An alternate universe where the elements of harmony were never found and evil rules the land.
In this alternate universe of MLP, peace and prosperity are things of dreams. With King Sombra and Discord holding the reins of Equestria, they have driven the people to starvation and unrest. A rebellion group has been gathering to overthrow the kings but with their control, it has been difficult. The only hope they can find to take Sombra down is to steal the Alicorn Amulet from off his neck and to find what happened to the fabled alicorn princesses so they could use their powers to remove Discord from the throne.
EB Google Docs Data File --> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1N3U91RhHv5-24qmZzc9TBjMUHX_1JU0OznzxoQ0WLfc/edit?usp=sharing NOTE: This is a link list of all the EB Google Doc files I've used. Yes, this does have the next chapter that I'm working on. It is a raw file and not at all finished yet!! It is clearly marked as WIP so read spoilers (or not as what's there may get edited out before being published) at your own risk!
This story occasionally uses the Thieves' Cant language. It's not hard to figure out, just replacing words with other words for the sake of being secretive but just for everyone's reference (mine mostly), here is the link: www.thievesguild.cc/english-to…
Equestria Broken
A fanfiction novel written by Radioactive_Ratt / GutterRatt (aka Crystal Green in the process of changing her online name) My Little Pony is owned by Hasbro and was created by Bonnie Zacherie. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic was created by Lauren Faust
One : The Thief
“I mean, please, I am the master thief, son. That’s a fact that you might need to sleep on. I’ll never let go of my inner klepto, ‘cause I’ve been one ever since the get-go.” JT Machinima - Bleeding Secrets
The scent of smoke filled the large room. It hung in the air and mixed with the other lovely fragrances of body odor and alcohol. The haze hung low like a thick fog thanks to all the patrons of the tavern smoking their favorite flavor of tobacco. There were many ponies in the room, some non-ponies, including a table of griffons, a minotaur and four mutants including the bartender. The mutants might have once been a pony or griffon but thanks to the odd season of Chaos turning one limb or another into one that belonged on another creature, they were labeled as such. From the way they were all dressed, it was obvious none of them were high born and they were most likely up to no-good. Everyone present had some kind of weapon on them; at least a blade if not a firearm. Even the waitress carried a cutlass on her belt. Her poofy red mane bouncing as she trotted over to the next table, levitated a drink off the tray that was strapped to her back and set it down on the table in front of her. She was rewarded with a slap to the flank and the stallion was given a sharp smack from the blunt side of her blade.
The bartender looked on warily as he wiped a used mug clean with a rag. He hoped tonight would be a quiet night. He couldn’t afford any more repairs on his precious Muck and Buck Tavern, especially after paying his own medical bills from trying to break up the previous brawl. He reached a hoof up to rub at his recently broken antler at the thought and sighed.
There was a low murmur in the building as many of his customers were chatting with each other. A couple people were drunkenly passed out with their faces lying in a pool of their own vomit and a shout of victory accompanied grumbles of frustration as a blue griffon won at a game of cards. The bartender knew many of them well as they came in often and treated him decently enough. He watched an unfamiliar light orange mare step around the serving wench and ask another stallion if they recognized the buck in her picture. They shook their head and she moved on to the next.
The next pony she approached was one who visited often but the bartender stallion didn't know very well. He did, however, know they only ever ordered water and their favorite table was along the far wall, center booth by the window. The pony would sit for a few hours, smoke their cigarettes, sip their water and leave. They never spoke to anypony or asked for anything else, they just sat there.
Though the antlered pony wasn't aware, this pony always came to eavesdrop on the other's conversations and that's exactly what they were doing on this cloudy evening before the mare interrupted them.
“Excuse me,” the orange mare said as she showed the stranger her photograph, “have you seen this buck?”
The pony’s blue eyes stared at the image for a moment before they shook their head.
“Thanks, sorry to bother you.” She said with a sigh and trotted to a table of griffons.
The cloaked pony took a drag of their cigarette as they watched the mare interrogate the winged beasts. Apparently they all knew the buck in the photograph as they each gave a different name to the picture before the serving mare glanced over and gave yet another name. She commented on how he’s seen with many mares who look a lot like her. The buck had apparently used the red maned mare too and informed that he ditched every mare once he was done with them. She pointed with her hoof East-ish and gave the name of a hotel in Cloudsdale asking for the mare to give him a good thumping on her behalf. The orange mare suddenly hugged the waitress and caused the remaining two drinks on her tray to fall to the floor with a crash before rushing out the door. One of the sleeping ponies woke to the noise, semi-dried vomit dripping off their face, but nopony moved to help clean up the mess.
The cloaked pony turned their attention to another conversation, one in the booth behind them.
“So, you know that Count Markus guy right? The 'high and mighty' stuffing peddler in Canterlot?” The pale blue unicorn said to her companion who was sitting across the table.
The green pegasus retorted with a disgusted snort, “Yeah, that rich son of a bitch thinks he's better than everypony else.” He proceeded to scratch at some fleas in his dirty white mane while he listened.
“Well CJ and the birds of a feather were signaling a visit to the neighbors. It took a bit of convincing but I got everypony to agree we’d like you to join us. We could do with a better pair of eyes than Cricket. There’s going to be quite the rum stuffing.” She grinned.
The pegasus lifted an eyebrow in curiosity, “Oh yeah? How much rum is in the curbing law?”
Smirking, the unicorn’s horn began to glow a dull white as she levitated a scroll out of one of her saddlebags. “Well, we got a hole in need of plugging that says there’s something special hidden under the rug. He was supposed to switch hooves with his uncle but decided to keep it for himself. Seems he didn’t want to fall into boredom, get hooked and drop a glove. We don’t know what it is, but it’s supposed to be a tall buck’s bit.” The mare unrolled a scroll out on the table to show her companion. “Right there.” She pointed to a crudely drawn square next to a much larger squiggly rectangle that was supposed to represent the massive building, “The hole in need of plugging who gave us a peach about it said it’s in his slave stables. That's why the Count’s been having so many pigs around his place lately. Someone noticed his unusual behavior and someone else sang their song. They thought it was some kind of rare slave but he's just got the usual: seven earth, one pegasai and one unicorn.”
“Really?” the pegasus responded, “A piece of unknown contraband worth more than a chunk ‘o gin.” He said flatly as he whipped his tail and took a swig of his beer before continuing, “You guys have very poor holes to say the least. They can’t even be a little more long tongued about it?”
The unicorn waved a hoof in the air, “The peach said it was worth at least four dozen chunk ‘o gins but, they're not really sure exactly what it was, just its worth. They found a receipt with how much yellow tin they were going to exchange for it but the word ‘Void’ was written on it and it was found in the bin. The description was half a clock of mustang gem shards, whatever in the hell those are.” The unicorn took a gulp of her own mug of alcohol and watched as her friend’s face turned to a frown.
“You want me to join you guys. To get broken gem shards.” The pegasus’ ears went flat as he continued to argue his point to the mare.
“W-well, my uncle said that the mustang gem was some ancient thing, owned by the long gone legit rulers of the Crystal Empire. They can’t be worth a rusted button if it was owned by royalty!”
By the time the two began to argue over the logic of whether attempting to steal mystery shards from a mansion full of armed guards was a good idea or not, the pony who never drank a drop of alcohol had left their seat. After paying for their glass of water, they trotted out of the bar and into the chilled air of the night. Looking up, they could see thick clouds above and gaps between them that the sparkling sea of stars gleaned through. The wind calmly drifted along to let the moon peek out for only a brief moment before hiding back behind it's blanket.
Around them was the small makeshift town of The Everfree. Every building was basically a dilapidated heap of wood thrown together and not very well maintained. The 'road' that guided through the town had once looked nice. It used to be a wooden plank path that lead to every shop, every house and every other ram shack that was put up. The pony that had built it originally kept fixing it when fights broke out and destroyed parts of their hard work but, they had given up long ago and that pony was long dead. The Everfree's residents fought often. If not over haggling or for some kind of work contract then out of fun when they saw another they knew. This town was filled to the brim with all colors of riffraff including bandits, slavers, mercenaries, thieves, scammers and the just plain rotten. They had a system though and most abided by it. This pony didn't care for their bylaws but did try to stick by them nonetheless.
There were many other ponies roaming the streets at this late hour. Several hung out at popular stops such as Crowfoot's Crap Shack and Doc Maggot's Slice and Dice. Aside from the wooden buildings, there were many booths that were empty. These were only open during the day and no doubt sold goods of a sketchy nature. A large tightly woven netting hung above the mass of booths as a shade and partial rain cover. Unfortunately all the bullet holes and its poor craftsmanship in it didn't help with the weather. Some drunkard had stumbled out of the Crippled Cragidile Inn and promptly got into a fight with a pony they fell on top of before a stray dog decided to join in to try and get a free meal. A short distance away two gunshots rang out followed by three more and then some yelling replied to them. Nopony really cared, the rats of The Everfree were always squabbling.
As the cloaked pony reached the end of the town they were visibly assaulted with trees. They were everywhere, thick and entangled in each other's branches. Bushes tried to grow in between them and most were succeeding. A small trail had been carved into the forest and a thick layer of salt bricks covered the road below to keep the foliage at bay. Every so often one of the bricks would be replaced with a new one when they got too worn down from rain.
The only reason the forest hadn't overtaken the town was because the residents who broke the rules trimmed it back daily. They would be the ones who fixed all the salt brick borders and trim all the foliage back. Due to the large amount of residents who would much rather act like brutish children with bad attitudes that their mothers had never corrected than follow rules, there were plenty of drafted community service workers to hold back the unruly foliage.
The pony began to trot along the path through the Everfree Forest and soon the sounds of the town faded away leaving only the sounds of the forest. They could now hear timber wolves howling, crickets and owls around them. The chittering of tiny forest voles and a sharp squeal when one got taken by a predator. It was nothing unfamiliar and nothing they worried about.
Eventually another town came into view: Ponyville. Unlike The Everfree, this town had a wall around it. The wall had been hastily built and bombarded almost daily by war since it was put up. The wall was riddled with bullet holes and made with broken wooden planks, large scraps of metal and other various bits of debris. The pony could see others patrolling around the wall, some atop it with spotlights and a couple pegasai flying above as was the norm for the country cottage town. Trotting with the cover of the treeline, they didn't attract the attention of the guards as they made their way around the town to their destination.
Walking around the outer edge of this small city, they could see the large tree-like structure almost in the center, rising above the great wall. It appeared to act as a lookout tower despite the fact that it was probably just supposed to be a massive tree. The cloaked pony had never actually been within the town's walls and never cared to enter it unless required to do so by a job. They always made it a point to avoid any jobs that had to do with Ponyville anyway. Not because there wasn't anything good inside but because they didn't want to interact with the ponies inside. This pony was just that picky.
Heading around the town wall, they came upon the entrance. A large wooden gate with two tall guard posts to either side. There was a sort of makeshift pulley system set up above the gate that looked like levers and cranks in the guard towers that would lift the wall up high enough to let trade waggons in. At each of the towers were three ponies, one looking out with binoculars, and one talking to the third one as they shone the spotlights out into the night. Below were four more guards standing in front of the gate. One actually appeared to be sleeping while the others stood at attention waiting for travelers that would most likely not arrive until morning.
On the far side of the gate the cloaked pony could see their destination. Train tracks came into view from the vast beyond to the front of the defense and swerved away as if appalled at the state the ponies kept their town in. Being far enough away from the gate, the pony felt comfortable enough to hurriedly sneak past the guards and to the raised platform that came up to the tracks. They walked up the stairs, passed several rows of benches built onto the platform and headed towards the small building just beyond. As they clopped along, they could see silhouettes of a couple others sitting nearby. None of which stirred. A faint sickly smell hung in the air like the bad aftertaste of a spoiled drink came from the direction of one such person sitting as far away from the others as they possibly could.
The ticket booth. When the pony reached the counter they were separated by a pane of glass from the mare on the other side. A radio played from somewhere in the room. The disc jockey, Smile Cat, was reading his report of the news which had been repeating all day in between songs. The same garbage of who attacked who, which town was burning now and what new laws the Kings had decreed this week.
"Where ya headed stranger?" she asked.
"Canterlot." a deep and gravelly voice replied.
"Seven bits." the mare replied.
The buck clicked his tongue in disgust at the price which had risen yet again since last month as he retrieved the coins from his saddlebag. After handing them over, she gave up the train ticket. When the exchange was completed the mare went back to her radio and the stallion headed over to a vacant seat. It wasn't too long before he could hear the whistle of the train announcing its presence. The brakes squealed as the large metal beast tried to halt its movement and when it finally stopped, the stallion boarded. Another stallion was there to greet him, punch his ticket with a hole and tell him which car of the train he was to sit in.
The hooded pony slowly walked to the passenger cart, getting his balance as the train began to move again. When the locomotive jerked forward, the pony almost fell on his face but promptly caught himself. Unfortunately, the jolt had caused something tiny and fuzzy to fall out of the stranger's hood and onto to the floor of the train. He picked it up in one hoof and swiftly made his way to an empty booth close to the door but farthest away from the few others that were actually aboard this time of night. With the visibility protection of the tall backed seats, the stallion pulled his hood down and smiled to the rat in his hooves. The little black rodent's fur was puffed out and she was furiously cleaning herself in embarrassment. The buck chuckled a bit as he petted her.
"I'm sorry Thief, you okay? I always forget you fall out at that part." the pony warmly said to his companion. The rat began to lick the stallion's hoof causing his smile to grow.
The dim moonlight that shone through the grimy window of the train, illuminating the pony's features. He was a buck skinned pony, gold with a dark gray muzzle and socks. His short cropped mane was black on the outer edges and white on the top. His blue eyes still watched his rat companion as she continued to groom herself. The pony had on thick leather vest with many pockets on top of a simple cloth hooded shirt. He had leather straps on his forelegs which held many thin tools the pony used for his job. Right at his withers was a large metal ring attached to the leather vest. Clipped to it was a quiver full of arrows that hung to his left side and a compound bow that hung to his right. His saddle bags weren't as full as they normally were but they soon would be. On each of his hooves was a soft boot with thick plush padding on the bottoms to help him walk silently wherever he went. Hiding all of his gear was a long dark brown cloak that would drag along the ground when he walked.
The train ride wasn't as long as some he's been on, just a few hours, and for the vast majority of the time he watched the world pass by out his window. The broken wall of Ponyville, a few guards and a traveling caravan of three carts being pulled by cattle. Passing them by so quickly, he couldn’t see if they had the slave brand on their flanks. Saddle Lake had something massive break the surface of the water only to dive back down seconds later. The moon's light glistened off the ripples the creature made only for the short moment it peeked through the clouds. A small swarm of bats flew South bound in the night's sky and the clouds seemed to be getting thicker as a pegasus flew West. As the pony flew, more clouds trailed behind seemingly coming from something strapped to its back. The train entered the cavern of the massive mountain Canterlot was built on and began it's slow steep climb to the grand city.
Thief had been gone for a while now but the pony wasn't worried. She wandered off often but always returned to her favorite pony after she was done exploring or finding food. She sniffed around the cabin, crawling under seats and into some ripped cushions out of curiosity. She explored some of the sleeping passengers, none of them being stirred awake as she walked over them and sniffed through their belongings. Passing a small family she stopped to watch the larger being rock back and forth, two fillies in her hooves.
"Don't trust, don't trust, don't trust." the mare seemed to mumble to herself, her voice shaky and distant, "Gotta get out, don't trust, keep them safe. I'll keep them safe for you my love. Won't come back, he won't. Don't trust, gotta get out. Don't trust, don't trust." The terrified mother seemed like she was in another place, ignoring the infant and toddler who were both squirming in her tight grasp.
The rat continued on her way in the darkness. Something in the air caught her attention and she followed the scent. It led her to two young ponies who were quietly arguing over something as their stallion guardian was sleeping. The colt had a cookie in his hooves but he was too busy trying to prove himself correct to his older sister to eat it. Smelling the sweet food in his hooves, Thief quickly jumped up onto the seat, snatched it away from the foal and happily bounce-ran back to her stallion friend. As the rat ran, she had a bit of difficulty running due to the cookie being too heavy to hold aloft causing the treat to keep getting stuck on the floor of the train making her trip. After some effort, she did finally make it to her buck friend and jumped up onto the seat. Or tried to as the cookie bumped her off of her landing pad. She set her prize on the floor of the cabin, stood on her hind legs and sniffed in the air, trying to get her friend’s attention.
The soft bump caught the stallion's attention and he helped his companion along with her cookie back up onto the seat before continuing to watch the black nothingness out the window that was the inside of the cave. As the rat munched on her newly acquired sweet, the colt and filly popped their heads around the seat and stared at her.
"See! I wasn't lying, I didn't drop it, it was stolen." the colt proudly said, breaking the almost-silence of the train car.
The stallion looked over to see the foals, grimaced and looked away.
"Ahh!" the filly squeaked as she grabbed her brother and pulled him away, "Don't touch it! You'll get sick!"
"But that guy's sitting right next to it and he's not scared of it." the colt said trying to squirm out of his sister's grasp.
"Teddy, those things carry the Blight. It'll make you really sick and you'll die! That's how they all died, that's why we're with him!" she said pointing back to where the other stallion was.
The colt stopped struggling and looked down. "Well..." he began, "what if I want to get sick. What if I want to be with big brother again because you're a big butt! You never let me do what I want! I want to be with everypony else! I want mommy!" As he argued, he got louder and louder, struggling once more with renewed vigor until his sister clamped a hoof over his mouth.
"You gotta be quieter, you want him to come over here and hurt us again?"
The stallion glanced at the two foals before looking back out the window.
In response to his sister’s question, Teddy gave his sister's hoof a big lick and she immediately released him, utterly disgusted at the saliva that now covered her foreleg. "Eeeww!" the filly exclaimed, "What is wrong with you? That’s gross!" She tried wiping it off on one of the nearby empty seat cushions.
When the colt was finally released, he went over to the seat that the rat sat on and put his hooves on it, resting his head between them and watched as Thief nibbled on the cookie. She paused for a moment, chewing what was in her mouth and sniffing in Teddy's direction before she continued. The colt reached out to pet her and the action caught the attention of the buck in the seat.
He looked over to the two foals, then to his rat and back to the foals. The filly stared up at him and was fascinated with the stallion’s eyes for a reason she couldn’t immediately understand. She saw something there, something different that she had never seen before. The filly had no idea what it was but she couldn't look away. She had a feeling that if she just kept staring, didn't look away, didn't blink, she would see it. At least, just for a second.
"What?" the stallion said, obviously irritated at the foals.
"Your... eyes." the filly said breathlessly, "What's..."
The train finally came to a massive cave lit with many, many lanterns. Their small flames danced in the glass boxes that contained them, lighting up the space around them. The train began to slow to a stop just beside a platform similar to the one outside of Ponyville. There were dozens upon dozens of small shacks, reinforced boxes and tents filling the space outside the train. Above, on the cavern ceiling, lights danced and twinkled between the old roots that hung thick and low. There in the tangle, lightning bugs found a place to call home.
As the light from the train station lanterns shone against the stallion's eyes, the filly gasped. "Diamonds! You have diamonds in your eyes!" she exclaimed. Excitement on her tiny face. Her brother was smiling too as he petted the black rodent. The children's glee was short lived as another pony clopped up behind them.
"There you two are!" a stallion whose coat was a green so bright it couldn’t be found in nature said, glaring at the two children as he scolded them. "Do you want me to put the chains back on you? Get back to your seats or I'm going to have you two branded the second we get there!"
As the two foals slunk down, the buckskinned stallion finally noticed the marks on the foals. Some old and some recent. They looked to be whip lashes, scars the young ponies would carry for the rest of their lives. The young colt tried to hide under his sister but he wasn’t succeeding very well because she wasn’t much bigger than he was. "Y-yes sir. It won't happen again." the filly said quietly, her eyes downcast.
"S-sorry." Teddy replied in a tiny squeak as he tucked his tail beneath him.
Both of them were visibly shaken as they slowly marched back to their seat. The green buck slammed his hoof down on the floor of the train with a clang and the two began to trot faster. He then looked to the buck skinned pony.
"What the fuck are you lookin' at?" he spat.
The stranger put his rat companion back on his shoulders, put his hood up and got out of his seat, shoving the other buck out of his way. With a glare, the green pony walked back to the foals and the thief inspected his new whip as he headed towards the exit. It was made of some decent materials, had quite a lot of blood on it but was used too much and not maintained well enough to last through however many slaves its previous owner had gone through. It was quite worn and looked ready to snap apart in several places if used once or twice more. The second he stepped off the train, the old battered weapon was thrown in the nearby trash can. Not even worth the bits it would take to repair it.
He trotted down the steps of the platform and set hoof in the small settlement known as Estuary Slums. The buck had always wondered where this place had gotten its name since it was nowhere near an ocean but had never got a clear answer. One rumor said that during one of the previous months of Chaos, the waters of the sea wiped out half the land and rested at the mouth of this cave, the survivors settling here. Another said Estuary was the name of the first pony to have been kicked out of Canterlot and started the settlement. Yet another said somepony just liked the word and decided that's what this place was going to be called since they didn't like it's previous title of 'Lower Mouth Ghetto'. With almost everypony in the slums sleeping, he was able to quickly pass by the dilapidated collection of shacks and enter the Canterlot city limits. He could never figure out how they could sleep with so many lanterns shining about the village.
Out of the small settlement, the stallion stepped onto the pristine marble pathway. It was a large white painted wooden path with marble stones set into it for decoration that stretched out in a sideways arch around the massive waterfall that fell down the side of the mountain. The crash of the water left a constant mist that hung in the air. A thundering sound like boulders continuously smashing down a cliffside was brought on by the massive water stream, silencing all other sounds in the area. The railing was elegantly crafted, unicorn shapes embedded each of the painstakingly carved pieces. The King's royal flag hung on a tall pole every five meters along the path. Each pole had a lantern to either side of it to help light the path. The flag bore a deep red circle with a black line down the center of it like a cat's eye. Two black shadow wings sprouted to either side of the red circle, a silver crown and red horn hovered above. Behind it were three dark purple crystal spires all on a lighter purple background. This design was also etched into the white marble flooring like a pattern without color. There were a pair of benches every so often overlooking the landscape. The buck passed a couple sitting at one of them, probably having a romantic night out.
Finally rounding the last edge of the waterfall, there was a tall set of stairs leading up to the city entrance. He got to the top and reached the last platform before the city. It was a wide semi-circle adorned with the same accents as the marble path. Directly ahead of him was the city entrance. A tall set of thick reinforced wooden doors pulled open by the slaves chained to it if anyone wished to enter or exit. The eight ponies with brands on their flanks were curled up together for warmth. To the right was a large lean-to that stretched out three meters and sideways another eight. Under it were caravans parked to be protected by rain and snow. Just beyond the lean-to was an open barn where the caravaners kept their cattle until their next journey. Even further on the right-hoof side was a walkway, the long dirt trail through the mountain that travelers would take if they didn’t use the train or had pack animals to haul goods for sale. To the left of the city gates was an inn for those travelers to stay at until they were given access into the city. Most traveling merchants were not allowed into Canterlot but were allowed to stay outside and sell their goods.
On the left side of the inn were a set of simple wooden stairs that led up and around the back side of the building, leading up to the roofed bridge above the entrance. The King's guard, known as the Shadow Nights, were stationed all around. The two on the bridge walked back and forth in opposite directions to keep themselves awake. Below were several others who stood at attention inspecting their weapons or talking amongst themselves. They wore black uniforms with red trim, silver buttons and gunmetal gray saddlebags with black trim. The King's symbol was on a patch on their left shoulder, bars and stars adorned their right to show their rank. They were each clean, well shaven and had the same mane and tail style no matter their gender. Their only differences were their coat and mane colors.
A mare in the same uniform trotted out of a small building below the bridge. She held a clipboard in one wing and a pencil behind an ear. She walked up to a pair of stallion guards and spoke to them for a moment, referencing the clipboard several times. They saluted her and trotted off into the town. The mare made a note on her clipboard with the pencil and trotted back into the building.
The cloaked stallion trotted to the inn, a couple of the guards watching him carefully as he moved. Once he reached the door, the edge of the building blocked the guard’s view of him. The buck continued to walk around to the left side of the building, stopped and looked up. It was a brick building with wooden trim and several windows covered in curtains. He unlatched his bow and grabbed one of the arrows from his quiver. Pulling on the thin string that kept the long rope from getting tangled in the quiver, the length dropped to the ground, one of the two ends still attached to the arrow. He set the wooden rod and looked up to the building, aiming his shot as he pulled back on the string. He released. The arrow flew in the air, rope trailing behind. It landed with a soft thunk into the top most wooden trim of the building.
After clipping his bow back on the latch of his vest, he grabbed the tail end of the rope and began to climb. He reached the end and hopped onto the roof of the building. Though the inn was taller than the bridge, if the buck stood up straight, he could clearly see the guards walking the bridge above the city entrance. Ducking down, he grabbed the arrow and plucked it out of the wooden beam to stuff it into his saddlebags. Sneaking atop the building he reached another wall made of plaster.
The guards below gave a shout and a whip lash sounded down below. The pony crept along the roof to see what the noise was and peeked over the side. The slaves were on their hooves tugging at their bonds as the gate slowly groaned as it opened. Eight more slaves were on the opposite side of the doors pushing them open while the others pulled. Once the gate was open enough, two guards escorted a filly out of the city. The young pony collapsed and one of the guards kicked her. She cried out as she struggled to get back to her hooves, one of which was very swollen and different shades of red and a dark purple. She tripped over her injured leg again and fell just before the stairs.
The mare with the clipboard came out of her office to see what the commotion was. She looked to the guards who nodded to her before she looked to the filly. “PC-103, you have not met your daily quota at the workhouse in three days. Due to your lack of willingness to contribute to the sustainability of the city, you are hereby expelled until further notice. If you change your mind and are willing to continue working, you will be required to visit a Shadow Night office in your closest city and fill out form W6-90-F and we will reconsider granting you your citizenship back. Until then, you have thirty minutes to remove yourself from Canterlot property or we will give you flying lessons. Have a good day.” She said coldly before turning back to the two guards, “Good, now go find the other two.”
“But,” the filly said with a raspy voice, “I-I want to work! I just… My leg hurts so bad but I didn’t have a medical voucher and, and I, I can’t move it anymore it just hurts so much. Nopony will help me, please! Let me stay, I want to work!” Tears rolled down her face as she looked to the mare.
“You will remove yourself from the property or measures will be taken to have you removed by the city guards. Have a good day.” She said as she watched the guards trot back into the city and the gates close behind them, her back to the filly.
The filly grit her teeth as her tears continued to fall. Very slowly, she got on her three shaky hooves and started to hobble down the stairs using her little wings for added balance. She dragged her dead foreleg along as she went. The stallion sighed at the all too common sight and got back to his work. He walked back over to the wall and looked up. It was the side of another building with a few windows here and there. Being built on a mountain top, Canterlot was overly built to fit as many ponies as they could in it so most of the city was a maze with houses built atop houses. The cloaked pony jumped and grabbed onto an edge of a windowsill and peeked inside to make sure nopony was around before quietly slipping in.
The room was small and only held a bed, dresser and a standing mirror. Sleeping in the bed was a yellow mare with an orange mane. Atop the dresser was a couple of bits, a silver laced pen and a few pieces of paper which had been scribbled on with a work-in-progress love letter. He stuffed the bits and the pen into his saddlebags before quietly exiting the room through the door. He slowly walked down the hallway and observed his surroundings. Two locked doors, a side table with a lantern that wasn't lit, a bird cage with a canary in it and a few paintings on the walls. The ceiling had water damage and a large crack which traveled down half the wall, mold creeping out from within. He turned a corner and came upon another window. He took the golden lighter that sat on the sill before looking outside.
Canterlot. It was a pristine city for the rich and wealthy. Or at least wealthy enough to enter. To be able to enter the city, one must either use a passport to be allowed in for a strictly limited number of days, pay five thousand bits to purchase a citypass or prove they have a job waiting for them on the inside. Unless, of course, they know the few secret entrances those of the Thieves Guild used. Those who lived here ignored the war going on in all the lower-classed cities around them. The only ones who mattered lived here or in the Crystal Empire.
The stallion's ears folded back for a moment as he observed the many Shade Nights who roamed the streets. They kept the weak, sick and dying out. They beat the riff raff into submission and helped keep unruly slaves in line. There were a few stray animals here and there, wild cats and dogs that the guards often tried to deal with. If they let the animals continue to roam the streets, they would get throngs of parasites and the threat of the Blight. This wasn't a city he fancied to steal from due to the dangers but the prizes were certainly worth the risks. Luckily he knew the layout of this large city well enough to avoid the larger gatherings of the city guards and so, the stallion began his descent.
Once he reached the cobblestone path leading between the many buildings, he quickly padded behind a parked hay cart and waited until the approaching two guards passed and the light from their lantern went with them. He poked his head out to watch them leave for a moment, his eyes catching on the left guard's coin purse.
He kept low and crept up behind them, following their hoofsteps. His ears listened to the conversation of the two as he reached for the small bag.
"Yeah, they caught a small band of rebels in the eastern district yesterday. Only four of them but they were trying to break into Barron Silver Mane's manor." The white unicorn said to her partner.
"Tsk," the green mare rolled her eyes, "Those idiots will never learn. They can't just take somepony's property. You know, if they would just submit, this place would be a whole lot better. The Kings have done great things for this land and they just can't see it."
The white mare swished her tail, "Well, some ponies just can't open their eyes and see the bigger picture. They only think of themselves and their selfishness is what's ruining this country."
Before their conversation went any further, the stallion easily took the coin purse in his teeth and was sneaking off in the opposite direction. Once out of earshot of the two mares, he stuffed the coin purse in his own saddle bags and continued on his way. He passed more than a dozen locked doors, a couple standing out in the streets talking amongst each other and a few more guards patrolling the streets before he came upon a small canal. The pony petted his rat a few times, urging her to sit atop his head before he slowly dipped himself into the chilly water. The few small fish swimming down the pony-made river scattered as the stallion moved silently in the night. The few times guards got close to the canal, he held his breath and ducked deeper into the water but making sure Thief was still nice and dry.
After close to twenty minutes, the two finally reached the end of the canal. A wall loomed above with several metal bars beneath to hold back intruders from swimming under it. The wall extended a long ways to his left and only a couple meters to his right before it turned a corner. In between the canal and the right corner was a brightly lit wall torch. The stallion grabbed his bow and another arrow, this one with a water balloon at the end instead of the usual iron arrowhead. Before he could align the arrow and pull the string back tight, he could hear the clopping of hoofsteps on the stone ground. He made his way to the wall closest to the torch and sunk low in the water, holding onto the wall. He heard the hoofsteps get louder, closer and there was a couple coughs from the pony above. A new light source began to illuminate the water as the guard walked to the water's edge. The hidden pony folded his ears flat and silently wished for the other to move already. The guard stopped, coughed once more before a cigarette was tossed into the river. The pony above sniffled his stuffy nose, turned and began to walk away.
Peeking over the edge when the guard's light was gone, he could see the end of their tail turn the corner. The buck kicked off from the wall, aligned his shot and released. The water balloon splashed the wall torch out leaving the remains of the arrow to lightly clatter to the ground. He got out of the water to collect the used arrow before looking around the corner. Since this wall was completely stone he couldn't use a rope arrow nor could he jump high enough let alone fly without wings. He decided that he was just going to have to invite himself in through the front door. This wall kept straight for about five meters before it protruded outwards like an open drawer where the gate and a light on either side of it were. And, of course, there were two guards there too, one on either side of the gate.
The buck observed their outfits. Not the King's garb, a blue uniform that was less fancy and more like a hand-me-down. Patched in several places and unkempt. Probably just random ponies that the rich hired to protect what was on the other side of the stone fence. He watched as the pony that had passed him earlier began to trot back the way she had come. He either needed to think fast to find a way inside or hide in the water again. Already being wet and slightly chilly, he had no intent on getting back in the water. He quickly pulled out yet another arrow from his pack, pulled back and let it fly. The blunt arrow twanged off of the bakery sign across the street catching the immediate attention of the three guards. Only the two mares who were farther away went to investigate. The one closest to the buck stayed at his post.
The stallion mentally scoffed before quickly making his way into the illumination and behind the guard while his attention was elsewhere. The guard buck called out to the other two and they replied. Occupied with each other, they unknowingly allowed the cloaked pony to make his way into the grounds undetected, climbing up the barred gate and landing on the other side with a soft 'tpf' of his padded shoes. He slipped in between a small building and the wall to his left, hiding in the shadows before the guard buck turned around to investigate the noise he thought he heard. After a couple of minutes they settled down and went back to their posts.
The small building the thief hid behind, he noticed, was an outbuilding of some sort. He stood up on two legs and looked inside a window near the top. He could see tools, a rake or pitchfork? With the angle he was looking at it from, he couldn't tell. A small table with some papers on them that looked old. There was a set of keys hanging on a bent nail by the door and a humming machine thing he assumed was the house's generator. Rich ponies had required their own power source for a reason unknown to him.
Slowly peeking out the way he had come, he saw the large metal gate on his right with the far guard in sight at her post. The large walkway from the gate's entrance was actually paved in concrete along with the path that led around the back of the sizable house. The thief assumed personal electricity cost too much and they couldn't afford a proper mansion. To his left was a tall metal pole with a light at the top. Not a fire lantern but an actual electrical bulb. Another light stood tall across the pavement parallel to it. Directly across the driveway was another smaller building. This one had a semi-second story with only half the building being built as a lookout for the guards to see over the wall. The bottom portion was probably either the guard's office or sleeping quarters. There was also another guard standing just outside the door of the building. In between the two lamp posts was a brougham pony drawn carriage parked in the driveway. It was painted a deep purple with golden stars and moons elegantly painted on it and it was adorned with white diamonds embedded everywhere to represent even more stars.
The pony walked to the other side of the outbuilding to survey the rest of his available routes. As a pony passed by right in front of him, he went wide eyed, quickly backed up and sunk low. His heart began to beat faster as he waited. Luckily he spotted them first and they hadn't even noticed him. After they were out of the way, he released the breath he didn't realize he was holding and peeked around the corner once more. To his left on this side of the outbuilding was the disappearing flank of the guard pony, rounding the back side of the house. Straight ahead was a bed of flowers and a few trimmed bushes that bordered the house. He slowly made his way between the next side of the outbuilding and the side of the auctioneer's home. There looked to be the cement path continuing from the driveway going all the way around the large residence. The path also led to the wide double doors of the home. Just next to the doors was a raised wooden deck. Upon the wooden platform, there were a few chairs surrounding a small round table with an umbrella that had lace trimming hanging down. The radio on the table was silent as the night.
Immediately to his left, a little more than two meters away was the lamp post. Past the carriage he could see more greenery, two small trees and a wooden shade structure but past that was his destination: a wooden barn. The rich always kept their slaves in a barn to keep them believing that's the best they deserve. They weren't allowed to sleep in the house, not even the dog house. The cold hard dirt was for them but they at least were fed and had a roof over their heads. Unfortunately, some didn't even get that.
The stallion could make out the door to the stable, a lantern just above it with a guard on either side. He could see another pony walking around the back side of the house, just passing the large window on the corner next to the barn. He saw a path he could take but he would have to be cautious.
Before proceeding, he took his little furry friend out of his hood and set her on the ground. He petted her a few times and looked to the outbuilding. He put his muzzle down to her level before whispering to her, "Okay Thief, time to go to work. Today, you get to chew on some wires for me, alright?" He gently nudged her towards the shack and she began her trek around it to look for a way inside.
He stepped out of his hiding spot, keeping to what little shadow the outbuilding provided from the lantern. With the vehicle in the driveway, it blocked the view of both the guard at the guard house and the one on the right side of the barn's door but not the left one. He was just about to take out a blunt arrow when they turned their head for a brief moment. The stallion made a quick dash in as little illumination as he could, around the corner of the house and onto the wooden deck. He hid behind a couple of the elegant chairs as he looked to the guards. He was lucky none of them noticed and the lights didn't go as far as the deck.
He crawled to the edge of the wooden platform where it met the window. Inside was more money spent. Fancy furniture, decor and rare works of art showed how wealthy these ponies were. Also a self portrait of the buck himself. A dark brown pony with a sky-blue mane wearing a tuxedo. That was Count Markus, auctioneer unicorn for Canterlot. The cloaked pony looked to the two standing in front of the slave barn. The fire from the lantern above them didn't brighten up the area too much and there was quite a bit of darkness between that and the electric lamp beyond the carriage. He carefully crept between the two light sources and to the darkness of the garden.
It wasn't a very large garden, just a hedge of flowering bushes around the square space with a bench in the center and a wooden pergola above. The cement walkway was much thinner and led from the walkway outside the garden to the seating area. Around was a multitude of flowers dotting the green grass. To the right side of the seating area was a small pond with three large koi in it.
The buck crept up to the hedge closest to the barn and peeked out. The pony he had almost run into was walking out from around the back side of the house. One of the two guards at the front of the barn gave a small cough but other than that, they all stayed silent. When the pony had passed the garden, the thief backed up a couple steps before making a running leap over the hedge. He cleared it and landed on the other side, sliding to a stop on the dirt floor before quickly scrambling between the barn and the wall.
"What was that?" one of the guards said.
The cloaked pony could hear hoofsteps coming closer so he decided it was best to make his way to the back side of the barn.
" You see anything?" another voice said.
"Hmm.." the first one said, "No, must have been on the other side of the wall."
"I'd feel better if we made a thorough check of the barn. Want to make sure none of the slaves are digging themselves out again."
"Alright, I'll go check."
The buckskin put his ears back. He had to find a place to hide. Unfortunately, a large pile of manure blocked his path in the far corner. He tried looking around it and saw a metal chute in the wall that must have been to dump the mound into the sewers below. Unfortunately, it must be clogged. Reluctantly, the buck held his breath and moved around it as close to the barn as he could manage. Looking back he could see he left hoof prints in the pile and he could feel some had seeped into his leather padded boots. He didn't have time to cover his tracks so he continued behind the barn.
"What the fuck?" a voice said from the other side of the barn.
"What's going on? Check the generator!" another voice barked.
He could hear several more complaints punctuated with curse words as they complained the lights were out. The pony that was checking the barn for tunnels had turned back the way they came. The thief smirked. 'Good girl.' he thought. After knocking the mess out of his boots, he put them back on and looked around for any way into the barn. No back door and the only windows were short, wide and up high for air flow, not decoration. At the end of the alley was a large stack of boxes. He smirked as he made his way up the boxes to the roof.
The barn's flat roof was covered with thin brick tiles and most of them were heavily damaged from weather. The stallion could feel his weight pushing against the barn's rafters causing them to bow down. He gritted his teeth and folded his ears back. Taking another step, the wood creaked and he swallowed. He looked to the roof again, seeing the many broken tiles scattered about and saw that towards the far corner was a large hole in it.
Taking in a breath, he carefully made his was along the edge of the roof, not wanting to risk falling through the weakened center. He reached the hole and looked through it. It was too tall to jump back up if he went in and even with the electrical lights out he couldn't escape through the front door. Even as the other ponies were still growling orders at each other, one of the two guards still stood at attention beside the barn door. He had no idea where the second guard went to. The small fire light from the door's overhead lantern was still lit and shining through but strangely there was another light inside the barn.
The cloaked pony peeked his head into the hole and saw the missing guard. They were in the barn counting the slaves and levitating a lantern next to themselves. There were several piles of moldy hay around and three groups of ponies huddled together. An adult sleeping with a foal and two adolescents. One group of three sleeping a short distance away and another group of two older adults who slept by the door. The dim light of the guard's lantern shown their raggedy condition, thin shapes in torn rags. When the guard was satisfied they trotted out of the barn to report all the slaves present.
The stallion took the used rope arrow out of his quiver and shoved it roughly into the side of the barn. He grabbed the rope and dropped it through the hole in the roof, letting it dangle down. Grabbing the rope, he dropped himself down into the hole. As he slid down the length of rope he kept an eye on the guards to make sure they weren't going to come back in. He landed onto the slightly muddy floor and looked to the two slaves sleeping by the door. Still sleeping, even with the ruckus outside. He looked around the open space and mentally groaned when he realized he would have to search through all that dirty hay to find the mystery box. It looked like they hadn't cleaned it in a week thanks to the clog in the sewer drain.
He slowly crept to one of the corners of the room and started sifting through the straw. He flinched when the sound of the moving hay seemed like gunfire on a silent hill. He looked to the door and when neither of the guards came to investigate he began his search.
"Are you looking for something mister?" A tiny voice whispered.
"Hush! If they come in and find you talking to him we'll all be punished." another voice whispered harshly.
The thief turned and saw the mare who was curled around two fillies and the young colt had all woken up. The colt rubbed his eyes and turned over, falling back asleep. One of the fillies looked to the mare then back to the buck. The other shivered and laid her head back down.
"Go back to sleep Maybell." the mare whispered to the filly before putting her head down as well.
Maybell glanced once more at the intruder then mimicked the mare's motions. The stallion pulled his hooves out of the hay and looked to the door before he walked up to the filly. He put his head down to her ear and spoke.
"I'm looking for a box. It's in this stable. Do you know where it is?" he asked her.
Her eyes popped open. "What do you need the box for?" Maybell asked in response.
"Shhh!" the mare hushed her charge once more.
The filly looked to the older mare and then to the stranger. She pointed with her muzzle in the direction of another pony. One in the group of three. It was the pegasus.
He walked over and nudged him awake. "Hey," he said, "wake up."
The pegasus moaned and his eyes fluttered open. "Huh?" he spoke.
"Keep quiet. That filly says you know where the box is. Where is it?" The thief questioned.
"The... the box?" the pegasus asked groggily, "That's Master Markus'."
"No it's not." the buckskin said firmly, "Where is it?" He glared daggers at the tan stallion who didn't realize he was being interrogated. A light that moved into the barn frightened the stranger back into a darker corner of the barn while the pegasus looked towards the door.
"Hey! Quiet down in here! I hear one more peep I'll beat the lot of you, got it?" one of the guards yelled from the doorway as he looked inside to the slaves.
The pegasus eyes met briefly with the guard. "I-I'm sorry sir," he spoke softly as he stuttered, "I must have been talking in my sleep again. I'll, um... I'll try not to do it again." His voice deflated as he spoke, eyes downcast and ears drooping.
The guard smirked. "Again Fly? You know what this means." he said with a chuckle.
The pegasus swallowed as he got up on shaky legs. "Yes, yes sir." he said as he swallowed, keeping his head low. As he walked into the lantern's light, the thief could see too many scars to count on the slave's body and an S shaped brand on his flank where his cutiemark should have been. The guard levitated a whip from his saddlebags and moments later sharp cracks and muffled cries of pain could be heard outside the barn.
The buckskin cursed under his breath, his shortcut had been removed. He began searching through the hay once more until the noises outside grew quieter. Instead of commands being thrown around, there was muffled conversation. The pegasus had been sent back into the barn. He moved stiffly, breathing in sharply as pain punctuated every movement as he walked. He looked to the stranger in the barn before slowly lying down, setting his head on the straw away from him.
The stallion lightly shook himself, swished his short tail and continued his quiet search for the elusive box. He knew the pegasus wouldn't give up the information he needed now and if he tried, the slave might call for the guards. He made his way around the barn and noticed something odd when he was close to the door. After moving yet another small bit of the straw out of the way, there was a plank of wood halfway buried in the ground. He looked toward the open door as he uncovered more of the wood.
A small hatch with a rope handle set into the dirt floor hid his prize. The box within the hole was no bigger than one of his saddlebags. He quickly stuffed it into his pack, saving his newly acquired treasure for later viewing. He gave a passing glance to the pegasus before climbing back up his rope. Once he reached the roof, he pulled the rope out of the hole and dropped the length down the side of the building. Climbing down it, he was grateful not to have to walk over the manure pile again. He crept along the side of the building as he decided to retrace his hoofsteps. He could see one of the guards rounding the house and starting to walk in front of it, a lantern attached to their back. In fact, every guard had a lantern of their own now. Unfortunately, Thief's efforts to help by killing the power was thwarted by quick thinking.
The cloaked pony narrowed his eyes and scanned the area. Thinking of his small furry companion made him wonder where she wandered off to. He suddenly felt something brush up against his rear right hoof and turned to look. Then he smiled as he saw a small ball of black fur next to him. Thief bounded closer to him and climbed up his foreleg, tried to hide in one of his saddle bags but was forced to climb into the other one since the box had already stolen her favorite spot.
With his rat companion accounted for, the buck decided it was time to leave. He looked again to the guards, keeping a watchful eye on the closest one as he crept out. There was more visibility for the guards with their torches but he was confident enough that he could make it out the same way he got in. The stallion liked a good challenge once in awhile as they helped keep his skills sharp. Once he felt he was close enough to the hedge, he made a quick gallop and jumped over it gracefully. Only it was graceful in the way he caught his hoof on the dog cage that was in front of the hedge and fell on top of it. He was so focused on the guards that he hadn't even noticed it was there.
He lifted himself up and locked eyes with the animal in the cage. He went wide eyed as the dog began to bristle its fur and growl. It barked at him as he scrambled off the cage and alerted the guards. All eyes were on him now as he attempted to flee but was abruptly stopped as the dog had a powerful bite on the cloak through the bars. The thief glanced to the guards quickly approaching and unlatched the cloth, leaving it to be torn to shreds by the vicious animal.
Galloping back down the alleyway he had come from, he headed towards the manure pile with the guards on his tail. He awkwardly stepped into the pile of muck once more and rounded the corner of the barn. With the guards shooting their firearms and shouting, he hopped up the boxes again and jumped over the wall, landing on the other side with a roll. He quickly got to his hooves, looked back to the outer ponies before galloping away into the late night.
“Watching the world from here, I see everything. Nothing short of everything. High in the belltower far above the ground.” Rachel Rose Mitchell - Belltower
The thief and his rodent companion trotted through the still streets of Canterlot in the early morning gloom. The sun had not risen yet but the twilight just before the dawn was beginning to show over the horizon. A soft, early morning fog was beginning to roll through the streets which helped conceal the stallion as he padded along the cobblestone. His saddlebags sang a soft chorus of coins and gemstones as the items within clinked together. The saddlebags he wore were full of property that was now his. Missing his cloak, the arrows in their quiver were free to keep up with the beat of the song as he trotted.
Above in a nearby building a shutter door opened and a mare dumped a bucket of excrement out the window. The filth landed with a splatter on the ground below and splashed the stallion. He raised a hoof to his face and wiped the gunk off of before pulling down his soiled mask. Today was just not his day to stay clean.
“Gross” he said as he flicked it off of his hoof. He looked up and glared at the closing shutters, giving a soft snort before he continued trotting. Of course it was bad enough to have the substance in his boots, he had to have it on his head too. He felt Thief rigorously shake herself and furiously clean her face on his back.
He chuckled, “Got you too, eh?”
Rounding another corner of a building he hesitated for only a moment. Through the mist he could see a young mare who had her back to him as she lifted a scoop of manure in her shovel and dumped it in her almost full wheelbarrow. The town obviously had a sewage problem of sorts. As he got a bit closer to the purple pony he could see her brand, the sharp S scar that was so close to her cutiemark it replaced almost half of it. The mare had a chain that attached her to the wheelbarrow, forcing her to keep to her work. If she really wanted to cause trouble for him, the most she could do was call out but that was unlikely as slaves usually didn’t like to involve themselves in other pony’s affairs. She had a radio quietly playing beside her, the announcer, Smile Cat, repeating the last portion of the same news that was on earlier before music began pouring through the device. The buck was clearly not at his radio station and letting it play on a loop.
Ahead of him was a carpenter’s workshop and on the second story was a barbershop. The carpenter had a delivery of fresh wood left out front of the store and the thief saw it as a perfect way to get to the Thieves’ Highway above. Passing the mare, he put his forelegs on the top of the stack and pulled himself up. The mare momentarily stopped her work to watch him jump to the barber shop’s awning and up to the second floor window before sighing and hooking herself to the full wheelbarrow’s harness.
The buck skinned pony crouched low and looked around him. He had snuck into an office of sorts with a desk to his right and a door to his left. A typewriter and a half-drank bottle of whisky were on the desk. The papers that decorated the wooden surface were getting soaked in the drool of their author who was quietly snoring with the empty shot glass in his hoof.
Waiting a few seconds, he determined that the pony hadn't woken and crept over to the desk. The yellow stallion was writing a memoir. It was a bit difficult to make out the words because for some reason he wasn’t using the typewriter and he had very poor hoof-writing. Not to mention the wet parchment smeared the ink. Whatever part of the writer’s life he was recording, he apparently didn’t want to remember and was using the alcohol to help. The latest words were: That’s that and that’s that and that’s the end of that. You’re not getting any more out of me about that!
“Why write a memoir if you don’t want to say what happened?” the thief quietly commented before stealing the half bottle of liquor and making his way around the desk. He picked up the ink pen off of the floor and took the ink bottle from atop the desk. Moving next to the other stallion, he opened the drawers, being careful not to nudge the other pony awake and found nothing of interest but a few bits.
He walked to the door and looked through the keyhole. Not seeing anything but a wall he slowly opened the door and looked down the hallway. To his left was a set of stairs leading down to the ground level of the building and to his right was a couple more rooms. Creeping inside the first room he saw it was the pony’s bedroom. With the room being vacant, he let his sticky hooves roam the room, collecting a pair of ruby earrings, a pocket portrait, a teacup and a ten bit bond. The buck moved to the window and tried to nudge it open. To his dismay it was stuck. He made sure it wasn’t locked, took out a small crowbar and wedged it under the window. Wiggling the handle of the tool down gently he popped the window open with a sound of wood on wood that seemed louder than it should have been. With the sound of the window came the noise of clattering in the other room before shattering glass.
