The Elements of Harmony might just be a tale and Twilight Sparkle might have never lived, but the golden necklace with the pink butterfly can prove that the past can never be totally erased.
Twilight Sparkle and her friends are only barely known, legendary characters in Equestria now, and so are the Elements of Harmony. Coal Slitter, an amateur historian when searching through a ruined village finds a magical necklace that might help him prove that the legends about the Elements and a powerful fourth alicorn are not just tales. With some help, he might find out who had modified the past and why.
The story follows canon up to the season three finale.
The main reason for the hiatus tag is that I grew bored with this story. I think it has fundamental issues that'd require full rewriting and I have new ideas for other stories. I plan to finish this one some day but as for now, it stays in the drawer, so to speak.
Coal Slitter sat down on the only bench that wasn’t completely destroyed. He lifted his gaze to take in the scenery before him. The ruined fountain, the bent lamp posts, the burned houses, a whole destroyed village which gave home many ponies in the past made him feel like he was in a post-apocalyptic scene. The explosion had taken place outside of the town, but it was powerful enough to turn almost every building into ruin and litter the streets with debris. Coal was glad that he hasn’t stumbled upon any dead body yet. That could have been too much for him, not that walking in the village was pleasant to begin with. The magical radiation, the aftermath of the explosion disturbed the natural magic in every living being in the area, especially in unicorns. He was an earth pony, but special talents were based on magic, and that meant he wasn’t immune either.
He reached into his saddlebag and pulled out an old and creased map, held it in his hooves and observed his surroundings. There was a ruin of a big, circular building before him, which meant he was sitting where the town center had been, so he had to go northwest on one of the main streets to reach his destination. He folded the map in half and put it away. He stood up and started walking, wondering what could still be there after all this time that made his talent so busy in the past few weeks and finally lead him here. As he slalomed between the obstacles on the street, he couldn't free himself from that strange feeling that lingered throughout the place. It made him feel alerted, caused the muscles in his neck tense from time to time, and here was an uneven wave of thoughts in his head, confused signals coming from his special talent. He was warned about these symptoms one would get from being in the zone of a magic-fueled explosion, but he also heard that it was only dangerous for unicorns. To pegasi and earth ponies, it meant supposedly a mere discomfort. He hoped those rumors were right.
When he reached his destination, a wide tree trunk, he sensed the magical radiation become stronger again, just like when he first entered the town in the morning. It was like standing in the way of a wave in the sea. In one moment the trunk seemed just like any other trunk in the nearby forest. In the next, he felt an urgent need to search it thoroughly without missing a detail, because everything about it promised an exquisite treasure. Coal stood firmly on his hooves, fighting the sensation, just as he had been advised. When the magical wave subsided and everything became normal again, he shook his head to clear it, stepped closer to the tree and looked for a clue that'd suggest that it wasn't an ordinary trunk.
He noticed a doorway, not far from where he stood, embedded in the trunk. Next to it was a smashed in window. Coal peered in. It appeared to be a house, carved inside the tree.
Coal eyed the concrete block that obtruded the doorway, and decided against clearing it from the way. He was a strong earth pony, but even with his strength, it was far too big to move away. He decided he will use the window instead. He climbed in with some difficulty and hopped down on the wooden floor inside. He looked around in the spacious inside.
The ground level was one big room. At the opposite side, a staircase led up into the tree’s now gone upper floors. To his right, he could see a doorway which led downwards, probably to the basement. To his left and between the staircase and the way down the walls were lined with bookshelves, carved directly into the wood. Most of them were empty, and the floor was scattered with books and scrolls. A big amount of them lay in heaps where the floor and the walls met. At the center of the round room was a small table, with the remaining of a wooden statue on top. His talent came to life, and it told him to go down on the stairs. The doorway wasn’t clear from debris either, but this time the obstacle was only a pile of branches and broken furniture parts. Coal walked closer to the doorway to clear the way.
The small cellar, surrounded by old roots, was dark and full of dust. When Coal tried to open the door at the bottom of the stairs to go inside, it simply fell off from its hinges and hit the ground, and caused the dust do explode. Coal instinctively closed his eyes and held his breath, but couldn't stop a pair of coughs. He waited a minute or so to let the dust settle down, then he opened his eyes and observed the camber.
The basement also consisted of one room, although it was smaller than the one above, and had been spared by the shockwave's destruction. Dust sat in thick layers on every surface. It looked like there wasn't a single soul down there for ages. Coal put a flashlight on his head to compensate the lack of natural light.
The walls of the basement were covered with bookshelves as well, but here they were packed with books and scrolls. Cardboard boxes sat in a far corner in neat towers next to big, strange looking machines, decorated with lamps and tubes. They were probably magic-powered devices for scientific purposes, similar to the ones he saw in Canterlot once. Coal stepped deeper into the room, the wooden floor quietly cracking under his weight.
He tried to read the titles on the books on the nearest shelf, but succeeded only a couple of times. Those appeared to be unicorn spell books, others were in a language he didn't recognize, and sometimes even the letters were unfamiliar. The next shelf contained more legible history books, some of them predating even Celestia's realm. Before he could pick one to look at closely, he felt another wave coming.
In an instant, every book appeared peculiar, every box held great importance, every scroll demanded more attention. However, there was one item which was different. It seemed utterly important too, but in a calmer way, like an adult among children. Coal turned his head in the direction of that signal.
Among the old boxes he spotted his target. He held his gaze on it, and waited the sensation to fade. Eventually it did, leaving everything to seem common, but Coal knew he found the treasure he was looking for.
It was a cardboard box, almost a size of a head. It was seated on top of two others, sitting almost at eye level. Coal walked closer, carefully opened the lid and looked inside.
The beam of the flashlight reflected off from a golden necklace with a big, pink gem in a form of a butterfly embedded in the front. It was seated on red velvet, in the center of a smaller glass box. As he looked at it, his talent made it almost glowing.
Coal smiled at the jewel. He finally found what had brought him to the destroyed and widely avoided town of Ponyville.
***
The mare looked up from where she lay with weary eyes. Do they want her to work again? The last time was only, like, two hours ago? No, probably not. That wouldn't be logical, her sense of time has surely stopped functioning. That didn't surprise her too much, albeit it was an unnerving thought, losing yet another thing she had control over. It didn't matter much anyway. Her chances of breaking out have long ago reached absolute zero, a probability of a rescue seemed weaker than paper. She wasn’t sure of the location of her prison, but with some easy spell she could tell that she was deep underground. What was worse, her memories preceding her current state were blurry, uncertain, and mostly consisted of images, emotions and short scenes. She fought against it, but her mind replayed that final one in the castle yet again.
Her body tensed, as the torrent of magic hit her. It flew down through her horn, into her head and body. The powerful alicorn magic suppressed her physical senses. She felt like she was floating in air. She could feel the new kind of power integrating with her own. She saw a flash of light. The nature of the flowing magic changed slightly, and she felt pain coming. The fear started rising in her, but she fought it. It was no use: the agony quickly overwhelmed her conscious mind. She screamed, and then only darkness remained as she slipped into emptiness.
She shut her eyes as the memory of the pain and confusion, and listened to the sound of footsteps coming from the corridor. They weren’t a pony's. She hasn't heard hoofsteps apart from her own for months, maybe years. It must have been a long time, considering her current physical state, which mostly consisted of haphazard memories, hunger, pain and her own bones almost poking out her thin skin and rare, purple coat.
The footsteps came closer, then stopped. She heard a deep, male voice saying, “Eat up, pony!” There was a metallic clang that her mind immediately associated with food and water. She waited until the steps faded, then took a deep breath, opened her eyes and stood up. She slowly walked towards the food beside the bars on weak legs and slumped down on her stomach before the bowl. After consuming the old grass, apples, flowers and a chewy, brown and reddish thing which didn't resemble anything she had ever eaten, she made her way back to her place in the corner with ancient hay on the ground. She wondered when she will get water again. Her throat was like the cave she was in: dry and dusty. The little humidity in the food wasn't enough to make her feel better.
A tall, white figure came into her mind. Sorrow filled her, then unconsciousness brought her relief as she drifted into sleep.
* * *
Coal was sitting in the main room in the afternoon sunlight. He lifted the box in his hooves and examined the edges for any sign of gap, but there was none none. The box appeared to be one piece of glass, probably unicorn made, which meant only magic could open it without any damage. Coal knew that unicorns couldn't bear the magical radiation for long, and he wouldn't able to carry the fairly big box to the nearby chariot station or next town. He certainly didn’t want to leave it in the tree either.
That left breaking the box as his only option. He didn't see anything that would suggest that it held any kind of importance or significance, so it probably wouldn't be a problem. He took a deep breath, raised a forelimb, and stroke the top panel with his hoof.
He couldn't stop himself from crying out in pain, as the box resisted the force. He held the aching limb to his chest, and looked for a rock. He grabbed a big one from next to the concrete block in the doorway and walked back to the box. He held the concrete piece in his forelimbs, and stroke again with all of his strength.
The rock bounced away with a loud clang and the glass remained unharmed. Coal grumpily decided to leave the obviously enchanted box to a unicorn. He would have to carry it to the edge of the town though, where the magic was less disturbed. He decided by hiding it in one of the buildings until he gets back with a unicorn. He hoped that he could find someone in the nearby chariot station who is willing to help him.
Maybe he will also get some answers about the necklace itself. He has seen similar ones on mares, though they weren’t this simple in design, and that gem looked bigger and more expensive than those. His talent didn’t give him any clue either. It was only finding objects and living beings that were historically relevant to his past, or sometimes to his future, but without any explanation. Sometimes he found things relevant to his work at the libraries he occasionally worked in, in a form of books or the right pony to ask.
During the chariot ride back to the ruined town, Coal filled his companion, a snow white unicorn called Silver Beam about the necklace and the glass box and how he acquired them. The wind was playing with his deep blue, wavy mane as the unicorn listened in silence. They sat in a light carriage with two wheels below and one earth pony in the harness. The unicorn nodded understandingly when he heard the part about the box’s possible magic.
“So, you tried to break the glass with your bare hoof first?” He asked, a hint of a smile sat on the corner of his mouth.
Coal shrugged. “I was curious, and it looked like ordinary glass. I didn’t expect it to hurt that much.”
“Well, enchanted containers tend to be magical.”
Coal rolled his eyes. “Yeah, Yeah. Anyway, I’m sure there is something you can do about it.”
The stallion shrugged. “Certainly.” After a little pause, he added, “If nothing works, I will just use my horn.”
Coal couldn’t help but chuckle at that, although he felt slight embarrassment.
They sat in silence, as the first signs of the explosion came in sight. The grass had long regrow since the accident and the trees had some leaves again as well, but occasionally burned ruins of farmhouses and other, small buildings darkened the mood of the vista. After some minutes, the first houses of the town appeared along with their destination, the train station.
They stopped in front of the station building, and the two stallions stepped on the dirt road. Coal frowned as he looked around. The sound of birds and the faint smell of distant flowers were in sharp contrast with the soundless ghost town. He didn’t want to spend too much time here and, judging by his frown, the unicorn didn’t want to either. They were in the radiation zone already, and Coal was sure his companion was already feeling the negative effects. He intended to make the stay as quick as possible.
Silver Beam finished talking with the harnessed pony, and walked to Coal who had taken a few steps away from the cart.
“So, where is your hiding place?” There was no trace of humor in his voice this time.
“This way.”
They walked towards a family house. It wasn’t spared, but it has a fairly high wall with a drawer next to it, surrounded by debris. Coal showed some of it away and opened the bottom door. He pulled out the cardboard box that contained the glass one among from several similar boxes. He had found these in this very house. They were full of old, canned food.
Coal removed the paper cover from the glass box. His talent reassured him about the necklace’s importance again, but he ignored it this time. He held the box in his hooves so the unicorn could look at it.
Silver enclosed the box in a white glow and levitated it close to his eyes. He inspected the edges of the box with care. He shot a quick glance at Coal, and effortlessly lifted the top panel off, then levitated out the necklace.
Coal stared at the open box, which now sat on the ground, along with the top panel.
“Well, that was…”
“It was an enchanted container. Only the right spell could open it.” The unicorn slowly rotated the jewel in the air. “It does appear like something one would protect from unauthorized individuals, although it’s strange that with some experience, almost any unicorn would be able to open it.”
“Why? Is it that necklace valuable?”
“Well, yes, but not because of the gem or the gold. It’s a powerful, magical artifact, might be hundreds of years old. I can feel the magic in it, but it’s like it’s… sleeping. There must be something that triggers it.”
“Maybe you have to put it on.”
“I suppose, but I’m not sure we should touch it at all. I will wrap it in some cloth for you to carry.”
Coal nodded, but was still curious. “Okay. Is there anything else that you can say about it?”
The necklace started fidgeting in the air. The unicorn winced in pain, and didn’t answer. Nothing visible happened, but Coal knew what was wrong. He didn’t feel the magical wave coming yet, but he knew unicorns were more sensible for it. He braced himself.
It was weaker than in the tree, probably because they were further from the source. Coal fought his talent’s confused but not very strong demands, but he saw that Silver took the wave worse.
He dropped the necklace on the ground, slumped down on his haunches and folded his forelimbs across his eyes. His horn’s glow was getting brighter. Coal suddenly felt his saddlebag shudder slightly, and saw the debris on the ground doing the same. He was getting afraid for Silver, as well as for himself.
The wave ceased after several long seconds, and so did the movement in his bag. Coal shook his head and looked at the unicorn, who was still in the same position. Coal stepped closer, worried. He didn’t know the exact effect the magic had on unicorns, and he supposed there wasn’t a thing he could do to help his companion.
Silver took several deep breaths, and slowly stood up.
“Are you all right?” Coal asked.
“That was… different from the descriptions I heard.”
“That’s because the wave affects the pony’s natural magic through their cutie mark, so it’s a different experience for everyone. I’m not sure what does it do to unicorns, tough.“
“I’m fine,” the unicorn said. “That was all you needed, right? Then let’s get back to the station.“ He lifted the necklace and started trotting back to the chariot. Coal took a quick look at his cutie mark, and followed him. It was a small bag in a way of a bright beam. It didn’t clear anything to Coal, so he decided to ask.
“Can I ask what your talent is?”
Silver hesitated a bit before answering. “It’s basically finding stuff. I use it to scan the suspicious luggage at the station. When you felt your bag moving, it was my magic that got… carried away a little.”
“Well, that makes sense. It was a bit creepy, though”
The unicorn smirked, but his voice remained serious. “Sorry about that. Let’s just get away from this place before we get another dose of that thing.”
A minute passed before they reached the carriage with an excited pony in front of it. He was still in the harness, and looked eager to depart.
“Thank Celestia, that didn’t take too long. Did you found anything interesting? And that… thing, did you feel that too? I heard about this effect before but never really experienced one. I tend to avoid these places, you know, they give me the creeps, and then there’s this stuff that actually screws with your mind. Now I got a story to tell my buddies but let us just get the heck out of here first, okay?”
Coal noticed that the stallion didn’t asked about the necklace, but then he saw it, wrapped in the unicorn’s blue tail, concealed from the excited pony’s sight. So much for not touching it... He agreed with Silver though about not involving him in this.
They climbed in the cart without a word. The pony yanked the chariot to turn around, and they were out of the village in seconds.
* * *
Coal watched as the unicorn wrapped the necklace in a small piece of silk he found in the carriage, the same material as the curtains. He levitated the package to Coal, who put it in his saddlebag.
“Thank you for the help, Mr. Beam, and sorry f-“
“It’s Silver. We were past this when we met at the station, remember?”
“Well, yes, it’s just…” Coal gulped nervously. ”I just met you today, and I’m... not that good with strangers.”
The unicorn waved a hoof. As they got further from the town, his mood got better. “Don’t worry, you’re not the only one. Besides, don’t be sorry for the incident. I’d known about the radiation before I agreed to come with you. I also wanted to take a look at those old books in that basement where you found that box, but I just couldn’t bear the atmosphere. Maybe next time…”
“Then why don’t you just go alone?”
The unicorn shook his head. “It’s not that simple… They don’t usually let unicorns wander around in exploded towns. You know, it’s kinda dangerous for us. Besides, we were the ones who supported the idea of those machines in the first place.”
“But you didn’t make them to explode, right? I mean…”
“Of course not. Nopony wanted to harm anypony, and nopony could’ve predicted they would go off. It’s a shame, tough… It was such a good idea.”
They were travelling at a steady pace. The dirt road led beside a forest, following the tree line, circling boulders and lone trees in the way. They could hear birds singing in the distance. Coal had done some research on the matter, but wanted to hear the unicorn’s opinion too.
“I suppose you don’t know whose idea was it, either.”
Silver shook his head. “Nopony knows for sure, but he rumor is that it came from an alicorn with a magic talent, but her name is unknown. She was the one who designed the prototype.”
Coal furrowed his brows. “Are you sure? An alicorn with a magic talent?”
Silver shrugged. “It’s only a tale. It was probably a regular unicorn who had a genius idea and no sense of marketing. It’s unlikely any of the Princesses would bother with such things. They have enough stuff on their hooves”
Coal didn’t answer to that. His mind circled around the rumor about the alicorn. It wasn’t the first time he heard about that tale. Then another question came to him.
“How long have these machines been in use? How old is this idea?”
The unicorn thought about that for a moment. “I’m not sure, but… if I remember correctly, the first device was given to the ponies of Canterlot, about… a decade or two ago.”
“A decade or two? That isn’t much time for an inventor to be forgotten.”
“Well, the fact is that no one knows for sure. There is no official document about her… or him, and no one has come to claim the rights for the idea, therefore it doesn’t really matter anymore. It looked like a good idea and it worked for years, but eventually it was proved wrong. It’s a shame that so many had to die, but it happened, and there’s no one to blame, only the maintenance, who are mostly dead. Maybe that’s the reason the inventor has chosen anonymity.”
“Hmm…” Coal’s thoughts were racing. A legendary alicorn besides the three Princesses, who built magic-conserving machines for the non-magical ponies. Coal saw some of the early designs of those devices in Canterlot. It had shades of purple as decoration, sometimes with a big, purple star. He was sure that none of the Princesses had those colors. Well, maybe Princess Cadence, but she definitely didn’t have a star on her, and she certainly wasn’t enrolled in groundbreaking arcane physics. The things Silver said weren’t very specific, but they fit in his theory. He didn’t have anything about the identity of the inventor that had trustworthy proof either, despite his research. It was unlikely that the inventor was an alicorn and not just a unicorn, but it would make his theory all more plausible. The tales in the old books he saw in Canterlot about Princess Twilight Sparkle, the only pony with the talent of magic itself, might have been correct after all.
* * *
There wasn't much strength left in her body, but she had to keep the spell running. She remembered the last time she gave up the magic because otherwise she would have collapsed on the ground for sure. She remembered the pain in her sides and flanks from the kicks she was rewarded with. The memory of the pain helped her keeping her horn glowing. The purple glow illuminated the uneven cave ground before her hooves.
She felt a disturbance in the magical field she was casting. She stopped and pointed a thin hoof at the side of the cave from where the signal was coming, then slumped down at her haunches. Her companions started digging in the indicated spot. She used the time to stop the spell and let her horn rest a bit. Her whole head felt numb from the concentration. Her stomach growled but she didn't have any appetite, only thirst. She thought about the fountains in her town. The water was fresh and cold, and when she jumped in, the waves of the pond closed above her head. When she got out the towel was warm and dry, just like her blankets in her room, where she watched the moon from her bed, her friend reading his comic books at the light of a small lamp. The picture was torn apart forcefully when her horn hit the ground. A wave of pain ran through her body, yanking her back to her current, unpleasant reality.
She held up her head. She had to stay awake. Her dreams were good enough to at least momentarily make her forget her present suffering, but now wasn't the time. She had to help these bastards find their gems, and she had to concentrate to be able to cast the necessary magic for that. The pattern was simple: she scanned the ground, she pointed, they dug, she got rewarded with a small bowl of water, and then it started over again. She could consider herself lucky for being able to keep up the magic, she thought, otherwise she would probably get killed or let starve to death. At least they gave her water occasionally. She shuddered at the memory of a unicorn skeleton she had found in one of the caves, laying behind a rock, some of her leg bones clearly broken.
There was a clang in front of her face. When she opened her eyes, she saw her bowl of water. She eagerly grabbed it in her forelimbs and emptied it. The water felt cold, refreshing, and delicious. She put the empty bowl down and took a deep breath, gathering strength to continue. She stood up, and lit her horn again.
It seemed being a magic talent saved her life again.
“…but I’m sure I have seen something like that before, maybe in a luggage, or… in a shop at the station? When we arrive back, I’ll check the shops. I might be wrong, but if I find another one like this, that’ll mean we are…”
They ears perked up in unison, as they heard a loud growl behind them. The unicorn abandoned his speculations. He looked questioningly at Coal, who shrugged.
“Are there any dangerous animals around here?” Coal asked.
“Well, there are bears and I heard some folks say that there is a manticor in the forest, but as far as I know...”
Another growl, this time closer, hit their ears. There were sounds of a running creature as well. The thuds indicated a heavy entity, which was probably limping hard judging by the unevenness of the impacts.
The chariot didn't have any back windows. Coal leaned out the left side window to glance back, but they were in a curve and the trees concealed the pursuer from view. He leaned forward to address the puller pony, while Silver watched their back from the right window.
“Hey there, can you go a little faster? It seems that something is chasing us.”
The stallion looked back with wide eyes.
“What? Where? Chasing us?”
“Yes. It's probably some angry animal, but I hope you can outrun it.”
The chariot jerked as the pony increased speed. Coal replayed the day's events in his mind, but he found nothing that could upset an animal, or at least he thought they didn't do anything like that. He sat back, and peered behind them again. There was a big, dark figure on the road. It was too far away to make out what it was, but it had the shape of a giant wolf, and Coal could have sworn he saw green eyes glowing.
“Hey, do you see anything back there?” The puller pony asked. “Is it close? Will it hurt us? Wait, you didn't take any important stuff from that village, did you?”
Coal shared a glance with the unicorn. He felt a weight forming in his stomach, as he thought about the content of his saddlebag. The other must have had similar thoughts, but didn't say anything either. Their silence caused the puller's voice to break in fear.
“You morons don't tell me you actually fetched something! Oh dear, I should have left both of you there. They told me that a trip to that town was a bad idea, but I need the money, and now I have to race a... I don't even know what!”
Another growl, this time closer than ever cut further complaining off. The thing seemed to catch up with them, despite their increased speed.
The unicorn poked Coal in the side, still leaning out the window. "I think ... I think it's a timberwolf."
The name was familiar, but Coal couldn't place it. "Right. Is it dangerous?"
"Yes, they are rather dangerous, but I might able to immobilize it from here."
Coal nodded, and leaned forward again.
"You keep up the pace, and we'll take care of that thing."
"Why? What is it? Is it gonna hurt us?"
"Don't worry. It's just a... timberwolf. We know what to do. Just concentrate on the road."
"A timber-what?"
"You'll get double money at the end."
The pony gulped, and remained silent. Coal sat back and thought about that word. It reminded him some tales from his foalhood, but he dismissed the idea. There was no way an imaginary character was chasing them. He hoped the unicorn knew what he was doing. He leaned closer to him.
"How do you plan to stop it?"
The unicorn grinned, as if enjoying the thrill of the situation. "Aim for the head."
There was another loud growl, accompanied with uneven, heavy footsteps. The unicorn leaned out the window, and aimed his horn at the creature.
"Are you sure you can hit the head?" Coal had to raise his voice to be heard over the combined noise of the wheels and the animal’s gallop.
"I have to. Otherwise, it'll just reassemble itself really quick."
Coal only blinked at that. The unicorn concentrated, and shot a magic beam at their pursuer. Coal quickly leaned out his window to watch.
The creature was in plain sight now. It resembled a wolf, but it was bigger than any Coal had ever seen. The body was made of branches, leaves and other big pieces of wood, held together by invisible magic. The legs ended in sharp, dangerous-looking talons. The eyes were two glowing, green spots, beneath them was a big mouth, full of giant teeth. It seemed that those foalhood tales had more truth to them than he had imagined.
The unicorn missed his first strike. He shot two more beams, but each time the creature jumped away. The rattling of the cart didn't help him either.
They entered another curve. The wolf could barely follow the turn, but managed to avoid colliding with any tree. Coal saw that the front left leg, unlike the others consisted of only a couple of branches. That had to be the reason for the limping. The wolf must have had an accident, but Coal remembered the words "reassemble itself". He didn't have time to speculate though. He jerked back as the timberwolf leapt forward, right foreleg outstretched but the leg, instead of grasping the chariot met a glow of magic. The talons dissolved in an instant, causing the wolf to cry out in anger.
“Good shot!” Coal said to the unicorn, who looked back at him looking a little tired, but with a smile.
“Did you hit it? Is it gone?” The puller pony had hope in his voice.
“It's still there, “Silver said, ”but I hit it. I hope at least it slows it down.”
The cart suddenly jumped, as the wheels hit a rock on the road. Coal looked forward, and saw that the road was scattered with rocks. He grabbed the bottom of the window frame for support, and looked back again.
The missing foot threw the creature back a few meters, but they weren’t safe from it yet. The limping was harder than ever, but it slowly closed the distance. It occurred to Coal that if it was as a magical creature as it looked, it probably didn't feel pain or exhaustion, which made their situation worse. Luckily they had an almost tireless earth pony in front of their chariot and a daring unicorn on board.
Coal's ears perked up. He could feel tension building up in the air and he looked at the unicorn. His horn was getting brighter and a low hum filled the air, as Silver prepared a big blast. Coal looked back at the raging wolf and hoped the cart's rocking won't throw off Solver's aim too bad.
The right wheel hit another big rock slightly before the unicorn discharged. The bright, thick beam hit the air above the wolf's head as the whole cast jumped in the air, then the beam waggled to the left, snapping every tree clean in half in its way. Before the unicorn could recoil, the chariot slumped down on the road hard, and Silver fell back from the window onto the seat. His head turned upward, and the magic beam tore an opening in the top of the cart. Then, as turned his head the beam travelled down, slicing the back side and barely avoiding Coal. Silver finally ended the spell with a grunt.
The beam nearly cut the cart in half, which was now noticeably more instable. Through the gap they could see the wolf, in almost reaching range from them, and untouched by the magic. Coal helped Silver to sit back at the seat. He frowned when he saw the destruction.
“At least your saddlebag wasn't damaged...”
The sounds and the instable cart made the puller pony look back over his shoulder.
“What's happening back there? Did you...” His eyes went wide, when he saw the damage. “What the heck are you doing back there? You were supposed to kill that thing, not to destroy my cart! You'll have to pay for-”
"Look ahead!” Coal shouted at him, but it was too late.
Before them, a boulder sat next on the ground. The road took a sharp curve to the left before it, but the harnessed pony didn't notice it in time. He quickly turned his head forward at Coal's warning and started to steer left when he saw the obstruction, but couldn't avoid the collision.
The horizontal rod of the harness snapped in two as his body hit the rock and turned sideways.
Coal and Silver saw the rock in their way a moment sooner. They didn't have enough time to open the doors and jump out, so they hoped for the best. They flew over the rock when the cart hit it, just touching the top with their hooves. Coal directed his weight on one of his forelimb and rolled over several times before coming to a halt in a little clearing between the trees. Silver apparently wasn't that skilled. The unicorn landed on his side and slid three or four meters before stopping. Coal intended to crawl to his hooves but then saw movement from the corner of his eye, and remembered their original problem.
The wolf finally caught up on them. It went straight for Coal's throat, mouth wide open, the growl never stopping. Coal instinctively held his forelimbs before himself in a defensive manner. A cry of pain and fright escaped his mouth as the jaw closed on his leg, penetrating his skin and going deep in his flesh.
The beast caught him on his back, which left him a possible way to strike back. He summoned all of his strength he could into his hind legs, and kicked hard. His hooves went straight through the timberwolf's stomach area, sending branches and shrapnel into the air. He quickly retracted, and kicked again and again with alternating hooves.
The wolf roared in anger and perhaps pain through the leg in its mouth. It shook its head, nearly ripping its victim's leg off. Coal tried to punch the face with his left hoof, but the pain and the movement made it impossible to do any damage. His hind legs were kicking now almost aimlessly at its back legs.
The wolf released the grip on Coal's leg, stood tall and held up its taloned front leg, aimed at Coal's chest. Coal tried to take advantage from the short pause, but the agony on his limb made it difficult. He started rolling to his left to avoid the talons but feared he was too late.
A bright, thin beam of magic shot through the air. It blasted through the wolf's head and then went downward, slicing the body in half almost entirely before vanishing. The growl was cut off in an instant. The body fidgeted a little and then collapsed on the ground, just before Coal's hind legs. He quickly pulled back but his attacker was gone, only a pile of branches lay on the road, completely lifeless and harmless.
Coal stared at the pile for long seconds before his mind registered the sudden lack of danger. The pain from his leg made his vision blurry and his thoughts haphazard. Sound of hoofsteps came from his left, and a white glow enclosed the injured limb. He barely registered it, his mind circled around in fear, agony and the sudden change of events.
When things came into focus again the bleeding had stopped, and the pain eased a little. He looked at his limb, and it was still glowing in Silver's magic. He looked for the unicorn. He was sitting beside Coal, eyes closed. His right side was striped with bloody scars and he looked tired, but otherwise all right. He sensed Coal's movement, and opened his eyes.
"I stopped the bleeding, I hope.” His voice was calm. “I'm not entirely familiar with giving first aid to timberwolf victims, but it will do for the time you get to a hospital. Also, we should get going as soon as we can. The wolf will be back with time."
Coal looked at the branches at his hooves, then at the rock with the cart’s wreck behind it. The unicorn followed his gaze.
"Our friend is dead, I suppose. He got the rock head on, and didn't move since then."
"We should check him. He... he is an earth po- AAAGH!"
Coal cried in pain as he unconsciously moved his injured leg to stand up. Silver pushed him down.
"You just lay still, I'll check him if you insist."
He stood up and walked to the cart, not stopping his spell. He observed the unmoving body between the rock and the wreck, and shook his head.
"No, we can't help him." He fished the saddlebag from the wreck and slid it on.
Coal carefully turned to his side, holding his limb to his chest. Silver stepped closer.
"Coal, you shouldn't stand up. We have to get out of here, but let me carry you, okay?"
Coal wanted to protest, but the branches twitched on their own, making a rattling sound. Coal jumped on three hooves to get away from them. The magic left his limb, the pain returned and with the blood loss, it caused him to collapse on the ground, unconscious.
* * *
He was flying. His leg was in pain. He had to flee before the timberwolf reassembled itself and attacked them again. His body twitched to move. But... Wait a second... No, he was not flying. He wasn't moving his limbs, he still had no wings. He was floating in water. But... He was able to breathe, and he was breathing air. He opened his eyes a little. The world was blindingly bright, just like a magic beam. His pupils slowly adjusted to the brightness, and he could make out trees before him. He was floating above a dirt road, moving forward. Sound of hooves on dirt hit his ears and he glanced in that direction. Silver Beam was trotting next to him. His horn was glowing, and Coal finally put the parts together.
He was in the unicorn's levitation field, held in a comfortable position. His saddlebag was still on the unicorn's back. Coal turned his head to look at his injured leg. It still looked terrifying, but it didn't hurt as much as before: perhaps Silver did something about it. When he tried to move it, sharp pain shot through his entire torso, but he suppressed the cry into a loud hiss. Silver's ears twitched at the sound and he looked at Coal, who was now watching him. The unicorn smiled a little.
"Finally, you woke up," he said, not slowing in his trot. "I was worried a little when you collapsed back there, but you are relatively fine. You lost a lot of blood but I was able to stop the bleeding, and I also numbed your nerves a bit some to help with the pain. We should reach the station soon, and you'll get proper treatment."
Coal blinked several times before answering. He was still dizzy, but he managed to comprehend what he just heard.
"Uhm... Thanks for saving me. How…" The wolf. He jerked his head back where they came from. "Are we safe from the wolf?"
"Not entirely, but I think I’ve managed to put enough distance between us."
That was a relief. Coal smiled. "You hit it pretty hard. I think now I know why your name is Silver Beam."
The unicorn chuckled. "Thanks, Coal. I'd have gotten it sooner, but the road was too bumpy for a proper aim."
Coal's brows furrowed as he thought about the bumpy road, the chariot, and finally the third pony.
"What happened to...uhm..." He realized he forgot the name.
"He is dead." Silver said casually. "He hit the rock head on at a swift pace just like I said, and the harness and the cart finished the work."
Coal felt sorry for the innocent pony, and was slightly disturbed by the unicorn’s casual tone. "You left him there? Just like that?"
"I had no choice," Silver said with slight annoyance. "I can't carry two ponies while trotting away from potential danger and one of them is knocked out and needs to be given a painkiller spell."
"I... Okay." Coal's ears dropped. "I understand, and I'm grateful for your help."
"No problem. I couldn't let you die there. You still got to pay me.”
They reached the chariot station without further talking. Silver was dripping with sweat, and he had to give up his painkiller spell to be able to safely levitate his injured companion. Coal was trying to stay silent, but the throbbing pain in his limb squeezed an occasional cry or a hiss out of him. The pain lengthened the trip to eternity.
The station consisted of several one-story buildings, standing next to each other without recognizable order, much like a small village put together in a hurry. Silver headed straight to the local hospital, or more like a first aid station. Wide-eyed ponies stared at the sweaty unicorn and the levitating, bloody earth pony. Some of them offered help, but Silver ignored them.
He trotted through the doors of the medical building, exchanged some words with the nurses and then carefully seated Coal on a hospital bed.
As the levitation field ceased, Coal felt as his body was being pulled down by at least twice as much gravity than normal, but before he could make a sound his vision went dark, and he quickly slipped into magically induced coma.
Coal struggled with his unbending leg, but managed to limp through the corridor into the main hall after he was finally able to convince the suspicious nurse that he was under shock and therefore unsure of his memories when she asked about the origin of his injury. He stopped to rest in the hall's entrance, and started looking around for a deep blue mane.
Silver was standing not far from Coal, in the companion of two unfamiliar stallions. When his eyes met Coal's he excused himself and trotted to the earth pony.
“Wow, they discharged you already? They are getting better and better at medicine, aren't they?”
“Actually, I insisted on letting me go. I can't stay in bed for almost a week.”
“You seem very eager to continue your little quest. So your leg is good enough?”
Coal gave the limb a shake. “It's not that bad, the nurse did something with the nerves and gave me some painkillers. Getting around is a bit uncomfortable and when the drug's effect wears of it will be a little painful, but I think I can manage it.”
Silver looked a bit dubious, but shrugged with a hoof. “Well, it's your body... Anyway, if you feel like it, we can go and check out that shop here. I just talk a second more to those gentlecolts there and I'm free for the day. Sadly, I can't remember exactly what the name of the store was or where it was exactly, but I hope you won't have to walk too much with that leg... Ahem... Coal?”
He saw her from the corner of his eye, but his talent tingled at once. It rarely picked out living beings, but when the grey pegasus trotted out from the corridor and through the hall she instantly assumed his attention. In the next moment, she was out of the door, spread her wings and took off.
Coal blinked several times as he looked at the door. That mare was somehow relevant to the subject Coal was after, or she might know something that interested him. Perhaps she knew about the necklace? He obviously couldn't follow her to the sky, but maybe some of the nurses knew her. It was worth a try.
“Just a moment,” he said do Silver who merely raised an eyebrow, and limped to the counter. The mare behind the desk looked up from whatever she was doing and smiled at Coal.
“Hello there. How can I help you?”
“Hi, uhm... can you please tell me who was that mare who just passed here? She had a grey coat with a solid pink mane.”
The nurse looked slightly surprised, as she thought for a moment. “A grey and pink mare who just passed here? I haven't seen anyone, but that's a familiar description... Was she a pegasus by any chance?”
“Yes, she was.”
“Then I think I can. I'm not sure of her name, but I we see her here quite often. She helps us occasionally with injured fellas.” She narrowed her eyes. “May I ask why you’re after her? Has she done something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing like that. I just... She was just very familiar, and I just wanted to make sure I wasn't mistaken. She could help me with something.”
“Well, if you really want to meet her, I suggest go the zoo.”
“This chariot station has a zoo?”
She giggled. “You aren't familiar here, are you? The zoo is where the livestock and other animals are kept until they continue their trip. It's a group of houses at the north edge of the station and it has an official name which I can't remember, but the folks here just call it the zoo. This mare you are chasing has her way with animals, and she likes to help the merchants dealing with them.” She put a hoof to her chin. ”She's a bit creepy, though. It's like they understand... oh, excuse me...”
She hopped down from the chair and hurried to a group of excited ponies who were standing in the corridor, forming a circle around something invisible to Coal. He didn't follow her. He didn't have a name, but had a location, description and profession to start. After he and Silver finished with the shops, their next stop will be that “zoo”.
Coal waited a few second as Silver parted with the ponies, then walked up to him.
“So? Did you get her name?” Silver asked.
“No, but now I know where she...” Coal trailed off as he saw the grin on the unicorn's face. “Wait, it's not like that. I just wanted to know who she is so I can talk to her. She might be important or know something that can help me.”
Silver nodded knowingly. “Yeah, it tends to start like that. She helps you, you help her, you share some quality time together and then it's all smiles and giggles.”
Coal shook his head but had to suppress a smile. “Indeed... Err, do you know where the zoo is?”
“Of course. That's where she works?”
“According to the nurse I talked to, yes.”
“Should we go to there before the shops, then?”
“No, I think she is rather busy at this hour. We should go and check out those stores you mentioned.”
Silver nodded. “All right.” After a short hesitation, he continued. “You know, you kinda got me interested in this necklace business, I'm curious what we could dig up. If it turns out to be some ancient, magical treasures hidden in random places, I guess you will have to endure my presence a little longer than I previously intended.”
Coal chuckled. “Be my guest. I don't turn down good help when it's free.” He paused as the sentence reminded him of something. “Oh, yes. I forgot to pay for your trip to Ponyville.”
Silver waved it off. “Whenever you can, it's not that urgent. But if our little adventure turns out to be something big and exciting and you let me join you and get half of the adventure and half of the price at the end, I generously abdicate it.”
“Deal.” Coal touched hooves with Silver playfully, but deep down he was glad that he had his companion's desire to help him, despite knowing the unicorn only for a day.
* * *
They walked through the chariot station's dirt streets to a small shop. Coal just now realized the name “station” was a misleading one: town or village would have been more descriptive. The streets were dirt and there was no sign of strict order in the placement of the buildings, but it did have a countryside-town feeling to it. Ponies hurried after their business, mares exchanged gossips with each other and Coal even saw some foals, playing and running around cheerfully. The usual one would expect.
They walked past several stables, chariot garages, food stores and even family houses before they reached the shop Silver wanted to visit first. It was a fairly small building with big shop windows, filled with every kind of object imaginable from books to daggers and jewelry. None of them resembled their necklace, though.
The unicorn entered the shop first. A small bell indicated their presence to the salespony behind the counter, who looked up from his book.
“Good afternoon, and welcome to Fair Trade's shop!” The earth pony said cheerfully. “Take your time looking around, or ask me if I have that particular item you seek, which is a great possibility.”
Silver smiled back at him. “Thank you. We're looking for something specific... Err” He opened the saddlebag on his back and began to search through it.
The salespony nodded. “I'm glad you are, otherwise your presence here would be rather curious.”
Coal cocked an eyebrow, but Silver waved a hoof while still searching in the bag and answered. “We want to ask if you have a golden necklace with a big gem in it.”
The pony thought for a moment. “I do have many jewels, but I'm afraid I need more detail. How big is this necklace? What kind of gem does it have? Is it plain gold or...”
Silver finally found the necklace in question and held it in midair.
The salespony's face brightened. “Ohh, I see. You are after the Harmonial Collection, aren't you? Exquisite taste. I'm afraid I can't provide you every part of it, but I do believe I have at least one of them here. Just a minute...”
He left the counter and started looking through the sop's shelves. Silver shot Coal a reassuring look. They waited as the salespony trotted back to the counter with a small, wooden box on his back. He sat it down on the desk and with a dramatic expression, he opened it.
Coal's eyes went wide. The necklace in the box was just like theirs, except it had a rectangular blue gem instead of a pink butterfly. However, something was missing. Silver hummed and then levitated the jewel out of the box.
“Is it what you were talking about?” Coal asked. The unicorn didn't answer.
“So, do you like it?" the salespony said. "If you work at the station, I can generously give you a discount.”
Silver shook his head. “No.”
“What do you mean?” Coal asked. “What's wrong with it?”
He was suspicious about the necklace because his talent didn't give a signal, but he still hoped they found the real thing.
The salepony looked worried for a second, but kept his smile up. “I can assure you, this is one hundred percent original artifact straight from Canterlot, just like yours.” He pointed at the butterfly.
“It's a fake.” Silver seated the necklace back in the box and looked at Coal. “I'm sorry, but this is definitely a fake. Looks like I was mistaken.”
Coal expected this answer, but was disappointed nevertheless. “I was afraid you'd say that. But how can you tell for sure?”
“I can feel it with my horn, and it has no magic in it whatsoever. It looks legit, but it's not what we are after. Maybe in the next shop we'll be luckier.”
The salespony looked desperate to save the deal. “Listen, I don't know whether you are an expert or not but I can assure you, this is an original. I usually don't show it to every soul who wanders around my shop, but when someone trots in here with another Element, I see that they have good taste in historical artifacts and also are able to afford such hobby, therefore I take this is-”
Coal held up a hoof. “Wait a second. You said element? What element?”
The stallion looked at him with worry in his eyes. “The... An element of the collection! You see, it's a series of six similar necklaces as you probably already know, made by, if you can give credit to the tales, Princess Celestia herself and then worn by six heroes who saved Equestria from certain destruction on several occasions.”
Coal's mind was fixated on the word. There was something about it, something familiar and promising. He had felt his talent tingle when the pony said the word, though failtly.
“It's a part of a matching set,” Coal said, “not an element of one. I can tell there is something about that word that made you say it and don't want to tell us.” Silver looked a bit surprised, but didn't interrupt.
The salespony was patting the counter. “I... I heard a tale from some customers about the elements of... something some weeks ago. It was an interesting story and didn't leave my mind for days, but I didn't give much credit for it. I have never heard about it before or since that day, so I suppose it's another legend among travelers and merchants. Like that one, you know, about the souls of the dead ponies haunting the village where they were killed by the magic explosion, or timberwolves living in the forests near them, just like that one not far from here.”
Coal smiled. “I don't know about haunting souls, but what if I told you something about timberwoves, based on personal experience?” He held up his bandaged leg. “We were attacked by a real-life one just today. Our cart pony was killed and it almost bit my leg off. Maybe I'm willing to believe those tales about your Elements.”
* * *
Footsteps. It was that time of the day again, apparently, but it wasn't completely bad news. She was hungry and thirsty, and wanted something to distract her mind from constantly bringing up images from her past. They were both positive and negative, but in this dark, cold and dry cave every kind of memory seemed sad. Her mind locked itself in a vicious circle of memories about fun times with her friends, her home's comfort, the excitement of learning about new subjects, her mentor's kind words, her adventures with her best friends...
She heard the lock's noise and glanced at that direction. She saw two of them coming, one carrying something. The sound of a metal bowl hitting the ground startled her. The noise of flowing water made her ears peak up and she crawled closer to drink, but something stopped her before she could reach the bowl.
“We're going further this time,” said the guard who grabbed her. “You're getting water and food before we start.”
She lowered her head to reach the water, but was yanked back again. “You won't want to try and run away. You'd just get lost and die anyway. Whatever water you might find in ponds or lakes, stay away from it. Don't try to drink from any water you find. Understand?”
She nodded several times to reassure them and get her meal.
“Good.” The force disappeared and she drained the bowl and swallowed the pile of flowers and that strange brown thing. After she finished she was yanked to her hooves and they all walked out the door of the cellar.
This time they didn't follow the usual route and went through a long, unfamiliar tunnel instead. The water and the movement made her mind turn faster, and she recalled the warnings. They were unusual. They haven't really talked to her for... a really long time, with the exceptions of quick orders. And what was that part about not trying to escape? Was that part of the tunnel system not guarded? She felt a wave of hope, but quickly calmed herself down. She wasn't strong enough to be able to escape, neither with stealth nor with force. They also mentioned ponds and water. Water was refreshing, but she wasn't allowed to drink. Well... If it was poisonous, it could be a way to leave this place, couldn't it? She stopped the chains of those thoughts quickly. She wouldn't kill herself. She was braver than that, she had to be. Either that or she was too afraid even to try. There was something else about water that they didn't mention, but it did matter to her: she definitely didn't want to see the reflection of herself, didn't want to realize... Leave that ugly sight to these grey and brutal dog-like creatures. They threw her into this state, after all.
The tunnel after a sharp left turn ended. She noticed the sudden lack of walls and looked up.
Her eyes widened at the sight of the immense, circular cave before her. It was a giant in diameter and had a high domed ceiling. The floor was dominated by a black surface of a circular pond of undisturbed water. A grey stone ring of even ground ran around separating the water from the wall, a few steps wide, slightly higher than the water's level. Long cracks ran through the stone of the ceiling and the walls, often ending in niches where rocks had fallen out of them. Evenly placed torches around the perimeter illuminated the area, giving an eerie feeling to the place.
