Key and Oval snapped their gazes to her, wordless and with wrinkled brows. The smile slipped from Sweetie Belle's face. She stepped over the scarf to sit next to both of them. "Aw, who am I kidding..."

"Is it the only way?"

Sweetie Belle looked at Oval and nodded. "I don't blame Spike either. We're looking for answers and so is he. You two... you didn't sign up for this though." She sighed. "I don't think we'll be able to take you home and then go to Canterlot. That adds at least a week to the trip, which we might not have supplies for, and increases the chance of your home being discovered." Both Key and Oval winced. Sweetie Belle looked at the pavement. "There is another way. It was actually Spike's idea. You don't... have to come with us. It'd mean leaving you in Manehattan, but we wouldn't leave you out to dry. You could take over Spike's lease, and we'll put you through to where you can find good work for a pair of bright kids like you. It's not ideal... but it'd be a life."

Oval looked up at the sky. It teemed with black dots as ships passed each other in slow procession, forming lazy queues towards their docks and destinations. "How likely is it that we'd make it home?"

Sweetie Belle grimaced and looked up too, as if trying to find what Oval was looking for. "We can give you copies of our charts. As long as you keep 'em up to date, you'll always have your destination, and then it's just a case of working up the funds to charter passage..." She sighed. "That part might take a while."

Oval looked over her shoulder. Key cowered from the top-hatted pony leaving the Liberty Belle. She chewed the side of her mouth. "What do you think, Key?" He looked up with a startled hoot. "Stay here and work by ourselves, or take our chances in Canterlot?"

"I don't... I don't know..." He backed up to the window and sat on the sill. A moment later the proprietor knocked on the window and yelled something about not mucking it up, and Key yelped and fell over. Oval helped him up, and put herself between him and the door.

"Can we think about it for a bit?"

"Of course."

Oval brushed Key's shoulders off, because he was too busy staring at the floor and pretending that he couldn't be seen through the window. "Can you meet us back at the ship?"

Sweetie Belle looked down the docks. The security guard was still perched on his pay on the Crusader's deck. "You sure you don't want to come back inside and eat?" She frowned as she looked back at Oval, knowing the answer already.

"We're not hungry. Maybe later." Oval nudged Key to get up and start walking.

"Sure. We'll be here if you change your mind. If not, we'll know where you are."

Oval smiled as much as she could, which was not very much. "Thank you."

Key didn't release his breath until they reached their cabin, where he let his legs go from under him and rolled on his back. Oval hurriedly untied their scarves before he pulled her to the floor too.

Key stared at the ceiling. "That's it. Just give me death. Both of these options are terrible."

"You don't think I didn't notice you trying desperately to not have a panic attack on the pier?"

"Why couldn't they leave us in Trottingham? Trottingham was nice. It had a bookshop."

Oval sat by the table and idly knocked her chess pieces around. "Yeah, Trottingham would have been lovely. Maybe it's cheaper to travel there." She sighed, and gave a rook a frustrated swipe with a hoof. It knocked into the row of pieces next to it, and Oval couldn't catch all of them. The opposite rook and knight and a couple of pawns escaped her grasp and tumbled to the floor. Key lunged for them - not that he could lunge very far from the floor.

"Got 'em."

"You got one of them."

"Oh."

Oval picked up the fallen pieces one by one, inspecting them with a scowl for damage. In hindsight, a set with pegs would have been a better idea for this trip. The last piece was a pawn that had wedged itself in the corner of a box beside the desk. She opened it, and slumped to her haunches. Key got up and lumbered over to get a look, and then he sat as well. She lifted a few things from the box and inspected them - a bloodied bar tap, a few necklaces, a gold seal with the coat of arms of the town of Hoofington.

"Do you still have the wallet, Key?"

"It's in my bag, next to the books."

Oval paused.

"You'd better not make a habit of this."

"What?"

"Flights of fancy that end up coming true."

He squinted. "What are you talking about?"

Oval nudged him, and flashed a smile. "You suggested a vacation as a joke and the next day the Crusader shows up. You keep that damn wallet and say you're gonna get all the stolen ponies from Hoofington home, and now we've actually got a chance to go to Canterlot."

"Wh-" He failed to form words in the middle of a breathy chuckle. "You didn't have to follow me!"

"Follow? How very dare you." She bopped him on the nose with the pawn, and set it back on the board. "I made the decision before you."

"Did not." Key chewed on a smirk.

"'Did not', what are you, five?"

They both broke down giggling. When they caught their breath, Oval tidied the box away again.

"So, Canterlot?"

"Canterlot."


Upon returning to the Liberty Belle, Key and Oval picked at scraps, and then returned to the Crusader for the night. Spike had already left, and they didn't see much of him for the following day either. Applebloom said he had to wrap up some things before taking off. Pallets of gems arrived on board throughout the day. Upon appraising them, Oval was informed that they were Spike's rations, which horrified her almost as much as the prospect of going to Canterlot. Key remained below decks reading for most of the day, but worked up the courage during the lazy after-lunch slump to go back to the chandler's and pick through more star charts and maps.

Oval convinced Sweetie Belle to take both of them up to the university to see where the star charts were made, with Key being pulled along by the tied-scarves method. The university didn't have much time for guests, but they made the most of the trip, admiring the cherubs, gargoyles and capitals adorning the facades of the campus buildings, blackened as they were. A few trees around the grounds were maintained and kept alive with lamps not unlike the lamps they had at home, but much larger and hidden in new bronzework. The observatory, a new construction perched on top of an old hall of residence, was visible from all over the city, and cantilevered over the street around the corner from the main entrance. When Key started inquiring about how to become a student, Sweetie Belle screamed privately, then quietly mentioned to Oval how much that would cost, and both of them ushered him away.

As a treat, which they were going to get for their troubles no matter which decision they made, Key and Oval were taken for pizza for their last evening in Manehattan. Scootaloo was more excited than they were by the prospect, though upon being served, they quickly caught on to why. Their light dinner the previous day caught up with them, and where Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo shared a pie, Key and Oval attempted a pie each, and regretted it later. When they returned to the Crusader, Spike was already on board. Applebloom quizzed him about his possessions, and he said he didn't have many to speak of. Key and Oval went straight to their cabin to sleep off their big dinner, while the others got ready to cast off.