“It seems I woke the master of manes, best make my exit,” the stallion said to Thief as he climbed out the window and up to the roof of the building. Two arrows fell out of his quiver as he climbed the short distance and he grumbled at the loss of supplies.
Standing on the roof, he looked around him and saw the light of twilight was growing stronger, shining through the fog layer. Dawn was close. He could see the Smokey Mountains to the West, Cloudsdale to the North and the Everfree Forest to the South, hiding its occupants from the prying eyes of the authorities. His destination was East, however, but before that he had to go back to the train station.
As he made his way atop the buildings he could see that some ponies were lighting their lanterns for the morning, opening their shutters to let the morning in and leaving their homes to get an early start at the mills. In the south end of the city he could see the large smoke stacks rising above the houses, the furnaces within bellowing their thick black haze into the sky. Pegasai were already in the air trying to clean the smog away but they knew it was a never ending job unless the factories were shut down.
The buck skinned pony reached the roof of the apartments just before the city entrance gate and jumped down to the roof of the inn. The guards were once again making commotion outside the gate and he walked to the edge to listen in.
“Did you find them yet?” Clipboard mare asked.
“I believe Cocoa and Buttercream did but they are having difficulty extracting them from the building.” a mare guard responded.
“How are two guards not able to handle a couple of foals.” she spat, fluttering her wings. “Those children know the rules, their parents die, they refuse the work house and they are removed from the city.” She whipped her tail in frustration, “See that shift A is informed and assists so C can get some rest.”
“Yes ma’am.”
Another guard trotted up to Clipboard mare, “Ma’am,” he said with a salute, “Digger just reported another coffin birth last night.”
She sighed, “Great. Keep it under wraps, we don’t want the citizens worrying about omens and what not again. Can’t risk another panic. You know what to do if any pony finds out.”
The stallion nodded, saluted and trotted back into the city while Clipboard mare made notes on her documents.
“They sure are eager to kick kids out tonight.” the thief said to himself, “Wonder what’s got their hooves tied.” He looked to the command post but thought better of sneaking in for a peek at their reports. There were too many guards around and it was getting light out.
He dug a rope arrow into the side of the building and slid down the length. Casually, he trotted out to the steps as if he had just come from the inn and walked down the stairs, ignoring the looks from the guards.
As he made his descent, he noticed several blood stains that were not there before. He could imagine the young injured pony falling down them, unable to keep her balance with how sick she must have been. The buck continued to trot along, passing the now vacant bench where the two love birds were seated at the start of the night. Making a quick detour, he found an abandoned ring box under the bench which still held the piece of jewelry inside. Apparently either the date went horribly or somepony else forgot it there before the couple visited the bench last night.
Estuary Slums came into view as the sun’s rays slowly but surely began to peak through the gloom, cutting through the layer of clouds that surrounded the mountain. As he came to the entrance of the makeshift town, he noticed two large holes dug into the ground to his left that he didn’t see in the dark of night. They were deep and smelled of death. He was very glad the road mostly went around them and he hadn't fallen in.
Ponies were beginning to mingle about the camp, talking with one another, putting out the lanterns and getting ready for the day. Just outside of the town, the hooded pony came upon the crumpled form of the little grey filly. She lay still on the marble pathway, curled up with her swollen leg looking like a lead weight the foal could no longer lift. Puss oozed from the large old gash on her front left knee which seemed to be the origin of her gangrene. Her long, curly blue striped mane hid most of her face which was frozen in agony.
He swished his tail and continued on.
More ponies emerged from their shacks, tents and boxes. He could see many Earth ponies and Pegasai and even a couple unicorns. Most of the ponies here were visibly thin and very tired. A lot of them had coats that were rotting with fungus and falling out leaving angry bald patches or sores. There were fleas and biting insects everywhere. Only the very young had some kind of meat on their bones but it still wasn’t much at all. A few hobbled over to a larger cabin by the back wall, entered and exited with a couple cans of food. Next to the cabin was a mare cooking in a large pot, colts and fillies bringing her whatever they found that might be edible for the morning stew. The ponies who retrieve the canned food were spreading out amongst the camp to feed the sick, wounded or dying. An older colt gave his toy to a filly whose broke to stop her crying. Mares and stallions alike tended to the growth of mosses and mushrooms that grew in the cave. There were no guard ponies here, no slaves, no masters and no pony who wished ill intent on others. The ponies here were forced to depend on each other. They had to scrape a life for themselves out of Canterlot’s garbage and leftovers. Anything thrown out of the walls was theirs and they took it for all the village to share.
These ponies were no threat to the stranger who walked among them and he was no threat to them. Some watched him warily to see if he was a slaver looking for new stock. Others pushed their children inside or hid their trinkets from view, unwilling to trust an outsider. He received a passing glance from a group of five ponies talking in hushed tones.
“Will you be able to make it tonight?” A dark grey pegasus asked, brushing back his red striped mane out of his eyes. His howling wolf cutiemark showing under a ripped jacket.
“Don’t worry about us, we’ll make the schedule. What about you? You’re going to be preoccupied if it’s savable.” A peach mare asked in response, pawing at the ground and tilting her head to the side.
“I have ponies for that.” The charcoal buck responded in an authoritative tone as he straightened and raised his head higher, “Besides, we have plenty of time. Find Dodge and Bean, they can help me prepare him for the journey.”
“Yes sir.” the peach mare saluted before walking away.
The stallion turned to another of his companions, a white colt wearing a tan scarf and a small blue shield shaped patch with a rearing yellow filly crudely sewn onto his dirty brown vest. “Do we know if Strata made it in?”
“Uh, yes sir.” the young pony said as he rubbed the scar on his muzzle, “He got in a couple of hours ago but no word on if he found what he was looking for yet.”
“Hmm.” the older stallion took a moment as he thought. “Alright but make sure you inform me once you get word of any news. If he gets into a tight spot I want to make sure he has a way out. We all know how, uh... eccentric he can be.”
“O-okay.” With that, the colt gave an awkward salute and ran off towards the Canterlot city entrance. The rest of the group of ponies split off in pairs to go begin whatever plans they were talking about.
The thief and his companion passed by the group just as they were starting to disperse. He slightly turned his head to watch them out of the corner of his eye. The mare and her companions went off among the camp while the red maned buck walked toward the marble path, glancing back at the buck skinned stranger with his dark plum eyes.
The stallion began to feel uncomfortable being out in the open for so long. He was used to being in the shadows and away from prying eyes. Galloping on the roof tops in the cold night air. Slipping in and out of apartment buildings and filling his saddle bags along the way. This town was nothing like the cities he preferred. Half of the so-called houses were made of mud or manure and most of them were falling apart. Some were made of sticks or old straw and large pieces of garbage thrown out by Canterlot. Broken down carriages abandoned by traders made the most sturdy shacks. Quite a few of the houses were decorated with trinkets, trash built art or string lights to try and make their home look less depressing to the eye. Unfortunately, nothing here was even worth the time it would take to steal.
His walk in between the shacks was somewhat slow-going. The place was set up with no sense of order being put together like a maze. The only saving grace of finding his destination was the roof of the ticket booth that was visible above it all. Several ponies were curled up and lying in the streets making the thief move around them. Moving through the town had been a lot easier when they were all asleep and not meandering around. Some of the ponies that lay in the streets had healthier ponies tending to their wounds or offering blankets to them. The ones who were coughing were left by themselves for fear they had the deadly plague. The sick and dying were extremely common in these parts of Equestria.
Medical ponies were few and far between not to mention they usually charged at least a foreleg and hind leg to even look at you and double it for any medications. Any doctor ponies that helped the poor were considered foolish with the bit inflation or were seen as the type to lose their patients to the cold bony hooves of death so they weren’t allowed to work on the wealthy folk who were obviously much more important. The ponies in this town did try to keep the dead off the streets as best as they could. The massive graves that were dug on the outskirts of the town were where the bodies of the fallen ponies were disposed of. The mass of corpses left a foul, sour stench to linger in the air of the cave. The stallion didn’t know why they didn’t just throw the bodies off the side of the mountain.
The only saving grace these ponies had to give them a break from it all was the freshwater of the waterfall close by that they had free access to. They didn’t often get to eat but at least they had clean water to drink. Until, that is, the ponies of Canterlot finally took notice and charged them a tax for its usage. They prayed that day would never come.
Just a couple feet away from the train station platform the stranger was stopped in his tracks by a mare who abruptly got in his way. She stood firm for only a moment before she began to shake in fear. He raised an eyebrow. She wore nothing but the many scars on her pink hide and her slave brand where her cutiemark had once been. Her white mane was pulled back with a mane tie and she was so skinny he could see her sides were caved in making her hips look large as they protruded from her small frame. Behind the fur wrapped bones were two little fillies trying to hide. At least they looked in better shape than their mother.
“I-I, um…” she said with a trembling breath. She swallowed before continuing, “P-please, some food sir. My f-fillies they-” She looked back to her daughters, the older one was a yellow Pegasus with a mane that looked as if it was once lavender but now it was caked in mud. The younger one was a dirty purple with some form of rainbow colors in her mane and tail. The children and their mother looked no better than the rest of the town, filthy, starving and covered in parasites. “They’re so hungry they’ve tried to eat the dirt. There’s not enough for the stew and I--”
The stranger backed up a step before walking around the trio, trotting up the wooden steps to the train platform.
As he passed her, the mare quickly crouched down in fear, expecting punishment for talking. She heard his hooves clop on the wood and looked up in surprise.
“I… W-wait!” she said as she stumbled over her hooves to follow him. When her fillies began to follow she waved them back. “I can pay,” she said as she got in front of him to stop him again. She put a warry hoof on his chest, “I can, maybe, um. I-I can... warm your, uh, bed tonight?”
She gave him her very best try at a confident and sexy smile as she raised her tail slightly. She obviously had no idea what she was doing other than trying to feed her family.
He took her hoof in his and moved it aside before continuing to the ticket booth for the train.
Her ears drooped and tears welled up in her eyes as she watched him go. Knowing she was defeated, she turned towards her children and began to walk slowly back to them.
The stallion glanced back to the trio before continuing on his way. He hated children, couldn’t stand the little monsters. Their big eyes, begging, always getting into things that they should really keep their sticky little hooves out of. And worst of all, they were always the ones who asked the most awkward of questions. ‘Just…keep walking’ he thought. He didn’t have any food on him anyways and the sight of them was just…
The former slave sighed before opening her mouth to speak to her children when she noticed a blur of yellow rush passed her. She turned her head back to see that her elder daughter was rushing to catch up with the stranger.
Seeing that her mother wasn’t getting any response from the stranger, the yellow filly flapped her wings as she ran to him. “Mister!” she said, “What about me? I can pay!” The young pegasus gritted her teeth and grimaced as she thought of what she was offering. “Please mister, we need food and if I can.. I-if I…” her voice wavered as she trailed off. Tears welled in her eyes as she saw him ignoring her. She had to earn food for her baby sister at least, she had to save what little family she had left to her name.
“Mister, please!” she begged. The filly grabbed onto one of his saddlebags to try and stop him but only managed to disturb the items and Thief within. Being quite full of stolen goods, the filly had accidentally dropped a small charm out of the bag.
The charm fell to the ground with a soft clang as it unsettled the dust on the wood below. The sound finally got the stallion to stop in his tracks and looked back. The filly was admiring the trinket. The casing that the gems were in was pure gold and it wrapped around a brilliant sapphire carved into the shape of a unicorn. Its eyes and nose were made of tiny diamonds along with a diamond necklace and crown that the unicorn wore. There was a hole at the top as if it was supposed to be worn on a string; the stallion’s eyes grew wide as he saw the filly reach for it.
“Wow! It’s so pretty!” she said, picking up the charm.
“No!” the stallion whinnied, “Hooves off, it’s mine!” He rushed over to the filly and grabbed it out of her hoof. He then proceeded to rub what miniscule amount of dirt there now was on the object off with his vest.
The filly flinched back before looking guilty. “I-I’m sorry sir, it was just so pretty and…” as the filly spoke she noticed a little black rodent crawl out of the stranger’s saddlebag to see what all the ruckus was about. It was Thief. The filly’s eyes grew wide as she screamed and ran back to her mother and sister as fast as she could. “There’s a- It’s a- He’s got a-” she continued to ramble on to her mother as her hooves danced around, not wanting to stay in place and unable to form proper words in her panic.
“What’s wrong sweetie?” The skinny mare asked concerningly.
“A rat!” she said as the words finally came to her.
When the filly’s words rang through the town, whispers and gasps could be heard all around along with the slamming of doors. The mother took her fillies and ran away from the stallion as fast as she could while the stallion put the trinket back into his saddle bag.
The buck folded his ears back at the exclamation and judgemental ponies in the town. Thief wasn’t carrying the plague and not many rats actually did so long as they kept clean and didn’t eat the infected corpses. This village was probably already infested anyway thanks to the abundance of fleas around and their mass graves. The pickpocket looked in the direction the ponies ran and gave a snort. He knew differently than they did and no matter any pony’s opinion, it wouldn’t change how he felt about his friends. He then continued on his way, picking up his pace a bit. He wanted to get out of this town, if you can call it a town, before anypony else decided to beg him for something.
He finally reached the ticket booth.
“One to Ponyville.” he said.
The stallion behind the counter moved the newspaper from his view and looked at the buck skinned pony. He cocked an eyebrow and stared.
“I need a ticket to Ponyville.” he repeated.
The ticket pony’s expression flattened. “No, you don’t.” he said before going back to his paper, once again blocking his view of the patron.
“Yes, I do. Now give me the ticket.” he said, grinding his teeth as he threw his seven bits on the counter.
He continued to glare daggers at the newspaper that had obstructed his view of the ticket pony while he was being ignored. He waited another minute before he swiped his bits off the counter and stormed away. The ticket buck turned the page of his newspaper and grumbled about the stranger thinking he can get on his train with a rodent.
The thief trotted around the side of the small building, looking for any way he could sneak in and steal a ticket but it seemed the only entrance was the door right next to the counter. It wasn’t a large building as it only needed to house the pony inside and a few cubby holes for mail and the like. There were no windows except the glass window that let the pony inside have protection when handing out mail or tickets.
His ears folded as he decided he would have to be a stow-a-way.
He walked around to the back side of the booth, hidden in the darkness and sat down to wait. Thief crawled onto his shoulder and he reached up to pet her. She twitched her nose and tickled his face with her whiskers and licked his cheek before scampering back into his saddlebag. She dug deeper, pushing an assortment of items out of her way to make a comfortable spot to go back to sleep in.
Something dropped onto the deck. The stallion turned his head back to see she had kicked the charm out of his pack.
“Hey!” he said, “Don’t push things out of there young lady.”
The rat turned around and popped her head out from the flap and looked at him.
He picked the unicorn charm up to stick it back in but the rat seemed to not want it in her space. She put her paws on it and pushed it away.
“Excuse me but, I need to put this back.” he told her.
She bit the metal and began chewing on it.
“Hey!” he pulled it back to safety, “If you’re going to be like that you can ride on my head. I know that’s not nearly as comfortable as the saddlebags but you’re not a first class passenger here.”
Thief shook her head and began to clean her face.
“Just because you clean yourself up doesn’t mean you get to keep your seat, other passengers need it so you need to find another one.” he said as a wooden board creaked behind him.
The buck turned his head to see the yellow filly and his ears folded once again.
“I don’t want your… services. Or your mother’s.”
“I saw you needed a ticket. Maybe we could make an exchange?” she asked with hopeful eyes.
“Not if that’s what you’re offering and besides, you have no money for a ticket,” he said firmly.
“But you do. Give me the money and a little food and I’ll get you your ticket.” She stated with determination, she had to convince him to take the deal, for her family’s sake.
The buck turned away, “I have no food. Go away.”
“Then… give me something to sell. Anything! I just need something, please.” she begged as she took a step forward.
“I hate kids…” the buck skinned stallion grumbled under his breath.
The filly fluttered her wings as he stood and turned around. Their eyes locked and he began to walk towards her. She took a nervous step back but didn’t break the gaze.
“You need it don’t you? I know you do. I saw you snooping around, looking for a way in to steal one since he wouldn’t sell it to you.” she said before swallowing hard. Her legs began to shake a bit as she took another step back.
He stopped just in front of the filly and looked down at her from under his hood. He lowered his mouth to her ear and said quietly, “I would keep my voice down when accusing strangers if I were you. You have no idea what somepony could be capable of.”
The filly swallowed hard again and took a couple quick steps away from him. She looked like she was going to soil herself.
The stallion rolled his eyes and sighed. “Calm down, I’m not going to do anything.” he said before taking seven bits out of his pack and hoofing them to the filly, “At least, not if you bring me my ticket.”
She looked to the stranger, to the bits and back to him again, not sure if she should take them or not. Finally, she decided she was brave enough to ask for her payment up front. The buck chuckled and flatly told her no. She picked up the coins and marveled at them, she had never held so many at once in her life. Then the pegasus remembered what she was supposed to do with them and hurried around the corner.
He stared in the direction she went for a moment before looking back to the pendant. He could just give her nothing but then she would probably alert the other ponies and they would make a fuss. He wouldn't get his ticket and would be back to square one with more trouble than he started with. He had other trinkets in his saddlebags he could give her but there were too many he didn’t want to part with. He could give her some bits but honestly, bits were easier for him to barter with rather than trying to find a peddler to take in his more expensive findings. It was even harder if the item was still a hot commodity to the public.
He put the item back into his saddlebag, unsettling Thief’s comfy spot before looking to where the filly had left once again. He wondered what was taking so long. Did the ticket pony catch on to their plan and deny the filly the ticket? Was there a foal price and an adult price and she was only eligible to buy the child’s ticket? Were foals required to have an adult with them when they rode the train so she was only allowed if she had her parents with her? Or was she simply rallying the townsfolk to capture him and sell him?
His ears dropped slightly and he chuckled to himself at that last scenario. He hadn't done anything to alarm the ponies of Estuary Slums and they didn’t know his secrets so, that scenario was obviously off the table.
He swallowed, stood, pulled the hood down lower and backed a bit farther into the shadows.
Little hooves sounded on the wooden platform a moment later and the yellow filly reemerged around the corner. She trotted closer but stopped several feet away and showed him the ticket she held between her wing feathers. She sucked in a nervous breath, “I got it.” she said in a shaky voice, “Now, my um… p-payment?”
The buckskin cracked a thin smile at the look of determination on the frightened foal’s face. He glanced to the ticket and saw it said 5:10 to Ponyville - One pony per ticket. He nodded to her, reached back, grabbed her payment and set it gently on the deck. He looked at it for a moment, still unsure if he really was okay parting with such a beautiful item.
She took a small step forward, her eyes darting between the stranger and the charm on the floor. He looked back to her from under his hood and the filly continued to stand stock still. A few seconds of the mini stand-off later and she darted out, dropping the ticket and biting down on the prize before swiftly flying back to the town.
The buck rolled his eyes and continued to watch the filly as she reached her family. She showed them the trinket and they spoke between each other for a moment before they started off in the direction of Canterlot. He knew the guards wouldn’t let them inside but they could at least find a trader outside the city and attempt to sell the charm. For a moment, he debated whether he should go steal it back after they pawned it or not. He gave a long sigh and pawed at the floor in slight frustration. The train would be here sooner rather than later and he wouldn’t be able to make it back in time. He wasn’t sure when the shift change of the ticket pony was and this frustrating stallion could inform the next one of him and his rat and they could deny him a ticket as well. Not to mention he would much rather not waste bits.
He finally decided he would just have to steal it back later. They probably wouldn’t be able to find somepony in Canterlot who would buy it anyways.
Thief jumped down from his back and scampered away, returning only a moment later. She jumped onto his shoulders, climbed to the top of his head and dropped the ticket onto his nose.
He looked down cross eyed at it. “Oh, thank you.” he said to the rodent before plucking the paper off his snout.
Behind him came a long, low bellowing noise. It echoed through the cavern and began to get louder. It stopped for only a moment and sounded again as if it had to take a breath of air before it made another shout. A few seconds later and the train came into view. Sparks were lightly thrown from its wheels as the conductor hit the breaks for the train to come to a stop and allow passengers on. It took a couple of minutes to halt the massive beast but it finally did stop. The buck’s ears perked as he crept around the building. He peeked through the glass to see the ticket pony still reading his paper before he let out the breath he was holding.
Walking casually into view, he stepped onto the train and entered the car. He held his ticket in his teeth to show the ticket inspector who stamped it before finding a seat. The ride home on the train wasn’t exciting but he was glad for it. Per the norm, he stared out the window and watched the world pass by while Thief explored the train car. There were more passengers on at this hour than there were last night but no pony bothered him.
A couple hours later and the train came to a screeching halt once again. The door of the train car was opened, ready for its passengers to enter or exit. The stallion looked around the car, making sure whoever else was getting off the train at Ponyville did so before he did. After a minute with everypony still in their seats, he stood up and took a step toward the door.
The buckskin pony stopped and looked around once more. Thief came scampering to him, knowing a stopped train meant it was time to leave. He offered a hoof to her and smiled as she jumped up, climbed to his withers and curled up. Trotting off the train, he couldn’t wait to get home. It had been a long night and he did not appreciate the gun that had been pointed at his face the second he stepped onto the train station platform.
The unicorn mare glared at the stranger, daring him to move. “What is your business in Ponyville?” she demanded.
Ignoring her question, he looked to his surroundings in hopes of finding some kind of advantage to resolve his current predicament. Two of the benches were broken and another was in shattered pieces everywhere. The glass that protected the pony inside the ticket booth was mostly gone except for a few jagged pieces that still framed the window sill. Blood was pooled on the counter and dripping onto the ground but the ticket pony was nowhere to be seen. The body of the sick pony that had been there at the beginning of the night lay still on the platform floor with several bullet wounds, nopony dared touch her corpse. There were ponies by the Ponyville gate which was blackened and severely damaged. They were making repairs to the wall, trying to patch it as best they could with what little supplies they had. From the massive hole in the wall, bullet holes everywhere, blood and debris all over the ground it was obvious they had been recently attacked and were on high alert.
The ponies before him all looked worried aside from the mare with the gun in his face who looked pissed off. Each of them had leather armor on but a few had pieces of metal patched onto their suits to try and reinforce it. One stallion’s looked like a foal sewed it on. The only one with decent armor was a grey unicorn stallion with a white and blue striped mane. He was wearing some sort of old palace guard armor that seemed well kept. It was rare to see a unicorn on the side of the rebels.
The most unnerving pony in front of him, however, was a mare with two heads. It was as if two ponies had their bodies cut in half, their rear ends disposed of and the two front ends were stuck together back to back. Did that mean they no longer counted as mares? Were they one pony or two? And how in the world did they use the bathroom with no rear end available to them? The stallion decided he was perfectly content not knowing the answer to the last question.
“Start talking or I’ll start shooting!” The mare commanded.
The hooded buck finally drew his eyes away from the double headed mare and back to the one who was brandishing a gun on him. “I’m no threat to you, your friends or your little rebel group. I’m just going to the Everfree Forest.” he said.
“Why do I not believe you?” She narrowed her eyes.
“Because you just got attacked, I’m in a cloak and you’re a paranoid idiot?” He offered.
The mare seethed. “Dusty, Silver, take him to Canary. I want to make sure he’s telling the truth. If he’s not, we have ourselves a new piñata.”
Behind her, two of the six ponies saluted before stepping forward. One was a tan earth pony buck with a straw colored mane while the other was a nervous dappled blue-silver pegasus mare. The stallion stood to the stranger’s right side while the filly stood to his left. Once the two were in place, they began to march him forward.
The buckskin pony’s ears tilted back slightly at his predicament. The sun was coming up, there were ponies everywhere here and they all knew he was here. If he tried to run, he couldn’t outrun a bullet and he didn’t want to risk Thief falling off and getting hurt. He decided for now he would bide his time and see where this was going. If they took his belongings from him, he would take out his hidden tools, pick the locks and escape. If they were very thorough, he would have to improvise. He hoped he wouldn't have to improvise.
“D-don’t try anything mister.” the pegasus mare said with a gulp.
Their pace was a bit slow thanks to the mare not watching where she was walking but she made sure to keep her rifle trained on her prisoner’s head.
“Silver,” the stallion said, adjusting the cowpony hat atop his head, “Pay attention ta where yer walking an’ calm down. If you trip an’ accidentally fire yer weapon, we won’t have anypony ta interrogate. He’s not a spy. Pro’lly another slaver or mercenary if he’s headed ta The Everfree. Commander Short Stack’s just pissed off ‘cause her stupid brother got shot again.”
Silver blushed and looked at her hooves.
Dusty leaned in towards the buckskin stallion. “Don’t mind the kid, first day jitters an’ all that.” he drawled.
The thief stayed silent as he eye’d his chaperone’s bit pouches. Both ponies had one and neither were really paying attention to him. It didn’t take much effort or the buck to relinquish both of them of their bits without notice.
“Welp, we’re here.” said the cowpony.
Before them was a small shack that was to the right side of the Ponyville gates. The building wasn’t any fancier than four shabby wooden walls and a roof. It didn’t even have any windows.
“Please give any an’ all weapons on yourself to Silver an’ head on inside. If y’all are deemed a non-hostile an’ not a spy for the King, your weapons will be returned to ya an’ y’all will be free ta go.” Dusty recited. Then he sighed, “Just, answer their dumb questions. There’s no real reason fer this other than a publicity stunt.” He looked back toward where Short Stack and the others stood. She was yelling at them to straighten their armor so it could protect them properly. “We got much better things ta do than play Twenty Questions with everypony goin’ ta The Everfree an’ the higher-ups know it. The ponies in there may be on the rough an’ tumble side but they ‘aint never bothered us none before an’ this is only gunna create friction between us an’ them.”
Dusty looked back to the stranger who already hooved over his daggers, bow and quiver full of arrows to the filly. “It’s just a couple questions. Please don’t hurt anypony an’ please understand attacks by the King frighten everypony inside. The higher-ups just order this to make everypony we’re protectin’ feel a little more secure. It’s not like we’re actually going to find a spy fer the King, his ponies are too good to get caught.”
The stallion snorted and rolled his eyes before walking into the building. The small space within consisted of a table, two chairs, one on either side of the table, and a pony on the far side of the room. She was an off white filly with pastel shades of blue and yellow for her mane. Her rump was in the seat opposite the door but the bright orange bird on her butt was proudly uncovered from the light armored top she wore. It almost looked like she was just wearing a collared shirt. She gave a big grin to the newcomer.
“Hello!” She said, way too cheerfully, “My name’s Canary, what’s your name?”
He stared blankly at her.
“Why do you have your hood up inside?”
The buck stifled a yawn.
“Where did you come from?”
He opened his mouth to give a witty retort but the filly talked so fast he couldn’t even utter the first syllable of his response.
“I’m from Ponyville though I’m actually from Manehattan before those big attacks that happened there a long time ago. I don’t really remember much because I was just a filly when that happened.” she giggled, “So where are you going? Is it someplace fun? I love fun but nopony around here will let me have fun with them. They always complain at me that there’s too many chores to be done. Have you ever seen a Crystal Pony? I heard those are like, really rare but they’re suuuuper pretty with their shiny coats and pretty, pretty eyes.” She zoned out of the one sided conversation with a dreamy expression on her face for a moment before continuing,
“Oh! What kind of food do you like? We could throw you a welcome feast with lots of tasty desserts! That would put a smile on those grumpy pony’s faces. They’re always so exhausted maybe having a good meal will cheer them up! We could get ready now and have it all ready for lunch, ooh, maybe even brunch! What should we make? We don’t have a lot of ingredients but we do have--”
The door behind the stallion opened with a creek. He turned around to see a soft green mare with her mane hidden under a helmet. She was one of the ponies just outside the train station.
“Hiya Rooroo!” Canary chirped, waving a hoof in the air ecstatically at the intruder.
“Canary Blues, Commander Stack wanted me to make sure you were letting him talk instead of talking for him,” Roo said in an annoyed tone of voice. “Again,” she added.
“Oh sure, we’re talking lots! We’re planning a potluck, do you want to bring anything? It’s going to be so much fun!” the filly said with a huge smile on her face.
Roo looked to their temporary prisoner who folded his ears. She turned back to the white pony. “Canary!” she barked.
She eeped and lost her smile.
“Your job is to interrogate prisoners, not plan potlucks. I’m going to have to report you to the Commander. Again.” She growled. It was obvious the two went at this issue often.
Canary grew wide eyed and ran to Roo, “No, please no! They’ll put me on bedpan washing again. Please, please, please don’t! I promise I’ll be good!” She groveled.
With both of the mares distracted with each other, it was the easiest thing in the world for the bored buck to steal Canary Blues’ pouch of belongings.
“Hey, somepony’s gotta clean them. Dr. Patch ‘n Stitch and H.N. need all the help they can get with all the injured at their clinic.”
Canary looked up at Roo with big watery eyes. Her bottom lip quivering ever so slightly.
“Ugh, fine,” the green mare said as she rolled her eyes, “but you have to interrogate properly, got it?”
“Yes boss!” the filly said with a salute.
With that Roo left and Canary went back to her seat with a sigh. She picked up the clipboard that was on top of the table, ignored in the first round of questions, and the pencil that was sitting next to it. With that, she groaned at the paperwork and monotonously began her questions. He assumed that all the cheeriness from before was lost with the thought of washing bedpans.
She only asked about twelve or so questions and they were pretty easy, unimportant questions. What was your name, where did you come from, where was he going, what’s your family like, what do you think of the Kings and so on. The only question that caught him off guard was when she asked him what time it was. It was so out of the blue and so random that he just sat there. She shrugged her shoulders and scribbled something down on the paper anyways. He didn’t actually know what time it was and he really didn’t care as he had lied for all of his other answers anyways. It seemed to him that there was a lot more on that list she was supposed to ask him but didn’t. She also wrote more on the paper than talked this time, either filling in answers on his behalf or doodling on the form in her own version of rebellion on the no-fun policy.
Once the game of Twenty Questions was over, more scolding was in order for Canary, the buck was given his gear back and he was escorted to the edge of the Everfree Forest by yet another guard. This guard’s personality matched his cutiemark perfectly, a bent tin can. He was a dark brown pegasus with a light blue and white mane and he limped as he walked.
Tin Can didn’t speak a word until they were both at the edge of the forest. “Alright, go on, git and don’t come back.” he said, gesturing to the forest with his head.
The hooded pony snorted at the order and trotted into the brush before him.
Knowing his way around the forest, he found the salt stone path easily and eventually made his way into the town. He passed the usual buildings along the rickety wooden path that lead through the organized chaos of the place. Here and there ponies, griffons and a minotaur or two mulled about, a few talking in clusters, some carrying crates and others were hauling wagons filled with goods. This time, when he passed the open space filled with empty stalls, the market booths weren’t so empty. There were merchants who were filling some of the stalls with their products, readying to open soon. The blacksmith and his apprentice were heating up their forges, sorting their metals for whatever projects they were going to be working on for the day and gathering bundles of wood. As he passed Dr. Slice’s office, one of his nurses flipped their sign from closed to open. Soon as she took her hoof away from the sign and unlocked the door, four twitchy ponies fought each other to bolt through his door. No doubt to buy more of whatever drug they were addicted to.
It was then that a white rat came running towards him from an alleyway. Thief poked her head out from her hiding spot and jumped off to greet the other rodent.
“Oh, hi Winter.” the hooded buck said, “Long time no see girl.” He walked a few steps closer so he could pet Winter in greeting.
The two rats sniffed each other before they began a short game of tag. The older rat, Winter, began to chase Thief around the stallion before the black rat ran back up his leg. The white rat followed. Then the two began chasing and play fighting up and down his back, hiding in his hood, in the quiver and finally into his vest before he protested.
“Girls, that’s enough, I’m not a circus ring!” he said as he shook both of them off him. Thief clung to his back leg but not for long and both rats went tumbling to the wooden platform. He sighed, “You two okay?” he asked. The two began to furiously clean themselves. “You can play later. Winter, do you have any notes for me?” Winter stood on her back legs and wiggled her nose at him before hopping closer.
Due to the dangerous nature of the thief’s job, trustworthy folk were quite difficult to come by. With this in mind, he had his own way of communicating with anyone who wanted to hire him. They would first have to ask around to figure out who his contact was. Once they spoke with that third party, that third party would then make a deal with them on the thief’s behalf. They would write a note, find a rat with a collar and the note would be transported to him. The buckskin saw this method of communication safer for him and the messages due to the social stigma around rats. With the blight rampant in the cities and everypony blaming the rats for transporting it, no one would mess with his messages and he didn’t have to risk getting close to strangers who might betray him.
Around the white rat’s neck was a small silver chain with a clasp. The stallion opened the clasp and found a note tucked away inside, pulled the paper out, slipped it into a front pocket on his vest and closed the secret compartment on the rat’s chain.
“Thanks girl.” he said as he pet her, “Come on Thief, we have to get going.”
The young rat shook herself out briefly before climbing back onto her friend’s withers while the older one ran back into the alleyway. After his passenger was back in her seat, the thief continued on his way.
As he passed the Crippled Cragadile Inn there were a group of ponies complaining. As others passed by, they joined in the heated discussion while a tan pegasus with a multicolored mane was crowded by the herd, trying to calm them down.
“Look every-creature, if you want something done, go talk to him. I’m not the boss! I-I can’t do anything about it!” the overwhelmed stallion said to them all. No one was listening to him, of course, as they were so boisterous his words could barely be heard.
The buckskin snorted, flattened his ears and trotted a bit faster. Apparently that guard, Dusty, was right. The residents of The Everfree were upset at the intrusion of their private comings and goings and weren’t going to keep their opinions to themselves. At least he didn’t have to worry about things like politics. He moved around the last few homes and came upon the back edge of the town.
This side of the Everfree Forest wasn’t maintained nearly as much as the Ponyville side was. Thick brush tried to hide every path that anyone attempted to create and tall trees blocked out any natural light. He never understood how any of the bushes or grass grew here if there was no sunlight for them. He found the thin trail he had always taken and continued on his way. This path was getting more and more cramped by the day with the overgrown flora but he could still fit his small frame where he needed to go.
On occasion he came across some poison joke flowers that had crept onto the path and he knew to either go around or jump across. He had been told stories of this plant and its effects and he would much rather not know what kind of devious prank it would pull on him. Probably make his coat shine like a freshly polished shield with the brightest spotlight shining on it for all to see even if he hid in a darkened room. He shivered at the thought of shining like a lamp light.
Eventually he came upon an ancient castle broken down into rubble with time. The ruins were so old that the forest around it had taken the land back for itself. Vines wrapped around pillars, grasses and bushes grew out of cracks between the cobblestones and massive trees broke down walls with their growth. The work of pony hooves for past royalty had been subdued to the test of time.
When the stallion was a colt, he had wanted to go exploring through the rubble to see what he could find but was always told not to. He constantly argued that the castle once belonged to royalty, there had to be treasure somewhere in there but nevertheless, he obeyed because the orders came from those who were bigger and older than he was. That didn’t make him any less frustrated about being told no. As he grew older this desire had dissipated. He understood the thousand year old castle was so unstable that setting hoof in there could mean a death wish. Not to mention all the ghost stories about the castle and the area around it. He didn’t really believe in ghost stories but didn’t want to take the chance just in case there actually were angry spirits lurking. Bad enough he walked right through their territory almost on a daily basis.
He trotted around the massive structure and came upon a bending stream. He followed the river away from the castle and around a large jagged rock structure known as Ragged Rock Ridge. As he passed, a few small boulders came tumbling down just ahead of him and he slowed his pace to a stop. He looked up to where the rocks came from to see that the last one had fallen. In his peripheral vision, on the top of the ridge, something had moved but when he looked to where the movement had been, it was gone. Couldn’t have been an evil spirit, this place wasn’t the nearby castle and ghosts didn’t change where they lived, right? He twitched an ear before moving around the boulders and followed the stream of water.
He passed by a bridge leading across the water going from East to West and came upon a split in the river. He followed the stream northward, crossed some railroad tracks and came upon an open field.
Looming above him was Foal Mountain. It wasn’t the biggest mountain in Equestria but it had once been important enough to the Kings to have a royal city dedicated to them here. Leading through the small line of trees that seemed to guard the mountain range was a cracked stone trail. He passed several cautionary signs that were nailed to the trees, giving several different warnings to travelers.
Along the side of the road were a couple of forgotten suitcases, a broken toy and an abandoned waggon with a broken wheel. The badly torn cloth cover of the vehicle was softly waving in the light breeze of the morning.
The stallion stopped just in front of a large hastily built wall that obstructed the path ahead. It had a pony skull painted in red on it that took up the entire face of the structure. The barricade was made of large cut stones with a thick wooden beam for support every ten feet or so. Large dark crystals protruded from the earth below helped give extra support. With years of neglect on upkeep, many vines and brush had latched itself to the enclosure giving it almost an enchanted look in the morning sunlight. He looked up at the tall structure before looking to his left. He grabbed the rope that dangled down from the grappling hook which was attached to the top of the wall before scaling up it. When he reached the top he slowly peeked over the edge and cautiously looked around. After he was certain that nopony was around, he finished climbing atop the fortification. Standing on the structure’s peak, he could see what was hidden beyond.
The road continued for a little ways before two statues loomed above it. Both of them were facing each other with one on either side of the path. They were built to resemble faceless rearing unicorns having one hoof of each statue touching the other’s. For balance or the aesthetic of being an entrance archway to the city, the stallion didn’t know.
The pathway below the statues had gone from being stone to white quartz blocks, each having their own unique design of black veins splitting the stones in various ways almost looking like inverted lightning strikes. On the outer edge of the quartz road were more of the black crystals, framing the road with its contrast to the white stones. Unfortunately though, time had taken its toll on the beauty that had once been and now most of the road was damaged with cracks and foliage growing between. One of the unicorn statues had lost a leg, the other its tail. They weren’t truly lost of course, they had fallen to the ground and destroyed part of the roadway beneath.
In front of the two statues were a set of poles, one on either side. The left pole held up the King’s flag displaying his sigil to all who entered through. Like the rest of the hoof built landscape around it, it was ripped and faded with the passage of time. The right pole had dropped its flag long ago and now the fabric was taken over by a briar bush. Thorns slowly tore up the flag allowing rodents and birds easy access to use it for nesting materials.
Up and up this road led before weaving back and forth up the mountain side so the path wouldn’t be too steep for travelers. A structure that looked like a wooden basket hung down from a high ledge far above that stuck out of the mountain like a sore hoof and attached to a massive tree at the bottom of the slope. Just on the other side of the wall were dozens of carts and wagons. They were all wrecked and broken, empty save for their deceased occupants and drivers. Long dead ponies lay scattered along the path as if they crushed each other while trying to get past the walls. The vast majority of them were unicorn and they were wearing some sort of formal outfits to show their high class status. Earth pony bones were latched to the carts, still bearing their slave collars or hoof cuff chains. Some of the bones had damages to them, a cracked skull to a blunt object or a sharp blade lodged between bones and some pierced through with bullet holes. There were adults and children, slaves and masters, civilians and King’s guard alike. No pony survived the tragedy that occured here so long ago.
He jumped down from the wall and onto one of the carts then down to the road. Instead of following its winding up the mountain, past the broken cottages with their black crystal fences and the dried up water well halfway up the slope, he walked straight ahead to the children’s playground. Just beyond was the massive tree with its ride up. Hoofing his way up the ladder he made it to the small platform attached to the trunk. There he found the lower pulley system and crank he needed to lower the wooden basket if it were at the top. Today, it was already on the lower platform and ready to ascend. He trotted into the basket while Thief poked her little head out to sniff the air.
“Going up.” he said to his passenger and began tugging on the ropes.
As they rose higher and higher into the air, they got a good view of the mountain side that led up to the city. Above them was a large wooden platform that connected the two mountain peaks with the larger one hosting the incomplete castle. Almost half of the structure between the rocky terrain had collapsed in a massive rock slide that had brought down a large portion of the forgotten metropolis above. Below was a heap of debris, old broken buildings, boulders and half the mountain side. The only thing that had survived the collapse was a single apple tree that latched itself to the side of the mountain as it fell. The previous residents had worked hard to secure the underside of the city with massive wooden beams and tried to create the grand city the King had ordered but their efforts were in vain as constant landslides impeded their construction, their crops would somehow always foul just before harvest and swarms of wood beetles refused to be exterminated.
It was when the caverns were excavated for resources that everypony called the mountain range cursed. Twenty-seven years ago, a few ponies grew violently ill, their coat fell off within days, nasty boils grew all over their bodies and their lungs filled with fluids. Within a week they either died of asphyxiation or organ failure. It wasn’t until a couple dozen ponies died that they realized the deadly plague came from the cavern. It had spread like wildfire through the town, the King brought his army in to force the citizens to stay in the city while new workers from Filly Delphia were sent in by trains to build the wall all the way around, sealing everypony within.
Once the great wall was completed, more orders were given and every pony within was exterminated. Even the guards still left inside were abandoned to die of the plague within the week. Unfortunately the containment hadn't held as they had thought and somepony got free. A small child slipping through a crack in the walls, a pegasus simply flying out or a unicorn teleporting, no pony knew for sure how. It didn’t matter though, what mattered was the lives of millions were being threatened with death and the kings were forced to take drastic measures to protect their citizens.
Curfews, limited medical services to preserve what doctors they had left and exterminating anyone showing any small signs they were sick were only a few of the steps taken. Massive holes were dug for the dead to be thrown into but they couldn’t dig fast enough not to mention the heeps of bodies decaying attracted all sorts of creatures to come lurking out of the woods for a free meal. Swarms of flies plagued the cities nearest the graves while rats, crows and condors came to feast on the carrion. The fleas hopped onto the rats and got free rides into the city, spreading the plague even faster. Eventually they resorted to burning the bodies, building soot mills in each city and having carts be pulled through town each day to transport the dead. It became illegal to house or hide the sick and if you were caught not turning them in you were exterminated alongside them as a precaution to preserve the healthy. The only hope the people had were the two inventive scientists the kings hired to find a cure.
This city was once proudly called The King’s Hoof but after it had been abandoned everypony dubbed it as Pestilence Peak. It was a lonely mountain now, isolated, shunned and cold. Silent as the wind with the only bit of life residing here almost thirty years later were wild dogs, raccoons, rats and the buckskin stallion.
The stallion and his companion reached the top of the lift, tied off the rope to hold the basket up and stepped out. He stepped off the wooden basket and onto an unkempt dirt road filled with potholes. Though quite a few buildings in this town were falling apart, there were still some here and there standing strong. Those that once housed ponies and still had intact doors had symbols and numbers painted on its face. A large circle with an X, splitting it into four sections. In each section were different numbers. The top spot showed how many total ponies lived in the house. The left numbered how many children were inside, the right had tally marks to count the sick leaving the bottom to tally the dead. Usually the dead slot was one short of the household number for obvious reasons.
As he made his way through the small city and towards the castle atop the mountain peak the only sound around was his hoofsteps. Soft as they were from the padded shoes he wore, they still echoed through the streets. There were no voices from other ponies, no music or sounds of coin exchange. No children were laughing as they chased each other through the buildings and no birds were singing of this place as they flew about. The only thing around that answered his hoofsteps were the shop signs that moved with the light breeze and creaked while sounds of window shutters groaned open and closed, upset that they were being disturbed.
Then there was a growl. The stallion quickly looked towards it as he readied his weapon. The growl escalated to the sounds of dogs attacking one another as one cried in pain. The pony moved around a building and the fight came into view. Three mangy dogs were ganging up on another who refused to defend itself. That or it knew it was not going to win and decided to let its fate be decided by the others. He couldn’t tell what they were fighting about but he quickly put his bow and arrow back before moving faster to make sure he wasn’t next on the hit list.
A few more minutes of trotting through the city later and he came to a small bridge that led over a dry canal. He walked over the rickety bridge and came upon his destination. It was halfway up the mountain side, not near as high up as the castle but with how elevated it was, one could see the entire town if at the top. The building was as large as it was tall. The bottom level, as most of the buildings in the town, was made of stones held together with soft lime mortar to glue them together. The remaining four floors were made of wood with the second and higher floors overhanging the first by about a foot. The belltower portion of the building was built to stand out farther than the rest of the structure to showcase the massive rounded stained glass window on the second floor. The bell tower itself was notably lacking a bell.
On the first floor, one side of the building had a large window so one could see inside. The actual entrance of the cathedral, however, was inaccessible with the news press building next to it collapsed in front and blocking the door as well as half of the badly cracked window. With the collapse of the church’s neighbor, part of the second and third floors had been damaged and the belltower was a bit crooked but still standing. Due to the destruction around, there was no way anyone could enter from the ground level. The wall sized window did not open and all the other windows on the sides of the building were tall but way too narrow for even a filly to squeeze through them.
The stallion trotted to the side of the building where the canal was and climbed down the rope ladder that had been tied to a couple of old fence posts. Once at the bottom, he came to a hole in the wall of the water way. Stone and brick had been blasted out from the inside of the church leaving a hole for him to enter through into the building’s basement.
Inside the room it was dark and slightly damp. Along one wall was a rack full of unopened wine bottles. In large rows filling the majority of the space were larger racks to hold oaken wine barrels that were still corked. He walked past the containers and to the back of the room where a set of stairs led up to the next floor. Under the stairs was a sort of office corner containing a desk, several old documents and a used up candle. The cobwebs that filled the room’s rafters showed its age and loneliness.
The ground floor looked a bit more inviting with the light of the sunshine filtering through the dusty windows. He stood on a stage only slightly taller than the floor. Behind him on the wall was a statue of a white alicorn doing battle with a monstrous black creature made of many different animals. The flags on either side of the statue were of the white alicorn standing tall while the darkness was below, subdued by the powerful being that dominated the banner. At the edge of the stage was a podium, a long table and several religious instruments used in past ceremonies. An old dusty tome was left open on the dais, forgotten after the last congregation. Beyond the stage were rows and rows of pews. Here and there were skeletons of single ponies or families who prayed in their last moments for peace from their pain and in the end, their god listened to their cries.
He trotted past the pews and toward the main entrance. Halfway through the long building the pews changed to foal desks and faced the opposite direction. At the other end was a large chalkboard and a teacher’s desk. Small bookshelves along the walls held many texts and history books for the students to use in their studies. To the left side of the teacher’s desk was a spiral staircase that led to the second floor of the building.
He trotted up the stairs and found himself in a room filled with cots and mattresses. The other end of the room was sectioned off for a large kitchen and a few tables to eat at. The cots had been shoved in a corner of the room while the mattresses looked to be violently torn apart, so much so that the only ones left to be able to use them were the rats that claimed them for their nests. It was on this level of the cathedral that Thief jumped off her ride to go say hi to her family.
The spiral staircase continued to the third floor of the building. All of the large desks on this floor had been shoved all around the sides leaving the center of the room vacant. Along one of the walls was a wardrobe containing ancient robes worn by the clergy ponies and their transitional deacons. On two of the desks books were stacked up high to collect dust as they waited to be opened. The others contained a large assortment of items such as stolen documents, journals, unframed paintings and unpolished jewelry. On four of the desks there were display cases filled with ornaments and trinkets that shined like the stars, glittering when the sunlight hit them just right and filling the room with the colors of their gemstones.
Hanging from the rafters of this room and framing a few of the walls were several pieces of silken linen, their designs completely mismatched from any aesthetic the room’s other decorations had to provide. Most of them were decorated in gemstones such as diamonds, rubies and emeralds. Some had golden thread stitching while others had magnificent embroidery that had most likely taken weeks of hoof stitching to get just so. His favorite of these silks was a mural of the Crystal Empire, the castle embroidered with fine thread and studded with black diamonds to compliment the white fire opals that topped the citadel.
The elegant scenery was hung above a desk singled out and placed next to the winding staircase by a slightly opened window. On top of its wooden surface were an assortment of tools used to clean and polish the treasure within the room. The drawers contained all the elements the thief would need to craft any of the arrows he carried within his quiver for his work. Above the desk was a fishing net. It hung low as a few empty quivers were tied to it to hold any extra supplies he had pre-made. Three grappling hooks, their ropes neatly tied up, were also hanging from the net from their metal claw.
Several empty picture frames were neatly stacked in a tower of sorts on the floor next to the desk while the ones that proudly presented their paintings were hung on any wall space they could find to occupy. All around the room, in between the picture frames, were at least two dozen wall hanging ring holders in the shape of unicorn horns, each bearing several elegant pieces. Delicate wire frames on stands in the middle of the room displayed the most brilliant of gemstones, too precious to sell to his fence. Every other wire frame was a display stand with a glass box top to protect the precious ancient artifacts within.
The buckskin moved to the work desk, pulled down his hood and removed his saddlebags. He sat in the stool before taking the contents out one by one. There were a few loose bits, a silver laced pen, a gold lighter, three coin purses, the ruby earrings and ring box, a half a bottle of whisky, the pocket portrait, the box of mysteries, a fancy looking porcelain teacup, a bond paper worth ten bits and the smaller saddlebags that once belonged to the very talkative guard, Canary Blues.
He unclipped his bow and quiver next, setting them on the desk beside the items. The coin purses and loose bits he stuffed all in one bag while he took the earrings, ring and the bond, walked over to the other side of the room and placed them in their respective piles to either be polished or wait to sell with the rest of the stack of bonds. The teacup he set next to the full coin purse and the pocket portrait he left on the desk while the pen went into a drawer full of other decoratively metal laced pens.