“Go!” Her guard finished murmuring with the guard standing beside the entrance, and two more dogs accompanied them as they continued walking at the right side of the lake. The dim torchlight didn't penetrate the surface enough to see below it, but this had to be that perilous pond she was warned about. They soon entered another, dark tunnel leading away from the lake. She was ordered to start her spell and they got to work.
Hours have passed. The bag of gems and small crystals grew bigger. Her horn was numb and her legs were aching. The mechanical repetition of her task allowed her mind to function almost without conscious thoughts, following the same pattern over and over: search, find, point, drink. This area was richer than the previous ones and she only got water at every third findings, but after several cycles, she wasn't thirsty anymore.
She realized she was staring at her bowl of water without the trace of thirst. It was a pleasant sensation, feeling full. She hasn't felt such thing for a long time. The dogs found their current gem in the wall and were murmuring among each other again, which left her additional time to rest. There was no one digging near them, and the water in the bowl was still as a mirror. The flames of a torch held by one of them could be seen in the surface. Curiosity grew inside her and she started to crawl closer and lift her head.
She shut her eyes and retracted before seeing anything. She gazed into the torch's flames instead, and willed the temptation to fade.
Her guards seemed to reach an agreement. One of them walked closer to her.
“Drink that, and get going. Our next goal is a little further away.”
She looked at the dog and shook her head. He raised an eyebrow.
“You aren't thirsty? Fine.” He grabbed the bowl and poured the water on the ground. She winced at the sight of the waste, but stood up anyway.
They walked several hundred meters. Small portions of the wall and the ceiling were collapsed on the floor in several places just like in the cave, and their number grew as they walked. At one point, she was ordered to cast her spell and find something big. She obeyed and found a target almost immediately, deep in the rock. Very deep.
She looked at the nearest guard and cleared her throat. “It's very far into the ground,” she said in a weak voice, and pointed at the tunnel's wall to indicate the direction.
They got to work without a word. As the new tunnel deepened, she had to occasionally correct the direction. The target was further than she expected.
When one paw left a black hole in the wall the dogs exchanged some excited words and quickly widened the hole and held a torch in the opening. She couldn't see anything in the blackness but the leader jumped in, held his torch up and hurried in the big gem's direction. She was told to do the same.
She stepped inside, and saw a cave similar to the previous one, only it wasn't lit by torches and was in a far worse condition. The lake had more rock than water in it, especially in the middle where she could sense the target, buried in a pile of rocks and dirt forming a two meters tall island. The dogs hurried to it, wading in the shallow water. She did the same. The wet touch of the water felt good, and probably it was only dangerous if drunk.
“Is this it?” one dog asked, and she nodded.
The dogs murmured something again and then started digging into the pile of dirt. She sat down on a dry spot and watched them with slight curiosity, wondering what was that big gem or crystal that was so exciting. After one or two minutes one of them called back at the guard dog beside her, who usually gave her the water bowls.
“Come and look at this. I think we found it.”
The dog quickly filled a bowl before joining the others, and she drank maybe half of the water. Her thirst was gone again, and she wondered what to do with the remaining. She didn't want it to be poured out again. She slowly levitated a small sphere of water to her face, and splashed it against herself. It was cold and refreshing. She sat there eyes closed, water pouring down her muzzle as she washed her face for the first time in months. The dogs and their treasure slipped from her mind. She didn't even notice that the dogs stopped digging and were clearing the object from the dirt. Her bowl eventually got empty. She dragged her forelegs across her face for a last time to dry it some, and opened her eyes.
She was staring right at it. Her eyes went wide, a suppressed cry left her mouth and her legs started unconsciously pushing her backwards. Before her, buried in the dirt was a shiny surface of a giant, flat crystal, facing her. In the light of the torch, she finally saw what she has been trying to avoid.
Her reflection stared back at her with terror in her bloodshot, violet eyes. The trembling pony before her was thin to the bones. Her purple and pink mane hung in oily rags from her head, curling around her horn and ears. A dried stripe of blood was trailing down from her left ear, partially blurred by the water she'd washed herself with. Old and new wounds scattered her face and body, a long one crossing the star of her cutie mark.
From her sides, two strange, extra limbs were stretched out. The sight of her featherless wings made her eyes moist. She has been trying to avoid the realization of her fairly new but now useless and crippled alicorn wings, but now there they were before her, in plain sight.
Twilight Sparkle clenched her eyes shut and curled up on the ground. Between sobs, she could hear the chuckles of the three diamond dogs.
Silver held up a folding knife by using his horn. "...and this. Don't tell me you didn't know how dangerous this is." The light reflected from the extended steel blade and the gems embedded in the wooden grip. "With these gems fully charged, this knife can cause serious damage both to the victim's body and psyche."
The shop's owner held up a hoof to interrupt the unicorn, but he ignored the gesture.
"I've never expected such things to still be here, not after the big cleanup last year. I'm not sure how you managed to push them through security and avoid detection so far, but by doing so you broke almost ten regulations, each with severe punishments."
He poked a small bowl filled with big, blue leaves that sparkled in the light. "Not every customer would recognize what these leaves really are, but putting them on an open shelf is downright audacity. Your shamelessness doesn't seem to know any boundaries our people build up through the years of the life of this station."
"I only do what I have to in order to maintain a steady-"
"A steady income, yes, but this stuff, and those over there I didn't mention worth hundreds of bits for certain ponies. You aren't worried about earning enough money to buy oatmeal; you are worried about those heavy purses that those certain people drop on your desk. I hope you know that if this stuff gets into wrong hooves the owners of those hooves might, and most likely will suffer from danger, injury or even death." He stared into the salespony's eyes, who failed to keep up the eye contact.
Coal had felt embarrassed by the situation Silver put all of them into at first, but after witnessing the first minutes of accusing, exposing evidence and forceful intimidation he began sort of enjoying the show. Silver was in his element now, as he picked out every item that broke a rule one way or the other and threatened the pony with the consequences of exposing him, thus building up the motive that will make the owner talk about this Harmonial Collection.
The salespony was no doubt aware of the unicorn's intentions but couldn't deny or stop the accusations and eventually gave up.
"All right, all right, I got the message. If you keep quiet about all of this, I'll tell everything I know."
Silver's chest was puffed up with pride, but he kept his voice even. "Glad we have a deal. My friend here has the questions, so, Coal, please..."
Coal cleared his throat. "Okay... First off, what can you tell me about this Harmonial Collection?"
The pony looked around, concerned. "I think we should discuss this matter in the back room. Just in case somebody wants to eavesdrop, you know..." He started moving towards a door behind the counter.
Coal looked at Silver who caught his glance and nodded, then followed the earth pony into the room.
They sat down on the soft armchairs in the small and poorly lit place. As the salespony explained, this was a place of business making where those illegal objects and heavy purses exchanged owners. Silver gladly added this information to his violations list.
"So you think we are bug-free here?" The unicorn asked.
"Yes. I had brought some shielding enchantments for that very purpose." He reluctantly turned to Coal. "Let's get this over with."
Coal leaned forward. "So, what can you tell me about the Harmonial Collection?"
"First of all, the real name of the stuff you mean is Elements of Harmony. The other is just to avoid the attention of those who actually know about the subject and might act violently if they find out I sell stuff labeled as such. I know my name isn't really different from the original, but there are a lot of stuff out there labeled Harmony this and Harmonial that, so I just followed tradition."
“What are they?"
"Well, this... collection is a series of six magical necklaces, or five and one tiara or some crown thing, each representing different personality traits. I have heard both versions, but I don’t know which one is correct."
"Wait," Silver interrupted, "personality traits? I thought they meant the four elements of the world. They are in harmony with each other, if I'm correct."
"They are, but this is another kind of harmony, the harmony of positive personality traits or virtues, if you will. I'm not sure how that makes sense, but I know that's the tale. For example, that one I shoved you earlier represents generosity, one loyalty, and so on"
"Do you know what ours supposed to mean?" Coal asked.
"No, can't remember every one of them."
"All right, then. Uhm... what about their history or origin?"
"The six jewels were given to six heroes by Princess Celestia a very long time ago. The six ponies, all of them unicorns, each represented six traits, matching their Elements. When their magic came together, their combined power was used to accomplish great deeds. You know how Nightmare Moon was defeated, right?"
They nodded.
"Well, it was them, who stopped her when she came back, not our Princess Celestia. They also defeated Discord once, along with hordes of hostile dragons and griffins when they threated Equestria."
Silver snorted. "Discord, right. And then what happened to them? Why doesn't everyone know about them?"
"The six unicorns are probably dead by now, their necklaces scattered across Equestria, their powers gone. I don't know why they aren't known, but this is just a legend, after all. You don't really teach it in schools, and there isn't any conclusive evidence that'd prove all of this is true."
Silver glanced at Coal from the corner of his eyes, to which Coal responded with an ever so slight nod.
"Is there anything else?" He asked.
"I'm neither a historian nor a folklorist and I don't really care about such things, except when it comes to selling valuable artifacts. I'm sure you can find other people with more knowledge."
Coal already knew what to ask next. "Do you know who Twilight Sparkle is?"
"I have never heard that name before. Is she some kind of legendary character?"
Coal smiled a little. "Sort of. She was the supposed inventor of the magical storages. I'm sure you are familiar with them."
"Sure, just like the one in..." he trailed off as he glanced at Silver, but when Coal followed his gaze the unicorn's expression was neutral. Coal left it at that, but made a mental note to bring it up later.
"So that name means nothing."
"Nothing at all."
They sat in silence for a while. The salespony looked back and forth between the two others.
"So, if that is all..."
Coal opened his mouth to speak, and the pony's ears dropped.
"Do you know any mare at the station who has a grey coat and a straight, pink mane?
"And wings," Silver added, smiling.
"Yeah, and wings." Coal snickered.
The pony looked at them incredulously. "Do you think I know every single chick here? There must hundreds of-"
"Yes or no?" Silver interrupted.
"No." The pony rolled his eyes.
"It was worth a try..." Coal shrugged and stood up, the unicorn and the owner following suit.
"Thanks for the information," Coal said.
"And for your generosity." Silver pushed the word, which made the owner stare at him with suppressed anger.
Silver continued, "I hope we can trust you not to tell anyone about the subject of our discussion?"
"Sure, if you keep your muzzle shut about my stuff."
"Stay low and I will be able to."
* * *
He fought against it, but the pain in his leg finally ripped his dream apart and Coal opened his eyes with a grunt. It was a difficult task, sleeping with an unbending leg that hurt when his body pushed it into the hard mattress. He wished for a painkiller.
Coal sat up rubbing his aching leg, and thought about what to do in the day. He and Silver checked the schedule the day before right after they left the shop, and found out that a chariot was leaving to Canterlot in every two hours until nine in the evening. Coal looked at the clock. It was almost nine in the morning, which left half the day to work. He hoped it would be enough time to track down that pegasus mare and ask some questions about... He stopped in his tracks on the way to the bathroom. He had spent hours before going to bed thinking about this problem, but the initial concerns remained. How could he ask a total stranger about a thing he was supposed to keep a secret and didn't even know much about himself? How would she react to strange questions with no straight subject? Coal sighed, and finished his morning routine. It was better to eat something in the buffet at the main floor before thinking too hard about this problem again with an empty stomach. He checked his saddlebag's contents and when found everything in its place, he placed the bag on his back with some difficulty.
He closed the door of his room behind himself and went down the stairs leading to the hotel's main gall with the dining area. The process was irritatingly slow, but still faster than the day before's efforts. He was getting used to the stiff limb.
He looked around the hall looking for the counter and thinking about what to eat, but his talent swiped those thoughts away and aimed his gaze to a pair of pegasi, who sat at a small table facing one another. One mare had bright red coat with a red mane with white stripes going through it, the other had grey coat with a soft pink mane and both of them had a small plate of breakfast before them.
Coal gulped. He didn't expect the encounter with the pegasus to be so soon, but knew he couldn't let the opportunity slip, even though he didn't exactly had a plan yet on how to approach her with his questions. He ignored the growling of his stomach and walked towards the two mares' table, reminding himself of the phrases he prepared before sleep.
They both looked up in silence as they noticed the approaching earth pony. Coal's pegasus looked slightly worried, while the other wore a questioning, but confident expression.
"Good morning, ladies," Coal said with a smile as he stopped beside the table, . "Excuse me for interrupting your breakfast. My name is Coal Slitter, and I came from Canterlot to investigate several sites in this area that might hold relevance to Equestrian history. It came to my knowledge that you, miss, might be able to help me."
The grey mare's eyes widened when Coal looked at her during his last sentence. Coal let his eyes wander for a bit on her. She was cute all right and slightly younger than him. Her coat and mane were well-kept, in contrast with her patched, old pants.
"If you don't mind, of course," he added.
"I... I don't think..." she began, but her companion cut her off.
"Tell me, Mr. Slitter, what kind of questions do you want to ask?"
Coal turned to the red pegasus. "Nothing too personal or disrespectful. I'm only interested in some legends from around here, along with some more specific questions concerning an artifact that was found not far from this station."
"And who told you Starry could help you with that?"
Coal delivered his lie. "I've talked to several ponies since I have arrived here, and one guy said that I should look for a specific pegasus who might know more about this matter than most of the folks here."
"What did they say, what was her name?"
"They didn't know her name, only what she looked like and where she worked. It's just luck that I've found her here, in this hotel."
The red pegasus took a sip from the cup of coffee before her and then looked at Coal. Her eyes didn't soften.
"I'm afraid she won't be helpful to you,” she said eventually.
Coal raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"
"Because I'm not letting you talk to her, that's why."
Coal prevented his eyes from rolling. This was just what he wanted, an overprotective friend.
"And why not? Trust me, I don't want to ask any too personal questions, and if she says she can't help me, I’ll accept it."
"I don't trust you." To Coal's incredulous look she went on, tapping the table with a hoof at each reason. "You just out of the blue show up at our table and want Starry to answer your questions, but you don't know her name, you don't know if she really knows anything, or if she has the time for you or if she wants your companion at all."
"Violet, please..." The grey pegasus said, but the other mare cut her off again.
"Just a moment, dear." She turned back to Coal. "You don't even live here. You just ride in, hear something from those jerks and believe it, then disturb total strangers with your..." She looked at his bandaged leg and old saddlebags that were in a need of cleaning and repairing. "...your ruffled look and fancy speech, asking for our trust and our time. Just leave us alone, okay?"
Coal was unprepared for this degree of reluctance and couldn't think of a proper answer right away.
"I'm sure he didn't mean to interrupt our meal without a reason," the grey pegasus, Starry apparently, said in a kind voice, which instantly lifted Coal's mood a little. If it wasn't for Ms. Redcoat here, he would have gotten to the point with the filly who made his talent tingle about the necklace and the whole deal. Surely, he didn't look that bad, did he?
"You are too naive, dear," the red mare told her companion, then turned back to Coal. "I don't know who sent you, some Canterlot egghead or the Princess, or what you really want here and I really don't give a damn, but you leave Starry and I alone, or I will make you."
Coal felt his anger rising, but a glance at Starry's tender eyes convinced him that a violent action would probably ruin his chances at getting her trust.
"Listen, lady, I want no trouble. If my lead is a dead end and she really doesn't know anything that can help me, I will be out of your mane at once. You don't have to leave the two of us alone either. I'm not sure why you are afraid of me, but please, just a few questions... Violet, was it?"
His efforts were blank rounds fired at her defense and she signaled towards the exit with her head to her friend. They stood up, although Starry's slow reaction showed reluctance which didn't avoid Coal's notice. He still had hope, and cards to play.
"If you are certain you don't want to let me talk to her, at least let me say one more thing."
Her eyes said sorry, but Starry obviously didn't dare to go against her friend, who now simply ignored him and started walking to the door, with her friend following her. Coal inhaled, and talked in a low voice that only Starry could hear.
"Does harmony mean anything to you?"
The effect was instantaneous. The pegasus froze mid-step, her head jerked back to look at him with recognition, wonder and fear in her eyes. Coal didn't know the reason, but knew one thing: he was on the right track with this pony. He just needed time and the absence of the red pegasus.
Violet noticed her companion's halt and quickly stepped beside her and used her right foreleg to turn Starry's head to look in her eyes.
"What's wrong, dear? What did he say? Something rude?"
The other shook her head. "Nothing like that, he just reminded me of... Something from the past. It's okay, really."
Violet turned her gaze to Coal, who felt his stomach drop a little in fear by the ferociousness in her eyes. "I told you to leave her alone. If we weren't in public right now, you would have another broken leg. I warn you."
Coal wasn't used to be threatened like that, and only stared as the two friends left the building. None of them looked back.
Coal took a lungful of air and let it out slowly to calm his breathing. The encounter didn't go as he had planned and he didn't get any definite answer, but the reaction at the word "harmony" meant that his talent had been right. She was relevant to the case of the magical necklace and the legend about the Elements of Harmony. He also knew he had to be careful with his future approaches with such a bodyguard of a friend at her side, who isn't even willing to let him have one word. He didn't want to scare Starry too much either, forceful interrogation wasn't exactly Coal's style of dealing with tender mares. Besides, she didn't deserve any of the sorts, he was sure of that.
The growl of his stomach turned his attention back to his previous task, namely finding something to eat. He walked to the counter, trying to ignore the curious looks he was getting from corners of eyes.
* * *
The two stallions were walking towards the group of buildings that were labeled as the “zoo”. Coal filled in his companion about the morning's events, which earned him quiet chuckles from the white unicorn.
"You are too easy to intimidate, Coal. That girl only needed to hear a good, solid reasoning, and after you practically failed to stand up to yourself she probably acknowledged you as a random weirdo from whom she has to protect her darling."
"I don't think it was that simple. She seemed really angry. Maybe I scared her, but I wish I knew how. She said my look was too ruffled."
Silver looked at the earth pony's figure. "You look fine to me. Old bags and bandages aren't exactly a rarity around here." He shrugged. "Maybe you said something you shouldn't have. Maybe you addressed them the wrong way, and she..." He trailed off.
Coal noticed it too. The street wasn't empty from ponies, but none of them paid the two stallions any attention except for one orange unicorn, who was trotting in their direction.
“Oh boy, I hope it's not what I think it is...” Silver sounded troubled and slightly annoyed. The stallion stopped before them, making them halt as well.
“Hi, Silver. I finally found you. How busy are you?”
Silver glanced at Coal. “And it is." He turned to the newcomer. "Busy enough to send you back alone, Amber.”
The stallion grinned. “Yeah, it's your day out, I know, but hear me out. There is a huge group from the east with a lot of cargo, and the boss wants you to-”
“I'm sorry,” Silver raised his voice some, “but I can't hear you over the sound of the fact that it's Saturday and I have the whole weekend to myself. Tell him to find somebody else.”
The unicorn shook his head. "It's not that easy. We have Arching Dash at your position but he isn't you, and this might be a situation that calls for your... unique skills."
"That's very flattering, but I'm pretty sure Dash can handle whatever might come up. I’ve got work to do, and my friend needs my help.”
The stallion glanced at Coal's bandaged leg, then back at the white unicorn.
“I work my flank off every day,” Silver went on before the other could answer, “and when I have free time, I want to do whatever I want with it. What's the problem anyway?”
"As I said, we have an incoming caravan out-of-schedule, and it might cause some problems."
"That still doesn't answer why I'm needed so badly."
Amber sighed, looked at Coal, back at Silver and then finally said, “There is something different about this one.”
The calmer tone got Silver’s attention.
“Cian had detected a certain type of signals coming from one of the incoming chariots.” The unicorn's voice grew serious. “They didn't arrive here yet, but will in a matter of hours.”
“What type?”
“The signal matches with...” He looked at Coal again and then back at Silver. “With a certain one coming from a certain device. One with that star.”
Recognition flashed through both Silver's and Coal's face. “Is Cian certain about that?" Silver asked before the earth pony could say anything.
“Quite certain. It's very unlikely something else is giving out that kind of magical signal. If someone other finds out... They'd send authorities from Canterlot, start a throughout investigation, discover the connections, and we’re gonna be f-”
“Yeah, I get it. That'd be very bad indeed.” Silver shot a troubled glance at Coal who looked back at him suspiciously. “I'm sorry, Coal, but it seems we have a rather hot situation and my assistance is needed after all. Will you be able to get around?”
Coal nodded. “Sure. What's that problem only you can solve? Can I help?”
“Thanks, but not. It's, well, classified. Security business.”
“Okay... but what's with that device with that star? You surely don't mean...”
“No. I...“ The unicorn shook his head. ”Listen, I will tell you everything I can, but don't expect too much. It's a secret thing, and you wouldn't understand anyway.” He put a hoof to his chin. “Actually, you just might...”
“No way.” Amber shook his head. “He isn't a unicorn, and he isn't trained. There is nothing he can help with.”
Starred device, magic, secrets and fear from detection. Coal knew not everyone respected the law that banned the magical storages, but hoped Silver wasn't involved in such machinations.
The white unicorn nodded. “I guess that's right. No need to take risks.” He turned to Coal. “Buddy, I got to go. I'm sure you will be okay. Just... Don't get chewed too badly again, okay?”
Coal was surprised by the affection in the unicorn's voice, considering Coal only knew him for only a day, but it felt good nevertheless.
“Don't worry about me." He smiled. "Good luck with your classified operation.”
“I'll see you in the afternoon. I hope you like beer!” The unicorn turned and trotted away with his colleague.
The earth pony watched them go. Coal, not having a horn was somewhat a stranger to magic, even though when he studied the history of the magic storages he dabbled in arcane subjects, and knew some of the basics on how magic worked. The subject amazed him, but it was also a bit unsettling. There was a whole world of opportunity and potential the ability of manipulating magic provided, and he will never be able to experience any of it firsthoof.
* * *
He expected he would have to ask someone for directions, but the zoo turned out to be easy to find. With two two-story buildings and a huge, long barn it was the biggest complex Coal had seen in the whole station.
There was a metal fence around the three buildings with one gate for ponies and a bigger one for chariots, a bit further away. Coal went through the smaller gate and entered the nearest building's double door with the sign Main Office above.
The interior was a narrow corridor which separated two rows of small cubicles with one pony in each, talking to other ponies sitting or standing before them. To his left stood a wide desk, with one bored-looking unicorn mare sitting behind it.
“Can I help you?” She asked as she saw Coal.
“Yes. I'm looking for someone named Starry. I heard she works here.”
“Where?”
“At the zoo...?”
“Where exactly? Feeders, guards, administrators, office or else?”
“I don't know that, all I was told was that she works at the zoo.”
“That's not too much. What's her last name? What's her race, colors and cutie mark?
“I don't know her last name or her cutie mark, but she is a pegasus with a grey coat and pink mane.”
She reluctantly produced a thick book from a drawer behind her and started to turn the pages with telekinesis.
"Who is asking for her?" She asked, while scanning the mugshot-like profile images.
"Coal Slitter. I came from the capital to look around this area for sites with historical relevance."
“And what's your business with her?
Coal considered what he should tell her. “I just want to ask some questions that she might know the answers to.”
“About history?”
“Personal kind.” He hesitated for a moment. “Kind of concerns history, too.”
“Personal, huh?” She glanced at him. “You don't even know her full name.”
Coal smiled awkwardly. “I'm not sure she has one at all. I haven't met her yet, I got the info from someone else.” He thought he should keep the morning's events a secret. It wouldn't help him anyway.
She stopped flipping the pages. ”Uh-huh, I guess I got your mare. Grey pegasus with pink mane. Her full name is Starry Wind and her cutie mark is a stylized bird. She works at the receivers. That's a restricted area, only workers and such can go there, so you'll have to wait 'till she comes out for a lunch break. That is...” She looked at the clock sitting on the desk. “...about sixty minutes from now.”
Coal nodded and turned to leave. “Thank you. Have a nice-”
“Just one more minute,” she said quickly, making him turn his head back. Her expression softened, and Coal expected a personal question to come.
“Actually,” she said her voice slightly more friendly, “I know this pony, it just took me some time to remember. If you accept my advice, you will be careful with those questions. She doesn't like strangers and gets scared easily. It took a long time to warm her up to this place, but now she is a very efficient worker. Don't scare her; we don't want to lose such a good employee. Also, you should watch out for her friend, too. She is a bit overprotective.”
“Oh. Is she working here, too?”
“Yes, but in another sector.”
Splendid, Coal thought. He won't be able to avoid having to fight through Violet's defense, it seemed.
She saw the disappointment on the earth pony's face. “I guess you know the type. She is a real pain in the ass, all right. You can't go near her precious without her permit. They work in separate sections, but they are almost always together."
"Do they live together, too?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. It says here that she has no family and no permanent address, just a hotel room number. Her friend..." She flipped through a dozen pages then shook her head. "Violet or something has an address, but I wouldn't be surprised if they did."
"I suppose they don't go to the bathroom together..." Coal mused with a smirk.
The unicorn snorted. "That’s some sick thinking. I think not, but that's not the way to go."
Coal waved a hoof. "Don't worry, I'm not that desperate. So... I have no chance, you say?"
"I don't say you have no chance, but you got to be careful. If you don't have some authority backing you up, think up a good strategy. Politeness and kindness are great manipulators." She closed the book, suggesting the conversation's end. "You can catch them at the lunch break in the hall upstairs." She motioned at the ceiling. "Just don't make a scene."
"Thanks for the help and the advice," Coal said with a smile which was, with some hesitation, returned.
Coal looked at the clock on the desk. Almost one full hour to craft those hearth-melting sentences that will make Violet silent for a good fifteen minutes while he speaks with her grey defendant.
He left the building and stood beside the fence, looking at the movement of the workers and their animals, but not quite watching.
What should he say? He already tried to introduce himself in a pleasant manner, and he obviously couldn't do it again from scratch. And if he succeeds with Violet, then what? That grey pegasus certainly knew something judging from her reaction to the word "harmony", but how should he ask her about the Elements of Harmony without scaring her too much? She probably didn't deserve to be frightened, whatever happened in her past he had no right to stir it up if it was not be stirred.
While he was at it, he should also ask about Twilight Sparkle and her legends, regarding the magical storage devices. If the clues Silver and the other unicorn had dropped really meant there were illegally operated storages in the station, she might know about them too.
The minutes passed as he contemplated the matter. As the hour progressed towards its end, the number of ponies at a side door of the office building grew bigger and bigger, waiting to be let inside to have lunch. He spotted some grey and some red coats, but all were wingless.
Coal reckoned it was time to merge in the line, and started walking to the queue's end when he spotted her. She was gliding from the direction of the barn, alone. When she touched down she looked around, but Violet was apparently late.
Coal made his way to her. She was standing alone, not talking to anyone. Her coat was dirty, her mane and tail in a need of a good brushing, the pair of pants that hide her flanks wore scratches. Coal's heart went out to her as she just stood there alone, looking sad and tired. He looked around for Violet, but couldn't see her, and that gave him some courage.
She noticed the movement, looked at him for a second then did a double take, recognition flashing through her face.
"Hi," Coal said with a smile. "I hope I'm not bothering you."
She looked at him with tired eyes. "No, not at all. Are you hungry too?"
"Well, not exactly."
"Violet won't be happy if you upset me with your questions, then."
"Where is she? Were you going to eat together?"
"She is still working," she said, motioning to the barn with her head. "We were to eat together, and she won't be happy if she finds you here."
"I suppose... so, may I talk to you quickly, then?"
"About the..."
He nodded, noting her wary expression. "About the Elements of Harmony, yes."
A low frequency hum hit Coal's ears and he saw several other pair of ears perking up, but no one seemed to give it a second thought. He returned his gaze to the filly.
"Why... why do you ask?"
"I'm in a middle of an investigation of some sort, one which touches legends about these Elements. I've found a peculiar necklace in this area, which suggests there is some truth to this tale."
She stepped forward, her eyes locked on Coal's.
"You found the Element..." she whispered. "Who sent you after us?"
He took a step back. "Nobody, I came alone, only to... Wait, you know that necklace?"
She hesitated, but didn't get to answer his question. The low hum grew louder, assuming the attention of the ponies around them. Most of the talking stopped, as everyone turned towards the barn.
Coal's eyes twitched as the hum's pitch rose to a painful whine in a split second, where it was cut off by a loud crack and a blindingly bright flash of light from the barn's direction. He closed his eyes instinctively. He heard shouting and running all around him and when he opened his eyes, he saw ponies hurrying into the two buildings and the barn...
He stared perplexed at the crater in the ground, right where the barn used to be. White smoke-like clouds stirred above the wide hole, the movement of the ponies dissipating them quickly. Coal watched as ponies, mostly unicorns hurried to the explosion scene, his brain barely registering Starry beside him as she shouted "Violet!", and took off.
He felt the presence of magic in the air. It had to be an explosion with that crater and all. Although there was no shockwave and flying shrapnel, what else could explain what happened? He cringed in fear as he thought about the destruction a magic storage could cause just like one that was perhaps in this place as well, but the fact that he and everyone around him was unharmed dismissed the idea. He heard shouts about "teleports" and "overload", and he thought he understood.
No unicorn, at least as far as he knew, was powerful enough to teleport a whole barn, not without several unicorns' combined power or a certain arcane device, but he knew what skill it took to execute that spell, and how few ponies were able to do it.
That illegally kept device Silver had suggested had to be in this place, used to assist magical machinations. If it overcharged due to a malfunction, it might have very well been pure luck that they witnessed a simple overcharge instead of a magical detonation.
Not much time passed before security ponies arrived and started to take control over the scared workers. With the help of magical barriers the crater was secured and the people were moved in the main building's direction. The calm and confident manner of the uniformed guard ponies definitely had a positive effect on the crowd, but couldn't prevent every freak-out. There was a young pegasus mare in pink coat trying to break through the blue dome of the barrier, despite her obvious lack of chance for success, who was simply taken into a levitation field and was held in midair, away from the crowd, until a female guard talked her into calmness.
Coal fidgeted as he stood next to the fence, staying out of the ocean of moving bodies, trying to decide whether he should stay and try to find Starry Wind or leave while he still could and come back when the waters were calmer. The appearance of a guard interrupted his contemplation.
"Sir, please, move," the unicorn stallion said. "We have to get everyone inside who saw the event."
Accepting, Coal nodded and obeyed. As he got closer to the entrance, he took note of the number of ponies trying to get inside while the second, further standing building was free of any queue. He turned to the guard who was still close to him.
"Sorry, but why is no one going to the other building? There isn't enough room in this one for all of us."
The unicorn looked puzzled. "What? Why would you..." He narrowed his eyes. "Tell me, sir, what is your job here?"
Coal's stomach sank a little.. "I, uhm... don't really work here. I was just seeing someone."
The guard didn't answer, instead motioned Coal to wait and lit up his horn for a second. A moment later another security guard arrived, gold stripes on her uniform indicating a higher rank. She looked Coal over then turned to the unicorn.
"Yes, what is it?"
"Ma'am, this one here is an outsider."
The female guard quirked an eyebrow. "What is he doing here?"
"Seeing someone."
She contemplated her answer for a moment. "Treat him like the others, but stay alert. Talk to him after this is over."
"Yes, ma'am."
She trotted off without looking at Coal again.
"Have I done something wrong?" Coal asked the guard.
"I can't say anything right now. Follow the others for now, please, and later we will clear this up."
Coal seriously hoped he didn't step in anything too nasty by visiting this place.
He and many others were crawled into the dining hall on the second floor, which proved to be larger than he estimated. He quickly lost sight of any guards, and decided some sniffing couldn't hurt.
"Do you know what happened?" He asked a mare next to him, in what he hoped was a casual tone.
The pony glanced at him. "You mean you didn't see or hear anything?"
"I saw a flash and heard a crack, nothing else."
"Just like me, but I also heard that the barn was teleported away. Some dumbass probably overcharged the crystals again."
Again?
"Yes, probably," Coal said. "Although I wasn't around when the previous one happened."
The other one waved a wing that Coal just realized she had. "It wasn't a big deal, most of us don't even know about it. But this... This is big. I'm curious what will they cover it up with."
There was a reason the magic storages were taken out of order. All these ponies, along with himself could count themselves lucky the whole station wasn't blown sky-high. He would keep his mouth shut, though. Partially, he could understand the motive behind the decision, teleportation and magic overall dropped the costs a considerable amount. Even though he saw many unicorns working here, manually providing long-term supply of dependable spells was tiring, which problem was solved with archamechanic technology. Still, the risks were too big for Coal to approve the methods of the zoo.
He realized the pegasus asked something and was looking at Coal. He opened his mouth to resume the conversation, but didn't get the chance.
"Attention, please!" A confident and magically amplified male voice quieted the talking to an ambient murmur, which also died soon after the pony began talking.
"Thank you," the blue unicorn stallion said, standing on a desk with his horn glowing. "Now, as you are probably aware, a magical accident took place at the Great Barn not long ago, resulting in the teleportation of the whole building. The number of victims is yet to be determined, but our estimate is around twenty, thirty tops. We have no exact information regarding their physical state and current position, but with log information we can narrow down the possibilities for the latter. Messages will be sent to those places that are habited, and search parties to those that are not. You will be informed about the results as soon as we can provide them.
"This event however, although unfortunate, will alter the routine of the station's life as marginally as possible. The cargo will be forwarded, its course modified or, if those options are unavailable, will be stored in temporary places, until a sufficient substitute for the barn will be built. We expect the circumstances to return to the usual within a week. Except for the people, that is. Uhm..."
The unicorn seemed unsure as he quickly scanned some notes, then took a deep breath and went on.
"Finally, regarding the nature of the event. A complex, long-range teleportation spell, casted with multiple unicorns' combined effort was under preparation as part of a weekly routine, when the supervisor sensed a distraction in the magical currents. This person was unable to warn the unicorns in time, and soon the magical energy overcharged in the target object. Before the staff was able to execute the proper protocol the spell took effect and the process ended."
"In other words," murmured the pegasus next to Coal, "shit went wrong but it's not really your fault, so just be quiet about it."
Coal smiled politely, but noted that the unicorn still didn't say a word about any arcane devices. Maybe it wasn't common knowledge around the zoo-workers after all.
"Please refrain from contacting the press or any kind of news agency about this event," the unicorn continued. "We wish to avoid panic regarding the safety of the missing people or the reliability of this station. This includes individuals working outside of this complex. This is a standalone situation, and we plan to normalize everything as soon as possible. Thank you for your attention. Please contact your superiors for further information." He disappeared from the scene before the torrent of questions could hit him.
"Well," the pegasus mare turned to Coal, "I guess that's our cover story. Good thing I don't work in the barn. Where is you place?"
Coal improvised. "At the receivers. I guess that's why we don't know each other."
They moved along with the crowd towards the exit.
"And who is your superior?" The pegasus asked. "Isn't it that bossy earth mare with that stupid hat?"
Coal was busy looking for an opportunity to escape the situation. "Oh yeah, that's the one," he answered almost without thinking.
"Eager to go back to her?" She asked with a smile, clearly noting Coal's discomfort.
"Yes. I mean no. I just..." Coal spotted an opening in the stream of bodies and darted through it, leaving the pegasus to stare after him confused.
He squeezed through the door, took a breath of fresh air and tried to rethink the situation. Silver was doing something at his workplace, and he didn't say when he will be back. Coal didn't want to leave to Canter lot without his white companion, especially not after he promised Silver his share of adventure. He thought about the guard and his order to brief Coal about the event, and decided it would be best to wait it out.
A pegasus got his attention as it descended from the air to land before him.
"You're Coal Shelter, right?"
"Slitter, actually. Why-"
"This is for you." The colt pulled out a folded piece of paper, which Coal took automatically.
"Who sent you?" he asked the pegasus, who was already spreading his wings.
"A unicorn," he said and took off.
Coal blinked. Silver? Was the word here that fast? He unfolded the message. The page, torn out from a notebook bore only a few lines of hurried yet smooth horn-writing.
Coal, I heard what happened at the zoo. I can't go there right now, I hope you're OK. Please trust me. You gotta leave for Canterlot alone. Get the next chariot. Hide your precious. Stay in C., I'm gonna look for you there. Take care. S. B.
Coal smelled the exciting scent of a conspiracy and adventure again, but this time with a touch of fear. What was the hurry about? What was the Silver involved in? Should Coal really trust him?
He shook his head. Silver had helped him so far, and his message seemed earnest enough. If there was indeed danger, he should follow the advice, promised briefing or not. It's not like he wanted to stay here that much and besides, this place lacked adequate research opportunities. His straight black striped charcoal mane and light brown coat were easy to forget, the only thing standing out was the white bandaging on his leg. He silently sent an apology to the guard who was supposed to see him and will probably be rebuked for letting Coal leave. He slipped through the fence without a problem.
Outside of the complex, the town seemed mostly undisturbed in its daily life, except for some fast galloping and flying ponies. Coal, who was getting used to his stiff leg was making good time through the streets. His staccato movement attracted a few pair of eyes but no one bothered to offer a helping hoof, for which he was glad.
Panting slightly, he paused before the hotel to let a group of mares through the doorway. His eyes widened as he spotted a familiar gray pegasus among them. Starry Wind caught his gaze and nudged a yellow coated elderly mare to go faster. Once outside they left the group, and before Coal could reach them they took off. He watched Starry's fast strokes and her companion's weak flaps as they flew away.
Ten minutes later, he secured the saddlebag on his back that contained his every belongings he brought from Canterlot. The necklace was wrapped in a towel and hidden in the bag's middle. Hopefully, a casual pry won't reveal it and a serious search won't find it suspicious.
He checked out of the hotel and made his way to the building at the perimeter which had initially brought the whole little town to existence. After purchasing a one-way ticket to the capital, he walked to a four-seated and four-wheeled chariot. The harnesses were already in place, the two puller ponies were making idle conversation to pass the time. According to the timetable, the cart was to leave in five minutes.
Coal didn't see any significant sign of what had happened at the zoo on the platforms either. No-one seemed worried or scared, like no-one knew about the incident which was likely to a degree, but this settlement seemed too small for such an event to go isolated. He hadn't even seen any guards trying to stop him as he simply trotted out of the zoo, and he didn't see any here either.
When he was asked to, he reluctantly allowed the staff to put his bags in the back of the cart along with the other passengers, a unicorn stallion and mare's luggage.
The depart was on time. Coal watched the station's houses passing by and realized he was alone yet again, and he missed the white unicorn's presence. He has never worked with another pony for longer than a few days, solitude proved to be his best asset when the time came to concentrate on and immerse in his work. He was no recluse nor was he anti-social, but he valued and enjoyed being alone, a condition which he had too little of growing up in the crowded cities of first Manehattan then Canterlot. He partially chose his profession because it provided him with plenty of alone-time, while he still could find time to be with his few, carefully chosen friends.
The two ponies on the opposite seat who seemed to be a couple kept shooting looks at his bandaged leg but thankfully neither of them bothered him with questions. The chariot slowly picked up speed on the narrow road and when the last sight of the town disappeared from view, Coal looked at the forest stretching alongside the road. The unicorn may have very well saved Coal's life the other day, so a capable companion could come handy sometimes, couldn't it?
He let out a long sigh and shifted into a more comfortable position. The monotone rocking of the ride and the quiet murmuring of the other two ponies helped his mind to drift almost unaidedly from recent events to old memories and to recent events again, as if looking for a connection that just didn't seem to be there. He needed more research, more information and more time.
Well, time he had, it wasn't like anybody's fate depended on what he could dig up from a rather cloudy part of the past.
* * *
Half-awake, she reached out to gather more hay between her and the hard, uneven rock, but found nothing. With some effort she forced her eyes open and looked around.
In spite of her being tired and the darkness around her, the difference between her usual cave and this one still registered. She vaguely remembered how the dogs simply threw her in this temporary cave, instead of returning to her usual place. She saw no hay or anything to soften the ground in the significantly smaller and rougher cellar, but no bars either. Warm torchlight illuminated the area outside and some of it reached her, painting the walls in a mix of gray, black and orange.
She raised her forehooves to clear the stickiness from her eyes but a hard and heavy grasp around her neck and a metallic sound stopped her. She quickly touched her neck to feel a thick iron collar.
She sprung to her hooves which caused the chains attached to the collar to rattle painfully loud. She felt her elevated heartbeat from the sudden motion and feelings as she followed the chain to a ring embedded in the floor. The sudden wave of anger and shame due to the humiliating fact that she was being kept on a leash just like a dumb animal swept the last clouds off her mind and pumped some strength into her body. Almost instinctively, she concentrated power into her horn to open the collar with magic.
It felt like blowing into a sealed off pipe. The magical energy was blocked even before reaching her horn and built up a painful pressure behind her forehead. She felt a cold blow of fear and tried to push through the block anyway, but with no success. The lavender glow never came and the barrier stood relentless.
Panting slightly and fearing the unknown problem she felt her horn with a hoof. It felt normal, except for a ring at its base.
The comprehension killed the previous anger and left her feel only tired again. She slumped down on her haunches, her right foreleg still touching the magic suppressing ring which disarmed her from her only tool and weapon. Slowly, she put down her hoof. She knew well what the problem was. Trying to force the ring off physically would be pointless, only magic could stop its effect and let it be removed. Until then, the enchanted jewel remained in place.
She turned to the opening from where the torchlight came. The silhouette of a diamond dog standing there and no doubt watching startled her and she couldn't stop a little gasp. She saw light reflecting from the creature's eyes as it spoke in deep, masculine and belittling voice.
"Don't feel too smart, pony. We know how to take care of your kind so you don't go around causing trouble. You are a strange mix of them but right now, you are no different from those who have no horns or wings. You are just as pathetic and helpless as-"
"You should stop talking with the pony, Dart!" Another dog outside her cave cut off the rant. The one named Dart shouted back some profanity then turned back to the still-sitting captive.
"We're leaving in ten minutes. Swallow this and prepare for work." He fished something from his pocket and threw it on the ground before her. It was that brown stuff she was getting to eat lately, more and more frequently. The dog turned and left without another word.
She picked up the food and tried to clean it without magic, then ate it anyway. The chewy thing was dry yet somewhat tasty and she wondered again what it was. She didn't have any water with her, so after some contemplation she finished it, stood up and went to the opening to ask for some. The diamond dogs were still out of her line of sight when she realized she could make out their words as they talked and she stopped. Her movement rattled the chains a bit, but this time they left her alone. For the moment she pushed back her desire for water and focused on catching the words, hiding just behind the corner.
"... so we went, but it was nothing. That pony must have tricked them. We're lucky that ours is going along, even it took some pounding."
She identified the voice's owner as the dog who was just talking to her. His words were muffled, presumably by food in his mouth.
"They must've been careless. A trick like that needs time to build. And what about this one? That's some pounding she had by the looks of it. Was she that tough?" The second voice belonged to a younger one and wasn't muffled.
"You have no idea," said the older dog. "That bitch took the whip, the stick, the kick then stood up and threw us into the walls with magic. Even after all her legs were fixed with ropes she was tough to beat. Good thing we outnumbered her and could circle her. A whip here, a kick there, a good rock straight to the horn and she was down long enough that we could finally immobilize her. I got a real yelling for kicking her after but damn, she pissed me off so much." There wasn't any anger in his words, only satisfaction.
"But she has wings. Had, anyway. Couldn't she just fly away? Was she underground already?"
"No, it was outside and she tried but sucked at it, like some child. I saw how the pegasuses can fly, but she couldn't even get high enough to get out of our ropes' range. We brought her down every time." He sounded like he was grinning. "We took care of that problem later, as you can see."
She slowly flapped her featherless wings as she recalled the event the dog described. Anger, fear and fatigue clouded her memories from those days, but she knew she had tried not to hurt anyone too bad and now she wondered if that had been the right thing to do. If she hadn't been so tired she could have pushed every one of her attackers back into the earth and fly or teleport away, but they had had her at a disadvantage.
"Yeah, I saw it," the younger dog said. "A bit disturbing. And I've never seen a pony like this one that wasn't just a picture. Is she special? Some rare breed?"
The other one probably took a bite because his words were too muffled to understand.
"...like a princess, as they call them," he said after swallowing. "But a real princess wouldn't have been so easy to capture, so I guess this one only looks like one. They'd never let their leaders wander around with no guards."
"But if she is that strong, aren't you worried she will blast the cave onto us, just like that blue one did some months ago?"
Her ears twitched at that. Another unicorn? So she really wasn't the only pony down here?
"I was at first," Dart admitted. "I always had someone keeping an eye on her, but she's never tried anything serious. I think she took the beating thing worse than I thought. And for that blue one... It was their fault. You gotta keep them in control, or they'll get smart. Oh, yes, that reminds me. Go and give her some water for finding that statue for us and promise more if she finds more. It will keep her motivated."
"You can do it. I have to wrap these torches for the next route."
"Can't you see I'm eating? Pick up your ass and water that pony."
The younger dog let put an annoyed grunt but, judging by the noises, stood up anyway.
She quickly moved away from the opening, as if never being there. A few seconds later the dog appeared with a water bowl and an unlit torch in his paws.
"For your good behavior and for finding us the statue," he said reluctantly. "Keep it up, and you'll get more." Not waiting for an answer he put down the bowl and left.
She took her time to drink the liquid. The sound of her own gulping filled her ears and she closed her eyes and let herself immerse in the sensation.