They woke from the shudder of the ship moving. Hooves stomped about on the deck, and things rattled around. There was no way they were going to continue their nap, so they tidied away the chess set before things got rough, and went to the deck to see Manehattan off. Outside their cabin, the corridor was filled with junk by the next door down. The junk pile grew as they passed, with a pair of pots sent clattering into the hallway. A raft of smoke followed them, and a low, rumbling voice muttered something about a stupid shelf. They hurried along to the deck.

When they opened the door, the rush of wind greeted them. Key lost his balance and fell backwards when he spotted the city tilting away from them at a steep angle, as if the Crusader were launching straight upwards, and in doing so knocked Oval over. Scootaloo laughed, then fluttered down from her perch to help them up. Sweetie Belle glared at her from where she sat, clutching a rope in the forecastle. Applebloom, they guessed, was at the helm. Following Sweetie Belle's example, they watched their departure while holding on to the guard rails. At first they could spot individual faces in the crowds moving around on the streets during the tail end of the dinner rush. Key became dizzy following the shrinking weave of carts and flying bikes and skybridges between the crumbling towers, and clung tighter to the rail. Oval marvelled at the glittering spires of the old skyscrapers, passing by close enough that she felt like she could reach out and touch them.

A couple of pegasi passed the ship heading towards the city, wearing Manehattan dock armbands and trailing a pair of heavy chains. As the buildings contracted together towards one point in the grand arc of the sky, the Crusader tipped and changed its orientation relative to the city, so to see it they had to look overboard, at which point they really regretted such a large dinner. Above them, startling them by appearing suddenly and so close, was one of the lighthouses. They were close enough to see one of the docking workers scaling the great chain keeping the lighthouse in Manehattan's orbit, beginning a long climb back to the city, and the metal lunchbox swinging on his belt. It was easier to look at than the lighthouse itself, which briefly blinded them as they passed in front of it. Once they'd readjusted, the entirety of Manehattan was behind them. Around them, ships appeared to be heading in every direction, except the way that they were going. They looked at each other with the glum grimace that let both of them know they'd experienced the same upwelling of nausea at the same time. Without a word, they returned to the cabin.

The junk pile had expanded to block the door to their cabin, with a pair of crates and a pile of canvas nudged through the door. The sound of banging, rustling and clanging spilled from the room. There was that smell of smoke again. Key took a step back. Oval quirked an eyebrow. "Uh..." The noises stopped. "Hello?"

After a couple of thuds, the smoking nostrils and yellowed teeth, the shining spikes and scuffed scales, the slitted eyes of a dragon burst around the corner. "Hm?" Both Oval and Key screamed, and Oval fell backwards into Key while trying to backpedal. Spike went wide-eyed and covered his mouth. "Oh! No, it's okay! It's okay. Sorry! I didn't meant to... ah, shucks..." Key peered out from behind Oval, despite her not being nearly big enough for him to hide behind. Spike scratched the back of his head. "You kids never met a dragon before, huh?" Both of them shook their heads. He looked at the floor and concentrated on keeping his breathing under control. "I get that a lot. Listen, I'm gonna be here a while clearing all this crap out, is this..." He pointed at their door. They nodded before he finished the question. He sighed. "This is your cabin? Okay. Well... I don't know what to tell you. You got something else you can do?"

Oval cleared her throat and held her front to steady her quivering as she stood up. Spike paused. His eyes darted between the two of them for a moment. "I don't believe we've been properly introduced." Key heard the tremble in Oval's voice. She stumbled over some of the junk to reach a hoof out to him. "My name is Oval Cut, and this is my brother Key Stone. We've been travelling on the Crusader for about... a week? It feels like so much longer..." She forced a chuckle.

"You passengers?"

"Well... temporary crew? I'm helping with trading and Key is navigating."

Spike pulled a tight, toothless smile. Oval's hoof hung in the air. "Cute." She frowned. "You can go now."

"You used to live in the library, right?" Key spoke up.

Spike squinted. "Years ago, briefly, I lived in a library."

"The one in a tree, with a bedroom on the mezzanine and a telescope on the balcony?"

Spike's mouth opened a little. He folded his arms. "And all the shelves carved out of the wood, why?"

Oval snickered. "Psh, Key's only been using that as a study since he was nine."

"Wait, you're from... Ponyville?" They both nodded. Spike allowed himself a brief smile. "And Applebloom and the rest picked you up on the way here?" They nodded again. He paused for a moment, scratching his chin. "How's ol' Penny Sweet doing?"

Oval jumped right in. "Spending more and more time with the little kids these days, Twist is running more of the store now."

"And Vermouth?"

"Still a drinks-pouring machine who can talk for Equestria," Key chuckled.

"I see. And what about Onyx Ring?"

Oval waved a hoof. "Psh. That's our Dad. He's-"

"What? No way!" Spike immediately stooped to meet them at their eye level. "He used to... well." He chuckled, and covered his mouth while he did so. "We had a complicated relationship."

"Complicated?"

"I eat gems, y'see. Did you miss the pallets being loaded up?"

Oval puffed her cheeks and winced. "I saw them."

He threw his head back and did his best not to torch the ceiling from laughing. He was clearly struggling. "Okay, you're definitely Onyx's daughter. I had to cut a deal with him, because there were only so many gems to go around on the island, but I was a growing dragon, so I needed them. Essential minerals. So we split what came out of the breadcrumbs, fifty-fifty."

"Breadcrumbs?" Key and Oval said at the same time.