With all the items out of his bags, he stared at them and knew something was missing. Still torn about giving the filly the charm, he sighed and went to the mystery box to get his mind off of the lost prize. The box was painted bright red and accented in thin golden lines. Studded on the lid was a large sapphire with four small pearls around it. At the front of the box was a keyhole so he removed a couple of his lock picks from the leather bands around his canons and began to pick the lock. He was very gentle with it, going more by sound than by feel, hearing the soft clicks before sharp ones knowing the tumblers had set into place. After all four were in position the lock opened easily.
Inside the small box, dark gray velvet cotton lined the entirety of the inside which cradled seven shards of a blue gem. He pulled one out and looked at it curiously. It wasn’t sapphire, tanzanite or zircon which were the obvious blue gems it could have been. It definitely wasn’t a blue diamond as it had a sort of milky look to it rather than a clear one. They were obviously precious stones to have been kept in such an elegant box but he couldn’t figure out what they were. He examined them closer and noticed they seem to have been shards of something bigger. Two of the pieces even fit perfectly together like a jigsaw puzzle with missing pieces.
He placed the gem back into the case with the others and gave a yawn. He could figure out the mystery later. Maybe his fence knew something about the stones. Grabbing the full coin purse and the tea cup, he walked up the last set of spiral stairs to the fourth floor. Up here was a small attic room that hid away shelves of old scrolls covered in cobwebs. In every last bit of extra space on this floor there were large barrels filled to the brim with golden bits. As he stepped hoof in the room the floor gave a long groan, complaining of the weight it was forced to bare. The roof above was badly damaged with a large piece of metal protruding through the wood and a couple lengths of broken rope dangling down.
He dumped the coins into the barrels and admired his collection. To an average pony, this was a fortune. Enough to buy their own castle, land and many servants. This amount of bits would make anypony a high-class citizen. Someone labeled as posh or elegant who would wear fancy tuxedos with a top hat, cane and a monocle whose only goal in life was to talk gossip at fancy parties, mingling with other ponies of high standing.
It wasn’t enough. It was never going to be enough for the buck skinned thief. He had been stashing this collection for almost twenty years of his life and he still didn’t have what he needed.
He ran his hoof through one of the barrels letting the gold bits flow over his hoof, watching as they glittered from the light shining through the single small window in the room. Taking his hoof out of the mountain of money he sighed and his ears folded. He knew that even if he did one day get enough that no one would accept his wealth but he had to try, it was the only goal he had and he was determined to achieve it.
The buck turned to the ladder on the far side of the room and climbed up it. He had to push open a hatch and moved through it to reach the fifth and final story of the cathedral. This level had a short half wall on all four sides sort of like a wooden fence to keep ponies from falling off. On each of the corners was a thick wooden post that held the tall roof up. Small bits of soft moss hung down from the roof and clung to parts of the broken rafters. The mechanisms that once held the large bell were broken and damaged, ripped down with the bell when the old wood gave way to rot. The bell itself lay on the crushed floor of the tower, open side out to the West. Next to the bell was a small table that had two drawers. On the top of the end table was a sleeping lantern and a silver pocket watch slowly counting the seconds of the day.
He pulled the note he got from Winter out of his picket before he removed his gear, folding each piece of clothing neatly before placing them inside the drawers. His leather boots and mask he left next to the end table to be washed later. His buckskin coat shone some in the morning light as he looked to the city below. A crystal pony, king of all he saw. King of rubble and dirt, of cobwebs and wild dogs. He was without a crown and without proper subjects or ponies to till his lands. No ponies to guard his territory or to bow to his every whim. It wasn’t exactly what he wanted but it was something and it was his. Better than a slave collar he supposed.
He sat down on the small rug that hid the damaged floor and opened the note.
Hey Clout, it’s me. It’s been months, why not come and visit? At least let me know you’re alive. Your shipment has been here for you for a while now, getting kind of worried about you. I’ve got a new helper, can’t wait for you to meet her! I wish you would find a mare and settle down already.
I also wish you would find some other way for me to get notes to you, my customers are starting to think your rats are going to bring the blight into my shop. I’ve got a job for you, stinking journalist got their hooves on information that would get us into trouble and I think you should pay them a visit.
Oh, my brother also has a job for you too. Come see me soon!
-- M.
Clout’s eyes lingered on the last line of the letter and seethed. Thief brought him out of his anger by jumping onto his shoulder.
“Oh, hi.” he said to her.
The little black rat twitched her whiskers at him.
“We gotta go see Merchant tomorrow and tell him off about taking any jobs from Flight. He should know better than to tell that ass I would ever take a job from him.” he informed his furry friend with a scowl.
She jumped off of him and ran into the bell.
“Bedtime already?” he asked with a chuckle, “Okay, one second.”
On the other side of the bell was a metal wire basket loosely woven together. He lit the burnt pieces of wood within and when the fire was decent enough, he tossed the letter into it. The stallion watched it burn completely before turning to the bell. He pushed aside the old raggedy sheet that hung over the entrance and to the straw mess inside. The materials within resembled a nest more than a bed being a mixture of pieces of cloth, cotton and straw.
Clout curled up on his makeshift bed, waited for Thief to settle into her spot next to him before falling asleep for the day.
“We can't see past our own sad stories and wonder what we're missing, we can't see past our own sad stories and forget how to listen” Patrick Park - Here We Are
Clout sat atop the fallen bell in the clouded evening dusk, observing the blue shard in his hoof. The last of the sun’s rays glistened off of the gem piece just as they had shown against his own hide. He turned it this way and that, observing the way it sparkled and wondered what it was about the stones that felt so familiar to him. He couldn’t place it precisely but he had a feeling that it was somehow important, not just to him but too… Well, he wasn’t sure.
He twitched an ear and hopped off the bell, the old floor beneath giving a creak. The stallion placed the shard back into the box on the end table before walking to the railing where he had left his boots and mask to dry. It had only been a half hour or so since he went to the nearby river to clean his gear and they weren’t nearly dry yet. It didn’t help that the cool night air and approaching rainstorm did nothing to help dry his clothes.
Leaving the items, Clout made his way down the rope ladder and trotted to the lower floors. As he exited the cathedral, he felt Thief climb up his back leg and make her way to his head.
“Hey Thief,” he said with a smile as he tried to look up at her, “I’m gunna go see if the apples are ripe yet. I’m sure they are with all the work it took to keep those pesky beetles away.”
The rodent twitched her whiskers at him as she sniffed the air.
He cantered down the slope of the mountain side and passed the empty buildings of his city. As the stallion moved around a vacant house, he was almost hit by a falling piece of pottery. Looking up, he saw three raccoons making their way into the cottage. Off in the distance he could hear cats yowling at each other and hissing. The songs of the wild dogs began to bellow low and long. Clout gave a thin smile. Though he hated the mongrels, he loved the music they made.
He heard another familiar sound, the noise of claws on stone. It was a bit off as the creature sounded like it was limping. He slowed his pace a bit as he rounded a corner to see what made the uneven gate. It was a black dog, big and wounded. It whined as it hobbled along. There were several fresh marks on its face and limbs, one eye was mauled so bad it was missing from the socket and half of its right ear was missing. The large wound on the back of its neck still bled some and dripped to the ground. This dog was the same one that had been attacked by the others earlier that morning.
The crystal pony folded his ears and moved closer to the building he was hiding behind. He watched as the dog wobbled before collapsing onto the ground, giving a yelp in pain. It shook and whined as it tried to lick its wounded leg but every movement sent a shockwave of new pain through its battered body.
He watched the beast for a moment more before looking around. There were no other dogs in the vicinity, no vultures and no other creatures waiting for the animal to die. The mutt was still struggling on the ground with its wounds as Clout slowly walked forward. This road was a bit narrower than he would have liked but he needed to use it to get to his destination. He tried to give the wounded animal a wide berth but when he stepped close, the dog looked up at him. It folded its ears and began to growl.
The pony stared down at the hound.
“Hang tight girl,” Clout whispered to his passenger.
The frightened animal lashed out at him. As the dog’s teeth came near, he lept passed, kicking it in the jaw with his hind hooves. The mutt yelped once more, tried to stand and stumbled back before falling again. Its cries of pain echoed through the darkened streets.
The crystal pony galloped away for a bit before slowing his pace and looking back. He knew that with the way it moved earlier, even adrenalyn wouldn’t be able to serve the animal enough for it to keep pace with the pony.
“Stupid dog.” he said with a harumph, “You okay girl?”
The rat atop his head pulled at some of his mane.
“Oow! Rude.” Clout’s ears folded.
She bit his ear.
“Hey, stop that! What is your problem?” he asked her as he shook his head a bit.
Thief moved to his back and looked behind him and to the dog.
Clout looked to his friend and back to the dog then back to her. “No, no way. Not going to happen.” he said folding his ears once again, “The only help I would give that stupid mutt would be an arrow but I left those in the tower.”
Thief ran back to the top of his head before running down to his withers once more.
“I said no, end of discussion.”
The thief trotted along, ignoring his companion’s silent complaints as he made his way to the edge of the town platform. Here were only bits and pieces of houses still clinging to their foundation. Sharp pieces of broken wood jutted out from the end of the missing floor. As he got close to the limit of the belvedere, the stones of the road beneath him cracked and let a few pebbles loose to fall down the mountain side.
Clout peered over the edge and looked along the craggy rock face. Among all the debris from the buildings and boulders was a lone tree. It was small but full of life with bright red apples hanging from its branches. The stallion cracked a smile.
“Alright Thief, you need to stay here. Don’t want you falling off and getting hurt. I’ll be right back. Looks like we’ve finally got some fresh food for once.” he said with a grin.
Thief jumped off her friend and watched him take a shoulder bag which had been left hanging on a lone wooden pole. He slipped the strap over his head and walked back to the edge. A wooden board creaked and gave way, breaking off of the rest of the platform and falling down to join the large pile of debris far below.
“I really need to figure out some way to fix the supports…” the crystal pony mumbled to himself, glad he only lost one footing instead of all four.
He grabbed a rope that was hanging on a stone fence and tied it around his waist and flank. The rope had been wrapped around a large rock jutting out of the platform farther up and the end of its length was dangling over the edge. The buck picked up the cordage that dangled over the side and tugged the slack out of the end tied to himself before he jumped down.
Holding onto the length and using the rock as a pulley system, Clout slowly made his way down the rough slope until he reached the tree. It had taken him many years to bring the little tree back to life but his hard work had finally paid off. There weren't many apples and they weren’t very big but they were ripe. He pulled every apple off the tree that was within reach and stuffed them into his bag before climbing back up. Once he was back on the platform he untied the rope.
Thief bounded up to her friend as he opened the satchel.
“It’s not much but at least it’s something, right?” Clout said to her as he showed the rat his harvest.
When she tried to get closer for a nibble he closed it.
“I know they smell good but you have to wait until we get home.” he told her.
The rodent wiggled her whiskers at him before hopping onto her ride.
Clout began trotting back to the cathedral, unable to stop the smile on his face at the thought of fresh food. When he knew he was coming close to the dog he slowed his pace and peered around the corner. It was still there, lying on the ground and breathing heavily. The crystal pony’s ears folded back as he crept out, the grin finally leaving his muzzle. He watched every movement the animal made as he slowly made his way passed. When the dog twitched an ear and let out a whine, the stallion flinched and took a step back.
After a few uneventful seconds of raspy breathing from the canine, he continued around the animal. When the dog made eye contact with him, his body tensed, ready to defend himself. The mongrel, however, cowered and tried to move away, shaking in fear. Clout stood up straighter and narrowed his eyes. It appeared he learned not to attack the pony.
The stallion gave a snort, turned and trotted off while his passenger looked back until it was out of site.
“I’m not helping it so don’t even start.” he told her.
The rat began chewing on the satchel strap.
“Hey!” he reared a few inches off the ground to get her attention, “Excuse me but, you know better than to chew on my equipment.”
The young rat twitched her whiskers at him again.
“I said no, you’re not changing my mind.”
She went back to the strap.
“And if you continue to chew on that you’re not getting any!” he scolded as he stomped a hoof on the cobblestones.
Thief jumped up to the top of his head.
“Thank you.” he said as he continued on his way, “What is your problem today anyway? Think I’ll leave you home if you keep up this attitude.”
Clout made his way through the cathedral and up to the second floor. Trotting passed the conglomerate of mattresses, he went to the kitchen, took a small knife out of a drawer and walked to one of the several wooden benches in the mess hall. He took the shoulder bag off and set it along with the knife on the table. Thief jumped off her ride while he went to grab a bowl. He turned back to the table to see a rat tail vanishing into the bag and two more rats jumping onto the table.
He sighed. “Hey, could you just wait a second? You’ll get some, just have some patience.” the buckskin said as he set the dish down and pulled Thief out of the sack along with an apple. After a brief game of tug-of-war, the fruit was released from the rodent’s grasp. “I have to cut them up first. There’s only seven apples and two dozen of you. And me. Not to mention they’re tiny apples.” He set Thief back down on the table.
Clout sat down at the bench, turned a knob on a large wooden box next to the table and began cutting the fruit.
The old radio crackled and struggled before coming to life with a soft melody. As it played, the stallion began to cut the apples, putting any seeds he found within into the bowl. He popped a square into his mouth and gave some pieces to his small friends.
“Doesn’t Star just have the sweetest voice?” Smile Cat’s voice came through the speaker, “She was definitely born to sing! Grateful her master saw her for the beautiful gem she is, that’s for sure!” there was a rustling of papers before he continued, “Me-ow we certainly have a lot of news tonight. Well, I suppose we’ll start off with the hoity-toity business of the upper class that none of us commoners care about so we can get it out of the way.”
Clout chuckled as he watched a younger rat, Pumpkin Pie, steal from her mother, Cherry, and then had her prize immediately stolen by her sister, Little Rascal.
“First up, the Blues are hosting a birthday party tonight for their youngest daughter who is turning three and none of you are invited! Wonderful, right? I honestly have no idea why they even wanted that in the news. Well baby Blue, I would just like to say I hope your cake is as sweet as your mommy is to my herd. Actually, no, I don’t. That’s not a very nice thing to say to a child. Sorry little one.” The host moved away from the microphone and mumbled something about frustrating attention-seeking no-good upscale unicorns.
“Next on my list we got something on Canterlot’s auctioneer as he was robbed today. It was a group of thieves between four and six ponies. How can it not be a set number you ask? Maybe some of the group decided to quit in the middle of the heist. That or none of the guards can agree on how many they saw. Not very good guards if you ask me. Two of the assailants were killed when they got into a fire fight with the guards. One guard was killed while three were injured due to the explosion of Count Markus’ electricity generator. Unfortunately for Mr. I’m-So-Important, whatever they went in to steal was not recovered in the battle. They refused to give a description so I don’t know what they want us to do about it. Oh, he does want us to keep an eye out for his missing slaves. Apparently in the chaos a couple got free and we just care so much about his financial losses, don’t we my herd?
“I may or may not have received descriptions of his lost slaves but there was a small fire incident at the studio here a bit ago. I cannot say whether or not any such description papers may or may not have been involved in such a terrible incident though. I can, however, say that I currently cannot locate any such papers with supposed slave descriptions on them so unfortunately I am unable to give any information on said missing slaves.”
Clout scoffed.
“In all honesty though,” Smile Cat continued with a chuckle, “I don’t think anyone really wants to make a trip to Canterlot anyways with the massive sewage back up. Found out rebels were involved in the matter as about a dozen of them were caught and arrested earlier today destroying and blocking sewage lines under the city. I have no idea what the purpose of stinking up the town is but, guys, I really hope you’ve thought ahead because that stuff has got to go somewhere and if it contaminates the mountain’s fresh water, Estuary Slums is pretty much doomed.”
Smile Cat took a moment to turn a page of his notes. “Okay, now on to something we might care a little more about. Beach Side Road between Fillydelphia and Baltimare has had an increase in toll price. King Sombra has not commented on this but Discord had said, ‘It’s for your own good.’ What that means… I have no idea! Your guess is as good as mine.”
A cream colored rat tipped the bowl of seeds over and began to grab as many as could fit in his mouth.
“Hey!” Clout scolded but as he reached for the rat, the fat ball of fluff quickly scurried away and jumped down off the table. “Damit Stormy, I needed those!” He glared at the rat as his tail vanished with the rest of him and the seeds into some mattress remains. The stallion sighed and put the remaining three back into the dish.
“Rumors have it that the ruler of San Palomino plans to speak with our kings soon and arrange to merge their lands into Equestrian territory. I don’t think that will benefit any of us but if the rumors are true and it does happen, stallions would probably finally be able to visit without immediately being put into chains. Would be interesting to see if their pyramid is solid gold like the rumors say and not just a giant sand dune like the maps show. All the privileged ladies over there might be knocked down a peg having males in charge. We’ll see what happens though.”
As the buck popped another square of fruit into his mouth he saw Thief go for the seeds. He put his hoof on top to cover it and gave her another piece of apple.
“Last one. We’re almost out and you can’t have the seeds.” he told her, “We want more trees to get more apples, right? Can’t grow more If we don’t have any seeds.”
The disk jockey took a moment for a drink, “I know that this is quite a lot my herd, but bear with me as there’s just two more stories to go and then it’s back to the normal broadcast.
“A couple of griffon doctors were arrested today and a mental facility was shut down by Discord on the island of Trottingham. Apparently they were experimenting on patients by trying a new procedure that they claim would calm more… unruly patients. I have no information on what this supposed medical procedure is, or, uh, was now. But if it had killed several patients and turned others into walking vegetables, I would be concerned too.
“And, last but not least, King Sombra is going to make an appearance in Los Pegasus next week. With the increase of the plague’s numbers he has ordered several new Soot Mills to be opened. Soon as he makes his final inspections in a few days, Los Pegasus will have their streets be a little cleaner with a new place to burn the bodies. Then again they’re just redistributing the bodies as ash and spreading it all over the city so, I guess it’s cleaner by removing the sickness but it certainly doesn’t remove the smell. Or the disgustingness because we’re all breathing in our dead loved ones. Hopefully some pegasus will figure out a way to freshen up our air a bit. Uh, sorry for the imagery. That was even grosser than the sewage problem.
“Anyway, we made it! That was quite a lot of talking so I’m going to turn to every foal’s favorite segment, Spades! Will Detective Shadow Spade finally catch the jewel thief? We’ll find out thanks to our favorite sponsors: 2B Pharmaceuticals, thanks for the tonic boys! We love ya!”
The radio show began to play with a short theme song followed by different actors voicing each character. Clout dismounted the bench and turned off the radio. He wiped the knife clean with a rag and put it away before taking the bowl in his teeth. Walking up to the third floor, he set the dish on the table by the window in hopes tomorrow’s sun would dry them out so he could plant them in the next few days.
Looking to the deep shades of purple and red along the horizon, he could see the looming, angry clouds of a thunderstorm quickly approaching in the distance thanks to the winds. The crystal pony could never tell if it was actual rain clouds or if one of the sky cities roamed around the land to try and wash away all the grime from the ponies below. From what Clout had seen, there was quite a lot of filth that could use a good cleaning in more than one sense of the word. With that, he finally decided it was time he should probably head out. The crystal pony made his way back up to his bell, put all of his still damp gear back on, put the mystery shards into his bags and descended down the stairs. As he passed the second floor, he felt the usual sensation of his passenger hitching a ride to join in on whatever mischievousness they were to have tonight.
When they were outside, the rat climbed around his neck to hide inside Clout’s hood. A low rumble above his head made him look up at the dark clouds that slowly began to release a thin, mist-like rain down upon them. He pulled his hood down farther over his face and trotted onward. As the stallion made his way through the near-empty city he watched any critters he passed scurry on home to protect themselves from the oncoming storm. When the two reached the basket elevator, they descended to the mountain town’s entrance, climbed the quarantine wall and made their way to The Everfree.
--
Almost two hours later they found themselves in the mercenary town. The booths in the bazaar were already closed and packed up for the night but the town was packed with people who didn’t mind the rain. Several small groups were having heated discussions with each other while a mare stood on top of a vacant shop stand yelling passerbys. Her crowd grew with each sentence she shouted. She was a green and sky blue painted earth pony and she seemed very angry.
“-And we’re just going to put up with it? I think not! I don’t care what the Eight have to say, they have no right! If the tom of bedlam really want to peek over our fence and see what we’re rooton’, I say we go pay them a visit and show them!” she squawked, throwing a hoof in the air.
“Fast Trick, get off of there before you hurt yourself.” another mare yelled back at her.
“No!” she whinnied with a look of insult on her face as some of the crowd laughed, “Stuff it Quick Step! You wouldn’t be so quick to ignore their forced office if you had your whole shipment made too!” She pointed a hoof at an orange unicorn with a red and black striped mane hauling an empty waggon cage. “And I’m not the only one they’ve ‘confiscated’ stuffing from!”
The passing unicorn gave Trick a flat look, “Bring me into another of your arguments again and I will give you a broken hoof for violating the code Trick.”
“Oh come on, the code isn’t really law, it’s more of a guideline. Besides, aren’t you pissed you had over a dozen good slaves made?” she responded over the noise of the crowd.
“Oh, I am.” he assured her, “But I’m going to keep my opinions to myself if the Eight tell us we can’t do anything about it.” He glared at her and snorted before trotting away.
The mare glared back in shock. “Friendly Fire, get back here, I’m not done yelling at you!” She took a throwing knife out of her satchel but was interrupted before she could throw it at him.
“Get off my booth!” a mare in the crowd yelled before tackling the painted pony.
The two of them fell to the ground while the crowd cheered them on. Whooping and hollering rose up while the two mares fought in the thickening mud. Some pony began to yell over the crowd about taking bets while others responded by raising money in the air and shouting back.
A slate blue stallion climbed atop the now vacant wooden structure. As Clout noticed a young colt slipping in and out of the distracted crowd to steal coin purses while his two friends hid behind another booth not too far away.
“The Eight have made their decision but do they really care what happens?” the blue stallion asked the crowd, “The only thing they care about, we all care about. Personal profit. They get a bigger score holding back. For us, the bigger score is to act. If we want the rebels to know how smart it is to deny us our plunder, we must show them!” His hoofstomp cracked the wooden counter.
Another voice rose up, “But the Eight’s words are law, we can’t just go against their commands.”
“The Eight’s plans have always profited everyone, not just themselves.” a griffon shouted.
“The code is law!”
“But they stole our yellow tin!”
“We have to give them a shoulder tap!”
“It is against the code!”
“We should give them the oaken towel!”
“The Eight have laid down the law, we can’t!”
As the crowd rose up in arguments again, the stallion on the makeshift stage stomped his hoof several times like a judge with a gavel. When the crowd settled some he continued, “If any creature among us wishes to retaliate, prepare yourselves and meet by the Northwestern entrance at seven clean hooves. They will learn what it means to follow the curbing law of the Rouge Rogues!”
Some of the crowd cheered while others continued to argue. Clout decided he had heard enough and moved on.
He continued along the old wooden path and passed a hoof full of ponies, griffons and minotaurs trotting away from the mass of creatures. Several went into a general store while half a dozen tried to squeeze themselves into a blacksmith at the same time. Others entered the taverns to make sure they weren’t sober going into battle and a couple pegasi were going into a large building called The Guild.
A mare shoved the two stallions out of the building roughly. “We ain’t tellin’ jokes ‘ere, go someways else!” she growled at them before slamming the door shut in their face.
The charcoal gray stallion looked to his cream colored companion. “Well that was rude, how are we going to find him now?” he asked as he looked to The Guild’s locked door.
As the crystal pony passed the building he made a left turn. Beyond the center row of wooden shops and houses, several tents were set up for those who didn’t have a house of their own. Lanterns were lit by many of the small shelters as they were preparing themselves for battle, bed or mischief.
At the end of the boardwalk was a strange looking structure made of hundreds of trees that had been bent, twisted and broken. With how tangled the mass was, it would be very difficult to tell which branches belonged to which tree as they all looked more like roots, growing down instead of up. The trunks of the trees all gathered together at the top of the structure to let their knot of leaves fight for the sunshine.
Looking at it from a distance, the miniature forest within a forest made the shape of a pony head. Somepony had put two lanterns half way up it to look like eyes and cut back part of the branches as a mouth. To keep the rain and cold outside there was a black sheet to cover the entrance that was dotted with beads. Just outside was a small faded sign that read ‘Merchant’s Merchandise’.
As Clout trotted closer he could hear two ponies arguing inside because, of course, there just wasn’t enough ponies bickering today. He put his hoof on the curtain and pushed it aside, the many multi-colored beads sparkling in the surrounding fire light. Before he was able to step hoof into the shop, a little filly popped her head out. She had a rainbow colored mane that was braided, her coat was red and she was glaring at the stranger who stood in front of the entryway.
“Piss off asshole!” the filly said angrily at the stallion for no particular reason.
Clout put his hoof down, stood in place and stared at her, unsure how to react to the foul mouthed child who looked about a year shy of getting her cutiemark. He finally decided to just walk around her.
“Who said you could go in huh? You want me to kick your ass?” she asked angrily as she came out from behind the curtain. The thief backed up as she violated his personal bubble to poke a tiny hoof at his chest threateningly. The rest of her small frame was the same red as her face, including her tail. She had a lighter colored belly and tip of her fox-like tail. The strangest thing about her was her front hooves were not hooves but paws.
Clout was unamused, cold and wet. He gave a sigh, “Look, I just came to—“ he started but was quickly interrupted by the filly yet again.
“I said beat it!” she growled, “You want me to rip your balls off?” She took another bold step towards the stallion causing him to step back some more.
The crystal stallion rolled his eyes. This filly obviously wasn’t backing down so he decided to go around to the back entrance. He trotted off the deck and around to the back of the shop.
“Yeah, you better beat it!” the filly shouted at him, waving her little hoof in the air.
As he got closer to the back door, he could hear the voices clearer and decided to see what they were talking about before butting in on their conversation.
“--and I lost two good ponies! You owe me him!” one voice growled.
“I owe you nothing. Your venture was a non-contracted, personal visit to the neighbors. Any non-contracted rooton’ is not covered under Rogue code. There is nothing to reimburse.” a second voice said.
“Rose was long tongued about a calle’d pony with his description in the Muck and Buck when Snapdragon and Hoof Shine were in office, I know it was him!”
The second voice sighed. “Look Cracker Jack, you don’t have a smoking gun that he even did anything and if you did, I wouldn’t doubt it would be confect. Regardless, I still wouldn’t be able to enforce any type of pulling, cramp word or reimbursement. There is no clause in the code against someone getting a quota before you if it is not part of a contract. Personal ventures reap personal boredom and dropping of a score. This is your problem to solve, not mine.”
“Fine, I’ll get my stuffing out of his hide.” Cracker Jack growled.
“You know you can’t do that. Everyone within Rouge Rogue territory is protected, guild member or not. You go after him and there will be consequences.”
“Not if I mark him for a three legged mare!”
“Ugh, would you just go! I have bigger problems on my hooves to deal with than you thinking you’re above the code!” the second pony shouted.
“Oh, you mean like that mass of creatures heading out just now to click the rebels?” Clout asked as he walked in through the back door of the shop.
The shopkeeper turned around as Cracker Jack glared at the intruder.
Cracker Jack was a cream colored earth pony stallion with three dark colored socks and marking over his left eye like an eye patch. A large jagged scar marked his face over the same eye and he had a short red mane slicked back with grease. Like quite a few ponies who ran into the wrong end of the month of Chaos, his hind legs and tail were turned into that of a large cat, his thick tail swayed back and forth in anger. His ears were flat back as he glared at Clout with his emerald green eyes.
The second pony was light purple with a vibrant rainbow mane. He stared at the buckskin in surprise. Like the angry stallion behind him, his back end was that of a cat’s but his tail was shorter and more fluffy.
“Clout?” the shopkeeper said.
Cracker Jack leapt over the counter and tackled the crystal pony, both of them crashing into a wall of merchandise. Thief was thrown off of her ride in the battle and the two stallions struggled with each other, Clout trying to defend himself while Jack tried to pummel his enemy into the ground.
The little red filly ran over from the door to see what the new comotion was all about. “Hey! Knock it off!” she said as she ran to join in on the brawl.
“Guys, not in my shop!” the shopkeeper yelled as he bit down on the long tail of Cracker Jack and tugged him off of Clout.
The buck skinned stallion kicked his assailant with his rear hooves, sending him into the air. As soon as the cream pony fell off of him, the little red filly jumped on top of the thief and began to beat on him as hard as she could. Clout raised a leg in defense for a moment before shoving her away, standing back up and dusting himself off. The filly growled, gave a war cry and ran at him, ready to tear him apart with her teeth. He held a hoof out and caught her by her forehead, holding her at foreleg’s length. She struggled and yelled but was no match for the strength of the adult pony’s single leg.
“How dare you! He is mine to use up and you deny me of my right?!” Cracker Jack yelled at the shopkeeper as he stood up, the wreckage of a shelf and it’s contents falling off of him.
“It is not your right to do anything, especially not in my shop, Jack.” he scolded, “I told you the last time this happened, if Clout was the one who got to your stuffing before you did, he did nothing wrong. Maybe next time don’t have your goons flag wave jokingly or make sure your rooton’ is under contract!” He stomped a hoof in frustration. “Now get out, I’m no longer telling jokes for you!” he ordered, pointing a hoof at the exit.
The stallion grit his teeth and growled, the end of his tail twitching as he glared. “Fine. We’re not done with this though, mark my words we’re not done. I’m tired of this game crystal pony, you’d better watch your back.” Jack said to Clout before turning and walking out the shop exit.
The two watched him leave and the shopkeeper sighed. He turned to the thief, “Seriously Clout, why. I have enough trouble on my hooves and you do this, to him. Why him of all ponies.” He rubbed his brow with a hoof.
Clout gave a shrug. “He just makes it too easy I suppose. Not a very smart gang leader to let his ponies have such a long leash.” he said with a smirk.
The purple stallion gave him a flat look.
“What? Eventually he’ll smarten up.”
The shopkeeper’s ears dropped. “And in the meantime he complains to me about what you do to screw up his signals. The Eight aren’t foalsitters ya know.” he scolded, giving Clout a glare.
The crystal pony chuckled, “How else am I supposed to make your day more interesting when I’m not here?”
The purple buck’s expression softened and he gave a small grin, “It’s good to see you Clout.” He walked closer and put a hoof on the buckskin’s shoulder.
“Good to see you too Merchant.” Clout replied with a smile “So, uh, would you mind?” he asked as he looked down to the still struggling filly.
Merchant looked to the angry filly and smiled. “Crimson, you can stop now. This is daddy’s friend, we’re always telling a joke for him.”
The filly ignored him and continued her relentless attack on the intruder, growling curses at him for his defenses and trying to bite his leg.
The purple pony picked the filly up who whinnied in protest. “Come now, stop that. Clout, this is Crimson Kit. Crimson, this is Clout Upshot. He’s your big brother.”
The crystal pony gave his friend a flat look.
“Okay, not blood related but he is family.” Merchant amended.
The filly glared daggers at the buckskin, “You are trespassing on private property, you interrupted a business meeting, you’re dripping water everywhere, you are not welcome here! Get the fuck out!” she yelled.
“Well,” Clout nickered, “best help you have had for the shop in years.”
“Yeah, I know,” Merchant sighed, “No better than you were and look how you turned out.” He set the filly on the ground and she pouted up at her father.
“Don’t ignore me! He needs to leave!” she pointed a hoof at the thief.
“Enough of that silly filly.” he put a hoof on her head and ruffled her mane, “You run along now and play with your toys.”
Crimson glared at the two stallions before trotting away, her head held low in defeat.
“I didn’t think any mare would ever let an old buck like yourself help them procreate.” Clout teased as he watched the filly walk behind the counter.
“Watch it, you.” Merchant said as he lightly hoofed the younger stallion on the head.
He chuckled, “So when did this happen anyways? I’ve only been gone a little over five months and she’s what, five years old?”
Merchant chuckled, “It’s not as if I haven’t been around some. Just the first mare to leave one on my doorstep.” he rubbed the back of his neck with a hoof, “You remember Tinder Box, right?”
Clout shuddered, “Stop, just, stop. How, with the scariest mare ever.” He saw Merchant give a smug grin, “Please don’t show and tell.” he quickly changed subjects, “So, when did you get the paws?” Clout gestured to his friend’s non-pony parts.
He looked back at himself. “Oh, these,” the purple stallion said, “couple months ago. Darn chaos bubbles were all over the place in Vanhoover when I had to attend an Eight nubbing ken.”
“Vanhoover? I thought all the Eight’s flag waving was held at The Guild?”
“Ah, well, official business. Sorry, can’t sing about it.” Merchant replied, waving a hoof in the air.
“Whatever,” Clout said, “So, what’s this about a game?”
“You got my message then, good.” he said as he walked behind the counter and to the fallen gun rack. The stallion picked up the broken pieces and began to fix the mess as he continued, “I have one and Flight has one for you. Through my hole in need of plugging I have been cackled to that there is a buck by the name of Ink Well. He’s got a fat mare’s rat on me and I’m needing anything he has to be smoothed out.”
“Why’s that so important, everyone here knows you’re an uncle.” the crystal stallion walked over to help.
“It’s not just that, he’s a reporter. He writes for the Weekly Gallop newspaper and that’s not good for business because almost everypony in Equestria reads it. I don’t know where he lives but I’ve heard he’s a zebra with wings or… something like that, so hopefully that’s enough peaches for you to find him. If everypony you and everyone else borrows from finds out who is switching their quota, things are really going to go sour for me.” he said as he put the last gun on the counter.
“You know, he’ll still have his word against yours.” Clout pointed out.
“Well, yes. But so long as he doesn’t have any proof, no pony will care. They have taller bucks to worry about than to storm into a mercenary town and break down my door for their lost fancy booze if they’re not even positive that I have it.” he looked to the entrance of his shop, “Uh, rip down my curtain.” he amended, “If they have proof, they will be more willing to hire pigs to protect them and force their way in but, without it…”
“Yeah, I got it.” Clout said. He looked around the shop for his tiny furry friend and saw her with Crimson, the filly playing a game of chase with the rodent. “By the way, I wasn’t kidding when I said there was a mob going after the Ponyville rebels.”
Merchant walked out to the other broken shelf. “Yeah, I just figured they would sort it out on their own. Half the ponies want to get their stuffing back, the other half follow the rules to a T so, it’ll even itself out.”
“You sure about that?” Clout asked, “Fast Trick started it and once she was kicked off her soap box Genesis finished getting them all riled up.”
“Fast Trick is a milch cow, she’s nothing to worry about.” he said as he gathered the artifacts, old tomes and other odds and ends before he set them neatly on the counter one by one, “Genesis on the other hoof…” He stopped cleaning for a moment and looked to his friend, “Maybe I should go give him some stripes. Maybe a day or two in the box will cool his head.” Merchant scratched the back of his head with a hoof and let out an exasperated sigh, “Then again I’m not that strong of a pony and he’s all muscle.”
“It’s up to you, boss. You’ll have ponies to help if you command it.” the younger buck said with a grin.
Merchant waved a hoof, “Even after all these years I can’t get used to being in charge.” he looked to the damaged shelf. “I’ll figure it out.” he said with another sigh, “Well, you’d best get to talking to Flight about the game he wants you to play before it gets too clean.”
Clout’s ears folded and he glared at the purple stallion. “No.” he said.
“Come on Clout, you can’t still be mad at him, it’s been more than twenty years!”
“I don’t see clients Merch and I certainly don’t see him of all ponies. You know this.” he retorted as he swished his tail.
“And you know he’s changed, he’s not gull enough to do it again and--”
“Betrayal is in his name!” the crystal pony interrupted, “Flight Risk. It is a boredom to work with him and I don’t do boredoms that big. I’m not doing it!” He stomped his hoof for emphasis.
“Stop being such a foal.” the older pony said, “If you would let me finish before starting your tantrums you would have had the fact that this game is to save some fillies from being sent to the workhouses.”
Clout held his glare firmly at his foster father.
“Look, if you won’t do it for me or the fillies, do it for the yellow tin. He’s paying well.”
The buckskin’s glare broke as he looked away. “Fine.” he said as he gave in, “But if something happens I’m going to give him a broken hoof. I don’t trust him and neither should you. He's not a cull!”
Merchant chuckled. “He’s my brother. It’s kind of difficult to not trust family.”
“Whatever.” Clout muttered.
“I think he’s over at Doc Maggot’s so when we’re done here, try and catch him before he leaves.”
The younger buck raised an eyebrow.
Merchant sighed, “I know but, Doctor Maggot doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with stringing up addicts. He’s my older brother and I can’t make his life choices for him.”
Clout rolled his eyes and changed the subject again, “Hey, I wanted to ask you about something I found.” he took the small box of gem shards out of his saddlebag and opened it to show his friend, “Do you have any clue what these are?”
The purple stallion looked curiously at the small stones. He picked one up and looked closely at it turning it this way and that. “I have no idea.” the buck finally said after a couple minutes of silence, “If you let me hold onto them I can ask around for you. Where did you find them?”
“In Count Markus’ slave barn. I liberated them from the future of being in Jack’s greasy hooves,” the thief said with a sly grin, “Just keep them under the rug, I’ll be wanting them back.”
Merchant rolled his eyes. “Alright, I’ll keep these in the safe in your room.”
“Oh you finally found it did you? Took you long enough, did you figure out the combination?”
“Yes. I’m not a box-buck but it was easy enough getting it to tell me a joke on the first one I tried. And, well, sometimes it’s frustratingly hard to find something when it’s in plain sight.” the older stallion said with a swish of his tail.
“Maybe your eyes are going with your age.” Clout teased.
“Watch it, second strike with the age.” Merchant playfully warned.
Clout chuckled as he turned away and walked towards a pile of cloaks, “You said my package was here?”
“Oh! I forgot about that.” Merchant said, “Wait right here, I’ll go get it while I put these away.” The buck trotted back behind the counter, lifted a hatch and trotted down a set of stairs.
As he waited, the crystal stallion looked around the shop. Along the walls were a few mismatched lanterns to brighten up the room. The air was warm with the scent of burning pine from a fireplace behind the counter that he and Cracker Jack were very lucky not to have crashed into. The walls were lined with shelves and bookcases filled with all assortments of ancient artifacts, rare books and magical scrolls. There were a couple of aisles in the middle of the room with boxes of arrows, bullets, rope, plastic tarps and several cases of hoof held weapons locked in glass boxes. Behind the counter on either side of the fireplace were gun racks filled with all assortments of firearms and bows, one of them shattered to pieces from the fight. Under the counter protected by more glass were several smaller guns and boxes of grenades.
The shop was set up as it always was. It was one of the few constants he knew of. No matter how long he was away, no matter how the country or its people changed, Merchant and his shop wouldn’t. It was something he could always count on.
He smiled at the thought. Clout’s eyes moved back to his companion. She was still with the young filly. Crimson was sitting behind the counter by the fireplace, Thief cuddled on her shoulder, with her blanket tied around the filly’s neck like a cape. She was pulling the heads off of some pony dolls and playing a game of Sacrifice-To-The-Volcano-God by throwing them into the fireplace one by one and cheering while they burned.
“Merchant has one morbid filly.” the stallion muttered to himself as she cheered once more in glee at the flaming dolls.
He continued to watch her as he heard the sound of hoof steps behind him. Turning around, he saw two pegasi stallions entering the shop. One was a cream color with white feathers and a burnt orange colored mane. He had a simple brown vest, tan saddle bags that covered his cutiemark and a red neckerchief. The second was charcoal with orange buckskin markings and mane. He had a white lace-up shirt, a messenger bag and a cutiemark of some sort of lizard skeleton with a brush over top it. They were the two stallions who were refused entry to The Guild almost an hour ago.
“--could have showed us where it was, would have taken a lot less time to find.” the cream stallion was saying to the other.
“Well,” the charcoal one started, “he does work here. Somewhere. Probably has somepony to see. These people here are quite easily upsetable and who knows what they would do to somepony who misses an appointment. Besides, we found it alright. After I asked for directions,” he nudged his friend with a wing. “They may be mercenaries but unless they’re paid, they won’t bite your head off for asking a question.”
Cream stopped and flattened his ears. “I’m sorry, last time I tried, I was charged a tax for loitering, making ‘mouth noises’,” he said wiggling the tips of his wing feathers in air quotes, “and breathing her air space. All I did was ask where the toilet was! It’s not like I wanted her life story or information on anypony!”
Gray stallion chuckled, “At least she didn’t take all your bits. You still have some left.”
“Yeah, sure, just enough to pay for a drink and that’s about it in this place.” he complained as he looked around the shop.
Clout’s attention turned back to the cloaks he was eyeing before and began to check each one for quality, length and weight. Since losing his last one to the dog, he needed a new one.
“What was her name?” Crimson Kit asked as she stood inches from the cream stallion, the rat no longer on her shoulder. She had finished burning all her toys and decided to torment the new customers. “I said, what was her name?” she demanded of them, “Tell me now asshole!” The tiny filly gave a withering glare at him.
The three stallions looked to the filly.
“What’s a foal doing here?” the lighter colored pegasus asked no one in particular.
“Sorry it took so long, I--” Merchant started to say as he trotted up the stairs with the string of Clout’s package in his mouth but stopped himself when he saw the two new ponies. “Oh, customers,” he said as he set the parcel on the counter.
Kit roughly grabbed the buck’s vest with both hooves. “What color was she?!” the foal loudly pressed the white feathered buck.
“Uh…” he said as he backed up a step.
“She was very determined to get our bits but I don’t remember what color she was, there’s so many ponies here.” the darker stallion replied for his friend.
Somehow, Crimson’s glare got more intense in response. She tightened her grip on his clothing and opened her mouth to no doubt give a very colorful reply but, Merchant rushed over and clamped her mouth shut with a hoof.
“Ahaha, so sorry about her,” the purple pony said, “My little helper likes to--” Before he could finish his sentence he felt teeth biting down hard on his fetlock. “Ow! Crimson, that’s not nice! You don’t bite daddy!” he scolded as he looked to his slightly bleeding hoof.
Ignoring her parent, the filly asked quickly, “Was she tall and orange with a short red mane with yellow stripes and pretty, pretty blue eyes?”
The two strangers looked at each other.
“Mamma!” the filly screeched, wide-eyed before bolting out the door. The four stallions could see her blanket-cape billowing in the wind of the increasing rain as the shop’s curtain was shoved aside for her escape.
“Crimson!” Merchant called after her, “Ah, I’m so sorry, I’ll be right back. Clout, watch the shop, will you?” He quickly said to them as he ran after his daughter.
“But I don’t--” the thief started but cut himself off with a groan. “Fine but I’m lifting a cloak!” he called out.
They could hear the purple stallion’s voice outside the shop yell, “No you’re not!”
Clout snorted. “Yeah, we’ll see about that.” he muttered to himself and went back to sifting through the pile of fabric before him.
After a short awkward silence, Gray pony spoke up, “Well, that was different. Didn’t think a mercenary town had children that weren’t slaves.”
Clout rolled his eyes before pulling a cloak out of the pile and tossing it over himself to try it on.It was a dark shade of green that was studded with dragon scales for extra protection. It was long enough to cover him completely and it was the perfect size to fit his small frame.
“Uh, are you supposed to be taking things? We all clearly heard him tell you no.” Cream stallion asked.
“If this is a ‘mercenary town,’ what do you care?” Clout spat back.
The pegasus glared and opened his mouth to respond but his friend opened one of his wings to block his view. “Anyway!” Gray stallion said as he took a step towards the thief, “We were hoping to find a couple of things and were told to come here. Can you help us?”
“That all depends on if you have the bits to pay.” Clout said adjusting the cloak.
Cream stallion shoved his friend’s wing away. “Is that all you thugs care about?”
“Information is a commodity like weapons or food. Knowing dirt on someone can mean life or death so yeah, we charge for that here.” the crystal pony replied with a glare.
Cream stallion continued to stare down at the cloaked buckskin while his friend sighed.
“Even if it’s the location of an item in the shop here? There is a lot of uh, stuff. Kind of reminds me of a rommage sale like they have in the shipyards of San Palomino.” Gray pegasus said, looking around the mass of junk. He continued in hopes he would be answered regardless of what Clout told them, “We’re looking for a dampening ring and were told we might be able to find one here. We’re also looking for a pony.” Gray pegasus stated.
Clout looked at them flatly, “Just because you ask a question doesn’t mean I’m going to tell you. I usually take payment up front, however, I’ll be a little long tongued for free because I’m nice. Dampening rings are very hard to come by and so are unicorn slaves. You want one, go find a stable that sells them and see if they’ll sell you a dampening ring.” He gestured to the entrance of the shop with a hoof. “I highly doubt they will, they are only given as many as they get unicorns to sell and I don’t think anypony wants a unicorn slave who can magic up their master.”
“But we were told--” Gray started but was cut off.
“Well someone was amused by you then. It’s not that uncommon for a cullability to be made.” the buckskin nickered.
“What?” Gray asked.
“They lied because you’re an idiot and you were swindled out of your coins.” Clout paraphrased.
“With that logic, how can we trust anypony’s word in this place? Furthermore, how can we trust your word?” Cream argued.
“Feel free to browse the shelves if you really don’t believe me. It’ll get you asshats to stop talking to me.” the crystal pony said, gesturing to the shelves in the shop. “Would be a lot quieter around here without your noise holes telling jokes.”
Cream scoffed, “Some help any of these thugs are. All they do is steal our coin and talk gibberish.”
Gray looked at his friend and back to Clout. “You know, if you’re going to take that cloak regardless of what the shopkeeper said, you might as well earn it by using your customer service skills.” he said with a grin, “I don’t think your friend would be very happy with you taking his stuff and not paying for it.”
“Technically,” the Clout began, “I have been helping you. Whether you want to believe me or not is at your discretion. If you actually take your bits out of your coin pouch and hoof the bill, I might be more inclined to provide such customer services you are requesting from this establishment. Otherwise, piss the hell off because I don’t cave to blackmail.”
The two stallions blinked at him before Gray took out a few bits and hoofed them over. The crystal pony inspected them before stuffing them in his saddlebag and cocking an eyebrow at them.
Clout rolled his eyes and sighed before chanting the greeting he was taught as a foal in the most monotone voice he could muster, “Welcome to Merchant’s Merchandise where we have everything from machetties to machineguns, moth-eaten mementos to mighty mail and munitions to magical manuscripts. If you’re looking for that matchless machine to maul your marks with, you’ve come to the right place because Merchant has the merchandise for you. My name is Clout, how can I make your mutilations more meaningful today.”
“You still remember it!” Merchant’s voice came from the back of the store bordering on child-like levels of excitement. He shook off as much water as he could at the entrance before trotting up to the group with a big grin on his face, the red filly following slowly behind him. She wore a scowl on her face and her cape was dripping water on the floor.
The crystal pony looked at the shopkeeper with a flat expression, “Of course I remember that stupid thing.”
“See honey?” the purple stallion said to his daughter, “If he got it when he was your age, you can get it too!”
“Fuck you!” Crimson growled back.
Merchant’s ears folded back some, “Kit, you be nice.”
She glared at her father and decided to change the subject, “The Fire God demands more sacrifices!”
“Did you burn all your dolls again? I don’t have any more right now, you’ll just have to wait.”
She put her paws in the air and shouted, “More sacrifices!!”
The stallion sighed, “Honey, daddy has customers, you’ll just have to wait.”
“Fine!” she shouted, “I’ll go find more on my own!” She ran towards the cellar and bolted down the stairs.
Merchant’s ears tilted back. “Kit, be careful! You might fall down the stairs like that! It’s not fun, trust me! And no burning any more artifacts, they’re not toys and they're expensive!” he called out to her before turning to his customers, “My apologies gentlecolts, I hope you didn’t wait long. Has Clout already helped you with what you were looking for?”
“Hardly.” Cream stallion said harshly with a glare in the crystal pony’s direction, “All he did was insult us, take our bits and tell us we should look somewhere else.”
Clout snorted at the accusation.
Merchant glanced at the younger stallion, “I’m sure he didn’t mean what he said and I know he’ll give you your bits back.”
The thief gave the purple buck a ‘what’ expression before rolling his eyes and hoofing over the bits he was given.
“Thank you.” the shopkeep said with a grin before he turned to the two stallions, “So what was it you needed?”
As Merchant tended to his customers, Clout walked behind the counter, grabbed his package, his rat who was cuddled up by the fire and trotted out the door. He knew he would be in some sort of trouble for taking the cloak but Merchant was too busy to pay attention to notice right away so the buck didn’t care.
He put both the hood of his vest and the hood of his new cloak up and put on his mask, concealing himself as much as possible for warmth from the cold and to hide his shinier than normal coat.
The hooded stallion trotted through the makeshift town towards a building made of rotting wood. The rain was indecisive tonight as it was only downpouring for a few minutes more before it settled to a light drizzle. His hoof steps made wet sloshes as he stepped along the boardwalk. The building he approached had hardened plaster, stained from time, that looked like it was oozing out of all the cracks and seams. The vast majority of the door was covered in old dried blood stains and above the door scrawled in large black ink were crudely drawn letters that spelled out ‘Doc Maggot’s Slice and Dice.’
‘So inviting.’ he thought. Clout’s ears folded and he shuddered at the thought of entering a doctor’s office but did so anyway at the prospect of his next paycheck.
He pushed open the door with a hoof. The old wood felt like it was about to fall apart at the slightest touch but by some strange miracle did not falter in the slightest. The walls inside were mostly caked in the dried blood of his patients that was never cleaned off. Patients that Clout thought of as Doc Maggot’s unfortunate victims. By the front door and to his right was a desk, not so bloodied but recently cleaned with a few folders stuffed with papers, a couple of pens and three patient charts. It was pretty obvious that nopony cared about confidentiality here unless it was something they could blackmail someone with. Straight ahead of Clout there was a small room that lacked a door with at least five gurneys stuffed into it, all but one had somepony resting on it. They seemed to all be either recovering from an injury or illness or perhaps slowly dying from it.