She felt more emotions in the last five or so minutes than she felt in a really long time, she realized. Something's changed. Maybe it was her reflection in the facet of that statue, maybe this part of the mountain held more magic than the rest or maybe just the air was fresher, but something must've changed. Her body was still very weak, but her thoughts were becoming clearer. If she could keep up her cover image as a mentally and physically exhausted slave she might find a window of opportunity as a weak point in the diamond dogs' safety measures, then she will be able to strike and take a step towards freedom.
She put down the empty bowl and stared at the ground before herself, indulging in the thought. No pity shall stop her and no fear of what will greet her outside if or when she succeeds. No matter what Celestia had done to her. Maybe her friends will understand and maybe they'll accompany her... But after what her friends had done too...
No. They'll just have to face her as well.
* * *
A change in the monotone rattling of the cart nudged him back to the present and he opened his eyes to look around. The couple seemed undisturbed in their intimate conversation, but when Coal looked outside he saw that they were slowing down as the chariot approached the building of an out-of-service railway station with several small carts parked next to it and uniform-wearing ponies standing around. They were too far away for Coal to read the letters on their clothing, but they reminded him of the elegant police uniforms worn by Canterlot police forces.
"Uhm, sorry, are we supposed to stop here?" He asked the couple.
The stallion looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression. "Well, yes, for an inspection."
He felt the cold touch of fear in his stomach. "Really? Was it scheduled? Noone told me..."
"Actually, no, but one of the puller stallion said something about it before we departed."
"Oh." It could be difficult to slip the necklace through an inspection and reveal would make him instantly suspicious. He could try to bribe the inspection with his spare money or talk his way out or other make another ridiculous attempt that had no chance of success. Not in his case, anyway.
But the accident in the zoo happened no more than an hour ago. No way they would set up a post so far away, hoping that they will catch a lone pony. No, something else had spooked them.
The stallion narrowed his eyes, apparently noticing Coal's unease. "I suppose you don't have any illegal items in your pack, do you?"
"I sure hope so." Coal's weak smile didn't seem to have any affect, so he waved a hoof for emphasis. "Of course not. I just tend to get nervous around uniforms."
The unicorn slowly nodded and turned back to his companion.
They slowed down to walking speed and soon stopped near another cart which was surrounded by idle passengers and uniformed ponies. The latter looked bored like they were doing this job for too long and without much excitement. That, and the low number of unicorns were a good sign. Without magic, the jewel seemed ordinary enough.
Everyone turned their attention to the door as it opened, revealing a thankfully hornless pony, a pegasus mare to be precise, with two stern earth pony stallions behind her.
Obeying the pegasus's request, the three passengers left the chariot to let the police go through the whole cart. They were fast and efficient. The two earth ponies opened the couple's bags while the pegasus inspected Coal's.
"So..." she began in a casual tone. "Where are you three headed?"
Coal looked at the couple, and the stallion returned his glance for a second.
"For me, I'm going to Canterlot, and I can only assume they are too. We're not together."
"Do you live there? Were you on a vacation? You don't seem to have much stuff."
"No, I had business in the area and only packed for a couple of days."
"Did you see Ponyville?" She asked curiously. Coal almost gulped.
"I've seen it, yes," he answered, wondering what he should tell her. Or what not, considering there was almost nothing there.
She looked at him with her eyebrows raised. "Really? You were allowed? How come?"
"I had permit from Canterlot. I'm studying the legends of the timberwolves."
The pegasus nodded knowingly and went back to work. "I've heard the stories, but honestly, never really believed them. Never after the age of six, anyway. I had a coltfriend once who did, even after we got our cutie marks. He was sweet, but so gullible. He tried to explain to me the evidence behind those stories about, you know, magic and Everfree and ancient evil... No offense, but if you aren't planning on writing another foal's book about them, you are only chasing... shadows. Wow." She stopped and Coal, knowing what to expect, followed her gaze into the bag and to the necklace.
The mare held the jewel with her wingtips for a closer look. Coal winced a bit but nothing happened at the contact.
"I know this!" Finally she said, smiling. "I've seen it in a shop in that chariot station near Ponyville. It was expensive as hell." She looked at Coal, who drew a deep breath for dramatic effect.
"It's for someone special."
"Someone very special, I guess." She grinned. "Are you dating a princess?"
He laughed along with her as she folded the silk back around the necklace and closed the bag.
Coal exchanged a goodbye with the pegasus and tried to calm down his shaking body. It was one thing to be nervous about detection, but this was getting ridiculous. He had to get a hold on himself. So far everything went well.
He lifted his bag to place it back with the others but a big, unfamiliar sac filled all the remaining space. Coal hesitated then walked to the puller ponies.
"There isn't enough room for my saddlebag back there. There's a-"
"Just put it in the cabin. We are late as it is.”
"Oh, okay." Coal backed away from the buck. He threw his bag onto his seat through the open door then climbed after it. Before he could close the door properly the cart jerked as the two puller put their back to the acceleration. He steadied himself, turned to sit down, and understood the presence of the extra luggage.
On Coal's seat across the clearly uneasy couple sat a big diamond dog, looking directly at Coal with a welcoming smile.
* * *
Things have changed over the years, but the common image of the diamond dogs remained one of a ferocious, not very intelligent and most of all, dangerous creature. According to often doubtful sources, their society had fallen victim to the destructive force of civil war and was only a fraction of a shadow on the ragged mountains of its previous glory. Their kind kept to themselves and every pony or griffin who tried to explore their underground cave-systems or uncover a part of their history was met with belittling unwelcomeness and defensive aggression, which more often than not manifested in physical actions. In the eye of the general public every diamond dog was to be avoided by miles or if that failed, to be handled with suspicion and with vigilance for any sign of trouble that despicable abomination of an animal could mean.
An animal that'd certainly not look like the one in the chariot.
The diamond dog on the seat had a dark gray coat and wore only a thin, brown leather jacket. He looked different from the common description: he had clean fur, well-kept clothing and held a composed posture with his arm-like forelegs folded in his lap. Sitting on the seat initially designed for pony-sized people his pointy ears almost touched the ceiling.
Coal gulped at the sight of such a creature so rarely seen and generally feared, but trusted the puller and the police ponies who must have let the dog in. He placed his saddlebags on the floor to sit down beside the creature, as close to the edge of the seat as he could. A quick look at the couple told him that they weren't aware of any new scary passengers either. He cleared his throat to break the silence.
"Uhm, sorry, but when did you join us?"
It was a little awkward but still his best.
"Just now," the dog answered. "I was in the train station, waiting for a chance to catch a ride to Canterlot. I noticed the police was stopping chariots to look them over, so I took the opportunity and arranged my joining with the harnessed ponies. Oh, and..." he looked at Coal's bags lying on the floor. "Sorry about that. My luggage couldn't possibly fit in here with us, you see."
His voice was deep and his tone surprisingly collected. With his every sentence he seemed to deliberately fight against the diamond dogs' bad reputation.
"Well, all right then," Coal said, still a little confused.
"I know you ponies don't see many diamond dogs around,” the dog continued. “I wouldn't be here either if it wasn't for a business matter which I must attend personally. We might look like we could gabble you up, but trust me, not every one of us has such inclinations."
"I'm relieved." Coal said. "Since you were there, do you know why they'd stopped us?"
"They wouldn't tell me anything, but they stopped every single chariot that came this way. So far their efforts seem fruitless. I suppose they are looking for something specific."
The dog suddenly shifted on the seat and turned to Coal who flinched back before he could stop himself.
"So," the dog began, but then stopped and smiled. "Oh yes, I'm afraid I'd skipped something here. My name is Sheltar, from the City of Diamonds. May I ask your name? Sorry, names?"
"I'm Coal Slitter. From Canterlot."
"Obsidian," said the stallion.
"Pumpkin Cake," whispered the mare. "From P... Fillydelphia."
Coal's ears twitched a little but the dog continued.
"Lovely. So, dear Coal Slitter, I assured those police ponies my luggage consists only of legal objects, but they still insisted on taking a look. Since you went through the same procedure and are still here, I assume you are on the same side of the law as I am. Am I right?"
He didn't even glance at the couple and the too much attention made Coal even more uneasy than before.
"Yes, I suppose you're right," Coal answered slowly. "I would still have my stuff where it belongs, though."
Sheltar waved a paw. "The ride won't take long and you really don't want to share the room with my bag, trust me. So, do you mind getting your bags opened up?"
"No, not really, since I'm not snuggling anything."
"But it's a violation of your privacy, and maybe there is something you don't even..." He trailed off then shook his head. "Anyway, what is out here in the countryside that could interest a Canterlot citizen?"
Coal blinked at the sudden change of subject, and went with his previous story.
"I'm after timberwolf legends. Do you know any?"
The dog nodded several times. "Oh, yes, I do. It's fascinating, really. Dead trees fused together and controlled by dark magic? Very interesting concept. So tell me, was your trip a success? Did you find anything useful?"
Coal tried not to show his surprise on that the dog actually knew something about the subject. He decided to press it a little. Even it was only a cover story the subject itself did interest him, and not just because of the attack.
"I'm surprised you've heard about them at all," Coal said. "Not many do."
"Well, I'm fairly well read. So?"
Coal shrugged. "Not much, but I managed to get bitten by a bear in the same forest the wolves supposed to live in."
"Am I seeing the result of that?" Sheltar pointed at Coal's leg.
"Yes. I was lucky to get away. Fortunately, I wasn't alone."
The mare gasped. "Oh my gosh, are you all right?"
Coal grinned at her, feeling a little badass for a change. Sheltar merely stared at him for a moment, then grinned too.
"Good one, my friend, you almost had me."
Coal's shoulders dropped. "No, really! Why would I make up something like that?"
The dog was nodding like Coal was only a foal who just announced he found a way to fight a manticore with a paperclip.
"Don't worry, I believe you." Sheltar smirked. "They are really dangerous. So you didn't find anything, did you?"
Coal sighed and went on. "I found a source that could shed some light on the matter. Speaking of which, what do you know about them?"
The dog hummed as he contemplated the question, and Coal wondered if Sheltar was just making stuff up too.
"I'm sure the details don't matter since they're coming from folklore, but the general picture describes them as very dangerous, hard to kill creatures that don't have souls and aren't even self-aware. They are propelled by dark magic and I think they can heal themselves too." He shifted position and smiled pleasantly at Coal. "Will there be a final product in the end of your journey?"
"A book, yes. The details are, uhm, classified."
Sheltar waved it off. "I get it, I get it. So are you a writer? Or a journalist?"
"Oh, no, not at all. I'm more like a historian. Sort of."
"A historian, then? A professor? Student? Apprentice?"
"Neither, really. I'd say researcher. I help here and there in research projects, mostly in historical fields."
"I see. And is that a reason to travel all the way down from Canterlot?"
"Well, of course. I love traveling."
"Aren't you afraid someone would want to harm you or rob you?"
Coal furrowed his brows. "Why would I? Equestria isn't that dangerous, and I can take care of myself."
"Yeah, sure." Sheltar pointed at Coal's leg.
Coal felt himself blush. "Most of the times."
"And what if the circumstances aren't ideal? What if you carried something of great value that someone else desired?"
Coal, almost unconsciously, pulled his bag closer to himself with a leg. "Like what?"
Sheltar waved a paw but still shot a quick glance at the bag. "Anything. One's trash is another's treasure, but right now I mean something obviously pricey."
Coal knew where this was going. He looked outside to see how far they were from Canterlot. They must have been traveling for over an hour but the unfamiliar scenery provided no clue for their estimated time of arrival, so he turned back to the diamond dog.
"What are you suggesting?" He asked anyway.
Sheltar leaned forward a bit. "If I'm not mistaken your trip wasn't without a success, and I don't mean some 'source'."
Coal shrugged and hoped he could drag the conversation out enough before it could came to something he really didn't want. "I'm sorry, but I don't follow. What are you talking about, Mr. Sheltar?"
"So you don't know. Let me clarify, then." He looked straight into Coal's eyes. "Kindness."
Coal blinked. "Now I really don't-"
"Kindness," Sheltar repeated, his voice eager with a hint of anger. "The element! The necklace! Whatever you call it, it doesn't belong to you or a museum or any pony. Just give it to me, all right?"
At last, it got out of the bag. Coal had no proof about the necklace having any real value or significance to the Elements of Harmony, but he trusted his gut and his talent and wasn't going to just give the artifact away.
"I don't know if it's really an element," Coal said, determined, "but I have my reasons not to give it away."
Even though he sort of anticipated it, Coal was still shocked and so was unable to dodge when Sheltar finally dropped the act. He stood, grabbed Coal's foreleg and threw him to the other side of the seat, where the dog had been sitting. Coal hit the wall's wood head first, but to an earth pony it was nothing. He saw Sheltar's back turned to him as the dog ripped the saddlebags open. Acting instinctively and ignoring the mare's cry of fright he steeled himself, stood up, whirled around and bucked the dog in the back.
The whole cart shook as the considerable weight of the diamond dog impacted and punched a hole in the door. Immediately he turned and growled at Coal, whose blood froze in his veins.
Sheltar's jovial image was in shreds. Leaning low like in a battle stance with his claws outstretched and sharp, carnivorous teeth showing from his mouth, his whole face was an angry grimace and a deep growl was coming from his throat, much like a timberwolf.
Sheltar launched forward with his mouth open and Coal instinctively held up his foreleg. The dog's teeth closed in on his injury and the pain flooded Coal's body. The dog jerked his head to the side and sent the pony crashing to the seat.
With a bit of delay the adrenaline finally took effect and helped Coal to see through the pain. It took him a few seconds to reorient himself and he realized the dog has released his leg and wasn't looking at him this time either as he has almost finished emptying the bag. It was odd but he wouldn't let the opportunity slip. He positioned himself, took aim and punched.
Sheltar cursed as the earth pony's hoof stroke his side, the soft part right between the ribs and the hip. He curled up in pain, fighting for air. Coal's leg was in agony but the adrenaline dulled it. He judged the dog as not an immediate threat and looked for the necklace in the pile of travel-gear instead. He spotted its golden shine and reached for it. Only later did he realize how completely he had forgotten about the two other pony in the cart, and how their fate have never even crossed his mind. Right then, all he cared for was his own and the necklace's safety from the diamond dog.
Sheltar wasn't about to give up. He grabbed Coal at the shoulders just as his hooves closed on the jewel's silhouette in the towel. Coal felt himself being lifted and thrown again, to the same exact spot as the first time, and now he almost broke through the chart's wall. The necklace landed next to his head and he quickly grabbed it.
The dog was holding his side in obvious pain and was staring at Coal, who was sitting with the jewel in his grasp.
"You have no idea what you're holding," Sheltar said. "It doesn't belong to you!"
"It doesn't belong to you either."
The dog shook his head. "Not exactly... But it's mine for now. Give it up, pony!"
Coal looked at the pink butterfly of the necklace in his hooves. In the momentary pause in the fight he noticed how beautiful it was, how it was calling to him. He turned it around.
Sheltar's eyes widened and he stepped forward, but Coal pushed the jewel to his own throat before the dog could interfere. The lock softly clicked behind his head and the world was replaced with a torrent of unfamiliar images, sounds and feelings.
After the last vision played out the normal world returned and Coal felt disoriented and wasn't sure why his body was aching so much. What he just witnessed was totally unexpected and overwhelming.
The first thing he saw were the eyes of Sheltar and the two ponies fixed on him, the latter looking puzzled while the former angry. He didn't have enough time to gather himself before the diamond dog moved forward and he would've reached the earth pony without any real resistance if the unicorn stallion didn't wrap Sheltar in a telekinetic field. The dog, helplessly hanging in the air snarled at the determined unicorn.
"Stay out of this, pony! It doesn't concern you, that necklace belongs to me!"
Coal looked around for said necklace and felt a metallic touch around his neck. The situation cleared up as his memories returned regarding what happened before... He wasn't sure exactly what had happened, but it felt like it took several minutes. To why Sheltar didn't just take the necklace during that time, he had no answer yet.
"Sorry, I can't," the unicorn told the diamond dog. "From my point of view, both of you could be the rightful owners of that jewel and I won't help any of you before the situation is clear."
Coal stared at the unicorn and he felt a touch of annoyance as the unicorn's magic grabbed him too, holding him in place. Why would the pony think Coal stole the necklace and what gave him the right to intervene? And why now?
The chariot's sudden jerk made everybody look around as the cart lost speed then soon came to a halt. The puller ponies seemed to finally ditch the schedule to check out what was happening behind them. Hoofsteps circled around the cart then both doors opened.
"What the hell is going on in here, people? Why can't you just sit and-" the stallion who opened the right side door trailed off as he realized what was floating before him.
"What the hell?"
The diamond dog turned his head and growled at the earth pony who took a step back then forward again, looking over the passengers.
"And what the heck is a diamond dog doing in the chariot? When did it get in there?"
The other puller pony gave a little gasp and squinted at Sheltar.
"You sneaked in while we stood, right? I thought I heard something."
The dog snarled. "Indeed. Too bad you didn't check the back."
The buck in the right glared at the other earth pony before talking again.
"Too bad. However did you do it, you're gonna be answering the guards in Canterlot for this. Sir, if you could hold up your spell for just a minute longer..."
Sheltar suddenly twisted his whole body while stretching out all of his limbs and the magic surrounding him and Coal imploded. The dog gave a last glare to Coal then, using the shock he caused he shoved the stallion on the right aside, jumped out and ran off, all within two seconds.
"Wow," the unicorn said, a little embarrassed. "That was unexpected. I thought I was better that that."
The earth pony got up from the ground while muttering something illegible then dusted himself off and turned to his passengers.
"All right, then. Does anyone care to tell me what the hell was a diamond doing in my chariot, why was he levitated and why did he wanted to escape that bad?"
Coal cleared his throat and everyone looked at him. He blushed from the sudden attention but he felt the problem was on him.
"He wanted this necklace." He touched the jewel. "I'm not sure why, though."
The puller pony glanced at Coal's neck. "It's shiny. Diamond dogs like shiny things. Even such girly ones."
Coal rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah... But he really insisted on getting it. Like it was special or something." He ignored the look the unicorn was giving him. "He was all kind and polite at first, but in the last minutes he became aggressive. And, to be honest, I don't know everything. I was blacked out for a while."
Even the unicorns looked at him questioningly at that.
"No you weren't," the unicorn stallion said. "You were awake the whole time."
"But it felt... " It would explain why nothing seemed to happen during the time he saw several minutes worth of images, but that still didn't make much sense. He waved a hoof, dismissing the problem.
"Never mind. Like I said, I don't know why my necklace was so desirable to him. I... I just bought it at the station for a girl at home."
"He called it Kindness, right?" The unicorn offered. "What did he mean?"
"It's supposed to be a part of a matching set called... the collection of something. They weren't exactly cheap so I only bought this one."
The unicorn didn't object but Coal suspected that wasn't the end of it. Before continuing, they checked the diamond dog's sac but it turned out to be a bust, the bag was filled with meaningless old rugs. They put it back to be disposed of it once in Canterlot and and Coal didn't have to reason to keep his own bag with himself inside the cart.
On the move once again, he couldn't not notice the muttering of the two fellow passengers and their quick glances at him. Coal himself had a question to the mare, but wasn't sure how to ask it. He was contemplating it while trying to get his bag together, but after a while the tension was too much.
"Excuse me," Coal said and both of them looked at him immediately. "Is something wrong?"
They looked at each other. "We're sorry," the stallion finally said, "but... have you really bought that necklace?"
Coal grimaced. Here it was.
"I have. I don't have anything to prove it, but I have bought it from a shop."
"What if that merchant had stolen it from that dog in the first place and he only wanted to get it back?"
"I'm pretty sure that's not the case."
"But how can you be so sure? Do you know how these ponies obtain the things they sell? I'm not to defend such violent actions, but that diamond dog could've had a motive good enough if he or his ancestors had possessed the necklace. Or..." he fidgeted a little. "Or if you are lying."
Coal took a breath to answer, but the unicorn wasn't done.
"You said you bought it, but you were awfully nervous when you learned your luggage will be checked by authority. Sure enough they didn't find anything but they didn't look like highly trained forces, to be honest. They even let a diamond dog onboard."
Coal looked at the unicorn then at his friend who kept her eyes down while measuring how much should he say to strangers. The truth could only be seen as a cover-up lie, so he had to come up with something else.
"It might look like that," he said with a new idea, "but do you remember how much time and effort he put into deceiving me to believe he was a friend? If he was the rightful owner, why didn't he just straight up told so?"
"Maybe he wasn't. Maybe he was just another liar who wanted the jewel to himself regardless whose it'd been."
The mare looked at him with wide eyes, but the unicorn held Coal's gaze.
"And what if I stole it? Is it your business?"
"Indeed it is, if you are really a Canterlot citizen like myself. You can answer to the guards once we arrive. That is, if you don't plan to jump out too."
The mare placed a hoof on the stallion's shoulder. "Please, dear, leave the poor pony alone. I don't believe he is a thief."
The unicorn huffed and turned up his nose in an undoubtedly Canterlotish fashion and fortunately, took his lover's advice.
Coal tried to catch her eyes, but the mare avoided eye contact with the earth pony, so he turned his attention to the necklace which was still on his neck. He ran a hoof along it for a lock but only found the cold, smooth texture of metal. He pressed a hoof to the butterfly to loosen the back but with a soft click the whole thing came off without a problem. Coal hummed and rotated the jewel around, but it was just like when he first saw it in daylight. He caught the eyes of the two ponies and quickly wrapped the necklace in the towel it had been in then placed it in the torn up bag. He judged that with some luck, the whole thing would hold up until he gets home.
They reached their destination without further interaction. The puller ponies called for guards and them plus the three passengers answered some questions about the diamond dog. Coal's necklace was inspected and declared ordinary and they were free to go. Coal tried once again to talk to the unicorn mare but the stallion's narrowed eyes canceled those plans and Coal didn't want to push it, especially after the fact that the unicorn stallion didn't mention to the guards that Coal could have stolen the jewel. It was strange, but Coal was glad for his silence. After refusing to accept help with his luggage from the guard ponies he headed home.
* * *
Coal kicked the door open and with a swing of his head he launched the bag into the apartment, sending the contents all over the floor. With a grunt he shut the door and went to the kitchen to grab a glass of water for his parched throat. After he emptied the glass he stood and tried to calm himself down.
The trip from the station through the crowded streets to his home was made infuriating by the random stuff that just kept falling out from the torn luggage. The ignorance of the lofty Canterlot citizens didn't make it any easier either. He was a little sorry he didn't take the helping hoof of the guards but he wasn't sure if they wouldn't have ask some casual questions about the whole incident and eventually get suspicious when Coal couldn't answer some of them, so he sticked with the struggle.
After killing his thirst he went back to the pile of travel-gear lying on the floor. He kicked it over and over until he found the necklace, picked it up and locked it in his bedside table, just to be sure.
His anger was mostly gone by the time he came back to the hall where he noticed a piece of paper on the floor, which had escaped his eyes when he stormed in. It was a formal letter with his name on top. Intrigued, he unfolded it.
Dear Coal Slitter,
Since you couldn't specify the time of your return to Canterlot before you departed, I am now using this letter to contact you. As soon as you are able to, please write me to let us arrange a meeting where we can discuss your findings. I have to ask you to keep the nature of your journey a private matter and mention it as rarely as possible and do so with any notes you have. You will receive your full payment regardless of your rate of success.
You were involved only in legal matters, however I have in my, and, I daresay in your best interest to "keep a low profile", as they say.
I hope you receive this letter in good health and still possessing the ability to act as I asked.
Sincerely Yours,
Hazel Crunch
Coal stood in his hallway with the letter in a hoof, thinking the message over. His contractor suddenly pulled the plug like he was in something illegal or dangerous, and Coal will get the promised sum to help to keep his mouth shut.
Despite the lack of specification, he knew what job he had to abandon, if not why. Hazel Crunch was the pony who asked him to do a little investigation about his family tree. It was a normal enough request until Coal learned the pony had relatives who have been supposedly living in Ponyville before the local storage exploded. He couldn't find out much about them in Canterlot but he did learn that there were indeed ponies living there by the name of Crunch. They had a shop which sold food products but that was the end of the lead that connected the family to that location and the rest of it was on public access, available to any Canterlot citizen for free. On its own it would've been sufficient enough a reason for Coal to close the case but the contractor managed to provide him with the permission to enter Ponyville. Visiting irradiated, post-disaster areas was restricted and Coal suddenly had two reasons to make the trip. The first was the obvious pursue of the family tree however vague the hope of finding something was, but the second held a much more interesting premise.
He went into his bedroom and put the letter into the folder containing his findings about the family, with the exception of a few notes still lying in the pile in the hallway. After closing the folder his eyes fell upon a drawing made by a very tired but still enthusiastic Coal from maybe two nights ago.
The sketch depicted a stylized star with six points, each bearing an empty circle. Next to the drawing lay a scroll from the Canterlot Library and its words were visualized on the drawing. He had found the scroll by accident while looking for descriptions for some rural project, just before Hazel Crunch commissioned him. The scroll reminded him an old project he started long ago but abandoned after hitting a dead end. He had been searching sketches of what inspired the design of the very first storages that were introduced in Canterlot because he heard rumors that it came from the royal circles which seemed totally implausible, so of course it intrigued him.
The drawing was a supposed depiction six interconnected magical artifacts. The scroll itself didn't mention any name but it did refer to a special collection. Coal turned to face his bed which the bedside table containing the necklace was placed next to. Even if it wasn't an Element itself it must have been connected to them one way or another, otherwise he had only found pieces from different puzzles which seemed implausibly coincidental.
He took a deep breath and tried to take his mind off from the subject. Tired minds create forced theories, as a quote on a book he once read had said. Feeling the truth of it he has been trying to live by it, but the drawing reminded him that his intentions, more often than not, remained just intentions.
After relocating the pile from the hallway to his bedroom's corner he went to the nearest store for some grocery shopping and to send a letter to Hazel Crunch to let him know he was back in town and also to suggest a location. It wasn't after a big bowl of oatmeal back in his apartment that he started to feel the weight of the day's rather rough elements.
He had to admit, this exhausting day was one of the most exciting ones in his life. Bookworms don't tend to witness whole barns being teleported away by accident, getting their luggage looked over then having to fight a two-sided diamond dog over a piece of jewelry, all in one day. Not mentioning what happened previous to that.
It wasn't his usual nighttime yet but the tiredness persuaded him to go to bed early. He closed all the windows and pulled in all the drapes. In the quiet, dark room, behind his sleepy eyes his thoughts swirled with agonizing speed, preventing his brain from drifting into sleep. The image of Starry returned several times and made Coal wonder if he will ever get the chance to talk to her again. Given the circumstances, such encounter will have to be somewhat a wonder. The only things he knew about her was her looks, her name and the way she reacted to Coal's question about the Elements. That must have meant something.
The necklace made him see images he had never seen before, as if getting a glance of someone else's memories but without the person's detailed thoughts or feelings. Now, after some time had passed the individual images became clearer. He tried to recall every scene for something he could make sense of, with more or less results. It didn't help that most ponies were strangers to him but even the settings, the backgrounds were unfamiliar.
Princess Luna herself stood in front of Coal. He has never seen any of the royals up close and for a moment wasn't really paying attention to the alicorn's troubled sounding words. Beside her was a blue pegasus and a purple unicorn listening to the princess intently, the latter Coal recognized as Twilight Sparkle. She was very young and she was... a unicorn?
The trio gave way to pony bodies squeezed tightly together, embraced in a friendly group hug. Coal immediately felt better, despite the abrupt change. He, or more likely the pony whose memories he was seeing retreated and he saw Twilight again with lots of others, standing before a tall, circular building on a bright, sunny day, beaming with joy.
The same ponies were standing everywhere. He counted at least six Twilight Sparkles along with the others and their numbers kept growing as other changelings burst into green flames. He felt the same puzzlement and fear when he witnessed a similar event in real life in summer camp when he was just a colt, although there were only a hoofful of bugs and they were quickly defeated but the camp's supervisors.
What came next was difficult to interpret. Bright light blinded him an the others around then the glow faded and Twilight Sparkle was standing there, proudly displaying her new wings. Wait, new? Wasn't she always an alicorn?
The tall, mushroom-shaped cloud of smoke with sparks in it dominated the landscape. He was standing very far and high above ground on a balcony but he still felt the air rushing past him, followed by the growl of the explosion. Sorrow stabbed a knife through his heart and the strength left his legs. His vision was blurry from the tears shed by the pony whose home has just been destroyed before her own eyes.
Twilight, now definitely an alicorn was having an argument with Princess Celestia in a voice that suggested a more than monarch-subject relationship in a poorly lit, small room.
"...I have done everything in my power and ability to restore them in safe order, but I have no control over-"
"This is a direct effect of your actions." Celestia cut off the young mare. She was obviously holding back her temper. "Even Luna saw the signs, Twilight."
"I know, but I couldn't take the risk of them getting the upper hoof! I had to push the project in order to obtain..."
Coal wanted to hear more but the room was obliterated by an explosion of uncontrolled magical energy and the shockwave sent him flying through the air with seemingly an eternity of hang-time. He hit the ground and rolled over several times, coughing violently. The heat burned his skin and the smoke his insides. As he looked himself over he saw the burned remains of a wing still outstretched from his side. His feminine, yellow hooves were blackened by dirt and were trembling with shock.
A young pony galloped to him.
"Are you all right?" The filly had to shout to be heard. He nodded and she helped him get to his hooves.
"Let's get out of here."
A light of a nearby spell illuminated the filly's face and Coal recognized her almost immediately, despite the age difference.
The gloomy tunnel reminded him of the mines his father had worked in. A blue pegasus with strange, multicolor mane sped through the tunnel with a war-cry at a diamond dog, one even bigger than Sheltar. He heard a shout of warning but the pegasus ignored it and flew head on at the dog who knocked her out if the air with one powerful strike. The dog didn't wait for her to recover as he turned to Coal and a white unicorn next to him.
"Take that, you ruffian!" The mare shouted and tightened a scarf around the running dog's legs with astonishing speed, using her blue magic. He saw the creature fall to the ground before turning to flee. He flapped his wings but the sudden pain from the still hurting limbs staggered him and the unicorn mare had to help him to get up and away on hoof.
Coal forced his eyes open from the alien memories. The darkness of his bedroom returned but the emotions stayed. Even though it was only a reminiscence the experience still unsettled him, made him anxious to learn more and at the same time fear what the truth might hold.
He knew the scenes were important, he supposed the necklace didn't make him see these memories by accident but he still didn't know whose memories they were in the first place. The only ponies he recognized were the royal sisters and Twilight Sparkle but none of them could have the memories belong to as they were in them. All he knew the host pony was a yellow pegasus female who was acquainted with three alicorns and was around when Twilight lived and was also injured in an explosion. The existence of the purple alicorn was also confirmed in his eyes.
Something was bugging his mind, though. It was the scene about the group of friends, hugging each other before the circular building. They were in a grassy, park-like area with benches and lamp posts around. The whole layout was familiar, like he had seen it before, only... it was different then.
The two things finally connected. Even though it wasn't an earth-shattering revelation it was unanticipated and made him tremble with excitement. He knew that place, he was just there two days ago. It was in ruins, the bushes and trees covered in debris with bent lamp posts around but when he sat down on a still intact bench to take in the scenery before him this was what he had seen, even from a slightly different angle and decades later.
Coal opened his eyes, closed then opened them again. Since he probably wasn't going to fall asleep soon, he might as well make some sketches of the memories before they faded away.
Half an hour, four vague scribbles later and all of his strength and momentum gone Coal admitted his defeat, dragged himself into bed and didn't wake up until well into the morning.
* * *
Those were hoofprints. Dogs don't leave circular marks on the ground while walking. The prints looked like their maker had been walking in the opposite direction through the tunnel. She must have missed the pony by days at best because she doubted such marks would remain for too long where diamond dogs walked.
She looked around, recalling the layout of the area where she had been ordered to wait for an untold amount of time. The narrow, corridor-like tunnel where she and a dog watching after her stood met the wider one at almost ninety degrees. While the wider one never seemed to be empty this one was almost deserted. Only a couple of torches were lit and the ground wasn't as hard due to the lack of stomping on it.
She glanced at her guard but the dog was staring ahead, blinking slowly. She tried to look at the marks with a clear mind. The tribe, gender and exact age were indeterminable, however the distances between each marks suggested an adult. At least they don't enslave children. Maybe they just kill them right away.
She quickly pushed the thought aside. The marks were mainly evenly paced and went in wavery lines. The ground to either side was undisturbed, at least as far as she could see. She squinted into the tunnel which turned right after a while but saw nothing of interest.
The magic suppressing ring had been removed from her horn and hasn't been reapplied since for some reason and she could've used her magic to illuminate the ground or get rid of the guard dog and see where the tunnel lead, but... she couldn't. The scars and bruises across her whole body served as a reminder what happened when she broke the rules.
Her eyes caught a break of pattern in the series of hoofmarks and she took a few steps to get closer. She looked at the dog again but he (or she, it was different to determine) didn't even look at her. The marks looked like the pony had suddenly swayed or sidestepped. Right next to the marks, what she had mistaken for black rocks were little indentations in the gravel, like a big amount of a reddish brown liquid had spilled out and dried off, coloring the ground. It was an all too familiar shade and if it had been still wet, she was sure she would have been able to smell copper.
A voice startled her, kicking the morose thought straight out of her mind.
"Hey! Where you goin'?"
She turned to see that the two diamond dogs have returned and were looking at her. She muttered a "Sorry" and walked back.
"Keep a better eye on her," the biggest dog told the sleepy one who nodded. "Let's go."
He spanked her on the flank and her eyes went wide, but she refrained from making any sound and started moving.
They returned to the wider tunnel then proceeded to several smaller ones with less and less life. None of the dogs said more than an occasional remark and she kept her silence as usual. Her mind kept creating scenarios about the other ponies down here, probably in a similar or even worse state than hers. So far the only clues to their existence were a skeleton, a few caught words and now hoofprints. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to see another of her kind beaten, starved and exploited.
Another one of those circular caves with a pond in the center opened up before her. It looked just as old as the previous ones, with cracks running along the walls and the domed ceiling. The dogs stopped to talk over a piece of paper which she couldn't see well. They kept their voiced low so she couldn't understand the words either but she saw the occasional looks at her and the obvious disagreement in their body language. She waited, standing a few steps away from them and close enough to the wall to notice traces of tools on it.
She didn't know the origins of these caves of course, but she figured they were made by sentinel beings a very long time ago and probably without the help of magic. She knew of some species and nations that lived underground but none of them were magical and she doubted diamond dogs were capable of something with this magnitude, precision and number. She didn't think she was only seeing the same two or three caves over and over.
"Wait here and don't let her near the water. We'll be right back." The leader ordered the other dog and hurried off with another, leaving her with the sleepy again. Were there no more qualified guards available?
After their sounds died out she sat down with her back to the wall and stretched out her legs, feeling a little bit of freedom, however strange it was. The lack of ring, bars, chains and vigilant supervision was a rare assemble. To her surprise the dog did the same, not really far from her. He fished two pieces of that brown food and began to munch on one.
"You hungry?"
She stared at him, momentarily unable to respond to the unexpected question.
"Uhm... Yes..." she finally managed and the dog threw the other piece in the dirt before her. She picked it up telekinetically to clean it without a second thought while giving a suspicious look to the dog. Not one of them has ever asked such question.
"How much can you do with that?" He asked, pointing at her horn.
She hesitated. "A lot. At least... I used to." She didn't want to go in detail of how much she could do. What did she can do, anyway? She was too tired and too afraid to try anything beside simple levitation.
"Uh-hum. Could you really fly?"
It was even worse to think about that.
"I could," she said simply.
"They say you were a princess, too."
Not even tasting the food, she chewed and swallowed mechanically. "Even I'm not so sure about that."
"Why?" His voice didn't hold real interest but now his eyes never left her.
"It's complicated. I don't even remember."
"The others say you're just a freak."
A shiver ran through her body at the sentence echoing a deep fear in her. When she didn't respond the dog returned to eating, but after a moment he looked at her again.
"You like that?"
She looked at the brown stuff. "This? I guess so..."
The dog grinned and a menacing feeling swirled in her stomach. She didn't have time to dwell on it, though.
"Oh, crap," the dog muttered and quickly hid the food, motioning her to do the same. A second later she heard the steps too.
The dogs returned with several more papers. The leader looked puzzled at the sight of the two of them sitting at the wall but dismissed it without a remark.
"Come on," He motioned them to get up. "We have something interesting for you, pony." His grin was anything but reassuring.
* * *
Even though Coal just sat down in the place he had picked to meet with Hazel Crunch a pony came up to his table and asked Coal to follow her to a bar he has never heard of before. Apparently, Hazel changed the location in the last minute and sent the pegasus to escort Coal to the new place. A little reluctantly Coal followed the pony through small streets, away from the city center, to a small and cozy place titled The Wet Feather. He stopped before the door and the mare held out a hoof.
"Please."
The moderately lit interior smelled like deep fried hay, cider and hard liquor. The conversations of many duos and trios around tables of varying sizes muffled each other into one, smoothing rumble. Despite his concerns about the new location Coal's initial tension eased a bit a the sight.
He went down on a few stairs with the pegasus behind him while blinking, waiting for his eyes to adjust. He saw a unicorn stallion rising a hoof and walked to him.
"Hello, Coal Slitter. Please, have a seat."
Hazel Crunch was an elegantly-dressed, middle aged, chubby unicorn stallion from the upper classes of Canterlot. He only met Coal in person once, his usual method for communication was through letters and couriers. He was polite and rather friendly, though Coal could never unhear the condescending tone when Hazel talked to the lower class earth pony. Lover class, because Coal wasn't born in the capitol and apparently that made him worth less that Hazel.
"Hello, Mr. Hazel Crunch. How are you?"
"Fine, thank you." The unicorn's smile faltered. "I apologize for this inconvenience. I have received your message but I needed it to be this place and as soon as possible."
"It's all right, sir. May I ask why?"
"I visit this bar rather frequently and I know the owner personally. Beside its own charm, it has a back door which is open for the three of us in a case of unideal circumstances."
Coal turned around and saw the escort already sitting at a table, alone, with a drink between her hooves, having a good view at the entrance. It was obvious, really.
He turned back and nodded though he didn't know what "unideal circumstances" meant.
"Of course. Is that the reason why I was escorted here?"
"Partly, yes. Anyway, what are you having? It's on me."
They both ordered non-alcoholic apple ciders which came in tall glasses by a quiet waiter.
"So, "Hazel said after several gulps, "what have you been up to lately?"
Coal wasn't expecting a casual conversation and hesitated a little before answering.
"Well, I returned some books to the library, saw a doctor with my leg, bought a new saddlebag... not much." He excluded spending hours looking through his own collection of books for something connected either to the Elements, Twilight Sparkle or the storages. And to timbervolves too. His talk with the diamond dog has woken up his curiosity about those weird creatures.
"Oh, yes, I meant to ask about that. What happened? Is it serious?"
Coal's mind jumped to the cover story immediately. "I had an accident with a bear in the forest near Ponyville. It's not too bad, the doctor said it's going to heal perfectly."
Hazel looked dubious. "The forest? You mean the Everfree forest?"
Coal shrugged. "If that's the name, yes."
"Uh-hum." The unicorn seemed to be lost in thought for a second, then looked at Coal with a smile. "So, I hope you brought your findings with you. May I have them?"
Coal produced the folder from his new bag and saw understandable disappointment on the unicorn's face.
"That's all I could get together," he explained. "I couldn't exactly finish the project..."
Hazel waved it off. "Don't worry about that, I was the one who told you to stop. Thank you." He levitated the package to himself and without looking into it, he put it aside and leaned closer to Coal.
"Now, tell me, what was Ponyville like?"
Coal blinked. "Ponyville? Uh... well, it's a mess. It's all in ruins with not much to look at. I do hope getting that permit wasn't trouble, because all I really got out of the trip was a scar."
"Don't worry, it wasn't. What I meant was, how's the radiation?"
Coal looked into the unicorn's hazel-brown eyes. They revealed intent curiosity, they followed Coal's every move and the overall effect wasn't exactly soothing. Nevertheless, he told Hazel what he and Silver experienced during each wave in the town.
"...but I'm an earth pony, mind you. My own observations aren't very exact."
"I am well aware of that," Hazel said. "Your description is good enough. Have you had any trouble entering the area?"
"No, it went smoothly. I just shoved them the paper and the assigned a chariot and a puller pony to me since it was a little far from the station."
"And why was there a unicorn with you?"
Coal looked into his glass of cider. "I... in case I needed help lifting something."
"And did you?"
"As a matter of fact, I did, but that wasn't an emergency. Oh, and he helped me escape from the bear."
"Was he hurt?"
"No, but the puller pony was, rather badly. Truth to be told I have no idea how he is now. It was all a rush and I haven't seen him since."
"I see. Has the unicorn suffered any harm from the magic?"
"I don't think he did, he seemed perfectly fine when we parted. It was clearly unpleasant to him, but that is all."
"Had he any problems with his magic apart from what you described?"
"Not that I know of."
"What about the forest? Have you ventured deep?"
"Not at all. The road went along the edge but we never set a hoof in it. We knew it was too dangerous. However..." Coal cleared his throat, gathering his mental strength. "Why are you so interested in all of this?"
Hazel's mouth tightened and so did Coal's throat.
"Mere curiosity, Coal," he said finally. "You don't have the opportunity to hear a firsthoof description about the scene of such a disaster every day."
Coal didn't dare to push it and they sipped their drinks in silence for a minute. Behind Hazel's confident, casual posture there were plans and goals and those questions suggested more than simple interest.
"So, Coal," Hazel said after finishing his cider. "what are your plans for the future? Will you have a job since ours ended?"
"I still have my usual job and I have some savings, and this payment will last for a while so I thought I'll take a little break to unwind and maybe travel a little."
"I'm glad to hear that." He lowered his voice again. "If you take my advice, you stay away from Ponyville, books about Ponyville and people from Ponyville. All right?"
"All right, but why? What's wrong with it?"
"It isn't worth the effort."
He leaned back, putting a period to his sentence. After a while Coal nodded and drained his glass too. He wished to hear more since Hazel obviously knew something but he had nothing to persuade the unicorn with.
"Were you going to stay at home for the next few days?"
"I guess so, yes."
"Then I'll send the money there with someone soon." He stood up and Coal followed suit.
"Thank you again for your work and your discretion. It's been a pleasure." Hazel walked out of the bar, ordering the mare to follow with a motion of his horn. She stood up and after rolling her eyes at Coal while pointing at Hazel she left as well. A little later Coal did the same.
* * *
With Hazel's money finding its way to his possession Coal was able to take a break from his primary occupation and focus on a non-paying but far more interesting subject: finding out as much about the Elements of Harmony and the ponies they had been connected to as possible and maybe something about the origins of the storages as well. He stocked up from food and drinks and submerged into research.
He had been a member of the Canterlot Library for several years and was no stranger to the spacious building's immense and awe-inducing interior nor the rules every visitor had to obey in such places. The library's collection was huge and despite the effort of many ponies working on it perfect cataloging has never been achieved, making finding certain books really difficult if not hopeless. Especially so when one only had vague ideas regarding it's contents, a fact Coal come to realize yet again as he tried to explain to the librarian what he wished to find. He soon realized vague informations and ideas won't help and he had to elaborate his theory to strangers, something which he wanted to avoid as much as possible. The librarian ponies provided him with a few volumes but almost none of them turned out to be helpful. After two days of this, he decided to take the matter to his own hooves and from mornings to late afternoons he would spend his time looking through the books the librarians turned up with, systematically scanning every volume in the sections of magical theory, history, pre-classical legends and even a thick book titled Who's Who, which contained descriptions of famous ponies from the last hundred years to present days. Every information that caught his attention or made his talent signal was put away for later examining, although that didn't happen very often.
In spite of the vast number of books in the library, few contained relevant to what he was after. With each passing day the initial momentum driving him was running out, his hope was fading. He found himself bringing up the reason he was putting so much effort into his research from time to time, in order to find strength to go on.
Every one of the sources that contained something had one thing in common: all of them treated the subject as a legend or a simple foal's tale. Because of this, they didn't refrain from exaggerating the truth with nonsensical details one would find in typical children's books. Considering the number of these stories and the common parts, along with the fact that one of the supposedly nonexistent necklaces was sitting in his bag next to him, Coal treated the subject as a part of reality.
As it turned out, the salespony in the station had the basics down. There were indeed six ponies who possessed five necklace and one tiara, each with unique, magical gemstones. These artifacts held an enormous amount of magical power. Over the years the six Elements of Harmony (or the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, Coal wasn't sure of the right terminology) unleashed this power several times to overcome enemies and tear down obstacles.
The origins of the Elements was cloudy and he couldn't find the right one from the many possible variations. The identity of the bearers was also unclear, except for three names: Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Twilight Sparkle. Coal has never heard the two first names before but for the last one he was certain it was the same pony who designed the magical storages. He didn't find it in text, but the descriptions and illustrations always depicted the same symbol associated with her: a six-point star surrounded by several smaller stars. It was also mentioned by Silver's coworker and a scroll detailing technical properties for an early storage model Coal had read back in the day.