Spike stood up and put his claws on his hips. "Huh. Onyx would have been... and he already had two... which... are you two, presumably... sweet Celestia, I do remember seeing you kids before, but you would have been toddlers. Ugh, now I feel old..." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Yep, that makes sense. Okay!" He clapped his knees and sat on a barrel. "Enough talking to myself. You're probably too young to remember it, but for a while after the Sundering there was a lot of crap floating around. It was like... It's like when you tear a stick of bread, and crumbs come off around the break. The same happened with the earth. Nothing broke off cleanly. A lot of it was just rock and soil coming down in little chunks, which is where the gems come. But sometimes you'd have a piece of a building, or a tree, or even bones and stuff. The first couple of weeks were real bad, let me tell you."

"Bones? From like..." Oval swallowed. "Ponies?"

"Less than you might think. In a lot of places, the weather service turned into the sky rescue service immediately."

"I don't know what either of those things are," Key said.

Spike grimaced. "Right. The weather ponies are a story for another time. All you need to know now is that sky rescue are who you call when someone falls off a rock and that you appreciate the shit out of them. They do Celestia's work." Key and Oval exchanged glances. "You got it?" They nodded urgently. "Good. Now what were we talking about..."

"Do you need any help?" Key blurted. "We're uh... well, our cabin is..."

"It's nice of you to offer, but with me on site I'd be throwing around more than you can catch, and especially with how cramped it is, you might be as well to stay out of the way. I can get these boxes out of the way if you wanna catch some Z's or something." He smirked, and a puff of smoke curled from his nose. "If you don't mind me making a bit of noise, of course."

"S-sure!" Key said.

"That'd be lovely, thank you," Oval said.

Spike's gaze lingered on Oval a little bit with a distant smile, before he stood up, pulling himself to his feet by the knees, and with almost minimal effort, slammed two crates from one side of the corridor to the other. The wood creaked, and it left a gouge in the floor. He winced. "I probably should have lifted those..."

"We won't tell Applebloom," Oval whispered, flashing him a wink. Key opened the door, and they went inside.

The sounds of Spike's moving things lasted shorter than they expected. They didn't pay much attention to the time it took though, since all they did was conduct a brief crystal conversation and then delve into busywork. Through the thumping and crashing, Key happily read the life story of Deputy High Noon, the last lawman in the sky, while Oval couldn't find the concentration to read anything, and worked on the chess set instead. By now she was becoming quite confident in her carving, and had taken to engraving unique features on to each of the pawns - enough that each one was a clear individual, but not so much as to confuse them for another piece. The size of the ball at the top varied slightly between each one, but despite her progress on the trip, she was still constrained by her previous errors.

Oval went to sleep shortly after Spike was finished, and from the sounds of things, Spike had retired for the evening too. Key pre-empted Applebloom calling him for calibrations by bumping into her at the bottom of the stairs. After his survey of the sky, Applebloom locked the helm stocks and turned in for the night. Key remained on deck, with Scootaloo on the crow's nest. He climbed up on the forecastle, and sat for a while, watching the sky. As the hour wore on, they passed fewer ships. The Manehattan traffic dropped off within about fifteen minutes, leaving him only spotting the occasional stray junk or a lone pegasus.

"How you holdin' up, squirt?" Scootaloo said. Key screamed and rolled on his back when he heard Scootaloo land behind him. She chuckled. "Well that says a lot, don't it?" Key sat up, glaring and rubbing his chest. Scootaloo climbed on the guard rail and slumped. "Thought you could use some company." He shrugged, and resumed looking out over the prow with his chin on the frigid banister. She stretched, producing a crack from her back.

"Are you scared?" Key said.

"I'm shitting bricks," she said after a moment.

"Really?"

"I mean, you saw me sprinting around Hoofington looking for stragglers. This is probably the one place I never imagined myself ever going, except in chains."

"Then why?"

"Well why did you? You're a kid. You've got something to live for."

Key pulled his head back from the prow to look at her with a frown. "You're not that old."

"Oh, you're too charming. Nah, we... Applebloom and Sweetie Belle and me... this is what we've spent most of our lives chasing. To back down now would be giving up on family. You..." Scootaloo chuckled. "You're just coming with us for the hell of it, aren't you?"

He failed to conceal a pained smirk. "Well, not like... I mean..."

"Hey, I can't argue with that. If I was your age I'd probably do the same thing if Applebloom wasn't yankin' the choke chain." Key chuckled, and resumed his gazing. Oval would probably be able to put it better than him. Scootaloo yawned. "How far we got to go?"

"Probably three days sail, Applebloom says."

"Joy. Where'd I put that..." She patted her scarf. "Aha!"

"Where'd you put what?"

Scootaloo pulled the bottle of rum out of a pocket on the inside of the scarf. It still had about two thirds of its contents. "This boy." She unscrewed the cap. "Want some?"

He chuckled. "I think I'm good."

"Suit yourself."


The rest of the late watch passed quietly. Key went to retrieve a book and read on the quarterdeck, which Scootaloo found amusing after their conversation. He was quite happy to go below at the first sign of Sweetie Belle emerging for the early watch. Oval was still asleep. Their cabin was warmer than it had been, which he quite appreciated given what was on his mind. He didn't think too hard about what other consequences there might be to having a dragon next door, and instead went straight to sleep.

Nobody came to fetch him early, and the warmth in the cabin made it easy to doze late into the morning. It was the smell of baking that finally lured him from his rest, and he sloped into the mess hall to follow it. He nearly knocked over the cup of tea already at the table when he sat down. It was cold, with the beginnings of scum forming. Sweetie Belle removed it and replaced it with a fresh one.

"Sorry! Made that for you earlier and forgot about it."

He mumbled something that might have been "it's fine". She returned to the kitchen, humming a lively tune as she juggled pots around the kitchen. The normally spotless counters were piled high with covered dishes. "What are you making?"

"I thought we could use some fresh bread on board!"

He paused on his way to sip his tea. "I thought we just stocked up on food."

"Yeah, but it's not fresh bread." The stove belched flame, and she extinguished it.

Key blinked a couple of times, then shrugged and returned his attention to his tea. Then the thought occurred. Normally he made his own breakfast. "How did you know I was coming?"

"I didn't," she said, stirring a pot.

"So... how did you have a cup of tea ready for me?"

"A feeling. Would you like some stewed apple?" Sweetie Belle floated the pot over. "Bear with me, I'm out of bowls..."

