It all begins at the end of the line
"The buck was that?!" Carbon Ingot cried, reaching forward for the brake as the engine lurched forward.
The engine slowed, and the rest of the passenger cars behind followed.
'Damned thing must be getting old...' he grumbled inwardly, grabbing the shovel sitting off to the side with his magic.
He dug the shovel into the coal car behind him, and took a good three helpings to be fed into the fire burning intensely behind the filtered gate. He stomped his hoof, opening the filter, and tossed the coal in, fueling the raging furnace inside. He stepped off the block, sealing the furnace as he stepped back, taking a moment to wipe the sweat gathering on his muzzle. He adjusted his heavy overcoat as he walked to the window, pulling the wool cap further over his head as he did so. The freezing cold wind shocked him as it whipped his face, forcing him to blink rapidly as he attempted to see through the blizzard whirling around in the air around the locomotive. Truth be told, he was a bit nervous, this was his first trip to the Crystal Empire, and all this ice and snow sure didn't make things any easier. He pulled his head back into the cabin, lest he catch hypothermia, and slammed the window closed, a few snowflakes whisking in before he did. Checking the dials lining the furthest wall of the cabin, he sat down for a short break, listening to the rattle of the wheels against the cold, iron tracks barreling through the tundra-like landscape. He reached over to the radio, and tapped the microphone.
"This is Carbon Ingot, engineer of the Crystal Clear" he said.
He released the button on the mic, waiting for a reply.
"Copy that, this is Ally at Canterlot Station" a mare's voice came from the speaker "and you know how much Narrow hates it when you nickname the trains"
"Like I care," he said, rolling his eyes as he glanced out the window "damn, you should see what it's like out here, there's just snow...and snow...and more snow"
"You should've thought of that before accepting the job" she teased.
He blew a raspberry, specks of saliva landing on the mic. He wiped it off, then listened for a response.
"That was disgusting..." Ally said, her voice crackling over the speaker "I swear I felt that all the way back here..."
He rolled his eyes.
"So...we still on when I get back?" he finally asked.
"You mean at the Brake Club? Maybe...I'll still have to check my schedule"
"Why. didn't Det give you the week off?"
"Ingot, if I had the week off- I sure as Tartarus wouldn't be spending it here" she deadpanned.
"Oh...right..."
"Yyyyeah, lucky me"
"Alright, well, I'd better get going..."
"Yeah, me too" she replied "See ya soon"
"Bye Ally" he said, hanging up the mic.
The passenger car jumped, forcing its inhabitants to bounce.
"Could it get any colder?" one stallion complained, tightening his jacket in an attempt to keep warm.
"Don't know what you're complaining about" a Diamond Dog across the isle smirked, wearing a light jacket with a scarf.
"Shut up" he said, rolling his eyes.
"Not my fault I got a fur coat"
"Would you both keep it down? You're going to wake my foal" a mare seated near the back said, cradling a bundle in her hooves, a slightly older foal sleeping next to her on the seat.
"Right, we would want to wake her, now would we?" the Dog said, then looked across the isle to the stallion "I won't say anything if you don't, alright?"
"Alright..." he grumbled, huddling against the seat "hope the heating kicks in soon..."
The Diamond Dog looked like he was going to say something, but bit his lip.
The car jumped again, this time rocking to the side a bit. The foal in the back began to whine, apparently woken from its nap by the rocking of the passenger car.
'Oh Celestia, just kill me now...' the stallion groaned inwardly, his head thumping against the freezing window.
"D-doesn't the e-engineer know what he's d-doing?" a stallion asked, glancing nervously out the window.
"Nope, they hired somepony totally unqualified" a teenage colt responded sarcastically, lying across his seat.
A crystal pony sitting behind the nervous stallion gave him a comforting glance.
"It's alright," she said "I've ridden this train before, it's safe"
"Are-are you sure?"
"Trust me, the trip'll be over before you know it"
He nodded, visibly shaking, as he continued to glance nervously at his surroundings.
"S-so...um...why are you coming back to the Cr-Crystal Empire?" he asked.
"Oh, you know, just seeing how the world's changed," she responded "I'm on my way home, at the moment"
"O-Oh..."
"What're you so shaken up about? It's like you never rode a train before" the colt said, sitting up.
"I-I haven't"
"Then why in Equestria are you coming all the way out here?"
"I p-promised myself- I said, I said to myself 'Flint, it's about time you went out and did something adventurous, and well- here I am..."
"One of those mousy types, huh?"
"Oh hush, leave the poor dear alone" the mare chided.
"What? It's not everyday somepony can just get on a train and run off to somewhere exotic"
The stallion ('Flint') mumbled something under his breath.