He designated one full day for finding anything about Twilight Sparkle the designer but found nothing, not even a side note. So far he thought it was simply bad luck but at this point he started having doubts and Hazel Crunch's advice only amplified them. Could someone remove those books? It would certainly explain why his search was low on fruit.
This possibility induced second thoughts regarding the whole thing. If someone had the motive and ability to remove certain entries from Canterlot's biggest and most well-kept library, that someone surely intended to keep something secret from the public and that probably included handling ponies who poke around it.
So far Coal kept the necklace in his saddlebags every time he left his home but after this uncomfortable thought he left it at home, not to be caught with it in his possession in case he was confronted.
His motive to continue anyway was curiosity. The more he found the more clear picture he had and the more he wanted to know. Besides, he saw absolutely no signs that would suggest he was doing something he wasn't supposed to. No one was watching him, no one was lurking around him and no one has ever asked his intentions with those books, so he went on.
* * *
During the day many ponies visited the library, in most cases looking for, checking out or returning books, doing homework or in some cases, conducting a research. They often did so in groups like students or, like Coal, alone. The groups rarely interfered or even interacted with each other and in accordance with the library's rules usually kept their voices low. When they walked they always did so with quiet and quick steps and kept their gazes either ahead or in the books levitating before them. They usually didn't know the others aside from their group but if a pony was behaving differently that pony would be noticed eventually. Even if she didn't want it.
The pegasus tried to be as quiet as possible but her hooves were hitting the marble floor painfully loud. She had been happy to see the soft and comforting rugs that covered the floor upon entering but the quiet softness only lasted a few dozen steps, ending directly at the two tall columns that separated the entrance hall with corridors to either side from the library's enormous interior.
The mare with gray mane behind a large desk smiled kindly at the newcomer. She smiled back uncertainly then when the mare went back to her work the pegasus went on.
The tall bookshelves hold an astonishing amount of books, more than she has ever seen in one place. Ahead were dozens of desks with little lamps, maybe third of them occupied by ponies reading something or taking notes. Some of them glanced up at her as she approached before returning to their work without a second look.
The pegasus looked around, overwhelmed by the sheer size of the place. It was way too big to look over alone, especially when she didn't know what exactly she was looking for. Or who. Everybody looked perfectly ordinary. She walked alongside the group of desks eyeing the ponies and quickly looking away whenever her gaze was returned.
She heard muffled talking from her left. She saw another group of desks with ponies bent over books and scrolls further away, deeper into the building. They looked younger and had less constraint as occasional giggles were mixed into their murmuring.
The pegasus walked to them hesitantly. She knew she had a somewhat limited time but a voice in her head has been urging her to come here for days. It was a voice of powerful nostalgia, a sound of past things calling out to relive a better time, a calling she hadn't been able to resist anymore.
She walked past the last row of shelves to the another group of desks in the clearing of the rows, this one occupied by fillies and colts doing homework. They didn't even look at her as she stopped to look around, rubbing her left foreleg with her right.
"Hello there! Can I help you?"
The friendly female voice came from behind her. She spun around to see the elderly mare from earlier, looking at her with an expectant smile. The pegasus folded her snapped open wings and barely registered the soft chuckling from the foals.
"I'm sorry to startle you," the librarian said kindly, "but you looked so lost."
The pegasus gulped. "It's okay. I'm just... looking for somepony. I think she is here somewhere..."
"Let me help, then. What does she look like?"
The pegasus felt panic rise as she looked into those big, expectant eyes.
"I... I'm not sure. I don't really know her... him, I just..."
The mare's smile didn't falter. "Have you forgot what she looked like?"
"No, I... haven't met him yet." She shifted her weight from on pair of legs to the other.
"Did you have a date here?"
"No, no... He doesn't know me. I think. I just..." she muttered something illegible.
Now the smile did falter a bit. "I'm sorry, but I don't follow. Do you know the name at least? Are you not sure even of the gender?" To the other's shaking head, she sighed. "Okay, then..." She thought for a moment while the pegasus looked around, taking another step back. "I'm afraid that isn't much but I can ask around if someone is expecting a..." She stopped as she saw the pegasus's eyes widen.
"No, that's all right... I mean, thank you, but that won't be necessary. I think I'll just... go."
"Are you sure? I can help you."
"No, thank you. I'll be okay."
The librarian nodded, although the worry didn't leave her face. "Of course. Do you know the way out?"
"Out? Oh, yes, I do."
She watched as the librarian pony reluctantly walked away, but before she could move another voice came from her right.
"Hi, miss! Oh, you're being a little jumpy today."
The pegasus tucked her rings away the second time. "I guess..." She looked at the filly who was smiling at her.
"I didn't mean to eavesdrop," the filly said, "but I heard you're looking for a buck here?" Another foal nudged her in the side and the filly giggled again then continued a bit more seriously. "Have you checked over at the old section?" She pointed deeper into the library. "All sorts of lonely guys go there to read weird stories and do weird things."
The pegasus looked in the direction but all she saw were more shelves and occasional ponies browsing.
"Well, okay...." She smiled shyly at the young pony. "Thanks." She quickly stepped away from them and walked to where the filly had pointed.
She passed dozens of rows without seeing any of those weird ponies the filly mentioned. She didn't know how much time had passed since she walked in here but she assumed it was getting late and her friend would be worried. She stopped to look around and guessed where the exit could be when she noticed a smiling pony walking towards her.
"Oh, my..." she whispered and made a futile attempt to hide behind a row of history books.
"Hi," the stallion said in a cheerful and hushed voice. "I couldn't help but notice your obvious discomfort. This place might seem intimidating at first but time dulls its edge."
She produced a squeaky sound as a response and could barely refrain from fleeing.
"Oh, don't be shy. Let me help you find some good novel to ease your mind."
She took some steps backwards and her butt hit a shelf. He grinned, held out a welcoming hoof and she jolted to her left. With the help of her wings she cornered several shelves until she felt herself far enough from all the friendly strangers. Panting, she looked around.
This area was much less crowded, the books looked much older and, unlike the previous sections the rows of volumes had cavities like someone didn't bother putting them back after reading. The surfaces were just as clean as anywhere else but the wood the shelves were made of were cracked from time. She walked and read the titles. Some of them sounded familiar, most not at all and some only had strange symbols instead of normal letters.
With her breathing getting calmer she noticed the sound of scribbling on paper from ahead. Quietly, she creeper forward, not wanting to attract any more attention.
In the usual clearing of the shelves sat an earth pony stallion, almost completely with his back to her, alone. He showed no sign of noticing her as he was deep in work with numerous books and scrolls lying around. He was writing on a piece of paper with a pen held in his mouth. It reminded her one of her old friend's house when she was neck deep in studies.
She wanted to back away, leave this strange place and go back to her friend but now, as she squatted there watching the pony, she remembered the urge to came here. She has never saw the stallion before, she was sure of that, but the pony was... special?
He put the pen down and moved his head in circles to stretch his muscles and that was when he spotted her. Their eyes locked for a long second before she drew back and flew away on hurried wing-strokes in the way she had came. After a few turns she bumped into the librarian again but this time she was glad for it.
"Hello again," she said smiling, then she noticed the pegasus's expression. "Oh, are you all right?"
She touched down. "Yes, I think... Where do I find the exit again?"
The librarian pony showed the way, little concerned. "Are you sure..."
"Yes... Thank you." She smiled at her and trotted in the indicated direction, and a minute later she was stepping on the rugs again.
Outside the first thing she saw after her eyes adjusted was her friend, standing next to a guard pony, both looking at her.
"There you are!" She hurried over and locked the pegasus in a tight hug. "What were you doing in there alone?"
The pegasus smiled sheepishly at her much younger friend. "I'm sorry, Starry. I was... I had a feeling..." her smile disappeared when she realized the urge has returned. "It seemed important," she muttered.
Starry Wind shook her head and released her. "I'm sure it was. Lucky for me this gentlestallion remembered you going in."
She let herself be guided by the young pegasus who thanked the guard his help then asked. "At least have you found what you wanted?"
She shook her head. "No. At least I don't think I have."
Her friend thankfully didn't insist and they walked in silence through the little park stretching before the library. She remembered the pony's eyes, filled with curiosity, preoccupation, fatigue and... kindness. And she was sorry she left the stranger in such a hurry.
The two unicorn stallions walked in a steady pace towards the station's office building. Silver looked back over his shoulder to check if Coal was out of earshot yet, but the earth pony was already limping away from them. Silver turned his head back to find Amber Luster looking at him from the corner of his eye. To Silver's raised eyebrow he smiled.
"Made a new friend, Silver?"
The white unicorn nodded. "Yes, I think I have."
"Who is he, anyway? And why does he know about the storages?"
"We've been talking while traveling back from Ponyville and the conversation kinda turned to it. He seemed genuinely interested and... And I don't think I was the one who told him. It was like he knew about the subject already. Of course I didn't say a word about our take on it."
"That's both good and bad to hear," Amber replied. "Promise me you won't let him wander around in tender places."
"I didn't plan to. Besides, he just wants to see some filly in the zoo then head back to Canterlot."
"I think I understand. Chicks dig scars and he has a good one, doesn't he?"
Silver smirked. "Indeed, but it's not that. He just saw her run by and suddenly he had to talk to her. I don't really get it, but I don't suppose it's what you think."
Amber's eyes lit up. "So you're saying..."
Silver grinned at the other unicorn. "I don't think his barn door swings that way. But seriously..." he nudged Amber who had hanged his head to the ground, mimicking sadness. "He was driven by something he didn't tell me about."
They turned a corner and the sight of the office building reminded Silver a more important matter.
"So, what's the situation I'm being dragged to?"
Amber Luster cleared his throat. "Not so long ago, we were informed about an out-of-schedule shipment from Los Pegasus to Manehattan. They'll be only passing by, maybe grab a snack before continuing so they shouldn't cause any trouble, but the thing is, they are carrying one of the disabled storages for some reason so there are at least three trained unicorns with them. They didn't say who they are and how good they are. Now, since we both know some ponies here who would just love to get their asses kicked by strangers, we need a persuasive person. I think you know who I mean."
"Me?"
"What? No, no, I mean the ponies in the zoo. Their teleporting machine has been showing signs of weakening for weeks, so someone has to persuade them to shut the whole thing down for a couple of hours or at least tune it down until the caravan goes away. You are certainly welcome to give it a try, but that's only part of the plan."
"Then my part in it?"
"Mostly, we want you to be here in case something goes wrong, but Dash will tell you the rest."
They were nearing the entrance to the offices.
"You know what?" The orange pony said cheerfully. "Since you're here, you can talk to Crop Glider about the pony who hauled you and your pal to the ruins."
"Already? Is he here? Is he still alive?"
"Yes, he is here and alive, but he's been badly injured and needs to rest. Also, he isn't too thrilled that you left him there alone."
Silver sighed, more sadly than he actually felt. "It was necessary. I had to improvise and it was a good opportunity to... Oh, hey, Cian!"
The blue and green colored unicorn stallion who just exited the building froze as he heard his name. Silver ignored Amber's expectant stare and trotted up to the pony.
"Silver?" Cian squinted. "I thought you were out today."
"I was, until I heard what's what. Amber told me about the caravan and the guards."
Cian moved as if wanting to leave, but his voice was neutral. "Yes, they are coming. I don't think it's such a big deal but... Ah, whatever."
"Right," Silver replied. "Where is Arching Dash?"
Cian motioned upward. "I last saw him on the top floor. I guess he will be happy to see you here."
"I suppose."
"Also, the boss is talking with someone in her office so you will have to wait a bit."
"Is she? Who is she talking with?"
Cian shrugged and looked in the distance. "A stallion in a business suit. I saw the two of them go inside and lock the door."
Silver nodded. "Okay, thanks." He turned to the door and Amber followed him while the green-blue unicorn swiftly trotted away.
"Do you know anything about that businesspony?" Silver asked Amber who was following him through the corridors.
"No, I don't. He must have arrived while I was gone and she hasn't mention anything. Uhm... where are you going?"
Silver looked back, one hoof on the first step upstairs. "Since the boss is occupied I'm gonna visit the facilities first. I assume you have your own place to be, right?"
Amber frowned but didn't hide a playful smile. "Is my company that bad?"
Silver rolled his eyes. "You're not gonna watch me lay cables. Maybe you can tell Dash I'm here."
Amber nodded. "Good idea."
Silver was half way up when he looked back again at the orange unicorn at his tail.
"Seriously."
"Dash is upstairs, too," Amber explained, "and this is the way up."
Silver rolled his eyes and quickened his steps.
Amber let him put distance between them. When Silver turned left to the restrooms he slowly went ahead but stopped when he heard the door closing. He crept back to the corner and listened.
Several minutes passed while he was crouching beside the wall, hoping nobody would bump into him and for his suspicion to be false. Eventually both wishes came true, as he heard flushing noises and remained undetected. He stood up and continued to his original destination, feeling glad that he was proved wrong.
* * *
Everyone needs a change in scenery from time to time, even if they spend the majority of their days in a place to their liking. Such a need pursued Coal to take a break and clear his mind from elements and alicorns for a little while. He was getting sidetracked more and more often and he figured he needed to look at the problem with fresh eyes and mind.
His choices of distractions were a little walk then an easy-to-follow adventure book in the coffee shop he had intended to meet with Hazel Crunch, paired with a cup of decaf. The shop had a rather busy day with almost every table occupied and Coal was comfortable in the sea of strangers and their sounds after the quiet of the library and his home.
What prevented him from truly enjoying it all was his own mind, a tingling sensation and uneasy feeling of being watched, and he was sure it wasn't the fellow guests. Even in the solitude of his apartment he found himself looking over his shoulder and behind doors.
It had taken him a few days to come up with an explanation. Both Silver's and Hazel's warning-advice seemed too serious and overall implausible, so apart from the initial surprise they didn't have much effect on his actions. He saw nothing to back their theories up... Well, maybe apart from a little incident from the day before.
Their eyes locked for only a second and he couldn't see much the pony but her eyes told him a little bit more. Behind the fear and curiosity they were familiar, although not visually. He had never seen those eyes before, yet... He had no words to describe it, even to himself. The whole thing felt like a dream anyway and being so tired at the time surely didn't help either.
Now, alone in the mids of ponies conducting their social lives around him that tingling eased to almost nothing. Maybe it had been only paranoia.
From time to time he looked up from his book at a new pony entering or moving about, but never with much thought. When a yellow coated unicorn mare showed up however, his eyes stayed on her. She walked to a table where a lone mare, or rather filly had been sitting, who greeted her with friendly kisses. He looked at the pages when they sat down to avoid eye contact. He was certain that she was the mare from the chariot.
He remembered the feeling he got when she had said her name. There was something about it, something which he couldn't pay enough attention at that time. He gave up on figuring it out days ago but despite all odds there she was, not alone and probably not wanting to talk with him.
The admittedly cheesy adventure book which started out well enough quickly turned boring and he found himself merely staring at the page, thinking about entirely different things. Above the book's edge the young mare stood up and left to the lady's room. He had to take the opportunity, otherwise it would bug him for weeks, he knew it.
Coal bagged the book and made his way to the table, in his head reciting a decent enough way to initiate a conversation. She looked up and recognition, with a little worry flashed through her face.
"Hi," Coal began, a little more awkward that he had intended. "Sorry to bother you... Do you have a moment?"
"Hello... Coal?" Her voice carried more strength than he remembered doing so in the chariot, but didn't reveal other than surprise. "Sure, come on, sit down."
Coal accepted the invitation, glad that it went easily. "Thanks, uhm... I don't mean to interrupt what you two are having, so I'll be quick."
Up close she was older than he remembered, but was quite attractive with her little wrinkles that made her look more mature instead of simply older.
"Call me Pie, please, and don't worry about my friend. She will understand."
"Okay. So... what I have in mind is something you said about a week ago, in the chariot from the Ponyville station. I, uhm... can't explain why, but it caught my attention. Could you elaborate?"
She smiled appreciatively.
"Wow, to the point! You weren't kidding." She let out a quick laugh. "Just like her... All right then, what was it?"
"When you told us what your name is and where you were from. You started to say something but then changed it."
Her smile faltered and she cast her eyes down while flicking her mane with a hoof. "Oh, that. You really remember that?"
"Yes... If you don't mind, what were you going to say? You see, I'm kind of in an investigation and I'm trying to get everything available."
She was quiet for several seconds, as if debating whether to talk, then said, "I guess it can't hurt..." She looked up at the ceiling, thinking. "I had relatives who lived in Ponyville before the accident. My... husband and I were visiting a memorial to pay our respects to them. It's always a hard time, going there, seeing the place... at least what remained. I was still under the effect when that diamond dog showed up and I almost mixed up the names of it and my home town. What you're investigating, does it concern Ponyville?"
She seemed sincere, but it wasn't the answer Coal was hoping for and he pressed on.
"Yes, it does. Sort of. And... what relatives did you have there? Grandparents?"
She grinned and blushed a little and the effect was stunning.
"Oh... Was that intended? Do I look that young?" Before Coal came up with a response she continued. "No, they were my parents. I was... I mean they were living there the time of the incident and I was in college in Manehattan at that time, but I could've been a victim as well."
There wasn't a proper response Coal could think of at the moment, but eventually he broke the silence.
"So... Were you born in Ponyville by any chance?"
Her eyes widened a little and her hoof flicked her hair again. "Did I say that? I..."
"No, you didn't," Coal said quickly. "But it was logical to ask. Why are you hiding it? Is there something wrong with that place?"
She sat there silently, slowly putting her hooves together on the table. Her face eventually shoved understanding, only adding to Coal's unease.
"You don't know much about Ponyville, do you?"
"What?" Coal was barley able to hide the worry from his voice, already expecting even more troubling new about that place. " I suppose not, but what's there to know?"
"See, Coal, it's... Uh... Yes, I was born in Ponyville and spent quite some time there, so I know things about certain ponies and that not many do anymore. They aren't exactly secrets but they do explain a few things. I will spare you the details. I tell you this because I think you can be trusted, and... It helps to talk to someone who believes you."
Coal barely registered the compliment, his mind was busy with the new information which, instead of giving answers only strengthened his suspicion of a conspiracy.
"Is this about the Elements of Harmony?"
She looked at him surprised, then nodded.
"So you know what that necklace is, you just hide it from everybody else, right?"
He nodded as well.
"That makes it both easier and harder," she said.
"What do you mean?"
"Easier because you know they aren't to talk about freely. Harder because they aren't yet you are doing it right know, which means you aren't likely to stop doing it in the future."
"So... I should stop talking to you right now?"
She hummed coincidently but her posture didn't change.
"You should, but like me and many others, you won't. I know you have connected with the necklace therefore you won't be willing to abandon it."
"Why do you think I won't?" Coal protested. "You don't know me."
A smile crept onto her lips. "I know you well enough. Haven't anybody told you not to poke around?"
"They have, but-"
"And here you are, aren't you?"
"I guess..."
"If they haven't told you this, I will. You, in fact, can find clues to the story but uncovering it will bring consequences. Ponies don't die by the hundreds without a reason and aftermath."
They were silent while Coal stomached what he heard, also while trying to guess if she was really honest. She talked like she was, but she did so with a little too much confidence for a subject like this. And the way she kept adjusting her hair... he knew what she said but this was an opportunity to hear even more.
"You said you go to the ruins to pay your respects," he said, "but aren't you afraid from the radiation? Being a unicorn and all."
She frowned. "I am, but there are ways to dampen the effect. It's not pleasant, but it's for something I feel obligated to do. It's not just my parents' memories, you see."
"Ways?"
She smiled. "Do you come here regularly?" She asked out of the blue. "We should meet again and discourse some more. I'm here every week with my friend but we can arrange something."
"Yeah, sure," Coal uttered. Did she just ask him out?
She looked behind Coal as if noticing something and looked apologetically at him, but before leaving she got up and whispered into his ear.
"Make sure you avoid the town in the future, though, unless you are absolutely determined. Stay safe, Coal."
Coal turned to look at her but she was already at the next table, hurrying to the filly. She glanced at him one last time before swiftly leaving the shop with the young pony at her tail.
* * *
Amber trotted down the corridor to the canting, where he hoped to find Arching Dash who wasn't in his office as he had supposed. Upon entering the dining area he saw the unicorn, sitting with two other unicorns who Amber didn't know. Dash, seeing the orange pony enter pulled out a chair for him and Amber accepted the invitation.
"So?" Arching Dash, a middle-aged, brown and red colored stallion asked simply, after making sure no one was listening then casting a noise-canceling spell around the four of them.
"Silver is here, but he's a little reluctant."
"I'm sure I can convince him to do what I want," Dash said confidently.
"What is he gonna have to do? I told him he's gonna make the zoo ponies shut the storage down. Well he be here when the guards come?"
"If all go well, he will be back here when the caravan arrives. As for his task, he's gonna take a trip to the zoo and do some maintenance," Dash pressed the last word. "These two will go with him. They will rig the console so it will backfire at a specific time, alerting the guards. An investigation will determine that it was Silver Beam, acting on behalf of the boss, who sabotaged the storage, costing thousands of bits of property damage as well as endangering lives. He will be removed from his position thus from our way. If we're lucky, the boss will go as well.
"So... " Amber said with mixed feelings, "you want to actually put ponies into danger?"
"That's not the point, Amber. The point is, we have an opportunity to move the plan forward. We also made preparation to minimize collateral damage."
"What are they?"
"We'll make sure the event will take place at a relatively safe time, when nobody is near. We already have a speech ready to be read to the public. We'll have evidence that Silver did it intentionally. He'll likely see through all of this but he'll be in condition to refuse the charges."
"I don't like the sound of that," Amber remarked under his breath.
"There aren't supposed to be anything more than some harsh words. Silver is smart enough to recognize a cornered situation. I know you sympathize with him, but he has to go, and he won't do that if we ask nicely."
Amber nodded, although his heart didn't get any lighter. "I know he won't, but... This seems a little too excessive."
"You have to gamble big to win big. Getting rid of both of them at the same time will help our case significantly. Plus, we'll likely see some others to go from the zoo as well."
Amber didn't respond to that.
"Where is he, though?" Dash asked suddenly.
Amber hesitated with his answer, his emotions colliding. "He went to the restrooms just after we arrived. He then went to talk to the boss and to find you."
"Did you actually wait until he finished?" Dash arched an eyebrow.
"He told me he would do that before we parted, and I believed him." He didn't dare to admit he had done the opposite of that, but he thought it didn't matter after he didn't see Silver leave suspiciously early.
"Well, in that case, I hope he turns up soon," Dash said casually. "I set someone by his office to tell him to come and talk to me about his part. Cyan said that the caravan is two hours away, so we will have to prepare everything that isn't already done. I just hope the boss is done soon with her private consultation." Dash ended the silencing spell, adjourning their meeting. "Let's have a productive day, everyone."
* * *
"Aww, yeah..." Coal sighed as he was bending and straightening his leg for the first time in more than a week. He had sort of accepted the bandage and learned to work around it, but having it off felt great.
"I'm glad that's over," he said to the doctor, who nodded.
"The injury has healed very well. I suppose you took my advice and had a lot of rest. Your coat will take some time to grow back properly but you won't be limping anymore. Oh, and in the future, try to avoid teeth."
"Yeah... Will do." The doctor never quite believed Coal's story but just like the mare who initially took care of him in the station, he did his hob regardless. "Thanks again."
"It was my pleasure."
A few minutes later Coal was trotting on a stream of joy on his way home, being able to do more than just awkward limping. By the time he reached his apartment's door the scar was aching again, but it was a minor thing. He won't be running off leaves from trees anytime soon, but it was only a matter of time.
Right after opening his door he saw a letter on his doorstep again. Why couldn't they just use his mailbox?
Dear Coal,
Prince Blueblood requested the analysis of several historical sources and artifacts from the Chrystal Empire. I want you on the team. Starting from two days from now, each member of the team will either receive a package containing their pre-proportioned part which could be done at home, or be ordered to the castle personally. Pay will be discussed personally, but it will be worth it. Send back your yes or no as soon as possible. Have a nice day.
Short Cut
Even the usual lack of "please" couldn't stop Coal from grinning. This day was looking to be good.
Only when he entered his room and his eyes fell on his bedside table did his mood change. The new assignment meant he had to abandon his mystery. Royal orders were rare but demanding, and also a good opportunity to earn a name which usually resulted in more interesting cases and more bits. Not that he was too short on the latter, but high connections meant access to restricted parts of the library, maybe even to the Royal Library in the castle.
Coal frowned at the daydream. He was far from getting there, that's was for sure, but it was too good a chance to let it pass. He wrote a letter with his yes, only better phrased, to drop off later.
He had different plans for the day, but the letter overrode them. For starters, he had to wrap up what he collected so far and put all in order, to resume it once the new assignment was finished. Some of the material was his own but several books belonged to the library and needed to be returned. He spent the remaining day going through his findings and sorting out what was needed to keep an what not.
On the day before the new assignment, in the library, the librarian took the books and when she came back she had a note with her.
"You're Coal Shelter, right?"
Coal froze for a moment as a sense of deja vu hit him.
"Slitter, actually... Why?"
"Someone was looking for you. He left this note. Do you know what it means?"
The small paper only bore a few words: "I knew you wouldn't listen to me," in smooth telekinetic writing. Coal's stomach felt cold as he looked at the librarian.
"Do you know who the pony was? What did he look like?"
"Let me see... He was white, a unicorn, a stallion, and had a lovely blue mane."
The cold eased and gave way to warmth.
"Do you know him?" She asked, seeing his smile.
"Yes. Well, kind of. I know who he is and why he wrote this. Uhm... Did he say anything else?"
"Not really. He asked what books have you been interested in, then wrote that. I take he is a friend of yours, then?"
"You could say that."
She hesitated then grinned sheepishly. "When you see him, would you be so kind and steer him this way? I really liked his mane."
Was Silver really that charming?
Once outside, Coal couldn't help but keep looking around every minute expecting Silver to pop out from behind something, but it didn't happen. He hadn't really thought about the white unicorn since they parted, but now he was curious how Silver managed that mishap in the zoo and how he found Coal in the big city. He remembered what Silver had promised in his letter, but didn't really believed the unicorn would be actually able to find him.
Later that day, Coal and the other future teammates met up with Short Cut, their supervisor, in his office. He briefed them about the background of the task and how were they supposed to complete it, along with Prince Blueblood's usually lofty comments, read from a paper. After Short Cut ended the meeting he held Coal back for a few words.
The supervisor sat back in his chair and took a long gulp of coffee from a mug.
"Any news, Coal?" He asked in a tired voice.
"Sort of. My trip to Ponyville was rather exciting."
"I'm happy to hear that. Was the map any help?"
"Yes, very much, thank you."
"Do you still have it by any chance?"
"Uh... Yes, sure, it's in my home. I'm giving it to you as soon as I can."
"Thanks. Old relic, you know. So, what have you experienced?"
"I saw the town and spent some time at the station's zoo, met some people, saw a bear..."
"Sounds good," Short Cut said and yawned. "Have you seen or hear anything worth noting? From your point of view."
Coal hesitated. Short Cut didn't elaborate why he wanted to talk to Coal, but he suspected the reason.
"Yes. I experienced the radiation in the town, heard that the ponies in the station still use a storage on a day-to-day basis but that might be not true, I heard some theories about the inventor of the storages... And there was also a... bunch of police ponies on my way home, who stopped our carriage and looked over everybody's luggage. Do you know anything about that?"
"The head of the royal guards' order. They set up authorities on all roads leading to Canterlot. I'm not in the right circles to know exactly why, so I only know what everybody else does. Assuming one reads the paper."
Coal looked at his lap. "Yeah... I hadn't have much time to read newspapers."
"And why is that?" Short Cut took a sip and glanced at Coal, who fidgeted on his seat.
"I... I have found some leads and ideas about the pony who created the storages and since I'm interested in it I wanted to dig a little... To see if I can find anything... But it wasn't really much."
Short Cut nodded. "Don't fret, I just wanted to hear your answer. See you tomorrow, Coal."
* * *
She stared at the paper, he thoughts stirring up as a tornado made by pegasi. It was a spell, depicted in traditional hieroglyphs used to write down the complex structure, similar to musical notes.
What first struck her mind was the fact that the non-magical dogs actually had something like that lying around, knowing what it's use was. It was also strange that the system was an old one. For several decades, maybe even a hundred years a new system has been in use, an updated and somewhat simplified version in order to enable more ponies to study magic, especially young students.
To an untrained eye, the sheet was a bunch of random symbols, sometimes having a pattern, by otherwise a mess. The paper had no regular Equestrian letters so there had to be somebody with the sufficient knowledge working with or for the dogs. Otherwise, there was a dog who could read spell sheets and that was... unsettling.
"So?" The dog, who gave it to her pointed at the paper. "Does it makes sense to you?"
She nodded.
"Then get on with it."
"Maybe she has to practice it first?" Another dog offered.
The leader contemplated it. "Well, do you?"
She shook her head. She was familiar with the spell, although with a newer form. It could be used to determine a gem's ability to hold enchantments, but it also enabled her to see if the gem was touched by magic in the last year or so and what it was used for. It was more complex than scanning for gems, but not so difficult to cause too much problem.
She looked at the giant pile of both raw and finished gemstones towering before her. Before she could stop herself, she already made plans on how to organize the big pile into six smaller ones, depending on their level. The cave should be spacious enough... She grunted at herself. She shouldn't think about making their job easier.
The dogs' leader turned her to face three small, empty carriages with familiar saddles, each standing before an opening in the wall. She had once hauled one like those long ago, in a very different scenario. They meant there were other ponies here beside her, supposedly in similarly bad conditions.
"Left is weakest, right is strongest. Can you manage that?"
She wanted to ask if she was going to pull the carts but realized she didn't want to know, so she merely nodded.
"Now get to it."
A small crowd had gathered, all looking at her, expecting something and making her uneasy, even more so than she already was. She turned to face the pile, turning the old spell over in her head. This wasn't anything she hadn't done before. She took deep breaths to prepare herself, recited the spell and lit her horn. The magic she had to channel felt strange, just like before, but now it was more pronounced. She levitated a small stone and started the determination spell.
Immediately, her instincts kicked in and she cut everything off. The gem dropped to the ground but she barely heard it. Her ears flattened to her head and she looked back at the dogs. They didn't look angry or surprised, instead some even nodded, as if knowing this was going to happen.
"What's the matter, pretty?" One of them said, grinning.
She didn't answer. It was so unexpected. She tried again and this time she got the spell to work but only for a second. She heard remarks like "I knew she can't do it," and similar ones. They expected her to fail the spell, she wasn't the first unicorn to try this.
She had two theories as why this was happening, but neither of them was comforting. The third attempt got a little further, but at the fourth try she completed her spell once and floated the gem in the cart on the left.
"That's it, pony. You are good." She looked at the leader dog, surprised.
"What?"
He smirked. "You got that right at the fourth try. That's the best we've had so far. Now there's only..." He mimicked counting the stones. "...five thousand left. Roughly."
"There were others? What happened to them?"
The smile didn't leave the dog's face. "They died."
She cast her eyes down and turned back to the pile. Behind her, the leader ordered the others to leave.
* * *
When Amber next saw Silver the white unicorn was chatting with a young female co-worker. Amber waited politely until Silver waved goodbye then stepped up to him.
"Hey, what's up? Have you found Dash?"
Silver snorted and rolled his eyes. "I can't believe that's the reason I'm here. I'm not the only one with a mouth in this darned place and I'm not even a maintenance pony!"
Amber was prepared to his reaction. "If it was that simple it wouldn't have to be you. Cyan hasn't been here long enough, not to mention you're much more accustomed to the ponies in the zoo than almost any of us."
Silver nodded slowly and walked to a water fountain. "It's still odd, though. Why do I need two escorts? What Dash told me doesn't seem that difficult and I think he could use the help now."
"They'll be there to do some additional work and to make your visit look more official. Their absence won't mean a problem here."
It was true enough. Amber didn't know the extent of Silver's scientific knowledge but the white unicorn had a good reputation among the zoo ponies and they would let him tinker with the rather unstable device.
Silver drained the cup. "I guess that makes sense. Still... Oh, whatever. It's not like the end of the world."
"I'm glad you accept it. By the way, isn't that friend of yours there as well?"
Silver hummed, then smiled. "Actually, he is. I hope I can get a good look at the filly she's after."
"Don't be a cock blocker." Amber grinned. "I know what you said about him earlier, but I think you know that that can't be all."
" I didn't intend to, but you might be right about his motive." He looked behind Amber at the far end of the corridor, where their boss's office door was still locked.
"She is still in there," Amber said after following Silver's line of sight.
"I wanted to ask her something," Silver said, "but it will have to wait until I come back. Dash made the whole thing sound so urgent and I can't say how much time I will need."
"Just make sure to succeed."
"Don't worry. Now, where are those two guys?"
Amber told him then watched him leave. He knew he was betraying his friend's trust, but he had to make a decision between him and his own future. He just just wished it didn't have to be so drastic.
He went downstairs to make sure Silver left the building then reported back to Arching Dash on the top floor.
"Why did you pick those two to go with him? Aren't you afraid they will alert him? By mistake, I mean."
"Because they had to be regular maintenance ponies so Silver wouldn't be spooked and they were the best I could trust. Even if Silver finds them out they are both able to make the necessary adjustments and stage it as his work."
" I hope your plan is as good as you think. I'd hate see it failing prematurely."
"Let's hope it won't come to that."
Dash was looking out through the window of his office, where the two of them sat. To Amber, the unicorn seemed to sit very comfortably in his own cleverness. Amber didn't like him much, but he was in fact a good planner with an effective persuasive ability.
"Do you know how frequently Silver visited his office and how many thing he had there?"
"He was never the tidiest, if that's what you mean."
"His room was very clean, only the expected stuff. Nothing out of the ordinary."
"You... checked his room behind his back?"
"While the two of us talked, I had somebody take a look."
"And nothing is...bad?"
"It depends on how you look at it. Either he knows nothing, or he deliberately makes sure we think he knows nothing. I'm guessing he made sure to clean up anything suspicious, in case we look through his stuff without his consent."
"Haven't you done that before? Why wait now while he's here?"
"He uses a unique spell to lock and unlock his door and I finally had someone to decipher it, but he could still have beaten us. We can't be sure, and we can't do more without alerting him."
Amber nodded without comment. Dash looked at him.
"Is something wrong?" He asked.
The orange pony sighed. "No, I just feel sorry for him. He's a great guy."
"I don't disagree with you, Amber, but this is an opportunity we can't let slip away. It is drastic, but it's more than we usually get." Dash looked at the other unicorn who avoided eye contact. "Keep your eyes on the goal, Amber. I need you to make it happen."
* * *
She was exhausted, but at least awake. She didn't remember falling unconscious or being relocated to where she was now only that it was a relief. She lifted her head and slowly opened her eyes.
She was in a familiar, little cave, with hay on the ground and a candle mounted on the wall next to her, complete with the usual bars blocking the only exit. To her left side were three small, nicely polished gems embedded in the rock, pulsating slightly. She reached out with a hoof but only found smooth, cold texture. She felt the presence of magic in them, but when she tried her magic the numbness in her head and horn grew stronger and she had to stop. She reached for her horn but there was no ring. She was drained.
She massaged her temples, moaning. She had been doing the spell for hours or days, it seemed, and was only able to fill one cart out of the three. The dog for some reason didn't push her too much after the first tries, instead kept mostly silent, saying occasionally something to the other one that stayed in the cave. She didn't catch the words, she was focused on keeping the spell going.
She looked around for anything of interest, but the cellar was otherwise empty. She got up on weak legs and walked to the bars to peer into the darkness behind. The candlelight illuminated a small portion of the tunnel running parallel to the bars, disappearing into darkness in each direction. Further to the right she saw a glimpse of orange as another candle lit the rock there. Was it another cellar with another pony? She listened, but heard nothing but her own breaths. The complete silence was nothing new down here but now even the cracks of the torches were missing. It felt like pillows pushed against her ears.
She walked back to where she had been laying, ruffling the hay as she went to make at least a little sound. She was so alone. Just like when she had to flee from her home and her friends, only having time to hide the last necklace. As to where she was now, she had two options.
The first was that she was outside of Equestria thus Celestia's magical protection and that's why the magic around here was so different and unregulated, unlike home.
The second one seemed unlikely, but she saw Celestia being defeated by the changeling queen, if only momentarily. If she was thrown from the throne for good, her magic would no longer help the ponies in the realm, resulting in a state she supposed similar to where she was. Celestia herself might deserve that, but... such fate was not meant for anyone, and with Luna at her side, the second option was very unlikely.
To where she could be exactly, she had no way to tell. Every big mountain could hold a cave system like this one. Judging by the density of the gems in the ground she could be near the Crystal Empire, but that still meant an enormous area of tall mountains stretched out for hundreds of miles, and even Ponyville had a great deal of gems in the ground. The diamond dogs had no real homeland that she knew of, so that wasn't for much use either.
She tried her magic again but had to stop because of the pain in her head. That spell was so simple yet so difficult to execute without Celestia's regulation that she used all her reserves.
But what if this was the way magic should be? So comfortable as it was back home, was Celestia, in fact, holding back from its potential? What if her whole life studying it was into a very wrong direction? The very foundation she had been building on differed from reality, not to mention everything that came on that.
She slumped down on the ground and dropped her head low, poking her horn into the old hay. She didn't know what to think of all this, what was the right thing to think, what parts of the case she didn't yet know. She has been a slave for too long to dare to cross certain boundaries, even in her own head.
* * *
Silver firmly pulled Amber into his office, locked the door with a quick spell then turned to face the orange unicorn, who was trying to look as casual and genuinely surprised as possible. He couldn't hide all of his discomfort, though, and he was sure Silver picked up the signs.
They looked at each other for several seconds before Amber broke the eye contact and looked around the room, as if for help.
"So..." He began, already suspecting Silver's question.
"How big a part did you have in all of this?" Silver's voice was threateningly even.
"I, uh... I don't..."
"You must know what I mean. I know a lot of people was involved but you're the one I know for sure."
"Listen, Silver... I know what it looks like, but-"
"Those two others who went with me screwed with the storage's circuit and made it so that it'd seem like an accident. I know I didn't do anything that'd result in something like that. I also know there are people in this station who would go very far to get what they want, and I know you don't tend to swim against the current. So?"
Amber cringed back, but noticed Silver didn't seem to know who was the initial target for the blame.
"I wasn't that involved... But to be honest, it wasn't supposed to make the whole barn disappear, only to make a small... puff, for the guards to notice."
"Well, that's quite unfortunate. If I recall, you told me earlier that we'd be screwed if somebody were to find out our little secret. Now, we not only have that coming, we also have to find the missing ponies."
"Yes, that's true, but believe me when I say, it wasn't intended-"
"Believe?" Silver seethed. "Why would I believe you? You lied to me so many times. At least have the balls to tell me you're sorry."
His horn glowed and Amber took a step back, but Silver only levitated a glass of water from his desk and took a sip.
"Also, you know what?" He said, the glass still floating in front of him. "Those guards aren't stupid. They will connect the dots to find out that it was, in fact, I, who initially set the circuit to overload. It could be only bad luck that I happened to be there, but on my day off? That's kinda fishy. Of course you won't know why I was there when not in service and neither will any other."
Hearing what he really didn't want to hear, Amber couldn't meet Silver's eyes. Keeping him in the blind was already a lost effort and he figured he owed the unicorn the truth.
"You are right. It was planned to make you suspicious, but it went too far. We didn't want it to be this... drastic, but..." He trailed off. He had nothing to offer.
Silver snorted, expressing his disgust.
"Let me guess. You wanted to stop them, but they were too persuasive." He continued before Amber could say anything. "Too bad... I actually liked you. I think you will have to see it through without me, though."
Amber looked at him questioningly, and that what Silver had been waiting for.
The glass exploded in a burst of shrapnel, water and magic, giving Amber only a split second to close his eyes before the shrapnel hit his face. The first bang was followed by a louder second one soon after, and Amber flattened himself to the ground.
He cleaned his eyes and peered around while also preparing a quick shield spell. He doubted he could fight Silver, but at least he would try and defend himself.
The room was empty, and Amber could feel the remains of a strong magical discharge still lingering in the air. He realized Silver had teleported, using the glass to prevent Amber from interfering. Either that, or to make a dramatic escape. Using the door was too boring, apparently...
A bad feeling lingered in his mind and he got up and walked to the door to try it. It was still locked, but when he tried to force it with magic he realized how much it was so. Dash told him that Silver used special spells to lock his door, but he didn't elaborate.
Amber found the door not only locked, but structurally integrated with the wall, making it impossible to open without the necessary skills or brute force, neither that Amber had enough from. He didn't have the ability to teleport out like Silver either. Dash didn't mention how Silver's door was locked, but Amber doubted he would skip a detail like that. Or not...
He frowned, turning from the sealed door to the window, which was also locked with the same method. That was expected, but the shades outside were dropped, preventing direct sunlight from entering, as well as others from seeing who was trapped inside. The controls for the shades were locked as well.
He spun around, worry creeping into his mind. He didn't think Silver could have manage to make all of this in a blink of an eye, also while preparing to teleport away. He could have used preset spells on thin triggers but that meant he was suspicious all along and knew this situation was coming. That was why there was nothing strange in his room, because he knew it would be looked through, and these safety measures were either prepared just that day or were pre-installed and hidden well. All of this resulted in situation where Amber couldn't contact Dash while in here to talk over their cover story now, that the circumstances have changed.
Life seems like breeze when the poor pony doesn't have to put up with an aching leg and can carry two saddlebags worth of books with ease. The day was bright and the future was promising: he was going to get a promising job, Silver was expected to turn up soon, and he could wrap up his little investigation without problems. It was a fun ride while it lasted, but it was never supposed to be more than a temporary diversion.
After taking back the books he had checked out from the library Coal choose the wide pedestrian street as his route home to enjoy himself. He barely paid any mind to the white pony trotting in his direction along with many others who were strolling about in the sunlight. Only when Coal stepped aside to avoid collision and the other mirrored the movement did he look at the unicorn closer who had a deep blue mane, wore a light jacked and a wide grin.
“Silver…?"
The unicorn nodded and stopped just before the surprised earth pony.
"'Sup, Coal. How's it going?"
While Coal was busy wrapping his head around the event Silver used the time to look the earth pony over.
"Looking good. I see you're out of your bandages?"
"Yeah... Uhm, you know, I didn't expect... Well, I did, but..."
"You got my message, then? I was hoping you would. I didn't really trust that librarian girl."
"...I did get it, yes." Once over the initial shock, Coal smiled back. "Were you stalking me?"
Silver shrugged. "So to speak. I did a little look around and asked some ponies what were you interested in, and it turns out the exact same thing I told you not to. Next time I'll make you a banner, too."
Silver didn't know about the other warnings, Coal realized, but seeing him was too good to ruin his mood.
"Well, yes, I figured it was harmless just to read some books, since it's not against the law or anything. What are you doing here?”
Silver shook his head and turned halfway around, as if wanting to leave. "Thing I wish I didn’t have to. I didn't know anything while back at the station, but the circumstances have changed in the last few days, and I have a few things to say."
Coal frowned. The unicorn was serious under that cheerful mask. "What do you mean?"
"Your home is not far, right?"
"No, but what are you-"
"Leave the way, please, we’re late as it is.”
Coal took the lead while looking at Silver with a raised eyebrow which the unicorn dismissed with a little shake of the head.
During the few minutes of walking they didn't say a word and Coal felt a bad feeling getting stronger and stronger inside him. He tried not to think about the gloomy scenarios his mind began to brush up, about the necklace, the station, the zoo, and the diamond dog. He closed the door behind Silver and freed himself from his bags, waiting for the unicorn to say something.
"Nice place..."Silver remarked under his breath while looking around, then turned to the still-standing earth pony.
"Listen, Coal. I know we haven't known each other for too long..."
Here we go, Coal thought.
"... but I think I can call you a friend and as such, I feel a degree of responsibility towards you. You have to stop whatever you're doing and leave this place for the near future. I've been talking to ponies and... Well, you are kind of in trouble."
"Huh?"
"When I wrote that you shouldn't pursue this necklace thing I didn't have a proper reason to go back it up, but now I do. I guess I could've been more convincing, but back then I had other things on my mind. Haven't you seen anything suspicious lately? Somebody watching you or something?"
Immediately, a list of events popped into his mind and he looked at Silver with fear he couldn't properly hide. The unicorn picked it up in a second.
"So you have seen something. Has anybody asked what you were looking for in the library?"
Coal cleared his throat. "No, not really... I only spoke with a few ponies since I arrived back, but they weren't... Okay, they were clearly hiding something and I'm not sure if it concerned me since they all were very cryptic."
"What were you talking about with them?"
"What I was doing in Ponyville and such."
Silver frowned and Coal was quick to go on. "Sorry that I didn't take your or the others' advice seriously enough. What do you know about that danger? What did I do wrong?"
"What do you mean by others? Was I not the only one to warn you?"
"No, but you were the first. There were two others since then, ponies I just met."
"But it wasn't enough for you." To Coal's reluctant nod, he facehoofed. "Why do I even bother...?" He shook his head. "Okay, I didn't expect this. It's a miracle you're still free."
"All right, I screwed up, but... A miracle? What do you mean?"