Behind the front desk with no curtain to hide it was another gurney. A small wheeled table that held many sharp and bloody surgical instruments and needles was between the left side of the bed and the desk. A couple of IV stands stood toward the front of the bed and several large machines that were set on keeping a pony alive during what the doctor here considered surgery had been stationed behind the head of the gurney and to its far side. Behind the farther machines on the bed’s right hoof side was a curtain divider, possibly hiding another ‘surgery room’ behind it. To the left of the operating section was a door, possibly leading to an office or consultation room. Or a room to discuss the terms of their blackmail. Clout hated hospitals.
The light blue nurse at the front desk gave a sweet smile and pushed away the part of her soft gold mane that had fallen into her eyes before speaking. “Why hello there sir,” she said in a sweet voice, “my name is Ocean Blues, welcome to Doctor Maggot’s clinic. How can we heal you today?”
Clout could imagine being strapped to one of the gurneys, powerless as the doctor and his assistants sliced him open and ripped out his internal organs. They would probably sell them to other ponies who were willing to put their lives in the hooves of somepony they didn’t know. The doctor and nurses could have very well been paid to let any of their patients expire by someone who wanted them dead or wanted fresh organs for the black market. It would have been the easiest thing on Equis to slit one’s throat while they were drugged and unawares.
He shuddered at the thought. “I am not here for me.” He said, putting an emphasis on ‘not,’ “I was told Flight Risk was here. I need to talk to him.”
“Oh, yes. He’s here.” The Ocean informed, “He’s speaking with the doctor right now, they should be out shortly. They’ve been in there a while now.” When he turned away from her, the mare went back to her paperwork and began to hum a tune.
There were no chairs or waiting room so he moved out of the way of the building’s entrance and sat down to wait. Just a few minutes later, the door to the consultation room opened and two stallions walked out. The first was a sandy buckskin unicorn with light gray markings and a lavender colored mane. His mane was pulled back and tied in a sloppy bun, probably for surgery purposes, and he wore a doctor’s coat that had dried blood stains on it that made him match the unnecessarily bloodied decor of his office.
The other stallion was tan colored with an almost neon rainbow arrangement of color in his mane. The wings at his side had the same tint of turquoise blue from his mane for their feathers. His front legs had hooves and his back legs had paws. His tail was long and skinny with a tuft of purple fur at the end, a mutation mostly only seen in unicorns so a pegasus having one was stranger than his back paws. He had a dark brown lace-up shirt and a black vest on. A gun sat comfortably in his leg holster while a sword filled the sheath on the opposite side on his belt. On the same side as the firearm he also had a coin purse attached to his waistband. This stallion had a small sack in his mouth that he proudly carried toward the door. He stopped mid trot when he saw Clout.
“Clout!” The tan stallion greeted after taking the bag out of his mouth, “I’ve been waiting for you.”
Clout snorted, “Looks like you’ve been making a deal to me.”
“Well, that's just because I was tired of waiting.” Flight Risk stated as he tied the medicine bag to his waist, “Why don’t we go find a stop hole abbey. Away from eavesdropping ears.” He glanced at the office assistant as she gave him a flirty smile. He waved at her with a hoof and returned her smile with a goofy grin. “Actually, maybe we can flag wave here.”
The crystal pony rolled his eyes, grabbed Flight Risk by his shirt and dragged him out of the building.
After a short walk, they ended up at the Crippled Cragadile Inn. More famous for its wide variety of booze than either of its two rooms for rent. The overly large sign above the door was decorated with a weather worn cartoon painting of a cragadile and to the right side of the entrance was a large window. Clout gave the pouting stallion behind him a glance to make sure he was following. Satisfied the pony he hated most in this world was keeping up, he opened the door and entered.
Normally full beyond capacity and the noisiest place in the city, today the Cripple Cragadile was almost empty with only a couple of drunks at the bar and the bartender. The large chandelier overhead brightened up the room with its two dozen candles but it didn’t make the place feel any less forlorn with so many empty seats. The decor on the walls consisted of old broken nets, spears, large pieces of saw blades and cragadile skulls on placards. There was a large painting on the far wall of a massive ancient Cragidile that only had three legs. Under it was a small copper placard that read the beast’s name: Cross Joynt. The bar took up an entire wall of the building with a set of stairs going to the cellar that contained most of the wide variety of beverages people could order to drink. Behind the bar were racks filled with different distilled spirits while on either side were three massive beer barrels laid sideways with a spicket to fill the drinks with.
The bartender looked to the two ponies and cocked an eyebrow.Everyone knew her name, Hydroplane. She was a tough blue mare with an orange mane. The feathers on her right wing were mostly torn out and her left eye was blackened and slightly swollen from a bar fight she broke up earlier that day. She looked at Clout hidden under his cloak and mask then to the pony he brought in.
“He ain’t allowed ta get clear.” she told them pointing to Flight Risk.
Clout turned his head to glare at the tan stallion while he gave her a self-conscious grin.
“Oh, uh, we just need a smooth ken for a few minutes to do some flag waving.” Flight Risk told the mare.
Hydroplane glared at him, “Seventy bits.”
“For just a couple minutes?” the pegasus stallion exclaimed in shock.
“For startin’ a brawl, replacement of two of my bar stools, ta pay off yer tab ya binged out on and an extra charge for generally bein’ a jackass. I may be a beggar maker but I can’t be equipt enough ta run a business if I let every figure dancer an’ jack in a box take a hike without givin’ me what I’m due. Now cough it up afore I dress ya up and let ya have tea with the pigs.”
“Aww come on Hydry, I’ll pay for that later.” Flight whined.
“Just pay her.” Clout growled.
Flight Risk rolled his eyes. “Fine,” he said as he took out his coin bag.
Hydroplane quickly grabbed it out of his hooves and dumped the bits on the counter.
“Hey!” the pegasus stallion complained.
“Shut it.” she commanded, “Ya only have eighteen bits. I want the rest of my fifty-two pieces ‘a tin Flight Risk.”
The stallion flinched at the anger in her voice and looked to Clout. “Could you, uh… I’ll pay you back.” He gave an uneasy smile as he ruffled his wings.
The crystal thief glared daggers at him.
“Uh, hehheh…” he nervously chuckled as he looked back to Hydroplane.
“Fine,” she said, “Any longer than five minutes an’ I’m charging ya double.” She took the bits off the counter and made some marks in her ledger, waving the two stallions on with a wing.
Clout started up the stairs, Flight Risk following close behind to get away from the mare’s angry glare.
The second floor of the building was a short hallway that had two doors on the left and a balcony with a broken railing on the right. A small coffee table with two chairs sat in between the doors.
The two walked to the closest room and opened the door. It was a small space, just enough for a bed, a desk and a shelf. There was one window that was positioned above the bed that only showed the darkened, damp world they retreated indoors from. The rain outside looked like it had stopped for a brief moment. The room was covered in a fine layer of dust that the keeper of the bar hadn’t had time to address and the floor had three bullet holes in it where smoke from the bar below seeped up into the room. It wasn’t the best of accommodations, but at least it was private enough for their conversation.
Flight Risk closed the door. “So, about the game. I need you to get me a document. The last will and testament of Lady Chrysanthemum Blue, an aristocrat who pannys up in Baltimare.”
Clout raised an eyebrow.
“A friend of mine had a chat with her and she went legit. I’ve been cackled to that it was all peaceful-like in her bed chambers, not that that actually matters any. Not many folk have heard the song about it yet so there’s still time for me to do my job. I need to make a confect version of her will to keep her fillies out of the workhouse.”
“Why.” Clout said flatly, “No one cares what happens to foals after their parents die.”
“Apparently somepony does. They’ve put up one hell of a fat mare’s yellow tin to put them in somepony else’s hooves once the rest of the fancy ponies hear her song. Really I should have changed the documents before the hit buck made his move but I was having too much fun bowsing with the rounders yesterday.” Flight said with a chuckle as he looked to the door.
The thief rolled his eyes. “I heard on the radio she’s having a birthday party for one of her foals tonight.” he said.
“Oh, yeah so her ken shouldn’t be too hard to find with all the commotion but it might get boring with so many ponies around so just make sure it’s smooth.” the pegasus said as he folded his ears.
Clout snorted and started for the door. “When have you ever cared what happens to me.” he growled.
Flight Risk called out to Clout as he slammed the door behind him and went on his way.
“Please, leave all overcoats, canes and top hats with the doorman and from that moment, you’ll be out of place and underdressed. I’m wrecking this evening already and loving every minute of it, ruining this banquet for the mildly inspiring and?” Panic! at the Disco - There’s a Good Reason These Tables Are Numbered Honey, You Just Haven’t Thought of It Yet
Clout quickened his pace and veered down a dark alleyway, away from a master whipping her slave. The stallion could hear the chained pony’s muffled shrieks of pain around the corner behind him as he pulled out his compound bow. He shot an arrow upwards where it made a soft thunk on the wooden paneling on the underside of a roof. He climbed the rope and hoisted himself onto the top of the building. The thick leather pads on his shoes softened the noise he made on the tiles as he walked along the thieve’s highway. Another, taller roof with rotten wooden beams blocked his path. This one not being too tall for him, he jumped, grabbed the ledge and pulled himself up with a grunt, the softened wood bowing with his weight. Padding to the top most point of the roof, he looked out and saw the city he lurked in.
Baltimare. One of the many cities that news reporters loved. This city was plagued almost daily by occurrences of aristocratic society plans being sabotaged, theft of precious cargo from poor merchants and security alike, freedom of slaves and destruction of private property. With so much trouble to document, there was no need to put rumors and gossip in the paper. However, it was rather difficult to determine who was at fault in most incidents. The rebels blamed the Kings, the King’s guard blamed the ticks and the ticks blamed the rebels. With so much strife between everypony in the city, it was a bit difficult to determine who exactly ran the town.
Shade Nights troops patrolled the city streets here and there in small groups but they weren’t numerous enough to enforce the King’s rule. The aristocratic ponies hired muscle to keep their property protected but had no love for the lower class, or ticks as they called them. Everypony else blamed the ticks for feeding off of the King’s generosity and not contributing to the land as much as they could so it wasn’t unheard of that they would interfere with the higher class’ functions. Many groups of rebels were seen out in the open in Baltimare and everypony knew they had control of part of the town with their sentries posted on certain streets to keep the Shade Nights away.
With the city in such disarray, nopony really cared who was in charge because crime was easy to get away with. It also left those ill with the blight to fend for themselves. On almost every street there were sick ponies dying and crying to every passerby for help. It was a small help that somepony funded the dead carts to haul the bodies to the soot mill but it wasn’t enough to keep the plague at bay. Luckily for the crystal thief, the disease didn’t reach the rooftops.
He could see much of the city from where he stood: the harbor that encircled more than half of the city, the damaged or repaired rooftops from many past bombings and the infamous broken clock tower. The tower’s clock only worked when the supposed ghost haunted the place. Clout loved to go there when he was in the neighborhood if he needed to stay the night. It was lonely and quite peaceful not to mention the ticking of the giant clock helped him fall asleep.
To the West, the only direction that wasn’t dominated by the ocean, the buildings rose up higher than the rest of the city, rolling higher with the land’s hills and dipping low to sea level as it reached its grasp out east. The buildings West of the metropolis were smaller mansions and townhouses with much fancier architecture then most of the other buildings. A sure sign of aristoponies, their wealth and his main target for the night. Lady Chrysanthemum Blue had been a younger noble but quickly acquired quite the name for herself in the past few years by flaunting her money and status since she inherited it from her deceased father. Most ponies of Baltimare thought she would be the one to take control over this small piece of Equestria only because her father was Lord before her but it seemed that someone didn’t approve of her status and decided she was a threat to be taken out. That left her fillies to the workhouse, a sort of prison for the orphans and homeless. This wouldn’t normally be the case if their father wasn’t an unknown stallion who was most likely a servant or lower class pony. Bloodlines were everything for nobles and this fact made her children be seen as unworthy of their noble status for their mother having dipped her hoof in the pools of the inferior breeding stock. With that, no pony came forward as her consort.
Her younger brother, Lord Cuckoo Blue, would most likely leave the children to their fate without the will and with his newly acquired position of power, would take control of her massive wealth. Lord Blue was not the most generous of ponies and based on his diplomatic standings would plunge the town into high taxes and low rations to further increase the numbers in his bank account. Depending on what Lady Blue wrote in her will, her dying wishes would be the deciding factor in where her wealth and her fillies would go, regardless of her little brother taking power.
Clout made his way along the rooftops, jumping small gaps, using his rope arrows as needed or making bridges with pieces of already damaged structures. The thieves' highway was always his favored route. Atop the roofs he could see all the guards, their assigned routes, any ponies roaming the streets and any open windows for opportune stealing moments. Thankfully, this city didn’t have much in the way of guards, just many, many slavers. He occasionally slipped into available skylights to obtain valuable items, diary notes lying about or precious keepsakes that weren’t bolted down. Though things such as silver encased pens, brass candle holders, mercury cut picture frames and gem encrusted hoof-mirrors weren’t worth much on the market, Clout had to take all he could carry because he felt he had to. It was there for the taking so why not? Finders keepers after all.
It wasn’t long before he arrived at an estate surrounded by a fancy looking steel fence that had sharp arrow points at the top to keep out intruders. The fence was kept stable by three horizontal beams, one at the top, one at the middle and the last towards the bottom. At the corners of the property, and parallel to the gate, were solid stone pillars with a potted vining plant atop each, the vines had grown down the pillars and crept along the metal fencing. The thick old moss that had grown between the cobblestones below it was climbing up the pillars to meet the vines. Along the ground on the inside of the property were bushes with sleeping blue flowers that were speckling the green plants with their color. To the left side of the gate was a small building with a window to the outside where a pony who was hired to play the role of a guard stood. He was taking tickets from aristoponies who came dressed in gentlestallion garments, ball dresses and masquerade masks. They were all obviously going to the party that was advertised on the radio. Unfortunately for the thief, Smile Cat was right when he said none of his listeners were invited. Luckily, the bucksking had his own way of inviting himself.
Two ponies walked up to the guard booth. The stallion was in a cashmere jacket and wearing a crude mask of what could be either a bear or a mouse, Clout couldn’t tell. The mare had on an elegant white dress with a matching white cat mask. The thief could see their tickets in the stallion’s pocket. Staying in the shadows whenever possible, he snuck up behind the pair. He slowly and carefully reached out a hoof while keeping pace with the two. They were just inches away from the guard. He was just inches away from the tickets.
The sound of a shattered glass bottle and a slump drew all four pony’s attention. “I gots it, I gots it.” a heavily drunk green stallion slurred as he tried to get back on his hooves. He wore a grungy looking higher class tan garments and had a disturbing fox mask set sideways on the top of his head. He grunted as he lifted himself up before looking down at the broken remains of his alcohol. “Aww, what, what hap- *hic* happened? Where’d the drink go? Why is the rum always gone?” he slurred.
As the stallion slowly staggered towards the guard booth, the two aristoponies hurriedly handed the guard their tickets and made their way inside the gate. Missing his chance, Clout slunk back next to the booth.
“Ah, well. There’ll be more drin- *hic* -ink inside.” The green stallion said to himself as he wobbled over to the guard. The guard watched in amusement as the drunk pony fell twice while walking the short distance from his broken alcohol bottle to the booth. Clout wasn't amused at all. “'Ello my gooood sir, can I come in for a fizz?”
The guard pony stared at the mess of a noble in front of him and smirked, relishing in the other stallion's state. He loved seeing aristoponies fall so far down the ladder of society. He knew he wasn't allowed to let in ponies that were so inebriated so he decided to have a little fun. After a short moment, he regained his composure, “Uh, ticket please.”
Confused, the drunkard narrowed his eyes and looked at the guard and leaned in toward him. “Oooohhhhh! Right, right. Gimme a jiff.” he said as he looked towards his pockets. He then checked his left pockets before attempting to check his right ones. He spun in a circle several times, failing to reach it before falling on his face and vomiting on himself.
The guard pony smiled and rolled his eyes. “Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. I cannot allow you to enter this establishment being so drunk and filthy.” he said, having had his short fun with the drunkard, he had to get back to his job.
The green pony looked up at the guard, “Wha- n-no wait, wait, I gots it here some *hic* place.” He frantically searched his pockets again, this time while stationary. Just as he found it, the guard magically took out his rifle and aimed it at the sick-covered stallion.
“Please leave the property sir. I am authorized to shoot if you do not comply.” The guard said as if he had rehearsed the line several times to make sure he got it right when he finally had the chance to say it.
The drunkard looked at the buck with the gun pointed at his face and blinked a few times, trying to get his blurry eyes into focus. “Wha’ve ya got there? ‘S it a zucchini? I love zucchini!” he said before biting the end of the barrel.
The guard yanked the gun away and bashed the butt of the gun to the green stallion’s head, cracking the right side of the fox mask. He pointed the gun at the drunkard once more. “I said get ya drunken idiot!” he yelled.
The messy stallion looked up at the guard, finally realizing he had a gun pointed at him. His eyes went wide with terror as he made another mess on himself, this time with a different bodily fluid, before scrambling to his hooves and falling flat on his face. He got back to his hooves as fast as he could and stumbled away from the threat of death.
Clout followed the fox masked stallion as he wandered down the street. As he spotted a bar, the green stallion quickened his pace, tripped and fell on his face once more. This time he didn’t get up. Clout looked around. A couple of stallions outside of the bar smoking, a mare and her sickly filly walking down the street and a stray cat knocking over a trash can down the next alleyway. He casually trotted up to the passed out noble and slipped the mask off his face as he went past, stuffing it into his saddle bags. He then made his way back to the mansion, this time heading for the back wall. Finding another pillar covered in vines, he easily climbed the foliage and dropped down into the garden. Hiding behind a rose bush, he took in his surroundings.
The garden was full of fruit trees and berry bushes that decorated the vast space forming elaborate designs. A small stream ran through the yard, splitting it in half, veering around a gazebo in the center of the yard. A small but beautiful bridge allowed passage over the pony-made river and to the entrance of the gazebo. The structure itself was surrounded by more flowering plants and grass. The vast majority of the flowers were blue or white with a few mis-colors dotting the landscape here and there.
In the back corner where Clout had landed there was a path leading from the house to a small bench on-looking a miniature waterfall pond with koi fish swimming about it. The large yard was well kept, most of the bushes were trimmed proper and some were even trimmed into shapes of animals or ponies for decoration. The wall that surrounded the yard had several faded murals painted on it, all by the same artist and all depicting the grace, beauty and power of the unicorns. Most of the paintings were overrun with the same wall climbing moss and vines.
Clout took the mask out of his saddlebag, cleaned the splashes of spew off in the pond before putting it on. The mask was surprisingly heavy for such a small thing. It fit well enough over his face and muzzle but was a little larger than he’d have liked on the sides of his head. The small slits where the eyes of the mask were thin and provided only limited visibility but he had no way of widening them. He hid his bow and quiver in the bushes next to the pond and pulled the hood of his new cloak over his head.
Trotting over to the mansion’s glass back door, he was noticing the aristopony’s attire. Most of the mares wore ball dresses or shimmering gowns. The bucks were wearing suits, some had jackets or cloaks to hide their family crests on their chest and their cutie marks. Everypony wore a mask of some kind. This information made Clout feel a little more at ease knowing his outfit would fit in nicely with no questions.
Looking at the mansion from the outside, the crystal buck knew it would take a while for him to search the entire place. The building was three stories tall and who knew how many below. It spanned quite a ways on either side of the large doors, enough that he thought the place might have been close to seventeen thousand square feet if not more. With so much ground to cover and so many other ponies here tonight, he knew it was best to start with the mare's room and go from there. Unfortunately he had no idea where it was but knowing this was a birthday for one of her fillies, he knew he could ask the children and not be found as a suspicious person. He did find it odd a child’s birthday party was held so late at night but he never questioned the ways of the aristocracy.
He strolled through the door as if he were meant to be there and immediately spotted the buffet. There were rows and rows of tables all lined up with a large assortment of food. The colorful vegetables were delicately placed on each tray to create a masterpiece of food art so amazing that it would have been difficult for anypony who appreciated art to even touch it. Unfortunately, all these ponies were of aristocracy and had seen this kind of display almost daily so they had no trouble destroying the hard work. As Clout walked he could see two long tables with nothing but mounds of fruit on them, many of which he had never seen before.
Thief smelled the delicious banquet and poked her head out, her whiskers twitching with anticipation of more fresh food. As she tried to climb down the front of his cloak, the stallion gently pushed her back up with a hoof.
“Not yet little one, there’s too many ponies here. I don’t want you to get stepped on or cause a panic.” he quietly told her.
Then he spotted a large basket hidden in between a crate which held weird green scaley apples and another that had fruit that looked like large round black grapes not on the vine. The hidden basket held several dozen oranges. Clout stopped and picked one up, eyes gleaming and mouth watering. He tilted his mask up just enough and bit into the delicious fruit and savored its sweet and sour citric flavor as he gave a small sigh of bliss. The crystal pony hadn't eaten his favorite fruit in years and he was not going to pass this opportunity up. He had thought no pony grew orange trees in Equestria any more since he hadn't seen anyone with the fruit in ages.
As he bit it a third time, he looked around to notice quite a lot of ponies staring at him. He blinked, not knowing what they were staring at. Was his shiny coat exposed from a hole in the cloak he didn’t notice earlier? Had somepony said something about his attire or was the mask too odd? Had Thief poked her head out of his cloak and ponies could see her? He blinked again, looked down to the fruit in his hooves and then realized what was wrong. He was eating the orange, peel and all. He never saw what the problem was with eating the peel, it wasn't that bad and it was part of the fruit but it often drew attention because no one else ate it the way he did. Clout stopped eating, swallowed his latest bite, pulled his mask back down and trotted off, orange still in his hoof. He wasn't about to let good fruit go to waste. He kept a mental note to steal the rest of the oranges when no pony was staring at him.
On a few other tables, away from the fruits and vegetables, were an assortment of cooked meats. The cloaked stallion never cared for the smell of it so he was never inclined to try it whenever he had the chance. There were several lumps of meat on trays where other ponies with chef hats were cutting off slices for anypony who wanted a piece and a separate table full of sauces to smother the meat in. In between two of the meat tables was a door which many servants trotted in and out of with more trays of food. As the door swung open and closed, Clout could see glimpses of the kitchen. Going to the opposite side of the vast room filled with food there was another door. This one was locked. He decided it was best to try it a bit later when there weren't as many ponies stuffing their faces.
After he rounded the last tables of food, he passed a couple closets on either side of the wall before he came upon a giant set of rounded stairs that went up to the next floor. After he passed a couple hallways, he entered the massive entry way. By the door was a podium with a stallion standing in front of it, taking the names of incoming ponies and announcing their arrival. With mostly everypony already present, he looked rather bored standing around with nothing to do. On either side of the grand entrance were another set of closets where guests were putting their jackets.
The room was filled with unicorn ponies of all colors in fancy dress mingling with one another, passing on rumors and trying to get on each other's good sides to make good business deals or just chatting about family affairs. The only earth ponies it seemed were serving food and drink but there were a couple pegasi guests here and there as guests. A few conversations caught Clout's attention and he was inclined to stand close enough to eavesdrop on them. Since he was here, he might as well collect as much as he could to sell when he got back to the Everfree Forest. Not only were stolen objects a commodity but so were secrets and he was happy to steal them too.
A gray unicorn stallion with a sandy yellow mane and tail who wore a black bear mask was talking to two others. One of them was a silver stallion in a blue bird mask with lavender mane and tail, the other was a blue mare with fire red mane and tail in a panda mask. Each of them had on elegant clothing and had a glass of champagne in their hooves.
"--And no pony knows who was to blame." Black Bear said.
"Somepony has to know, doesn't the King rule Manehattan?" Blue Bird asked, shocked at the news he just heard.
"I thought that city was overtaken by those filthy rebels." Panda commented, a bit of concern in her voice.
"Why would the rebels bomb the city if they were in control of it?" Black Bear retorted, "The Kings really need to send more troops there. Losing Manehattan would be quite the loss. They have some of the best factories there. I've had my eye on some of their paper presses. To expand my news articles over on the western coast would be a wonderful addition to my company." He swirled his champaign in the glass a couple of times before taking a sip.
"Don't you have your little paper route spread far enough?" asked Panda in a mocking tone of voice. "It's not like you need that press to stay in business. Besides, soon enough, those factories will be mine so don't even worry about them."
"Please," said Black Bear, "don't talk to me like your company needs it so desperately either. You've got your hooves on twice as many manufacturing plants as I do. You have no need for another. Besides, the presses there only print articles. They can't do the overdramatic advertisement pictures you're so fond of shoving in everypony's faces."
Panda harrumphed and set her glass down on a table before jabbing a hoof at Bear's chest. "I'll have you know, my advertisements attract more revenue than your meager articles on random nonsense that only the poor lower class care about. Even if you purchase that factory before I do you'll never even come close to my stock so go ahead, try for it. It won't matter to me anyways. Soon enough I'll ruin you and all of your stockholders." She tilted her head to the side and put a hoof on her own chest in ladylike fashion. "Soon, I'll own every press in Equestria. I'm sure you already knew that I am planning on monopolizing it all. Then King Sombra will have to take notice. Then I can be his queen!"
Black Bear's ears went flat back. Just before he was able to get to say anything in response, Blue Bird interrupted.
"Not that I wouldn't love to see real entertainment at this snooze of a party but I don't think you two should be fighting here." Blue Bird said, trying to reason with the two and stop their argument from escalating. "Besides, neither one of you can get those factories until that city's government is settled. And, oh, look! The chefs finally brought out the octopops, isn't that your favorite?" he asked, not specifying which he was asking as he shoved them both towards the table where the octopus rounds on a stick were displayed.
Clout's attention was given to another nearby conversation.
"I can't wait to go! There's going to be so much to discover there." A light purple mare with a short pink and white mane said in an excited tone of voice. The short dove colored frilly dress she wore matched her gray shrew mask. She tilted it slightly upwards so she could snack on a spiky red fruit she held in her magical grasp.
"How are you even going to find anything if it's all frozen over there? You're probably going to have to dig through about three feet of ice to get to anything. Probably more." A gray and white painted pegasus with a pink mane and tail said. She wore a white rabbit mask over the top of her glasses which poked out the sides.
A blood red stallion with dark maroon mane and tail knickered. "I'm sure the treasure in that arctic city has to be worth quite the fortune if it's been frozen for centuries. No pony's been able to even touch it. If you can guarantee me that you and your team will be the ones to retrieve it, I would be more than happy to fund your expedition. We'll discuss the conditions of the contract in private of course." he said as he shifted the red coyote mask on his face.
"Oh I've got the ice part covered, don't you worry about that." Gray Shrew said confidently, "My sister is quite talented with her fire magic. She showed me that she can thaw a piece of paper from a block of ice without even leaving the slightest hint of a scorch mark. She has perfected her art and can assure you that none of the artifacts will be harmed by her magic in any way. She does have her own terms for any contract we sign of course."
Red Coyote put a hoof around Gray Shrew's shoulder. "That won't be a problem. Let's go somewhere a bit more private though." He then turned to White Rabbit, "Would you oversee our contract? You would charge your regular fee, correct?"
"Of course." was all White Rabbit said before following them further into the mansion and to a private room.
With that conversation over, Clout didn't want to look too suspicious so he looked for a new direction to wander in. On either side of the room, there was a door. The left one was open and ponies freely walked in and out of it. The right one was closed but noises could be heard on the other side. Curious, he walked towards the closed door. As he passed more aristoponies, he heard some of them complain.
"I can understand the need to throw a ball, it is quite the opportunity for profit, but why would she throw a party like this for her filly is beyond me. She could have thrown a soiree without declaring it a birthday party for that little annoyance. There would have been a lot more ponies here to do business with if it had been just a regular party." A dark blue mare wearing a tapir mask said. She brushed a hoof through her yellow mane and swished her tail before continuing with her complaint to the two other ponies standing with her. Her mask was tilted up so the other two could see her face but at his angle, Clout couldn't make out who it was. "If I were in charge of Equestria, I would have it mandatory for all children to be sent to the rock farms until they're old enough to not be whiny."
"How can you say such a thing?" A grey stallion wearing an eagle mask said, "She's your niece."
"Well, there are quite a few aristoponies who refuse to come to birthday parties but at least they are keeping the children in a separate room." A light turquoise mare said. She shifted the frog mask on her face and hoofed her red mane away from the mask before asking, "By the way, has anypony seen our hostess tonight? I haven't been able to find her anywhere."
Tapir swished her tail again as she thought before speaking, "No, I haven't. I'm surprised about that. Lady Chrysanthemum's always one to gossip at parties and I haven't seen her at all tonight. You think she's bedded an unaware stallion again?" The mare laughed at her own words.
"She might have. I'll go check her room later if I don't see her around soon." Eagle said.
Clout continued towards the closed doors, hoping he could find where the children were being kept, then he could ask Lady Chrysanthemum's children where their mom's room was. Though foals weren't Clout's favorite thing in the world, they were so much easier to manipulate then adult ponies were. And once he was out of sight of the aristocracy, he could sneak around as he pleased. Lost in his thoughts, Clout was startled when someone called out to him.
"Um, sir?"
"Y-yes?" The crystal stallion answered stiffly, worried he wasn't supposed to be opening the door his hoof was now on.
A pink earth pony with light yellow mane and tail wearing a tail coat and holding a tray of horderves stood next to the thief. His shackles clinked together when he moved. "Would you like a g-glass of champagne?"
Clout let out a breath of relief that he wasn't in trouble. Remembering he had to keep up his noble apparence, he straightened up, stepped towards the servant and spoke, "No, thank you. But you can tell me where the children are being kept. I have a present for the birthday girl and nopony seems to want to tell me where she is."
"Y-yes sir. But... um..." The servant shakily answered.
"Well?" Clout said impatiently, making the servant flinch.
"Sir, you're just about to open the room where all the foals are." the servant replied.
Clout snorted and rolled his eyes. 'Of Course' he thought. "Thank you. Be on your way." he shooed the servant away with a wave of his hoof.
The pony bowed his head before walking away.
The thief turned back to the door he was in front of and opened it. This room was slightly smaller than the grand entrance. The left wall of the room was a giant window overlooking the front garden. The plush carpet under his hooves was the cleanest he'd ever seen. The right side of the room was split into three parts. In the center was another large, decorated doorway. On either side was a partial wall of books. On the far side of the room was a large family portrait featuring Lady Chrysanthemum Blue, her twins and her young filly, all standing together in formal wear which hung above a grand fireplace.
In the middle of the room was some kind of odd structure made of what looked to be a sofa and several arm chairs that were probably supposed to be in front of the fireplace, expensive rugs and bed sheets. The stallion watched as several colts and fillies ran about, holding eating utensils and throwing apple cores, shouting "Pew, pew" at each other. All of them wore some kind of formal dress wear which was somewhat dirty with food and colorful party hats. A small group on one side of the fort had a chest they looked to be defending while all the other foals were trying to get it from them. Clout blinked as he watched in confusion.
"Pew, pew, pew!" one unicorn filly shouted, pointing her fork at her enemies. "I got you Rubber!"
"Nuh-uh!" Rubber replied, "I gotsa bubble shield!" The pudgy colt held out one of his hooves where a string was tied to it. at the end of the string, a balloon floated.
"You don't know that magic." another filly said.
"He does too!" one of the fillies on Rubber's side exclaimed, "I'm our magic pony and I teached him so!" She held a hoof to her chest in pride of her apparent magic prowess.
"Magic ponies can't teach other ponies spells, that's why we have magic ponies." one of the colts said, "They're the only ones with all the spells!"
"Nuh-uh!"
"Yuh-huh!"
"Nuh-uh!"
"Yuh-huh!"
Suddenly Clout was poked in the ankle by a silver spoon. Looking down at its source, he saw a white filly in an elegant blue ball gown holding the object with her magic. Her light pink and blue mane and tail were tied up in a neat but very complicated looking braid. Her grey eyes appeared to focus straight on clout as she spoke.
"You're not supposed to be here." she said simply.
Clout looked at the foal, tempted to back slowly out of the room at her cryptic tone of voice but instead stood his ground. "I'm just looking for the birthday filly." he said as he looked around at everything but the filly in front of him.
"Blue and yellow are the colors of your betrayal." she said, "Beware the weight you carry, for it will destroy you."
“What?" the stallion asked in utter confusion.
Another filly ran up to the two and bowed to Clout. "My apologies for my sister sir, she lacks the ability to see properly. She... probably mistook you for somepony else." she said as she hugged her sister to herself. This foal looked almost identical to the other but her mane was purple and blue.
Seeing both fillies together, Clout recognized them. He looked back to the painting above the fireplace. Anne and Mone Blue. The elder twin daughters of Lady Blue. This was perfect. He could get what he needed from these two and be on his way.
"You were looking for our baby sister?" Anne asked, her teal eyes gazing up at the fox mask.
"Uh, yeah. I have a present for the birthday girl," Clout said, "But I can give it to you to give to her if you can tell me where your mom's room is. No pony can seem to find her and I want to make sure she's okay."
"Are you one of mother's Concubinus'?" Mone asked.
"E-excuse me??" Clout asked in shock.
"Ah! Never mind her sir!" Anne said as she placed a hoof over her sister's mouth, "What my sister meant to say was that a noble buck shouldn't barge in on a lady's private quarters lest he find himself slapped for being so rude."
Clout's ears twitched in annoyance. "I am just concerned for her well being because nopony has seen our hostess at all tonight. I’m only looking to find her and make sure she’s okay."
The twins looked at each other before speaking at the same time, "Find our baby sister first."
"What?"
"She's with the zebra. Or is it the monster?" Mone asked herself, "Yes, the monster. The monster of mud and mucus."
"She's probably playing in the cellar again. Go get her and bring her here. Only after will we tell you where our mother's quarters are." Anne stated firmly.
Clout rubbed the side of his head with a hoof and let out an exasperated sigh. “Can’t you just tell me where it is and go find your sister yourself?” he asked.
“No.” Mone said simply.
“You have to work for it.” Anne said, “We don’t just hoof out information to rebel pegasus spies.”
“I’m not a pegasus and I’m not a spy. If you’re not going to tell me I’ll just find it on my own.” Clout said.
“Oh, well then good luck with that. There are eighty seven rooms in this house and that is not including the many outbuildings on the property. Are you sure you can find it before we tell a guard and have him arrest you for snooping?” Anne asked with a mischievous grin, “We know you’re not a guest. You admitted you’re not a pegasus and there is obviously no horn under that mask. Mother doesn’t invite guests of such low class to soirees and she certainly wouldn’t remove her chastity belt for one. So what will it be Mr. Uninvited-Guest? We can get the guards now if you’d like or we can give you a ten second head start.”
The stallion twitched an ear. He would much rather find his own way around than be bossed around by children. Then again it might take too much time to try and find it on his own in this massive mansion. Not knowing how much longer the party had left, he didn’t know how much time he had before the staff resumed their normal duties of wandering the mansion and getting in his way. He decided to play along with the children and hope that they would actually give him the information he needed.
“You’re too smart for your own good.” the stallion grumbled.
“That’s what you get with high class breeding, not many of us turn out to be dimwits like you ticks.” Anne said with a grin.
“This one’s not a tick.” Mone told her sister who looked to the blind filly and opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by the buck.
“Fine, I’ll do it, just keep your trap shut.” Clout told them, “Where’s this cellar?”
The filly smiled, “Oh, and it's past the double staircase towards the back garden. To your right is a door all the servants are going in and out of, that's the kitchen. I'm sure you can find your way to the cellar from there." Anne waved a hoof towards the door the stallion came through, "Off you go, good sir."
The crystal pony rolled his eyes before turning around and walking out of the room. When he returned to the entrance, the crowd had mostly dispersed and distant music was playing. It was most likely time for the ball dance.
Clout made his way back through the hallway, past the stairs and into the dining area. He casually trotted past the many tables of food, including the now empty tray of oranges. With his saddle bags a bit heavier, he made his way to the door to the kitchen. He pushed the swinging door open and entered.
Inside was mostly a flurry of activity. There were ponies cooking things, preparing dishes, washing fruit and vegetables and at least three ponies washing stacks of dirty dishes. There were others bringing in empty trays and taking out full ones. A few were pouring glasses of fine liquor and stacking them neatly on a cart. And then there were those who were just standing in small groups looking like they were peeling vegetables but were actually just gossiping with each other. Though some great rumors could be learned from wealthy pony's staff members, Clout wasn't able to hear even the smallest breath of their conversations over the noise of the kitchen. Not to mention the moment he entered, all of the staff paused for just a moment to look at the guest who just barged in on them. After a couple of seconds, everypony got back to their tasks, keeping their mouths closed and eyes on their work. None of them wanted to be snitched on for their chatter for fear of the consequences.
The thief trotted in and looked around for the cellar. As he passed the small group of ponies peeling apples, a light blue and white coated mare glanced at the passing buck. She kept her head low and her clipped wings folded tight to her sides. She swallowed before speaking, "Um... my lord, I'm afraid you're n-not supposed to be in here. The guests are supposed to stay in the ballroom and the main entrance."
"I was told to fetch something from the cellar by Lady Blue."
The apple peeler bowed her head low, "My apologies sir! I-I had not known. If I had, I would have shown you there immediately. Please have mercy on me. Lady Blue normally has one of her servants fetch things for her, not her guests."
Clout waved a hoof, dismissing her worries, "Whatever, I just need to get to the cellar."
"Yes sir, it's just down those stairs." the mare informed as she pointed across the room just in between the dish washing station and a pair of trash bins.
He trotted over to the stairs. The way down had decent wooden steps and it was lit up by a set of string lights above. When he reached the bottom, he found himself in a wide room with a low ceiling. It was dimly lit and the damp draft about the place. There were barrels and boxes stacked in two piles. Clout figured one was for empty containers and the other probably still had goods in them. On several of the walls were wine racks filled with many different vintages of the beverage. Here and there were burlap sacks which looked to have vegetables in them. On the walls that didn't have wine racks, wooden planks were haphazardly placed, probably to try and prevent any more cave-ins like the one in the far right corner.
Over by the stacks of empty crates Clout could hear laughter. Thief poked her head out of the cloak once more at the sweet smell in the air as the stallion made his way towards the sound. He rounded the barrels and wooden boxes to see a large canine licking a tiny unicorn filly. A blue and yellow cake was splattered everywhere covering both of them in the sticky sugary treat. The foal was happily painting her previously white dress in the now green frosting and humming a tune to herself.
The stallion folded his ears back as he watched the dog. His companion jumped off of her ride and scampered off to join in the fun of destroying the massive cake. “Thief, wait!” he called out to her.
“Hello!” the filly said as she waived her frosting covered hoof at him.
Clout readied himself for a fight as the gray and white dog looked to him. She happily wagged her tail as she licked her chops.
“Say hi Fuzzy.” the filly told the dog who barked at the stallion in greeting.
The buckskin took a half a step backwards as the dog tilted her head at him. “Why’s there always gotta be a damn dog.” he mumbled to himself, “Hey, kid, come here.” Figuring this was the missing birthday filly, he had to get her back upstairs somehow.
“But we’re playing paint. My dress is pretty!” she told him as she stretched out the hem of her gown, green frosting oozing down the folds.
“U-uh, sure,” he said to her. An idea then struck him, “Why don’t you go back upstairs and show off your dress. I’m sure everypony would like to see it.”
The foal giggled as the dog licked her mane clean. “Okay but Fuzzy come too!” she said with a big smile.
Clout grimaced, “Well, I don’t think, uh, Fuzzy is done playing yet so we’ll just leave it here.”
The filly looked to the dog then back to the stranger. “Oh, okay. Fuzzy come upstairs when you're done playing okay?” she told the dog before standing up and trotting over to him.
“Thief, come on, it’s time to go.” the stallion told his rat but she ignored him as she continued to dig her way into a large piece of spongy mass. He rolled his eyes, “Fine, don’t get eaten by the dog then. Don’t forget we’re leaving once I get what I came for.”
As the two ponies walked away, Fuzzy sat down in the pasty mess and gave a whine, watching them leave.
Clout ignored the mutt’s whining and proceeded back up the stairs. There were quite a bit less ponies in the kitchen when he reached it and the ones who were left ignored the two. He trotted back through the servant door, past the buffet and made his way back to the other children. When he got to the room, most of the children had begun to pass out from being awake so late. Most of them had taken refuge under their fort but a couple slept on pillows in front of the fireplace.
Clout looked to the two fillies who gave him his latest commission. "Where's your mom's room." he demanded.
"Pompon, look at you, you're a mess!" Anne said as she started to wipe her baby sister's face with a cloth.
"Smells like sugar." Mone stated.
"Hey, where is the room?" Clout said, irritated he was being ignored.
"And look at your dress Pompon! You're the birthday girl, you're supposed to be dressed proper for the occasion, not sticky." Anne continued to ignore the stallion and fuss over Pompon.
Pompon looked up at her sister, "Isn’t it pretty! Fuzzy played paint with me!" The filly had a big smile on her face.
"The dog is in the house." Mone said.
"The dog, the dog is here? Pompon! You know mother is allergic to dogs, she said you couldn't play with it any more and it has to stay outside, away from us. You're going to make mother sick again!" Anne scolded her little sister as Clout tried to speak up again.
"Uh, hello? The room?"
Pompon looked at her sisters, eyes round as saucers with tears welling up in them. Anne sighed. She couldn't keep up her strict older sister act for long when it came to Pompon. "Alright." she said, "I won't tell mom but we have to get the dog outside without anyone seeing okay?"
Pompon gave a big smile, "Okay!"
The second Clout opened his mouth to butt into their conversation once again, there were screams heard from the other room. All the children groggily woke and gathered around the door as the stallion opened it slightly to peek out. Dishes were dropped on the floor and guests were running for the door. The manor guards rushed in, looking for something.
'It can't be me so then what..?'Clout thought. And then he saw the dog. Its grey-blue and white patchy coat was covered in cake, the blue and yellow frosting making green smears all over the animal. Of course the first aristopony who saw it probably thought it had the Blight because not too many of them were smart enough to take a second glance at the monster. The guards spotted it and pointed their weapons towards it.
"No! Fuzzy Paste is a good puppy!" Pompon yelled. She had slipped through the door everypony was looking through and ran towards the guards.
The guards turned to see the filly. "She has it too!" a unicorn mare exclaimed as she turned her weapon to the child, "S-stop! Please, I don't want to hurt you!"
Another unicorn mare guard turned to the others, "Somepony get the children out of here! We need to call the sanitization department and keep this under control before it spreads. Keep track of the guests, they'll want to test everypony for the Blight before they're released so don't let anypony go home yet."
One of the guards saluted her before he ran to the room the foals were in. Wide eyed, Clout ran to the blanket fort and hid in it. The guard burst into the room and shooed the fillies and colts out of the mansion, none of them mentioning the pegasus spy hiding in their blanket fort.
After the last of the foals were out, Clout snorted and face-hoofed. Of course he wouldn't get what he was promised. They were foals after all, why should they keep their end of a black mail. He pulled his hoof away from his face and grimaced. Cake. Of course he just had to have stepped in some earlier. Using the fort to clean the mask and his hoof off, he sighed. This mission wasn't going as perfectly as he hoped it would but at least now the house was empty. Or, empty-ish. He could still hear the guards outside yelling about the dog, not wanting to damage the furniture with their bullets but not wanting to touch the dog to capture it either. If only they had a few more brain cells, they would have realized something with the Blight shouldn't be that hyperactive.
The crystal pony trotted over to the large set of doors to the right side of the room. He crouched down a bit, pulled up the mask he wore and peeked through the keyhole. No pony there. He opened the door slowly, peeking through to make certain no pony was there that was out of the sight range of the key hole. The hallway he entered was lined with framed photographs of all sorts of fancy looking ponies, mostly shaking hooves with each other. There was a small door in front of him, a set of double doors to his left at the end of the hall and another smaller door a little ways away from the one in front of him. He turned to his right, the open hallway leading back to the room with the massive staircase. With his ears carefully scanning for sounds of others, he slowly walked to the entryway. Peeking around the corner, he could still see the ponies struggling with the dog. It ran back and forth as if it were playing tag with the guards. That is, until it stopped and saw Clout. The two made eye contact for a moment before the dog ran off, leading the guards away from the thief.
"Well, I guess not all dogs are so bad." Clout whispered to himself before trotting out to the stairs. 'The master suit has to be on the top floor.' he thought as he made his way up. He peeked over the second floor and saw a few staff ponies walking along, carrying linens into a room. They left the door open as they worked on replacing the bed sheets to a room that had toys all over the floor. The rest of the floor was wide but short. On either side was a balcony overlooking the first floor of the mansion. To his right and left were more hallways and doors. He continued up the stairs to the third floor.
The final floor of the mansion entered into a much smaller rounded room with a hallway to the right and one to the left. And again, it had doors. Lots of doors. This time there weren't any other ponies around so the stallion searched them one by one. To make sure there wasn't anypony in the area he was about to enter, he would look through the keyhole and listen through the door. When he felt he had surveyed well enough, he entered the rooms. In each new chamber, he stole anything he deemed of value that would fit into his many pockets and saddlebags. Any diaries or documents he stuffed away for later reading. He knew he had to be quick. It wouldn't be long before the city's sanitation team would arrive and detox the entire house, bubble it in a giant tent and fill it with some form of magic gas that killed any so-called plague virus. All the ticks knew it didn't actually work but it did make the rich ponies feel like they could just sweep it off their door mat so they were safe from the disease.
A laundry room, an office, a bedroom (But not Lady Blue's room unfortunately), a rec room, servant's quarters, more servant's quarters, a wine closet, an exercise room that looked like it hadn't ever been used, a sauna and a swimming pool. Why anypony would ever put a swimming pool on the top floor of a building, Clout would never know but he still wondered who's bright idea that was. He also wondered why the servant's quarters were on the top floor but not Chrysanthemum's.
There was another room but it seemed to be just a guest room. Attached to the large rec room was another, much smaller room with no door. Inside consisted of several couches, a small side table and a couple of book shelves. It wasn't an office but probably just a room to read in. Why a reading room didn't have a door to keep the noise from the rec room out Clout also didn't understand. Aristocratic ponies were weird, he decided.
His confusion at the design of the mansion was interrupted by a safe. It was a wall safe on the left side of the room, just adjacent to the far wall. Also adjacent to the safe was a large window that was slightly open letting the cool night breeze in. Rearing up in excitement, he bolted to the safe. Just as quickly, and with a big grin on his face, he ripped the mask off, stuffed it in his saddlebag, pulled out his lock picking tools and got to work. His ears strained to hear the soft scrapes and clicks the pins made as he slid each of the tumblers into place. With all of the stallion’s attention on the safe's lock, he failed to notice the mare at the room's entrance. And the three guards behind her.
The mare cleared her throat softly and Clout stopped mid opening of the safe. "I must apologize sir but the guests were not allowed to go upstairs." she said, "So, you'd best have quite a decent excuse for the guards here to not shoot you for snooping around."
Clout turned his head to look at them and cursed his luck that the foals lied to him and told somepony even though he held up his end of their bargain. She was a tall charcoal mare with yellow legs. Her long bright blue mane and tail was tied in a fancy looking braid and she had quite a lot of jewelry hanging from her neck, ears and horn. The guards behind her pushed passed and turned on the room's light.
The mare gasped as she saw him, "Oh my goodness, you're a--"
"Get him before he gets away!" one of the guards shouted.
Clout went wide eyed before backing up only to have his path blocked by the window.
The pegasus guard made the first move, tackling the crystal pony and trying to restrain him. "You are trespassing on private property and you will be punished! No pony gets away with theft in Blue manor!" she said growled.
The unicorn guard levitated out her weapon and aimed it at the two, trying to get a clear shot.
"No! Wait!" The charcoal mare said as she tried to stop the third guard from joining the fray.
The mare was shoved to the ground as the unicorn guard found her clear shot and pulled the trigger. In the chaos of the fight, the window had been pushed all the way open and Clout fell out of it just after he was hit with the tranquilizer dart. The pegasus dashed out of the window to try and catch him but the rushing river below caught him first and whisked him away in its icy grasp.
The wind blew through the grass of the small meadow, making the air warm and dry. Cinders floated on the breeze while two foals ran through the field, fear on their faces. In front was a long legged filly, her light silver coat singed from the lick of flames, her gray and lavender mane flowing behind her as she ran with all her might. She looked back with her big blue eyes to the smaller colt who limped as fast as he could behind her.
"Don't look back!" he said, "Keep running! Daddy said to run!" The buck skinned colt's foreleg was bleeding and he winced with every step but he kept pushing forward. They had to out run the blaze behind them. They couldn't look back, they couldn't see the fate of the ponies who screamed behind them because they knew there was nothing they could do to help. They just had to keep running. Daddy told them to run.
A giant winged beast flew past them and circled around.
"Watch out!" the filly yelled back to the colt as she skidded to a stop. The filly looked back to the colt one last time as the claws of the beast grabbed her and flew away.
"No!" the colt screamed, "You give her back! You can't take her too!!" He tried to run faster, tears streaming down his soot covered face but his leg just hurt too much for him to force himself. Focusing on her and the giant monster, he didn't see the ditch hidden in the grass and fell into it. He moaned in pain and lifted his dizzy head to watch his friend struggle and fall from the creature's claws. She fell and fell into the dark abyss while he lay there, helpless.
"Charm!"