"What's in the bowls?"

"Stewed apple."

Key squinted, and finally took a sip of his tea. It was lukewarm. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, I'm fine. Here, you can use the spoon I was making it with." The oven dinged. "Bread's ready! Perfect timing." She left his question hanging, and busied herself with finding somewhere to put the bread out to cool.

The door to the mess swung open, and Applebloom leaned in. "Sweetie Belle!" Sweetie Belle froze. Applebloom squinted. "Go help Scoot check the rigging."

"Right, right..." She quickly took a chopping board out of the sink, wiped it down, and put it on the unlit stove with the bread on top. Once it was stable, she cantered out of the room. "On it!"

Applebloom lingered in the doorway, looking at the kitchen. "Did she make all that?" Key had his mouth full of stewed apple, so he nodded. Applebloom sighed. "I'm gonna have to lock up the eggs and sugar."

"Why?" he mumbled. This had to be Key's best breakfast on board yet.

Applebloom waved it off, and started searching the pantry. "It's a long story. Finish your breakfast and see me on deck when you're ready." Too sleepy to do much else, Key shrugged it off and resumed eating.

After morning calibrations, Sweetie Belle brought the bread out on deck on a plate. The heavenly smell drew Key in for a slice with some of the apple from earlier on it, and Oval was right behind him. Applebloom was less impressed with it, but had some anyway. Oval brought the chess pieces up to the main cabin for a change of scenery, and Key brought some of the blankets up and sat nearby reading. Two cups of tea turned up at some point. They didn't ask for them, but it was made just the way they liked it.

About half an hour later, Oval stopped chiselling. Key didn't notice this. She smiled and looked in his direction, and he paid her no mind. The book was more important. It was kind of warm in here, though.

She snickered. He squinted. "What?" He lowered the book, and immediately learned what. Spike, lying on his belly in front of Key, gave his most innocent smile. Key threw the book in the air and screamed. Oval burst out laughing, then Spike did. "How long have you been there?"

"Twenty, thirty seconds."

"You're not that oblivious then, Key."

Key snorted and got up to recover the book. Spike sat up. "Heh. Sorry. Couldn't help noticing, though. You're reading Daring Do and the Razor of Dreams?"

"I was." Key slammed the book on the table and started pressing it to work out the crease i the page where the open book had landed.

Oval chuckled and nudged him. "Oh, don't be such a sourpuss." Key rolled his eyes and nodded.

Spike left his mouth open and pointed for a moment. "Can I read it when you're done with it? It's just, I read the other four, and..."

Key's grimace vanished. "That's right, the library was missing number four! Of course!"

"I thought that's what was up."

"Sure, you can read it, I just need to..." Key made a big show of kneading the bent page flat and leafing through it again. "... remember where I was before a dragon attacked me." Oval snickered.

"You never found it in Manehattan?"

Spike crossed his legs. "You'd think it'd be easy, but there's a lot of stores there that aren't too happy with dragons coming in. They'll talk about fire hazards, or causing trouble... It was easier when I was smaller. These days nobody wants me near a fancy establishment like a library."

"That's awful," Oval said. She hopped off her chair and sat beside him. "And you lived in the library too!"

Spike smiled and gazed out the window. "Those were the days, eh? Twilight used to give me books all the time. I thought it was lame back then, because we worked with books all day, and then she'd go and read even more, but... you never know what you have until it's gone, do you?"

Oval frowned, and Key sat, sullen. "I'm sorry..."

Spike chuckled and stood up. "Look at me, moping. I didn't mean to bring you down, kids. Just wanted to say it'd be nice to read agai-"

"Oh! Excuse me." Sweetie Belle floated a pair of piping hot mugs around Oval to the table, nudging past her and Spike to see where she was putting them. "Would you like some tea? I made some tea." Key looked into the two half-full mugs that were already there before Sweetie Belle took them away. "Spike! How about you? Do you like tea? Is there something else I can get you?"

"I'm... I'm good, thanks."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"If you're sure. Just saying." As quickly as she arrived, she disappeared back to the lower deck with the old mugs. Spike, Key and Oval exchanged baffled glances.

"Is it just me or is she doing that a lot today?" Key asked after a moment.

Oval winced. "I think that's just how she copes with stress."

"Should we let Applebloom know?"

"I think she knows. Just... leave it."


Two days passed uneasily. Key spent a lot of time reading, and Oval brought the chess set to the point of finishing touches, then also read. Occasionally they'd watch from the deck, but they passed very little, and looking ahead or behind only reminded them of what was coming. With the buzz of Manehattan fading, Oval became more restless. During the second late watch of the trip, she came on deck to join Key because she couldn't sleep. Both of them spent the following day too tired to function, but too in rhythm to catch up on sleep. Summons for meals and calibrations ensured that they couldn't get more than a nap.

Early on the morning of their third day of travel, they were woken by the sound of horns. Key had just turned in, and Oval was probably going to be waking soon anyway. They were muffled by the boards of the Crusader, but the low siren echoed from every direction. Their blood turned to ice. Key felt a burning in his stomach. They turned out of their hammocks and hobbled to the door. They collided with Spike as they left the room. Oval yelped.

"Sorry! Sorry, sorry..."

Spike gave them as calm a look as his scales could muster. "Stay down here, stay out of sight, and stay quiet. Bar the door if you can. We'll come get you when it's safe, okay?"

They looked at each other and nodded. Spike looked carefully at them, then offered the glimmer of a smile before continuing on his way. They backed up into the room and closed the door. Oval brushed the chess set off the table into a bag, and helped Key push it to the door. Key's hammock came loose in the process. They left it where it was. Oval grabbed their crystal, and they sat behind the table with their backs against it. They felt the shudder of the floorboards from Spike's plodding steps, the strain of the wind against the locked gears, and the muffled bass tones of conversation being held on deck, all carried into their skulls through the wood. Without a word, they leaned together, lit crystal wedged between their legs and waited.

"You're entering Canterlot airspace. State your business," someone barked. At least, that's what they thought they heard. It was quiet and coming from off the ship.