"I mean you are in danger." He looked around and his eyes stopped on a clock. "I think we still have enough time. Pack the necklace and the stuff you found and follow me. We're going on hoof for a while, you're only gonna need the most necessary things."
"Hold on. What am I running from? Why do I need to escape?"
"I'll explain later. Now do as I say, please!"
"But..."
"Do you want to be thrown into jail for violating royal taboos?"
"What?"
"Do it!"
They were silent for a very long second before Silver's expression softened. "Please, Coal, trust me. I have heard things that you obviously don't know about. You need to leave this place before things get out of hoof. Besides..." A smile appeared on his muzzle. "You promised me you'd go on an adventure with me in case this thing turns out to be exciting, as a form of payment."
The memory broke his gloomy mood and Coal smiled too. Inside him the questions still boiled, but his reluctance for really believing Silver’s claims was losing strength.
The two of them left the apartment about five minutes later, Coal wearing his saddlebags with the necklace, his notes and some other stuff and Silver his thin jacket. The unicorn went ahead, eying the completely ordinary street, then took off to the right and Coal followed him. After several minutes of undisturbed fast paced walking behind the unicorn he quickened his steps to catch up to Silver.
"I don't see anything..." He told the unicorn.
"I don't either, but that doesn't mean anything. Just keep on going."
Coal fell back. The whole case didn't seem plausible now, in the afternoon sunshine, amongst random ponies walking around, seemingly trouble-free. He trusted Silver to a degree, but this might be a little over-the-top. He refrained from giving sound to his doubts, though. Even if it turned out to be false alarm, he could still turn around and continue on with his life, with his new job...
He almost missed a turn Silver took unexpectedly as he was thinking about the new assignment which he was supposed to begin the next day, and failing to check in in time would probably ban him from the team. Whatever this thing was about, it had to end by the evening.
After a while Silver made another turn and Coal realized where they were headed. The familiar shape of a chariot station's front emerged from the distance, making Coal uneasy again. If they were to leave now, he will have to commit himself to Silver's plan.
"Uhm, Silver?" he asked and the unicorn looked at him. "Do you want to leave right now?"
"Yes, if possible. What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's just..."
"Coal, is it important or not?"
"I got an opportunity for a good job which I have to start by tomorrow and I can't do that if I'm not in the city."
Silver furrowed his eyebrows and slowed his pace a bit. "What kind of job?"
"Source evaluation for the royal archives, basically. For Prince Blueblood."
"Just lovely," Silver murmured and sped up again. "It's probably a trap. Even if they do want you to work for them they just want to keep an eye on you and make sure you don't poke around in... tender places. And if you do, they can seize you on sight."
"Do you even have proof for all of your claims?"
Silver shook his head. "Nothing tangible, but they explain everything. Think about the past week and what sort of strange things happened. Now, I'm gonna find us a pair of wheels. Don’t fall far behind.”
The building had a fairly busy traffic which was good news and a small number of royal guards who didn't look at them twice and their presence clearly bothered Silver. The unicorn quickly found the way to the small carts' stands then to the puller ponies themselves. Coal watched Silver talk with several of them until he settled for one who was willing to do custom routes with non-scheduled departs. If he noticed Silver's glances at the guards he didn't mention it, but didn't help Coal's concerns. Was he just being dragged into doing something illegal?
A bit of a commotion disturbed the station as a big chariot arrived, along with four royal guard pegasi. The cart was pulled by two ponies just like the one Coal had traveled, but this one had long scratches along its side and one of the wheels was also damaged. The ponies ahead of it looked wary as well. Six occupants left the cart swiftly with the aid of one guard while the other questioned the puller ponies and a third examined the marks. Silver went back to talking but moved so that his face was hidden by a column and signaled Coal to do the same.
"What happened with that thing?" Coal asked after he stepped closer to the two of them, motioning to the cart.
The puller pony shrugged. "Another attack, I guess. Those diamond dogs are getting violent." He turned to Silver. "So, three hundred in two parts?"
Silver frowned and nodded reluctantly. "Do you have your money with you?" He asked Coal.
"Sure, but I don't have much."
"You'll get it back, don't worry."
"If you say so... Where are we going?"
"A bit far, but to a nice place. I know someone there who I want to meet." He didn't notice the guard who slowly circled the column and was looking over the white unicorn. Coal was about to clear his throat when the guard spoke, making Silver jump.
"Excuse me, sir, do you happen to be working at the Ponyville Chariot Station by any chance?"
Silver took control of himself. "Sorry, I don't. Is there something wrong?"
"I have to inform you that you match a description of a suspect who committed crimes in the near past there.
Silver shot Coal a "can you believe this?" sort of look.
"It must be a coincidence, sir," He said with all the confidence of an innocent. "I haven't left this city for over four months now, let alone commit crimes so far away."
A second guard joined the first. "We will have to ask you, sir, to follow us for a quick talk. If what you say is true, you are free to go in two minutes."
Silver hesitated, and it made Coal worried. What was he hiding?
"Fine," he said eventually. He lit his horn, lifted a book from Coal's saddlebags and turned to the puller pony, who raised an eyebrow. What none of them saw was the tightening straps of the bags around Coal's body.
"By the way, this is the book I was talking about. It's yours until I come back, all right?"
The pony reached for the book by instinct but before he could touch it a quick flash of white magic propelled the book towards to the guards' heads, knocking both of them to the column.
"Run!"
Silver's cry wasn't enough to break Coal's confusion so the unicorn magically tugged him along. Silver released him after they cleared the entrance and Coal has found his hoofing. Behind them they heard shouts and wings flapping, then more barked orders and galloping. Coal didn't risk a look back, he concentrated on following the tight turns Silver was making.
They left the main street and entered an alley, littered with trash. Silver slalomed between them with ease, but Coal already felt his injury. He had tons of questions but put them aside for later and made sure he didn't miss a step and fall. They sped down several small and big streets, dodging pedestrians and other obstacles. He had to admit, as much as the whole thing was scary and confusing, it was pretty exciting.
Soon Silver slowed down and they stopped in another alley so Silver could catch his breath. Coal was panting too, but the adrenalin soaring through his system didn't want to him stop and he was ready to go in short order. The unicorn peered around the corner then slumped down on the ground, put his back to the wall and hung his head.
"Damn, running is hard." He cleared sweat from his forehead. "I don't see them coming, I think we're good. The safe place is not far from here."
"Safe place?"
"Yes, one of my buddy's bar. He can hide us until we figure out a plan."
"Lead the way then, boss."
The unicorn looked up at him, with a smile sitting on the corner of his mouth. "Do I hear enjoyment?"
Some more galloping later they entered a place titled "The Ruffled Feather", which made Coal take a double take. The interior was similar to that other bar, except that the smell of alcohol was replaced by the smell of food and quality food at that, judging by the contents of the places in front of the few costumers. Silver exchanged some hushed words with a waiter who opened a door labeled "Staff" for them and they all went inside. The waiter led them through a short corridor to an unlabeled door and said, "Mr. Frosting will be with you in a moment. Please don't break anything."
The two stallions stood in a fairly big living room with bookshelves and tables and even glass bottles on the shelves. Silver hummed in appreciation.
"Better than I imagined. How do you find it?"
"Cozy," Coal said, working on easing the straps.
"Right, sorry." Silver took hold of the straps and loosened their grip. "Sorry about the rough depart and this madness. You're in quite a good shape for a bookworm, though. You're barely panting."
Coal didn't tell him about his heart trying to leap out through his chest and the ocean of sweat under his saddlebags. He flexed his legs to ease the strain. "Years of running and a little martial arts. I don't actually live in the library, in contrary to what most ponies think."
"I can see that. By the way, when did you take the bandages off? Are you safe to run this soon?"
"A couple days ago. It still hurts a little but I will manage."
"Lucky for us, I have to say. You're a little harder to recognize this way."
Coal raised an eyebrow but Silver wasn't looking at him. He was avoiding the questions Coal had in mind, but the earth pony didn't plan to let them remain unanswered.
"Oh, right, almost forgot. Here is your book of distraction." Silver floated the book he'd smacked the guards with in front of himself to take a look at the title. "Wait, what is this?"
It was a study on magical theory, a part of a series of textbooks, primarily used in magic high schools. This volume detailed the basics of the magical properties of certain gemstone and crystal types, sort of an introduction to the inner workings of the storages Coal has been interested for quite some time.
"What are you reading, Coal? Are you hiding a horn under your mane?"
Coal took the book and tried to hide his awkward grin. "No... It's just interesting."
"Yeah, for someone who's been into this stuff for years, not for someone, who started it two weeks ago. Do you even understand what it says?"
"Some things, yes. I'm already familiar with the basic principles of magical currents, charges and their ambient and more direct presence in non-unicorn races, especially earth ponies. This book details how to insert enchantments into conductive objects like gemstones then trigger them without a direct spell, like with a magical storage. I can't effectively do the spells themselves, but I can explain some of the mechanics and in theory, and I can operate a storage with a fair bit of confidence."
Silver was really entertaining to watch as he collected his jaw from the floor.
"I'll be damned. You and practical magic? And that's what you call a necessary item when running away? What other crap did you bring?"
Coal shuddered at the insult. "You told me to hurry and I didn't know what was going on, so I grabbed a book I was in the middle of at the time. For me it was important."
Silver caught himself with visible effort.
"Where are we, anyway?" Coal said after some silence. "Why were the guard all over you?"
"We are in one of my friend's restaurant. We've both made favors for each other and I trust him well enough. We should make plans for the near future while we can, though."
"And the guards?"
"A setup. Certain people in the station decided that I will be the one to blame on the accident in the zoo."
"When the barn disappeared?"
"Yes. I guess I don't have to fill you in with that."
"Did you have a hoof in it at all?" Coal watched Silver closely to see if the unicorn was lying, but the answer surprised him.
"The problem is, I kinda did. I had to make some adjustments on the console, while two other workers rigged it to malfunction on purpose, so it seems like I've done it. For what I know, I might be the one who triggered it, even if with a different purpose."
"I'm... sorry to hear that."
"Thanks... Anyway, if you don't mind there is someone I need the help of but he doesn't live in Canterlot. I also want to take a look in the Ponyville ruins at some point, which I suppose you do too."
Coal nodded.
"Okay. We're gonna need to find a chariot or something to get there since it's a bit far."
"What's wrong with the train?"
"It's not the best means of getting away silently, you know. Puller ponies are much more discrete. They're also more expensive, but I suppose we're willing to roll with that. Just hope they keep themselves to their word. After that it's to the ruins. After that, I don't know yet."
"How are we going to get into Ponyville? I don't have my permit anymore."
A grin spread across Silver's face. "That's what I need my friend for."
The door creaked open and the both looked at the incomer, a chubby earth pony stallion with a very cupcake-like manestyle and little spoons for a cutie mark.
"Coal, this is Salty Frosting. Salty, this is Coal Shelter."
"Slitter..."
Silver looked at him. "Really? Huh."
"It's a pleasure," Salty Frosting said then turned to the unicorn. "What have you done now, Silver?"
"Some guards think I'm a criminal, that's all."
"I don't blame them."
"Very funny. Thanks for the hiding spot, though. I promise, we'll be out as soon as we can."
"Where do you want to go?"
Coal listened closely. He was curious now much Silver wanted the pony to know.
"To a little place called Cloud Cover. It's just under Cloudsdale, a nice little town." He glanced at Coal when saying the name, but he wasn't sure what Silver meant this time. Did he want to go that far to talk to that friend of his?
"Why?"
"Do you really want to know?"
The owner grinned. "That's a cheap trick. Do you need any food before you go? I have awesome soups."
"Oh, yes, please," Coal said immediately.
"No, thank you. We don't really have the time for that."
"I didn't see anybody chasing us here." Coal said. "Why do you think they're still hot on our tail?"
"I don't have evidence," Silver was holding back his temper, but some of it crept into his voice. "I just know both you and me are wanted right now. I'm going to explain everything once we're on safe grounds."
"You keep saying that." Coal fought back. "Why can't you say at least one thing now?"
"One thing?" Silver stared at him and Coal wasn't as sure of himself as a second ago. "How about the librarian who told me what books you checked out? Turned out she was an agent. When I went there myself I detected listening spells all around the section you had been working in. Do you know who put those spells there? I'll lend you a clue. My contact told me that a royal order said to follow a specific brown earth pony with a white bandage around, to get a chance to expose him. You were so oblivious you even ignored what that other pony told you? Hazel Crunch? He's in close relations with the royals, he choose that other place because he didn't want any of them listening on what he wanted to say, but guess what, he was wrong. I know he was there with you, and you can bet your precious book they know too."
Coal and the owner stared at Silver as he finished his rant, but with very different feelings.
"How exciting!" Salty Frosting said, clapping his hoof to the floor a few times. "As much as I enjoy a squabble I have to ask you to decide whether you want to stay or leave, preferably before any guard tries to poke his head in here."
"We're leaving," Silver stated and levitated a coin from his pocket. "Give him a sandwich to munch on."
"Very well," the owner said, taking the money. "I'll have someone to bring it up."
Silver let out a deep breath after the door closed behind the chubby unicorn. "Oh, boy.... Sorry about that, Coal, I guess I'm a little nervous."
Coal stared before himself, his head swirling with thoughts. The situation he found himself in the middle of was very confusing, he saw that he had to alter his mindset about the whole thing. And he did need help.
He saw Silver step closer and he lifted his head to meet the unicorn's eyes.
"I guess you're right," he murmured. "The stuff you say does explain things. I was too careless."
The unicorn nodded. "I didn't want to dump it on you all in one piece. I've never had to do this escape thing with someone else before, so we're both on unfamiliar grounds."
"You've done this before?"
"Yup... But now we have to move. We head to the train station, then to Cloud Cover. Okay?"
Silver smiled, but couldn't lift Coal's spirit. "Got it," he said flatly.
***
Starry Wind closed the door behind her then pulled a small bag from under her wing to put it on the kitchen table.
"I think I got everything you asked for. We're still gonna need a few extra things, though, I hope we won't be weighted down too bad. Do you want to come to get the tickets?"
When she saw her friend standing in the doorway to the bedroom she knew there was trouble.
"Oh, dear... What is it? Did something happen?"
The elderly pegasus shook her head. "Nothing. At least... not now."
Starry hurried to her. "Bad memories?"
"No, not that bad. Just confusing."
"All right, tell me, then. Maybe I can help."
The yellow pegasus hesitated, as she usually did. "It's about the library," she admitted.
Starry took a big breath and reminded herself to be patient. This was a topic her friend has been avoiding since Starry found her alone at the library, despite Starry's frequent efforts to bring it up.
"You've been awfully quiet about that. What happened there?"
"I saw..."
"Yes?"
"I saw a pony. I thought he was familiar. He was like... He reminded me of Twilight."
"That Twilight?"
"Yes, her. He was like when I saw it in the castle the first time."
"What? What do you mean?"
She glanced at her with cyan eyes then looked at the floor again. "My element."
"You saw the element on that pony?" Starry asked incredulously.
"No, I didn't see it, but I felt it. Like it was in the room, with that pony. At least I think it was him, he saw me and I flew away quickly. I felt like that first time. It was calling for me. I think..."
"Okay..." Starry had no idea what she was talking about. She knew what the Elements of Harmony meant to her friend, and if a random pony affected her friend in such way she had to go out there and get the bottom of it. Almost nobody knew where the remaining necklaces were hidden and nobody was searching for either them or any of the bearers, or at least not with good intentions. It was a thing of the past and outside of the common people's knowledge, but not long ago there was one ordinary pony who talked about them.
"Listen..." she began, ideas coming to her one after another. "Did you know that pony?"
"I haven't seen him before."
"What did he look like?"
The yellow pegasus thought about it. "He was brown. Brown coat and mane, and I think he didn't have a horn, buy I'm not sure. Other than that... Well, he was very tired..."
So far it was a possible match, but it was still too vague.
The yellow pony's eyes lit up. "Oh, yes. His leg was white. I mean, his leg was maybe injured and he had bandages. I didn't see his cutie mark, though. I'm sorry."
Starry smiled, then frowned. The elderly pony waited patiently while the gray pegasus re-checked her own memories. It fit the pony who was so busy trying to get to her, she clearly remembered the bandages and the limp he walked with. She also recalled how scared she was when he asked about harmony and Twilight Sparkle out of the blue, but she lost track of him when the barn disappeared and she went to see Violet. Since then she thought about him a few times, and in hindsight he didn't seem as threatening as back then. She had to be cautious, of course, but he seemed just like an average guy but with peculiar knowledge, and if he did have something her friend sensed from far away, he was probably worth paying a visit. The problem was, he had clearly not been living in the station. But if her friend saw him in Canterlot recently, he could be still here.
"Did he do something to scare you?" Starry asked.
"No, I just got scared when he looked at me and I ran away. I'm sorry I can't help more. I only told you because you were so interested about it, and I don't know if she was a bad pony. Was he, Starry?"
That was a question still needed to be answered.
"I don't think he was, actually. I'll try and find him and ask him about... what he was doing in there. You said you sensed him... I mean the element from far away?"
"I did. I'm sorry I can't explain it better, Starry, but... "
"It's all right, you don't have to. I don't think you went crazy, dear." She smiled to lighten the mood. "Thank you for telling me all this. It was very helpful."
The old pegasus smiled back, but her smile was tainted by concern. Starry comforted her with a hug, in her head already making plans on how to track the peculiar pony down, also while preparing the departure of the two of them. They had two and a half days left, after that they planned to join the rescue group sent to bring back the missing ponies from the backfired teleportation spell. Maybe if she spent more time around the library and the train and the chariot station she would get lucky.
She spent the next day planning, rushing about to get everything they could need, and spending time watching the library and the chariot station. Since no train went to Ponyville anymore she didn't think he would be at the railway, given that he even planned to return to the town. Her friend also needed her occasional help during the day which rendered efforts to keep a constant eye at any of those locations impossible. She had to trust her luck, but she couldn't plan anything on it. The few strangers she asked didn't see such pony either.
Seeing the two stallions race down the street happened during the last day of their stay in Canterlot and was during while she was flying through the city. She saw them run in her direction, but didn't pay them any particular mind until she saw the pony following the white unicorn in the front. He was a non-descriptive all-brown earth pony but he seemed familiar, and when they got closer she realized why. She hesitated only a second before turning around.
The white one looked back from time to time as if looking for pursuers but she saw nothing behind them, not even from her aerial viewpoint. They stopped once in an alley and she dropped down so the pedestrians hid her, then continued on hoof.
Her hope took a blow when they disappeared in a restaurant and stayed in there for a very long time. She took up position a little further up the street, mimicking a casual pony waiting for something mundane, but she knew she would have to go home eventually. They could have used a back door or something, even a good disguise that she missed didn't seem too far-fetched.
Her patience paid off, however, and she let them put a good distance between them and her as they made their way away from the city center. She saw the brown pony glance her way once but she saw no sign of recognition. The two ponies' pace eventually slowed from a gallop to a fast walk and they generally seemed more relaxed than before. She still had no idea what they had been fleeing from and why. She didn't want to anything bad happen to her... well, target.
She saw the train station's building further away and when she was certain they were heard there she flapped her wings and flew past them to wait near the entrance. She didn't have a plan on how to catch him, so she stood behind the big door and waited for them to catch up and maybe hear what they were talking about. Her colors hid her somewhat in the shadow, and when the two stallions went past her neither of them looked at her direction. They were out of her sight moment later, and she could hear them talking.
"I thought you said you trusted him."
"If you recall, I said I trusted him enough. That doesn't..."
Their sounds were getting muffled. She carefully stepped onto the street and tried to be as quiet as possible as she crept after them.
"...he could still tell it someone, even unintentionally. I can't have that risk." It was the white unicorn talking, hushed and confident.
"I get it," the brown pony said, "it's just I can't really tell if you are serious in a given situation." He spoke with more certainty than she remembered and she swayed in her faith, but this had to be that pony.
"You'll get used to it," the white one grinned at the other.
"I suppose... But are you sure they lost our track? They really wanted to get you back there."
"I don't know, but running around in a place like this won't help us. Just keep a low profile and let me handle it all. We need a train and fast."
"Okay. You know, I was thinking... On my way here they checked my bag. They didn't react to the necklace too strangely but it got me worried. Won't be we stopped again if we try to leave?"
She was focusing on their words so much she almost missed the earth pony pulling an apple cart across the street. The stranger remarked something under his breath, to what the white pony glanced back but turned forward again. She let more distance build up after them.
"Yes, I suppose that's right. Hmm... I think we could bribe the conductor or someone to hide it while the train is checked."
The brown pony shook his head. "I have some money, but I was planning on this new job so it's not much."
"That's a shame, 'cause I barely have enough for the tickets. We're gonna need to make a change or two to get to Cloud Cover." The unicorn stopped and so did the earth pony and Starry. The latter was still with his back to her, but the white pony could now see her so she improvised and choose to inspect a billboard with departure times.
"Not to mention Ponyville. We'll need a chariot too," the earth pony added.
So they were going into that place, after all.
"Let's not think too much ahead. First we need to get out of here."
There was a short silence and when the white unicorn talked again she had to strain her ears to catch the words.
"That thing is magical, right?"
"Yes..."
"Could you use it to get money or free tickets or something?"
"I don't think so that's how it works."
"How do you know? I know you read about it but have you actually tried doing something with it?"
"I touched it once, but all I saw were a series of random images and it made me lost track of time, and I couldn't make it to do anything practical."
He saw visions? Did he put on the necklace? She wondered if they even knew what they had.
"Crap..." the unicorn remarked. ”We'll figure something out, then. First we should see when the next train leaves. Help me find a timetable."
Before she could react they turned to the same board she was staring at. She took a step back, but the unicorn was looking at her.
"Can we help you?" He asked with clear annoyance.
"Sorry," She flattened her ears and grinned, "I was just... you know... reading..."
The unicorn stepped closer and she backtracked some more, but he merely looked at the timetable. The other pony obviously recognized her, though.
"Starry?"
"Hmm?" the unicorn turned his head and saw how they were looking at each other. He spun around.
"Wait. Who's this, Coal?"
"She's... She's the filly from the zoo, who I wanted to talk with, I think."
"Is she? And why is she following us in Canterlot?"
"I don't think she was. Don't frighten her, please."
She cleared her throat to get their attention. "I have been kinda following you for the past half an hour or so, to be honest... Sorry about that."
"Great. Let me guess, you want to talk to little Coal here as well."
He obviously meant it as a joke and was surprised when she nodded.
"It won't take long, Silver," The brown stallion, Coal, assured his friend.
The pony called Silver eyed her with suspicion.
"She is not part of the royal guards, I'm sure," Coal pressed on. "I've talked with her already in the zoo, although she wasn't this forthcoming back then... But she's not here to arrest us or turn us in."
She hoped she heard that last part wrong. The unicorn was fitting for a criminal, but she didn't want to believe that the pony who showed knowledge about the elements was one.
Silver contemplated Coal's testament. "If you end up in hoof-cuffs I want the right to say I told you so, straight in your face."
Coal smiled. "We'll be quick, I promise."
The white unicorn gestured them to begin, then scanned the streets with a quick spell. She would have preferred him to be away from them, but it was better than nothing.
"So," she began, trying to sum up the important things quickly. "I want to say that I know how I acted in the station, but since then I thought about it and realized you weren't there to cause trouble or something, but I didn't know who you were and why do you know about the necklaces and harmony and all, and I still don't... But I know you were in the library in the past few days, an even though I don't know what you were doing there, I have a good guess, and if that's true, I can probably help you with that." She saw Silver still had his suspicious expression on, but now Coal shared it too.
"You knew I was the library?" Coal asked. "Were you spying on me too?"
"What...? No, I wasn't. Why? Who was spying on you?"
Coal opened his mouth but Silver was faster. "Don't tell her anything, Coal." He turned to her. "How can you prove you're on our side?"
She wasn't sure what he meant by their side, but she guessed she knew the circumstances well enough to hazard a guess. "If I was, would I be here instead of calling them?"
"You could be here simply to stall us until they arrive," Silver countered.
"But... Okay. Coal, you believe me, right? But even if you don't..." She had an idea. "Listen. You do have a necklace with a big pink balloon, right?"
"Actually, it's a butterfl..." He stopped, too late.
She fluttered her wings. "I knew it! You had it with you in the library, hadn't you?"
"Well... Yes, but not all the time."
"What are you getting at?" Silver asked, taking a step closer.
"For you to believe me I'm with you! I can tell you about the elements, even Twilight Sparkle, if you want. I understand you don't have enough time and neither do I, but I need help and so do you. Hear me out, and decide if I'm worth your time."
The two stallions exchanged a look.
"I believe you," Coal said, his voice still somewhat unsure, "but I'm afraid we'll have to postpone it. We have to get out of Canterlot right now."
"Definitely," Silver said and he lit his horn to scan the street again. "If you can write it down, all right. If you can't, come with us for a while. You can fly back once you're done."
She felt the opportunity slipping away. She couldn't leave now. "It's not that simple, this stuff is too sensitive to just write it down. We need a place and enough time." She watched with growing fear as Silver nudged Coal towards the building. "You said you saw visions? I can explain them!"
The unicorn groaned as Coal stopped to look back at her. "You know about that?"
"I heard you say it. I didn't want to eavesdrop, but the point is, I know... I think I know what you might've seen."
"Coal, we've gotta go."
Coal looked at the unicorn then back at her. "I want to hear it, but we can't stay much longer." He frowned and in her eyes she saw sincere apology. "I've made enough mistakes not focusing on the right things.”
"No, wait!" She flapped her wings and cut in front of them. "I need your help, Coal!"
Silver's horn flared and she was knocked to the side by the unicorn's magic, her side hitting the wall painfully. Looking up from the ground she saw Coal's eyes widen then had to close her eyes and focus on getting air back into her lungs. She heard Coal's protests but she couldn't make out the words, and the sound of their voices faded away. When she looked around there were unfamiliar ponies standing around her in a loose circle with uncertain and worrying expressions, none of them offering her a hoof. The scene attracted the attention of two guards who came in from the other direction where Coal and Silver left and loosened the crowd, with little effort. Minor big city commotions never lived long.
Starry saw them coming and made her best effort to blend in and not showing her pain on her face. She was able to slip out the door unnoticed and took into the air to return home, but her aching side forced her back on the ground. She stood in a doorway, frowning in concern. Coal was too good an opportunity just to let him disappear. If he managed to uncover something which in turn brought the royals' anger upon him, he probably was on the right side, so to speak. If only she knew exactly what they were running from, and why the unicorn reacted to her with such animosity.
A smile formed on her lips. She couldn't write and mail to them what she had to say, but she didn't necessarily have to write everything down. She trotted back into the building and headed to the nearest kiosk.
"Excuse me, could you give me a pen and a piece of paper?"
***
Silver pushed Coal behind the large trashcan near a kiosk, where the two stallions took up a hiding spot. Coal saw a pair of guards hurry the other direction, otherwise the station’s interior was mostly empty. The couple of ponies walking by gave them weird looks, but no one bothered them.
“I think we’re okay for the moment,” Silver said. “Stick to me, I know where to go next.”
Coal growled. “Your plan was to hurt that filly so we can slip out?”
The unicorn gave Coal a look. “Of course not. She was merely a possible threat.”
“No, she wasn’t!” Coal flicked Silver’s hoof away. “She was just trying to help us, and you pushed her aside like a rug.” He tried to step out from behind the trashcan but Silver pulled him back.
“Coal, don’t. I’m not hiding here because I’m bored.”
“I don’t care. I want to help her. She might be hurt.”
“She’s fine. She’s just standing there… now she flew off. See? That’s strange, though... I thought the guards would question her or something.”
“She’s gone? " Coal managed to peer above the trashcan." Are you sure?”
“Yes, and there are no guards either. Now we have to wait until the area is clear, and we can make a rush to the exit."
Coal slumped down. "And where is that?”
Silver pointed a hoof to their left. “Out the side door then through the street to the perimeter. There we catch a cart and shot for Cloud Cover.”
“Wait.” Coal looked at him. “Cloud Cover? You really want to go there?”
“Of course,” Silver said matter-of-factly. “It’s a nice place this time of year, not to mention a pony there who will lend us a helping hoof. I think you’ll like him.” He grinned at the earth pony and whispered, “He has a library.”
Coal was too upset to make a comment. “I thought you wanted to throw that restaurant pony off of our trail.”
“I do. That’s why we aren’t going there on a straight line.”
“So you do have a plan.”
Silver feigned surprise. “Why do you sound surprised?”
Coal shook his head. “I just don’t like being dragged along wherever you want to go. I can make plans as well.”
“But I make better ones.” Silver didn't wait for a response. “We take the scenic route. Let's hope the guards' coordination isn't better than I think it is." He frowned and his horn glowed for a second. “Wait a minute… I think they’re heading this way now…”
Coal strained his ears. Four hooves hit the ground just not far from them as a pegasus landed and asked something, but it wasn't the voice of a buck.
“Excuse me, could you give me a pen and a piece of paper?”
It was definitely her. Coal broke out of Silver’s hold and stood up. Starry was busy writing something with a pen held in her mouth and didn’t notice him right away. Coal felt Silver grab his hind legs to pull him back, but he stood firm. The noise of the struggle made Starry glance their way, and her eyes widened.
“Coal? I thought…” She looked around. “Is that unicorn still here…?”
“Yes,” Coal said. “Are you okay? I saw him push you aside just like that...”
“I’m fine, thank you. It's not the first time I've been handled roughly, to be honest."
Coal wanted to say something but Silver began dragging him away with more force than seemed necessary. Coal looked behind the unicorn to see four guard ponies trotting their way fast. Coal looked at Silver, then Starry, and set his own plan into motion. He leaned close to the gray pegasus’s ear. “We'll be at the perimeter chariot station. We're leaving today to the east. Can you make it?" Not having time to wait for a reply from the stunned filly he galloped after Silver, who was already halfway across the hall.
The guards spread out to cover the hall behind them. Silver looked back at Coal and there was something in his eyes Coal couldn't interpret. White magic flashed across the interior coupled with a loud crack and when Coal opened his eyes he had closed instinctively, the unicorn was nowhere to be seen.
The rhythm of his running broke and he staggered for a second as he looked around for the unicorn. The guards ordered him to halt but he kept on going, the primary objective of getting into safety overriding the fear of the possibility that Silver had deserted him. A second later another flash of light cast jagged shadows across the floor and he looked back again, but only saw Starry's stunned form in the distance and the guards much closer. One of them spread his wings to cut him off in the wide space on the hall. Coal frantically scanned the space ahead of him and choose a slightly ajar door a few yards away as his destination.
The door hit the wall behind with a loud bang as he stormed through it with the pegasus at his tail. The narrow corridor offered little area to dodge the guards but at least it took their flight away. He ran through the sharp turns with little of slowing down, using the walls to redirect him momentum into new directions. The pain in his shoulders grew but he was too busy concentrating on not to fall to really mind it. He passed several doors but couldn’t read the small signs, dodged some buckets and boxes scattered on the floor, looking back at a turn once. The space behind him was empty as far as he could see, and the only things he heard were the thudding of his heart, the wheezing of his lungs and his own hooves hitting the linoleum floor. In the back of his head he had found it strange that none of the doors opened at the sound of someone running past them at high speeds but he was mostly glad he didn’t have to deal with suddenly opening doors in his way.
He slowed his pace to a trot and struggled not to hyperventilate while looking back and forth the corridor for any sign of possible means of escape. He realized he had no idea where he was or how long the corridor stretched or when Silver was going to show up if ever, or what would happen if he got caught. He assumed the unicorn had his own plan which he didn’t share with Coal, and that plan could have included teleporting away and leaving the other to his fate… No, that certainly wasn't it. Silver had to be more loyal than that.
Behind him the sound of galloping was audible again and he urged his limbs to carry him faster and soon he was galloping through corners almost as fast as before. He felt the strain in his body, all the lazy years of his work after his rather movement-filled youth.
"Quite in shape for a bookworm, my rump," he whispered to himself.
Ahead, after a sharp turn a metal door closed down the way with a bar across and a sign above which instructed any escapees to push the handle. He ran for it, in the last moment extending his front hooves to push the bar and open the door.
Even though his legs took up the majority of his momentum, probably saving him from unconsciousness, his head still collided with the solid metal surface. The hit was enough to disorient him as he slumped to the floor at the base of the unopened door, clutching his head. He opened his eyes he had shut from the pain and punched the handle. It depressed and the door moved ever so slightly but something was in its way, blocking it from swinging open. Cursing at the unknown obstruction Coal looked back from where he came and heard the clopping of hooves gaining on him, barely audible over his heart's thudding. He stood up and had to steady himself by leaning against the door as the world swayed for a second.
A white unicorn guard turned the corner and slowed his steps to a walk as he saw Coal. The stallion was taking deep breaths and eyed the cornered pony with his head held high. His light body armor was tight as usual but his helmet was missing, he had probably tossed it aside somewhere in the labyrinth-like building. He stepped closer to the earth pony who widened his stance, even though he knew he had no chance when it came to combat against a trained pony. The guard stretched his wings, blocking the whole width of the corridor. It certainly was intimidating.
"You're cornered," the pegasus told him, the aftermath of the chase still evident in his voice. "The exit doors are closed down. Stop and let me escort you out for further legal steps. Your cooperation will be noted.”
Coal loosened his stance. The guard stepped closer, but didn't lower his wings. Coal was already making up a cover story as why he was running, but every reason he could think of lacked proper motives. Lying was more of Silver's skill.
"I will have to ask you a few questions, first." The guard stopped at a few steps from Coal. "You don't have to answer them now but doing so will make your life easier later on."
Reading in the library was certainly not illegal. He could always say that he was driven by mere curiosity, and that wasn't exactly far from the truth, either. He gave the guard a nod.
"First off," the guard said, "why were you running?"
"I, uhm... A group of guards started running at me, and I panicked."
“Why was that? Have you done something illegal?”
“I don’t think so…”
“Then why did you run?”
Coal wished he could answer that, but the guards didn't push it.
"Are you acquainted with the Ponyville Chariot Station?"
"No, not really... I've been there, but only passing by."
“Do you know what has been going on there lately?”
Coal watched a small drip of sweat rolling down on the short mane of the guard. This wasn’t going in the direction he had thought it would. “I heard there was a magical mishap or something. The newspapers didn’t say much.”
“Are you aware of the increased diamond dog activity across Equestria?”
“I heard about it, yes.”
“Were you in contact with a diamond dog lately?”
“No, I wasn’t.” The lie was out before he thought about it. The guards didn’t ask too many questions when Coal arrived a week or so ago, and they hopefully couldn’t tide him to the aggressive diamond dog, anyway.
“Does the name Arching Dash ring a bell?”
“No, not really.”
“What about Amber Light?”
Coal shook his head.
“Silver Beam?”
Coal had no idea who the two first names belonged to, but hoped they weren’t criminals. Silver knew a lot of ponies, apparently, having one or two shady figure amongst them wouldn't be a surprise. He didn’t know if he had the right answer, but went with it. “Uh… no.”
“I see.” The guard stood there, eyes still on the earth pony, saying nothing else. The silence grew unbearable in a matter of seconds.
“So… Are we going somewhere?”
The guard nodded and motioned for Coal to move, as if waiting just for that. “After you.” He lowered his wings and stood aside to let Coal pass. They made the way back through the corridor in silence, the only sounds were of their hooves. Coal risked a look back and when his eyes met with the other’s cold stare, he snapped his head forward and tried not to think about the future.
In the distance, something rumbled and Coal felt vibrations in the ground. He thought about Silver and how he disappeared with only a flash of light. He couldn’t leave Coal just like that. He wasn’t like that, it wasn’t logical to assume such thing. He always had a plan, he knew people and hiding spots, and he promised Coal to stick with him until the mystery was wrapped up. He must have had something for this situation as well.
The corridor stretched much longer than it felt when he was storming through it, and he noticed things he hadn’t before. The floor was dusty and littered with dirty pieces of paper, and the little signs on the doors were often missing, leaving only holes for the nails to hold them there. The paint on the wall wasn’t in too bad shape, but it showed signs of age.
He looked up at the ceiling as light dust fell from it and he thought he heard something hit the ground above them. The noise was followed by steps which died off quickly. The first thing to pop into his head was Silver on a rescue mission to free Coal. He dismissed the wishful thought, he couldn’t always rely on others to do something for him. He was a capable, grown stallion, wasn’t he? He had his own life, his own plans… sort of, but he was able to act independently.
Rattling noises hit his ears again, this time coming from their right. He heard the guard mutter something to himself, and that gave him an idea. He could use the distracting noises for his benefit to elude the pegasus. Even if he didn’t know the layout of the building, he could outrun him and meet up with Silver later on, given he doesn't bump into another dead end and can actually find the unicorn. He scanned the corridor for open doors and found one maybe two jumps ahead. Behind it was dark but with a trail of light, indicating a window.
“What the hell is going on?” the guard asked the ceiling as a bunch of stuff cluttered to the floor above them. The pegasus motioned Coal to stay then stepped to the nearest door. He opened it then stop nest to the opening with his back turned to Coal. The earth pony glanced at the opening he was before, and braced himself for a sprint.
As soon as he took the first slow and silent step the pegasus peered into the opening, but after a few seconds he looked back at Coal. Seeing the earth pony turned halfway away, he narrowed his eyes. “What are you up to? Don’t try to run again, for your sake.” He snapped his head forward as somebody said something in the doorless room. Coal couldn’t make out the words and assumed it was as good an opportunity as it got. He just crouched slightly for a quick take–off when the wall the guard was leaning against exploded. Coal froze as the pegasus’s body was threw against the opposite wall in a burst of dust with a painful thud and slumped to the ground, leaving a mark on the wall. Wincing, he stood up, spread his wings preparing for an attack, which came in an unexpected form.
The first beam of white magic hit his armored chest and the second the wall behind him, just missing his head. The armor took up the blast which left a black spot on the material, saving the pony. He clenched his teeth and leaped forward, using his wings to propel him. The dust made it hard to make out what happened next, but the sound of a metallic object hitting a pony’s head was unmistakable. Coal stood as a statue, his plan all but forgotten. The sound was followed by hoofsteps and Silver emerged from the dust. His blue mane was ragged and covered in fine dust and he looked tired but he had his usual, confident smile on. His expression changed into a questioning one as he saw Coal in his ready-to-sprint stance.
“What's wrong, Coal? Was I that scary?”
Coal stood up. "Thank goodness... Where were you? What have you done with the guards?”
“I was working on getting you out of here. I, uhm…” He looked back at the hole in the wall. “I might've gone a little over the top, I admit, but here I am, here you are, and our escape is there, behind just one door. Ready for more running?”
“If we have to… I hope you didn’t hurt this pegasus too bad, though. I wouldn’t want him to be…”
Silver poked the pegasus with a hind hoof. “He’s gonna be fine, don’t worry, but I had to put him out to get to you. Not my most elaborate work, but effective. Now come on, we don’t have all day.”
Coal would have protested, but the sound of running above made him put his complaints away for later. He merely nodded and the two of them ran through the corridor Coal and the guard just walked. Nearing the emergency door Coal tried to tell Silver that it wouldn’t open, but he didn’t count with the unicorn’s brute magical force. The blast snapped the metal door open and sent the garbage can behind it flying across the alley it opened to, scattering old garbage to the ground. Coal followed Silver as he took a sharp right and they galloped away from the train station. If they weren’t before, they were surely marked as criminals by now.
***
Could there be healing enchantments in the gems, from which she has been absorbing power in the last two days or so? Their glow seemed to get softer with every hour and she felt increasingly better. The dogs hadn't given her fresh and most of all enough food to gain enough strength from. Of course, she couldn't judge her magical strength from the ring on her horn which was installed while she was asleep, and has been on since then. What she could tell was that her legs were willing to support her without much problem and her head was almost completely clear of the heavy fog that had made her thoughts so sluggish. The scars still stung, especially when dust or a piece of hay got into them and her coat was still a mere sketch of what it had been in the past, but she felt better in it altogether.
Twilight reached out and touched a hoof to one of the gemstones, feeling a faint rush of magic once again before the sensation faded away. She felt homesick, she yearned after the open skies of her village and the comforting closeness of familiar magical currents in the air a simple thought away, the warmth of the sun and the cold of the rain, the comfort of having ponies around to depend on and gather strength from. A frown crossed her dry lips as she thought of those, whom were her friends and companions until an alien force corrupted them to turn against their very essences, their elements and their mutual bond.
She turned to look at a flat portion of the floor which she had cleared from hay and rocks and had hinted with dust, creating an impromptu drawing board. She sat down and resumed drawing shapes, her hoof moving on her own accord, casting its own images while her mind drifted away from her dry reality in the small cell, deep in the earth, surrounded by unyielding rock and revolting creatures.
The flicker of the candlelight made her look up and about to see a pair of black eyes staring at her across the iron bars which separated her from the narrow corridor running outside of her cage. The eyes traveled up and down at her body, the face showing compassion.
"You look better," the diamond dog, who usually brought her food, said in the voice of a person who cared once. "Those things help, don't they?"
Twilight glanced at the gemstones and turned to face the dog who she came to think of as a nurse, even though in reality, she was no more than another dog who kept her from her freedom. "Yes, they do, but they're getting weaker, I think. The glow's fading."
"They are. I can't bring you new ones just yet. We're out at the moment." The dog never told her where they got the magical stones and she never dared to ask. "I can get you another candle, though."
"I'm fine, thank you. I'm just a little hungry."
The diamond dog scowled. "You ponies always are, but with that I can't help. It's not me who sets the amount."
The pony nodded. There were no real intentions behind her requests towards the dog, but it was nice having a relatively friendly conversation.
The dog held her torch closer and checked the lock on the cell door. She flashed a vaguely apologetic smile at the pony inside then walked away on lazy steps, leaving the cell to the lone candle's light.
She turned away from the small flame and her eyes began tracing the wobbling shapes beside her, the shadows of her form cast on the wall by the light source. She flapped her tail to flicker the flame, making the shadows dancing on the ground and walls before returning to stillness. She knew she had to be cautious not to blow out the candle since she had no way of relighting it, and the dog nurse only came twice a day. Or sleep-wake cycle, to be a little more precise.
She sat down again and watched as the shadow of her horn fell on a particularly round rock, almost perfectly. She moved her head, so the tip covered the center of it, then flicked her tail and the shadow oscillated around the rock, always returning to its initial spot. Her tail moved back and forth, making the dance erratic, it's strangely hypnotic effect grabbed her mind and but also let it soar from thought to thought in a trance. Until the light was gone.
The darkness claimed her in a blink of an eye. It took her a second or two to realize what happened, then the warmth drained from his head to form an icy block in her stomach. She looked around but only saw the three gemstones' faint glow, her nostrils filled with the scent of burned cotton of the remains of the candle.
"Don't worry, I got it!"
Her ears shot up and she let out a quiet yelp at the hushed voice, coming from behind her. Hoofsteps rushed away and she spun around, but there was nothing there. Her eyes adjusted somewhat and she could see the contours of the bars in the green light of the gems, a sickly green shade instead of the usual warm orange. She wondered if the voice had been created merely by her own mind, overworking in the sudden dark. She got up and sat close to the glowing stones, rebuking herself for being so careless when she knew the possible consequences.
The hoofsteps came back, reassuring her of their existence and their sound was accompanied by the light of a small flame. She looked at the candle, similar to her own, floating in a field of emerald levitation magic, its light reflecting from two large pony eyes fixed on her.
Her ears flattened to her skull, her wing muscles tightened and she took up a low standing stance instinctively at the sight of the fellow equine, emotions rushing past her. Joy and excitement echoed as a quiet squeal in her mouth as a failed attempt at vocalizing themselves as words, then fear numbed every other attempts to speak.
The candle floated across the bars and touched her own, dead one.
"There," the unknown pony said. "It's lit."
The two flames illuminated the chamber again, providing her with a better view of the stranger. She looked like a female unicorn with wavy pink mane that hung oily just like hers. The rest of her was in shadows, but she suspected her physical condition was similar to her own.
The pony furrowed her bows as she eyed the nervous pony in the cellar. "Hey, don't worry, it's okay." She quickly retracted the candle. "Try take care better next time. Sturly doesn't always leave my door open."
The lavender mare closed what remained of her wings and took a step closer to the bars. It was an actual, living pony, down here with her! The implications swirled and new possibilities formed regarding the future in light of the new development.
The pink maned pony cocked her head and twitched her ears. "You don't look so good. Do you bite? Can you speak?" She must have noticed the ring, because her eyes widened a little. "Ohh... You can do magic the dogs are afraid of... That's cool! But... there's something on your back. Is that normal?"
Twilight found her voice. "Who're you?"
The mare outside the bars rolled her eyes. "Always with the formalities. All right... I'm Crimson Flares, pleased to meet you. But now..." She squeezed her muzzle between the bars. "You're the interesting one. When did you get here?"
Twilight looked at her confused. "I'm Twilight Sparkle... And I don't really know. A day, maybe."
The filly raised an eyebrow then shook her head. To do so, she pulled herself back, much to Twilight's relief. The smell of the pony's mouth was appalling. "No, I know how long you've been here. I meant the cave system of the clawers. I hear things now and then, and there was something about a new resident. Is that you?"
"I guess so... Though not sure about the time, but I think months, or longer. I couldn't keep track of the time." She wanted to ask what a clawer was, but she was afraid it was some scary creature which she had yet to meet.