The fog faded from Clout's mind as he slowly opened his eyes. His throat was scratchy and his chest ached but his body forced himself to cough a few times to try and expel whatever remnants of water still lingered in his lungs. This bodily function caused him even more pain. He groaned and lifted his head. He could see large metal beams surrounding him and several other ponies. They all had matching collars and they looked skinny and beaten. On the other side of the metal bars were ponies and griffons walking around, talking with each other about paperwork. A couple were yelling at each other, arguing over... something. He couldn't quite make it out.
He lifted one of his hooves and rubbed the top of his aching head. Only, he couldn't. He was completely bound to the floor. The chains clanged together as he moved and he finally realized what was going on. Somepony had found him in the river and they were going to sell him. His gear was completely gone. There were weapons on every guard that included no less than a whip, a pistol and a dart gun. He looked around but he didn't see where they put his belongings and Thief was nowhere to be seen. Clout's ears folded back at the thought of his missing companion. He would have to look for her as soon as he got out of his chains.
Standing up, the former thief punctuated his situation with a loud curse word when his head hit the very low ceiling of his cage. With the guards laughing at him, he decided it was best to stay lying down while giving them a stern glare in response. Being inside of the cage, it didn't have the effect he was hoping for. With another look around the room, he saw some ponies lifting large, and apparently heavy from their expressions, crates onto their backs. They walked out a nearby door where a voice on a loudspeaker boomed. For the brief moment the door was open, he could make out what the previously muffled background noise was saying.
"And do I have 600 bits? 600 bits, anyone? Anyone? Oh! I have 650 bits! Anyone going for 700? 700? Anypony? No? Going once, going twice, sold! For 650 bits! Next on our list is a very beautiful set of--"
The doors closed and the voice turned back to is muffled static. The two griffons were still arguing over their paperwork off in the corner and one of them was pointing a claw in Clout's general direction. The other griffon threw the papers in the other's face, spatted a couple more words before stomping away. The griffon shot a glare at Clout who glared back, before picking the papers up off the floor. The crystal pony snorted, whatever they were mad at him for wasn't his fault. He didn't choose to be here so they had nothing to be mad at him for.
He glanced at the other cages around him. A couple donkeys and earth ponies. Several pegasi with clipped wings no doubt. At least five unicorns and a bigger cell with a large group of foals all huddled together. Behind the slave cages were four much larger cages that contained creatures of a different taste. One had a minotaur sitting with his arms crossed and a pouty look on his face. Two of the cages had manticores in them. Large lion-like creatures with leathery wings and a scorpion tail. One of them was lying lazily in it's binds. The other was swiping a claw through the bars and roaring at the two mares who were trying to force it to calm down by stabbing at it with electric pulsing spears. In the last large metal box was a curled form covered in scales. It was barely twice the size of a pony and it had leathery wings. Soft snoring could be heard from the form in between each of the manticore's outbursts. Most of the cages had a clipboard hanging from a hook that was on the top middle of each cage. From the closest one to him, he could read that it had a line for the price sold for and the name of who the future buyer would be.
He memorized where each of the exits were: one to his left where the auctioneer was, one to the back of the room where ponies and griffons walked in and out of with paperwork (probably an office of some sort) and a large roll up metal wall that was probably a loading dock. This was not a place Clout had been before but he knew it had to be a black market. No pony or griffon would dare sell a dragon let alone a crystal pony. Once he finally finished surveying his surroundings, he decided it was time to make his grand escape. He lowered his head and sifted through his mane. He continued to search and furrowed his brow. One of the colts in the cage behind him decided to make a comment.
"Got fleas mister?"
Clout decided to ignore the commentary, lifted his head and looked towards his tail. It was too short for him to reach but he scanned it nonetheless, still frowning.
"You're awful shiny, are you a mutant? Do you have super powers or somethin'?" the colt said.
Still ignoring the foal, the stallion looked to his hooves, scanning the underside of them.
"What'cha lookin' for, the fleas? There's too many around here to kill 'em all."
"Shut it kid. I ain't got fleas." Clout said to the youngster.
The thin mare in the cage next to the stallion spoke up. "Don't bother lookin', you aren't going to find whatever it is you hid on your person. They're very thorough and are used to searching ponies. They even do..." she shuttered, "cavity searches. It's very unpleasant but they find everything. They don't want their money escaping."
Clout's ears folded back. He wasn't sure how he was going to escape but he had to. He had to keep running. A griffon walked up to his cage, the one who was arguing earlier, and glared at the buck.
"I'd much rather kill you. Would be less trouble." he said. "The boss wants to keep you though. Said you'd go damn high but I don't think you'll sell. The moment you don't, I'm going to put a bullet in your brain and wipe my claws of you. Damned crystal pony." As he walked away, he muttered to himself that he had to increase the guards to make sure nopony sold them out to the king's guards over the situation. He called over a passing mare. She was white with her mane being various shades of gray. They spoke for a moment, she nodded and barked orders to a few others. Noting the way they immediately got to their work, she had to be the one in charge. As she trotted past Clout's cage and to the door he figured was an office, she called out.
"And some pony find me Paper Cut! I know he's sleeping on the job again! Stupid stallion, I have to do everything around here." she said before slamming the door shut behind her.
Another pony came in through the door to the auctioneer. She was tan with dark grey spots on her. Her horn glowed as she floated a clipboard full of paperwork in front of her. Her blue eyes focused on the text. "Are they really sure this is right?" She asked the text in front of her. She sighed and walked up to Clout before staring at him. For a few awkward moments, the mare examined him through the bars. She turned her head this way and that, squinting her eyes and looking at him from different angles. "You really are a crystal pony, aren't you?" she asked.
Clout glared at her. "That information is confidential." he retorted with a growl.
She gave a slight chuckle. "I'm sorry sweetie but it's not hard to tell what you really are, there's no use hiding it." she said, "What's your name?"
"None of your business."
"Now come on, you're almost up. We would really like to put a name to your sale paperwork if we could." She gave Clout a smile.
He glared at her for a bit before giving into her sweet nature "Whisky Trot." he said as he looked away.
The mare laughed at the name. "Seriously? That can't be your real name! Come on, pretty please?"
Gritting his teeth, he decided on another fake name. "Arrow Point."
"Well, that's a bit better." she said with a smile, "My name is Honey Dew and it's lovely to meet you. Too bad our meeting here will be a short one, you're kind of cute. Good luck Arrow." Honey Dew turned away and walked back out the door, her tail swishing behind her.
Clout rolled his eyes and let a breath out through clenched teeth.
When she had left, the children decided that quiet time was finally over and began to speak again. "So you're really a crystal pony?" the colt asked, "I heard they were just a myth!" His eyes were wide in wonder, staring at the buckskin. Just the same as all of the rest of the foals in the cage. Clout flinched away at the dozen prying eyes and gulped. He was very glad there were bars between him and the foals, he had no intention of letting any of those brats touch him, no matter how curious they were. Some of them were 'wow'-ing, others just stared at his coat in amazement. Just in the nick of time, a stallion whacked at the foal's cage with a nightstick before yelling for them to quiet down. To Clout's relief, they all shied away in the back of their cage and stayed silent.
The crystal pony continued to look around, he had already observed everything in the room but he still tried to find any little detail he might have missed that would help him out of his situation. Unfortunately, his thoughts were cut short when the white and grey mare who he thought was in charge trotted over to his cage.
"Let's get this over with before something bad happens." she said with a scowl on her face. Two ponies flanked her, each of them holding a long pole with a rope attached at the end that was most likely supposed to be around Clout's neck. As she unlocked the cage, he tried to scooch back, his ears folded as his fate became more real.
The two ponies put the end of the catch poles around his neck and tightened the rope so it wouldn't slip off.
He was to be sold.
The mare used another key on the keyring to unlock the lock that bound his chains to the bottom of the cage.
He couldn't think fast enough, he should have looked harder for a way out, he couldn't see an escape.
They yanked him out of the cage, his chains clinking as he fell to the ground. Another guard, a griffon, came up behind him and zapped him with his cattle prod, yelling for him to get on his hooves and move. He couldn't hear them, his panic grew as he was dragged towards the door, a look of sheer terror on his face. His breathing quickened and he started to feel sick.
'This can't be happening, just can't. Not again, no, no, not again!' Clout thought in panic as he grit his teeth, trying with all his might to stop being shoved through the doorway and into the bright stage lights. They blinded him for a moment and he was hit again with electricity, causing his body to jerk forward and his hooves to finally move the way they wanted him to. When he opened his eyes, he saw a large crowd before him of gaping ponies. He could make out muzzles that were gasping but the pounding in his ears still wouldn't let him hear their murmurs to each other.
He closed his eyes tight again and focused on the beat. It had been a long time since he last had anything close to a panic attack. He knew he just had to calm himself and think rationally. There had to be a way out of this. If not now, then after he had been sold. He had done it before, he could do it again. The stage didn't matter, the crowd didn't matter, but Thief did, he had to get out of this and make sure she was okay. With one shaky, long breath after another, he calmed himself enough to dull the thud of his heart beat in his ears so he could hear the auctioneer.
"Does nopony really want the opportunity to show off their power with one of the rarest slaves?" a voice asked in shock, "Surely there is some pony out there who wants to show off their status with a genuine crystal pony!" It was a female voice. "He is a strong one, not a single mark on him and--" she continued before she cut herself off. "Oh! We have a bidder!"
Clout swallowed before opening his eyes. He stared at the floor for a moment, watching his shaky legs.
"Going for one hundred thousand bits! Anyone for one hundred twenty?" the auctioneer said with a smile in her voice.
Focusing on his breathing, the crystal pony had managed to calm himself enough to look at the crowd. He took another deep breath.
"We have two hundred thousand from number twenty three! Do we have-- Oh! And another back from number seventy one, two hundred fifty thousand!"
He could make out shapes, the stage lights blurred his vision. A pony in the middle row to the right raised a hoof with a sign and the auctioneer started again. One in the front raised their sign, he could make out the number twenty three on it. The two were in a bidding war. Occasionally another would put in their bid but theirs was soon well overtaken by one of the other two.
Breaking the fury of the bidding war, the auctioneer paused. "Oh!" she said, "Number one hundred has made a bid of twenty million!"
More mummers through the crowd, some of which Clout could make out.
"Number one hundred? Isn't that number always reserved?"
"Twenty million bits, it's never gone that high!"
"Is the Hatter joking?"
The crystal pony glanced up at the auctioneer. A white smile was painted on the mare’s gray face, bright red blush on her cheeks. The dark purple hat atop her head and short crop black mane shaded the pony’s eyes. In her right wing was a microphone. The black and purple suit she wore matched the hat and was topped off with a large blue bow tie. The Hatter looked to Clout and met his eyes for a moment before continuing to entice the crowd for more bits.
"Well mares and gentle colts, what a bid!" they said, "Twenty million bits! But you must remember, that much money isn't even half of what it costs to purchase a crystal pony legitimately, not to mention buy the permit to own one and move to Canterlot or the Crystal Empire."
The audience once again began to whisper amongst themselves and Clout could see a few of the ponies began to lift their numbers but a door slamming open interrupted them.
"Every creature in this building is under arrest by the authority of King Sombra! Resist arrest and there will be consequences!" somepony by the doors shouted.
At least two dozen ponies dressed in black uniforms with red trim stood in front of the two main doors to the theatre. The black market patrons began to panic and run towards the stage. The monochrome mare leader charged towards the guards with a group behind her, all of them armed with weapons. The two groups immediately began a bloody battle in the old building, distracting the King's authority and giving the crowd a chance to escape. Two ponies and a griffon directed the crowd to exit through the back door and out the loading bay.
Finally, the thief found his chance. With the rush of the panicked ponies, he was pushed by the crowd away from the Hatter and the slavers who held the catch poles. Unable to reach the ends to loosen and remove them, he ran with them clattering behind him and his chains limiting his movements. Clout knew from surveying the stock room earlier that his gear wasn't in there so his best bet was the office. He burst through the door and looked around. A pin board covered in paper, a desk and chair, more paperwork and binders atop it, and a key ring holder by the door, complete with three sets of keys. He grabbed all three sets and began trying each on his bindings. None of the seven keys on the first ring worked nor did any of the twelve on the second. He thought he had it when the first key on the third ring fit but unfortunately it didn't turn. Then he noticed somepony was pulling one of the now loosened catch poles off of him. He looked behind himself to see a mare looking at him bashfully as she removed the second.
"I'm sorry" she began, "The key you were looking for was on one of the griffons." She pulled the keys out of her saddlebags and Clout snatched them away, quickly getting to work on the locks. "Um, you are--" she began again but was interrupted by a pegasus stallion who galloped into the room.
"There you are!" He said, slightly out of breath, "We've got to go!" He looked to the mare. "Who the hell are you? Nevermind, we don't have time, the guards are here for you, let's go before they find you." The stallion grabbed Clout's hoof the second the last shackle was off and pulled him out of the office.
"Hey! You can't just--" the mare exclaimed before running after the two.
The three ponies ran through the stockroom, out the loading bay and down the city street. The entire way, Clout complained and tried to struggle out of the grip of the pegasus but could not get away. The mare followed the two stallions, barely keeping up as she too complained to the pegasus.
As they galloped, the dark shadow of the Hatter followed. The three tried to out run it but it flew ahead of them. They quickly turned down an alleyway, hoping to lose the pegasus but the Hatter was already there, at the end waiting for them. The small group turned around and continued to run. Yet again the Hatter's shadow was following.
"What do you want?" Clout yelled to the dappled mare.
The suited pony landed abruptly in front of them, halting their gallop. They took a step forward as the three stepped back. "Oh don't worry, I'm not here to capture you, crystal pony." The painted grin on their face grew into a confident smile as they spoke, "I only want to deliver a message before you leave. Since you are actually leaving on your own accord of course." Her black tail swished and she took a couple more steps forward before starting to speak in rhyme, "There was a crystal pony, short and stout. That no pony else knew about. Fearless he was, brave and bold." They chuckled a bit, "Captured by slavers, bound and sold. Bought by the Head to stop the act." The Hatter's smile turned to a frown, glaring at the three, "But tattled on, they were attacked. Escape he did with the help of two friends. Soon, their days will be at ends." Her smile returned, "So tread lightly and watch your backs. For the main willtake their tax."
"Don't ever count on anybody else, in this or any other land. I once hoped for friendship, to find a place among my kind. But those were the childish wishes of someone who was blind." Open Up Your Eyes - Emily Blunt (My Little Pony: The Movie)
Clout looked to the sky and grimaced. He could see the dark clouds above brightening some with morning’s light rising behind them. It was still drizzling down on him as he looked out from the alleyway he hid in. Without his gear or his cloak, it would be an easy thing for somepony to see what he was. The stallion shuddered at the thought of being on that stage in those shackles. He sucked in a breath of air through clenched teeth, shoved the memory in the back of his mind with all his other demons and looked around once more.
“So!” the pegasus said behind him, “My name’s Stratta. If I knew the pony I was looking for was you, that really would have made things a lot easier yesterday.” He trotted up next to Clout.
“Go away.” the crystal pony demanded before moving out of cover and to the next alley. He crouched down behind a crate as three stallions quietly chatted on their way to work. While they passed the crate, the thief watched them walk away for a few seconds to make sure none of them turned around before he left his new cover.
“I still do not see why you are going back to that filth covered storehouse.” complained the unicorn mare who was following the two stallions. Not having anything to hide, she casually walked along and watched the buckskin duck and dive behind anything big enough to hide himself.
“I said go away.” Clout growled to both of his stalkers.
“I’m not going anywhere." the pegasus protested as he took to the air, "I have a job for you and that pony merchant, uh, What's-His-Name, said you were the one that I needed to talk to.”
The crystal pony glared daggers at the gray and orange buck. For some reason, Merchant had told this pony where he was going. Clout did not appreciate his movements being tracked and would have to give his friend an earful next time he saw him.
“Don’t look at me like that!” Strata complained, “I brought the guards. If it wasn’t for me you would have been sold.”
“Pardon me,” the mare interjected, “but the pony who had unbound him would be I, so you did nothing to save him from his predicament. I, however, did.”
“And without my distraction how exactly was your plan going to go?”
“I was going to buy him obviously.” the mare said as a matter of fact in an irritated tone of voice, “And what would your plan have been if the guards had caught him, pray tell?”
“I don’t have to explain myself to you, you prissy aristocratic nopony.” the pegasus shot back.
“Nopony!” the mare exclaimed in outrage, “I shall have you know my family is very well kept. But, I suppose a low-life such as yourself would not know a pony of prestige having never seen a real one due to lack of ambition to earn bits.” the mare countered as she swished her long tail. Thinking she had won that argument she gave him a small smirk.
Stratta scoffed. “Just because somepony is poor doesn’t mean they haven’t met a pony that matters. I’ve met plenty of powerful ponies.” he shot back.
“Very well, name me one pony of such high social standing that you have met.” the mare challenged.
“Wulf Song.” he said, smirking.
“Mr. Song is not a pony of aristocracy. He, sir, is a criminal. Nothing more than a…” she paused for a moment searching for words, “deplorable, unlawful delinquent who is ruining this rich country!”
“Hah! That’s a laugh.” the pegasus nickered, “He’s saving lives, unshackling slaves and--”
“Will both of you shut up!” Clout whispered harshly as he eyed the storehouse. The Shade Nights were still abundant in the area with three standing guard, two organizing and cataloging all the items they found inside and the others loading the captured black market patrons into a cage wagon.
“Looks like those ruffians are getting what they deserve.” the mare commented.
“If you were going to buy him then you should be in chains alongside them.” Stratta snorted.
The mare glared at him. “I beg your pardon!” she said in outrage.
Clout whirled on the two of them, “I said shut up! Or… go argue someplace else, just leave me alone!” He stomped a hoof on the cobblestones for emphasis as he glared. His ears then twitched back as he glanced at the law ponies just around the corner of the building they were hiding behind. He internally breathed a sigh of relief when none of them noticed the sound he just made. He continued to glower at the two ponies behind him.
“My sincerest apologies.” the mare said as her ears drooped, “I did not mean to--”
The crystal pony's icy gaze made the mare stiffen up and shut her mouth. Stratta clicked his tongue in vexation but kept quiet.
The thief backtracked a bit before he began trotting down the nearest alleyway. A couple trash cans, a discarded ripped hat, a sleeping homeless pony wrapped in a still wet blanket and a few nailed shut crates that were set here and there along the path made it slightly difficult to move freely. Using the unopened wooden packages as an easy way to jump the fence that made the alleyway’s dead end, he continued on to his destination.
The pegasus casually followed from the air while the mare grumbled about how unlady-like it was to be climbing boxes and falling into a rather large puddle on the other side of the fence. Clout once again glared at her and she gave him a sheepish smile while she stood up and tried to brush the water off of herself.
Attempting to ignore his stalkers, the buckskin cautiously made his way past a couple more buildings until the back of the storehouse was in view. Several ponies in suits and fedoras were talking in hushed tones. They were occasionally looking in through a small window by the back door and three of them had firearms out. With all of them being pegasai, he had a feeling he knew exactly who they were.
“It would be prudent for us to withdraw.” the unicorn whispered, “To antagonize those ponies would be quite the ill-advised decision.”
“Why, are you afraid of their guns?” the pegasus asked, genuinely curious.
The mare glared at Stratta. “No,” she said, “those ponies are with the Spectrum Fliers. They are mafia, the largest organized crime family in all of Equestria. Do you know nothing?”
“I know plenty.” Stratta said. As he opened his muzzle to continue his rebuttal he could hear an exasperated sigh from the stallion he was following and decided to leave his comment as it was. He landed on the ground and looked to the roof of the building the crystal pony was eyeing. “I could fly you up there. Probably has a roof access.”
Clout ignored the suggestion and continued to watch the mafia soldiers.
“Why would they continue to linger after the King’s guard had arrived?” The mare asked no pony in particular.
As they observed, the door handle next to the mafia ponies began to turn. All of the gang members aimed their weapons at the building's exit. The stallion who stood in the doorway gave them all a flat look and blew the smoke from his cigarette at them. As all the pegasai lowered their weapons and began to talk with the Shade Night, Clout was suddenly lifted up off of the ground.
"H-hey!" the crystal pony said as he flailed his legs uselessly in the air.
"Stop, no, you can not take him! I need him!!" the mare called to the two stallions as Stratta carried Clout to the storehouse's roof.
After the gray pegasus set the thief down, Clout whirled on him. "I didn't want to be flown up here!" he quietly scolded, "I don't need help, I need you to go away. I work alone. I don't even know why you're following me."
Stratta smiled, "I told you, I have a job for you."
Clout glared. "I don't see clients, that's what Merchant is for. Go talk to him." he said as he pointed a hoof in the general direction of away.
"I did talk to him." Stratta said, "And he told me to talk to you."
"Go. Away."
Stratta chuckled, "He said you would be stubborn. He also told me that if I stuck to you like glue it would eventually annoy you enough to come with me for the job."
Clout let out a hiss of air through clenched teeth in annoyance.
"Welp, let's get going to get whatever it is you need from here so I can take you to meet my boss." Stratta said in triumph as he trotted to the building's roof access.
Clout's head dropped slightly as he folded his ears and reluctantly followed.
The pegasus reached his hoof out to try the door handle but stopped at the command of the thief. The crystal pony crouched down and peered through the keyhole for a moment before turning the door handle himself. With the door being locked and his tools inside the building, he decided to look around the roof for anything he could use to pick the lock with.
"What are you looking for?" Stratta asked. He watched the other stallion walk around the roof and stare at the floor, obviously ignoring the pegasus. He cleared his throat and Clout stopped to grit his teeth.
The crystal pony gave a sigh, "The door is locked, my tools, gear and saddlebags are inside, I'm looking for something to unlock the door with."
"Oh." Stratta said before nosing around in his own saddlebags. He grabbed a leather satchel in his teeth and set it on the ground before unrolling it. "Will anything in here help?" he asked.
Clout walked over to him and looked at the tools. Several metal instruments lay before him, all used to dig up ancient artifacts. Several different sized brushes, each designed with different bristles to brush away specific types of dirt accompanied the wooden handled utensils. Three small trowels with different shaped scoops, a miniature pick, something that had what looked like a tiny griffon talon at the end, a magnifying glass, something that could only be described as a long thin stick of metal with a handle and a simple spoon all fit neatly in their respective pouches within the satchel. The pony frowned at his choices but he had nothing else at his disposal to use so he decided to work with what was in front of him.
He took the small griffon talon looking tool and the long metal stick and attempted to get to work on the lock. With improper picking tools it took him longer than usual but he eventually got the lock undone. Clout shoved the utensils out towards the pegasus who complained they were bent.
"I'll buy you new ones, quit complaining." the Thief responded as he peered through the lock once more.
"These tools were expensive..." Stratta grumbled.
"I have enough bits so quit complaining."
The pegasus put away his tools with a sad sigh as Clout carefully and slowly opened the door. He poked his head in and looked around. Before him was a short set of stairs that led to a metal catwalk. The walkway was parallel to another on the other side of the room with a thin bridge between. Many ropes hung from the rafters, some tied with sandbag weights and others holding a massive thick curtain open to show the stage below to the empty audience seats.
Clout stepped onto the catwalk before him and grimaced at the noise his unpadded hooves made on the metal surface. He could hear a couple ponies talking below but didn't hear any alarm in their tone of voice so he slowly walked out. Looking down, he watched the two Shade Nights making their way to their companions at the front of the building.
A sound of hoof on metal made the guards stop and look around.
Clout looked behind him and mouthed 'stop' at the pegasus. After a moment, the guards moved on while muttering about the building being old. After they left, the crystal pony turned to face Stratta. "Either stay quiet or stay on the roof!" he scolded.
"Okay then," the pegasus said with a smile before jumping off the catwalk.
Clout's eyes went wide as he looked to the door the guards walked through.
Stratta quietly chuckled, flapping his wings slowly as he hovered next to the buckskin.
Clout glared at him before making his way to the ladder and descending to the stage. Setting hoof down behind the curtain, the open platform was before him. The very stage where he was paraded in front of an audience to be sold, now was just rows and rows of empty chairs. Just hours ago he was a bid away from re-living being somepony's toy to do with as they pleased. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a breath before focusing on the task at hoof.
"There's nopony here, you coming?" Stratta asked.
Clout gave a grunt and trotted to the door on the other side of the stage. As he motioned to look through the keyhole, the doorknob began to turn. The crystal pony opened his mouth to utter a curse under his breath but before he could, he was swept up once again into the air. He looked over his shoulder at the winged pony. "I already told you I didn't need your help!" he harshly whispered.
Stratta smiled, "Too slow."
The buckskin softly growled as a mare in Kings guard armor trotted out of the door with a scowl on her face.
"Where the hell is Paper Cut, he should have finished his stupid smoke break by now." she complained, "Lazy-ass." The Shade Night moved off the stage, through the center aisle of the seats and out a door in the opposite corner of the room.
The second that the door clicked closed behind her, the pegasus set Clout back on the stage. "Be quick, you don't have much time." Stratta warned.
The crystal thief took the time to roll his eyes exaggeratedly at the comment before peering through the keyhole. He could see the empty cages before the uniformed body of a pony passed in front of the door. Muffled voices came from the other room about waiting on a locksmith for a safe in the office. Thinking back, Clout didn't remember seeing any safe in the room.
When the guard moved out of view, the thief pulled away from the keyhole and slowly opened the door. The guard closest to him had a clipboard in her magic, double checking her paperwork. The other three were walking toward the exit.
The pegasus tapped a wing on Clout's shoulder. "Hey, they're coming in." he said.
The crystal pony glanced behind to the opening door before quickly moving into the next room. After making sure Stratta closed the door quietly, he slinked down behind a cage to make sure he wasn't noticed by the clipboard unicorn. Looking around, he didn't see where the pegasus went. Folding his ears, he swore to murder the winged pony if he got them caught. Ignoring wherever the idiot ran off to and with the unicorn cursing at a box she just tripped over, Clout swooped across the open space to the office door and slipped in.
"I'm surprised you didn't check for guards before you came in." Stratta quietly commented. Clout glared at him as he hovered in the air. Stratta just smirked.
The thief looked around the room and was quite glad there was nopony in it but them. The neat and tidy office he remembered was now in disarray with drawers left open, papers on the floor and the chair shoved in a corner.
"You know, I wouldn't be surprised if the guards took whatever you're looking for. It's probably outside with all the crates of stuff they took out of the warehouse." The pegasus said, "Maybe we should look out there."
"Shut-up." Clout whispered as he walked around the desk. As he suspected, the safe was on the floor under the desk. It had been hidden by a small rug that too was tossed in a corner. Not having his tools, he was unable to pick the lock and with the door to the hidden space being big enough to fit a full sized pony he really wanted to see what was inside. The thief began to look around the room, hoofing through any drawer that he found.
"What are you looking for, maybe I can help?" Stratta asked.
"I'm looking for the key or something to pick this lock with. I don't need your help. You wouldn't even know what to look for anyway." Clout replied as he glared into an unhelpful drawer.
"Why not use my kit's tools again?"
The crystal pony went to slam a drawer shut in annoyance but stopped himself. He clenched his teeth and sucked in a breath. "This is a different kind of lock, stop asking questions. Go away and leave me alone!" he scolded.
"Just describe it to--" the pegasus began but cut himself off when he heard the doorknob move. Both stallions looked to the door and Clout's ears folded. With the ceiling of the room too low to use as a hiding spot, the pegasus dived behind the door while the buckskin hid under the desk. Both of them held their breath as the knob turned and the door opened.
Clopping of hooves on the wooden floor sounded through the silent room and the door creaked closed behind the pony. Clout's ears flattened in worry, hoping the pony didn't walk around the desk. His ears perked up as he heard Stratta give a complaint.
"You!" the pegasus harshly whispered, "How in Equus did you get past the guards and where did you get the keys from?" He flapped his wings in anger and gave a soft snort.
Clout peeked over the desk, flattened his ears and swished his tail once he saw who it was. The buck crawled out from under the desk and stood. "I told you to stop following me." he said to the charcoal unicorn mare as he gave her a flat look.
"Oh, so you don't want these keys then?" the mare said with a smirk as she jiggled them in her magic. The thief gave an annoyed grunt as he trotted over to her and snatched the keys out of her levitation spell.
Stratta watched as Clout went back around the desk to open the safe. "Seriously," he said, "how did you get past the guards? You just trotted right on in here like you had nothing to worry about."
The mare smirked as she said, "A lady never reveals her secrets."
The pegasus snorted, "Fine, don't tell me."
The unicorn gave a triumphant smile as Clout quietly closed the door to the safe after he exited the hidden room. Before addressing his two stalkers, he checked his gear once more. He had on his jacket, vest and cloak. His saddlebags were belted properly around his waist, notably empty to his growing frustrations. He did find his fox mask which was cracked in half within the safe room though. He adjusted his lock picking tools that were wrapped in their leather straps around his fetlocks, thankfully, all of them were present and accounted for. Despite their waterlogged adventure, they were not damaged thanks to their now slightly torn case. The crystal pony noted that aside from all his missing reappropriated goods, the only missing things were his bow, quiver and his small rodent companion.
Clout flipped the hood of his cloak over his head then walked around the desk, stopping in front of the other two ponies in the room. "I don't know how clear I can make this or how well either of you will understand." he began in a low tone of voice, "I don't want to keep repeating myself. So let me make this abundantly simple: I. Work. Alone. I do not work with a crew, I do not work on a team, I don't accept every job that is hoofed in front of me," he glared at Stratta, "and I don't have fanatical ponies following me around." he eyed the unicorn, "I work by myself, in the shadows where I don't get caught because I do a lot of things that others would disapprove of. Having a couple idiots following me around is going to get me caught and that's not going to end well. So, go away." The thief shoved his way past the pair and put a hoof on the door handle.
"No." the other two ponies said in unison. As they looked at each other for a moment, they could hear Clout grinding his teeth in frustration.
"I'm not leaving your side until you do the job my boss has for you." Stratta said, giving the back of Clout's hooded head a look of determination.
The crystal pony stared at the door in front of him for a long moment, waiting for the mare to speak but she stayed silent. He didn't understand these two. Both of them were so determined to follow him, but to what ends? They had to have a motive they weren't willing to throw away simply because he repeatedly complained at them. It seemed he only had two choices. He could either be a complete asshole to them, forcing them away or if they still refused to leave he was going to have to find some way to profit off of them at their expense. Finally he turned around and gave each of them a glare.
"Fine," he said to the pegasus, "on two conditions. If I tell you to do something you do it without question and if I go somewhere for any reason, you stay outside and leave me to my work. I don't need a burden that will get me caught."
Stratta had a slight inward cheer of victory as Merchant's advice had proven effective. "Fine." The pegasus said, "But you owe me for helping you out of the slaver's hooves."
"Whatever." Clout said with a sigh of discontent. He then addressed the unicorn. "Well?" he asked, "Aren't you going to explain why you're following me? You haven't given any sort of excuse yet and if you don't have a good reason then you need to trot off and leave me alone."
The mare gave a sheepish grin with a halfhearted chuckle as she began, "Uh, well…"
Clout glared daggers at her.
"I-I wanted to apologize." she said in haste.
The buckskin's expression softened ever so slightly to allow her to continue.
"I saw you snooping around in Cheyssie's mansion and I'm the one who got the guards. I didn't realize you were…" she trailed off as Clout gave an unamused expression.
The pegasus chimed in on behalf of the silent stallion, "So let me get this straight, you, an aristocratic priss who probably owns stables full of slaves, called the guards on somepony snooping around in whoever Chryssie is' mansion. You only became concerned for him being arrested after you found out he was a crystal pony. Your story doesn't make any sense."
"Crystal ponies have been the most tyrannized over everypony else. They are managed the worst by the Kings, dragons consider them a delicacy and they are even mandated to be castrated if they are not in the King's breeding stock. No other slave can say that." she shot back.
Stratta's ears folded back and he gave a snort. His tail swished as he opened his mouth to respond but held his tongue as Clout held up a hoof.
"Quiet." the buckskin said. The same hoof he raised, he used to rub his forehead in annoyance.
The mare looked at the crystal pony, "I owe you a debt and I'm not leaving your side until that debt is fulfilled. I almost got you killed, drowned and sold. I need to make this right, please let me come with you so I can make amends." She gave him a hard stare but he could see worry in her eyes. He couldn't figure out why not paying back a debt would be such a big deal to an aristocratic pony but besides that, the pegasus made a point that her story didn't make sense. Then again, the thought of what a wealthy pony could offer him in exchange for a life debt was too tempting. He thought of his belltower so filled with gold, gems and treasure the wooden floor of the building was complaining about it. He still needed more, much more.
"Fine." he finally said, "You will be bound to the same rules as…" pausing, he looked to the pegasus, "Feathers over here." He waved a hoof at the dark grey pegasus.
The mare gave a relieved smile as the other stallion complained, " My name is Stratta, Garett Stratta. Not 'Feathers'."
"You could not know how grateful I am, thank you ever so much! My name is Glaciated Era but you may refer to me as Glacier."
"Whatever." Clout said as he peered through the keyhole.
"Oh, I beg your pardon but, may I have those keys back? I must return them before we vacate this establishment." Glacier asked.
Stratta stared at her like she had three heads. "Are you mad? You want to go out of your way to seduce the guards again just so you can put the keys back. They probably already noticed the keys are gone, what's the point of returning them?"
The mare harrumphed. "And whom, may I ask, said that I had used my mare charm on them?" she asked.
"Stop fighting or I'm leaving both of you behind." Clout said. He looked to the unicorn, "If you want to get caught, that's your business but don't you dare get me caught again. You couldn't imagine what a thief would require to make up for two life debts." He gave a sly smile at the mental image and returned to watching the other room through the keyhole. "Keys are on the floor by the safe." he told her in a low voice as he saw a few guards walking by the door. He could hear them talking as they were all walking in the same direction, towards the large open docking gate. A pinstriped dark grey suit and red tie suddenly moved into view, blocking the rest of the room. The thief swiftly turned around, leapt over the desk, bumped into Glacier who gave a brief complaint and hid under the desk again. He could see the keys still lying on the carpet. As the door creaked open, he mouthed 'Get down!' at the unicorn but the pony opening the door demanded her attention before he could.
"Oh there you are!" a buck said in a hushed voice, "Come on, you've got to get out of here. Paper Cut says the locksmith will be here any minute."
Clout watched as Glacier looked in surprise at the stallion who stood in the doorway.
"Ah! My apologies." the mare said nervously as she eyed Stratta who looked like he was trying to merge with the wall behind the door. "I was hoping to have a few more minutes as I have been unsuccessful in locating my bracelet."
"I don't think you have a few more minutes unless you want to get caught by the King's guard."
The mare looked down, making eye contact with Clout. "Well, when you put it that way I do suppose it would be wise to vacate." she said as she walked to the door.
"Look, if I find it I'll try to get it back to you. I can't promise anything if the others find it though." the mobster said, "You have the keys, right?"
"Oh, I left them by the safe." she replied.
As the buck began to step through the doorway, Glacier stopped him with a hoof. "N-no, I shall retrieve them darling," she said before pushing him back a step, "I left them after all. You go on ahead, I will be right behind you."
The mobster gave her a suspicious look and watched her trot behind the desk. Her horn lit up with the yellow glow of her magic and the keys levitated into the air. The fedora wearing buck turned around and looked about the large empty room before glancing behind him to make sure the unicorn was following. Glacier trotted out behind him, the two walked towards the back entrance and the mare magically closed the door behind her.
Clout poked his head above the desk to look at the other buck in the room.
Stratta returned the stare, "What was that all about?"
The two stallions exited the small office, following the couple back to the theatre room all the while eavesdropping on their conversation.
"You know," the suit-wearing pony began, "you're really lucky the boss isn't here. She's mighty put off that you're late."
"I am aware," Glacier said with a sigh.
"Really, if she found ou--"
"I am aware!" she interrupted more forcefully.
The mobster didn't flinch but let her continue.
"My apologies." the unicorn said, looking to the floor as she walked.
Clout and Stratta had begun to climb the ladder back up to the catwalk as Glacier let out another sigh.
"I… I just require a few more days. Maybe a week at most and I shall restore my obligation to your company." she said.
The two reached the back door and the mobster pony put a hoof on the door handle. He ruffled his wings as he gave her a look. "I won't tell the boss I saw you but you'd best bet you'll be seeing Spectrum in the near future if you don't deliver as promised real soon."
The two hidden stallions opened the roof access door and walked out. The morning rain had lightened to a downpour of fine mist while the sun rose higher over the horizon. Clout gave a hard blink as his tired eyes tried to adjust to the unfamiliar amount of brightness. Stratta walked to the edge of the building and looked down. He watched as the mare thanked the Spectrum Flier pony and began to trot down the street.
The pegasus looked to Clout, "So should we ditch her or follow?"
The crystal thief trotted to the edge of the building. Watching the mare trot away, the thought of one less stalker became quite appealing. Then again, the thought of losing a life's debt worth of bits left a foul taste in his mouth. "We'll follow," he finally said.
Not wanting to be picked up by the pegasus for a third time, Clout galloped across the rooftop and lept to the next building. He followed a large metal pipe along the side of the structure that bent towards the ground once it reached the corner. The pipe disappeared into the cobblestones below, most likely connecting with a sewer under the city.
As Stratta easily glided through the air, his new companion gripped the pipe in all four hooves and slid down it, landing on the street with a soft grunt. An aged old earth pony mare awoke from her slumber, unlike the deceased yellow mule lying next to her. The elderly pony was dirty, ragged and shivering under her sopping wet hand-me-down cloak. She held her shakey hoof out to the strangers who had invaded her spot on the cold street.
"Spare a bit for an old mare?" she begged with a raspy voice.
The pegasus hovered in the air above, giving the miserable pony a sad look as he watched Clout ignore her and trot on. Stratta took the time to toss two bits on the ground for her before catching up to the buckskinned pony.
The two stallions caught up to the fancy unicorn mare. Clout gave her a glancing look before he veered into the nearest empty alleyway. The mare followed.
"I am quite pleased you were able to make your exit without alarm." Glacier said.
Stratta landed behind Clout and both of the stallions looked at her.
"That conversation you had with the Spectrum Flier pony was quite interesting." Clout said with stony gaze, "Would you like to enlighten me on how you were planning to repay me a life debt when you can't pay them back?" He took a step forward threateningly but to the mare's credit she stood her ground this time.
"My personal matters with those gentlecolts are just that, personal," she said, "I can, and shall, settle my account with you and I am not leaving your side until this matter has been resolved."
Clout's harsh gaze intensified as the two stared at each other. Stratta watched on in silence as the crystal pony took another step. "If you swear a promise to me, you'd better keep it." the stallion growled.
With the two inches apart, their height difference was quite obvious. The mare was abnormally tall, almost the height of the fabled ancient alicorn princesses who were felled by King Discord. The crystal pony was shorter than average but definitely not foal size. The smaller buck angrily advanced on the taller mare causing her to begin nervously backing up.
"I don't take well to ponies who betray me. If you do, I will ruin your life. I will make it my life's mission to haunt you," he said as he slowly advanced on the mare, keeping his scowl on Glacier, "I will follow you everywhere, hiding in the shadows, stealing everything that you own."
The mare finally had nowhere else to go as her flank bumped into the wall.
"I will take every last bit, every keepsake, every useless piece of garbage until you have nothing to your name. I will steal the clothes from your very back and don't think for one second that I won't because I am very good at what I do," Clout's ears folded and his eyes narrowed, "And when you have nothing left, I will still haunt you. A phantom, hiding in the corner of your eye taking every last crumb of food from your mouth so your hunger drives you to insanity. After they finally cart you off to the insane asylum, I'll do the same to your family starting with your foals. Then I will destroy your siblings, your parents and all the rest. Every last relative until I own everything your extended family has to offer me. Only when everything you care about is gone will I be satisfied with my revenge. I will even haunt your damned dog if you have one."
The pegasus watched in concern as the mare visibly gulped in a most unlady-like fashion. After an uncomfortable moment of silence he decided to try and lighten the mood. "Ya know," Stratta said, "if you keep that scowl on your face it will become permanent. You'll scare away every filly and colt for miles around." He gave a chuckle and a nervous smile that quickly vanished as the moody stallion whirled on him.
"The exact same goes for you!" Clout barked, "You'd better think long and hard about if you really want me to do that job. The second you sell me out, like a certain dead pony recently did, it will not end well for you or your family. I will find every last one of them and destroy them." The crystal pony walked towards Stratta.
"Yeesh, sca-ry!" The stallion nervously fluttered his wings, "You don't have to be so mean, never even crossed my mind." The buckskin continued to glare. "By the way, how would you go about it if y--"
Clout cut off the pegasus' words with the stomp of his hoof. "I don't care if your family lives in the clouds or you tell me you're an orphan. You betray me and I will find every last one. You will all be caged at my command, your lives will all be ruined and you will rue the day you crossed me," he said.
After another uncomfortable moment of silence, Stratta decided on a different tactic. "Change of topic, why don't we get going! Off to the train station we go!" he stallion said in exaggerated enthusiasm and a nervous chuckle as he trotted towards the cobblestone street.
Glacier looked on in worry as Clout was obviously not at all amused. In fact, he was frustrated that both of them were determined to push past the crystal pony's outburst and continue to follow him like a lovestruck yearling.
"No," the thief said sternly.
The pegasus stopped in his tracks and looked to Clout. "What? But you said you would…" Stratta trailed off, not finishing his sentence as he watched the crystal pony trot past him and out of the alley. The archeologist shared a look with the aristocrat before they both began to follow the thief.
Knowing that chatting while the crystal pony was in such an angry mood could only be hazardous to their health, both the pegasus and the unicorn stayed silent as they followed. They both moved when he moved and hid when he hid. They tried to ignore the sick and dying who were cluttering the back alleys, coughing, moaning in pain and begging for medicine. Clout coldly walked right past them.
Glacier had tripped over several and made disgusted squeaks at the sight of their decaying bodies. The thief ignored her plight and decided to use the rooftops instead. The mare watched as the buckskin easily scaled the side of a building and the pegasus flew up into the air.
"Wait, what about--" she began to ask but was cut off as Stratta lifted her off the ground.
"You're heavier than you look." the pegasus said with a grunt.
"I would appreciate it if you would refrain from being rude."
"Well, I could drop you if you'd like."
"No!" she said swiftly, "No, I appreciate the assistance. Thank you."
"Was that so hard?" Stratta asked with a smile as the two of them soared through the air, following Clout as he jumped across several more buildings before descending. The pegasus followed his descent and set the mare down on the cobblestone below.
All three of the ponies looked at a very large building covered in a massive canvas sheet. Two dozen ponies were trotting about the building in odd suits that covered them from mane to tail. The outfits each had a large printed logo on them right where the pony's cutiemark would have been. A very curly number two and a sharp letter "B" colored in black with two white stripes going through the middle of each of the two triangles that made up the letter.
Several high society ponies were lined up in front of a carriage with another large symbol painted on its side. It was a bright yellow triangle with a biohazard symbol in the center of it. The Department of Sanitization were still at Chrysanthemum Blue's mansion cleaning up after the blight report last night.
Glacier broke the small group's silence, "Why have we returned to the manor?"
The crystal pony turned around to address his stalkers. "I am going to retrieve some things I left here. You two are going to stay here, stay hidden and stay out of trouble. Understand?" he asked.
Stratta nodded as Glaciated Era opened her muzzle once more.
"I beg your pardon but, I can assure you that Chrysanthemum Blue only kept her most treasured romance novels within that safe. I have seen the contents myself on several occasions. I do not believe it is worth retrieving." the unicorn stated.
Clout raised an eyebrow. "Good to know but that's not what I'm after." he said before turning and trotting off.
"Alright then." Glacier replied, watching him leave.
The pegasus turned to the mare. "How do you know Ms. Rich-What's-Her-Name Blue?" he asked.
The mare whisked her tail. "She's my cousin."
Leaving his two undesired companions in the hidden alcove of an older apartment building, Clout looked to the streets as he trotted. With the morning light brightening the foggy street, more ponies were roaming and tending to their daily tasks. A young pegasus filly used a broom to sweep dirt away from the entrance to a cheese shop. An earth pony slave could be seen inside of a bank cleaning the window. Scrawled on the window were fancy block letters that spelled out Draconem Reserve: Owned and Operated by Roth's Child. Many unicorn passerby's wearing casual dress were gathering around the Blue Estate, watching the activity and gossiping. In response to the growing crowd, several Shade Nights were galloping to the scene and warning the growing crowd to stay back and let the sanitization team do their jobs uninterrupted.
With everypony's attention on the front of the building, it wasn't difficult for the thief to make his way unnoticed to the rear of the mansion's barred wall. He found the same moss covered pillar he had used some hours ago and began to climb. Just as he reached the top of the fence post he could hear the faint sound of hoof steps on the cobblestone. He dropped down on the other side of the barrier and hid himself within the garden's rose bushes. He winced and decided this had not been one of his better ideas. He began to untangle part of his cloak from the thorns as he kept an eye out for the approaching pony. He yanked another thorn out of the fabric as he watched a foal trot into view.
A faded maroon colored colt trotted along the street. Under his left wing sat his messenger bag, a small blue shield shaped patch with a rearing yellow filly was sewn to its front and it was swollen with the day's newspapers. His dark colored mane bounced as he made his way to his daily route and Clout could see what looked like scars over his left greyed-out eye. He had on a simple stained sand colored shirt with a small bit of lace around the collar that was falling off. His cutiemark looked to be a black cat with green eyes.
The colt's ear twitched at the rustle of the leaves behind the large metal fencing. Clout shrunk down as close to the ground as he could as the foal looked over. The child tilted his head and blinked. The thief held his breath as the seconds ticked by. The foal continued to stand there, looking into the brush. His ears then perked up and a smile formed on his face and he gave Clout a small wave of his hoof. The young papercolt reached back to his saddlebags, grabbed one of his rolled up newspapers and set it on the ground. He pushed it with his nose until it was on the other side of the bars. The foal then gave one last smile at Clout before trotting away.
The crystal pony watched the colt leave. His ears folded back, suspicious of the child. As soon as he decided he was far enough away, Clout finished untangling himself from the rose bush. He grabbed the paper and stuffed it into his saddlebags to figure out the mystery later. He turned around and located his bow and quiver that he had stashed under the foliage before entering the party. Now he was only missing one more thing.
He snuck through the garden and made his way to the rear entrance of the mansion. Before him was the massive canvas sheet. He could smell the faint chemicals leaking through the fabric so he pulled his mask up over his muzzle. To keep the tent from being blown away in the wind, a long tube of fabric filled with sand bordered the entire edge of the tarp. Clout lifted the large sandbag so he could finish his search for the will that he was contracted to retrieve but as soon as he did, a strong waft of arid chemicals hit him like a brick wall. He could smell it so strongly through his mask it caused him to quickly back up, choking and coughing. His eyes burned and he squeezed them shut, his lungs uncontrollably forced him to exhale and he began to get dizzy.
With a trembling hoof, he pulled his mask down and tried his best to breathe in some chemical-free air and stop his coughing but his throat seized in protest. He tried his best not to cough, struggling against his body's involuntary actions as he worried the ponies on the other side of the building would hear him over their own noise. After just standing and breathing for a couple of minutes he was finally able to reasonably intake air without feeling asphyxiated. Clout's limbs were still a bit shaky and his chest ached incredibly. His eyes still stung and his throat was scratchy and throbbed but he knew he couldn't stay there all day. As he moved on, he became disappointed he couldn't throw the will of Chrysanthemum Blue in Flight Risk's face as he beat the crap out of him for setting him up. He knew he couldn't trust that foul pegasus and he shouldn't have. He only did it out of respect for Merchant. Clout clenched his teeth as he imagined that junkie swimming in bits for selling out an unregistered crystal pony. The asshole had done it before when Clout was a colt and despite what Merch claimed about his brother changing he wouldn't ever believe it.
The buckskin peeked around the corner of the tent and watched the ponies move about in their hazard suits. Half a dozen were working a large machine, pouring jugs of liquid into different tubes where the machine did something to it as it made a cacophony of noise. A large pipe was connected to the base of the machine. It stretched the length of the front yard and went under the tarp. One of the hazard ponies stayed where the pipe met the tent to make sure as little gas escaped as possible as the others yelled directions at each other. Several more were attending to the party patrons who were still present, hooking a few up to medical machines or taking blood for whatever testing they were doing.
Clout's ears perked as he saw a small cage on top of a couple sanitization department crates. There was a black furry lump in it and he knew exactly what that lump was. The thief rubbed his burning eyes with a hoof and pulled his mask back up before sneaking closer to the mass of activity.
With so many moving around and the crowd behind the front gates growing out of curiosity, he couldn't get very far. Any nooks or crannies he could have hidden in to get closer were removed by the massive canvas. There were some decorative plants around the front entrance but not enough to get as close as he needed to. And even if he swooped from cover to cover, avoiding the suited team of ponies, anypony in the crowd would be able to spot him sneaking around especially at this time of day. Clout's ears folded as he knew his options were limited. He rubbed his eyes again with a soft grunt of frustration.
A sudden new murmur began in the crowd out front. Clout watched as several Shade Nights ran past. One who was keeping the crowd off of the Blue's property yelled to one running pass. They stopped and responded. All the rest of the guards joined those running off with them after a shout from their commanding officer, deciding that whatever was happening was more important than crowd control. With the perfect distraction at just the right time, the crystal pony took the opportunity to swoop out of cover, grab the cage and run off back to the rear of the building. Once the buck was hidden within the flora of the back garden, he set the cage down on the ground and greeted his small friend.
He gave a couple hard coughs and flinched at the pain in his chest. "Hey Thief. I'm glad you're okay." he said to the rodent in a raspy voice.