"My name is Spike, servant to the House Luminous, and I seek an audience with Shining Armor."

The faraway voices erupted into laughter. Oval gasped. She wrapped her hoof around Key as they trembled, staring at the ceiling. The edges of the crystal dug into their sides.

"All I ask is that you bring me to him. I was his sister's assistant. Please."

The boarding party went quiet. "Very well. Submit to an inspection and we'll see if you're telling the truth."

"Long as you don't take all my cargo," Applebloom grumbled, probably louder than she meant to. They flinched and gripped the table as one, two, three, four, five sets of hooves banged on the boards above, shaking a brief rain of dust on them. The creaking strain of their weight moved along the length of the deck until they heard the stairs rumble with descending hooves. Oval grabbed Key's fallen hammock and pulled it over their heads, and wrapped both forehooves around Key. Unsure what else to do, he followed suit.

There was a bang as the first cabin door was thrown open. There was a clatter of some stuff falling over. "I think these are a firearm, sir."

"We got two sets on board for when we're out scavenging," Applebloom said. "I'd be mighty grateful if you'd leave 'em with us."

"Start an impound box, Sergeant Riposte."

"Aye, sir."

Applebloom growled. "Is there a problem, ma'am?" the boarding captain sneered.

"No, sir. Though, uh... when d'you think we'll be seeing those again?"

"Oh, we can let them go for a small fee on your way out. Business for later."

"I see," Applebloom hissed.

The second door swung open and banged on the wall. Apparently, they didn't find anything they wanted to take in Sweetie Belle's room. Scootaloo's door caught on some discarded sheets before it could make a bang. and they found the second blunderbuss inside.

Oval wrenched her eyes shut. The door behind them sounded like it exploded. They felt the force of its attempted opening press against their backs. "This door won't open." They were a lot closer than they'd like them to be.

"We put garbage into the unoccupied cabins," Sweetie Belle said. "Something must have fallen over in transit. You'd be wasting your time."

Silence fell. Oval bit down on a mouthful of hammock. Key didn't notice that he was bracing between the table and floor hard enough to make his back pop.

"Time is indeed something I don't have. Carry on."

Oval at least let the hammock go, but they still held their breath and each other. The inspectors didn't seem too interested in Spike's cabin. The mess hall, Applebloom was happy to explain, was a mess hall. The hold, however, they took their time in. Minutes passed, with a dock officer consulting a book to appraise their cargo. Key and Oval almost relaxed.

Then Applebloom started yelling again. "Hey, hey! What are you doing?"

"These are dangerous explosive devices. They're being confiscated."

"Those are ballast rockets. I need those to control the ship. You want me crashing into your dock or your fancy castle or something?"

"Then I'm sure you're prepared for the impound fee. Sergeant, if you'd be so kind..."

"Ugh."

"Well, captain Applebooms," They could hear the grinding of Applebloom's teeth clearest of all. "Your vessel is cleared for docking. You are now entering the jurisdiction of the Sovereign City of Canterlot and are subject to its laws and ordinances as long as you remain here, and are expected to comply with its law enforcement officials. As per the state of emergency, city officials are empowered to take extreme measures to ensure public safety and order is upheld. In the event of an incident in which public safety and order is threatened, this may be your last warning. Do you understand?"

There was a long pause before Applebloom responded. "Yep. Crystal."

"Very well. We shall disembark, please slack your sails and await your tow."

Applebloom grunted, and one by one, the stomping guards ascended from the hold, returned to the deck, and their jeering voices departed back to their vessel. Applebloom muttered something to Spike, and he made the best impression of a whimper that a dragon could. The thudding resumed, keeping them tense and huddled.

The door banged twice. Oval buried her nose into Key's side to keep her scream muffled, and Key forgot to breathe. "You can come out now! They're gone," Scootaloo said. They exhaled utterly, and sprawled on the floor. They were both out of breath. When the crystal dropped to the floor, it was still lit. Key noticed this and picked it up so they could hold it. "Uh... you okay in there? Need some help?"

"We-we-we're okay!" Oval gibbered. She threw the hammock off, and they got up. Key awkwardly wedged himself around the corner of the table so he could find the purchase to pull it away from the door. The door drifted open, and Scootaloo awaited them. She winced at the splintering on the floor then gestured to the stairs.

"C'mon. Might as well see what all the fuss is about."

They exchanged another glance, and squeezed the crystal. Key set it down and started out. Scootaloo was already ascending. Oval turned back, grabbed a small bag, and threw the crystal inside with their scarves, the wallet, and one or two other things. Key looked back and opened his mouth. She closed it for him when she caught up.

"If we don't come back, this is the one thing we're gonna want to keep."

Key's stomach turned again. He didn't think there were any more depths of anxiety to feel, but the Debris was full of surprises. Slowly, he nodded, and they went on deck.

A foul smell greeted them, like mouldy lemons on fire. The smell got stronger as the tugboat passed overhead, and the crescendo of the odour confirmed that it was, in fact, the tug's murky yellow exhaust. It prompted them to get their scarves out to cover their mouths.

The sky around them was busy with the patrolling Canterlot fleet; long, sleek vessels that appeared black in silhouette against the shardlight, save for the white lights of their engines. Sharp navigation sails trailed along their backs, making them look like sharks. The nearest one had an ornate prow, with a detailed equine figurehead. A flowing mane and pair of wings flanked the bow, with the scowling pony's horn merging with the ship's cathead. The more they looked, the more they found this snarling alicorn, leading the charge of each vessel, galloping along their flanks, .

All lines pointed towards the city. They approached from a little above its horizon. From their oblique viewpoint, the city looked almost entirely white. Pale towers topped with spiralling spires in purple and gold covered the island, mostly concentrated on its upper plateau, but the style extended all the way to the watchtowers on the peak of the mountain, and down to the flat-topped houses of the lower rim. The city had shocking amounts of open space, including a huge paved plaza on the upper plateau with a tower in the middle. Near a densely-built downtown block, there was another open courtyard, surrounded by the largest building they'd ever seen. Its golden dome and wide lawn drew the eye to it. It wasn't the tallest - the skyscrapers of Baltimare and Manehattan dwarfed it in height - but from above, the extravagant footprint of the palace was impossible to ignore.