Crimson Flares snorted. "That's nothing. I've been here my whole life." She sat down and eyed Twilight some more. "What brought you here?"
The lavender unicorn retraced the last days. "I had to perform a special spell to the diamond dogs. It was more exhausting than back home so I overstrained myself and blacked out. Next time I woke up, I was in this place."
"Was it the gem spell?"
"The what...? Oh, yes. I guess...."
The stranger nodded and looked behind Twilight in remembrance. "That is a hard one. What's strange, are those glowing ones you have there."
"These? Why?"
"'Cause they only give them to the valuable ponies." Her eyes lit up. "So that's why you have a ring! You did the spell, right?"
Twilight nodded. "Several times. I lost count after the first thirty or so." She frowned. "And I managed to drain myself. These gems might have given back some of my magic, but I can't righty tell."
"No way."
"I'm sorry?"
"No way," Crimson repeated. "You can't be that strong. Even I couldn't do more than fifteen."
Twilight looked at her. She had the feeling she was supposed to know a lot more to follow the conversation properly. "Listen, uh, Crimson, I think I missed something. What are you doing here? How can you walk around at all? Aren't you supposed to be locked up as well?"
The pink unicorn nodded. "I am, but Sturly lets me out sometimes. She knows I won't make trouble. But you didn't tell me how you could do so many."
"I'm just good with magic, I guess. It's my special talent." She wanted to show her cutie mark to the filly but remembered how bad in a shape it was, barely recognizable.
Crimson Flares eyed Twilight's body again, with unmasked curiosity. Twilight found herself trying to be smaller in the stare of the weird stranger. "There must be something else. I was always the best in that stuff."
"What do you mean by that? Why was the spell so difficult? I remember doing much harder thing in my life, why was it so... Alien?"
The pony looked at her, her head cocked to the side. "What do you mean? It was always like that."
"But... it was dark magic! I've been living in Equestria my whole life and dark magic was never present excluding certain places and ponies! I know, because I helped clear them away!"
"Equestria?" She said that word with a taste of a long forgotten memory, the topic of magic seemingly forgotten. "As in... Where Princess Celestia lives?"
"Yes, of course..." Twilight trailed off as she saw her expression. "Why?"
The pony grimaced as if trying to remember an old thing from the past. "My mom used to tell me about Equestria." Her voice took on a nostalgic tone. "She said it was our real home, where Dad was waiting for us."
Twilight didn't interrupt the filly's moment.
"She said it had flying ponies, I remember her telling me they were called pegasi. I still think that was just her being sick from the bad food, though, because it was just too silly. And ponies without horns, too, and ponies with both horns and wings!" She looked at Twilight again. "You said it like... A matter of fact."
A short silence passed while Twilight was thinking of something to say. "Because it is a fact. What your mom told you, it's true." The pony's earlier sentence came to her mind. "Did you say, you were born down here?"
“Yes,” Crimson said, uncertain.
“Then you didn't even see the real world.” The meaning of that hit Twilight as she said it, and she went pale. “Oh my gosh...”
The pony blinked at her distress. “What do you mean, real world? Above the surface?”
“Exactly! This isn't nearly the real deal. This is only a prison. Equestria, the whole world is much more than this. You have truly never...” She felt awful for the filly. She herself was miserable, but this poor thing didn't even know what she was losing with each passing day. “I'm so sorry.”
Crimson Flares shrugged. “I don't know about you, but from what I heard from mom, it can't be that good. I mean, if there was a so-powerful ruler up there, why doesn't she come and free us? It's not like the clawers are that strong.”
Twilight opened her mouth to answer, but thought better of it. What had happened between her and Celestia could explain why the Goddess ignored her, but this pony didn't need to hear about her failure. “She's probably busy.” Even she cringed at that. “I mean… I doubt she even knows where we are. But she really exists, I can assure you, and she's done many great things."
The pony waved a hoof. “Whatever, I've heard enough stories from the dogs to know they can't be all true. But you still didn't tell me why you are better than me.”
“Right.” Twilight resumed to the previous topic. “I sensed an awful lot of dark magic in the air, and since the average pony doesn't encounter dark magic her whole life I have the advantage of experience and I'm being able to work with it. That's probably why I did better than you.”
“Dark magic?" Crimson Flares tasted the words. “What do you mean?”
The question reminded Twilight what the pony said earlier again. It looked like she wasn't quite up to speed as she had thought after all. The filly spent her whole life in this place, of course she got used to the strange magic that lingered there. She tried to think of a way to explain it to her. “Magic, at least where I came from, differs from what I experienced here. Back home it's much more stable and easier to work with, thanks to princess Celestia's magical protection over the land. She helps...” Her voice cracked at the thought of her own doubts. “Ahem… She helps the ponies to use magic with ease. Even foals of very young ages can cast levitation and illumination spells on their own, while I doubt that the same can be said about this place.” She realized her voice was taking on the usual lecturing tone and she smiled sheepishly. The pony, however, wasn't moved by it at all.
“Aha. That sounds fucked up.”
The word hit Twilight as a physical blow. “Excuse me?!”
Crimson shrugged. “What I meant. It's messed up. Nobody can control the world that much. Do you really believe that?”
“Of… Of course! It's all in the books! It's all over the place! If you were to see it, you'd believe it too.”
“Sure. Except I never get out. Trust me, I tried. Couldn't even get to the big gates.”
Their ears perked at the sound of a door creaking open and Crimson Flares almost killed her candle's flame as she spun around. "Sturly is coming.” She grinned at the purple unicorn, who stared back at her, still in shock. “Gotta talk to you later, though. You're interesting.” She swiftly left, as never having been there. Twilight tried to follow her with her eyes but the dancing light in the corridor was barely visible as the tunnel curved slightly. It disappeared and the silent darkness outside of her candle's range made her question the reality of the events during the last few minutes. Her reverie broke when the diamond dog, Sturly stomped through the corridor to take a long look into her cell. A torch held in his paw let her take a look on her claws. They were ugly and long and dirty, in resemblance of their owner. Just like... Oh. So that's what clawers meant.
The dog left without a single word, taking her torch and claws with her. Twilight put a hoof to the glowing gems again and the touch felt a bit cold but it still sent a faint sense of warm through her foreleg. A whole life in this pit must be terrible.
The chariot station was near the very edge of the plateau the city of Canterlot was built on. Outside the city walls the side of the mountain stared dropping slowly first, then it quickly became a dead-drop of hundreds of feet. The only road carved in the hillside leading down was just safe enough for a pony-pulled cart and was constantly watched by guards, although not from the royal circles. The unfortunate troops who ended up out there didn’t have the training or discipline of the royal pegasi of the downtown area and were willing to close their eyes for a few seconds when given a hefty pouch. At least that was the genera assumption.
Silver nudged Coal who almost stopped gazing at the pair of familiarly brown earth ponies in strangely neat armor strolling by. They barely gave him a glance as they walked lazily, the metal of their armor reflecting the sunlight. As they passed several other pedestrians looked after them as well then snapped their gazes away. Coal turned forward and picked up his pace to catch up with Silver.
When they had first saw a guard Silver pulled Coal into the shadows but the two guards ignored them completely. The second time Silver let the ponies walk past them and got similar results. Since then, he was leading Coal through the streets just as fast as before, slipping between walls and pedestrians with practiced ease. Occasionally he corrected their route but their general direction remained west. Coal wanted to ask things from the unicorn but he dictated a pace too fast for conversation and the whole atmosphere of this part of the city told Coal to remain silent until they reached a safe place, whatever that might be. He guessed the chariot station they were headed for was not one.
The building which housed the station could have used a good makeover, but it at least matched the rest of the buildings around in means of maintenance. It looked nothing like the one they escaped from an hour or so ago, and the shady looking figures negotiating with each other didn’t help Coal to trust the place. He tugged at Silver’s tail.
“Is this the place you wanted to come?” He didn’t realize he was whispering until he finished speaking. The unicorn raised an eyebrow.
“Don’t you like it?” He made no effort keeping his voice low. “You gotta get used to places like these if you plan to leave the big city. Not everything in Equestria is shiny clean.”
Coal looked behind the unicorn as a pegasus stallion raised his voice to another who in turn tried to punch him. The first fluttered out from reach effortlessly and left with a growl, leaving the other cursing. “I leave the talking to you,” Coal told Silver.
Silver’s smile was just a little tense. “Don’t worry. I don’t plan staying here longer than necessary.” He started to move but looked back one more time. “Stop ogling them. They will think you want their good luck charms or to make trouble or something. Keep an eye open in case someone tries to get behind us, but don’t provoke anyone. And give me your pouch.”
Coal hesitated, but a stern look from the unicorn convinced him to do as asked. He followed Silver to a desk with small labels on it, bearing names of places with surprisingly low prices. Silver leaned against the desk with practiced causality, but pushed himself away just after a few exchanged words that were too low for Coal to make out. He motioned the earth pony to follow him then moved to the next desk.
While waiting, Coal took a careful look around and the rough looking stallions and mares were indeed carrying small gemstones embedded in their belts or vowed in vests and other clothing. It reminded Coal that they were still in Canterlot, whose citizens often thought they were above the ponies of the rest of the country, yet believed in all kinds of superstitions.
That reminded him to the words he had said to Starry, to come and see Coal in the perimeter chariot station. He had told her that they will be there but seeing the place, he started wishing the filly wasn’t going to show up. He will have to find another way to see her.
At the third table Silver finally spotted a good deal, apparently, because Coal’s pouch landed on the table then returned to Silver’s pocket noticeably thinner. Coal followed the unicorn and a dirty earth pony through the big building’s ground floor. Coal gulped as he looked around in the gloomy interior, busy with ponies all over the place. The other side was a wide open area with benches, shelves and barrels forming big rows that were occupied by chariots of various sizes and other wheeled contraptions. Their ride led Silver and Coal to a small two-wheeled cart, very similar to what they visited Ponyville with, except this one didn’t have a roof or padded seats. It seemed to be in good enough condition, even though it obviously wasn’t made the day before.
“This here is my darling,” the puller pony said in a voice Coal totally expected from him. “Been even to the Badlands with her, though I had to change a few part after that.” He tapped on the side panel which looked less worn than the rest. “It will get you to the bottom with no problem.”
“Excellent,” Silver said. “We’re ready when you are, Roug.”
“Hop on then,” the pony showed a chipped-toothed grin. “Gonna grab a bottle then off we go.” He trotted away to where a pony was packing bottles of dark liquid from a chariot.
Silver probed the cart then climbed up and looked down on Coal. “Come on. This is as good as it gets. At least for this price.”
Coal let Silver take is bag then climbed up next to him. The cart didn’t seem to have any sort of springs connecting the wheels to the body of the cart. This was going to be a rocky ride.
“How much did we pay for this?” He asked the unicorn, as the puller pony returned with a bottle in one pocket. He took a swig then began putting the harness on. “I’m gonna need the fuel.” He grinned back at them. “The hills are rocky this season.”
Silver met Coal’s eyes and smirked. “Funny fella, aint’ he? But to answer your question, I paid two hundred for him to get us to the bottom, where we will have a connection to… the next town, hopefully.”
Coal gaped. “Two hundred? We could get our own cart for that!”
Roug, who just finished with the straps looked back. “And who’s gonna pull it? You?”
“Maybe, yes.” Coal said, desperate at the loss of his hard-earned money. “This is ridiculous. Even the train would’ve been better.”
Silver shook his head dismissively. “Either we pay or we hoof it through the canyon and probably get lost or fall off a cliff, and we’d discussed the train already. We’ll find a way to get more money, I promise.”
After their puller pony exchanged some words with others they pulled out of the rows of barrels and headed for the gates in the city wall. After a short while several other chariots joined them, most of them carrying cargo, some of them ponies. They slowly formed into two rows, as if being one big caravan. Upon reaching the gates they stopped while the guards talked with the first two ponies in the rows then stepped aside, letting the whole bunch go. As their cart passed them Coal saw the guards inspecting a pouch which shone suspiciously. He shook his head in disbelief then leaned back in the hard seat and pulled his bag closer to himself.
The road twisted around a boulder which blocked the sight from the gate then split into three different paths, two continuing ahead and one to the left, towards the edge of the mountain and down. Their cart took the third route along with three others while the rest went on the way back around Canterlot. Coal could get only one glimpse of the distant towers of the royal castle before his view was blocked completely. They successfully left Canterlot. Now they had to find the rest of their way to Cloud Cover, then Ponyville, then… Whatever faith had planned for them.
***
Coal watched Silver’s radiant blue main flapping in the wind as their cart made good pace along the narrow path leading downwards, having left the others behind. The unicorn’s face reflected serious determination. Inside that head were probably answers to a lot of things Coal didn’t understand but was sure Silver did, but when Coal had made an effort the unicorn had revealed only part of it then steered the subject elsewhere. Coal still didn’t know why the unicorn left the station and insisted on Coal to follow him and hide from the guards, who showed no sign of realizing who Coal was. They apparently wanted to get Silver only. What Silver had sad to him in the restaurant still haunted him but the shock value was starting to wear off. His doubts returned as soon as he had time to think, and he couldn’t leave the idea alone. This was starting to feel a lot like Silver’s story in which Coal was a mere sidekick.
Silver noticed the other’s eyes on him and his mouth pulled into a smirk. “What’s on your mind, Coal?”
The earth pony turned his eyes forward. “Nothing in particular…”
Silver shifted in his seat so he was half-turned to Coal. “Come on. Nothing what happened today made an impression on you?”
Coal met the other’s eyes. “Well, there were some things…”
“Like what?”
Coal hesitated a few seconds. “Like when the guards started chasing us and you disappeared, and…” He wasn’t sure how to word his thoughts, but the unicorn understood the pause.
“Yeah, I’m sorry I scared you there. I had to improvise and I didn’t have time to fill you in. I teleported behind the guards and prodded them with a spell, so they would go after me. I know the layout of the building quite well and I was sure I could outmaneuver them or fight them if I had to, which I did, but it was over quickly. Then I went to look for you, sneaked up to your guard, and almost missed because the others started moving above. I figured it was time for boldness and blasted through the wall to get you out as quickly as I could. I was hoping they would stop for the knocked-out fellow and I think I was right, since nobody bothered us since.”
Coal nodded. “Thanks, I really did think you left me for a moment. I was a little scared back there. And there was a thing with the guard that found me.”
“What was it? Did he hurt you?”
“No, he just, uhm… asked things. About you. And nothing about me.” He looked at the unicorn. “He said nothing about me, or the library, or books, or anything. He acted like I was only a random pony associated with Silver Beam, nothing more.”
“And that’s a bad thing?”
Coal let the comment slide. “He asked why I was running from them, then he asked if I knew you and to other ponies who I’ve never heard about. And he said their names like… Like reading them from a wanted poster. Now, I’m not so surprised yours was among them, but I still don’t understand why I wasn’t on that list. Not that I want to be, but…” He trailed off again.
The unicorn was silent for a moment. “I don’t know the answer to that, I’m afraid. I can only assume he didn’t know who you were supposed to be because they just arrived from a field trip, escorting that chariot. If they could have taken you back to the guard station they’d have discovered your identity for sure.” He smiled. “Don’t worry, what we plan to do will put you in that list soon enough.”
“Let’s hope it won’t come to that.”
“It won’t?” Silver arched an eyebrow. “Do you realize that we want to…” He glanced at the puller pony’s ears and lowered his voice, even though it was unlikely the pony would be able to understand their word over the noise of the wheels. “…we want to break into a restricted area, right in front of the noses of an investigation team working on the station? Do you think that’s not gonna stir up any mud in the water?”
“If you put it like that…” Coal really didn’t think about it that way. The idea still felt too unreal. “I assume that would do the trick.”
Silver shook his head. “If you commit yourself to break the law, you can’t jump out in the middle. You must see it through and in the end, you might just come out as the good guy.”
Coal smirked. “That sounds a lot like experience.”
Silver grinned. “Because it is.” He enjoyed Coal’s reaction for a minute. “Was there anything else on your mind?”
“Well…” Coal recovered from the answer from the unicorn which, in hindsight, he knew he should have expected. “I still don’t understand why you came after me and how did you find me in Canterlot. I never told you where I lived.”
Silver waved a hoof. “Simple. I knew you were into books and stuff and I started at the heaven for those kind of ponies, the biggest library in Canterlot. I asked around and some of them there remembered you. One of the librarians even offered to tell you about me the next time you came around, but I declined her offer. I wanted so surprise you, but in the end, it didn’t play out the way I wanted. I needed to get you out of there sooner than expected and not bring suspicion over myself. And for the why, it’s because I‘d told you I wanted to come, back at the station. It’s sort of meshes what I wanted to do anyway, and your little mystery intrigued me. Does that satisfy you?”
That was still a little vague, but it was going to have to do. Coal nodded and looked back over his shoulder, where the towers of the city should have been able to be seen, if they weren’t obstructed by the mountain’s side. He was sorry Starry didn’t make it to the place before they left, but thinking back what he had said to her, it would have to be a miracle if she did so. There must have been dozens of perimeter chariot stations in Canterlot, and the one they used was probably not high on the list she was happy to visit. But blind luck had brought them back together once. Maybe it would do so again.
Silver’s words echoed in his mind and he turned back. “What do you want to do?”
“With what?”
“You said our goals mesh. What are yours?”
“Oh…” Silver hesitated. “I just want to get back at the ponies who conspirated against me and to do so, I need evidence, which I hope a friend of mine will be able to provide. Once I clear my name I can get on with my life, as usual. In the meantime, I want to enjoy your company and see the resolution of the mystery of the storages. They’re connected to my career in a way.”
“How so?”
The unicorn shrugged. “They can make life so much easier once you learn how to use them, and I did.”
“Do you mean those things that killed hundreds of ponies?”
“Er… Kind of. Not exactly. That happened long ago, and we have come a long way in terms of safety since then. What you saw at the station was a rare exception, and even that was caused by tinkering. If the government would be willing to give the storages another shot we could come out with the improved ones and show them it’s not a lost cause.”
“They’d have to admit that they were wrong, though.”
“Happens more often that you think, but you’re right. Legalizing the storages again would be a major announcement with mostly unforeseeable consequences. I don’t believe they don’t know the quarter of companies still use them under the rug and I bet some of them are in Canterlot, too. Coming out would be admitting they knew but didn’t do anything about it. Can you see any of the Princesses doing that?”
Coal shook his head. “No, not really, though I’m not into current politics.”
“You realize they’ve been ruling for a while now, right?”
Coal blushed. “Yes… But that’s not the same. You have to see the whole picture, not only two ponies. Or one, considering a rather big timeframe. They always acted in light of the world’s current state. Something common today would have been impossible two hundred years ago.”
Silver nodded. “By that logic, do you see a chance for my cause?”
“The storages? Not in our lifetime. These things need time. Except…”
Silver raised an eyebrow. “Except what?”
Coal shuddered. “War. It always rewrites everything.”
“Oh. Right.”
They sat in relative silence, listening to the rattling of the ride, until Silver spoke again.
“Any other way?”
Coal shrugged, picking up the dropped trail of the conversation. “An internal force in the government itself can do powerful things. Princess Luna’s banishment wasn’t without consequences, though it wasn’t a hundred percent an internal conflict. Do you see what I mean? You’d have to start the change from inside.”
Silver stretched his front legs before him. “All right, then. When do we start?”
Coal blinked. “Start what?”
“Overthrowing the princesses, of course!” Silver grinned and nudged the earth pony in the side. “I’ll keep you as an advisor. We sneak in, earn their trust then push them off their thrones. Would you like a room in the castle facing west or east?”
“South, please,” Coal smiled. “As in the whole plan would go south, if you tried.”
Silver grinned. “That’s the spirit! I knew you still had your humor bone.”
Coal nodded and watched the cliff side rolling by as they continues their way towards the bottom. It was weird how fast Silver was changing the mood of their conversations.
They rode without a word for some time, Coal watching the scenery as much as it was and Silver inspecting his hooves, his seat and the wood of the side panel. He probably wasn’t one to sit in one place for hours. After an hour or so he turned to Coal.
“Do you need to get off for a minute?”
Coal fidgeted in the hard seat. "Now you mention it, a break would be nice."
"Okay, then." Silver leaned forward to address the puller pony. "Would you mind stopping for a minute?"
The cart immediately slowed down then halted next to a pile of rocks. Silver jumped off the seat and disappeared behind some bushes.
Roug detached himself from the harness. "That's not a bad idea, mate," he mumbled as he stretched his legs. "Are you having a pleasant ride?" he asked Coal who stepped on the ground too.
"It's all right..."
Roug pulled the flask out again and after taking a sip he motioned wit it to Coal. "Care for a taste?"
Coal sniffed at the content and grimaced. "No, thanks. I'm good."
The puller pony shook his head. “You’re missing out on first class stuff.” He looked at Silver who just emerged from his puddle-making business. “Do you want some?”
Silver took hold of the flask and held it to his nose then to his mouth. “Not bad,” he said with a grimace and floated it back. “Did you try it, Coal?”
“No, I didn’t. I think it’s too dense for me.”
Roug winked at the unicorn. “You gotta train the kid, mate.” He pocketed the drink and trotted toward Silver’s bush. “Just a second.”
“Take your time,” Silver said then as soon as the pony was out of sight he went to the cart and waved his horn over the cart. Coal stepped closer, curious. “What are you doing?”
“Working on getting a compensation,” Silver said as he scanned the small chariot with his magic. “I’m certain he has something valuable stuffed in somewhere.”
“Valuable? What do you mean?”
Silver squinted as he concentrated. “You should have tried the drink. It wasn’t as bad as it smelled. Oh, that’s it…” He ended the spell and crouched down to peer under the bottom. Coal looked at Roug’s shadow which was stationary for the moment and took another step closer to Silver. “Silver, what are you doing? What if he sees you? What are you even trying to do?”
“He probably hid it in here somewhere… Wait… Yes.” Silver quickly stood up, smiling, offering no explanation.
Roug returned. “Hop on, fellas,” he said as he looked them over then reattached the harness. “The trip’s not over yet.”
They were on the move short after and Coal used the noise to hide his words from Roug while he leaned close to the unicorn. “What are you up to?”
Silver pointed at the puller pony. “Do you remember how much we paid for this trip?”
“Two hundred,” Coal frowned. “If you ask me-“
Silver held up a hoof. “What do you think it’s really worth?”
Coal shrugged. “A lot less, I assume.”
“That’s right. And that’s what I meant by compensation.”
“The stuff under the… “Coal gasped softly. “Do you want to rob him? Take his good luck charms?”
Silver winked and his horn flared with magic. “We’re gonna be even. Just don’t tell him.”
Coal furrowed his brow. “You want to steal from a stranger because you didn’t like his price.”
“He robbed us first," Silver said. “I’m just doing it more covertly.”
Coal watched with mixed emotions as a small wooden box floated between them from the back. Inside there were a few gemstones, bracelets and necklaces, each in its velvet nest. Quite a little fortune, from the looks of it. Silver choose a bracelet and few gems and returned the box to where it came from.
“Just like that?” Coal whispered then repeated it louder when the other didn’t react.
“Why, what did you expect? I don’t want to wait until he looks back at us and sees his treasure sitting in our lap. It’s bad enough you resisted the drink he offered. It was a way to see if he can trust you.”
“It was? I thought he was just being polite.”
“It’s a trick to spot inexperienced people. Make them do something unpleasant under the cover of courtesy and if they resist, as they would be expected to do, you know they can’t be trusted too much and can also be tricked into paying more. Remember it next time, when you found yourself in a similar situation.”
“Huh.” The complex system of dealing with stranger just got even more complicated. “Thanks for that.”
“No problem.“ Silver leaned forward. “I hope you don’t mind…” He put the stolen item into Coal’s saddlebags. The earth pony opened his mouth to protest, but thought better of it. He won’t be able to convince Silver to undo the theft and he couldn’t tell the puller pony about it either, unless he wanted to anger Silver and bring more trouble on their heads, so he held back the complaints. It was logical, to a degree, but was still wrong.
Silver apparently saw his doubts appear on his face because he leaned closer. “Look, we’re going to need all the money we can get. I understand your concerns but trust me on this sort of things. I didn’t take all of it and I didn’t do it because I’m greedy, but because without money we won't get far. He won’t notice what happened before we’re far away and he won’t have anything to pin it on us.”
“But why didn’t you just take some bits? That way we can leave his personal things alone.”
Silver shook his head. “It’s not that easy. He keeps every coin close to him for that exact reason. I can’t get to them without alerting him, and that would result in he leaving us out here and probably more notoriety on our heads which we really don’t need right now.” He held a hoof to his chin, thinking. “Think about it this way. How, do you think, did he get those bracelets and gems in the first place? He either stole them or bought them with money he took from passengers he smuggled out of Canterlot.”
“You can’t know that,” Coal protested, though only half-heartedly. He felt convinced this was the best course of action, given the circumstances, but Silver seemed in the roll and Coal was curious what else the unicorn had in his pouch of reasons.
“You’re right," Silver said, “I can’t know for sure, but does it make a difference? Besides, we don’t want to spend the money for selfish reasons... Or not entirely selfish reasons. Solving this problem would be beneficial for everybody involved.”
Coal nodded and lifted his gaze to the side of the mountain. He didn’t even consider the long-term effects. What Silver said hang on a single hair but it was a probability. He turned to the unicorn. “Aren’t you afraid he’ll discover the missing gems before we arrive?”
Silver grinned broadly in his triumph. “Good thinking, but you don’t need to worry. He’ll leave them alone during the trip. Checking on them supposedly disturbs their powers.”
“What a comfortable coincidence.”
Silver shrugged. “They’re no fools, but no geniuses either. He will probably make comments on them to see how we react, especially you. You’ll need to keep your cool. If he decides to open the box, we’re in trouble.”
“We can run.”
“Getting cocky? Yes, we can run, but word travels fast. I want to stay low if I can help it. Within reason, of course.”
They cornered a giant boulder and the midday sun light up the way they were about to continue descending. Roug stopped to get a few deep breaths, looking back on his passengers with a grin that made Coal shiver. The pony actually looked forward to the slope stretching before them.
“You’ll want to hold on to your hooves. We’ll stop a lot to let the brakes cool down, but they weren’t made yesterday and don’t grip so good, so it’s up to my ol’ kickers to do the job and the cart tends to sway a lot when that happens. Don’t lean over, don’t stand in your seats, and don’t vomit on each other.” He kicked a lever and something clicked beneath Coal. He looked at Silver.
“He uses brakes to counter our momentum while going downhill, I think," the unicorn offered. They started rolling, and Coal gulped at the number of curves along the way.
“That’s right,” the puller pony called back. “It’s like what the train uses on the other side, only smaller. Don’t worry if you smell something burning, it’s just the leather parts. I can swap those out in a jiffy.” They started on the slope and Coal heard a sound, like when one pushes a drawer across a wooden floor, but the brakes did seem to work. Their speed increased compared to the previous parts of the road, but Roug held the cart in the right direction.
They passed several corners where Coal was sure they would slip off the rather narrow road but the pony who made a living of doing this very think knew what he was doing. When they stopped for a few seconds he could smell the burned leather of the overheated brakes but Roug insisted keeping them as long as they could. He didn’t change his mind even when they crossed a hillside with long scratches in its site, pointing forward and down, evidence of a chariot not making it. Coal shivered as he thought of the fate of the ponies onboard and gripped the edge of the seat tighter, as if that’d make a difference if Roug miscalculated their speed. Even Silver looked on edge.
Finally, they reached a wide area where the ground was relatively flat with small buildings standing in a row. Two other groups were resting and chatting with one another as the puller ponies worked on the carts.
Roug pulled over and skidded to a halt, at a good distance from the others. “Stretch your legs, lads, we’re taking a break. Quite literally.” He chuckled and released himself from the harness. “My old straps need some changin’.”
Coal gladly left his seat of torture, flinging his bags across his back. His whole body ached from the rocky ride, especially his flanks but his legs weren’t spared either, having had holding onto the seat in order not to fall off. He took a look around while Silver hopped off on the other side and watching Roug as he opened a compartment built in the back of the cart. He pulled out some tools and a rolled up something, which Coal guessed was the spare leather. Silver watched intently, focused on how the system worked. Further away one of the chariot finished and the ponies were loading up, laughing and talking all the way, like the journey the were about to continue on was merely a tourist route. The pulled out and the sun reflected from the big metal springs underneath. Coal grunted. He wished for something like that on their ride.
He turned to look at the small buildings in a row. They seemed barely big enough to hold one pony in sitting position, probably while taking a…
“They’re outhouses,” a voice said behind him. Coal turned to see a pony from the other group. The stallion flicked his hat and pointed at the facilities. “Get it? Because they’re houses out here?”
Coal blinked. Somebody grunted in pain.
“All right, I get it. Not my best one. Hey, where’re you headed on that piece of crap? You’re gonna crash if you’re not careful.”
Coal looked at Roug, who merely shrugged. “Better that being an asshat and telling bad jokes. At least by clients won’t be brain-dead at the end of the road.”
The pony grimaced and adjusted his hat. “Yeah, because that’s better than dead clients who can’t pay.” He strolled over to their cart. “I bet it eats up straps like candy.”
“It ain’t, trust me,” Roug said. “I packed up with luck yesterday. Wanna see?”
Silver and Coal exchanged a look.
The pony with the hat turned up his nose. “Oh yeah? I dare you to open that box.”
“You first,” Roug said with a small smile. Maybe he even enjoyed the argument. “I bet you need a whole other wagon to carry them, ‘cause a small box won’t be enough to keep you safe.”
The pony grinded his teeth. “You watch your back on the way down.”
“Why? ‘Cause you want me to see as you crash spectacularly behind me?”
Coal chuckled and received a murderous look from the hat pony who scowled and trotted back to his cart. Roug shook his head and went back to work.
“I was afraid you will show him your charms,” Silver said cautiously.
“I’m not an idiot,” the puller pony said. “That prick wasn’t worth it.”
“How do they work, though? I saw them in Canterlot, but never heard what they do exactly.” Silver winked at Coal, who stared at him in return. Who was the one who said not to spook the pony?
“It goes like this,” Roug said, kicking a latch closed behind the wheel then stood up. “You pay for an enchanter to choose a proper combination for you then locks them in a box. You’re supposed to carry the box without peeking into it to where you want to go and back, and the magic stored in the combination helps you stay on the right road. Open it, and the magic flies away and you have to pay a fee if you want to enchant them again.”
“Really? That’s fascinating.” Silver smiled, looking a bit awkward. “I didn’t know you take it that seriously in Canterlot.”
“I’m not from Canterlot,” Roug said, popping the tools back into their places. He walked to the front of the cart and shot a glance towards the other group. “I was born elsewhere. Now hop on, I don’t want to get stuck behind that idiot.”
The pony with the hat scowled at them as they left the plateau and continues down on the road.
***
“…and that’s two hundred. It was my pleasure, gentlecolts. Remember me next time you’re in the need of a ride in or out!”
“Will do,” Silver assured Roug, who saluted them and disappeared into a service building with the pouch of money in his mouth. Coal and Silver turned and left the muddy area where carts were parked, having arrived or ready to depart to one of the numerous destinations across Equestria, including the western city gate on the top of the steep path. The three of them made the trip without significant problems, not counting a near slip on an unexpected stream of water across the road which turned the hillside into a muddy slide and a pair of diamond dogs hiking in the distance. The savage animals didn’t pay much attention to them, though Roug picked up his pace until they were out of sight. As he explained, numerous incidents were reported where carts and ponies were attacked by dogs on the slopes where the dogs had a clear advantage in their ability to climb on steep cliffs, even with heavy backpacks. Coal made extra sure the glimmer of his necklace didn’t show in his bags, even though it was safely wrapped in a towel and hadn’t seen sunlight since they left Coal’s apartment.
The small settlement at the base of the mountain included a building in which clients and haulers made deals, a place where broken chariots were being repaired and a diner where the travelers could get drinks for a price that made Coal make a double take. Nothing that cheap could be any good not to mention healthy. He wanted to get something fresh while they were unmoving and Silver let him take a look at the menu displayed on the outer wall of the bar. The earth pony was then assured they would get proper food once they reached Cloud Cover and made the deal with Silver’s associate.
“Will the town have a place where you can… dispose of your loot?”
Silver nodded. “I already know who I will turn to with that problem. It’ll be no trouble. But for now…” He quickly steep out of a way of a speeding cart. “We have to decide how we’re getting there. I suppose it’s not that far, so the cheapest option would be hoofing it.”
“That doesn’t sound too fast, though.”
“I agree, but with limited budget, I’m afraid we can’t afford too much by means of transportation. I’m sure I can get proper money for the gems but until then, I don’t want to spend if we don’t have to.”
“All right…” Coal followed the unicorn who crossed the street to the dealing building. “But you still gave Roug two hundred for that trip.”
“That’s because we didn’t have a choice there. We needed someone with the proper knowledge and experience in order to make the trip safely, and that costs money, but now, we can walk the rest of the way. After Cloud Cover, though, it’s paying again.”
“Are you sure the roads are safe for walking, though? I mean, there were diamond dogs on the way to Ponyville…”
Silver frowned, much to Coal’s dismay. “I’m not entirely positive, but a diamond dog is lesser a problem than getting lost or falling off a cliff, I’d say.” They reached the door of the main building, which was held open by a rock and Coal could see several dozen ponies inside. “Let me see if there’s something we can learn about the dangers in there. Follow me.”
The damp air made Coal frown. The building only had the front door and one window open, making the place both in need of fresh air and proper lighting. Silver hesitated a little before making his way to a booth.
“Hi,” he said to the mare behind it who would have been smiling, were they in Canterlot. “Can you recommend somebody who can tell us about the diamond dog situation around here?”
“He’s having dinner,“ the mare said. Her voice was tired. “Wait until he comes back. Booth nine.”
“Thanks,” Silver dropped a coin which the mare snatched up immediately and turned to Coal who stood awkwardly as ponies swirled around him. “Let’s try another one.”
“All right,” Coal muttered and fell behind. Silver visited two more booths before steering Coal out the door. He didn’t seem particularly satisfied.
“Three bits and nothing. Does no one want to earn money?”
“Why did you give each of them one?” Coal said. “They didn’t ask for it.”
“It’s customary. Everybody does it.” He held a hoof to his chin then lowered it after getting mud on his white coat. “At least we know there is something with the diamond dogs. None of the ponies I talked to asked what I meant by their presence.”
“That’s not a good thing, I take it. So, we’re getting a ride again?”
Silver frowned. “Seems like it... Okay, let’s go. There must be someone here who can help us.”
Turned out there was. Silver spent several minutes sitting and talking with a bulky pegasus, who was eating an enormous plate of fried hay, talking quietly to the intently listening Silver in the restaurant building. Coal was sitting across the table yet he had trouble understating their words in the ambient noise. His attention wandered to other customers, most of them travelers in groups but there was two or three who sat alone, each with their backs to the wall. They snatched away their gaze when meeting Coal’s and he tried to make out the faded poster on the wall across them instead. It has obviously been there for years and the dust and steam from deep fried food made the picture and the words difficult to make out in the dim lighting. He thought he could read words like “your” and “assistant” above the form of something big, but a word hit his ears and he turned back to Silver and the pegasus.
“…not just diamonds,” the pegasus was saying. “If they sniff you out, they will rip you apart to get to the stuff."
Silver said something illegible, to which the pegasus grunted. "That's right. As soon as you can." He took a mouthful of fries, and his words were lost to Coal. Silver looked troubled.
"All right," the unicorn said, looking at Coal. "Coal, could you check if they had burgers?" His eyes showed concern. "Get one too, if you want to."
Coal frowned, but got the message. He stood up and started walking to the counter, actually curious what food was served in a place like this. When he took a few steps his talent snatched his gaze to the side, at the old poster he noticed earlier. He mumbled an apology as he slipped between two desks to get a closer look, Silver and his companion momentarily forgotten.
The old image shoved a tall, box-like thing with a grinning unicorn mare standing beside it in an elegant dress, almost half the size of the box, presenting the thing to the public. The stylized text wrapped around the image and though heavily faded, he could now read it: "Your number one assistant!" There were smaller letters at the bottom but it was so dirty and torn Coal was unable to make sense of them. He looked closer at the object in the center. Though different in appearance, it reminded him of drawings and photographs of a similar device. Come to think of it, he had managed to get a look on some old advertisements in the Canterlot Library, even if they were much simpler than this one. It wasn’t even that long ago, maybe several weeks...? He saw a connection between the storages and Ponyville and that was his reason to go there. His attention was then steered elsewhere, but he never forgot what drove him to dig into the subject in the first place. His talent still reacted to the image before him, so apparently he was still on the same path. Maybe Twilight Sparkle was in the center of all this and he just had to find his way to her, if she was even still alive. But alicorns couldn’t die, could they?
"Can I help you?"
Coal jumped and spun around to see a wide-eyed waiter. The filly took a step back, nearly knocking the tray she was levitating into another guest's head in the process.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you..."
Coal waved a hoof, looking back at th poster for a second. "It's all right. I was lost in thought there."
"Okay, then. I, uhm, saw you standing there, just staring at that thing. I didn't mean to disturb you, I just didn't know..."
Coal smiled at the sweet filly. "It's okay, really. By the way..." He looked at the poster again. "Do you know what does this image is about?”
The waiter raised an eyebrow, uncertain. "That old thing? I have no idea. It's been here long before I got here. So, if everything’s all right, can I get you something?"
Coal glanced at Silver, who was still talking with the grim pegasus, his hind legs tapping his chair nervously. He said he needed time, Coal thought. He knew what he was doing. He got them this far.
"Do you have hay burgers?"
She nodded and he followed her to the counter where, after a short wait, a steaming burger was put in front of him, making him realize how hungry he was. While eating, he turned the poster over in his head. If it was an old advertisement about the storages it was a miracle it was still around, not to mention so close to Canterlot, why it was so hard to read, and why it didn’t mean anything to a filly who was born probably after the storages were outlawed. The government went great lengths to remove everything promoting the devices, but their efforts seemed more and more insufficient each day Coal learnt something about Silver, the station, the unicorn’s friends, and now this poster. It was part of national history and as such, it was almost impossible to erase.
***
It’s remarkable how a pony’s view of the world can lose it’s footing in isolation then threaten to collapse altogether at some simple questions from a stranger, whose intentions lay completely elsewhere. What the young filly, Crimson Flares, said to her had upset her to such a degree sleep was even more difficult than regularly. There were so many thing floating in a sea of doubt in her mind, she was lost in the waves of things contradicting one another. The world she had been torn out from was distant enough now that she could see it as an outsider, an indifferent party, able to ask thing her past self wouldn’t have even dared to consider. The role of her past mentor, the role of her friends as the Elements of Harmony, her role as a fellow ruler of Equestria, her role as an inventor, they all had been reasonably clear, if difficult. Each had a goal, a purpose.
The almost complete silence of the tunnels was broken only by a rare but steady drip of water far away, the occasional movement of a pony in another cell or a dog somewhere, the faint crackling of a torch on the wall and her own breathing as she lay on her side, staring at the grey contour of the bars at the opening of her cellar. There was not much to keep her mind occupied as it ran in circles, unstoppable. She couldn’t sleep, she felt restless after maybe two days of recovery and doing nothing. She would have been glad for this state but after she experienced dark magic, dogs who had spell sheets and another pony who had spent her whole life in the dark and wasn’t corrupted by the dark magic she must have been using exclusively to obey the dogs… The fact that the filly came to her, free from her cell, smiling and shrugging at the mention of one of the most dangerous forces on the world left her at uneasy. It didn’t fit in her understanding of how things usually worked, it went against what she had learnt in the past. She couldn’t let it go. It was something she was always looking for, it pushed the boundaries of what could be done with magic. Even if it wasn’t something that could help her get out and back to Equestria, if it wasn’t a revelation that would benefit her and the country, it was a question without an answer. The foundation of what the ponies stood for, what drove the world around the sun, what Celestia herself was, in essence.
She closed her eyes, blocking out even the faintest light. The exact things that had happened before she first woke up as a slave were still a mystery, but pieces were coming to her as she regained control over her own thoughts. She knew somebody did something horrible to her and so far it was obvious who the villain was but now, it was not that easy anymore. She was certain Celestia was the one who banisher her from her old life to be a specimen in an experiment, but what if it was not what happened? What if she was to find out it was she, Twilight, who had become the villain of the peace?
She felt horrible at the thought but the tiny amount of probability didn’t let her discard it at once. Even a negative answer was better than no answer.
Her thoughts turned to Crimson. It’s been a good several hours since she left in a hurry and since then, Twilight was alone. She hoped the filly would come back after Sturly was done checking the cells but apparently, the dog locked the filly’s door. How Crimson was able to talk the dogs into leaving it open in the first place was a trick she herself was eager to learn. Her candle was out of wax, the weird gemstones in the wall were almost completely dark, and the torch in the corridor was too far away to provide any illumination in her cell. There was nothing to do besides sleep, but sleep proved to be too difficult.
With slow motions, she pushed herself to a sitting position and turned her head towards the gemstones. She expected them to run out of magic soon, then at least something would happen. Sturly had said they were out of the things, but if they had enough to provide three to her, there were bound to be more. She put a hoof to them but she might have just as well touched regular stone, they were so cold and… mundane. Still, they had magic, and it was more than she could say about...
Wait. If this place only had dark magic, then whoever infused these gems was only able to use dark magic, and if her memories were correct, dark magic behaved different when trapped. In the Crystal Empire, the crystals there were of dark colors, and touching them had left her feeling weird. They didn’t glow as regular gems, they were more like… bubbling and swirling. These, however, looked just like the ones in Canterlot and her home. However they were created, it wasn’t possible with claws and brute force. The dogs had unicorn slaves who were making these for sure, but where could the dog find enough unicorns who could work with dark magic to necessitate that amount of stones she had to sort not long ago? That wasn’t a few dozen, that was several hundred! What purpose diamond dogs hoped to find for that amount of enchanted gemstones? Illumination was easier with candles and torches, and creative use required an exterior magic source, like a unicorn, to work effectively.
Her thoughts stopped in their tracks. No, that last one wasn’t correct. One didn’t necessarily need magical ability on her own to use magic. Twilight herself proved that, when she created the devices of artificial magical storage. True, the design wasn’t perfect as the devices tended to leak a bit, but the principle was working. Or had been, when she last saw it. There was only one big incident she could recall, but that was before the first device was released for the public. Her memories cut off after that, but she remembered her fears that the storages were not ready.
She stared into the faint glow and was able to make out the reflections of her eyes in the facets. The idea of the dogs getting hold of one was ridiculous, and the idea of them developing the same principle was impossible. Even she had needed years to do that, and she had the advantage of her cutie mark. Her talent was the very essence of the world itself, the magical bond that held everything together, made life possible. No other pony was capable to do what she could. She was powerful. She could do what others only dreamed of. She could rival the princesses. She was... dangerous.
Twilight couldn’t remember the point of when she finally fell asleep, but she found herself curled up under the three dun gemstones. If there was any more magic left in them, their light was overpowered by the candle, which was changed to a new one while she was sleeping. It stung at her eye and she looked away, clearing the stickiness from her eyes. She had no way of telling how long she had been asleep, of course, but the pain in her stomach was an indication. Or not, she thought, as she spotted the plate of food and noticed the smell.
She ravenously consumed everything she found, barely tasting. She felt alive and strangely in control. After she finished she levitated the plate so she could lick off the remaining, but as she noticed the purple glow enveloping the object she gasped and the plate cluttered to the ground. She grasped her horn with her hooves and felt no ring there.
She huddled to the bars and looked both ways in the corridor and saw a shadow moving in the distance, too far to make out clearly, but too big to be a pony. Did Sturly remove the ring? Could she do that? I was definitely her who brought her food, at least she was the only dog who Twilight has ever seen here. Someone else came and did it while she slept, then, maybe so she didn’t see how exactly the ring worked.
She sat back down, lit her horn again and spin the plate in the air. It was good to have her magic back, but that also meant more tiring work soon. Maybe sorting gems again. But doing that for two or three hours then lying knocked out for two days wasn’t really efficient, there was something else in plans for her. Maybe she will be taken back to her usual cell? She looked to her right, where Crimson had disappeared. Twilight hasn’t seen the filly since and she was afraid she might never talk to her again. There was so much potential topics to discuss with her.
She put down the plate and focused on the gemstones. A quick spell was enough to see inside them, though her magic muscles felt tender and she had to concentrate even on such a simple spell. There was still some power remaining in the gems, and it reassured her earlier assumption about their purpose. They were designed to slowly, but steadily heal a unicorn’s innate magic, recharging her. It felt weird that it worked despite the ring, but it was only disabling her use of magic, not the other way around. She sucked out the remaining magic which wasn’t much, but it felt so good to use her horn again.
She turned around in the small cell. What could she do now that she had no restraints that wouldn’t cause suspicion, before she was either taken away or given a ring again? What could she even do after so much time without practice?
She focused and reached out of the cell and out the corridor for any sign of life. The spell’s range was usually determined by the pony who cast it and even though she suspected the near past had taken a toll on her abilities, the results were disappointing. She felt only two living things, both far away, one in the direction she’d seen the shadow in the corridor and the other next to it. Were they Sturly and Crimson? She had no way of telling.