Thief stood on her back legs, gripping the cage bars in her tiny paws and twitched her whiskers at him. Clout smiled under his mask, easily unlocked the padlock and opened the cage door. The rat swiftly ran out, climbed the stallion's leg and cuddled into his mane. The pony tilted his head into her cuddle and closed his eyes as relief flooded him that they had not butchered his tiny friend. He let out a shuddering breath before the duo left the empty cage behind, made their way back over the fence and to the unicorn and pegasus that Clout had left behind.
"I'm surprised you both stayed put." the crystal pony commented when he returned to them.
"I will admit that I was slightly apprehensive that you would not return." Glacier said with a sheepish smile.
"Yeah, I'm with her. I'm surprised you didn't just ditch us with how grumpy you were earlier." Stratta responded.
Clout rubbed his eyes and shook his head. "She owes me a mountain of bits, I'm not--" he interrupted himself with a raspy cough, "not going to give that up." Just as the pegasus's ears tilted and the mare opened her mouth, he continued, "What's going on, where are all the guards going?"
"Are you unwell?" the unicorn asked, "You seem impaired." She looked at him in concern and could see his eyes were slightly bloodshot.
Clout looked at her sternly before looking to the pegasus, glad that Stratta got the hint. "The Solar Nation had plans to remove some food shipments from those thugs today. They were going to give it to ponies who really need the food, and there are a lot of them. The Shade Nights have more than plenty so it wouldn't hurt them to learn to share for once." he said as he glared in the direction the guards ran.
The mare decided Stratta got his facts wrong. "Those ruffian rebels would be a more worthwhile company if they actually obeyed the laws." she huffed and swished her tail, "They are doing nothing more than destroying this great nation and they should be held accountable for their undesirable behavior. I do hope the King's guard will contain the rebel's distasteful conduct."
Stratta turned to give a look to Glacier and began to sputter in outrage. "Wha-- How can you-- Who in Tartarus thinks this nation is great? Who in Equus prospers from this stupid laws besides the already rich and powerful? How can you think what the guards do is just? And who the hell talks like the suffering of the innocent are beneath her?" With every question he threw at the aristocratic mare he got louder and more angry. His wings fluttered in frustration as Clout got in between them, preventing Glacier from giving a rebuttal.
"It doesn't concern us so quiet down. We're moving on."
The unicorn and the pegasus matched glares one last time before following the crystal pony out of the alcove. Everypony was still paying attention to the commotion at the mansion so they easily trotted behind the crowd, nopony noticing the stranger walking down the street with the bad cough. The group made their way down the street and toward the train station. Clout led the way while the two stayed silent behind him but he knew they were following him by the sound of their hooves on the cobblestone street.
It wasn't long before their gift of nopony around was gone. There were foals running through the puddles, carriages being driven down the road and ponies dining at open restaurants for breakfast. The thief grew increasingly concerned that somepony would call the guard for a suspicious pony in unusual duds. He decided it would be safer for him to use the thieves' highway so he veered down an alley, took his bow and a rope arrow and made his way to the rooftop of an art gallery building. He stopped only for a moment to catch his breath and un-dizzy himself before he began trotting along the roof tiles. Stratta flew up to him to stop the crystal pony.
"Hey, how is Whats-Her-Name supposed to follow? I mean, I can fly but she kinda can't climb a rope like you can." the pegasus said.
Clout stopped and looked behind himself. "I forgot you were following, you two were so quiet for once." he admitted.
"How can you forget us? You were so angry that we were following--"
"I normally work alone," the buckskin interrupted, "I'm not used to ponies following me. Go tell her we're heading to the train station, it isn't much farther. It's just easier for me to move about the city from the rooftops."
Stratta sighed. "Fine, fine. But don't blame me if she complains at you later. This is the second time you've basically ditched her like this without notice." he said before flying back down to the unicorn.
Clout gave another cough before he continued on his way along the moss-covered shingles of the old Victorian houses. They weren't as elegantly built as the ones in Canterlot but they weren't nearly as bad as the disheveled huts in Estuary Slums. As the smell of the salt sea wafted on the breeze and the sound of the harbor began to come into earshot, he knew he was right when he told the pegasus they weren't far from the train station. He just wished the salt in the air didn't burn his eyes as much as it did. Baltimare had a unique train rail that took it right beside the docks so it was easier to load cargo straight from the cargo ships onto the freight train. No other city had their train station so close to the sea. Because this was the case, it was a common thing for Baltimare's large market to be open so early in the morning. The stallion rubbed his eyes with a hoof and gave a throaty noise of annoyment. He watched as seagulls glided on the breeze above and Thief poked her head out of Clout's hood as she smelled the scent of freshly baked bread. He chuckled as the rat extended herself as much as she could before deciding to climb to his head instead of falling.
"Don't worry, we'll get you some food. I know it smells good doesn't it?" he commented to the small rodent. She licked the back of his ear in response. The crystal pony climbed down from the safety of the rooftops and into the archway of a rundown pub, closed for business so early in the day. He made sure to not enter the market yet as he was expecting a verbal lashing from the spoiled prissy unicorn and he didn't want her to make a scene.
"How dare you attempt to abscond from me!" Glacier scolded as she pranced up to Clout, her many strands of jewelry swaying with each angry step.
Clout gave her a flat look.
"I am a lady and you should do well to remember that sir."
"And I am not just some average pony who can strut around town flashing their jewelry." He gestured at her, "I can't just walk around without somepony seeing me as suspicious and calling the guards on me. Do you see how I'm dressed? Wouldn't this getup raise questions if you saw me lurking around your shop or home? I can't exactly take it off and not be noticed either." he paused to point a hoof at the pegasus as he opened his mouth to spout off a witty comment, "No, I can't just choose a different outfit. If I wore something ordinary ponies wore I wouldn't be able to blend in with the shadows as well as I do. Somepony in my profession needs to be able to stay hidden. Wearing different clothing wouldn't help my cause." he turned back to Glacier, "You, on the other hoof, are perfectly capable of just trotting out in the open without any pony being concerned you're by their shop window. They wouldn't care if you're loitering about. You don't look like you could steal a price tag let alone something worth a bit. In fact, you look like you're a walking advertisement for a free steal."
"I… I could so, do what you do!" the mare sputtered as she complained, "And what do you mean by a free steal! I, sir, do not condone that sort of action. It may be acceptable in other countries and by some low class standards but I am not some broodmare harlot who--"
Clout squeezed his eyes shut in annoyance. "I meant it would be really easy to steal from you. You're wearing your whole closet full of jewelry and I bet you wouldn't even notice if anypony took any of it while you weren't looking."
Before Glacier could open her mouth to give a rebuttal Stratta broke in, "C'mon, we have to get to the train station and find out when it will be here." He trotted in between them to get their attention focused on the marketplace before them.
The morning sun had finally broken through the soft fog layer, the streets before them visible but leaving the air feeling grossly sticky as if it now mixed with the smog of the city mills that bellowed noxious fumes of questionable breathability into the atmosphere. The market was a rectangular shape with three dozen booths set up. Several ships were docked nearby, some of their crew hauled crates while other crew members shouted over the crowd that they had the best goods from the Griffith Isles, others claimed they had the strongest drink from Fillydelphia's breweries and even others claimed they sold exotic wares from the Equestria's swamp-dwelling savage neighbors to the South. The market square was almost packed booth to booth with ponies of all sorts. There were those of high status in the city, unicorns in fancy robes or formal wear enjoying the prospect of buying the best goods before their colleagues could get the chance to. Earth pony slaves wandered about either with their masters, carrying the purchased items or sent here, list and pouch of bits to obey their commands of shopping on behalf of the one who owned them. On occasion, Clout could spot a pony he suspected as a petty thief, looking for any opportune moments to increase their wealth which, if done right, could be an easy thing in such a crowd. Many foals ran underhoof, excited to be in the morning market as well, most likely ignoring their parent's directives to stay close.
Three fillies chased a colt twice their size down the road, all laughing as they tried to catch him. Attempting to dissuade his pursuers, he aimed his hooves for every puddle he spotted. His tactic failed as the little fillies continued their chase. It did, however, work on Glacier as the three adults were caught in the crossfire.
"Agh! Rude!" the unicorn squeaked in rage, "Filthy little cretins!" She stamped her hoof down and watched them continue their game. She then cringed before looking down to her hoof. Both stallions chuckled as she complained how disgusting the commoners kept their streets. "What even is this… filth?" she asked nopony in particular.
"You don't want to know." Clout casually commented as he walked into the crowd.
"It's not mud, that's for sure." Strata added as he followed the crystal pony.
The mare's eyes widened as she extended her hoof away from herself and shook it ever so slightly to try and shake off the manure. She then looked up to see the tails of the stallions getting lost in the crowd. "Wait for me!" Glacier said as she galloped after them.
Not minding the large crowd he could disappear in, Clout squeezed past the herd of ponies. He looked to his right when a shout came from the boats. He couldn't see much from his low vantage point but as long as they ignored him, he didn't care. At the end of the row of booths, he turned left towards the train tracks.
Glacier and Strata once again lost track of their thief, getting pushed around by the bustling market. The mare loudly complained each time her golden chain jewelry was snagged on another pony's saddlebags and the archeologist stopped to help as she and the passerby argued over who was at fault. Stratta caught a stick skinny orange pony trying to steal his leather tool pouch out of his own saddlebags and the pony got a smack for it. The mare's excessively long braided tail got stepped on no less than four times and the pegasus got knocked back into an elderly mare when another pony dominoed into him by an angry stall guard.
Glacier gave the buck an impatient gaze as she watched him help the wrinkled old mare up with a wing. "Are you quite finished? We have misplaced our mutual acquaintance. We are not going to find him if we stop for every distraction."
"I'm not the only one stopping us." Stratta said as he brushed the dirt off of the elderly pony's ripped old dress. He waved to her as she shakily continued on her way before the pegasus turned back to the demanding unicorn.
"I must find where he went!"
Stratta raised an eyebrow at her. "Do you really have to pay him back? I mean, you know he's going to make you give him all the gold you have right?"
She huffed. "Still your muzzle and… fly up there," she waved a hoof in the air, "see if you can locate him."
He glared at her in protest. "I am not your servant or your slave, you can't just order me around!"
"But you are a pegasus." she countered, "Go on, do as you were told." She daintily waved a hoof at him, expecting the stallion to do her bidding.
"No. He was headed to the train station, we just have to go there and we'll find him."
The mare scowled at his response, "You, sir, should do as you are directed by your betters. You--"
"Or what?" he challenged. After a brief pause from the both of them he continued, "That's what I thought. And a unicorn being anypony's better is laughable."
The two of them stared angrily at each other before Stratta suggested they continue the search before the crystal pony abandoned them. As they reached the entrance of the train platform, Clout came trotting out from behind the building that served as the post office and ticket booth. He glanced at the two ponies and gave another couple coughs before veering toward the benches.
"So, when does our train leave?" Stratta asked as he trotted up to Clout.
The thief sat down before answering, "In an hour."
"You have the tickets then?" Glacier asked, "Where, pray tell, is our destination?"
The pegasus fluffed his wings and replied, "We're going to Ponyville, that's where my boss is."
The mare's face scrunched in disgust. "Ponyville," she started, "that rebel camp? What in Equus would those low lifes want with…" She trailed off in thought before realizing, "My, I don't actually believe you have told me your name." Glacier looked to the crystal pony who only ignored her and rubbed his eyes with a hoof in response.
"Why my boss wants him is none of your business. They don't let stuffy unicorns in anyways."
"I beg your pardon but I am not leaving his side!" she insisted with a stomp of her hoof.
Stratta gave her a questioning look as Clout's ears folded.
"Well… I-I mean, not until I have repaid my debt to him of course." The unease in the air began to thicken until the mare abruptly changed the topic of conversation. "Shopping time! Let's go look at their wares, I love shopping!" Glacier exclaimed, obviously faking overenthusiasm for a market that was far below her high-class standards.
"You do what you want, I'm waiting for the train." Clout said as he looked to the empty train tracks, glad to be able to take a break for a minute.
Stratta ignored her and sat next to the crystal pony on the bench. The unicorn gave a pouty face to the two stallions who were not interested in participating. She suddenly grabbed the thief's foreleg and pulled him off of his seat.
"Let's go, this will be fun!" she told him while she hugged his leg to her.
"H-hey!" the crystal pony exclaimed in surprise as he was dragged along, "Don't touch me! Let go!"
Stratta turned around in his seat. He put one of his forelegs on the backrest of the bench and rested his chin on his leg while he watched the two bicker.
"Oh calm down, the train will not arrive for an hour, correct? We have plenty of time to have a little fun!" the unicorn reassured, "I just want to go look at a couple of booths." The mare only managed to drag him a few feet from the benches before he managed to free himself.
"Then go look on your own, I'm not a foalsitter!" he spat angrily.
"A gentlecolt always worries for a mare. Thus, he goes with her to protect her, as her knight in shining armor. Besides, what if I get mugged? There are a lot of shady looking ponies in this market who may do any manner of despicable things to a lady such as myself." she said with a smile.
"Oh, and you don't think I would?" Clout retorted dryly as Garret snickered. The crystal pony gave another hard stare at the unicorn. "You look capable enough to be on your own to me." he told her before giving a small cough.
Glacier pouted for a moment before putting her hooves together. "Please?"
Clout gave her a flat, disinterested look, turned around and began to walk back to the bench. With his head still on his foreleg, Stratta looked to the unicorn mare, then to the buckskin.
"So," the pegasus started, "since we have some time, want to swap cutiemark stories?"
"Ooookkaaayy," Clout said as he made a quick one-eighty, "the market it is." His ears drooped some and he gave a disappointed grunt as he quickly trotted down the steps of the train platform. Overjoyed, Glacier gave a small cheer of victory and trotted after him as Stratta gave a disappointed sigh before following the two from the air.
"Oh, by the way," the mare began as they walked, "how much were you charged for the train tickets? I would be remiss if I did not give you compensation for the one you retrieved for me."
Clout raised an eyebrow at her. "Who says I got you one?"
"Pardon? I had thought you retrieved a ticket for each of us." Glacier asked in shock.
"I didn't. I just--"
"I'll go get them." Stratta said dejectedly.
"Hey, feather-head, If you had let me finish I would have said that I just grabbed a hoof-full. I didn't get any specifically for you two."
Stratta hovered in the air for a moment. "So, then you--"
The crystal pony reached up, grabbed Stratta's long orange tail and yanked it down to the ground before he could finish his sentence. The pegasus' ass landed hard on the wooden dock of the market harbor before Clout's glare bored into him.
"Not so loud." he quietly growled, "Got it?"
Stratta looked down at his rear, ignoring the crystal pony. "Oww, I think you gave me splinters." he said as he rubbed his flank with a hoof. Clout snorted and shook his head in annoyance as he continued on his way. Glacier was suddenly by the thief's side.
"So, from what I understand there is no need to compensate you for the tickets then?" she asked, choosing her phrasing in hopes to not get on his bad side again. He only walked towards the nearest booth.
"You did get at least three though, right?" Stratta asked.
Ignoring the question, Clout looked over the wares of the first vendor. Several different kinds of fish lay lined up in trays on the table. A barrel of clams and one of scallops sat to either side and three wooden crab traps were lined up in front with several crawling around in each. Not as interesting as the booths in The Everfree but they were allowed to sell unique, dangerous or illegal things unlike this market. He watched as the pegasus stallion behind the table rolled up three fish in a newspaper for a bedraggled looking earth pony.
Glacier grimaced at the fish stand. "Does he expect his patrons to eat them raw? He should cook them first. That is utterly revolting!" she quietly commented to the two others in her group.
"Then he would charge them more," Stratta said, "They cook it at home." He raised an eyebrow at her.
She put a hoof to her chest, "Well, if they can afford a chef, I am quite certain they would be able to pay for a decent meal, those look horrid!"
"Are you serious?" Stratta gave her a skeptical look, "You can't be this naïve."
"I am a well read aristocratic mare, I am not naïve, sir!"
"Moving on." Clout interjected as he started walking again. The others followed in silence, their new argument forgotten as they came upon the next booth. Baskets lined with thick canvas cloth crowded the table, each filled with a different colored powder. The overpowering aroma of the booth discouraged the trio from window shopping this spice vendor's wares. They moved on to the next one.
This booth had fine woven fabrics on display. Each colored cloth had a beautiful design spotted delicately with tiny gems to accentuate the cloth's artwork. The gypsy-looking lavender unicorn mare was busy with several customers while many more admired her silks as they waited. Glacier stopped for a moment to marvel at the wares. Both the stallions also stopped and waited on her but Stratta only had patience enough for a couple of minutes before continuing on. Clout took the time to nonchalantly lighten somepony's purse and fill his own. He almost got caught when he involuntarily coughed and got their attention. Glacier noticed her buck escorts getting bored of waiting and scrambled to catch up to them.
The fourth booth they came to had a large assortment of carved images. Some were of a bizarre creature made of a pony, dragon, jackal and a raven. A few on the same side of the table represented a faceless white alicorn stallion. Three of the statues depicted the two doing battle with an inscription on the base that read The Two at Odds will only find Chaos if they do not find Harmony. Another set of wooden statues showed two alicorn mares encircling each other, one with a moon in her hooves and the other the sun. In the center of the circle the two mares made was another, smaller alicorn holding the planet of Equus. A few were intricate looking six pointed stars while others were of a regal, strange looking unicorn figure. The unicorn pony statue had slender legs, cloven hooves, a curved horn and a stick-skinny tail with a ball of fluff on its end. The vast majority of the statue's carved fur was curly and unusually long. The inscription simply said Tranquility. There were also a few statues of King Sombra as well as King Discord but not as many of this booth's customers were as interested in them as they were in the other carved images.
Clout scoffed at the religious paraphernalia as he continued on to the next booth. Glacier marveled at the statues of the Trinity Architects while Stratta gave a disapproving frown to the Chaos statues.
When all three reached the next booth, they came upon a female griffon selling what the pegasus could only gather were rocks. Uninterested, he moved onto the final stall in the row while Glacier and Clout looked a little while longer. The griffon herself had a large curving beak that almost seemed too big for her face. Her bird half was black and white while her feline half was tan with black speckles and the shortest tail Clout had ever seen on a griffon. A long speckled brown lizard wrapped its skinny tail around her neck as she held a stone in her webbed talons. The rocks in question neither of the ponies had ever seen in Equestria before. They were varied in color, some were brown and some milky caramel. Others were slate with golden fragments or marbled pearl with silver and green in them. The two could hear the griffon speak in her strange accent to a customer about her wares as she carefully drilled a hole through the center of the stone she held so she could add it to the necklace she was making. Apparently Griffonstone had the name for a reason and gemstones, beaded jewelry and intricate stonemasonry work was a specialty of their lands.
The crystal pony and unicorn mare caught up with Stratta who they saw had a pastry in his hooves. The final stand in the row offered freshly baked bread and pastries that were being cooked and brought out by two fillies from their house directly behind the booth. The unicorn mare ignored it entirely while Clout took advantage of the large crowd, stealing a loaf of bread. He followed the two ponies to the thinner part of the crowd and they all stopped for a moment. He gave a piece of the bread to his rat friend who took it happily and scurried into one of his saddlebags while the other two ponies started up in conversation.
"Well, that was unproductive." Stratta commented.
"Why, yes it was, we have less time until our fare arrives."
"Speaking of which," Clout said, "I'm going back to the train platform."
As he began to turn around, Glacier objected, "But you mustn't, we have yet to finish looking at all the booths."
As the crystal pony opened his muzzle to give an angry retort, he was interrupted by a small filly. She had a basket full of several different kinds of flowers that was held by a strap that went around the back of her neck. She was a light pink color with a dark blue mane and tail that had two streaks of color in it. Her frilly red dress was stained, ripped, obviously old and gave off a faint smell as if she stole it from a corpse.
"Hello mister," the filly said in a raspy voice, "would you like to buy a flower for your marefriend?" She gave a small hopeful smile at him.
"No." he said bluntly. Glacier gave a disappointed whine while he elaborated, "I don't want to buy a flower and she's not my marefriend. I don't even know her." he waved a hoof in the unicorn's direction.
The little filly looked down. "Okay, sorry to bother you." she said.
As she began to turn away, Clout sighed and grumbled about how much he hated kids before he tossed the almost full loaf of bread in her basket. It crushed a few of the flowers but put a smile on the filly's face. She thanked him before galloping away through the crowd.
He looked to his two forced companions and saw Stratta smiling while Glacier was still upset he didn't buy her a flower. "Walk." he snorted, irritated for the hundredth time that day. Instead of making their way back on the other side of the market, they decided to find out why ponies were gathered at the opposite side of the clearing. They could see a long line of ponies, mostly earth and pegasai ponies, waiting to get whatever was at the front of the line. As the three walked beside it, they noticed all of the ponies were holding a ticket. Getting closer to the front of the line, they could make out a voice above the buzz of the market. The speech sounded like a stallion's and they could only make out a few words here and there.
"What is he saying?" Glacier asked.
"Something about King Discord I think." Clout replied with a small cough.
Stratta nodded in confirmation. "A preacher of the Two at Odds I think. He's mostly reciting lines from their Harmony Quartet books."
Glacier turned to the pegasus. "Oh, are you one of those 'King Discord is the archfiend' types?"
"Not that it's any of your business but more than half the ponies who are a part of the Solar Nation pray to the Bard of Harmony so I can recognize the scriptures when I hear them."
The three came upon the stand that everypony was lined up in front of and saw it was a government booth. Clout's ears folded slightly as he watched a very young earth pony colt give the guard his food voucher. They verified it, made a mark on their clipboard and hoofed over a small bag. The colt made an objection over how little there was and he got a smack for it by a guard. The preacher's words grew louder as he shouted in opposition to the 'gifts' from the false king and the guards grew tired of it. Stratta suggested they move on as a small scuffle broke out between the guards and some of the stallion's followers.
Closer to the docks was yet another crowd of ponies. This time the trio could see why, even with everypony blocking the way. A large stage was set up by the peer with many boxes to either side. A bright yellow banner with 2B Pharmaceuticals written on it was hung proudly above. Much of the crowd was being kept at bay by Spectrum Fliers that Glacier suspected were hired bodyguards.
Stratta had a smile on his face as he could see two tall yellow unicorns with white and red manes trot onto stage. One of the two sported a mustache while the other was clean shaven. "Hey! Let's get a closer look, I've never seen one of their live advertisements before!"
Clout raised an eyebrow as the pegasus happily squeezed himself through the herd. The crystal pony had never seen somepony so enthusiastic over pharmaceuticals before but he followed the two into the crowd nonetheless. As they squeezed their way to the front, the two unicorns on stage began their amateur theatrical performance. Background music began and the two brothers each raised a hoof in unison to give a symmetrical bow. The crowd began to cheer in excitement as they watched the duo on stage.
Everypony knew of the scientific miracles their company blessed Equestria with. From soaps and lotion to cough syrup, pain meds and water purifiers. Their company created disinfectant sprays, humidifiers and gas masks. All of which and so much more was available for consumer purchase thanks to the Flim Flam brothers. Everypony knew that without them, Equestria would have collapsed from the plague long ago. With their help the country limped along and continued its fight against the deadly disease. The crowd and everypony on the dock knew the brothers only put on a performance advertisement when they had a new product to release. The hired bodyguards were enough to keep the excited crow at bay when they had their guns out and ready to deter any bad behavior.
"Mares and gentlecolts," the mustached stallion, Flim, began, "if you would give us just a moment of your time." The eager herd of ponies tried their best to settle down so they could hear them better, some ponies were shushing their neighbors while others scolded loud foals.
"My brother and I have come here to this great city of Baltimare for you," the clean shaven one, Flam, said as he pointed out into the crowd, "Yes! Just for you, to bring you the latest and greatest of technologies!"
"Innovation from our top experts that will change the world as we know it!" Flam exclaimed.
"Allow us," Flim said as the background music upped its tempo, "the founders of Two Brothers Pharmaceuticals to introduce you to our new sensational product!"
"A breakthrough in science!"
"A comfort to your health!"
"And a weight off your mind!" they both shouted in unison. With that introduction, they finally began to sing to the tune of the music playing from the speakers. The audience cheered in anticipation of the song.
"Everypony knows these times are tough and brutal." one began.
"With struggle after struggle your efforts soon seem futile." The other brother said as he ran his hooves down the sides of his face in fake exhaustion.
The tempo of the tune slowed a bit for the next line. "The day to day monotony of work is just a start…"
One brother picked up a cardboard cutout of a skin and bones foal off of the stage floor for a prop as he sang, "You starve yourself to feed your foals, it only breaks your heart…" He tilted his head down and put a hoof on his chest.
The other one lifted an empty sack with a bit sign on it and tried in vain to dump its contents out onto the floor. "Your taxes rise, you get laid off, your landlord kicks you out."
The somber tune continued its depressing sound as the one holding the cardboard foal shackled its thinly drawn hooves and passed it to his brother in exchange for the empty sack. "The workhouse full, you sell your foals, your heart just fills with doubt!"
"What little you have left, taken by a thief in the night." One of them used their magic to float the empty sack off stage while they both extended a hoof out towards it watching it fly out of their reach.
The music slowed even more, almost to a crawl as they continued to describe the worst life had to offer. "Will you stand back up and try again or be taken by the blight?" they both asked the crowd. With that the tempo finally picked up to a more cheerful tune.
"Just seven days is what they say before you fall down dead!" Flim sang as his brother clutched his chest, spun around on one hoof and fell on his back in obvious fake death, holding up a single white lily in his hooves.
Flam quickly revived as he jumped up to sing his line while his brother acted. "Painful boils molt your coat, forcing you to bed!" The clean shaven stallion pulled a string attached to his striped dress shirt. As the action somehow inflated several tiny balloons attached to his outfit to represent boils, he pulled a large tuft of fake fur out of a collar pocket and tossed it forward, the hairs softly blowing in the morning sea breeze. He then began to sing.
"A wheezing cough and shaking hooves, blood comes out both ends!" The other stallion coughed a couple times before magicing a ribbon to be thrown in front of him and one behind. He put a hoof over his muzzle in embarrassment.
One brother got down on his knees as he acted out praying to a god. "You suffer through organ failure, death is a Godsend!"
Flim looked to his brother in terror as he asked him, "All that sounds very scary! Whatever can we do?"
Flam smiled to his twin, "It's very simple brother and we've brought it just for you!" the buck pointed a hoof out to the throng of ponies before them.
The tune grew more excited as they came to the conclusion of their advertisement. The unicorn siblings put a leg over each other's shoulder as they once again sang in unison, "Two Brothers Pharmaceuticals presents to you today the miracle technology that's really child's play!" A large ball got tossed into the crowd with their logo on it by a guard and each pony it came to bounced it into the air with their heads as they continued to listen in anticipation.
Flam broke the brotherly hold as he winked at the crowd with a hoof to his muzzle, "Two bits for a bottle with our famous guarantee!"
They both raised their hooves in the air as together they used their magic to create a display of colored sparks in the heavens above that gave off loud pops as they appeared. Some of them formed the shape of their company's logo while other sparks formed a bottle on either side of it.
They both sang the final line in unison as loud as they could over the roar of the magical fireworks, "2B curative tonic will make that dreaded blight flee!"
For only a moment the entire crowd stood stock still, processing that last line. Once everyone realized what it meant, every creature shoved their way forward to the stage, desperate to get their hooves on the miracle elixir. With all the bodies and limbs flailing about in a frenzied rush, Clout lost sight of his two temporary traveling companions. Being shorter than average, he was unable to see above the writhing mass. The collective cacophony of anger and desperation made the shouts of Flim, Flam and their guards just mute noise that got lost in the sea of shouts.
The thief was shoved this way and that. He tried to determine which way was out of the crowd but whichever way he tried to shove himself, he was shoved in the mutual direction everypony else was trying to go. In his struggle the buck had a hoof stepped on, he was shoved forward into a mare who kicked him in the muzzle. Somepony slammed into his side and he bumped into another stallion who shoved him back. The little black rodent hiding in Clout's saddle bags decided she did not like getting squished and barely clung onto her ride as she climbed her way into his hood. Clout's ears folded back as he was shoved forward more, face first into another pony's tail. Somepony fell onto his back and he immediately attempted to buck them off of him.
Another body suddenly slammed into his side and knocked the wind out of him, causing him to have another coughing fit as he fell to the floor. He landed on top of another pony who was lying on the ground. The pony who had been atop Clout fell on top of the one who shoved the thief sideways. As the buckskin attempted to get to his hooves, he had to scramble back as quickly as he could to avoid getting stepped on by another pony going in reverse as quickly as she could. As much as the crystal pony was used to ducking and dodging, Clout was getting real tired of being pushed around. As he was plowed into from behind again, he was thrown forward into the rear end of a filly, propelling her forward from the domino effect. He decided he would have to hurt the pegasus for such a stupid idea, all he wanted to do was sit on the bench and wait for the train.
A loud sharp report stilled and silenced the dock.
Clout gave a couple of coughs and rubbed his head, a bit dizzy, before he looked. The filly he shoved forward lye still on the wooden dock in front of him, the pegasus guard with a smoking gun held in his wing feathers.
"We told you all to back up!" the pegasus shouted with a scowl on his face. Glowering at everypony, he continued while his employers looked on in shock from their stage, "They have plenty of tonic in stock, you'll all get what you have the bits for. Now for the last time, one at a time and no rushing the stage! I'm not going to say it again!"
The crystal pony stood in place, staring at the dead foal as the crowd moved around them. His chest burned and his legs shook but all he could focus on was the tiny filly on the ground being ignored by everypony else.
"There you are!" a mare's voice said as it got closer to him. "I lost you when these peasants became unruly but I am quite pleased I was able to locate you." Glacier looked at him as he continued to stare at the foal in shock. She grew worried at his unresponsiveness. "Are you all together? You seem out of sorts." she commented.
Clout blinked and sucked in a breath. He looked to the unicorn mare then back to the foal. "I-I," he began and slightly shook his head, "Fine, I'm fine." Without saying another word he made his way towards the train station, this time with much more ease through the crowd. Glacier looked on in concern.
"I imagine any pony would be quite unsettled being so close to meeting their end." she commented, trying to get the crystal pony to confide in her. To her disappointment, he ignored her comment and continued on past the booths towards his destination. This time he was more than determined not to let either pony change his mind of planting his flank firmly on the train station bench until the sound of the horn could be heard.
"Hey guys!" Stratta said to them as he glided down from the sky, "Thought I'd never find you when everypony started going crazy. I flew up into the air and couldn't make heads or tails if they were all going to kill each other over that new tonic stuff." He landed next to them as they reached the wooden deck. Clout gave the pegasus a sharp look before smacking him hard with a hoof. "Oow!" he cried out as he held his hurt shoulder with a wing, "That was so mean, what was that for?"
"For making me stupidly follow you into a crowd of ponies where I had to listen to the stupidest of songs before I was stupidly subjected to being kicked, stepped on and shoved by ten million stupid strangers!" the thief complained as he raised a hoof in the direction they came from. He stomped away to sit on a nearby bench to pout on while the other two followed.
"I too would give you a good smack if it weren't so unlady-like." the mare unhappily commented before sitting next to the buckskin, "Mares such as myself should not be treated in such a barbaric manner. I was treated to the same unruly display that he was. I even had somepony rudely come up behind me! Nopony should so impolitely shove their muzzle under a lady's tail unless given express permission to do so." She harrumphed and swished the end of her tail that hung off the bench they sat on.
At that comment Clout sucked in a sharp breath and looked away. The train couldn't come soon enough. Standing in front of the two, Stratta looked from Glacier to the uncomfortable expression on Clout's face. The pegasus gave a wicked grin. "So Clout, was she any good?" he asked.
The buckskin gave a few throaty coughs as his ears flattened and his face reddened. Glacier gave a confused look to the grey buck as he teased the thief. She turned back to Clout as he continued to look away. "Pardon me but what is he talking about?" she asked.
"I…" he began, "have no--" idea, he was about to say when he was interrupted by the train's loud horn. Clout eagerly stood and took a step toward the incoming train as it screeched to a slow halt. Stratta chuckled as Glacier whined about not getting the joke. The buckskin ignored the two as he stepped aboard the second the doors opened, shoving somepony aside who was trying to exit. He dropped two tickets on the floor as he took his own out of his saddlebag, not caring if the two behind him noticed or not. He hoofed over his ticket which was punched by the ticket pony and when he got it back he stuffed it into a pocket. The unicorn and pegasus behind him picked up the dropped passes, had them stamped and followed the buckskin to a booth.
"There was no need to drop our admission onto the floor." Glacier commented as she scooched herself into the booth, forcing Clout to sit as closed to the window as possible. The crystal pony stiffened and sat up straighter as the mare continued to slide in uncomfortably close.
"I didn't do it on purpose," Clout lied, "they fell out when I grabbed mine. I just didn't bother picking them up." He looked out the window, away from the gaze of the two ponies and was unsure why he felt the need to make an excuse to them.
The charcoal mare brushed a hoof through the length of her mane as she replied, "No harm came to them so think nothing of it." She got a tired grunt in response.
Sensing an awkward silence bubbling to the surface, Stratta decided on a topic of conversation. "So Clout, got any family?"
Just as the pegasus finished the question, the train lurched forward jolting all the ponies into the back of the seat in front of them. Glacier got a piece of her jewelry strands caught on an exposed spring from the back of the booth in front of her, Stratta bit his tongue hard enough to make it bleed and the jolt helped wake Clout to attention for a moment as Thief was thrown to the floor of the train car.
The unicorn bolted out of her seat at the sight of the rodent in a very unlady-like manor but was fiercely held in place by her tangled jewelry. Clout gave a few coughs as he and Stratta stared at the mare, neither moving to help. Flustered and often glancing over at the rat she shakily attempted to free her bonds as quickly as she could.
"Graceful, very graceful." Stratta commented while Clout reached down to help his tiny friend back up. As soon as the mare detached herself, she moved around Stratta and walked as nonchalantly as she could manage to the back door of the train cart, attempting to casually read the safety signs posted by the exit.
"What's the matter?" Stratta asked the aristopony, "It doesn't seem very upper class to get that badly shaken over something so small." He looked to Clout as the buckskin petted his tiny friend who sat on his lap. The pegasus tried to hide his own unease by continuing to tease the prissy unicorn. "Whatcha doing over there? Why don't you come sit down?" he asked.
"No!" Glacier said at once, refusing to look at the two stallions, "No, I-uh, have um… never been on a commoner's mode of transportation before and--," she sucked in a breath, "it, um, it is… quite important for one to review the safety instructions when using a new mode of transportation."
Clout continued to ignore the two as he rested his forehead on the window next to him. He stared off into space as the cold of the glass slightly helped with his growing headache.
"How about I give you the abridged version," the pegasus told her, "Sit in the bench while the train is in motion. If you don't want anything stolen, sit near your companions."
Glacier's ear twitched and she gulped as she slowly looked back to the bucks. Then she noticed how many other ponies were on the train. With half the seats full and many staring at her, some lost in their own conversations and others messing with their bags, she thought it would be best to rejoin her two acquaintances in the booth. She slowly and daintily made her way back and when it was in sight she kept her gaze trained on the rodent. The mare sat as close to the edge of the seat as she could, forcing Stratta to sit in the middle of the two. Glacier was at the farthest point from Thief but close enough to the two stallions that she was confident no strangers would try anything with her.
"Now was that so hard?"
"Quite."
Seeing Clout's expression in the train window, he guessed this was not the time to strike up the conversation of his personal life. "So!" not one for letting silence happen, Stratta continued to talk, "Despite the craziness at the end, that was quite a show!" He looked to them, expecting commentary, disappointed they both stayed silent. "So do you think that stuff really works?" he asked. The pegasus looked to Clout and elbowed him. The crystal pony blinked and looked to Stratta.
"Huh?"
"The tonic! You think this plague is finally over? That would be amazing!"
Clout grumbled as he tried to hide a yawn with a sigh. "I don't put much faith in bottled miracles." he finally said, rubbing an eye with a hoof and hoping that answer would satisfy the annoying pegasus.
"Aww, come on, you're not even going to entertain the idea that the stuff actually works."
"Nope."
"You're no fun." Stratta sighed.
The mare decided to distract herself from her fears and join in on the conversation. "Only half of 2B Pharmaceuticals' products actually work as intended. I doubt it is anything more than apple juice and beet leaves. A placebo to make a profit off of the lower class." she said.
"Oh and they don't do that to the rich?" Stratta retorted, "That tent thing and the whole 'Sanitization Department' crap? That does nothing too, just a ploy to get your bits."
The mare glared at him, "It does so, it has prevented us wealthy from succumbing to the blight. That is the reason you poor perish so often, you could not afford a proper cleansing of your home."
"Still a placebo."
The mare continued to glare at the pegasus' cocky grin.
"Hey!" the buck decided it was time for a change of topic, "You're a unicorn, well, not a poor one."
Glacier gave him a flat look as Clout gave a small cough.
"What does your family do? I mean like, how do they earn their massive wealth? Ooh! Do they make enough bits to fill a swimming pool? You could go swimming in your cash, that would be so much fun!" he clopped his hooves together in excitement at the thought.
"You are such a foal." Glacier said.
"Trying to swim in bits doesn't work. Actually kinda hurts." Clout commented, "Don't even make for a comfy bed. Stupid bits."
Both ponies looked to Clout, surprised he joined in.
"So you have attempted this before, have you?" the mare asked.
Clout only gave an incoherent grumble in response.
"I would imagine a slab of pointy metal wouldn't be too comfortable to sleep on." Stratta said.
"To answer your previous question," Glacier said to the pegasus, "My father is the one who founded the Frozen Paradise Corporation. He did inherit some money from his father but not being the eldest he did not receive the largest portion. Nonetheless, he made it work." She brushed her mane out of her vision, an expression of pride for her family's earnings beamed on her face.
"I heard that company was tanking since other unicorns found it easy to do a freezing spell." Clout's comment broke the mare's façade.
"I, well, we-- We provide clean consumable ice. Freezing water from a commoner's tap is hardly safe!" she said, trying to justify her family's business.
Stratta put a hoof to his muzzle in thought. "So," he began, "if anypony can do a freezing spell, what's the point of buying ice? Seems like your dad wasn't the brightest when thinking up his business venture. I would have gone with jackets! Everypony loves jackets! Cool looking ones with an enchantment to protect the wearer from those annoying chaos bubbles. Hmm, then again, no one's come up with that kind of spell yet… Oh! If you did, the business wouldn't fail like it is now!"
"Simpleton," Glacier said, "Do you not think something like that would anger King Discord?"
"Oh yeah." came the reply.
"If I may inquire, what exactly is your occupation? I get that you work for the rebels but what precisely do you do? Your cutiemark does nothing as far as hints go. I certainly could not imagine bones helping the rebellion's cause in any measure." The mare questioned as she gestured at the pegasus' flank.
Stratta gave a slight glare. "Are you making fun of my cutiemark?" he asked, "I like my cutiemark.
"I had meant no offense," she said a little haughtily, "I merely noted your talents could not be very useful to their cause. Unless of course it means you sweep the bodies of the deceased out of the roadway."
"Well it sure sounded like you meant to offend. I'm an archeologist actually. I collect rare artifacts for them to sell so they have extra bits to use towards the cause. I do other jobs now and then but I am quite useful." Stratta huffed in defense, "Besides, what the heck does your cutiemark even mean? Can't have anything to do with your family's ice business being a weird clock wrapped in string, doesn't even make any sense."
Glacier snorted out an uncouth burst of laughter before catching herself, putting a hoof to her muzzle. She cleared her throat but still couldn't hold back a thin smile. "I'm a time traveler, I laugh at archeologists." She said, "And just because my family has a business doesn't mean I must be a participant."
The pegasus scoffed, "Yeah, right. No pony can do that spell."
"Do you not believe m--"
The mare was cut off by the loud horn of the train as it sounded its arrival in Ponyville. Clout squinted and gave a cough at the unwanted brightness of the day through the window as the train came to a stop. The clouds above were still thick but the rain had stopped and the sun shone down where it could. Thief climbed up from his lap to his shoulder, ready to go wherever her friend took them. The buck stood up even before the train came to a complete stop and stared at the two ponies who blocked his path, very annoyed that neither of them were moving so he could leave.
"This conversation isn't over by the way, you're going to have to prove you can do what you say you can do." Stratta challenged the mare as they watched several other ponies pass by to exit the train.
"I can and I shall, name the time and location and I will leave you in awe." she said in response, ready to show up the lowly archeologist.
When the other ponies on the train moved to the exit, both Glacier and Stratta stood to make their own exit. Clout grumbled a, 'Finally.' as he practically shoved them out of the booth.
"Well that was rather rude." the mare commented as she stepped onto the platform. The three exited the train station and reached Ponyville's massive door.
"You can prove yourself after we talk to Wulf Song." the pegasus told her with a grin as he trotted over to the guards.
Not paying attention to the ponies behind him, Clout continued walking to his own destination. Glacier looked to one stallion and then the other before following Clout toward the Everfree Forest.
"Heeeyyyy Crossfire!" Stratta said with a big grin, "Didn't know you'd be on duty today."
The guard put down the geode and pushed his fancy looking magnifying eye glasses up to the top of his head. When he saw who was addressing him, his eyes went wide and his cheeks flushed in embarrassment at the sight of the pegasus. The unicorn's pale yellow coat made his blush hard to hide so he tilted his head down to let his long grey and red bangs hide his face. "G-Garrett, you're back! ...Early… Um, hi." came the weak reply.
The pegasus chuckled knowingly. "Hey could you guys open up the gates? We need in to see Wulf." he said before leaning in close to the unicorn's ear, "And since I'm in the neighborhood, if you're free, tonight we could…" he trailed off leaving the rest of the sentence to Cross' imagination.
Cross got a shiver up his spine as his blush deepened.
"Oi, quit teasin' the lad ya git." a large built buck said as he walked up to them. He was a light gray colored Earth pony with a ghostly green mane that had a single black stripe through it. The sclera of his left eye was a bright green instead of the normal white and he wore heavy plated armor, a spear attached to his right side and an old revolver on his left foreleg.
"Bomby! Aww, you can join in too if you want!" Stratta said, clearly excited at the prospect.
"Eh, no. I don't do, er, that." came the awkward reply, "By the weh, who's 'we'?"
The pegasus' ears perked up, "Oh! I should introduce you! This is--" he turned around to introduce his companions only to discover both the prissy unicorn and his thief had vanished. He took off into the air to get a better vantage point to see if he could spot them. As soon as he saw a long blue tail slip in through the brush a ways away, he turned back towards the gate guards. "I'll be right back, sorry!" With that he bolted off to follow them.
"Oww! Ugh, this pathway could certainly do with some maintenance." Glacier complained as she, yet again, attempted to untangle her snagged mane. With the branch thoroughly entwined in both her mane and jewelry she was having a tough time trying to untangle it. As her frustrated grumbles continued, Clout looked back to her, coughed again, and stopped walking. He watched her fight with the branch to no avail for a few more seconds before walking over to help. He gently grabbed her mane with one hoof and the stick with the other before freeing her from the bush. She watched in astonishment how easily he got the branch out of her mane. After he had turned back around and continued to walk, she watched him for a moment longer before trotting to catch up.
"Thank you." she said, "I am quite grateful for your assistance."
"Why didn't you just ask for help."
Taken aback by his statement she paused for a moment. "W-well, to be honest I had not believed you would offer your assistance so generously." she said with a hint of shame in her voice at the accusation.
"I'm not that big of an asshole you know." he said, "I may have to charge you if that becomes a habit though."
Before the two could get any farther, Stratta landed in front of them, an annoyed expression on his face. "Where are you going?" he asked Clout, "We're supposed to be going that way." he pointed a hoof towards Ponyville. "You know, to see my boss to talk about the job. Ring any bells?"
Clout raised an eyebrow. "You think just because we're close by that we're going there right this second." he said as he started walking around the pegasus, "I have better things to do."
"Wha-- but he's… You need-- And the job! I just--" the archeologist sputtered as the mare followed the buckskin, amused at the pegasus' plight. "But you got the train tickets to--" He cut himself off as he flew in front of Clout again, this time flying backwards instead since the crystal pony wasn't stopping. "You are not allowed to pawn my job onto somepony else!" he demanded.
"Be quiet, your job isn't as high on my list of priorities as you may think it is." Clout said as he glared ahead.
Stratta crossed his forelegs, "I thought you wanted to get rid of me as soon as possible. I'm not leaving your side until you do the job you know. It can't be anypony else, it has to be you." He gave a determined look to the buckskin.
Glacier decided to butt into the conversation, "If I may inquire, why must it be him specifically?"
"Because he's the master thief! He's the best at what he does and everypony knows it!" Stratta said with a big confident grin on his muzzle.
"No." Clout corrected, "I am a great thief but not many ponies know. If you try to make a career out of thieving and you gain a reputation you're not doing it right." He continued to glare at the pegasus as his smile faltered. "How in Equus a pony like you found out let alone the entirety of the damned rebels means I'm not doing a good enough job."
Stratta waved his hooves at Clout, "N-no! You're doing the best job! I-I just…" he trailed off as he rubbed the back of his head with a hoof and looked away.
"Whatever." came the disinterested response as the thief pushed past the floating pony and into The Everfree.
"Look, I didn't--" Stratta tried to explain as he landed and trotted to Clout's side, "No one at the Solar Nation even knows and I wasn't looking for you specifically. Well, s-sort of…" he trailed off for a second as the thief looked into every building's window as they passed. "I just asked around town for the best thief. That shop pony's the one who pointed me in your direction." He continued to stare at Clout, hoping to get a response out of the grump. Seeing him look through yet another window they passed, Stratta resigned to staying quiet. He lowered his head a bit and slowed his pace some. "Garrett, you idiot." he muttered under his breath to himself as his ears drooped.
Clout, too busy stomping along the cracked wooden path and glaring at every window he could look through, didn't even acknowledge the pegasus. Though it was just after mid-day, The Everfree wasn't as bustling as it normally was today. A little more than half of the wares booths were open, not as many patrons were in the local taverns and there were only the occasional group of shady looking characters gossiping amongst themselves.
Glacier got a shiver up her spine as she made eye contact with several members of one group. They smiled at her as their companions turned to look at her as well. She could see the weapons on their belts, one bore a large scar on his face while two others were each missing a limb. She gulped and walked closer to Clout, asking him with a slightly shaky voice, "Uh, i-if I may inquire, where is our destination and please tell me we will arrive soon."
The crystal pony gave a low growl as he turned a corner, picking up his pace. Ahead of them, they could see Merchant's large pony head shaped tree. It was shaded from the sun rays by the thick foliage above but its appearance gave the mare pause for a second as she realized, "Is that our destination? It is quite… grotesque." she trailed off, not wanting to enter into someplace that looked like a severed pony head. Her desire to not be left alone in a place with this many untrustworthy creatures everywhere pushed her forward to follow the two stallions into the entrance. Glacier and Stratta followed behind Clout whose ears were flat in a boiling rage as he stomped his way through the small shop. Glacier glanced over curiously at the small red filly quietly snoring on the floor by a shelf. She had fallen asleep while restocking and had a large mace in her hooves that she was using as a pillow.
The crystal pony stopped in front of the counter. "Where is he." he slowly demanded with a growl.
Not looking up from his ledger, Merchant gave a small wave of his hoof. "Hello Clout." he said as he made a few marks in his book, "Who are you looking for?"
"Who do you think!" he barked back, startling the two behind him as well as waking the foal from her slumber. He took in a shuddering breath as he held back another cough, trying not to interrupt his own outburst.
Merchant gave a knowing sigh, closed his ledger and took his glasses off of his muzzle. He set them both on the counter and looked to Clout. He saw the colt's eyes were bloodshot. His posture drooped with exhaustion and his expression was one of deprecated outrage despite his furious tone of voice. "Clout," he said, "go down stairs and go to sleep."
"W-wait, we can't stay, we need to--" Stratta tried to interrupt.
Clout seethed. "No," he snarled, ignoring the pegasus, "you will tell me where Flight Risk is!" The two ponies behind him each backed up a step as he reared up and slammed both forehooves on the counter for emphasis.
The purple pony glanced to his glasses to make sure the smashing of hooves hadn't damaged them before continuing to address the huffy pony. "He's not here." Merchant said patiently, "I can find out where he went but I'll need a couple of hours. In the meantime, you should go downstairs."
"I need to--" came the immediate response.
"Clout." Merchant warned.
The crystal pony flinched at the tone of voice. With that single word from the shopkeeper, he got off the counter and slowly walked around. He made his way to the basement stairs, refusing to look at Merchant and unwilling to give him the satisfaction of seeing the defeat on the younger pony's face. Both Glacier and Stratta watched in awe as the buckskin obeyed the orders without another word and disappeared down the steps.
"How much do you charge?" came the question that broke the silence.
All three ponies looked down at Crimson Kit who was staring at Garrett quizzically.
He blinked at her. "Uh, excuse me?" he asked, thoroughly confused.
"Her!" Crimson said as she irritatedly pointed to Glacier, "How much do you charge to rent out your marefriend?"
"Honey, that's not something that…" Merchant began but trailed off as Glacier spoke up.
"Is the filly implying what I think she's implying?" the mare asked in an offended tone of voice.
"Well, uh, yes." her father replied as he walked around the counter.
"What?" Kit asked with a glare, "I wanna rent her like the stallions at the bar do with each other. I wanna know why they rent their marefriends so I'm gunna rent her and see what's all the big deal with renting mares. I wanna see how different it is from buying a slave."