"It's prettier than I thought it'd be," Scootaloo said.

Spike snorted. "What were you expecting?"

"Smoke, jagged spikes, black everything. Maybe some fire. Definitely more chains."

Applebloom hit her shoulder. "Is it anything like you remember, Spike?"

He paused. "A little too much."

The tugboat throttled up, sending a shudder reverberating through the Crusader, and its greasy, sour exhaust washed over them. Spike remained on the prow as the mountain loomed, like he was the banner that kept the fleet from firing on them. Oval leaned over the banister as individual lanterns came into view, and the sound of marching guards and swearing sailors on the docks carried to them. Key retreated towards the cabin when the spires and summit towered higher and higher in their view, as they descended to the dock near the base of the island. The Crusader hit the pontoon a little harder than Applebloom would have liked. Ropes from the dock flung over to tie the ship off. Magic tightened the knots, and a scowling Scootaloo double-checked them anyway.

A pony in a funny hat waited for them on the dock, flanked by half a dozen guards. She floated a scroll in front of herself, and cleared her throat.

"Spike, servant to the House Luminous," she said. "The Count of Canterlot extends to you his formal welcome on your return to the city of Canterlot, and wishes your presence at your earliest convenience."

Spike smirked. "So the ol' goof does remember me. That's nice."

The herald shot him a brief glare, then resumed. "Your travelling companions shall also be permitted to accompany you to the castle for the duration of your visit."

Spike took a deep breath and looked back at the ship. Scootaloo shrugged. "Kind of a non-choice, isn't it?"

He stepped down from the prow. "Shall we?"

One by one, they disembarked. Key shivered as his hooves touched stone, and Oval did the same behind him. He looked up. White and glittering as the stonework of Canterlot was, the spires looked black against the light of the sky. He shrank into his scarf, until he was being led by it. Oval had tied them together again, and she led on. Spike led the group as they walked single file, and Applebloom brought up the rear. Ahead of them was the messenger, and behind them were a trio of guards. The gawking passersby reluctantly returned to their business as they left.

The streets of Canterlot were distractingly quiet as they ascended. Both Key and Oval noticed it. Trottingham teemed and Manehattan bustled, but Canterlot's pristine streets were only graced by a few well-dressed couples on their way to somewhere, the steaming open door of a sleepy bistro, or another patrol of guards. It seemed less like a city and more like a museum, if Key was thinking of a museum correctly. It was beautiful, cold, and they weren't allowed to touch anything.

"Why is the dock at the bottom of the island?" Oval was compelled to ask as the palace came into view at the end of the street. It had been twenty minutes of uphill marching, with a cadre of impatient guards behind them who insisted against them taking a breather at any point.

"Shut up," one of them barked. Grumbling, they arrived at the golden gates of the grounds. Key and Oval immediately sank to their haunches to catch their breath. The bars soared into the sky above them. Everything in this city was tall. Not in the same way that the skyscrapers were tall, like a great stone giant had set its club down for ponies to make a home in, but tall on a personal scale, like everything was built for someone twice their size. These doorways looked like even Spike wouldn't have to crouch as he stepped through them. Spike reached out to touch the gate. A guard shot him a glare. Spike stared back, and grasped the bar anyway. The guard did nothing. Through the gates and across the courtyard, the double doors of the palace stirred, and swung open at a stately crawl. The interior was dark, with a few hanging lights, obscured by the distance. Somewhere, a trumpet sounded.

From the darkness emerged a white figure, brisk in pace and trailing a billowing violet cape. As he approached, detail after detail came into view. Following close behind him were a handful of retainers, and a mare in a long dark coat who looked like a bodyguard. Under his cloak was a sharp white jacket, with epaluettes and ribbons dangling from it in Canterlot lavender and gold. He cut an imposing form, large in front with heavy hooves, though as he approached, the wisps of grey in his blue mane became easier to see, betraying his age long before the wear on his face became apparent. The most disarming thing about him, however, was his easy smile. The gates opened, and he came to a stop on the threshold.

"Spike! Is that you?" he said, close enough that Spike could maul him if he so desired.

Spike allowed himself a smirk. "Just about." Despite himself, when Shining Armor leaned in for the hug, he embraced him with a couple of thumps on the back of the neck. Nine bladed weapons, four spells (which looked dangerous, based on the crackles of lightning and pops of arcing energy) and a crossbow found themselves pointed at Spike, then slowly lowered when Shining did the same to him. Shining stood back and looked up. Despite being comparable in height and build to Onyx Ring, and even a similar age, Spike still towered over him.

"I think you're big enough to pick me up by now."

"Something tells me that wouldn't be a great idea." The two of them laughed. Neither the crew of the Crusader nor Shining's retinue looked all that amused.

"No. No it wouldn't." Shining brushed his front a couple of times. "Anyway! Come in, come in, don't just stand out here in the cold. And your friends! Who are your friends?" He cast a glance across the group. A chill came over Key when they briefly made eye contact. Oval felt queasy again.

"These are the crew of the Crusader, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Oval Cut and Key Stone." Spike gestured to each one in turn. Nobody waved.

Applebloom looked briefly at Oval. Oval had nothing but a plaintive stare for her. Then she looked back at Shining. "You don't get many visitors here, do you?" she said.

Shining Armor kept up his smile. His bodyguard wrinkled her brow. "Come in, come in," he said after a few seconds. "Have dinner with me. Moondancer, have the chefs prepare to seat seven. And do we... do we have any gems we can spare?"

One of the retainers - a middle-aged mare with a pair of thick glasses and a ponytail - made a note on a scroll. "No," she grunted, and slapped the quill and pencil back together.

"That's a shame."

"We've just woken up actually. I'll live," Spike said.