"What was that?" the colt asked.
"It- um- took me three weeks just to work up the nerve to get to the ticket counter..."
He didn't get much further than that, as the colt began laughing, wheezing so hard he fell face-first onto the floor.
"Serves you right" the mare muttered.
The engine rocked, forcing Carbon to hit his jaw on the rough, iron floor. Picking himself up, he rubbed his sore mouth as he ran to the controls, vainly searching for anything out of the ordinary. The engine rocked again, and a sharp squealing filled the air as the train jerked from side to side.
'Dammitdammitdammit....'
He reached for the intercom as he slammed the brake backwards, flicking on the mic.
"Attention passengers, please fasten you seatbelts" he said.
There was a flash, and his conductor appeared, her blue hat set askew atop her black mane.
"Ingot!" she shouted over the roar "What's going on?!"
"I don't know!" he shouted back "Make sure everypony else is safe! And strap yourself in for Celestia's sake!"
"Yessir!" she shouted, teleporting out of the cabin.
As he feverishly tried to correct whatever was going on, he prayed to Celestia that it wasn't serious...but the way things were going now, the chance was growing slimmer and slimmer by the second.
"Mommy? Mommy, what's going on?" the foal asked, snuggling next to her mother for security.
"I'm sure its just temporary..." she replied, stroking her mane soothingly as the car continued to shake.
"You know, maybe one of us should go up front, y'know, and check with the engineer" the diamond dog said.
"I volunteer you" the stallion mumbled.
"Thanks ever so much" he replied sarcastically.
"You sh-"
"Everpony in you seats, buckled down, NOW!" the conductor roared, popping into the car.
Before they knew it, she disappeared.
"That doesn't sound good..." the dog said as the foal in the mare's arms continued to cry.
"Is-is the train supposed to do that?" the stallion asked, glancing worriedly between the crystal pony and the colt.
"If I say yes, will you quit talking?" the colt replied.
SSQQQQQUUUUUUUUEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAA-
SHUNK!
CHHHHHHHHH.
'Oh shit...'
Ticket popped into the room, panting heavily.
"I warned everypony, what should we-"
"Get down! Now!" he shouted, tackling her.
They both tumbled through the rear door of the cabin, and into the coal car. Ticket's head popped out of the pile, covered in black soot, soon followed by Carbon's, also covered in filth. They looked up in time to see the entire left side of the engine shift downwards, pulling the rest of the train with it as it banked into the snow, tipping onto its side. The shift in gravity was all it took to cover both of them in bits and pieces of coal as the freezing cold snow greeted them harshly.
"What...the hell...just...happened?" Ticket panted, digging herself out of the coal pile.
"Weather must've caused a split in the tracks, that's what caused the engine to derail" he guessed.
"Well *cough* let's go and check on the others, let's just hope there weren't any casualties..."
He nodded, and followed her back into the engine, shaking the soot from his grey coat.
"You check the first car, I'll see to the second" he said.
She agreed, and climbed through the wreckage as he walked around the first car, and towards the second.
"Hello? Is everypony alright?" he called, slamming the dented door open.
He entered the car, and found two ponies, the latter carrying two foals.
The stallion looked shaken, and the mare was crying, tears leaking from her eyes as she made her way towards Carbon.
"Miss, miss, I know you must be frightened, but-"
"He- he-" she choked "he just..."
"What's the matter, ma'am?" he asked, concerned.
She could only shakily point towards the back of the car. He trotted forward, dodging the seats as he pushed further, almost afraid of what he might find.
...
He held a hoof to his mouth, and saw a Diamond Dog, lying motionless against the window, or rather, in the window, his back having shattered the glass. His eyes were wide open, his head snapped to the side, as blood seeped through his jacket. He walked forward, and held a hoof to his neck. No pulse...
He removed his cap in respect, and trotted back towards the front of the car, where the dark orange stallion and the cream-colored mare waited.
"We're getting everypony, and heading to the engine, if we're lucky, and the fire's still going, we can at least keep warm until help arrives" he said, answering the unasked question.
The three nodded, shaken beyond belief as they followed Carbon out of the car, and towards the engine.
"Anypony?" Ticket called, pushing open the door.
As a result, the rust-red door fell off its hinges, allowing the cold, frigid air to enter the car.
"Shut the door, will ya? It's freezing outside" a male voice called.
"Is everypony alright in there?" she asked, carefully stepping into the car.
"Yeah, Jumpy over here hit his head, but that's about it"
The sound of a slap could be heard.