Glacier glared, and Stratta chuckled as Merchant gave an awkward clear of his throat. "Are you done stocking those shelves I asked you to young filly?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Why do I have to do it? It's boring cause you won't let me play with them, I just have to put them on the stupid shelf." she complained as she referenced the pile of weapons she was sleeping on not too long ago.
"Come on Kit," he said to her, "it's not that hard of a task." He lowered his head down to her level before he offered, "Tell you what, you finish that, I'll talk to Clout's new friends and then we'll go out for ice cream. What do you say?" He gave her a smile and watched as she saluted, gave a 'Yes boss!' and got to work.
"So, how in the world did you actually get that stubborn buck to do what you told him?" Stratta asked as he watched the filly gallop the few feet to her chore.
The shopkeeper turned to the two and chuckled, "Years of practice."
"Why did you send him to his chambers in the middle of the day? Seems counterproductive to me." the mare commented.
"You do realize ponies in the thieving business do their deeds in the dark, right?" came the pegasus' snarky response.
She gave a huff of annoyance, "I am not an ignoramus thank you very much. However, I am simply attempting to inquire as to why we are not progressing in whatever it is that he came here for. It is obvious you only gave him that answer in an attempt to pacify his anger." she waved a hoof at the purple pony, "I would rather not linger so long in such a disreputable city as this one. It is quite clear aristoponies such as myself do not last long with so many suspect characters lingering about."
Merchant blinked at her for a moment. "Sorry? I don't speak fancy." Much to her chagrin, the pegasus laughed.
"I guess I had forgotten most ponies who are not well to do have not learned proper modern ponish." she exasperated and rubbed her temple with a hoof.
Stratta smiled, still internally laughing at her. "She means where can we stay that's safe while we wait for him." he said with a small chuckle.
"Oh!" the shopkeeper said, "Well, I wouldn't suggest browsing shops, especially with her in that gaudy outfit." She glared at him, trying to set him on fire with her gaze. "What? It screams 'steal from me'. Stop glaring at me, I've had enough of that for one day." She looked away to glare at his wares. "If you do plan to continue going with him, I would actually suggest using one of my spare rooms downstairs and sleeping as well. He only works at night, I'm surprised to see him awake so late in the day."
"Ugh, with his attitude, I'm kind of having second thoughts about actually having him do the job…" the pegasus said dejectedly as he rubbed the back of his head with a wing.
Glacier gave a small sigh, "He has been rather quarrelsome."
"Yeah, Clout's always been one of those types of ponies who turns into a real ass if he doesn't get enough sleep." Merchant explained, "Once he's up he should be easier to deal with. He looked like he had been through the ringer for that job he was on, I'm not surprised he's pissed at Flight. Wonder what happened." He glanced back to the hatch behind the counter.
Stratta shrugged as Glacier rubbed one foreleg with the other. "Well… the guards apprehended him. Sort of…" she said lamely, "Oh but I saved him from that auction and I promised I would repay him of course." She gave a thin smile.
"No you didn't, I did!" Stratta argued.
The purple pony's eyes went wide, "Auction, you said auction? What?" They ignored him as they restarted their argument once more.
"Hey," Kit called up to him, "I'm done, ice cream time." she demanded.
"I--" Merchant began but looked down to his daughter, back up to the two and back down, "...Right, ice cream. Give me just one more moment. I'm going to show them to their rooms and I'll be right back okay?"
"Ice cream now!"
"Behave young filly." he said as he turned back to the two, "Come on, I'll show you where you can stay. Don't worry about payment. Anypony who's a friend of Clout's is somepony to be treasured." When they stopped their argument and glared at one another, he turned around and walked down to the basement.
They followed him down the stairs and into a wide brightly lit hallway. Though it was a simple dirt cavern that was obviously dug out by hoof, it was decorated in such a way it felt warm and homey. The tunnel braces were painted a light blue and had gold colored cloth draped across each gap up near the ceiling. Every couple spaces between the braces there was a lantern attached to the wall making the underground bright, and causing the decorated glass bottles that hung from the ceiling to sparkle. The right side of the hall had pictures in frames hung above a royal blue couch that sat across from the doors that were on the left side of the tunnel. Next to the couch was a table with a dying houseplant.
On top of the long sapphire colored floor rug that had an elegant pattern to it were foal toys scattered about. Tiny log shaped pieces of wood were used to make a small house with the extra pieces scattered about while carved pony characters stood around it. Toy guns were on either side of the couch and a cushion was up ended by one of them as if to block the pretend bullets. Colored pieces of chalk lay scattered by several of the wall supports and drawings of cats decorated most of the lower half of them. Some had old faded pictures made of paint. Clumsy doodles of large winged beasts with sharp teeth breathing fire and eating ponies with only a few drawings of a yellow pony with a white mane, one of the pony surrounded by flames. Several books lay haphazardly on the couch and another was on the floor across the hallway as if it were thrown away for being a bad story.
They passed by a door slightly cracked open that had a drawing on the front of it. One of the two ponies on the front was a small golden colt with a white mane while the other pony was slightly taller but the only remnants of it were light gray hooves and a purple mane. The pony drawing was mutilated so much with a sharp object that whoever damaged the foal's drawing almost cut a hole through the door.
"Sorry about the mess," Merchant said, gesturing to the toys everywhere, "I wasn't exactly expecting guests."
Past the couch was another hallway with more doors and they could see that the end of the hallway they were walking down opened up to a large room containing a dining room table and kitchen area. The earth pony stopped at the other hallway and pointed a hoof down it.
"You can pick whatever room you'd like. They're all pretty much the same. Bathroom is this door here, closest to the main hallway so it's easy to find and use whatever you'd like in the kitchen if you want to."
Glacier tentatively opened one of the room doors and grimaced at the inside. Stratta looked to Merchant and asked, "So, why do you have so many rooms? Your place doesn't seem to be an inn."
Merchant chuckled, "No reason." He glanced back at the damaged door before continuing, "I guess I just like to have something to do in my downtime so, digging it is."
The pegasus raised an eyebrow before turning towards the hallway of rooms. "Thanks, I guess." he told the shopkeeper, "I was really hoping we could get to talk to Wulf about that job as soon as possible because there is a time limit but, I guess we do have a few days so…"
"Hey, from what you told me you're right, this is important." Merchant walked over and put a hoof on Stratta's back, "Clout will find a way to get it done, I promise. He's pretty good at what he does despite my reservations about it."
Stratta's gaze dropped to the floor, "I don't know, he may be good but this may be too much for anypony. I mean, stealing from the King? Who can do that and get away with it?"
The older pony put his hoof back to the ground, "Well, if I know that colt, he's going to do it or die trying. I just hope it's the latter."
"Yeah." came the distant reply.
As Merchant left the two to their own devices, he passed by the open room and peeked in. The room was simple with a single queen sized bed in the center of the far wall. It was neatly made, the sheets covered in a thick layer of dust from being undisturbed for so long. The book shelf in the corner to the right of the bed was crooked, pulled away from the wall only enough for what looked like a pile of old stained sheets. Clout's gear was tossed in the middle of the floor and the purple stallion could see him curled up on the lump. Too large for the small nest, his limbs stuck out the side. With his tail tucked tightly between his legs, Clout was fast asleep, breathing in soft raspy breaths.
The purple buck's ears drooped some and he sighed. He walked back down the hallway to another door, opened the linen closet, pulled out a blanket and closed it. He quietly went back to Clout's room and draped the sheet on top of the buckskin before walking out of the room and closing the door.
“I don't believe men are born to be killers, I don't believe the world can't be saved. How did you get here and when did it start? An innocent child with a thorn in his heart.” 12 Stones - World So Cold
Blue eyes shut tight against the harsh winds that stung them. The foal tried to cry in pain but his tears froze against his fur as quickly as they appeared. Breathing in the frigid, angry air burned his throat and chest worse than anything he had ever felt. The tiny golden colt tried to lift a leg to step forward but it was weighed down by the thick snow underhoof and the exhaustion of his small body. It took all his efforts to take a single step. He panted from the exertion and shuddered from the jolt of pain that surged through him to his core from his arctic environment. The colt's small frame collapsed into the snow leaving him with barely any strength to call out for help. More tears froze on his cheeks at the hopelessness of his situation as his raspy shouts were lost to the raging winds that surrounded him.
He heard a noise as he felt the winds shift around him. A whisper that was calling out to him. Opening his eyes, he saw the white powder of his landscape bubble up and take the shape of a pony. At first it was as small as he was but with the blink of an eye the white silhouette grew to a monstrous size. It grew and grew until the massive beast was all the golden foal could see. Once it was formed, it bent down to look at him with its empty eyes.
"Don't worry," the creature told him as it gave a toothy grin. The behemoth's smile extended to the back of its head, splitting the shape almost completely in half. "I will help you." it promised.
The colt was terrified as he fought against the great suction that pulled him and the swirling snow forward. He looked up to see gargantuan dark wings thrust forth. The gust of wind from the flapping of wings shoved the colt off of his hooves and into the cold night air. He landed hard on a wooden platform, the air forced from his lungs. Gasping and coughing for breath, the colt held a hoof to his aching side as he shakily stood and blinked hard. Before him were rows and rows of seats, each filled with a faceless pony. His eyes went wide with confusion and terror as all the lights above focused on him, making the tiny colt the center of attention.
"W-what's going on? Where am I?" the colt asked the crowd as he trembled, "I d-don't want to be here, p-please somepony, help!" As he cried out and gasped as he backed up in fear.
A jolt of electricity ran through him from behind and drove him to screech in pain and stumble forward. As he regained his balance, he could hear chains rattle beneath him with his shaky body. The stallion panted as he looked to his hooves and saw he was shackled tightly, preventing any escape. He looked wild-eyed at the crowd before him again as he began to hyperventilate.
"No! Please!!" he begged them in a shaky voice, "I-I can't, not again!"
Once again, the stallion tried to back away from the rows of ponies who were focused on him, raising their paddles in a bidding war. His chest tightened as he felt his heart slam against his ribcage in panic. He began to get nauseous and increasingly light-headed, feeling as if he was drowning in a sea of numbers. He tried to swallow the rising urge to vomit past the lump in his throat when he was suddenly hit from behind with the electric prod.
Rage filled his lungs as he gasped, the pain in his chest loosening some. He looked to his right with fury-filled eyes at the auctioneer. Purple jacket, rosy cheeks, a top hat tall as a tree and a wicked smile that he wanted to rip off the pony's face with his teeth. The adult sized chains fell off the adolescent colt's hooves as he pulled his bow and an arrow out from behind him.
"I said not again! Not ever again!! I'll kill you!" he roared, glaring daggers at the pony with the sickening smile. The colt set the arrow, pulled back and let it fly to its target. As he blinked, a loud sharp report sounded in the hollow space and he was a stallion once more.
The stage, the crowd and the auctioneer were gone and he found himself in a black void. He looked around him to see a crowd of ponies. The golden stallion couldn't make out any details like he was in a thick fog. Their blurred faces focused on what was ahead of them for a moment before they dispersed. He stood, watching them walk away. More and more ponies passed him, none taking notice of him as they continued and the extensive herd of ponies all around never seemed to thin. After a moment of watching them, he finally noticed that there was something on the ground in front of him.
Looking down, he could see a shape much clearer than the ponies who trotted past. His heart sank and his breath hitched in his throat as he saw in horror what lay before him. A tiny filly with a light pink coat and a dark blue mane. Her flower basket was splattered with blood and its contents were spilled out on the cobblestone ground. Several different kinds of flowers, some of them crushed, and a half eaten loaf of bread were wet from the small mud puddle they had fallen into. The frilly red dress she wore was disturbed by the gentle breeze that all the bodies moving about made and her eyes stared off into the nothingness.
"What? No, but I didn't…!" he tried to explain to her as he looked at his hooves. Horrified at the firearm he held, he threw the gun away and it slid across the floor, lost in the multitude of strangers. His ears folded and he backed away a few steps.
"And what did they do to you?!" an outraged voice reverberated around him, "You had no right to kill them!"
The stallion backed up another step as he looked all around him, the crowd fading away leaving only the dead foal. "It wasn't-- I didn't… I-I…" he said, trying in vain to say it wasn't his fault as tears welled up in his eyes.
"I am very disappointed in you." the voice told him as it sadly turned away.
"No! Please, I'm sorry, I didn't--" the golden stallion told it, "Don't leave me!" He gave a shuddering breath, clenched his eyes shut and took another step back. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." he said to the floor. He sniffled as tears fell and he looked up into the nothingness, hoping the voice was still there. Opening his muzzle to speak again, he lost his footing and fell.
This time, the tiny golden colt landed belly down on something soft and squeaky. When he opened his eyes, he could see a mattress was his landing pad. His hooves were each tied to a corner of the bed. He pulled at each of his bonds as he once again cried out for help, terrified of what was going to happen to him. The door of the room opened and his eyes grew wide when he saw who entered.
Relief flooded the colt as he saw a tall grey filly with a lavender mane was followed by a white colt with a dark brown mane. A short yellow stallion walked in next and he was followed by a cream colored colt with a light green mane. The last pony to enter was a tan mare with white socks and a sandy colored mane. The colt tied to the mattress smiled, so glad to see them all alive that tears formed in his eyes.
"Dad, help please? I'm stuck." he asked the yellow stallion. None of the five ponies moved. He called out to them again but they just stood there like dolls. The little colt could see deep emerald eyes behind them appearing from the darkness. As they got closer, his cries to the five in front of him grew so frantic his voice went hoarse. The wind had returned, only this time it blew thick dark smoke into a shape around those bright green eyes. The colt tugged at his bonds in terror as the black beast opened its mouth. He could see the fiery pits of Tartarus within for just a second before it bellowed flames down upon the five puppets. The colt could do nothing more than weep on the bed as he watched his friends and family turn to ash before him.
Blue eyes opened to see a tiny rodent nose in front of his face. He blinked a few times and his vision came in to focus on the young black rat sitting on his muzzle. He sucked in a deep breath and sighed.
"You know what would be awesome?" he asked Thief, "If my dreams weren't always one giant guilt trip." She twitched her nose at him in response. "Yeah, probably," Clout said as he sat up, "but it's never going to happen. Talking to ponies gets, ngh, messy…" He rubbed a hoof against his chest as the rat's ears perked up and she lifted her head. "Yes, I'm talking to you about it but with talking to you things don't get messy." Thief climbed to the top of his head. "Well, that's because I can pretend I know what you're saying to me." He stood up, shook himself slightly and looked up at her with an unamused expression. "Don't patronize me." Clout gently took his small friend off of his head and set her on the ground. "I gotta get my gear on. We can't lie in bed forever, we have work to do." he told her as he walked over to the pile of stuff he dumped on the floor several hours ago.
As he slipped into his duds, Thief scampered over to the closed door to crawl under the thin space between it and the floor. Clout finished adjusting his cloak, walked over to the door and opened it. He could hear the sound of Merchant chuckling in the kitchen.
"Well it sounds like your dad was a really good buck."
"Yeah, he was." came Stratta's voice. It was filled with a sad fondness, "That's why I--"
The sound of the closing door interrupted their conversation.
"Oh, Clout, evening!" the pegasus waved a hoof at him. He then realized, "Uh, sorry, that would be morning to you, right?"
Ignoring Stratta, Clout walked up to Merchant. He looked at the older buck for a moment before giving a sigh and looking away. "Sorry." the crystal pony told him.
Merchant gave him a warm smile, "Don't worry about it." He watched as Clout awkwardly rubbed his chest with a hoof and continued to stay silent. "So I heard you were pretty angry with me when Garrett told you that I told him to have you do this client talk yourself."
The crystal pony's gaze quickly shifted back to Merchant. "You know my rules, I don't talk to clients Merch, you do that." he said, obviously miffed with his friend.
The purple stallion looked at Stratta and gave a smile. "I already have and I decided, after getting all the details, that this is one commission talk you need to do yourself." he told the colt happily.
The pegasus gave Clout a big grin as the buckskin narrowed his eyes at Merchant. "Where is Flight." he said, changing the subject.
The purple pony cringed, "Well…" he began as Clout's ears flattened.
"He took off didn't he."
"Yes." Merchant replied but quickly elaborated, "But not for the reason you think! Uh… maybe…" The thief raised an eyebrow. "He left for Hayseed Swamps to try and get away from the ponies who paid him for that document. He couldn't produce a fake in time and now they're pretty pissed."
Clout swished his tail. "I wouldn't doubt there's another reason he took the coward's way out." he grumbled.
"That means next on your agenda is my job, right?" Stratta asked, a bit hesitant.
"I think I'm going to make a trip to the Southern border, I hear it's nice this time of year. Perfect barbeque weather."
Merchant gave the colt an unamused expression, "Clout, that's not even funny."
"Who said that was a joke?" he asked with a stern expression, "Roasted pegasus makes a perfect bribe for a dragon if I ever need a favor." The crystal pony saw both stallions give him a concerned look while behind them, Thief climbed out of one cupboard and into another with practiced skill, a small piece of bread in her mouth.
Stratta fluttered his wings nervously. "This job can't wait that long, there's a time limit…" he said lamely.
The purple stallion looked to Clout earnestly. "You are going to do this job." he told him firmly.
"Why." the buckskin childishly demanded, "This isn't something I do. It's too risky to talk one on one with others, that's why we have this system Merch."
"You talked to Flight one on one just yesterday." came the retort.
"That's because he's Flight. I know what kind of threat he is and I know how to take him down if need be." Clout told the earth pony, "And I know nopony in town likes him enough to set a trap, he owes too many people a lot of bits. Not to mention, no pony in this town would even dare try to sell me for the bits I'm worth because they don't want to piss you off."
"Clout--"
"I'm not willingly walking into a town full of untrustworthy ponies who could ambush me! Especially not Ponyville!"
Stratta gave him a smile. "It's okay, I'll be there! I won't leave your side. Trust me, there isn't a single pony in the Solar Nation who would want to put you in chains." the pegasus said enthusiastically.
The crystal pony glared at Stratta, "I don't trust you. I hardly even know you."
Stratta's ears drooped some and he lost his smile. Merchant stood up from his cushion and walked to Clout. "You trust me though." The colt's ears folded slightly. "I've been around, I actually know quite a few of the ponies who live in Ponyville and they're some good folks." he told the buckskin. Clout opened his muzzle but Merchant preemptively interrupted, "Look, you can't go your entire life without speaking to ponies. Besides, I want you to have a better life than this."
"I talk to ponies." came the defiant response.
"Oh yeah? Who do you talk to?"
"Lots of ponies. All the time. Just… nopony you'd know." Clout replied, "And what's wrong with the way I live my life?"
"Well," Stratta piped in, "for one: stealing is wrong."
Clout glared at the pegasus. "Nopony asked you."
Merchant sighed. "Clout, I want something more for you. Thieves don't grow old, they end up hanged and for you, maybe even worse. I worry every day for you."
"Well you shouldn't, I don't get caught."
"Technically you did on your last job." the pegasus commented. Clout ignored him.
"And for the hundredth time, I don't want to have this conversation." the crystal pony argued.
"What I want for you is--"
"To find a mare, settle down, have some foals and grow old." Clout said in a mocking tone of voice, "Yes, I know, you've told me this over and over. It's not gunna happen Merch and you know why I can't do that." He glared at the older pony.
Merchant gave him a sad look and said, "You could if you would give somepony a chance." Seeing the crystal pony refuse to budge on the issue once again, Merchant decided to drop that particular conversation topic for the moment. "Fine." he said, "But at least do this one job then I won't make you do anything like this ever again."
The buckskin eyed him for a moment, thinking it over. He sucked in a breath. "Fine." Clout told them, "Fine, I'll do it. But y--"
He was cut off when Merch threw a leg over him. "I knew you would! I knew you were a good colt deep down!" he said as he grinned Stratta.
"What?" Clout asked in confusion.
The purple pony gave the crystal pony a wink as Stratta smiled. "And hey, maybe this venture into uncharted territory will help you find the marefriend of your dreams." the old stallion joked hopefully.
Clout sighed and shook his head. "You just never stop, do you." he said with a half smile.
Merchant gave him a small squeeze. "That's what I'm here for!" he said as he took his hoof off of Clout.
"Fuck, can you fuck faces keep it down?" an angry voice yelled at them from down the hall, "Do any of you shit stains know what fucking time it is? It's shut-the-fuck-up o'clock. So, you know, shut the fuck up!"
"So which are we? Fuck faces or shit stains?" Clout asked her.
Kit squinted her half-asleep eyes at him, "What?"
"Which are we? Fuck faces or shit stains because we kinda can't be both simultaneously." he elaborated as Thief climbed off of the kitchen counter and up onto his back, satisfied with her kitchen adventure.
The tiny red filly rubbed an eye with a hoof. "What? I… you… Ugh!" she sputtered before she gave a cry of utter exasperation, "Just, shut up!" She went back into her room and slammed the door as hard as she could, causing dirt to sprinkle down from the roof of the cavern.
All three stallions chuckled at the younger pony as they heard another door open.
"She has a rather barbaric way of stating it but she is highly accurate." Glacier told them as she walked down the hall, "You gentlestallions are quite boisterous."
"Wait, gentle?" Merchant questioned.
The mare had done her long mane and tail up in an elegantly but ever so slightly messy bun. She had removed all her golden chain jewelry, replacing it with businesslike attire. A pale gray collared shirt with rolled up sleeves was under a dark maroon vest. Her saddlebag was strapped around her waist and she used her magic to tuck a stray strand of her mane behind her ear.
"What happened to all your hoity-toity jewelry?" the pegasus asked her.
Glacier gave a smile. "After how frequently my adornments had gotten entangled in refuse of late, I had thought an adjustment of attire would be appropriate." she told him, "I had a further prospect to adorn myself more to Clout's liking seeing as how he is our escort for the time being. I would not wish to hamper him from his errands as I had before."
Since his other stalker was finally ready, the crystal thief decided it was time to go. Ignoring the unicorn's statements, Clout walked past her without a second glance. "Let's get this stupid job over with." he said with a sigh, obviously not excited about this latest commission.
As the three traveling companions ascended the stairs, they could hear Merchant send them off with a, "Toodles then."
They exited the shop through the beaded curtain and began down the path back into town. Clout pulled his hood over his head and his mask over his muzzle to conceal as much of himself as he could. With how dark it was outside, he knew the guards working the Ponyville gate wouldn't hesitate to shove a torch light in his face so he wanted to hinder their 'good look' at him as much as he could.
"You, sir, you are a pegasus--" the unicorn said, directing her statement to Stratta.
"Oh, you noticed, have you?" he interrupted her as he mockingly flapped his wings.
"Yes, very amusing." she said with an eye roll before continuing, "If I am not mistaken, pegasai control the weather, yes? Why must they make it so cold at night?" She shivered at the chill in the air.
Stratta gave a sigh of annoyance as he looked away from the mare. "I... don't know, I'm not a weather pony." he told her. Knowing that answer wouldn't satisfy her question he tried to elaborate, "It's something about the cycle of seasons or something. During a certain time of year, some plants need to go into a sort of hibernation... thing, I think… And the cold is how they do that, maybe. I don't know, go ask a weather pony!"
Wanting to ignore the intimidating creatures all around them in the mercenary city, Glacier continued their conversation, "Cold makes the plants hibernate? More like they perish. Those pegasai brutes only want us to freeze and starve, do they not? If there is anypony to blame for the food shortages that those ruffian rebels are so fond of complaining about, they very well should address the matter with those dwelling in the clouds. The Kings have no control over such things and crops do not flourish in freezing temperatures. If they would only keep the weather at an ideal warmth, there would be bountiful crops all year long." She swished her tail and gave a harrumph at the very idea to blame those in charge.
Stratta scoffed as he glared at her, "I don't know what country you've been living in if you think it's the pegasai's fault. And how in the world do you think they have no control over the weather? Discord can make it overcast with cotton candy clouds, rain chocolate milk and hail popcorn that pops when it hits the ground with a snap of his claw."
Clout ignored their argument as he walked along. He noticed a lot of ponies and griffons were out as usual but there was a tension to the air. He saw many of them verbally hashing out what sounded like petty issues. Somepony bumped into someone else and both parties refused to ignore the matter, others having shouting matches over goods or prices and others began to fight over the terms of commissions. He could hear yelling from multiple ponies at the Crippled Cragidile Inn and the distinct voice of Hydroplane but with noise all about the town it was hard to hear what they were going on about. Those who were staying out of the fighting were swiftly completing their nightly errands and making their way off the streets. A small group of creatures made their way to an inn, two ponies hauling carts in the same direction were walking at a faster pace than just a leisurely stroll and the weekly night market was unusually closed tonight.
"Clout, you agree with me, right?" Stratta asked in an of-course-you-do tone of voice.
The crystal pony watched as three slavers hurried their cargo along in the direction of the public slave barn. A pegasus mare tripped over her chains and they whipped her for it. From this distance, she appeared to be almost solid white with some faint color in her long mane and a really short tail. "What?" came his disinterested response as he continued to watch the mare.
"If King Discord actually cared, he would just poof food into existence and not let ponies starve! Aren't you paying any attention?"
After the slaves and their masters disappeared behind a building, Clout quickened his pace. "We need to get out of here, something's going on." he told them.
"Are you… But…" the pegasus began.
The unicorn gave a dainty laugh of triumph. "I told you he would see it my way!"
"Look Ms. Prissy Horn," Stratta growled, "Just because he didn't answer doesn't mean he takes your side."
Even with the two of them continuing to bicker, they matched the crystal pony's speed and soon reached the edge of town. As they began along the salt stone path Clout interrupted their argument, "Hey, uh, Feather Head."
"Garrett."
"Yeah, whatever. When you were talking to Merchant, did he mention anything going on in town tonight?" he asked, swiveling his ears back behind him some.
The pegasus scratched his chin with a wing in thought. "Um, no, he didn't mention anything like that. We didn't even talk about the town. We talked about other things!" he said grinning at the thief.
"Is there cause for concern?" Glacier asked him.
"No." came the reply, "It's nothing." Clout said as he furrowed his brows.
The three stayed silent as they trotted along. Above them, the stars twinkled brightly and few clouds remained. Though the half moon did not give off much light, they could see the looming structure without much difficulty. The holes in the wall from the recent attack looked to be mostly patched but it was hard to tell how reinforced they were. Three guards stood at attention in front of the gate, another slowly wandered the still destroyed train platform while two more were quietly chatting out front of the small shack to the side of the gate.
Stratta gave a small, "Aww," of disappointment when he didn't see Crossfire anywhere. He trotted slightly ahead of Clout and Glacier to address the sentry ponies. "Hi guys!" the pegasus said cheerfully to the group.
Short Stack glared at him. "Stratta you were supposed to report in two days ago." she scolded, "Why have you not done so yet? You do know how many rules you've broken this past week, right?"
Stratta gave her a big carefree smile as he waved a wing, "Oh, it's fine. Don't worry about that. Hey, could you let us through the gate?" He nodded his head slightly, assuming their immediate answer would be an obvious yes.
The mare's jaw clenched. "Don't worry about it?" she repeated back in anger, "You still have a mountain of incomplete paperwork not turned in and you're not worried about it?" Short took a threatening step forward, "I should have you demoted for slacking off on your duties!"
The pegasus gave a sly grin. "It's just paperwork. Besides," he said, "we're rebels. Isn't it supposed to be in our resume that we don't often follow the rules?" He gave a satisfactory chuckle as she only growled in response. "Look, I finally found somepony to do that job Wulf's had in mind for months now, so... If you would let us in, we'll be on our way."
"Wulf has plenty of changlings he could send on that stupid mission of his. He hasn't done it yet because nopony believes him that it will work not to mention it's a suicide mission."
"Changlings?" Glacier asked.
Ignoring the aristopony, Stratta continued to argue with the commander, "No, he hasn't sent anypony because he doesn't want anypony to get hurt. They don't know what they're doing when it comes to stealing. The master thief on the other hoof," he pointed a wing behind himself to Clout, "he can totally pull it off!"
Commander Short Stack used her magic to pull a lit torch from the wall next to the gate. She walked closer to Clout to get a better look at him using the small fire. The crystal pony squinted his eyes at the fire as she stared him down.
Stratta shoved his way between the two and batted the torch away with a wing. "Will you knock it off, he's fine now let us in."
"I want both of them thoroughly interrogated before they're allowed through my gates," Short Stack demanded, "I refuse to let untrustworthy ponies into my city."
Stratta scoffed in disbelief. "First of all, it's not your gate or your town." he told her, "Second, I told you, he's fine to let in. Don't you trust me?"
"No." came the blunt answer, "You have proven multiple times over that due to your libido, you have an incredible lack of judgement when it comes to the honorable nature of others."
Clout raised an eyebrow at the pegasus' back while Glacier glared.
The pegasus put a hoof to his muzzle to try and make their conversation at least slightly more private. "Could you keep that on the down-low, I don't want him getting the wrong idea." he harshly whispered, "Besides, it's not like that this time." He put his hoof down and gave another big smile. "He's the real deal!"
The commander eyed him suspiciously. "The unicorn." she demanded.
"Huh?" Stratta blinked, "Oh, her. You can do whatever with her. She's basically a nopony anyway." He waved a wing, dismissing the issue.
Glacier stomped a hoof and folded her ears back, "I would greatly appreciate it if you would refrain from referring to me as a 'nopony'." she scolded, "I am Glaciated Era, daughter of the great Hailstone, founder and CEO of the Frozen Paradise Corporation. If you are permitting Clout to enter your district, I too demand ingress. Wherever he proceeds, I shall accompany him." She put a dignified hoof to her chest with her long-winded introduction.
"You are an aristocratic unicorn," Short Stack said, "You will not be given access to Ponyville."
Glacier's ears folded back and she took a threatening step towards the other mare as the guards pointed their weapons at her to protect their commanding officer. "You will grant me access! If I do not enter, he will not enter!" she said as she pointed a hoof next to her.
Short Stack's eyes widened. "He's gone! Everypony, keep your guard up and search the area. The thief is missing." She yelled to her subordinates. She then turned to the pegasus, "Stratta, if we get attacked or if anything goes missing because you brought him here, it will not end well for you." she threatened before glaring at Glacier, "Silver, take her for a thorough interrogation."
The light dapple pegasus nervously stepped forward and aimed her spear at the mare as instructed. "Y-yes ma'am." came the shaky reply.
The crystal pony watched as Glacier was taken to the small shack for questioning that he was taken to a few days prior. The rest of the ponies, Stratta included, searched the area. Clout pulled his rope arrow out of the side of the wall as he sat atop it. He looked to Thief on his shoulder as he rewound the loose rope. "If i knew it was going to be this much of a pain in the ass just to get into the stupid city, I would have put up more of a fight with Merchant about this job." he told the rat. He put his used arrow away and sighed. "Well, I told him I'd do it so I guess we'd better get going and find this Wulf pony."
Looking past the walls he saw the town of Ponyville, a Solar Nation stronghold. The half lit moon hid the finer details of the place but he could make out many building tops. It was as if the original buildings were put up with proper construction using plaster, insulation and paint. Additions beyond the older structures were thrown together strictly with wood and nails. Additional rooms atop the buildings, catwalks between and miniature housing between the nicer buildings looked feeble and barely standing. Just a few walls for support and a roof would provide for the overabundance of residents thanks to thousands of freed slaves the rebels refused to abandon.
The wall itself wasn't much taller than the highest building, not including the massive tree in the middle of town. Part of the wall acted as a parapet for an inner walkway that was crudely built for patrols. He could see several guards in the distance along the path but none had noticed him. He got off the top of the wall and set hoof on the rickety structure before climbing down one of its supports. When he stood on the ground he knew belonged to the rebels, he gave a slight cringe that he finally entered Ponyville. Long ago, he had swore to himself that he would never again come to this wretched town but here he was. His ears folded at the thought of more nightmares from his past making him not want to sleep but he steeled his resolve and walked forward.
To his left he could see the closed gate. More ponies were stationed to guard here than outside. Each ready at their post in full armor and bearing multiple types of weapons. Only a few were actually at attention though. Many were quietly chatting with each other and he spotted two ponies who were sleeping standing up. Many large cement blocks and damaged hunks of steel were scattered about as barricades and gravel was used to fill the many potholes in the dirt road.
Aside from the guards by the wall, the town was void of night life. No guards were patrolling the streets, nopony was out getting shitface drunk and no delinquent foals were out past their bedtime. Clout walked in the middle of the road, uneasy about how quiet it was and he was constantly looking over his shoulder. The only sounds were the distant chatter of the guards on the other side of the gate, his padded hooves on the slightly damp dirt street and the wind that was softly blowing a squeaky bakery sign. Thief popped her head out of Clout's cloak and sniffed at the air. The crystal pony looked to her then further down the road where the rodent's nose was pointed.
As he continued along the path he could make out a figure sitting at a bench. Slowly getting closer he saw who she was. A caramel colored coat with cream legs and belly, her mane was a reddish brown with almost black tips to it. Her wings and tail were very different then the last time he saw her. Bat-like wings were tucked in at her sides and her lengthy tail hung off the bench. The long tuft of fur at the end almost hid a sharp curved stinger like that of a scorpion. Her golden-yellow eyes were staring at the stars above and she held a hot mug of tea in her hooves.
Clout stopped and looked around the street. Not finding a clear alleyway to use, he took his bow off his back and grabbed a rope arrow. "Come on," he quietly told Thief, "Let's go a different way." As he made his way to a building on the opposite side of the street from the mare, another pegasus swiftly landed in front of him.
"There you are!" Stratta exclaimed, "Why did you run off like that? You almost got me in big trouble!"
The crystal pony gave him a flat look. "Seems to me you got yourself in trouble without my help." he pointed out, "I was tired of waiting and she pisses me off. I thought I would bypass the headache and find Wulf myself."
"You don't even know where he is."
"He's your leader, right?" Clout said, "He's either in the big tree fortress thing or in the tallest building. Not that hard to figure out." He set the arrow and pulled back on his bow. As he lifted it high to aim for the top of the building the pegasus put a hoof on the weapon, gently pushing it down.
"Actually you're wrong," he said, "several years ago he gave his home to some slaves he rescued. Said they needed it more than he did."
Clout raised an eyebrow at him.
"He sleeps in one of the alley lean-to structures now. It may be cold some nights but he says he refuses to put ponies in living conditions he's not willing to live in himself."
The crystal pony put his bow and arrow away. "Fine," he said, "where is he."
"Probably sleeping." Stratta said, pointing out the obvious, "I mean, it is one in the morning." He gave a disappointed sigh before saying, "But if you insist on seeing him now, he's just a couple of allies down." He pointed down the road with a wing. "Oh!" he said when he noticed the mare on the bench, "Hi Charity!" He waved a wing at her in greeting. She gave a small wave of her hoof back at him. "Come on, let's go say hi. You'd like Charity, she's really nice." The enthusiastic pegasus trotted happily over to the mare before looking back to the crystal pony. Noticing he wasn't moving, he complained, "Aren't you coming?"
Clout's ears drooped some and he gave an annoyed grunt before slowly walking over. When he got just a few feet away he stopped, wanting to keep his distance. Being much closer to her than before, he could see that time had taken its toll on her.
Stratta smiled. "Charity, this is Clout. Clout, this is--"
"Clout?" Charity interrupted, "As in Clout Upshot?" She slowly got off the bench, set her mug of tea where she previously sat and walked uncomfortably close to the crystal pony. The mare proceeded to pull his mask down and she rudely shoved his hood off of his head, irritated he was hiding from her. Charity examined the pony, looking at his blue eyes, golden coat, dark muzzle and his short black and white mane. She ignored the young black rat on his shoulder as the mare stared at the buckskin in disbelief. Thief, being exposed to the chill in the air when Charity shoved the hood down around Clout's shoulders, proceeded to go hide under the crystal pony's cloak. "It is you." she said breathlessly.
Clout furrowed his brow and looked away. "Hi Charity." came his disgruntled response.
She gave him a warm smile, "I'm glad to see you're doing well."
"Can we go see Wulf already." the crystal pony grumbled to the other stallion.
Stratta looked to Clout then to Charity. "What's wrong? Did you two used to date and had a bad breakup or something?" he asked, thoroughly confused.
The crystal pony glared daggers at him. "Are you kidding? She's damned near thirty years older than me!"
"I used to care for him long ago when he was a colt," Charity elaborated, "He's probably avoiding me because of bad memories."
"And that's exactly why I was going to scale that building instead of continuing down the road." Clout grumbled, "Can we leave now."
Stratta put a comforting wing over the buckskin's back and he was promptly shoved away by the grumpy stallion. "Aww, come on, don't be rude to Charity, she cared for you as a colt right? You should be more grateful"
Charity smiled. "Garrett, don't worry about it. This is actually a whole lot better than he used to be towards others." she said with a chuckle.
Stratta's ears perked up. "Wait a second," he said with realization, "you knew him as a colt! You could tell me what he was like as a kid since he keeps avoiding my questions!" He fluttered his wings in excitement.
"And that's our cue to leave." Clout said as he grabbed his pegasus companion by the collar of his shirt and began to drag him away.
"You know," Stratta started as he fumbled along in the crystal pony's grasp, "just because we're leaving doesn't mean I'm not going to ask her later. I live here so we do see each other quite often."
Clout stopped to glare at the pegasus again.
"Wulf is sleeping," the pegasus stallion said once more, "and this will kill time until morning. It also gives you a chance to prevent Charity from telling me anything you don't want her to say." Stratta hoped the suggestion would be a compromise enough to placate the crystal pony.
Clout continued to glower. "All of it. Everything. That's what I don't want her to tell you."
"Well, in that case," Charity piped in, "if I can't tell him the story of the angriest, tiniest colt I've ever had in my orphanage, I could just tell him my own personal story of when I had to deal with the tiniest, angriest colt." She gave Clout a sly smile.
The crystal pony gave her a hard stare for a minute before letting out a throaty growl. "Everypony is against me." he said to himself, "And of all the stupid ponies to be awake at this hour, in this town, it had to be her." Stratta followed as Clout made his way back over to the elderly mare who returned to her seat on the bench. "Why are you so damned interested in my personal life anyway?" he spat at Stratta.
The pegasus stallion scratched at the back of his head with a hoof as he grinned nervously. "Uh, no reason." he said, "I just… uh, I'm a story oriented pony. Gotta know everypony's backstory…" he finished lamely, knowing that was a pathetic excuse.
The thief eyed him suspiciously. "I thought you were an archeologist."
"Oh, yes!" Stratta said with more confidence, "That's why! Archeology is the study of the past which includes the history of ponies. You never know when somepony's history will be important for future generations to know!"
Clout narrowed his eyes at him.
The pegasus stallion's grin grew strained under the pressure. Then his ear twitched and he looked away from the gaze, "That's my story and I'm sticking to it!"
"Whatever." The crystal pony said.
Stratta gave a sigh of relief. "So, quick question Charity, why are you up so late?" he asked.
The mare chuckled. "One of the foals wet the bed. I couldn't fall back asleep so I thought I'd come outside and enjoy the stars while I could." she told him.
"So, you said Clout was the angriest colt you've ever had." Stratta said, "He's still pretty angry so, what do you mean?"
The mare looked at Clout who's ears folded. "He was actually very violent." she told him and put a hoof to her chest to reveal an old thin scar across her front, "He's the one who gave me my scar. It's faded and my fur's grown long enough to hide it but it's still there." The Crystal pony refused to meet her gaze. "He's never apologized but I did deserve it at the time I suppose."
Stratta turned to the other stallion. "Clout, how could you not apologize? That's a really big scar!"
"She told you she deserved it so drop it." the thief snapped.
Stratta looked at the mare while he pointed a hoof at Clout. "Seriously?" he asked in disbelief, "That's not right! You're just going to let him get away with that?"
Charity gave a sad smile, "It's in the past, he was only a colt. It's fine Garrett."
Stratta sighed and rubbed his forehead with a wing. "Fine, fine. If you say so. Just, tell me more, why was he so angry?"
"Because he was hurt." she said as a matter of fact, "He didn't even have his cutiemark yet and he was so malnourished, sick and injured we all thought he wouldn't make it."
"Charity…" Clout said in a warning tone of voice.
"Don't worry," she told him, "I won't go into detail."
The crystal pony snorted in response as Stratta looked between them, disappointed they were keeping details out of the story.
"Anyway, for the first week or so he mostly slept but when he finally did wake up we had been quite surprised. He smashed a nearby lamp and used that to hurt me." She rubbed a hoof at the old scar, "It wasn't just me he lashed out at. Anytime anypony came near he grabbed anything within reach and used it as a weapon. Didn't matter if it was me, one of the doctors trying to tend to his wounds or one of the other orphans wanting to invite him to play, he was determined not to let anypony near him.
"He didn't trust anypony so much he barely slept and refused to eat. He was unpredictable, very bitter and quick to lash out. We had to isolate him from the other foals and anything he could use as a weapon. The doctors were glad most of the time he wore himself out in his outbursts so they could actually try to help him heal, physically at least.The doctors really learned to be careful after he woke up one time. The tiny colt bit a chunk right out of Doctor Patch's foreleg." she gave a small chuckle remembering how upset the doctor had been at the time, "You can still see where he got bit. Left a considerable dent in his leg."
Stratta looked at Clout. "You were not a very nice kid." he said with furrowed brows.
"Yes, very sad. Anyway, can we go now?" he asked in an annoyed tone of voice.
The pegasus stallion shook his head, "Nope! I want to hear more!"
Charity smiled at them, enjoying the company.
Clout narrowed his eyes at the mare and said, "You just love torturing me, don't you."
"Well, let's see…" she put a hoof to her chin in thought, "This is the first time I've seen you since you were sent away so, I doubt I'll ever get another chance for payback so..." she put her hoof back on her now cold mug of tea and gave him a wicked grin, "Yeah, I do believe I am enjoying this quite a bit."
"Hate you. Both of you."
"So what happened for him to get sent away? Sounds like you guys put up with a lot from him." Stratta asked.
"We did but that was because we were determined to save him." Charity sadly replied, "We didn't want to send him away but something happened that put the other foals at risk and we couldn't let that happen again." She paused to take in a breath and looked at the tea in her mug, "I had received a new foal to care for. She was a little filly, told by us and all the other kids to stay away from Clout. That he was by himself for a reason. She told the other kids that nopony should be by themselves and so she was determined to make him her friend. By the time the other kids got us he had hurt her pretty badly and still had her pinned on the ground beating her bloody with his hooves."
"And then I was sent away, end of story." Clout finished for her.
"Was she okay?" Stratta asked as the thief began to walk away from the two.
"She died."
Clout stopped in his tracks and looked back at Charity. "What?" he asked in complete shock.
She looked at the buck skinned pony. "Fin never told you?" she asked, "You caved in her skull. They tried everything they could to save her but she died."
Clout looked at his hooves while images of his nightmare flashed in his mind. The rage he felt as he pulled back on his bow. The smell of cordite from the gun in his hooves and the tiny filly lying dead before him. He clenched his eyes shut, grit his teeth, trying to shove everything back down.
"Clout?" Charity asked with concern.
Stratta walked up behind him and reached a hoof out. "Hey, you okay?"
"Don't touch me." the crystal pony barked and the pegasus stallion flinched back. "I'm fine, it's in the past which means there's nothing anypony can do so drop it." He growled as he swiftly began trotting away.
The pegasus stallion watched Clout with unease before looking back to Charity.
"Well?" she said, "Aren't you going to go after him?"
"I…" Stratta trailed off, looked at Clout's receding form then back to Charity, "Thanks for the story, we'll have to talk again some time." The pegasus mare waived at him as he galloped to catch up to the crystal pony.
Clout continued to glare ahead of himself as he ignored the hoofsteps that were now clopping alongside him.
"So…"
"Don't even start."
"Where ya going?"
The thief childishly decided to not answer the annoying pegasus.
"Who's Fin?" Stratta asked.
Clout glanced to the stallion as he twitched an ear in irritation. "That's Charity's nickname for Merchant." he decided to answer, hoping it would make him shut up for at least a few minutes, "His name used to be Pathfinder."
"Hah!" Stratta exclaimed, "I knew that couldn't have been his real name! How did you two meet anyway?"
"No more stories." Clout firmly declared.
"Then could you at least tell me where we're going?"
"To find Wulf so I can get out of here."
Stratta's ears folded some. "Why don't we find something else to do and wait until sunrise to wake him?" he said, hoping the crystal pony would agree. To his disappointment, the stallion stayed quiet. He tried a different tactic, "Why don't we go get some, uh, breakfast! You didn't eat anything while we were at Merchant's place." Still not getting a response he tried again, "We could go watch that unicorn mare get interrogated. That would be fun, right?"
"Is there anything that would stop your verbal diarrhea?" Clout asked sharply.
"I just want to talk to you, is there any harm in wanting to get to know you?" Stratta sadly asked.
"Yes." said the crystal pony.
They walked in silence for a few minutes until Stratta got tired of the awkward silence. "Hey, could--"
"No." Clout interrupted.
"You're no fun." the pegasus pouted, "Well if you won't talk to me, I'll talk to you!" he decided, "What would you like to know?" silence, "Oh! I know, since I got to hear one of your childhood stories, I'll tell you one of mine!" he gave the grumpy pony a big grin, "I was born on a Tuesday--"
"Fine, let's go watch the unicorn get questioned." Clout loudly said to stop the pegasus from continuing. He turned around and started walking back towards the gate.
"Seriously," Stratta told him as he followed, "you aren't any fun at all. It's only natural for friends to want to get to know each other better. Don't you want to know more about me?"
"I'm not your friend."
"But we could be friends!"
"I don't do friends."
The pegasus looked at his hooves as he walked. "Friends make life better. Fun times get even more fun with friends and you can lean on them when times get tough." he said dejectedly, "Friends, good friends, they can make life so much more colorful. Being all by yourself, all the time… That's just sad and lonely…"
The dull light of the sunrise began to show on the horizon and with it Clout could see two figures walking their way on the road. "I prefer to be alone," he told Stratta, "There isn't anypony in this world you can trust to get that close. Eventually they'll all stab you in the back, find your weaknesses and use them against you. Being alone is safer. Trusting others, that's just foolish."
Stratta looked back up at Clout. "But what about Merchant? Isn't he like your friend or… family? Adopted father or something?"
"Forced acquaintance."
"I'm sure he would be very sad to hear you think of him that way." came the pegasus' distant reply.
As they got closer to the two others walking down the street, they could hear them arguing fairly loudly. From their voices, Clout could tell that one was Glacier and the other was a deep male voice he didn't recognize.
"As I recall, I was the one who terminated our relationship due to your lack of determination to receive the proper payment for your services. I saw our relationship for what it truly was and I refused to be anypony's confectionery mare." Glacier said angrily.
"As I recall," the male voice shot back, "I broke up with you because of your obsession. And I never once asked you to pay for a single thing."
"I have told you before, putting my family first is not an obsession." the unicorn told him, "Besides, that project you're referring to as an 'obsession' I will have completed presently."
"I highly doubt that."
She ignored his comment, "And after which I suppose I might be receptive enough to consider rekindling our stipulation."
As they got closer, Clout saw that the mare was talking to a griffon. He was a thinly built bird with a dark beak and clawed hands. From under his beak and down his belly, he had white feathers that faded up his body to give him champagne wings and a peach colored back. From the sides of his beak, covering his eyes and to the back of his head where feathers fanned out were thick black stripes, one on either side of his head. His mulberry colored crown of feathers were groomed back to give him an elegant appearance. He wore a long white doctor's coat and he held a clipboard with his tail, the bright blue tuft of fur on the end was hiding all the notes written on the paper. His appearance was completed with a stethoscope draped across the back of his neck and a set of glasses that sat atop his beak.
The griffon glared at her, "And who says I'll want to rekindle our relationship? I know for a fact you'll never--" he stopped talking when he finally noticed the two stallions.
Glacier trotted ahead to them as she happily said, "There you are! I am quite pleased you have not departed." She turned to her griffon friend who casually strolled up to the small group. "Desmund," she said then turned to the crystal pony, "this is Clout." She gave the stallion a smile and the crystal pony slightly folded his ears in response.
"So, you're…" Desmund began as his eyes widened.
"Ah! The pony I owe the life debt to." Glacier finished for him.
Clout narrowed his eyes at the two of them and put his hood back over his head. The griffon looked to the mare with an expression neither Clout nor Stratta understood.
Glacier smiled at the two stallions, "Gentlebucks, this is my tiercelfriend, Desmund."
Desmund shot her an angry look. "Lacy," he said in an annoyed tone of voice, "I'm not your tiercelfriend any more and I would greatly appreciate it if you would abandon the notion I would ever be so again." He began to walk away.
"We will talk further on that matter at another time dear." the unicorn told him casually with a wave of her hoof. When she realized he was walking away, she trotted to his side and walked with him. The two stallions, having nothing better to do so early in the morning, decided to follow.
Desmund glanced over at his pony entourage. "I cannot stay and chat," he told Glacier, "I must return to my work."
Glacier flicked her tail as she walked. "What could you possibly be doing here that is so important you are inclined to neglect our conversation." she said, thoroughly irritated at being brushed off, "Do I not deserve your full attention? I will have you know I have substantially more to say to you than what has at present been expressed."
The griffon sighed and rolled his eyes. "Glacier, I only came to get you because you wouldn't stop demanding the guards to go get me. I have other responsibilities besides you." he told her as they turned down another street.
"Oh, is that how she got out of her interrogation?" Stratta asked.
"Yes." Desmund replied, obviously annoyed, "She kept insisting I would tell them how good of a pony she was. She's lucky I was in town today. I lied to them of course."
"Oh please, darling," Glacier nickered, "I am good and you are well aware of this fact."
The griffon chuffed, "That all depends on how you look at yourself my dear."