"Sure?" Shining asked. Spike nodded. "Sure. Breakfast, dinner, whatever. I need to wrap some things up first, but I'll join you when we eat. Shall we?" He stepped back and gestured to the doors. Spike looked back over his shoulder, and the others - reluctantly - started to move.


Shining Armor disappeared immediately, leaving guards to steer them to a reception hall that was far too big for them. Spike assured them that they were definitely not alone. The pristine marble floors were cold underhoof, and even in this atrium, their breath misted in the air. Magic lit the palace from sconces high up in the walls, and the light bounced from gleaming gilded columns to shimmering stone walls to the frescoes that adorned the ceilings and alcoves. The white pony with the horn and the wings kept turning up in many of the decorations. Spike muttered that she probably wouldn’t approve.

Scootaloo and Applebloom immediately started hissing an argument to each other, while Sweetie Belle inspected some of the decorations. Key and Oval huddled in their scarves at the bottom of a staircase. When a servant came to fetch them for dinner, they were sat either side of Spike, discussing the books they'd read back home. All of them were eager to eat by now. At some point, hunger was going to win out over the fight or flight response.

The dining room greeted them with a wave of smells. It was definitely some kind of cooking, but they were alien smells. There was no fried feast or warming stew on its way from the kitchen to greet them. The room had as high a ceiling as the entrance hall, and it was almost as cold as it. A fireplace roared on one wall, but didn't seem to be doing much to help. Everything about the dining room was tall, looked like ice, and felt like it too. Shining Armor was already seated at the head of the long table by himself. In the shadows, the silhouette of his bodyguard stood out against the pale walls. Spike claimed the opposite end so he could look at him, and one by one, the others took the side seats. The table was set for ten, leaving three empty seats either side of Shining Armor. Servants arrived with plates and more silver forks than Key could count, and took the spare seats away with them. A dusty bottle of wine appeared on the table.

"Y'know, Spike," Shining said. "I've been saving this bottle for the day when Twily comes home."

Spike squinted. "Didn't think wine was your speed, or hers."

"It was Mom that had been saving it."

For a moment, the only sound was the echoing of the door to the kitchen, slamming shut.

"When?"

"Dad took ill... twelve, thirteen years ago. Something with his heart. Would have been routine in the old days, but we just didn't have the resources. Mom passed last April. She wasn't herself, though. Hadn't been for a few years."

Spike sighed. "So it's just us then."

"And maybe Twilight, somewhere."

"Really, your guess is as good as mine."

Shining picked up the bottle, and held it out to the side until a servant took it. "That's a shame."

"Dunno what she'd think of the place anyway," Spike said to his claws as he inspected them.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. I-"

The kitchen door banged again, and this time, three servants emerged, domed dishes floating with them. One found a home at each place setting, along with a small basket of bread at each end of the table. The dishes revealed shallow bowls of soup. Sweetie Belle made a disappointed noise.

"Relax, it's the starter," Shining said.

"Starter?" Applebloom said, too loudly. "Y'all eat like this every night?"

Shining burst out laughing. "Of course not. This is just a special occasion. Please, enjoy some of Equestria's finest cuisine." She didn't press it.

The soup wasn't very good, or at least Key and Oval didn't seem to think so, and it didn't even fill them up that much with how shallow the bowls were. Scootaloo barely touched hers. Spike stared at the bowl the entire time. The tiny bread loaves were demolished almost immediately. The clink of cutlery on porcelain echoed into a tiny, high-pitched din. Soon, the bowls vanished, and it was quiet again.

"So, tell me," Spike said, gently twirling the neck of his glass in a claw. "How did this 'count' thing happen? That one's new."

"Of course. It's been so long." Shining paused, staring at his own glass. "In a way I'm glad you weren't here for the Fracturing. It was a mess... but then, I doubt it was all that fun anywhere."

"Fracturing?"

"Yes, the Fracturing. Y'know - ground shattering, everything falling into the sky."

"Oh, the Sundering?"

"Is that what they call it in Manehattan?"

Spike smirked. "Continue."

"The immediate aftermath is probably familiar. Controlling damage, herding people to safety, that kind of thing. Without Princess Celestia around, and with the guards doing a lot of the work, the city came under martial law..."

"WIth you in charge."

Shining turned his hooves over. "Originally it was supposed to be until help arrived, and help never came."

"What about Cadance? Where's she?"

Shining smiled weakly at his glass. "Where she is now... I'll get to that later. But she was part of how we resolved the mutiny."

"There was a mutiny?"

Shining hissed through his nose. "Let me tell you something about nobles, Spike. It takes a hell of a lot to humble them. They weren't happy with me running the show. Even on a flying mountain in the sky, they couldn't stomach rationing, debris drills, inspections. They schemed. They started tempting lower ranked guards. They were going to toss me off this rock and feast the city to ruin. They're like children, Spike."

"Sounds in character to me."

"So I had to make a deal. In order to stay in charge - to keep my home alive - I had to give them what they wanted. First I had to become someone they'd listen to. So Cadance and I tied the knot. Not the wedding we'd always wanted, but we made the best of it. I stopped being a captain and started being a count and prince consort. Then, I had to find a way to end rationing."

"So how did you end rationing, Shiny?" Spike lifted his nose.

"We converted the caves under the city. We treated the crystals to produce sunlight, and now we have several acres of arable land. Entirely self-sufficient."

Spike quirked a brow. "Entirely?"

"Oh yeah. We've got a surplus, even. We have so much land down there that we can't even work it all. Pretty convenient actually. That's when we started bringing in labour from some of the smaller villages."

"I see."

"It's dangerous out there. I'm sure you've heard of the reputation of the Cloudsdale pirates?"

Spike snorted. "Among other things."

"It turns out we have a mutual interest. They work the land, we protect them."

"That don't sound like a great life down there," Applebloom spat as much as said.

Shining looked at her like she had two heads. "Things aren't exactly peachy anywhere right now. You should know that pretty well."

"One village, I can understand. Maybe even two. Like you said, it's rough. But there are a lot more than two villages down there, ain't there?" Applebloom said with a glower. The colour drained from Spike's scales. "How come you need to keep… recruiting villages?"