She stepped to the bars and looked for the nearest torch on the wall. She lit her horn and the torch lifted a bit, then cluttered to the ground loudly. She backed away from the bars and when she sat down she felt a weird but familiar numbness in her horn. It took some seconds but she finally placed it. She felt it when she had cast the old spell on the paper given by the dogs. When she heavily used dark magic.
Heavy steps came closer and a dark figure moved past her cellar to the left, then she heard some muttering and the light shifted in the tunnel. She crept forward and saw the torch back in its holder. She will have to be more careful with her experiments in the future. Though she was only a shadow of her old self the dogs might not know how strong she really was and might underestimate her, giving her opportunities. She was in a losing position but with patience, enough thinking and luck she could still turn the tables around. Maybe even help Crimson as well.
***
Something stung at her eye and she covered her face with her hooves and tried to go back to sleep, but the stings continued on her whole body. She wanted them to stop. She was exhausted from the work she had done. She had to do gem seeking again near those strange circular caves with ponds in them. She remembered those to be boring, but not quite that boring...
She tried to draw a shield around her but she failed. She had drained herself again... No, she had a ring on her horn. The dogs didn’t trust her with her only tool and weapon, even when she was worked to the end of her strength. A wise choice.
The stings continued coming. She forced her eyes open to see what was bothering her and it stopped. She squinted at the candlelight and cleared her eyes. She didn’t remember her candle being alight.
A soft giggle hit her ears and her head shot up, looking around. Her eyes finally focused on the candle, the bars, and two eyes. She scrambled back by instinct before recognizing Crimson Flares.
“Hi there!” The filly whispered cheerfully and let several small stones fall to the ground from her magic grip. “What’s going on?”
“Hi, Crimson...” Twilight sat down next to the bars and looked the pony over. She was just as dirty as last time, but now she was even smellier. “What happened to you?”
Crimson raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean? I’m fine. Had a rough shift, got myself vomited over and got kicked a little but no biggie. I see you still got your ring. Didn’t they remove that when you went to do... What, exactly?
“I, uh...” Twilight’s brain was responding a little slowly. “The usual. Looking for gems in the ground.”
Crimson nodded knowingly. “I know how that is. I don’t blame you for being tired. I wouldn’t have come now but I was afraid I would miss my chance and won’t be able to sneak to you while you’re not working! So, sorry for waking you, but I was so happy to see another pony! You don’t know how tiring it is to see ugly dog muzzles all day long.” She grimaced. “Why do we say all day long, anyway? We don’t have days here.”
“It’s a phrase, from the outside world. The sun, you know…”
“Oh. Sure. Anyway, are you feeling better that the last time we met? Those gems are supposed to...” Her eyes moved to the side and she grinned. “Yes, they’re empty! Good work, you.” Her smile disappeared. “I guess that means they will get you back to your usual place, won’t they?”
“Back?” Twilight started. She was expecting that to happen, but she didn’t want to leave this cell. Well, yes, she did, but this cell meant being close to this weird little pony, a possible friend. “I don’t want to go back.”
Crimson nodded. “I know how you feel. This is by far the best place I’ve seen since mom went away. I get to sneak around, meet ponies, you know...” She trailed off. “I was happy to meet you.”
“Hey,” Twilight said. “Don’t write me off just yet. I want to stay too. I have so many questions for you!”
“You do?” She looked up. “About what?”
Twilight gestured around them. “About this place. I didn’t realize this before, but there is more here than I previously noticed. Something is going on with the magic here, with the dogs, with the strange caves... I want to know what’s going on, and since you’ve been here so much longer than me you probably know more. Will you help me?”
Crimson grinned. “Investigation, huh? You know, you’re not the first one to find out what the clawers are doing with the gems, but they are all gone now. I can tell you some things, but be careful.”
Twilight’s mouth went dry. “What happened to them?”
The filly shrugged, scraping rust from the bottom of the bars. “They just disappeared. They went on the usual shifts then never came back. I don’t know if they took them because they poked around too much, but only those who talked were taken.”
“How come you never were?”
“They liked me, and I knew how to stay silent. Not everyone who wanted to solve the secrets was taken, only the ones who actually did something. Amongst us, they talked a lot about it. I didn’t always understand what they were on about, but they seemed so much alive when they talked. I liked being around, but they always told me to sit elsewhere, so I did... I don’t remember everything they said.”
Twilight studied the filly in the light of the candle. She was young, but she had so much behind her a filly her age shouldn’t have had. “Your mother,” she said carefully, “was she taken like that too?”
Crimson nodded. If there was a tear in her eyes, Twilight couldn’t see it. “Listen, if you don’t want to...”
“No, it’s okay,” the filly said. “Don’t worry.” She met Twilight’s eyes. “I want to help. I want to get revenge. I want to get out of here, to see your Equestria. I had enough of this life. Even if they catch me and kill me, even that’d be better.”
The bars were in the way, but Twilight tried to put a hoof on the filly’s. “I will do my best to protect you. There isn’t much to me up there anymore, but you could still start over, have a normal life.”
Crimson pulled her leg back, as if uncomfortable. “Thanks, uh...”
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m not really used to touches. And I forgot your name.”
“Oh. It’s Twilight. Twilight Sparkle.”
“Right. But why did you say there isn’t much for you up there? Didn’t you say it was so very good?”
Twilight frowned. Was she supposed to fill in her with what happened, especially when even she herself wasn’t completely sure about it? “It’s a long story. Even I don’t understand everything, but I know I was sent here on purpose. Maybe I did something, maybe not... But it was no accident.”
“Did you break the rules?”
“I suppose... But that’s not important right now. We should...” She glanced around in the darkness. “We will have to find a better way to talk. This is too risky. Do you have a suggestion?”
Crimson thought about it. “Well, I could get Sturly to let me in your cell, if that’s good enough, but it will be tricky. We’re not really supposed to talk to each other, only if we are in one place on purpose, like eating or raising children. Or...” She trailed off uncomfortably and was she... Blushing?
“What?” Twilight prodded.
“It’s not relevant to us, but... You know... Where kids come from...”
“Oh. I...”
Crimson shrugged. “I guess it’s what keeps the new ponies coming. I hear that sometimes new ones come from above, like you, too. Anyway, I will try to get Sturly to let us eat together or something. I don’t understand why that would be better than this, though.”
‘That’d be wonderful. Trust me, it’s different when there isn’t a set of bars between you and the other.”
“If you say so... But I should go back to my place. I’ll have to move mine carts soon, so... Good night, I guess.”
Twilight smiled at the filly. “Good night, Crimson.”
The light wobbled away in Crimson’s levitational field. How come she didn’t have to wear a ring? She was supposed to be the best in magic, according to her. She was the only pony Twilight knew about, so should she be so suspicious about her so soon? She could either be lying or she could be wrong. Twilight has yet to see what the filly could really do before truly trusting her.
***
The burger was pretty good for that little money, making Coal wonder if he was just accustomed to the higher Canterlot prices. He absent-mindedly wiped his mouth and gazed across the ponies in the diner. They either ate in silence or talked quietly. There was a sense of temporariness to the whole place, like the ponies were ready to leave the building at a moment’s notice. He didn’t feel it in the chariot station near Ponyville, but he had been distracted by Starry and her friend back then.
He saw Silver and the other pony stand up from their table. The pegasus moved to the exit wile Silver joined Coal at the counter.
“So?” Coal asked Silver sat on the next stool.
The white unicorn frowned. “We’ll have to take a carriage and hope we can sell the gemstones in Cloud Cover. There have been incidents where diamond dogs attacked travelers and not just robbed them, but hurt them badly. Each carriage will have magical protection of some sort.”
“That’s what you were talking about with that pegasus?”
Silver studied him. “Partly. Are you upset because I wanted you away for a while?”
Coal looked at his plate. “I’m just afraid you’re planning something behind my back.”
The unicorn sighed and put a hoof on Coal’s shoulder. “I understand, but I’m not, believe me. I only wanted you to be further away so that fellow would be more likely to talk.”
“Is the diamond dog problem that much a secret? Or a tender subject?”
“No, not really, it’s just that...” He leaned closer. “These people are not exactly swimming in money. I had to ask if there was a chance to sell them here, and the less parties are involved the better.”
“Well, all right...” Coal looked around uncomfortable. “So, it’s hunting a ride again, isn’t it? With some sort of protection?”
“Hey, don’t forget about me. Do you remember how I stood against the timberwolf?” He furrowed his brows. “On second thought, never mind.”
They left the place, Coal shooting a last glance at the poster as they went past it. Why did it seem so strange? He had a good explanation for it being there.
As they neared the carriages, Silver went ahead and entered the building where the booths were. Coal hesitated and seeing the crow inside, he decided waiting outside. After receiving several looks from passing strangers as he stood beside the door he walked further away to inspect the various carts and other means of transportation behind the building. For the most part, they didn’t look armored in any particular way, but maybe they were the ones going up in Canterlot and needing to be light. Further away Coal saw some bigger ones with plates on the sides, but they didn’t look remarkably safe either.
He walked, trying to look like a pony who had a purpose to be there. He felt so out of place among the merchants and puller ponies and passengers and the rest, and Silver seemed to be at home in their world. He must have seen quite a lot in his life before the station, and he left the place with no apparent difficulty, just to join Coal. It made him wander if he should be wary of Silver deserting him at some point, despite the unicorn’s assurance to the contrary.
He stopped short as he spotted Roug in the crowd. The stallion was talking with someone and didn’t look his way, but Coal took a step back nevertheless. The cart they came with stood nearby, the back plate open as a pony worked on it. Coal turned and trotted back to the building to find Silver.
He found the unicorn standing in line, waiting to buy their ride. The unicorn looked at Coal questioningly as the earth pony squeezed between two ponies to get to him.
“What’s wrong?”
“I saw Roug out there,” Coal said, motioning behind himself.
“Not surprising, given his profession.”
“Well, what if he discovers...” He lowered his voice. “The missing pieces? The trip is over, he can open the box safely. What will he do if he sees us here? He will cause a scene for sure!”
Silver shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, Coal. Act natural. He can’t pin it on us, I made sure of it. Besides, I think he meant the end of the trip by arriving back in Canterlot. I didn’t see any enchanters around here...”
That wasn’t a bad argument, Col had to admit. “All right, but I saw the back of his cart open. He could just take a peek, to see if they’re still there, couldn’t he?”
“Calm down, buddy.” The pony before Silver moved and the unicorn was up. He turned to the tired-looking mare in the booth. “Hi, I’d like a ride to Cloud Cover as soon as possible for two.”
“Any luggage?” The mare asked and pulled out two pieces of paper.
“No, just a small saddlebag.”
“We have a six-seater going in half an hour. It stops at Junction Seventeen and Lavender Hills. Do you want it?”
“Yes.”
“Fifty-seven bits. Look for Daisy Leaf.”
Silver paid and levitated the two tickets as he pushed Coal out the door. “Don’t worry about it, Coal. I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think it was safe enough to do so. Now, we have to find this Daisy Leaf... Such a feminine name, don’t you think? I wonder if it’s really a mare. I’ve only seen stallions pulling carts.”
Coal didn’t answer, as he looked around for Roug, but the earth pony was nowhere to be seen. Maybe Coal was overstressing the issue.
They walked along the side of the building on the same side Coal had walked a minute ago. It was still busy with life and the two of them dived back into it, with the lead of Silver. There were post standing along the path, each with a name on a sign. Roug’s was not among them.
They found the ponyeventually, who turned out to be indeed female, though she wasn’t going to pull the cart alone. The trio of bulky earth pony stallions were packing the luggage on top of the carriage while she checked the saddles. The mare told Coal and Silver to wait inside the cart for a thirty minutes or so before depart. The interior had two sets of seats, facing each other. They two of them sat down, Silver sitting in the forward-facing one.
“What’s that?” Silver stretched his neck to take a look at the title of the book Coal had pulled out to pass the time. “Is it that book I used to...?”
“Yes, it is. Should I be afraid you might use it again as a weapon?”
“Hopefully not,” Silver smirked. “I believe I can fight a diamond dog or two on my own, if it comes down to that.” He leaned forward and looked at the pages skeptically. “Are you really studying magic?”
Coal shoved the cover to Silver. “Magical theory, not real magic. I mean... Not practical magic. It’s only... Well, theory.”
“I remember you saying you knew something about the storages, back in the station near Ponyville. Did you mean the mechanics of it or just how to operate them?”
“Mainly the main principles only, but yes, the mechanics. I found it interesting why such a simple and useful idea wasn’t developed and widespread already, and I did a little research and though I found some things. I didn’t understand any of it, so I’ve taken up learning about magic as well and found the subject fascinating. Am I the first non-unicorn to do so?”
“Certainly not, but you’re the first I know, and I’ve met many strange people.” He looked out the window, seemingly deep in thoughts. “If you were to shown a storage,” he said slowly, “could you do anything with it?”
“I hope so,” Coal said. “They were supposed to be easy to operate, even if you weren’t very skilled.”
“Yes, yes, you could make things float in the air. I meant creative stuff. Things that the average non-unicorn has no idea about.”
“Like what?”
“For example... Casting complex spells. One you could... Change ponies with?” Silver was strangely awkward. Coal closed the book.
“Do you want to control people? Alter their mindset? Get them to speak the truth and such?”
The other’s expression assured Coal that his guesses were not far off.
“Something along those lines," Silver said. "Now, I don’t want you to actually do any of that, I’m speaking only hypothetically, but can you imagine?”
“Uh-um. I... I don’t want to kill your enthusiasm, but those are not so easy to do. Possible, theoretically, but they require much more skill than I have.” When he said it did he realize what was wrong with that sentence. “I don’t even have real skills. I can talk about it, but I can’t effective do anything.” Maybe with a storage, perhaps? He’s never had the opportunity to even touch one. “At least I don’t think so. I have yet to try.”
“It’s okay,” Silver waved it off. “I don’t expect you to solve my problems I’m more qualified to do anyway.” He gestured to the book and sunken deep in his thoughts. Coal eyed him for several seconds but when the unicorn deliberately avoided eye contact he opened his book again, though his thought remained with Silver’s words about mind control.
***
Though the old pegasus had fond memories from the earlier chapters of her life, nowadays she had to keep them at the back of her mind as best she could. It was to be safe, to hide from them who have taken her old life from her. Starry had explained it to her at several points when she started to doubt it and the young pony hadn’t been the only one to do so, yet even the years and events following the day when it all went wrong haven’t been enough to let her live her life as if it was someone else’s. Even if it was the logical choice, the safe route, the concept felt inherently wrong. Too far-fetched, too unlikely to actually happen to her of all ponies. Even after years of hiding and healing while taking care of the young Starry then being taken care by her wasn’t enough for her to fully adjust. She did do what needed to be done, kept herself composed when the situation called for it, all behind a mask she took off every night to wipe off her tears. She didn’t want to betray her old self, not when there was a chance that Twilight could be still alive and things could go back to the way they were. She wasn’t so certain about her other friends but she couldn’t believe they were indeed gone, as Starry had suggested. She knew the filly was just trying to stop her from eating herself but she wasn’t really good at it. Kindness, after all, was her element, not Starry’s.
Fluttershy, old and tired after years of hiding from the world tried to undone the latch on her personal bag. After seeing her use various satchels and cheap pouches for her most personal belongings Starry had bought her a proper, lockable pack for her birthday. It was nice and practical enough, but the latch was just a little too difficult to undone.
After a few tries she succeeded and dug into the bag. Her things were kept nice and safe inside, each in their own little pocket. The one she was looking for was wide and flat and contained a book filled with horn-writing. She gently pulled the journal free and let her memories rush forward again at the sight of it before pushing them back. Starry will have questions, no doubt, and Fluttershy was going to need those memories to answer them thoughtfully for they, with the knowledge in the book, could change things drastically in Equestria. Again.
Determined, she looked up from the plain cover and at Starry, who was sitting on the opposing seat, dazing at the afternoon sunlight. The carriage rocked slightly as it carried them westward, to where Starry insisted they needed to go, in pursuit of her friend, Violet. Fluttershy herself didn’t know the pony personally but she knew she was a pegasus from the chariot station and had worked with Starry for some time. The old pegasus was tired as well after the flight that took them to cross Canterlot to reach the chariot station in time, but she doubted she would get a better time to catch Starry’s attention on something so mundane as an old book. They were thankfully alone in the cart, too.
She cleared her throat to get the young pony’s attention then smiled as Starry stretched a bit while trying to adjust her clothes to cover up her bare flank.
“Did you say something?” The young pegasus yawned.
“No... Well, kind of. I said ahem.”
Starry blinked at her.
“Never mind,” Fluttershy mumbled. “I wanted to give something to you.”
Starry glanced at the book, waiting.
“It belonged to my friend,” Fluttershy went on, ”who had left it for me, to keep it safe. I was supposed to bring it to Princess Celestia, but things... changed and I no longer think that’d be a good idea.” She handed the book to Starry whose face brightened as she saw the cover.
“I saw this before,” she said as she flipped open the book. “It’s very important to you, I suppose.”
“It is. I got it well before I even met you. I’ve been planning giving it to you for a while now but I thought it would be better if you didn’t know what was in it, but I’m afraid I can’t postpone it any more. You’ve seen things from my life, and it’s better if you learned about them from the best source there is.”
Starry’s face changed to amused. “Your past? You mean the Elements? Your friends?”
“Yes, and more. That,” she gestured to the book, “is the personal journal of Twilight Sparkle. She started it just before she was assigned to go on a mission for Celestia and kept it going as far as she... was allowed. That assignment was the point where things started to go bad for the six of us. Eight, if you count Spike and Celestia herself.”
Starry looked at the book with eagerness. She wasn’t one to be lost in reading too often, but Fluttershy’s past always got to her. She knew a lot about what happened decades ago already, but the older pony had kept certain details hidden.
“Some of the pages are missing, unfortunately,” Fluttershy said, “but the most important parts are there. If you have any questions, I will do my best to answer them.”
Starry cocked her head. “Why do I get the feeling you’re gonna say, ‘before I go’?”
The yellow pegasus hesitated in confusion. She didn’t want to abandon Starry, but the question brought up certain worries she has been thinking about lately. She couldn’t lose the feeling that the clock was ticking, her days were running out. She wasn’t immortal.
“I’m not going anywhere, dear, don’t worry. I actually meant to give this book to you at some point, but I was hoping you’d be a little older... I mean, seen more things in the world. Some part are hard to read, to be honest.” They were certainly hard for her, learning what Twilight had gone through, the road her friend had descended.
Starry eyed her with compassion. “It shook you, didn’t it?”
Fluttershy nodded.
“I can imagine...” Starry hesitated, then flapped through a few pages. “Wait... Are these little books, glued together?”
“They are. Twilight liked having thing in order.”
“I did find it strange to have one actual book as your journal. “She read a few lines. “Even her writing is neat.” She glanced up at the other. “Is it really going to be a shocking read?”
“Not at the beginning. The second half is where the important things started happening. She didn’t write down everything, unfortunately, but it’s enough to understand.”
“What happened to her?”
“You will need to read it through to see that. I wouldn’t want to spoil it for you.”
“Oh, right. Of course.” Starry closed the journal and hid it in her own bag, much to Fluttershy’s disappointment. “I will read it when I’m not so sleepy.” She smiled warmly. “Thank you. I’m going to take care of it, I promise.” She closed her eyes and slumped down in her seat.
Fluttershy couldn’t read the emotion on the filly’s face, though she was certain Starry was grateful for her trust. The filly was usually easy to interpret but as she got older she became less and less easy to read. It made Fluttershy fear she was losing her, despite the obvious effort the filly was putting in their friendship while trying to get her own life going somewhere. Her... disability, to use a not quite correct word, placed her at the edge of society. She wasn’t an outcast, ponies weren’t evil like that, but rarely did someone look at her and see an equal in her.
That was mostly the reason they stuck together. That was initially what had brought them together, at least. Their bond only got stronger as they went through all the hardship being a former bearer meant in a world where she simply wasn’t supposed to exist anymore, neither in the past nor in the present.
I, following the advice of Princess Celestia, am starting this journal to record my thoughts and insights on my journey to the north, in the heights of the Crystal Mountains on behalf of my mentor and Equestria.
As of writing this, I’m already familiar with my task and our goal. This writing starts at day minus ten at night, in Canterlot, in the royal chambers Celestia was so kind to allocate for me. As a princess, I have the right to have such luxury, and I’m very happy with this aspect of my new life. I will do my best and record each day as it passes and my memories of said days as accurately as I can. I was told our pace will allow such sessions to be inserted into my daily schedule for the upcoming, currently unknown period of time. The Princess couldn’t say how long I will have to be gone, but she expressed hope that it won’t take too long. What that means is entirely up to her, as I didn’t dare to push it. The Princess seemed to be nervous about the whole matter, and I will do my best to accomplish our goal, as long as it takes. I do hope it won’t be measured in years, though.
Earlier today, around noon, Princess Celestia approached me in a letter and proposed an idea of an expedition to the mountains, with me as a leader. I, of course, was eager to oblige, even before I knew the details of the journey. The Princess requested a meeting with Princess Luna, the head of the Magical Development Team of the Royal Palace and me in Canterlot. The subject was a group of mountain goats living in the Crystal Mountains, who, according to scout reports, developed magical abilities similar to unicorns and alicorns, in spite of said level of magical control was exclusively a trait to the two aforementioned races. The reports describe the goats purposefully and consciously using magic to levitate objects, fight each other, create illumination and sooth loud children. This family of goats are known of their ability of speech and culture, however limited they might be, but they are mostly driven by their instincts and aren’t fully aware of neither the extent of their magical abilities nor how remarkable they are. The scouts didn’t engage them in any way and so we didn’t have a speech pattern to judge their intelligence with, but the reports describe their use of magic similar to what a unicorn foal is capable of. As Princess Celestia pointed out that was not a good base to build on, as foals are known of their surges, when their abilities can quadruple. The observations, however, didn’t stop there and soon we arrived to the details what had caused such distress to Celestia and Luna. Even though the scouts were not extremely experienced with magic, they could determine that the goats’ magical arura as well as the “feel” of their magic was similar to King Sombra’s dark magic. This fact alone was bad enough, but the proximity of the Crystal Empire combined with the fact that clearing every remaining trace of Sombra was still in progress forced the Princesses to take certain actions into consideration. To begin, an expedition will have to be sent to record the goats’ abilities in detail and judge their likeliness to turn Sombra’s way and if necessary, make the necessary steps to prevent the spread of dark magic. So far the goats have yet to show the “evil” of Sombra, and they appear to be more like randomly gifted folks who aren’t aware of what they are doing.
Another goal of the expedition will be to study the dark magic the goats operate with, though this aspect of our journey will be somewhat secret. The public, excluding my friends, will know only that we are going to “make some friends”, the way Luna put it. My friends are, sadly, not coming with me. I’m quite saddened by this detail, but I understand the concerns of the Princesses and the dangers our group might encounter. The group can’t afford to endure but the qualified personnel, and in case things go wrong, I’d want them safe back home. With the exception of Spike to act as my assistant, for which I’m grateful, the expedition will consist of total or almost total strangers, all hoof-picked by Celestia, ponies mostly I’ve never even heard of. Of course I’m familiar with the head researcher, but that about covers it. I expressed my thought to Celestia and she assured me that she didn’t choose the members of the team on random and we will be comfortable with one another in days. She said that my royal status should not be concern either, because in their eyes I’m just a regular old unicorn with some wings on her back. I’m not sure how I feel about that sentiment, but assured her that it will be fine if she thinks so. Time will tell, I presume.
Celestia gave me two weeks to prepare but the head researcher and I assured her that ten days will be sufficient. Now I’m sort of regretting saying that, considering the state of my private project of magical storages. I will take a functioning one from the second generation for the purpose of using it and field testing its capabilities, while leaving further development to the team in Canterlot to work on the concept while I’m gone.
I think that concludes the day. I’m no stranger to journals but I will keep a more official tone than usual in case the Princesses decide to read it as well.
Twilight Sparkle.
***
"That was a bit odd to read," Starry said as she looked up from the mattress. "I expected more… Soul into it, I guess? To not to be so dry and official? I mean the thing about those goats are interesting, but other than that... She didn't seem like this when you talked about her."
"How much did you read?" Fluttershy asked, pausing brushing her mane for a second.
"The first entry." Starry looked back down to the journal lying in front of her. The light of the few candle they had lit were just enough to read the letters. "She only talked about those goats and their magic and how Celestia ordered her to go. Did they really… uhm… develop magic?"
The older pegasus smiled. "No spoilers, Starry. Be patient."
"Yeah, I know… I hope it will get better, though. Reading this reminds me of the school books I used to have to read." She grimaced, pushed the book further and stretched. "Uhh… This mattress ain't got nothing on solid ground…"
"You can have mine too, if you want," Fluttershy offered.
The filly shook her head. "No, no, you need it just as much. It was my idea to come here. I'll bear it." She closed the journal and put it in her saddlebag.
Somebody sneezed loudly in the next room, making the two friends giggle. Starry stood up and pulled open the fabric that acted as the door to their tent to let some fresh air in. The night was rich with little noises from the surrounding tents and the critters by the nearby river. Starry Wind breathed deeply and watched a group of fireflies dance by in the air. The tranquil environment of the little village their camp was built near of was present in the half dozen tents standing in a relatively flat piece of ground. It made her almost forget the reason the two of them, along with a dozen others came here for. The forest they're going to be searching through the next day was lost in the darkness, the lunar light just enough to illuminate the other tents that the ponies from the village were kind enough to lend them. What's more, they promised some supplies for their rescue team when they'd go into the forest. The danger of a diamond dog raid apparently has yet to penetrate their own little world, and they barely had any questions when the rescue group's leaders explained them the situation. The simplified version of the storage's magical overcharge was good enough for the majority, and the few unicorns living in the village weren't versed well enough in magic to ask uncomfortable questions. Although, from the conversations she'd heard do far, not everyone in their group knew exactly what had happened in the station either and she wasn't eager to enlighten them. Why bother? It wouldn't change the facts. They were here to rescue the poor ponies who were teleported away when some moron screwed with the storages and it spiraled out of control.
She let the fabric drop. Fluttershy finished with her mane and was working on her hooves with a small rasp. Starry admired the time her old friend spend taking care of her outfit, but it also made her smile every time. Fluttershy was just as keen on looks as she was keen to avoid attention. The butter pegasus noticed Starry's eyes on her and looked up with a smile.
"What's on your mind, dear?"
Starry smiled back and rolled her eyes. "You just keep polishing those hooves of yours until they're gonna replace your mirror."
Fluttershy blushed and hid the rasp under her foreleg. "Does it bother you?"
Starry waived a hoof. "Of course not. At least one of us will look pretty tomorrow. Or any day." She lay down on her mattress. Fluttershy resumed her rasping after a short while, the soft sound almost tuned out by the noise of crickets.
Starry picked up the journal again. She knew the importance of Twilight Sparkle in her friend's and all of Equestria's life, but her journal didn't exactly get the young pony hooked. It was just too formal, completely unlike any journal she had ever read. Not that number meant anything, given it was fewer than how many hooves she had. Still, it was very important for Fluttershy and it had the answers to why the world was like as it was, so she guessed she had no choice but to read it. Jumping straight to the end had occurred to her, but the thought felt like betrayal. So reading it was.
***
"Yay!" Crimson exclaimed quietly as the lock clicked open and the cell door squeaked open just enough to allow the filly enter Twilight's cell. "I told you I was gonna do it!" She grinned into the purple unicorn's face, who smiled back. Crimson was in better shape than last time and the enormous grin and the glee she greeted Twilight with was really cute. The filly didn't quite close the door so the latch didn't engage with a sharp sound.
"I bet you're hungry!" The filly levitated a bowl of food in front of Twilight and herself, then laid down before the other pony could react.
"I, uh... Thank you." Twilight hesitated only a second before diving into eating. It was the usual stale stuff she always got, but she was ravenous.
"So," she began between two bites. "How did you manage to get the door open? Did Sturly let you have the keys?"
"Just yours. I had to swear that I won't show it you and I will return it soon. I also got the food from her. I told her I was going to see you anyway, so she didn't have to walk here for nothing."
Twilight regarded the other pony. "Really? She just agreed?"
"Yup," Crimson said. "I told you she liked me."
"Yes, but... Never mind. I'm glad you made it. It's just hard to imagine that dog to actually like a pony."
"Not when that pony is me!" Crimson grinned and took a bite from that weird brown stuff. "So, what do we talk about?"
Twilight chewed the stale food. "I wanted to know about your magic. How did you learn what you know? I remember you telling that you were the best at gem-sorting. How did you learn the spell? I don't think you can read magic glyphs."
She cocked her head. "Read what?"
"Abstract depictions of magical spells and enchantments. Do... Do you know what that means?"
"I have no idea. You sure know more words than I do." She put a hoof to her chin. Twilight could see that it was badly scraped, just like her own. "To be honest, I don't really know how I know the spell. I think my mother taught me when I was a filly, and I've been using it ever since. It's just natural now." She grinned. "I know a lot of spells, actually. How many do you know?"
Twilight shrugged. "A couple hundred, maybe... I've never counted them. My spellbook in school had two hundred and forty-seven entries and since then I learnt at least two hundred more, but many of them are just slight variants of one spell. How many do you know?"
Crimson's smile faltered and her ears dropped a little. "I... A lot. Maybe less than you. Anyway, I learnt a lot from Mum and the others, back when I was with them. Since I'm alone I came up with some by myself, but not nearly as much as then. Did you actually learn spells in school? There are schools up above that teach magic?"
"Of course they are. There are all kinds of schools for all kinds of ponies."
"Like pegasi? Do they learn magic too?"
"What?" Twilight frowned and had to remind herself that the filly didn't know a lot about the world. "No, they study weather control and..." What did they teach to young pegasi in Cloudsdale? "And stuff like that. And it's the same for earth ponies."
"They are the ones without horns or wings, right?"
"Yes. I'm sure your mom had told you about them too."
"She did. She also told me that there were ponies with both horns and wings. Are they real too?"
Twilight's wings tightened on her back. She tended to completely forget about them, as they were utterly useless underground, especially without feathers. "There are only a hoof-full of such ponies, and all of them are royalty. They have the strengths of all the three tribes." As much as she wanted to talk about the outside world, she didn't want to go into detail about her princesshood and failures. "I, uh... Wanted to ask about those gems the dogs made us sort. Do you know what they were for?"
"Not exactly, but I know they take them to somewhere secret and do something with them. I saw some of them used in lamps instead of torches, some to help carry heavy stuff, things like that. I think the rings like the one you got have gems like those."
Twilight blinked. "I'm sorry? What did you mean by that part about the heavy stuff?"
"They put the gems on the thing and they make the thing lighter. I saw a single dog carry a rock bigger than himself, when those gems were attached. Don't you have that in your world?"
Twilight's mind raced. "Could you describe me those gems?"
"They were small, like the others and glowed in the dark. They had to be fixed to the rock somehow to make it lighter."
"No, not that. Do you know what enchantments did they contain? How much charge they received before being attached? What was the spell used?"
The filly raised an eyebrow. "It's obvious you know more than me, you don't have to rub it in. And no, I don't know anything. It wasn't me who did the spells."
"Then who?" Twilight asked before realizing the filly's hurt feelings. "Sorry, but it might be very important."
"One of Mom's friends. She was taken by the dogs to do the spells and since then I only saw her once, when she told me what she did before going away. I didn't really understand what she was saying, but I remember the basic idea. Why is it so important to you? Did the clawers tell you to do things like that?"
"No, they didn't. It's... It was different. "She should tell her. It wasn't going to change anything. "Before I got here, I came up with an idea to store magic in gems then use those gems to do magic later." It was, of course, much more complicated in reality. "I had similar ideas to what you described. The thing is, nobody else managed to do it but me, and even I wasn't entirely successful. I can't believe these diamond dogs got hold of such advanced magic down here. I know they have spellsheets, but they must be ancient, and my idea is just recent."
"It's not that advanced. I'm sure you have rings like those above."
"We do, but it's not the same idea. What I created was more complex, had more potential. Things like these," she touched the ring on her horn, "can only be used by unicorns. My idea was to enable anyone to use magic, regardless of tribe. To bring the three tribes closer together."
"Oh... I think I get it. I just don't understand why you would help lesser tribes. Aren't unicorns supposed to rule them? Isn't that the norm?"
Twilight gaped at the filly. Was this what her mother had taught her? "No, of course not. It hasn’t been like that for thousands of years. Did your..." She cut off. She had more important things to talk about than the filly's false education. "Never mind." She stood up and put a hoof to the gems in the wall. They were dull, just like how she left them after emptying them last time. "I wanted to help the world, by making magic accessible to anyone with a basic training. The princesses backed me as well, just like my friends. The scholars and other unicorns in Canterlot didn't-"
"Woha! What are those?" Crimson cut her off. Twilight looked at her and saw the filly pointing behind her. Twilight spun, but there was nothing there. "What? What did you see?"
"It's you! The things on your back." She grimaced as she leaned closer. "What the hell are those?"
Twilight froze, realizing what Crimson meant. She squeezed her wings tighter and sat back down. "Oh, did you see those...? I meant to tell about them... Just not so soon." She met the filly's eyes and took a breath. "Those are my wings, or what the dogs left of them."
Crimson looked at the wings then at her horn, then at her wings again. "But... I don't... You have a horn..." Her eyes widened. "You talked about ponies who had both wings and horns. Does that mean..." She raised a hoof, as if wanting to touch her. Twilight shied away by instinct. "You are one of them, aren’t you? You are one of the princesses. But..." She looked over her again, wrinkling her forehead. "Why are you here? I don't understand. If you're so powerful then why didn't you do anything to escape? How did you end up down here in the first place? Why have nobody came to your rescue?"
Twilight knew she should have expected this moment to come, when Crimson would ask her these questions, regardless her intentions. At least she didn't want her to feel bad, so it could have been worse. It was now only a matter of facing the questions she didn't dare to ask herself.
Twilight looked at her plate before her, with the brown thing's remainings still laying there. Her appetite was completely gone. "You're right," she said slowly. "I'm a fellow ruler of Equestria. I should be guarding my ponies with my knowledge and power. Yet I'm rotting in caves, lost from the world, forgotten."
"But why?" Crimson asked. "Did you do something bad?"
The answer was simple, and she knew it since she first woke up half-dead in her cell. Even if the exact details were still unknown to her, she knew why she was exiled from her world. "I did. I tried to kill someone."
"That sounds bad, but you didn't, right? Twilight?"
"Not really, when that someone is the ruler of Equestria."
They fell very silent. Twilight couldn't tear her eyes from her plate, but she wasn't really looking at it. In her mind's eye, for the first time it happened, she saw Celestia looking up at her from the ground, her face distorted by tears and pain. Seeing her mentor like that was devastating, even as a memory, but she also remembered the fury and the bloodthirst inside her. There were more to the story than this that she was, so far, unable to recall.
Only when a hoof touched her face did she notice Crimson sitting close to her, caressing her cheek with a hoof. Twilight leveled her eyes and in the amber light of the candle, she saw her reflection in the filly's eyes. She was crying, but her face was serious, with a faint greenish glow around the edges of her irises. She shut them and threw her forelegs against Crimson and squeezed her nose into the filly's neck. The young pony tensed up, but hesitantly returned the hug.
Twilight didn't know how long she cried in the embrace, but when the filly started moaning in pain she quickly eased her grip on the pony, but didn't let go completely. She didn't want to release the only warm, comforting thing accessible. Crimson sighed audibly as he was finally able to draw a breath. She sounded like she wanted to say something, but thankfully remained silent and started caressing Twilight's mane with a hoof instead.
The purple alicorn finally withdraw, wiping her eyes. She avoided the other's gaze. She remembered what Crimson said about not liking ponies touching her, but she hadn't been able to stop herself.
"Sorry about that..." she muttered and inched back from the filly." I hope I didn't ruin your mane..."
The filly's voice was warm and kind, the usual edge absent. "Don't worry about me. You look like it helped, and that's what counts. Warn me next time, though. I didn't think a single pet on the head would cause such a chain reaction."
Twilight chuckled, feeling as an enormous weight had been lifted from her soul. It was too long without a friend to rely on. "I didn't either, trust me. It's just that it's been a while since I was able to have a friend. I promise I won't do that again. Or at least, not without asking for permission first."
Crimson waved a hoof. "Don't be silly. It wasn't that bad. I wouldn’t object to doing it again soon." Not realizing how awkward the comment made Twilight feel, she sniffed at the brown thing on the plate. "Are you gonna eat that?"
"No, go ahead..."
"Cool. It's the only good part."
Twilight grimaced as she watched Crimson practically inhale the stuff. "Do the clawers have a leader?" She asked after the filly swallowed.
"I think so," Crimson said, wiping her mouth again. "They talk about a special one, who has all the control over the clawers. He must be doing a pretty bad job, though, because they always say bad things about him. Like not giving enough torches, working them too much, not bringing new ponies to do magic, starving the existing ones so they are weak and so on. He's responsible for the food we have to eat, too. I'd say he's a bad leader indeed."
"And they still follow him?"
"He punishes those who don't obey him, somehow. I don't know much about that. They are afraid of him, that's for sure."
The hug made wonders to Twilight's soul and she found herself thinking about this leader objectively, like a mere obstacle to remove. Cold, to use a right word. "Could we get to him? Do something about our situation through him?"
Crimson raised an eyebrow and hesitated a little before answering. "I don't think it'd be that easy. He must be pretty heavily guarded and such. What do you want to do to him, anyway? Ask him to let us leave? I have a feeling that wouldn’t go so well."
"No. It'd be something..." Something what? What was she thinking about? "I don't know... I wanted to say remove him, but that seems too far-fetched."
"Kill him? Not far-fetched at all. A lot of ponies have tried to do that. They were all killed in the end."
"How do you know they were?"
"I..." Crimson trailed off, staring at the ground before Twilight. "I saw them. Dead. Beaten. Burned. Killed by magic, too, not just by claws or knives. The leader must have ponies working for him at his sides to do that."
"Oh. I'm sorry." Twilight didn't dare to voice her idea that there could be ponies working to that leader willingly as well. If this place had dark magic, evil was within the walls as well. "I don't want you to try to follow them. You don't have to be killed too."
Crimson shook her head. "I already thought about it. I think I told you what I found, too. I want to take whatever risks there are in order to see your world with my own eyes. This life here isn't worth it."
"Yes, I remember... I feel the same way myself, but I still can't ask you to risk yourself. Although, if you have made up your mind, I won't turn away your help and I offer mine in return."
Crimson smiled at her. "I appreciate it, but with that on your horn, you're as good as an earth... Er, you can't do much. We'll have to find a way to get that off."
"Good luck with that... I doubt any of them would help me. I remember one time when a dog offered me some of his food during a shift, but other than that, nothing. Oh, and Sturly isn't so bad, either."
Crimson grimaced. "They offered you food? I don't believe it. They're selfish. Sturly is like this just because she eats some of our food before giving it to us. Why do you think she's so fat?"
"I'm sure I remember correctly, but you might be right about Sturly. She does seem to be well off."
The filly snorted. "Don't let them fool you. They'd cut you up and eat you in a heartbeat. They're evil."
Twilight hesitated, but was se really trying to defeat them? "I can't say you're wrong. I heard how they talk about us, ponies. They-"
Crimson held up a hoof and turned her head to her right, angling her ears. Twilight stopped talking and she could hear the steps now too. She looked at the door and started to make a plan how to get Crimson out the cell through the squeaking thing, but the filly was quicker to act. She snatched the candle from its mount and put it on the ground, just before Twilight, then jumped behind her into the shadows.
"Pretend I'm not here. Act sleepy."
Twilight barely hear her whispering from the darkness, which completely enveloped the filly. If Twilight didn't know what to look for, she wouldn't have been able to spot her.
Sturly's steps came closer and Twilight quickly lay on the ground and rested her head on her forelegs stretched out before her. When the steps stopped before her cell she managed to keep her eyes on the flame of the candle and not look up at the diamond dog.
"I heard noises," Sturly said unpassionately. "Why is the candle on the floor?"
"I like it here," Twilight mumbled. "It's so pretty."
"Fine, just don't blow it out." There was a short silence as Sturly reached through the bars and put a bowl of water on the ground. "That's weird," she mumbled as she took an empty plate. Twilight realized there had been two of those. Crimson must have taken the other one with her. "I came to warn you, too. You're getting away from here soon. I filled you up good, now it's time to leave.
"Now?" Twilight said a little stronger than she intended.
"Soon. It's bedtime now. Next time they take you, you aren't coming back here." The dog's eyes glistened in the light as she looked at her. "Except if you drain yourself again."
Twilight managed not to spring onto her hooves. "Thanks for letting me know. I liked it here."
"Don't lie to me, pony. I know you didn't." Sturly slowly walked away without another word. Twilight waited until she was far enough that her steps were inaudible before turning to look behind her. From the darkness two eyes looked back at her, reflecting the candlelight, terrified.
"They're gonna take you too," the filly whispered. "I wanted to be your friend, and they're gonna take you from me."
Twilight lay down facing the filly. "I am your friend, Crimson. I will find a way to get back to you somehow. Even if I have to drain myself again."
She just looked at her, two glimmers of light. "I'm gonna kill them, then go and see your world with you."
"I..." Twilight didn't know what to say to that. "Let's sleep on it. Maybe there's a better solution."
"There isn't. They killed Mom. They killed my friends. They will kill you. I will kill them in turn, one by one. I will blow up this whole place with me in it, if necessary."
The filly's voice was alarmingly soft and emotionless. For the first time since she had jumped her when her candle was blow out, Twilight was afraid of the young pony. No words came to her tongue and they lay there in the darkness together for a long time, before Crimson stood up and left the cell with a quiet goodbye. The latch closed, and there was only silence again.
***
Coal shuddered himself awake and was staring at Silver sitting in front of him before realizing it wasn't a dream anymore. The details were fading quickly, some of it creeping into reality as well. She cleared his eyes and looked around in the cart. The two other passengers were talking privately and didn't notice him looking at them, and Silver was apparently asleep as well. That seemed okay, given that he had been just bucking a storage device to pieces… No, that was in the dream. Why did it seem so real now, that he was awake? He quickly checked his bag the strap of which was tied around his front leg. The necklace and the other stuff was all right. He hesitated, then lightly touched Silver's hind leg with one of his own. The unicorn's eyes opened at once, his face showing nothing before setting into a smile.
"Awake, Coal?"
Coal had to clear his throat before he could talk. "Yes, apparently… I don't even remember falling asleep."
"Do you ever?"
Coal smiled. "I guess not… It's just strange. I wasn't even feeling tired when we sat down."
"It's been a long day for both of us. We'll have to find a place to crash tonight, if we don't want to walk into the town as zombies."
"Crashing sounds good... But will we have time for that?"
"We must. You can't go on forever without sleep, no matter what you want. Were you able to get some rest now?"
Coal nodded. "I guess..." He looked out the window. "Where are we?"
"After Junction... Whatever. Next stop will be Cloud Cover. You slept for quite a while."
Indeed, the sun was much lower that he remembered it being. His body felt sluggish, but his mind turned more easily. "Did anything happen while I slept?"
Silver shrugged. "We saw a few cows, some crops, diamond dogs marching, some big birds, lots of pegasi... You know, what you expect around here." He squinted at Coal from the corner of his eye. The earth pony took some time to process what Silver just said, before grinning hesitantly. "Really? Big birds? How odd..."
The unicorn laughed. "Yeah... Don't worry, they just watched us. I think they didn't want to make me to flex my magic muscles."
"Thank Celestia they didn't. I remember what happened last time."
Silver pointed a hoof at Coal. "We don't talk about that, all right? Especially not where we're going."
Coal smiled. "Where are we going, anyway? I mean, who is your pony you want to see?"
"We worked together back in the day, when the storages were still in business. He pretty much made the thing his, used it for all kinds of personal stuff. He knew what he was doing, but our employers didn't like it one bit. I can't really blame them, though. The whole system was too rigid, not allowing enough space to use the storages to their full potential. Anyway... He was fired after a while, then we sort of lost touch. He went back to Cloudsdale and I remained at my spot, up until the business closed up and we were out of work. Of course, working on such stuff earned you a next job soon and I ended up working for security firms. Years after that I came across his name in a smuggling incident and decided to give him a hoofbump for keeping to his principles, right after warning him of the error of his ways and before buying him a drink at the local pub. We caught up with each other and has been giving a helping hoof to each other since. Right now it's my turn, I guess, but he will help me. Help us."
"Sounds like the guy I don't really want to meet," Coal said cautiously.
Silver waved a hoof. "No, he's cool. Besides, I will do the talking. You can ask him stuff too, but mind what you say. He's not dangerous, per se, but he has his way of dealing with ponies..." He caught himself. "I make him sound like a thug, aren't I? He really isn't bad. He has his principles." Surprise flashed across his face. "You know, I just thought what you can talk to him about. I don't even know why I didn't think of that sooner." He gestured to Coal's bag. "Ask him about the storages. He will be thrilled to have someone talk to about such things. And you'll be surprised too, I think." He grinned. "Aw, yes. I'm looking forward to it."
Coal raised an eyebrow but postponed his answer as he noticed one of the other passengers looking at him weird. The stallion snatched his gaze away when their eyes met, but Coal couldn't shake off the bad feeling. He turned back to Silver, who was looking at the pony from the corner of his eyes as well.