"One of these days, that mouth of yours is going to get you into trouble," a female voice said "now help me get him out"
Grumbling was heard, before a yellow earth pony colt appeared, pulling a green stallion with a crystal pony.
"Easy, now" the mare said as the two backed out of the car.
The colt shivered as the four of them exited the car, and made their way through the piling snow banks, and towards the engine.
"Worst trip I've ever taken..." the colt snarked.
Ticket and her group climbed into the engine cabin, where they found Carbon and his group already inside, the engineer himself fiddling with the radio.
"This thing on? Testing- ah buck it- this C-Carbon Ingot- we've- we've derailed...we're running low on supplies...outside temperatures seem to be getting colder- passengers are safe so far"
Ticket slammed the door closed, blocking the frigid winds as the three ponies in her group went to warm themselves by the fire.
Carbon turned, and spied the four. He hung up the mic, and approached Ticket.
"They're fine," she said, answering the unasked question "that green stallion just has a bit of a head injury, how're things going here?"
"We've got one dead..." he responded "the others seem to be alright"
"Who was it?"
"A Diamond Dog" he responded.
"He was so nice..."
Carbon sighed, then crossed the cabin, sitting on the seat situated against the nearest wall.
"What'll we do now?" the crystal pony asked, glancing from the frosted window to the fire still roaring in the
"Wait 'till help arrives, unfortunately..."
"So...we're just going to sit here?" the yellow colt asked.
"Isn't that what I just said?"
"Well, uh- shouldn't somepony go out and try to get help?"
"Best thing we can do is wait," Carbon responded "we're too far from the Crystal Empire to make it in this blizzard"
"So how can we pass the time?" the cream-colored mare asked, bouncing on of her foals on her knee.
"Why don't we take the time and get to know each other?" the dark-orange stallion replied sarcastically.
"Great idea!" the crystal pony said, blatantly ignoring the stallion's tone "I'm Angel Dust"
"Shooting Star," the colt said, reclining on the floor, then indicating the unconscious stallion "this here is Flint"
Ally sat back in her chair, monitoring the enormous piece of parchment tacked to the far wall of the room, the little black dots on the colored lines moving by themselves. She shot up as one of the black dots leading to an area marked 'Crystal Empire' flashed, blinking rapidly on the turquoise line. She crossed the room, and tapped the dot, as a result, Carbon's voice began filtering into the room.
"Bzzz....*crackle* This thing on? Testing- ah buck it- this C-Carbon Ingot- we've- we've derailed...we*crackle* low on supplies...*ffffzzzzttt* getting colder- passengers....Chhhhhhsssssssshhhhh"
Nothing but static came through.
"What've you got yourself into this time?" she muttered, running back to her desk, searching hurriedly through her desk drawers.
She finally found what she was looking for- an airhorn.
She ran out the door, onto the wooden platform of the station, and pressed down, the harsh wail filling the air as she flinched. She waited a beat, before a team of four pegasi and two unicorns came into view, running full gallop towards her.
"I need a dog chase team out in the Crystal Empire, quick!" she shouted.
They saluted, and left hurriedly, following the tracks toward their destination.
'You'd better come back in one piece...' she thought, watching the team depart.
She headed back into her office, bashing her fist against the wall as she did so.
"Okay, your turn" Star smirked, looking at the orange stallion.
"Bite me" he responded.
Carbon rolled his eyes at the two, before glancing at the fire, checking to make sure it was still going strong. He felt something tug at his leg, and saw that it was one of Radiant Aura's foals.
"Yes?" he asked, peering down at the filly.
She twiddled her thumbs as she scratched at the floor with her hoof.
"Here," he said, picking her up and setting her on his seat "see this?"
He pointed to a rope with a handle at the end hanging from the ceiling.
She nodded, still bashful.
"That's the whistle, why don't you give it a pull?"
Her eyes went wide.
"Really?!" she asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Sure" he replied.
She grabbed it with both hands, and yanked- the rope came down, and a shrill whistle filled the air, the sound so forceful, the snow gathered on the windowsill was shaken from its place. She released the rope, and sat back in the chair.
"That was...fun" she said, smiling a bit up at him.
"And loud" the orange stallion complained, stopping for the moment to stop bickering with Star.
"Are you always this cranky?"
"Are you always this annoying?"
"Knock it off, the both of you" Angel chided.
Flint, who had been motionless, up until this point, sat up, holding his head as he groaned.
Carbon helped him to his feet as the stallion shook his head, blinking rapidly.
"You alright?" he asked.
"Fine...it's just...something feels wrong..."
"Broken ribs, perhaps?" Star suggested.
"No...no...it's one of us...something's wrong with one of us..."