Shining scrunched his brow and darted his eyes. "You're concerned… that we're bringing too many ponies under our protection?" He chuckled. Applebloom hissed through her nose. "We expand when we can. Ponies grow old, ponies move on from labouring and become citizens. We look for more. Canterlot is a growing city. We're not barbarians. Not like those marauders from Cloudsdale."

They said nothing. The door swung again, and the servants returned, delivering more silver domes to the table. A small array of vegetables Key didn't recognise had been roasted and dripped with an odd, sour sauce. It was hardly a slap-up feast. The meal proceeded in silence, without eye contact. For Key, at least, anxiety and hunger competed, but the latter won out. Before long, the foot of the table had five empty plates, and six untouched glasses of wine.

"So where is Cadance?" Spike said. His voice, even calm, rattled the glasses.

Shining sighed. "She's been kidnapped, with our daughter, Flurry Heart."

"Kidnapped?"

"The pirates in Cloudsdale have them. They want a ransom, but we have nothing to give. I've been planning a raid, but... it's not a good solution." He sipped his wine. "Say. Maybe you can help me here."

"That's an interesting twist," Spike said.

"If one of my ships approaches Cloudsdale, it'll be attacked immediately. But a neutral civilian vessel might have a chance."

Applebloom scowled. "I ain't gonna let the Crusader be your Trojan horse."

"Of course not. My troops would be completely outmatched as soon as they disembark." Shining winced. "I've already tried that. No, I want you to talk to them. Look at it this way. If I let you go, and you convince Spitfire to let them go, then I'm happy, Cadance is happy, and everyone avoids a costly sky battle. If I let you go and you disappear into the sky, then I lose nothing for trying to reach out. Except for the, y'know. Casualties of raiding a den of pirates." He sipped his wine again. Spike and Applebloom exchanged a furtive glance. "So I'll leave that up to you. You can't have any less success than I've had."

Applebloom snorted. "We'll think about it."

"Naturally."

Dessert consisted of a board of cheeses. Shining Armor was the only one to partake, and after a minute of this, the untouched wine glasses disappeared. Eating alone, he called his bodyguard over.

"Skyfall, show our guests to their rooms."

Scootaloo forgot herself. "Your name is Skyfall? Seriously?"

She rolled her eyes. "I know."

"I think we'd rather stay on our ship, if ya'll wouldn't mind," Applebloom said.

Shining tapped his knife a couple of times to shake some crumbs of stilton from it. He didn't even look at her. "I would highly recommend remaining in the palace grounds overnight, as there is a curfew in effect, and if you're thinking about making a quick exit, I would bear in mind that the docking authority is closed for the night, meaning that I cannot prepare an escort for you out of Canterlot airspace, and you will not be able to recover your goods from impound."

Applebloom glared. She looked across the table. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle shrugged. "Fine."

As they stood, Shining raised his knife like a pointer. "Spike, would you mind waiting? I'd like to show you something." Applebloom looked like she was about to sprint. Spike scratched his chin, then nodded.

"Sure. Go ahead, I'll catch up." Skyfall ushered the group back out the way they came. Spike stopped Applebloom as she passed and whispered to her, just loud enough that Key heard it. "I've got what I came for. Say the word and we're out of here."


Everywhere Spike walked in the palace, windows, tiles and gilding fogged up. When he stood next to lights, the steam rising from his scales was obvious. He left a trail of condensation as Shining led them out of the palace, and down the street into the university district. Skyfall caught up and shadowed them. Many of the buildings had been converted, and the limits of the university proper had been reduced. Taverns had been converted into pure eateries, and one of the greens was now a public park, dense with the alpine flora that flourished on the mountain in the old times, but was now everywhere. They had nothing to say until they reached their destination - the end unit on an unassuming (by Canterlot standards) block of dormitories at the edge of the park. Spike gawped at the great window on the facade.

"This… this is Twilight's old place, isn't it? I remember it. On top of the stationery shop, right across the green from Pony Joe's."

Shining smiled. "It certainly is. Would you mind waiting outside, Skyfall?" She stepped back and glowered, and that was about all the answer she gave. Shining pulled out a rusty old key, and opened the door.

The smell of dust was immediate. Spike covered his nose. "Has anyone been in here? I don't wanna torch the place by accident." He was hesitant to climb the stairs, but even though they groaned, they held.

"I send a cleaner in once a month to keep the place in check, but otherwise, no."

"Preserving it, eh?"

They reached the mezzanine, where the bookshelves surrounded them, and where Twilight's desk sat, tidy as it was when she left. There was a gutted teddy bear in the well under the desk. Shining approached the window. "It's a way of holding out hope."

Spike's eyes lingered on the bookshelves. "It's nice."

"I thought you'd appreciate it."

He nudged the ladder next to one of the shelves. He chuckled. "I used to fall off this thing so many times."

"Hard to believe you used to be so small, eh?"

"Oh, I forget all the time. It's terrible. My landlady in Manehattan gave up replacing my door because I kept breaking it."

They both laughed, and then quiet returned. "Spike… why don't you stay? It'd be nice to have family around again. I can make you a citizen right away. You can live here, help out in the university. It's not quite where you left off, but it's as close as you can get without-"

"Without Twilight," Spike said. Shining sighed and nodded. "I have to say, it's damn tempting."

Shining's ears drooped. "But?"

Spike paced around the hourglass in the middle of the room. "It's comfortable, it's familiar, and… Celestia, it'd be a change to be allowed to look at a book without someone thinking I'm about to torch it."

"But?"

"Someone's got to look for Twilight, and you…" He drew a deep breath, then sighed. His gaze lingered as he searched for words. "You've got a city to run."

Shining looked at the floor. "You've got a point."

"I don't regret coming here. This…" He gestured at the room. "This is a treat. But I can't stay. There's too much left to do."

"I understand. If you ever change your mind, it's right here." Shining started towards the stairs.

"Hey, Shiny?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I sleep in here tonight? Just one more time."

Shining smiled, and after a moment, he took the key out of his pocket and tossed it to him. "Of course. It's your place."