"So," Coal began, having lost the flow of the conversation. "Why are you so... eager for me to meet this guy?"
It took a second for Silver to answer. "You'll see. I refuse to spoil it for you." he looked out the window. "Not long and we're there, I think. You can shut your eyes some more, if you want. I'll tell it when we arrive."
Coal shook his head. The look on the pony's face haunted him. They will have to be much more careful. "No, thanks. I'll wait for a bed with that." He reached into his bag and pulled out a book, a novel this time.
He was nodding again when they arrived at Cloud Cover. The sky just began to turn red on the horizon and pegasi were flying upwards to Cloudsdale, the sunlight casting colorful auras around their feathers. The temperature dropped from the warmness of midday and Silver took on his jacked he had taken off for the ride, but it was still far from chilly. Coal secured his saddlebags around his body and the two of them hopped down from the carriage and walked down the streets.
"Have you taken a look up yet?" Silver asked.
"No. Why?" Coal cranked his neck upwards, and his jaw dropped.
The city of Cloudsdale floated right above them, the massive underside of the cloud assembly slowly swirling under the guiding hooves of pegasi. The afternoon light of the sun broke on the various rainbow-falls that dissipated into the air as they fell towards the earth and cast stunning hues on the white cloud structures that were visible from under. The bottom heaps drew long shadows across the whole city and sometimes the moving shadow of an occasional pegasus ran across the upside-down hills and walleyes. The whole thing was at cloud level, a mind-blowing amount of compressed cloud housing thousands of pegasi, weighing not more than a couple dozen buckets of water at best yet amounting for so much influence in the life of Equestria. Looking up at such marvel made Coal yearn for a pair of wings, just so he could take a look at what the city looked like from the side at least, not to mention above or even inside.
"Now that's a view if I've ever seen one," Silver muttered, his neck cranked up just like Coal's. "Makes you wonder why anyone would leave if they could just stay in a place like that all day."
"It must be quite humid, I guess," Coal said. "With all that water around you..." A few minutes of gazing later he leveled his head and Silver did the same. They made their way across the town which borrowed a lot of the design elements of the one above. The fronts of the houses and shops had swirling engravings and stylized clouds on them, with a few decorative columns as well. Statues of famous pegasi and of course the Wonderbolts were placed at almost every corner, often paired with flags of various brands and clubs Coal didn't recognize. The street themselves were populated mostly by unicorns and earth ponies and rarely pegasi, the latter mostly taking advantage of their wings. Coal had had worries that he and Silver would be sticking out but the town seemed to be populated by non-pegasi for the most part. Not taking the décor and the statues into consideration, this place could have passed as any other one in Canterlot.
"Do you like the place?" Silver asked Coal, clearly noting the earth pony's eyes darting around.
"Yeah, it's nice. Have you been here before?"
"A number of times. Visiting a certain lady."
"Oh?" Coal grinned. "A Mrs. Beam?"
Silver snorted. "Heavens, no. Well, I was thinking like that at that time but in hindsight, it's for the best she moved on." He fell silent and Coal gulped back his questions. They entered a wide street with lights and banners and a considerable amount of ponies sitting in bars and restaurants. As they passed one Silver stopped to point at it. "This is the place where we're gonna stay at night. Has a good bar, too." A smile crept onto his lips. "With something I want to you to taste."
They saw a big gathering in the distance, ponies from all tribes crowded around some sort of podium, with a single pony standing on it and probably giving a speech. They were too far to understand the words but the tone didn't sound like a presenter, more like someone giving orders.
"What do you think that is?" Coal pointed at them.
Silver angled his ears. "I'm not sure. I guess not an election or something like that. I haven’t seen any banners. We can check it out."
They turned towards the crowd and as they neared them, the voice of the presenter became clearer. He was assigning and detailing tasks for groups. Flanking him stood a dozen or so guards and several desks with ponies behind them. A queue of other ponies led down from the podium and into the crowd. After hearing something about unfortunate ponies and teleportation Coal put the pieces together.
"It's a rescue team," he told Silver. "They're here to find the ponies who went missing after the storage overload."
"That makes sense," the unicorn said. "But that happened far away from here. I don't think there could be too many of the poor souls in this area."
"Oh there are," a young filly chimed in, apparently hearing their conversation. "We have a darling of a mare at home who was a victim of that thing. Real shaken, she is. We found her in our garden, hiding under our bushes." She gestured at the crowd. "These ponies all want to help them. Isn't it great? I love this town!"
She hopped closer to the presenter, leaving the two friend behind. Silver furrowed his brows. "I didn't realize it was that bad. That incident scattered innocent folks all around Equestria, and it's me who has to take the blame. We really need to get to Ponyville as fast as possible and get this sorted out."
"There is a good side," Coal said. "At least not every single pony in the country knows your face."
"Yeah, I guess... Let's just keep moving.
Ten minutes or so later they found the place Silver was looking for, a little shop just off the fancy main street. The banner above the door read "Quills and Paintings".
Coal squinted at the letters. "What do those things have in common?"
"Isn't it obvious, Coal? It's marketing. You noticed it, didn't you?"
"I guess..." Coal followed Silver into the building, which was full of what he had expected to see after such banner. There was only one pony in the shop and judging by his lack of reaction when the two stallions entered the place, he was only a customer. Silver went to the empty counter and peered behind it, then shook his head.
"Where is he?" he muttered and turned to a door nearby. "I'm gonna check the back..."
Just before he reached it the door swung open, revealing a pony butt backing out. The rest of the pony came soon after, dragging a big box with his teeth through the door. He didn't seem to notice them.
Silver hesitated for a few second then enveloped the box with his magic. The pony, a pegasus looked up immediately and his eyes stopped on Silver.
"Well, aren't you a surprise, Silver Beam," he said with a toothy grin, though there was a slight hesitation to his voice. "What are you doing here? Came to lend a helping horn?"
Silver released the box and bumped hooves with the pegasus. "Good to see you, too, Adrift. Actually, I was wondering if you could help us with something. This here is Coal Slitter, a friend of mine. Coal, this is Adrift Cumulus."
"Hi there," the pegasus held out a hoof to Coal, who took it somewhat hesitantly. "Are you Silver's new best buddy? My condolences."
Coal glanced at Silver, making the pegasus chuckle. "Don't worry, he's a cool guy. So, Silver, I take it it's not my quills that interest you? If you can wait a little, I'll be with you in a minute."
"No problem."
The pegasus dragged the box to the customer and began pulling out quills of different sizes and color. Coal turned to Silver.
"Is he your old friend who worked on the storages with you?"
"Yes. I hope to get some rings or something for our gems from him."
"Okay, but I thought he'd be... He's not..."
"Not what?" The unicorn looked Adrift over. "Oh, you mean he's not a unicorn. Well," he grinned at the earth pony, "he's not the only one I know who's interested in magic, despite lacking something on their head."
Coal hummed. He never considered the option that the friend might not be like Silver, despite his own interests. He always looked at his case as something unique. "It's rather obvious, now you say it..."
"You were the last one I'd have accused of such sort sight, Mr. Magical Theory."
"Yeah... Anyway, something struck me as odd. Is it a coincidence that all your friends tend to be involved in shady businesses, or is it just me?"
"What are you talking about? So far, you've only met two ponies who I'm acquainted with, both times out of necessity. Two cases might be a coincidence, but three is what makes a pattern. If the next pony we turn to is also like this, you can call me out on it. Until then, don't judge me." He poked the earth pony in the side to take the edge off his words. "But good observation, though."
They waited as Adrift Cumulus made the deal with the pony, then turned the door sign to "Closed" as soon as the customer left the shop.
"All right," he said, closing the box. "Silver if you'd be so kind and levitate this behind the counter for now... Thanks. Could you follow me to the back room for our chat?"
"If you insist," Silver said.
The back room turned out to be a private library, with shelves packed to the edge with as many books fit on them. The only furniture was a big, soft chair with table next to it. It the room had any windows they were covered by shelves, and the room was illuminated by a glowing light source fixed to the ceiling, giving out a warm and even light. There was another door at the far side of the room between two shelves, closed. The things Silber had said about the pegasus didn't exactly suggested such a cozy place and polite manners.
"Let me get you something to sit on, gentlecolts." He pulled out two wooden folding chairs from between two shelves and took the squishy one. "So, what brings you two here?"
Silver cleared his throat. "I'll cut to the chase, if you don't mind. We want personal protection against magical radiation. Rings, spells, wards, jewels, whatever is the best."
Adrift nodded. "It's business, then. How close do you want to go to the source?"
Silver looked at Coal, who shrugged. "Not very close," the earth pony said. "I don't have the map anymore, but we're going to stay clear from the source."
"That's very vague, mind you. The prizes climb fast with strength. Will it be for the two of you?"
"Yes," Silver said. "Let's stay on middle grounds with the prices. What are your offers?"
"For you," Adrift pointed at the unicorn, "a canceling ring should be fine. For your friend, a similar necklace will do. I can also recommend ridding you from your magic with a spell. It's cheap, effective, but not as versatile."
Coal shuddered at the proposition, but it also reminded him that they didn't have the money for pricey options unless they could sell the stolen gems.
"What if we buy two necklaces?" Silver asked.
"Well, they're cheaper and work well for non-unicorns, but for you, a ring would be more effective. Since we've known each other for some time, I'll spare you the bullshit. With a necklace, you won't be able to go as deep as with a ring, due to your physiology. I'd go with the more expensive option, supposing you don't want the spell cast on you."
"I don't if I can help it. How much for a ring and a necklace, then?"
"One-sixty and one-ten, respectively."
Coal's eyes bulged at the prices. That was more than they had left.
Silver looked surprised as well. "That's steeper than I expected, to be honest."
Adrift shrugged. "Do you know how hard these things are to come by? You can't advertise them without someone blaming you of supporting the pillage of restricted areas and whatnot, and not many unicorns are willing to craft them, since the magic is often backtraceable to them. Also, the gemstones are have to be capable of holding the spell and not breaking under pressure. The same goes to necklaces, though they aren't that specific in terms of usability. A low quality enchantment can be very dangerous. Another way to obtain them is from the police, but I think I don't have to go into detail about that for you."
Silver ignored the remark. "How about ones with lower prices?"
The two ponies continued discussing prices and values and Coal found himself losing the trail of the conversation as they went into more and more detail. His eyes wandered around the room, finding little things of interest. The warm, even light painted the neat rows of books in a pleasant orange hue, which Coal found very calming. Whether it was a conscious choice on the shopkeeper's side or merely a personal preference of his, Coal wished he could stay for a while and read something, just to unwind a bit.
He also needed to think of ways to get back to Starry, especially after receiving such a positive attitude from her. She sure knew a lot about the necklaces. She had referred to them sort of as personal belongings, that had been taken from her and if Coal was not mistaken, she used the word "we" instead of "me" when referring to the elements. Plus she was cute. Coal had seen someone flying with her back in the station, even if for a moment. There must be ponies in the world that remembered the elements apart from merchants and bookworms. Not to mention the visions he had seen when he put on the necklace by instinct when fighting Sheltar. Those weren't from his own imagination, that was for sure.
From the corner of his eye he saw his saddlebags open and a pile of jewels flew over to Silver. He refocused his attention on the deal.
"This is the stuff," Silver said, showing Adrift the stolen goods.
The pegasus picked them up to inspect them, one by one, his face changing from amused to angry and finally to questioning.
"Where have you gotten these, Silver?" His tone was tenser than before and carried caution.
"From a source I don't think I have to elaborate to you, Adrift." Silver was similarly tense. "What can you tell me?"
"I suppose you didn't get these from a trusted source, have you?"
"What do you mean by that?"
Adrift Cumulus held up one of the gemstones with his wingtip. The jewel broke up the light from above, casting different hues of red on the table. "How much trouble did you have to go through to get these?"
There was something in his voice that was making Coal nervous. He and Silver leaned forward to look at the gem. It was perfectly cut, shiny and clear, like any other. "What are you getting at, Adrift?" Silver asked. "Is there something wrong with this?"
The pegasus eyed him. "You don't have any idea, do you?"
"Will you spit it out? Are you gonna accept it or not?"
"No, I'm not. I don't accept gems stolen from a carriage puller from Canterlot's ghetto. Although, I do have to give some credit to the guy who crafted this. This is a really fine work."
Silver drew in a sharp breath and snatched the gem with his hooves from Adrift's hold and held it against the light. Coal watched the unicorn's face turn to terrified.
"You can tell that we stole this?" Coal asked the pegasus. "That's why you won't accept it?"
The pegasus shook his head. "Your friend already knows the reason for that, I suppose."
"It's fake," Silver whispered, making Coal's blood freeze. He looked at the pegasus then Silver, who was staring at the stone that was only glass.
"From the reaction of you two I suppose you didn't know and didn't want to pay me with worthless junk. If you don't have the necessary sum, we can work out alternate routes. Maybe you can do some work for me or something."
Coal watched Silver mouthing silent words to the gem. He held up the other stolen items and levitated them in front to the pegasus, ignoring his words. "Neither of these is legit? Are you sure?"
Adrift studied each of them then shook his head. "I'm afraid not. I have to be able to tell real value from fakes. It's part of my profession. I'm actually surprised you didn't even consider the possibility. At least I don't think you did, judging by how big this revelation was to you. Both of you." He looked at Coal. "Although you don't seem as upset as my old friend."
Silver whipped his head around to look at Coal sharply, making the earth pony push himself into his chair. "I didn't know it either. I just hadn't been able to accept that stealing would resolve anything, so I didn't really take the gems into consideration as valuables."
Silver held his gaze for a second then lowered it. "I know, Coal. I'm just disappointed I didn't consider this might happen. I was so sure I was right. I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault," Coal said quickly. "It didn't occur to me either. That puller pony was so protective about these, it just made sense to use real gemstones as good luck charms. We'll figure out an alternative."
Silver nodded and floated the fake valuables back into Coal's bag. Adrift followed them with his eyes. "Are you gonna keep them?"
"We might as well," Silver said flatly. "If they fooled us, they might fool somebody else."
"Be careful with that. If I hadn't known you for so long, I'd have thrown you out for trying to screw me over. Others won't be so patient. Pegasus blood is quick to boil."
"Thanks, Adrift. I'll keep that in mind." Silver sighed. "We don't have enough money to pay for any of your offers, except the spell, which I'd rather steer clear. Can you offer us anything else?"
"I can give you work," the pegasus said. "You can do stuff for me and I'll value that in the price. For the two pieces, you two would need to work for... Approximately a week or so. I could use some help around here."
Coal already had the answer and when Silver seemingly considered his, he opened his mouth. "Sorry, we don't have the time. We have to get to places as soon as we can."
"And find another way to get into a radiation zone?" Adrift asked skeptically. "Your heads are gonna explode."
"Coal is right," Silver said. "We need something that won't keep us here."
"You could buy only one. That way at least one of you will be able to go in."
Coal and Silver exchanged a look. Coal had a suspicion that it would be him who would be better off without protection, but he didn't want to relieve the experience again. Silver was probably thinking the same, judging from his hesitation to agree.
"If nothing else works, we'll go that route. Until then, I will see what we can do with these gems."
"Well, good luck, then." Adrift stood. "My offer will stands, if you change your minds later." He placed a hoof on Silver's shoulder. "You do understand that I can't just give the rings to you, right? If they'd be cheaper, I would, but I can't spare that amount of money." He moved towards the door. "Is there anything I can help you with? Shelter, perhaps?"
Coal and Silver stood up as well. "No," the unicorn said. "Nothing. Thanks."
"Are you sure?"
Silver furrowed his brow as he looked at the pegasus. "Why?"
"Diamond dogs. I take it you don't have a place to stay and want to continue on walking or something, right? Then I have to warn you about the incidents that occurred in the near past when ponies walking home at night were attacked and almost killed by diamond dogs. You can stay with me for the night, free of charge."
"Thanks, but we already have rooms in a hotel," Silver said. "We've heard about diamond dogs raiding the area, but I didn't think they'd go into a town like this. Is it really that bad?"
Adrift shrugged and placed a hoof on the doorknob. "That's what I heard. If you already have a room, though, you should go there quick. It's probably dark out already and the streets aren't lit around here."
"All right. Thanks again." Silver exited the room when Adrift opened the door, leaving Coal with the pegasus, who held out his hoof before Coal. "Can I talk to you for a second?"
Silver looked back. "It's fine," Coal said to the unicorn with a nod. Silver nodded back and Adrift lead Coal back into the room. They remained standing.
"How long have you been travelling with him?" The pegasus asked quietly, leaning closer to Coal.
"A few day in total. Not much. Why?"
"I have to warn you. Silver's... a little hot-headed."
"I noticed."
"Did you?" Adrift raised an eyebrow. "He's impulsive. He makes his choices so he can be on the top in the end, and he's not afraid of gambling."
"I'm not really surprised to hear that either, to be honest."
"Then it won't be a surprise when he betrays you when he sees it fit. Don't say he won't. You must have seen how he acts when confronted. I worked with him for two years, and he always made sure he gets the final word. He has the will and the ability to make a most out of an opportunity." He pointed a hoof at Coal. "He will help you so he can achieve his own goals, then stab you in the back when you stand in his way. I know you plan to enter a restricted and dangerous area. I just want you to be very careful. Make a plan B for yourself to get out in one piece. Especially if you're going in without an inhibitor."
Coal hesitated on what to say to such claims. "I don't see it as... That bad. I noticed he sets his own rules, but he worked in security in the chariot station I met him, and he went out of his way to help me today." He didn't want to admit he has already been to the radiation zone with no protection.
Adrift held up a hoof. "Don't get me wrong here, he is a good guy and a good friend, but I still feel the need to warn you not to put too much trust in him. You don't strike me like you share his personality, that's the reason I wanted to tell you this. Please, don't let this stand between you two. I don't want to break your friendship apart with paranoia. Just be careful. You seem like a good guy. Don't take everything he says as hard truth. And please, don't tell him I told you these. Tell him it was a private conversation, like I made a move at you or something." A smile formed on his lips. "I can pretend I wanted to kiss you, I you want."
"Oh, thanks, but that won't be necessary," Coal said, taking a step back by instinct. He got a hold of himself. "Thank you for telling me all this. I'll keep it in mind. Also..." he looked at the chairs they'd sat in. "Are the gems really fake?"
"Of course. Otherwise I would have tried to get them off of your hooves with some trick." The pegasus grinned. "So, you're learning, huh? Not trusting everyone?"
Coal shrugged but couldn't suppress a smile of his own. "I guess..."
Adrift pointed at the door. "I won't hold you back any longer. I'll see you two out."
Coal and Silver said goodbye to Adrift and stepped into the young and chilly night. The streets were far from empty, but there were noticeably less ponies around when in broad daylight. There were also no lamps, just like Adrift had said, though it wasn't too dark yet.
Silver was quick to ask the reason Adrift wanted to talk with Coal.
"I don't think I should tell it..." The earth pony said, rubbing the back of his head.
"I can keep a secret," the unicorn assured him.
"Well, if you insist..." Coal made a show of avoiding eye contact with Silver. "He asked if I was doing anything tonight." He shot a glance at the other to see his reaction and couldn't help but grin at the unicorn's expression.
"That son of a bitch." Silver said darkly, though his tone was obviously exaggerated. "First my lover, now you? Has he no shame?"
"Your lover?"
"It's a long story. Are you familiar with the proverb about closeness, friends and enemies?"
"Yes?"
"It also applies to friends and marefriends, as it turns out."
"Oh. Did he...?"
Silver sighed. "He did, though it was partly my fault. Never mind."
"But he seemed so polite."
"Oh, yeah. That doesn't mean he can't be ruthless." He sunk into silence and Coal wasn't one to disturb it.
They neared the hotel Silver had shown Coal when they arrived. The bar at the first floor was fairly busy, though there were a lot of empty tables. Silver aimed at the counter for the hotel and booked a room for a reasonable price. Coal could tell he was still shaken by the fakeness of the gems by the way he pulled the money pouch out. He really didn't think he could be wrong about the gems.
"That went terribly," Silver said as the two of them went upstairs to see their room. Silver jingled with the key in the air as they walked. "We will have time to get something to eat and drink while we're here. It's not like we're going anywhere soon."
"I'm sure we will find a way," Coal assured him and in part, himself.
"Let's hope you're right." He opened the right door and sniffed in the room. "Not so bad, I'd say."
The room consisted of one bedroom with one double-bed and one bathroom. Coal frowned at the worn mattress with the sheets folded on the end. "Only one bed?"
"What did you expect? Are you afraid of a little snuggle?" Silver chuckled. "All right, no more gay jokes. One night is no big deal, even if you aren't used to share a bed. Just don't steal my cover at night."
"Uh... Fine." Coal looked around for a lockable drawer for his bags and found one by the bed. While Silver visited the bathroom he use the time to look over the contents before putting it away. The necklace and his findings were safe and intact, and he realized maybe he should have left the heavy book at home. Carrying it was a pain in the back. He smiled at his own, admittedly bad pun and opened the booklet with his notes at a random page. It was the drawing he had done about the Elements of Harmony a while back. His notes on the side of the paper were random facts and speculations, made in a blur of mind. Reading the lines he didn't even remember writing was weird. They were about their roles in the system that created the force that was used as a weapon against foes of Equestria. The butterfly necklace had 'Kindness' written under it. He never realized that. An arrow lead to outside of the page and continues on the next one behind it, with a lists of names associated with the whole thing. A bunch of unfamiliar ponies, probably dead by now, except the Princesses. The arrow lead to Fluttershy's name with a letter 'F' after it. His eyes found two more names that stood out, one had an arrow leading from the lighting emblem and the other from the center piece, the star. Both name had 'F's after them. What did that mean? Female?
He looked at the necklace sitting on its towel. The memories he saw, were they from this Fluttershy? Could she be still alive? The form of the elements was supposed to be the pony's cutie mark, but they weren't always associated with the six heroes. Before them, the elements looked different. If this one still had the cutie mark of its former bearer she could be still alive, otherwise it would take on its default form, whatever that might be. Not to mention Coal's talent whispered him every time he looked at the necklace. It wasn't a coincidence. He will have to find the Bearer of Kindness and... And ask her what happened, maybe. It was unlikely to be that simple.
"What's that?" Coal jumped as he realized Silver was looking at the paper behind his back as he sat facing the wall. He didn't even notice the unicorn exiting the bathroom. "Is that your research?"
"Yes. It's what I was able to find in Canterlot."
"Hm..." Silver levitated the paper with the drawing of the elements closer to his eyes. "What's this?"
"The Elements of Harmony. A stylistic depiction used to illustrate their interconnection. It's pretty rare to see it like this, though. I only found a hoof-full of sources about it."
"Interesting. I have a feeling I've seen it before."
Coal's ears perked up. "Really? Where?"
Silver shook his head. "I can't tell. Not long ago, but I can't recall exactly when. Maybe it was far away from me or I was distracted." Seeing the earth pony's excitement, he cracked a smile. "When it comes to me, I'll let you know."
"Thanks. It can be very important." He looked at the drawing one last time before putting everything away. "Now let's go spend some of our little money on some good food. I'm starving."
***
"All right," Silver said, leaning back in his chair. "I missed this."
"I agree," Coal stifled a yawn. "That burger didn't last long."
"Yeah. I forgot you've already eaten today, while I was busy arranging our route." He picked up the menu and opened it at the end. "I haven't eaten all day. Now let's see..."
Coal opened the menu at the drinks as well. Almost none of the names meant anything to him, but he could see the restaurant at the first floor of their hotel had a wide variety of ciders, including flavors he didn't even think were possible.
Silver pushed Coal's menu down with his magic. "No, no, let me have this pick. There's something I want you to taste." He looked around for a waiter and one appeared. "Two of the number fifteen, please."
The waiter nodded, stacked the empty plates and carried them away on his wings.
Coal closed his menu. "What are you gonna poison me with?"
"You'll see. I've already asked if you liked it, but I never got my answer. This time, you're not gonna get away that easily." Silver grinned. "We're gonna have a night out, you and me."
"A night out? You mean drinking and stalking single fillies from the corner?"
"Is that what you do on a night out? No, Coal, we're gonna have a conversation."
"Should I be afraid?"
"Very. No secrets of yours will remain hidden. I will now you better than yourself."
"That doesn't sound so bad. You'll explain everything about me to me, then, because there are thing even I don't get."
"I knew you'd be game." Silver levitated the two glasses of foaming yellow drinks from the waiter's plate. "Thanks." He floated one to Coal. "To your overwhelming complexity."
Coal sniffed at the smell of the liquid. It smelled familiar. "To your awful jokes."
The drink was cold and bitter and left a bad aftertaste, but as soon as he lowered the glass he wanted to drink more. So he did, grimacing all the way. "Hot damn," he muttered as he put the glass on the table. "What is this?
Silver was still drinking, but also kept an eye on Coal. He lowered his glass too. "So, are you liking it?"
"It's weird, but I guess so." He gulped down some more. The stuff filled him up quickly. "Why didn't I knew about it before?"
"I probably know the answer to that. By the way, it's called beer."
Coal stared at the yellow drink. "This is beer? But I've drunk beer before and it was awful."
"Let me guess. A fancy, overpriced Canterlot restaurant?"
"No... Well, kind of. Fancy indeed, but not terribly expensive. They had beer as a special offer and I got curious, but it was just awful. Like they put too much sugar in it to mask the bitterness."
Silver gagged. "Sugar? Were they mad? No wonder you didn't like it. They were morons. But this is way better, isn't it?"
"Oh, definitely. Quite different after drinking only cider, but good nevertheless." Coal drank more and put the half-empty glass back down.
"I've heard Canterlot prefers sweet cider," Silver said. "Beer is considered more masculine. That explains why you didn’t recognize it."
They sat in silence for a minute. The beer derailed his thoughts a bit but relaxed him at same time as well. Coal leaned back in his chair and studied the unicorn sitting across the table. A genuine conversation would be nice indeed.
"So," Silver broke the silence. "Let me ask you a question. Why a lonely bookworm is suddenly so interested in an old mystery that he'd threw his own life upside down, just to satisfy his curiosity? What's behind the innocence and naivety you display? Why are you still bearing my presence, despite the numerous dangers I'm putting you it? Why are your concerns and suspicions not stopping you? What's driving you?"
Coal contemplated the questions. Indeed, what was driving him? "I don't have a perfectly thought-out answer to those, but let me start at the beginning." He took a sip, enjoying the taste. It grew on him quickly. "I guess I've always wanted to take part in an adventure of some sort. As a kid, I was kept safe at home, under my mother's wings. Figuratively, of course. My dad worked in a mine, hence the names Coal and Slitter. I buried myself in stories, novels, documentaries, history books, the like. When I was old enough I moved from Manehattan where we lived to Canterlot to study and to work. I went through the school I wanted and ended up in a small shop, where old ponies came to buy ancient and rare books. I liked it quite a bit, but then I got an opportunity at the Canterlot Library and went there instead. Soon after I had to leave and went to work for individuals, discovering family tress and such. I also took on a few magic courses but never finished them for obvious reasons. I found myself drooling over the past, and I was kinda stuck in it for some time. Then I stumbled upon a story mentioning the storages I knew about already, but in a different light than I've seen before. The description, written in first person like a journal entry, spoke of them like the writer's own idea. He described them in detail I couldn't follow, despite the magic courses. He also pulled parallels with an unnamed princess, but based on the text, it wasn't any of the three that we know today. Later, after finding that journal thing, I found another similarly written, but about something called the Elements of Harmony, six ponies, who wielded magical power. Their leader was also an alicorn and also not the ones we know. Her name was Twilight Sparkle and she was one of the most powerful unicorns of her time. She was also supposed to live in Ponyville, a village that was destroyed by one of the storages. I noted that she was described as a unicorn, not an alicorn, and I looked up stories of a regular unicorn turned into an alicorn. I'm sure you've heard of that happening, too. So, as it turned out there were a lot of things that were common about these stories. With the help of my talent I pieced together something that you saw a piece of just now, up in our room. I know the storages and the Elements are connected through that fourth alicorn. So far, it was good and well, but there was another thing that made me wonder." He drunk some more. Silver watched him intently, without a word. "The thing that was weird and led me to this path was the fact that none of the sources were older than a few decades. I knew the storages were quite recent but nobody I've asked heard about the Elements or a fourth alicorn or if they did, they didn't want to talk about it in public. I was ready to put the subject under the rug but then I was contacted by a wealthy unicorn, who wanted to know about his family tree. When the lead led me into Ponyville I asked if I could go there and see for myself, I was provided a pass and money to do so. That was when we met. When I arrived back I was greeted by a letter telling me to pull the plug on the whole thing. I got my money, despite my unfinished task and was told to remain silent about it. Then that same pony told me to meet in public. He asked me about the radiation in Ponyville but refused to tell why. Soon after that you came along and told me I was in danger and needed to flee. You know the rest." He took another sip. "I told you why I was suspicious about you, when you told me about a conspiracy. You see, I have been doing this for years now, and I have never seen signs of me being watched or told not to do it, except for the very last month. Since then my mind have changed, though I still have difficulty to accept the situation as you describe it, because I still didn't see the guard or anyone else going after me specifically. You might be right, of course, but it's still not easy to believe."
Silver, seeing Coal was finished, nodded slowly. "Quite an insight, you gave me. Explains some things, but also states questions. Would you mind if I asked you some of them?"
"Go ahead."
"Why did you leave your home? Wasn't Manehattan good enough for your dreams? Why move halfway across the country?"
Coal emptied his glass and use the time to word his thoughts. "I took an opportunity to move and then I never really saw a reason to go back. I applied to a Canterlot school to study history and when that ended I took up magic which was then cut in half, but by that time I had a job and an apartment in a good place, near the library and the school. I had my own life going. I could do whatever I wanted. Going home would have meant leaving all that behind, and I didn't want it. I enjoyed living on my own too much."
"What do you expect to find?"
The earth pony turned the question over in his mind. "I'm not sure. Something to change, maybe. To make a contribution to the world. Does that make sense?"
Silver shrugged. "Depends what you mean by it. Do you want fame?"
"Oh, no. Just the thought that I did something important."
"Then it's the adventure itself, I presume."
"Well... I guess so, yes. It's kinda exciting. Not your average day in the office."
"Do you have any siblings?" Silver asked after a sip.
Coal hesitated a bit at the change of topic. "No, my parents never wanted more than one foal. Do you?"
"I have a young sister." Silver finished his beer too and waved the waiter to their table.
"Can I bring another?" The pegasus asked. Silver looked at Coal, who nodded.
"Coming right up."
Silver leaned forward. "So, adventure. That's why you were so easy to bring along?"
Coal started. "What?"
"When I first saw you, awkward and inexperienced, I could have sworn you were just another city folk dropped out of his nest. Then you waved a permission to go into a restricted area, kept a cool head when chased by that timberwolf, almost killed it if it wasn't for your leg... What else...? Oh, you also helped me blackmail that shopkeeper, saw the zoo's accident and didn't run away, took my advice to go back to Canterlot when the ground was becoming hot... Should I go on? It's clear you want stuff to happen to you. Yes, you had your doubts, but you still committed yourself to follow me. By the way, I meant every word I said back then. I do think we're on the right path here." He took the glasses from the waiter. "You also study magic. How many earth ponies do you know who do that? Don't you think that means something?"
Coal enjoyed the fresh draft and Silver's words for a minute. Hearing them did put everything in kind of a new perspective. "Thanks for telling me this." He smiled at the unicorn. "It does makes sense. But..." the glass wobbled a bit when he put it down. "I want to hear about Silver Beam a little. We always talk about me."
Silver grinned. "I see you're enjoying the stuff." He drank slowly, then lowered the glass with a contemplative expression. "So, what about me? What do you want to know?"
"Why are you helping me? What do you have to gain by it?"
"I believe I already told you that, but here we go. For the most part, I enjoy solving mysteries and yours is a pretty good one, even though I don't believe in it as much as you do. Besides that, I had enough of sitting around and doing mundane stuff. I needed to go out and do exciting things, travel, fight, make friends, get revenge, you know... I never liked sitting on my ass for years on."
"Wait. Get revenge?"
Silver hesitated, then nodded. "Yes, revenge. I was betrayed in the station, just after the incident. The set me up to make it seem I was responsible for it."
"Why? What was wrong with you? I mean, why did they do that?"
"I don't know, to be honest. I have my suspicions, but I can't come up with a proper motive. There is always something contradicting my theory."
"So, you're like a criminal now? Do you have to clear your name?"
"In a sense, yes. Some people do think I'm a criminal but there are ones who know better. The problem is, the ones who think so are the powerful ones."
"So that's why the guards are after you."
"Yes, I believe so. I can't risk getting captured and pursue the case legally, because the ones who set me up would destroy me. That's why I want to go to the station so badly, so I can expose them."
"How are you gonna do that? Do you have someone inside who can give you information?"
"Sadly..." Silver trailed off, as if something just occurred to him. "Actually, there might be. Do you remember that orange unicorn who asked me to leave you to do something?"
"Uhm, I guess... Wasn't he part of the plot?"
"He was, but I don't think he was convinced about the whole thing. In fact, he was the last person I'd have thought to be a part of it."
"That's good, right? As soon as we arrive, we can get a view of what's going on there, then make plan accordingly. Maybe there's a way we can combine your goal with mine? You know, getting into the ruins, looking for anything relevant..." Coal hesitated. "Right. We first need to obtain a ring or something, right?"
Silver nodded. "Yeah. Going in without them would be painful." He looked Coal in the eye and smiled. "That's not a bad thought, Coal! We can use a ring to capture that unicorn and get him to talk."
"I don't know, capturing and such seems violent. I'm sure we can work out something less harsh."
"What they did was pretty harsh already," Silver said. "I don't have a problem with applying the same treatment to them in turn."
"I..." Did Coal even have the right to object? It was Silver's matter. "All right. We'll see what our options are when we get there."
"Glad you agree."
"So, that was one question. I still don't understand why are you so at home with shady figures. Where there that many in the station?"
"Shady figures? They're normal ponies, just like you and me, only with slightly different rules. Once you crack what drives them, you can play them like an instrument."
Coal grimaced and took a sip. "I could have sworn you had a soul."
Silver chuckled. "And I could have sworn you'd spit the beer out at the first taste. But you're finishing your second, and I'm still not a changeling. But, to answer your question, I met a lot of those kind of ponies in my years. Before the station, I worked for a shipping company, where I encountered quite a few merchants and money-centered ponies. It was never really difficult to befriend them or make them trust me. I guess it's a talent of mine."
Coal raised his glass and found it empty. He contemplated ordering a new one, but his head was already lighter than normal. He momentarily forgot what Silver just said and had to concentrate to remember. "So... You don't actually like them? You just act like you do?"
"For the most part, no. I genuinely like them. They are usually more honest than more refined ponies I've met. Even you seemed like a typical dishonest, if naïve earth pony from the big city, and now look at you. Drunk and awesome."
Coal grinned. "Hey, stop making me blush. Flattery is a soft spot of mine."
"Is that so? Does complimenting your cuddly-fluffy chest and beautiful mane makes you uncomfortable?"
Coal sunk into his chair, grinning his face off. Even he was shocked by the effect of alcohol on him, though this was not his first time. "I'm gonna slap you while you sleep if you don't stop."
Silver laughed and held a hoof to his mouth. "A little quieter, Coal. And don't try to hit me. I'm faster than a passenger getting off from a train without toilets." He grimaced. "And now we're going into bad poop-joke territory. I guess it's time we hit the hay, don't you think?"
Coal nodded, feeling tired all of a sudden. "Agreed. You have the pouch, right?"
They paid and went upstairs in a not-so-straight line, at least Coal felt like so. He plummeted straight into the bed and buried his head in the pillow to slow down the spinning of the world. The beer went into his head nothing like any alcoholic cider he'd tried so far. It was strange and tiring. And it was awesome.
***
The order she was given was to alert them as she found any big chunks of gems or crystals, preferably one the size of a statue. They also warned her about water in ponds again, and they didn't provide any additional details this time either. She let the spell run which was fairly easy as of late and concentrated on not tripping over in the rocks and pieces of shattered wood the ground was littered with. The dogs carried only one lit torch instead of the usual three and the lack of illumination was noticeable. The dogs apparently had better sight, because they didn't trip at all as they followed her.
She could hear them whispering occasionally, but no matter how she strained her ears she couldn't catch the words. She had seen their wary expressions when the turned the corner and saw this old, unlit tunnel, leading down at a slight angle. Her own stomach felt cold when they entered, but she had her horn with no ring on it and that gave her some courage. With her being reasonably strong, she could handle herself. Probably. What was down there that could mean danger to her? The dogs probably weren't gonna hurt her, if she remained in order. They needed her too much.
After lighting the last torch they carried, the leader dog ordered the group to stop and tried to light the dead torch again, with no success. He threw the useless stick to the ground and snarled at the smaller dog standing next to him, making him flinch back.
"Why couldn't you get more of these things? Can you see in the dark? How are we supposed to finish like this?"
"I'm sorry, but it wasn't my fault. Shutt said he's gonna bring some over-"
"I don't care who you spoke to. It was your responsibility. Get these to work or find some other way so we can see. I don't want to report back with nothing."
"Can't we use the pony? I mean, she can do-"
"Relying on the prisoners in any way is too dangerous. Our leader strictly forbids it, and for good reason. Would you put your life in that?" He pointed at her. She was lying on her side with her eyes almost completely closed and her legs stretched out. She hoped her ears wouldn't alarm them, as they were wide open to catch every word.
The smaller one shook his head. "Not my life, but maybe she can restore the dead torches. Does that count?"
The leader contemplated it. Twilight closed her eyes, willing him not to agree. She knew she couldn't just create torches out of nothing.
"Maybe, as a last resort," the leader said eventually. "For now, let's get going. When this torch starts to go out, we head back as fast as we can. Or..." There was a sound of metal sliding against something and her eyes snapped open instinctively. The leader was holding a dagger in his paw, a long, broad and probably sharp weapon, something she had never seen with the dogs. He sliced at some fabric that one of the others carried and wrapped it around the edges of a used torch. He held it to a live one and the fabric slowly caught fire.
"This isn't gonna last long," he said, putting the knife in a hidden holster under his west, "but maybe enough to find something. Hey, pony!" He stepped over her, making her pull herself closer. "Stretch that magic of yours and find us a statue pronto. Just like last time. Do you remember? No matter. Just do as I say. Now get up."
He turned away and she got to her hooves and resumed her spell.
The next hour or so went without success, and the leader was getting frustrated. He didn't speak to her, but she could see his temper on his face. She had a feeling this particular dog was the one that ordered her to learn the gem-sorting spell, causing her to drain herself. He saw his eyes wandering on her body again, making her shudder.
Despite their fast pace she still had mental capacity to observe the tunnel. The ground was even, coated in fine dust. Near a caved-in entrance she saw two parallel pieces of rusted metal on the ground, like rails for a minecart. She had seen rails down here before, near where the raw gemstones were piled up. They had pony-sized saddles mounted to them, which wasn't exactly surprising. Those rails weren't so badly corroded, though. It occurred her that the very bottom of the bars closing her cell had rust on them too, and the fine dust was also familiar. Was this tunnel flooded in the past? There was water in the ponds, but that surely couldn't have been enough.
She sensed a cave next to them and a quick spell reassured her it her feelings. It had water in it, but no statues. Just small gems on the pond's bottom, but she wasn't eager to tell them that. The tunnel had no visible entrance to the cave, even though it run just by it. She made a mental note to ask Crimson if she knew anything about those ponds. There were so many identical ones. What purpose could the serve?
The thought of Crimson squeezed her throat. She knew after this trip, she would be taken elsewhere, where the filly wouldn't be able to track her down. She ran off so quickly last time, Twilight didn't have time for a proper goodbye. She herself couldn't do much without the dogs taking note of it and she didn't dare to anger them, afraid of the inevitable punishment that'd follow. She still felt some of the deeper scars. She will have to keep her eyes open and trust Crimson. She was able to get Twilight's cell door open, after all. She was crafty.
The last torch was running out and no matter how she strained herself, she hasn't seen any statues or anything bigger than a gem. She glanced at the leader with fearful eyes and he looked back at her, making her snatch her gaze away.
"You, pony," he said, walking closer to her. "Can you make the torches work again?"
She looked at the ground and shook her head. The dog huffed. "Can you make some light, then?"
"Uhm... Yes." She made sure her voice appeared weak, which wasn't very hard.
"All right. You're gonna light the way after this one dies."
"Okay."
"If you mention it to anyone, you're dead. Got it?"
"Yes."
"Good. That means we can stay longer." He turned away and when she cleared her throat he looked back. "What?"
"If I have to illuminate the tunnels, I won't have enough strength to cast my spell to find that statue you want."
He pressed his lips into thin lines and he regarded her with black eyes. "Then we have to move fast." He studied the torch. "Not much time. If we don't find anything, I'm gonna make you responsible." She shivered under his gaze and lit her horn.
The torch only needed ten minutes at best before it spit out a last flame before winking out completely, leaving them in the faint glow of her magic. She froze mid-step and looked back at the dogs behind her, but her eyes hadn't got used to the dark yet.
"Great. Now we depend on the pony."
"Forget the pony. We're supposed to go back with a trail to a statue, and there isn't any."
"What if she lied to us? Saw one but didn't say anything?"
They went silent and she let her magic implode, leaving no source of light at all.
"Unlikely," the leader said reluctantly. "As much as I want to blame her, she has no reason not to cooperate. She knows what happens when she does." She heard him stepping closer and took a step back. "Now, make some light, pony. We're going back."
Purple glow revealed the three dogs standing before her, all looking at her. Her wings twitched as she thought about running away and leaving them to themselves, alone in the dark. Instead, she turned around and walked past them, towards the way they came. They fell silently into line behind her.
As soon as they saw a light of a wall-mounted torch's light coming from the main tunnel one of them ran ahead and returned with a lit one in his paws. The leader turned to her. "You can stop the light now. If you mention that this happened to anyone, you're gonna regret it. Got it?"
She nodded, this time not having to fake fear and exhaustion.
"Besides," he went on, as if talking to himself, "there won't be anyone to talk to anymore."
She looked at him but the leader took the torch and went ahead of the group. She followed him, turning his word over in her mind.
When they went straight past the turn they were supposed to make she hesitated to continue and the dog behind her pushed her to move on. She found her footing again and followed them with growing anxiety. She tried to memorize the turns they were taking but quickly lost track. The dogs stopped before a cellar entrance and pushed her in. She looked around in the cell, finding it slightly bigger than her previous one. The dogs, with the exception of the leader all left.
"There is only one thing left to do," he said, pulling a ring from his pocket and stepping closer to the still open door. Her ears perked up. Finally, she was going to see their applying method? He looked excited, but that could be just her own curiosity.
"Come here, beautiful."
She grimaced but stepped closer.
"Close your eyes."
She obeyed, her muscles tense, waiting for her magic to be cut out. She felt claws caress her hindquarters and with a surge of anger and fear, he flared up her horn with a cry of fear. The blast sent the dog flying backwards into the opposing wall where he tumbled to the ground. She wheezed, her horn flaming and swirling with magic, her wings spread wide.
"Holy crap," the dog muttered as he got himself together. He winced as he straightened his back. There wasn't enough light for her to see his exact expression, but the way he growled told her enough. She closed her wings and shied away from the bars as the dog walked closer with the ring still in his claws. Before he reached her the rest of the group came running from the left.
"What was that? We heard a rumble. Did the pony explode or something?"
The leader clenched his teeth. "Unfortunately, no. It was my fault. I tried to put the ring on her by myself." He shot a dark look at her with a clear meaning. Talk, and you're dead.
"Serves you right. There is a reason why-"
"I know, okay? Now go and send the... Send the right people to do it."
He left without a second look at her and the rest slowly followed, with one exception who walked to the cell door and shut it. He didn't notice the burnt part of the bars where the blast went through, thankfully.
"What did you do?" He regarded her with disgust. Even that was better than the look the leader had given her.
"I'm not sure," she said, not having to tell a complete lie. Her legs were still shaking slightly.
"Right." The dog pulled out a gemstone from his pocket and held it out to her. "Sniff at this."
She looked at him, confused.
"Just sniff at it, dammit."
She took a careful step closer and smelled the light blue stone. It has a faintly sweet smell to it, which was strange. It reminded her to a perfume she had tried once, long ago. It was pleasant and it made her head feel familiarly light. She inhaled again. Her eyes turned upward and the world went dark.
When she came to her senses she was laying on the ground by the bars. She immediately raised a hoof to her horn. After feeling the ring on it she stretched her leg ahead to see if it would shake, but the shock had passed. She knew she overreacted and possibly blew her cover as not looking as strong as she really was, but the dog would probably hold his mouth, if he didn't want to go into detail what he tried to do with her.
The memory of his claws on her body made her shiver. She closed her eyes, blocking out the light of the torch outside the cell. The sweet scent was still in her nose. She had no doubt that the gemstone was enchanted to make the pony who sniffed at it sleep, but that was not a natural effect of any gemstone she knew of. A magical pattern came to her mind and she tried to cast the spell by instinct, only to realize the block. She tried to dig deeper into her memories to find out what it was but she was too tired to concentrate. She fell asleep in moments.