"He's delirious" the orange stallion said.
"No- I'm not- I swear I'm not...it's my special talent...sometimes...I just...I get these feelings...and- it just...I need to think-"
He sat down, clutching his head.
Star looked to Angel, and made the 'cuckoo' sign. She responded by cuffing him upside the head.
"He's obviously not right in the head, he must've hit his head harder than we thought" the orange stallion said.
Radiant Aura sighed, and stood, she then asked Angel to hold the second foal still in her arms, to which the latter complied.
"I suppose now is as good a time as any," she said "waiting will only make things more difficult..."
All of them stared wide-eyed, save for the foal sitting in the chair, as Radiant's form became engulfed in emerald green flames, burning away her cream coat and vibrant green mane. The creature that was replaced with her could only be described as a chitinous, fanged monstrosity. Her eyes opened, revealing deep blue eyes, black slits filling the pupils.
"My true identity is what you see before you, I am Bolted Meteor" 'she' said.
They could only stare in shock, until the foal sitting in the engineer's seat spoke up.
"Mommy's a changeling" she said, completely unfazed.
"Throw 'er out" the orange stallion said.
"I beg your pardon?" the changeling dubbed as 'Meteor' asked, an eyebrow raised.
"Throw 'em all out," he reiterated "they could all be changelings"
"Nopony's going out" Carbon barked.
"You expect us to just sit here and wait for them to devour us?!"
"That's enough!" he shouted "Doesn't matter if they're changelings or not- they stay here"
"But- but- but-"
"No buts, we all stay together"
The stallion sighed in frustration, and sat back, crossing his arms in a huff.
"I thank you for your trust me" Meteor said, taking her foal back from Angel.
The crystal pony herself flinched as her arms were emptied, and took a hesitant step back.
"So, are these two-"
"No, they are full-fledged ponies" she said, shutting that particular train of thought down.
"O-oh...so why are you heading to the Crystal Empire, anyway?"
"To put it simply, I wished to start a new life...I suppose that won't come true, now"
"You could still seek audience with Princess Cadenza," Angel suggested, visibly shaking as she approached the queen "perhaps she could offer you sanctuary?"
"I should say not," Meteor replied "from what I've heard, they don't have the best history with my kind"
"Surely she wouldn't hold a grudge against your species for they way just one of you behaved"
"I suppose we shall see, won't we?"
Carbon set the older foal onto the floor, and took up the seat as he reached for the radio, fiddling with it once more to distract himself. Not that he was concerned about the changeling, she seemed nice enough, but he was naturally afraid of somepony that had fangs. He peered over his shoulder, and saw Meteor sit down with her two charges. She wrapped one of her gossamer wings around the eldest, as she cradled the younger.
He clenched his fist as he set the mic back on the radio, and sighed as he sat down, waiting for the team to come and help.
The orange stallion stood, and left the room, slamming the door as he left.
"Keep everypony here," Carbon said, standing to go after him "I'll be right back"
He shivered as he walked against the storm, the wind and snow stinging his muzzle as he continued to stumble through the white void.
"And just what in Tartarus do you think you're doing?" he heard the voice of the engineer shout over the roar of the snowstorm.
"If you think I'm stayin' in there with a changeling, you're all nuts!" he shouted back, stopping to turn.
"You crazy idiot! You're going to freeze if you stay out here!"
"Not if I get into one of the cars!"
"There's no fire in there! It won't make much of a difference!"
"Like I care! I'll still be safer than staying in there!" he shouted, pointing to the engine.
He turned, and kept walking, the blindingly white landscape clouding his vision, believing the engineer wouldn't follow him.
He was proved wrong, however, as a hand suddenly gripped his shoulder, yanking him backwards.
"Let go!" he shouted, wrestling from Carbon's grip.
"Nopony else is going to die!" he shouted right back, spittle flying from his mouth "You're coming with me!"
"Like hell I will!"
He took Carbon's arm, and flipped him, his form thumping into the snow. Carbon stood, dusting the snow from his jacket, and took the stallion by the shoulders. He struggled, as he activated his horn, and touched it to the stallion's head. He slumped, falling into unconsciousness as Carbon dragged his form through the snow, into the warmth and safety of the engine.
He carefully opened the door with his magic, not wanting to destroy their only protection from the cold, as he dragged the stallion in, his orange coat painted white from the howling winter snow. His body hit the floor, as he sat, his rump hitting the floor harshly as he caught his breath.
"Keep an eye on him" he gasped.
Angel nodded, and propped the stallion up on the seat next to her.
'Hopefully they can get here before we tear each other apart...' he thought, rousing the fire.