"Mmm, yes," the unicorn purred, "and I choose to look at that fact in a very specific light."
"Oh?" Desmund inquired, "And exactly which light might that be, pray tell? I do not recall ever actually calling you 'good'."
"Then I suppose I must have a better recollection of events than you do. Every time I made you screech at the top of your lungs you did, in fact, call me good." Glacier said with a smirk.
The griffon gave an awkward cough and looked away from her. "Lacy," he said in an irked tone of voice, "I do not believe the activities we had shared in the privacy of the bedroom should be, in any measure, public knowledge."
Stratta grinned at Desmund. "So you're a screamer are you?" he inquired in a sultry tone of voice.
Thoroughly uncomfortable about the direction their conversation was going, Clout decided it was definitely time to change the topic. "Where are we going?" he asked.
Relieved that someone wanted to talk about something besides his sex life, Desmund was eager to answer, "I am going back to the clinic. I am on duty for the overnight shift and there are a couple of patients that need to have specific hourly care."
"Yes, any excuse to change the subject of conversation and avoid for once actually admitting that I am, indeed, correct." the unicorn spat loudly as they came upon two large buildings. Desmund finally decided not to encourage further debate with Glacier by keeping his mouth shut.
The thief and his hidden rodent friend looked up at the enormous cathedral as they passed. The large double door looked big enough for a minotaur to walk through without having to duck down. It was inset several feet from the outer wall of the building. Every brick was delicately carved with thin spiral shapes, curving and twisting to act as fake vines. On every other brick there was one of four instruments chiseled within the vines, a lute, harp, clavichord and a zither. Six frosted glass windows stood tall with three on either side of the door's entryway and each window was no wider than a foreleg.
Decorating the entirety of the rest of the building's lower half were large statues, each tucked away in their own crevasse of the wall. Every carved image was of a faceless pony adorned in a hooded robe, standing on their hind legs and playing an instrument. The race of the stone ponies seemed to pattern: pegasai, earth then unicorn. Clout thought the artist who created the pegasai playing the clavichord did a terrible job because it looked like there wasn't nearly enough room for the pony, its spread wings and the long keyed instrument.
The upper half of the chapel displayed a massive stained glass window spanning almost the entire length. On it displayed a faceless white alicorn with a bone flute tied around his neck, presenting four books to the world. Each novel had different musical notes on their covers. The pegasus had mentioned it before that a lot of the Solar Nation rebels worshipped the Bard of Harmony so he figured those must have been the Harmony Quartet books. The roof tiles were a dark green that complimented the sandy color of the building and it had too many tall spires adorning the roof to count while they walked.
Thief twitched her whiskers at it before hiding back in Clout's hood. "Yeah," he quietly told her, "I like our chapel better too."
"You have a chapel?" Stratta asked, "Wouldn't have pegged you for a religious thief."
The crystal pony glanced at him for a moment, considering if he should give even more information to the overly curious pegasus or not. He decided a short response would work, "I live in one." Stratta smiled and to the crystal pony's relief no more questions were asked.
The building next to the church was much smaller in comparison but still quite large. Unadorned with anything fancier than many windows and white trim, this three story building was obviously the hospital with its green cross sign out front by the doors and the overused medical wagon parked nearby. The vehicle's two harnesses lay limp on the ground as its drivers napped in the wagon, ready to be called out for whatever emergencies they might be needed for.
Clout slowed his pace as the other three headed for the entrance. As Desmund opened the door and entered, Glacier looked back to notice the crystal pony's hesitation. "Are you not joining us?" she asked him. Stratta stopped to hear Clout's reply as well.
"Why are we going in there?" the thief asked.
"Because we still need to waste another hour or two." the pegasus answered, "We can also grab some food from the cafeteria."
"I think I'll wait out here."
Glacier tucked a loose strand of her mane behind an ear with her magic. "Are you certain you do not wish to join us?" she asked, "Does a hot meal not sound delectable? I think it is a marvelous idea."
Stratta blinked at the mare. "Did… Did you actually just agree with me on something?" he asked mockingly, "Guys, I think the war's going to end today!"
"The pegasus made a quip, how amusing." the mare said dryly before entering the hospital.
Stratta chuckled at Glacier's reaction. "So you're really not coming?" he asked, watching the thief eye a nearby apartment building.
"Nope, staying."
The pegasus raised an eyebrow before grabbing the front of Clout's cloak with a wing. "Come on. I know if I leave you out here you're just gunna go steal something."
"Would you ponies stop dragging me places!" the crystal pony complained as he was dragged inside the hospital.
They entered through the doors and were greeted with the usual drab décor one would see at a hospital. An uncomfortable waiting room filled with rows of empty chairs, pale striped wallpaper peeling off the walls in places from a leak nopony bothered to fix, a few potted plants placed here and there and the unmistakable but ever so faint scent of antiseptic in the air. The seat behind the front desk was lacking the receptionist who was supposed to be tending to the lobby and one drawer of the several filing cabinets behind the desk was left slightly open.
The charcoal unicorn came trotting in from one of three hallways leading further into the clinic. She had an annoyed look on her face as she glanced to the two stallions. "Once more, that disrespectful griffon has been quick to discard me." she told them, "I shall have him know it is rather rude to depart without a formal remark."
Stratta raised an eyebrow as Clout inspected a suspicious floor stain with a bored expression on his face. "He did say he had to go see a few patients." the pegasus told her.
Her ears folded back. "That is no excuse for being just plain rude." she shot back. Glacier stopped in front of the two stallions and gave a frustrated huff.
The pegasus gave her a flat look. "If there was an emergency with one of his patients that might have been his reason." the mare opened her muzzle at Stratta's comment to, once again, give another snooty complaint so he decided to preemptively interrupt her, "But if it would make you happy we can look for him on the way to the cafeteria."
Glacier closed her mouth and glared at him, saving the rest of her verbal ammunition for her ex-lover. Seeing she was done ranting, Stratta walked to the closest hallway, opposite of the one Glacier had just come from. "Okay then, shall we?" he asked his two companions. When he saw them both following he began leading them to their destination. As they walked down the hall, they passed many doors on either side of the corridor. Scenic paintings hung here and there between rooms and several empty gurneys were parked in random places. The second hallway they passed had a directory stating that the cafeteria, Pathology Department and x rays were further down the way they walked.
Clout slowed for just a moment as he heard a sound down the hallway they were passing. He perked his ears, trying to make out any words. "Sounds like someone's not happy," he commented.
"Pardon?" Glacier stopped and asked.
The two stallions stopped as well and Clout elaborated, "Somepony's yelling down that way."
With the sound of their hooves silenced, they listened for the sounds the thief mentioned. The muffled noises were obvious now and they sounded from a room several doors down. The three looked at each other, the crystal pony waiting for one of the other two to make a decision. Before Stratta could say they should let the shouting person be and continue on to breakfast, Glacier began to trot toward the noise.
The stallions followed at a slower pace, Stratta upset that the mare was leading the group and Clout wanting nothing more than to do the rebel's stupid job so he could go home to his fortress of solitude.
"Hey," Stratta said to the mare, "we really shouldn't barge in on other pony's arguments."
"I only wish to determine if Desmund is a participant so when their current spat of furious words has been completed, I may have my own words with him." she replied with a determined look at the door the shouts came from.
Being so close to the room, they were finally able to hear the words that were being said through the slightly ajar door. "You took it! You took it and you didn't even ask! Give it back right now!" came small squeaky shouts.
"Look, I can't just--"
"I didn't want anypony to take it, I just needed medicine. You took it off, you can put it back on!"
Desmund's voice stuttered as he tried to reason with the irate child, "I-I… Look, that's not how it works and… you would have died if we left it on. We had to remove it."
"No, you didn't!" they said.
As Glacier got to the door, she quietly pushed it open enough to see the scene. There was a small grey pegasus with a long blue striped mane and tail that bounced in its tight curls as the three legged foal hobbled around. Their remaining unsteady legs were incredibly shaky, sweat beaded down their face and the bandages over the tiny stump that was left of the front left leg was stained with blood. They were just about the age when foals got their cutiemarks but this one's flank was still blank. Anything within reach was used as a projectile to throw at the griffon doctor who was trying to explain why it was necessary to remove the massively infected limb.
"Medicine wouldn't have done anything. Your leg was already dead and if we didn't cut it off it would have killed you."
"I don't care I want it back! I don't want to be a three legged pony!" the foal chucked a pen that they found lying on the floor at Desmund.
The griffon didn't bother to flinch at the weakly thrown writing utensil. "You need to settle down and get back in bed. That infection got into your bloodstream and you are still very sick." he told the foal as he batted away a flying slipper, "And no more yelling, there are a lot of other patients here who need rest, just like you do."
"I don't care, I want my leg back!" the foal began to cry as another slipper was weakly tossed in the doctor's direction, falling short of its intended target.
Peeking around the corner of the open door behind Glacier and Stratta, Clout recognized the foal. "Hm, I wondered what happened to that filly that was kicked out of Canterlot a couple nights ago." he muttered to himself.
The foal's gaze shot up to give the crystal pony a cold glare, "I am not a filly!" the colt shouted.
Desmund gave the three adult ponies an overwhelmed look before returning his attention to the foal. "Come on," he told him, "let's get you back into bed."
"Leave me alone, I hate you!" came the sobbing cry of despair as the colt tried to hide under the bed.
The griffon rubbed the back of his head with his clawed hand, not sure what to do.
"You never were considerably proficient with children." Glacier ridiculed.
Desmund glared at the unicorn as Stratta walked over to the crying colt. "Hey, I know it sucks right now but look on the bright side." he said with a smile, "Now you can have a great career as a pirate. All the best swashbucklers have a pegleg."
The young pegasus looked up at him and sniffled.
"I bet you that doctor griffon has an eyepatch somewhere he can give you."
The colt looked away. "I don't want to be a pirate, I want my leg back…"
"You three should go, I need to get him back into bed." Desmund told them as he crouched down to grab the colt.
The pegasus gave a sad sigh as he walked back to the door. "Feel better soon kid."
"Well I for one am not going anywhere." Glacier said, "You may feel our conversation has been completed but I have much more to say to you."
Clout gave a bored sigh. Tired of hearing the unicorn complain about nothing, he turned to Stratta, "The food is free, right?"
The pegasus stallion smiled. "Of course!" he replied, "This way."
Leaving the mare and griffon to continue their talk, the two bucks doubled back to the previous hallway and followed the signs to the cafeteria. After passing through the double door, they entered into a large open space filled with tables and chairs. On the far wall was another double door and two other doors next to it. Both marked bathrooms with one for mares and the other for stallions. The wall to the right was almost entirely a window to view the hospital's small garden area. The only part not made of glass was the wooden door by the corner closest to them. Half of the left wall was a long counter and beyond it was a decently sized kitchen with a creature flying about that Clout had never seen before.
The beast was solid black with a shiny appearance like a polished stone. Its legs were average pony-length but they had strange holes through them like swiss cheese. Its tail and mane were made of spines that had incredibly thin skin between them that reminded him of a spiny dorsal fin on a fish. The creature had a broad neck and some sort of thick shell-like structure on its back that two delicate see-through wings were attached to. It had a wide head, a curved horn such as a unicorn would have and two long thin ears that pointed straight up almost like antennae. The long fangs it bore and large blue eyes completed the bizarre appearance. The crystal pony couldn't tell if this thing was one of the ancient legendary alicorns, a bug, a mutant or something far stranger.
Clout hesitated at the sight of the creature for just a moment as the pegasus trotted right up to the counter. "Good morning Domatia!" Stratta said with over enthusiasm, "And how is our hardworking lady changling today?" He gave a big smile and leaned against the counter.
"Good?" she growled, "Good?!" Domatia turned around in the air to face the pegasus, "I have to get my tired ass out of bed at three in the morning just to prep and cook all this fucking food for you stupid ponies because no one knows how to cook a decent meal around here!"
Stratta gave a laugh, "We love you too, Tia."
The changling violently threw her spatula across the room where it shattered into pieces against the wall. "Garrett, I will kill you." she threatened, "All of you, I will poison your next meal." Domatia buzzed quickly across the room to an oven and cursed again as she took the cooked bread out before flying to another counter and quickly chopped up a dozen carrots all the while glaring in anger.
"Ya know, you say that every day. I'm beginning to think that's your way of saying you love us."
"You know how many mouths I have to feed?" she shouted as she worked, "You ponies think it's all sunshine and rainbows every day all the time. Well it's not! I get a limited number of ingredients, most of which is moldy or pathetic, and I have to use it anyway just to meet the minimum quota of meals. Then I get ponies complaining, 'I'm still hungry,' 'This tastes funny,' 'I don't like that food, I want something else,' or 'I'm allergic to that!' Excuses, excuses. Just eat the damned food or starve. And then, oh, it gets better, and then you stinking ponies have to bring even more ponies here for me to feed!" she pointed her wooden spoon at Clout, throwing splatters of sauce at him.
The stallion wiped it off his face with a hoof and decided to try it. Tasted like cranberry sauce.
"How am I supposed to keep up like this?! And you say 'Good morning'. I say you are the parasites, not us. The nobles are right to call you tick-- Agh!!" Domatia exclaimed in pain as she ran into some hanging pots, not watching where she was flying in her cooking frenzy. Out of pure rage she attacked the pots, breaking the ceiling hangers and sending most of the cooking instruments flying into the dining room. Stratta ducked down as one almost hit him. "I told them a thousand times not to hang the fucking pots!" she roared before grabbing the handle of a frying pan and using it as a baseball bat to send one of the offending objects careening through the air to embed itself into the wall.
Clout quickly understood why she had no help. As her rampage continued, he noticed a smell in the air. "Is something burning?" he asked.
Domatia halted in her tracks and looked to the sauce pot on the stove. "Damn it!" the changling cried out as she resumed her work duties, still spouting raging complaints the entire time.
Clout looked over at the pegasus who returned his gaze with a smile. "She's fun, isn't she?" Stratta asked.
The crystal pony only gave him a flat look in response. "Both of us were almost killed with cooking pots." he said, stating the obvious, "That's not exactly what I would like on my gravestone."
Stratta chuckled before trotting to the end of the counter. Just passed the kitchen bar was a wooden display structure filled to the brim with apples. Most of them were shriveled, small or bruised. A couple had worm holes and several were almost completely rotten.
"The Solar Nation has a contract with the nearby farm and that's where we get our apples from. I know they look kinda gross but at least it's food." Stratta said as he took a couple decent ones and walked over to a table.
Clout took three and walked over to the same bench. He set them down and let Thief onto the table so she could nibble on one. As they started eating, the pegasus continued.
"Kind of hard for ponies to grow proper food when Discord makes the seasons change so frequently. Kills the crops before they can even grow, you know." he trailed off as he stared at the apple in his hoof. "The food here is only free to those with jobs outside the city and the patients who are being cared for at the hospital. Anypony who lives here has to pay so we have bits to buy more food. There are other places but this is the only place where we can get anything decent because it's Domatia who cooks it. She's not usually ready to serve the food until around seven or eight because no pony is willing to work with her and risk the concussions." he poked at the largest bruise on his apple with a hoof, "The only reason we get a free meal is because we bring in the goods. Food shipments, artifacts to sell, information and other stuff. Thing is, if we don't meet our own quota, we don't get the food we earned." He set the apple back on the table, suddenly losing his appetite.
They sat in silence for a few minutes as Stratta continued to stare at his apples while Clout and Thief ate their food. For a moment, the only sounds in the cafeteria were the mumbled curses and clanging metal from the kitchen.
Not one for liking awkward silences, Stratta tried to come up with a topic of conversation. His ears perked up and he looked at Clout. "So, what's--" he started.
"New rule," the crystal pony hastily said, "no more personal questions."
The pegasus gave a chuckle as he expected him to say something like that. "Hahaha, I was just going to ask what your favorite color was."
Clout narrowed his eyes at the stallion, not believing him for a second.
Stratta put his hooves up in surrender. "Alright, alright, no more personal questions." he said. He watched as the thief looked away and took another bite of his apple. Looking down to the table he watched the rodent throw the peel away and burrow into the rotten fruit. His gaze returned to the pony across the table. "I did want to ask you though," Stratta began, "what's the deal with this Flight Risk fella and that mare? I mean, you blame him for your last job but she says it's her fault, it doesn't really make any sense to me. What exactly happened?"
Clout furrowed his brow at the winged pony, internally debating on whether or not that counted as a personal question. He swallowed his latest bite and opened his muzzle. "I was contracted to steal a will. I know I should have probably gotten a map of the mansion before I went because that place was so huge but I figured it would be better to have a look around while all the staff were busy with the party. I was upstairs, found a safe and was going to check it out when she and three guards caught me. I figure one of three things happened. Either Flight bought the guards, set me up and was the one who sold me at the auction, the mare is actually being truthful and is the one who got me caught or I was snitched on by the kids I helped out earlier that night."
Stratta's eyes grew wide and he got a silly grin on his face.
"What." Clout said awkwardly.
"You helped out some kids?" the pegasus asked excitedly.
The crystal pony folded his ears, grit his teeth and looked away. "They were supposed to give me information in return…" he grumbled.
Stratta happily sat back in his chair. "So if you're adamant on killing Risk, that means you don't believe her story or that it's her fault so why are you letting her tag along?" he questioned.
The buckskin looked down at Thief who was covered in applesauce and leisurely grooming herself. "No," he replied, "I don't believe her. Not for one second. I think she's only following because she knows what I am. I blame Flight because he's done something similar in the past. I know he's capable of doing something like that and I don't trust him in the slightest. She on the other hoof I don't know at all. I don't trust her either, or you for that matter." Stratta looked slightly sad at that remark, "She is, however, offering me a ton of bits which it's not in my nature to pass something like that up so if she's willing, I might as well indulge her."
The pegasus furrowed his brow. "But what about those conversations she's had? The one with the Spectrum Flier and now the one with Desmund, don't you find anything about them suspicious?" he asked with obvious concern for his new friend in his tone of voice.
"Of course I did." Clout said with annoyance, "I'm not an idiot you know." He reached out to pet his tiny friend still cleaning herself on the table. "I already told you I don't trust her and whatever she had planned, she knows what will happen. I already discussed with her the consequences and I doubt she'd try anything so foolish. If she does it'll probably be a pathetic, half-baked plan that'll be easy to overcome. I'm just looking forward to all the bits I'll get out of her when it's all over." The thief gave a cocky grin at the thought.
Stratta looked at him skeptically, "You don't think you're putting a little too much confidence in your abilities?" he asked with a cringe.
"Nope." came the confident reply.
The pegasus folded his ears again in worry. "Alright but just, please be careful around her. I think she's craftier than you make her out to be."
"Why are you so concerned about me? You hardly even know me and we're not friends. We only met yesterday." Clout asked in curiosity. Besides Merchant, he had never met somepony so insistent on barging into his life like this. At least Merchant never asked so many personal questions. But then again, Merchant had to deal with the crystal pony when he was still a tiny ball of fury on bandaged legs.
Stratta awkwardly looked down at his uneaten apples and proceeded to roll one around on the table as he searched for the right words, "W-well, I… I'm, um… The reason, it's because--"
The door the stallions had entered the cafeteria from roughly opened and an irate unicorn swiftly trotted in while talking to herself. "-ot accomplish it, I shall show him." she growled as she moved to the table where the two stallions sat, "Has he made any noteworthy accomplishments? I have not been informed of any so he has no room to speak of me in such a manner." She sat down at the small table next to the bucks as she continued ranting to herself, "I have spoken to him on many occasions about this matter so he should be well aware I mean what I say." She grabbed one of Stratta's uneaten apples before continuing, "I am a lady and he should learn not to be so rude!" She took a large angry bite out of the fruit and chewed on it for only a moment before her eyes went wide and her muzzle scrunched up in disgust. Hastily looking for a napkin or something to spit the rot out onto, her eyes began to water at the taste.
The pegasus sighed, grabbed his handkerchief out from his saddlebag and hoofed it over to the mare. Glacier quickly spat the food out into the cloth and began to complain some more.
"How could you allow me to eat something so revolting? One of you should have spoken up, that was utterly disgusting!"
Stratta glared at her and responded, "Because you barged in here, interrupted our conversation, stole my food and then decided to insult what little food the Solar Nation can manage to actually grow."
As the two ponies began another heated discussion, Clout sighed in boredom and laid his head on the table. He was tired of being around everypony so he decided he wasn't going to bother paying attention to them. Looking over at Thief, he gave her a small smile as the rodent had tucked her head under herself, her tail was wrapped around her body and she looked like a black fuzzy potato. He reached out and petted her only to wake her up, disturbing the vegetable. He gave a soft chuckle and a quiet apology as she sniffed the air at him. When hooves slammed onto the table, Thief bolted to Clout's saddlebags in fright. He checked to make sure she was okay before giving the two others at the table an icy gaze, halting their talk in its tracks. Both the unicorn and the pegasus gave him a sheepish look of apology but he was still annoyed with them.
"Can we please go see Wulf and get this over with." the crystal pony practically demanded.
"Uhh," Stratta blinked, "s-sure, I guess…" The pegasus got off his seat and folded his ears as he led the small group out of the hospital. He had no idea what time it was and he really hoped Wulf Song was awake because it looked as if the thief was ready to decline the job if he had to wait any longer. Stratta walked at a leisurely pace, hoping to waste at least a couple more minutes as he took them out of the building, down the street and towards the massive Golden Oak Library. He was reassured that the leader would most likely be awake when he saw how many people were awake and walking around town.
"I thought you said he lived in one of those alleyway house things, why are we going to the giant tree?" Clout asked.
"Well," Stratta replied, "if he's awake like we're hoping that's where he'll be. The Golden Oak Library is where he commands from. That's where battle plans are made, the information from our spies is collected and where he issues outside jobs and internal duties. If he's not there we'll check his bunk."
The tree was one of the largest either Clout or Glacier had ever seen. It looked to be close to ten stories tall with thick branches that were held tall by its sturdy trunk. At the base of the tree was a simple wooden door while they could see windows or balconies on some of the thicker branches with lookouts manning most of them. Many barricades were set up around the tree with half a dozen ponies standing guard out front. As the small group got closer, Stratta waved a wing in greeting. "Hi guys!" he said cheerfully.
A light grey earth pony mare wearing thick leather barding and a rifle on her back nodded at him. She and three others were sitting in the dirt around a small crate playing cards while two foals who were also in armor were fast asleep by the tree's door in the early morning sunlight. She looked to the two others who were with the pegasus stallion and eyed them. "Garrett, you know we don't let outsiders in here." she told him.
"Aww, come on Fuff, don't you trust me?" Stratta asked with a smile.
"No."
"Ouch," he responded, putting a hoof to his heart, "I do have a heart ya know. Why do you have to break it so often?"
The mare gave him a flat look, thoroughly unamused.
"Commander Kerfuffle," another guard said as she put down her cards, "Garrett's two companions could remain here. Wulf did assign task 703-C to him last week. He might want an update."
The mare in charge looked at her in bafflement. "Paramount, I will never understand how you can remember such specific details." Paramount blushed and looked at her cards in embarrassment. Kerfuffle turned back to the trio, "You can go on in, your friends can wait here."
Clout glared at Stratta. "If it's going to be this difficult to--"
The pegasus held out a wing to stop the crystal pony's protest and gave him an apologetic look before trying once more with the guards. "Look Fuff, Clout's good to enter. I brought him for that old mission Wulf's never been able to arrange."
She raised an eyebrow. "And the unicorn?" she asked venomously.
Glacier glared at Kerfuffle's tone of voice.
Stratta shrugged, "She's okay I guess. You can try to stop her from following but so far nopony's been successful."
Kerfuffle narrowed her eyes at the unicorn. "Amethyst, Street Rat," she shouted to wake the foals to attention, "you two will escort Garrett and these two ponies to see Wulf. Mainly keep an eye on the unicorn. If she does anything suspicious, you know what to do."
The two foals behind her groggily rubbed their eyes and yawned. One of the foals Clout recognized. The colt had been talking to several adults in Estuary Slums on the same day the now three legged foal was kicked out of Canterlot. He was white, his left ear was a mud-brown color and his mane was striped with tan and red. He had a few freckles on his face and a scar over the top of his muzzle. His tan scarf was a couple shades darker than his mane and he had on the same dirty brown vest with the patch from the other day.
The foal leaning against him as a pillow was obviously a few years younger than him considering her size. Amethyst was a deep purple filly whose legs, muzzle, belly, mane and tail were a pale gray color. She had small dark leathery wings, she wore a thick patchwork jacket and an old looking hard hat that was several sizes too big. Both foals were armed with BB guns on their backs that were hung from leather slings.
The older colt blinked groggily at their commander and asked for their orders to be repeated. Kerfuffle patiently told her directions once more to the two foals as they both stood and saluted her. Amethyst and Street Rat obediently went and positioned themselves on either side of Glacier who gave an offended harrumph at the earth pony mare. Kerfuffle waved the group of now five ponies inside with a hoof and Stratta led them into the Golden Oak Library.
The hollowed out interior of the tree was a very spacious area making Clout wonder how in Equus the tree was even still alive. Magic he guessed. Around the walls were carved out shelving for the hundreds of books lining them. A single window next to the door was the only window he saw to let in natural sunlight but the magically enhanced painting of a sun on the ceiling lit the room just as well. In the center of the room was a large semi-circular desk with four ponies stationed at it. Two of them were working telegraphs and the other two were helping ponies who walked in, one of which was organizing documents from the last pony they helped while the other was talking to another rebel about their report that needed to be done three days ago. Behind the desk towards the rear of the room was a winding staircase and beside that was a door. The crystal thief debated in his mind whether the door was just an emergency exit or if it somehow actually led to another room. He already saw the tree as bigger on the inside than the outside so unless alien magic was involved, he was betting on an emergency exit.
"Next." the pony dealing with paperwork said.
Stratta and the others walked up to see the dark blue earth pony mare with her long turquoise mane take a stamp and punch it on a couple more documents.
"Hello, my name is Rhinehart, how can I help you." she said in a dull tone of voice before looking up from her paperwork, "Oh, it's you."
Stratta put a foreleg on the desk, fluttered his wings and gave her a smile, "Hey Rhine, is Wulf in?" he asked, trying to be suave.
She gave him a flat look. "Where are your reports, Stratta. You don't turn in your papers and it's our ass for incomplete documentation." she said, obviously irritated.
"It'll get done, don't worry!" he said as he waved a wing, "So, about Wulf…"
She narrowed her eyes at him. Finally she said, "He's in the back room in a meeting."
Stratta thanked her and trotted towards the door Clout thought was an emergency exit while Rhinehart called out she wanted the reports he owed her. As the others followed behind, Glacier commented, "I had not realized the rebels required documentation of their actions. Is that so when the organization collapses they can be persecuted to the full extent of the law for all the crimes they have committed?"
"No!" Street Rat said sounding quite offended, "They're lessons so we can see what worked and what didn't you dumb unicorn." The scorn in the young pony's voice did not seem to shock the mare.
Stratta decided to clarify, "Well, yes, that for battle strategy, to see what ideas and plans helped the people like we had planned, which were effective against our targets and as a record of what happened when everything is said and done. Wulf wants to make sure the right story is written in the history books no matter which side wins. Even if we lose it will show our efforts were for the good of the people."
As Stratta opened the door, Glacier decided to make a snide remark. "That opinion is entirely determined by which side you shine a light upon your actions." she said.
The room they entered was about one third the size of the front room. The entirety of the back wall was made of several windows above a window seat. The left-most window had a sizable crack in it which let a small breeze in from outside so the room's air didn't feel so stale. Both the left and right walls were made of even more bookshelves all filled to the brim with books of all kinds. A thick, oblong shaped wooden table sat in the center of the room with several cushions for ponies to sit on. Many of them were repaired but still others had stuffing hanging out from rips most likely from armor or gear. The only thing atop the table was a crumpled note.
Three ponies were standing around the round table arguing over what seemed to be a transportation issue. One was an ocean blue pegasus mare with a poofy pink and magenta mane. She had on a simple short pale yellow dress accentuated with lace on its sleeves and the bottom of the gown. She had dark saddlebags attached at her waist, a gun holster complete with a revolver strapped to her foreleg and a hat to match her dress atop the messy bun that her mane was tied in. Her light green eyes were staring intently at a slate colored pegasus whose dark plumb eyes refused to back down from her gaze.
The stallion's burgundy striped mane was cut short and unkempt while his navy blue jacket and peach shirt were stained and ripped in several places. There were several repaired patches on his jacket, scars across his exposed hide and his left wing was bandaged.
The third pony was more composed than the other two, standing on the sidelines of their argument and smirking at their plight. The earth pony mare was a red clay color with a medium length, darker colored straight mane and long tail. She had white markings that included tipped ears, a stripe down her forehead to her chin, her belly and back left leg. Her front right leg was a golden lion's paw instead of a normal pony leg and the only thing she wore was a cabbie cap on her head and a simple bow tied to her tail.
"-can't go! I'm going whether you like it or not. You always say groups are safest, travel in at least three, bla, bla, bla. Do you want me to be safe or not?" the dress wearing mare challenged.
The stallion flared out his wings. "I don't want you to go at all! I'm flabbergasted that you even want to go!" he shouted back.
"My mother is dying! Why wouldn't I want to go?!"
"Oh, I don't know Cotton, maybe we should list the reasons why you shouldn't." the stallion spat, "First, Appleoosa is a war zone, you could be killed! Orca would have my head if I let anything happen to you. On that note, you have a four year old filly who needs her mother. You want to make her motherless? I certainly don't. A young filly needs both parents, not just her dad. You--"
"I need my mother too!" she interrupted with tears in her eyes, "I am not going to let her die all alone like my brother did. She's all the family I have left and I'm not staying here while she hides in her cupboard with gunfire and explosions outside!"
The stallion gave an exasperated sigh. "Candy," he began in a softer tone of voice, "you have more than just her. When you married Orca you built upon your family. You had Scarlett and he says you two are trying for a second. What about them? Candy, you can't just think about yourself here. That's--"
"You're making me out to be the selfish one when I'm thinking about what's best for my mother? How dare you!" Cotton Candy growled.
"Look, there are other options, other ways to go about--"
"I don't need any other options. This is the option and I'm--"
"Cotton, she's probably already dead!" he said louder than he intended. An apologetic look appeared on his face for a moment when he saw the mare take a step back, visibly shaken. "I-I… What… Ugh." he sighed in frustration and closed his eyes to compose himself, "What I meant to say… The letter you got," he put a hoof on the crumpled piece of paper that was on the table, "Cotton, she wrote this almost three months ago by the date here."
The mare took his words and just stood there, staring at the floor. When he tried to get her attention, she looked up at him with both fire and tears in her eyes. She glared at him enough for him to take a step back. "I am going and you cannot stop me." she told him before she snatched the letter off the table and stormed out of the room. Stratta, Clout and Glacier swiftly got out of the irate mare's way before she slammed the door behind herself.
"Well, somepony's in a mood." Stratta commented as he trotted over to the table. Glacier and her guards slowly followed as Clout stayed by the door to admire his new locket he found in a passing saddlebag. The earth pony mare nodded in greeting to the three while Wulf sat and rubbed his temples with his wing feathers.
"I swear, if it's not one thing it's another." the rebel leader complained, "What do you want Garrett. I don't have the patience for you today so make it quick and painless please."
Stratta smirked and opened his muzzle, ready with an inappropriate response.
"May I remind you Mr. Stratta," the earth pony mare began, "there are foals present." She glanced at Glacier's guards.
He snorted, "You're no fun Goldie."
She gave him a flat look, "I try my best sir."
Stratta turned to his boss. "So! I think I have somepony who might brighten up your day." he said.
Wulf's only response was to give the excited pegasus an expression of complete exhaustion.
"This," he pointed a wing at Clout who still stood by the door, "is Clout and he's a master thief."
Wulf raised his eyebrows and shook his head slightly as he responded, "Okay, and?"
Stratta's wings drooped. "What do you mean 'and'?" he scoffed, "What about your big plan that required the best thief in all of Equestria?"
Clout raised an eyebrow at the two pegasai.
"How many times do I have to tell you, the plans we come up with when we're drunk are always terrible." the leader said.
"No, it's the best plan!"
"It's a terrible plan and it's not going to work."
"But it's one of your plans, it'll totally work!" Stratta said with a grin.
"Stop shouting my drunken stupidity to the whole town!"
"Sir, if I may interject," Goldie said with an irritated tone of voice, "my anti-alcohol law will fail to be implemented if our leader does not have the self control enough to not go to the bar every weekend." She glared at him.
Wulf rubbed his forehead with a wing and grit his teeth. "Fletch, I'm not going to be the pony who bans alcohol." he said.
"Sir, a drunk population is an unaware population. We need to make sure everypony will be alert at all times. We cannot be caught with our head in the clouds." Gold chastised, "That attack just the other day, we would have had fewer casualties if the guards were actually paying attention."
"Telling them not to drink just because we want them to be alert at all times is like saying don't celebrate small victories, don't mourn the dead, don't enjoy life with some friends while you still have a life because tomorrow you might be dead." Wulf said bitterly, refusing to budge on the matter.
Goldie took a meaningful step towards her superior and opened her muzzle but the stallion pre-interrupted her. "No Gold, leave."
"But sir, I am your second in command, I should--"
"I don't care, leave me!" he practically shouted.
The mare's ears folded and she swished her tail at him before storming out.
Stratta only gave the room a few seconds of silence before continuing his excited pestering. "So, about the plan…" he began, much to Wulf's chagrin, "It wouldn't hurt to at least try it. I know Clout can do it." The utmost confidence in Stratta's voice made the other pegasus look over at Clout with interest. "And not if, but when the plan works, King Sombra will finally be able to be taken down and all we'll have to worry about is Discord."
Wulf sighed, "Stratta…"
"Hey, have faith in family. Yeah?"
The rebel leader contemplated this for a moment as he looked between the thief and his soldier. Finally he gave in, "Alright. We can give it a shot I guess."
"Yay!" Stratta whinnied. He looked back at Clout with a smile and motioned for him to join them at the table.
One of Clout's ears twitched before he decided to walk closer. As he passed Glacier, the mare followed him and they both sat down. The two pint-sized guards stood quietly behind the unicorn's seat while the buck in charge addressed them.
"Ponies, my apologies about the arguments." he started, "My name is Wulf Song and I am the leader of the Solar Nation. The mare I dismissed was my second in command, Gold Fletching. I'm sure you've heard many things about my organization and have your own opinions about it. I'm hiring you to do a job and that job will cripple the crown, in turn, benefitting the Solar Nation. Are you positive you are willing to take on this job?"
The crystal pony's expression remained hidden under the half shadow of his hood. He opened his muzzle and said, "I really don't care. I just want your bits."
"Humph." Wulf scoffed, "Typical mercenary." He turned to the unicorn, "And you?"
"Me?" Glacier asked as she put a hoof to her chest, "If you must inquire, I would prefer not to engage in your juvenile delinquent activities of fantastical delusions of which you describe as an upheaval in democracy when in reality it is nothing more than a boorish troupe of indoctrinated common folk wreaking havoc for the country." The two pegasai in the room glared at her, "Luckily for both you and I, I will not be participating in any activities involving your farce outfit as I am simply our mutual acquaintance's plus one."
Wulf turned to Stratta and asked, "Why is she here?"
Stratta continued to glare at the unicorn. "How come every time you open your muzzle you have to insult everypony in the room and you have to do it with the fanciest words in the dictionary just to prop yourself up higher on your imaginary pedestal?" he asked in disgust.
"I am simply stating the facts as they are and nothing more." Glacier said haughtily.
"Ignore her," Clout told the stallions, "she is no concern of yours." The unicorn gave Stratta a smug grin of victory at the crystal pony's comment. "Just tell me what the job is."
"Alright," the rebel leader began, "I need you to steal the amulet King Sombra's wears. I believe it is called the alicorn amulet." He turned around, walked to a nearby bookshelf, grabbed a tome and brought it to the table. It was titled Sombra's Dynasty. It looked used and had extra pieces of paper sticking out here and there. He opened it to one of the papers not bound to the book and presented it to them. The note showed a drawing that was of a triangular piece of dark metal with a blood red stone in the center. The base of the triangle was its top and it had the head and wings of a pony complete with a large unicorn horn attached. The alicorn shape was on the base of the triangle above the stone, giving the amulet its name.
Wulf hoofed the paper to Clout and continued, "What books we have found about the amulet are few and far between. Only small snippets of information about it. All of them say it increases the wearer's magical powers greatly. We believe if we take this from him, we will be more evenly matched directly if we can get our best fighters alone with him. One thing I should mention is one of the books says only the pony wearing it can take it off. We don't know if that's true or just a rumor spread in ancient times so nopony would try to take it."
Clout took the drawing and looked at it for a moment. "What exactly are you paying?" he asked.
Wulf sighted. "We don't have much but--"
"Maybe payment could be the recognition that you helped topple a tyrannical dictator?" Stratta offered.
"You're joking, right?" the thief replied with a flat look.
"You really don't care about this war, do you?" the rebel leader asked.
Clout only raised an eyebrow.
"You do realize that even if you don't pick a side, the results of your actions will have an impact and that might force you to one cause." Wulf told him, "Once you are on one side it may be difficult to switch."
"I really don't care."
"So what do you care about? Besides bits, I mean. You've got to be living for somepony, a cause or a dream, something. Everypony is."
"No. And I didn't come here to be given a lifestyle lecture." the crystal pony harshly stated.
Wulf glared, "Too bad because you're getting one. I'm tired of all these creatures from The Everfree thinking they have nothing to lose so they can just kill, pillage and rape all day every day. You do have something, everypony does. Most ponies don't know what they have until it's gone forever. Times are hard and there are devastating losses all around. You'd better figure out what you cherish most now so you can fight to protect it before it's too late. Depending on what it is you care about may determine the cause you fight for and being tied to one side or the other because of the actions you take before you figure your shit out may be the downfall of everything around you."
"If you say so." came the disinterested reply.
"If I may inquire," Glacier started, butting her nose into the lecture, "what specifically do you care about? If it is the country itself I must say I could not believe you in the slightest as this war you started has made everything significantly worse over the years."
Stratta gave her a harsh stare. "That's funny coming from a unicorn, especially one from upper society." he sneered.
The rebel leader didn't bother chastising his soldier. "I saw what was happening to the world around me from a very different perspective than you upper class do. The poorest of us know nothing of company stocks, politics hidden from public eye or how hard negotiations are with our neighboring countries. We know what we can see around us. Our children are starving, our neighbors are dying of plague, our taxes are rising to unlivable levels, local family run shops are being forced to close because they cannot meet the absurd almost weekly changing rules they must abide by to stay open and within the law. Just last month the king decided to take over all the griffon territory. Many of my people fear a griffon retaliation because they do not want war to come to their doorstep. I am hoping I may be able to form an alliance with any rebellion there.
"We see many of our ponies be forcibly drafted into the king's army. Granted the soldiers are well fed and taken care of but we suspect brain washing or massive bribery because when those ponies are patrolling the streets they seem to not recognize their loved ones and are willing to beat them to death for breaking small, insignificant laws that are put into place only because Discord thinks they're funny. Regardless of the guard everywhere, crime is rampant. Businesses and homes are getting broken into and what little folks actually have is being stolen. Ponies fight over food and many are buried under debt they will never be able to pay back. Ponies sell each other into slavery in hopes that the payment they receive will help keep their family off the street. They hope their children they sell will be given to a master who will actually be able to give them the proper care that they need instead of only having a single apple to share between a three generational household for dinner.
"Then what we hear over the radio worries us as well. Increases in road tolls means an increase in traveling merchant prices. While small locally owned businesses are being shut down the workhouses fill up overnight and not everypony gets the chance to earn bits. Mafia thugs are taking over the streets because they have made deals with the crown guard, chaos month being more frequent because Discord is bored -- which by the way ruins the chances of any worthwhile crops having the time to grow properly. I have to say that turning the soil itself into a checkerboard does not help any pony. Then to top it all off ponies are getting foalnapped and nopony knows a damned thing! To keep my ponies safe I have to make sure to send them out in groups of at least three which does not help when I have a limited number of ponies I send out on errands."
Clout turned to Stratta. "I never saw you with two other ponies, you were always by yourself besides that one pony you were with in Merchant's shop." he said.
The pegasus rolled his eyes. "Sure, go right ahead and be a tattle tail."
Wulf narrowed his gaze at his soldier.
Shrugging his wings like he did nothing wrong, Stratta replied with a, "What?"
"Look," the rebel leader said continuing his lecture, "the point is, I opened my eyes and realized the world the working class has been living in. Everypony is going about their day in a fog, focusing on themselves and trying to just survive. I know some will say they do care about their neighbors and their community but I wasn't seeing anypony actually trying to change life itself for the better. I know we can save this world, it is not yet lost because we are still standing on our own four hooves and we can take that step forward. Not to put too fine a point on it but when shit rolls down hill and hits the slums hard like this, the ones at the top of the mountain are to blame for setting things into motion. I realized that unless ponies cared enough to change things for the better, nothing was going to get better, it was just going to stay the same or get worse. Everypony can make a difference if they just tried to and everypony should try.
"All those ponies in The Everfree, I don't believe they truly wanted to become scum, they were born the same as everypony else, an innocent child. Children see the world in a much brighter light than us adults do because they see everypony as equals and want to help regardless of laws or social stigma. It is the evil that corrupts that innocence that turns us into monsters but I know if we push past that and try to care about each other again, we can fix this world. It is with that belief that I decided to step up and do something about it. We have had the same king in place for damn near a millennia, however that happened. All of his advisers, bankers, the war council and all the rest are always in their positions for life. It's their decisions, their rulings, decrees and laws that have made such a mess of the lower class like this. I decided what I care about is helping my community. Trying some different rulers for a change is the thing I believe wholeheartedly will fix things, at least a little bit."
"That seems quite extreme if I do say so." Glacier commented with a hoof to her chest.
"It's kind of hard to help your fellow ponies when the guard won't even allow you to bring homeless ponies into your own home." Stratta growled.
"That, I can assure you, is an immense exaggeration." the mare said with a laugh.
Wulf had a stern look on his face. "If you are caught housing any rebels, the sick, an escaped slave, an illegal immigrant, anypony who is running from the king's laws or anypony who is running from tax or debt collectors, it is your head along with theirs. Ponies lie to survive so those whom you allow into your home could be any of those and you would unknowingly endanger the life of your family. Not that many ponies are willing to risk it which is why you see so many on the streets."
Glacier still kept her expression of disbelief on her face.
"We need a new government or to at least try something new." the rebel leader turned to face Clout, "If you can do this, to pull this off and weaken him to give us a fighting chance, the entire country of Equestria would be indebted to you. Especially if this works and we can bring some happiness and hope back into this land."
The thief's ear twitched as he thought of what he would get for an entire country being indebted to him. He imagined a mountain of gold a thousand times over what he had stashed in his bell tower. A palace of white marble and emerald accents. A massive throne made of gold. He could finally show the world what he was and nopony could deny his fortune. A crystal pony of worth who made himself an aristocrat with his own hooves. Clout was swiftly broken out of his fantasy when he heard his pegasus stalker speak.
"He can do it." Stratta said with unwavering confidence. He cocked a smile and looked at the crystal pony, "I know he can!"
Clout gave a small glare at him, unsure why this stranger was building up the thief's image so much.
Wulf looked between his soldier and the thief before saying, "Well, what say you, thief?" He watched as Clout pocketed the drawing of the amulet.
"I'll do your stupid job. Talk payment with the dimber damber like you should have done to begin with," he shot a displeased look at Stratta, "I'm tired of this conversation." He rubbed his forehead with a hoof in annoyance.
Wulf nodded. "Go talk to Rhinehart, she'll get the paperwork filled out for you." he said, "My suggestion would be to attempt it while he's out of the Crystal Empire. Radio broadcasts say he'll be inspecting a new soot mine in Los Pegasus in two days. If you lose this chance, getting to the Crystal Empire will be almost an impossible feat, especially if you don't have the proper teleportation spell. With the never ending blizzard still showing no signs of letting up so the railway can have a chance to dethaw, there really is no other way to get there."
Clout nodded and turned to leave, his two companions following.
"Good luck and may the Bard play you a harmonious tune on your journey."
As they exited the room, the crystal pony reflected on how much faith this pegasus he met only a day ago had in him. He really wasn't sure how he felt about it. Uneasy was one way to put it but for some reason he felt he had to do something in return. Clout decided he could at least answer that simple question Stratta had asked earlier that night. "Yellow." he said in a quiet voice.
The pegasus stopped for a brief moment, utterly confused. "What?"
Clout paused as well, turning his head towards the other stallion but refusing to look at him as he repeated uncomfortably, "It's… yellow." He then swiftly moved toward the front desk.
Stratta blinked, trying to figure out what in Equus the thief was talking about. Understanding dawned and a grin grew on his face as he realized they were finally becoming friends like he wanted. The stubborn crystal pony actually told Stratta his favorite color.
“Long live the pioneers, Rebels and mutineers, Go forth and have no fear, Come close and lend an ear” X Ambassadors - Renegades
Clout, Stratta, Glacier and the unicorn's miniature guards walked out of the Golden Oak Library's war room and back into the lobby. Rhinehart was up from the desk and filing some documents away while Gold Fletching was chatting with the second desk pony. The two other ponies were still ignoring their co-workers and typing away rhythmically on their telegraphs. A line of ponies had formed in front of the desk while the group was talking to Wulf, each waiting their turn.
Stratta watched Rhinehart return to her seat and address the next pony in line before he glanced at Clout. Trotting ahead of the others some, he led them around the desk and to the exit. As they passed Gold, they heard her talking to the desk pony about an early morning meeting Wulf had to attend but their eavesdropping was cut short as they walked through the door and out of the tree.
"Well, he certainly had quite an abundance of speculation he desired to construe." the unicorn mare pointed out.
"Yeah, Wulf can be a bit long-winded. He used to be a priest or a preacher or something like that when he was younger. Hence all of the religious symbolism around the Solar Nation." Stratta explained.
Glacier looked back to the entrance then at the pegasus quizzically. "Wait, were we not supposed to–" she began.
Stratta held a wing out to silence her as Kerfuffle got up from her card game to address them. The commander looked at Glacier. "You're still alive." she looked at the foals, "No suspicious activity then?" Glacier was shocked at the fact she meant for the foals to kill her.
Both of the young ponies saluted her but it was Street Rat who replied, "No ma'am. The unicorn behaved herself."
"Hmm," Kerfuffle grunted in disappointment, "fine." She glared at Glacier and harshly said, "Get out of here."
The aristocrat returned the glare as she followed her two stallions as they walked away, her miniature guards staying behind. "She could not have been sincere when she stated those foals were to execute me, correct?" she asked Stratta, "I could not imagine anypony forcing children to kill somepony…"
The pegasus gave a hard stare ahead as he replied, "Everyone here is prepared to kill to protect each other but no, Amethyst and Street Rat had practice BB guns, they shoot tiny pellets. Feels like a bee sting and they bounce right off."
"But forcing children to fight…" she remained shocked.
Stratta turned his head to glare at her, "That's what it's come to. Most of us are freed slaves who need food and medical care before they can even lift a weapon let alone have the strength to use it properly. Females and youngsters are required to do their part, not just sit on the side baking pies and playing with toys."
"But if you stopped this fight–"
"That's not an option."
The three walked in silence for a moment before Glacier started talking again. "Were we not instructed to speak with Miss Rhinehart about paperwork?" she asked.
"We were." Stratta admitted, "Most ponies don't know how to read or write and it takes too long when a line has formed. I'll do it later."
"They don't know how to–"
"This is a very different world from where you live." The pegasus irritatedly interrupted, "If you'd stop repeating what I say and just listen you might start understanding a little more."
Glacier glared at the back of his head.
"Where are we going." Clout said.
Stratta tilted his head back to grin at the crystal pony. "We're going to my place!" he told him.
Clout furrowed his brows. "Why. I want to get this job over with. We can head to New Pegasus now." He complained as he stopped walking.
Hearing the stallion stop, the pegasus and unicorn did the same. Stratta turned around to face him. "You have a couple of days before King Sombra comes for the inspection. Don't you want to rest up before you travel?" he asked.
"I can do that on the train." Clout said.
"So… if you fall asleep on the train you would be okay with that?" Stratta asked, "Surrounded by us two and a train full of strangers you don't trust."
"I don't trust you two either."
The pegasus' eyebrows furrowed as he opened his muzzle to speak. "Okay… Fair enough." he mumbled in disappointment, "Come on, I wanna show you my place! You'll like it, promise. Just, don't steal anything." Stratta gave a huge grin to the grumpy stallion.
Clout's ears flattened and he looked quite unamused at the pegasus. "You're not going to give up, are you." he said.
"You could just stay here if that is what you desire whilst the two of us continue on to Clout's destination." Glacier suggested.
"I'm not leaving you alone with him for a second." Stratta told her promptly. She was obviously offended by his statement.
The crystal pony sighed. "Fine, whatever, I don't care. Just shut up. Both of you are very obnoxious and I hate you." he said exasperated.
The pegasus childishly grinned in excitement that he was going to show Clout where he lived. He held his head up high as he trotted down the streets of the rebel city with the two disgruntled ponies following behind. They made their way down the street, passing many creatures as they went. With the early morning sun climbing higher in the sky, more of the townsfolk were exiting their encampments to start their day. The three ponies turned onto different streets several times before they came upon an old culvert that had obviously seen a lot more hooftraffic than it should have.
The mouth of the tunnel had been made out of bricks that were cracked and falling out of place. A few wooden braces had been used to try and keep it from collapsing. The small trickle of water down the center of the floor was so dirty it almost looked black in color. Small bits of foliage were peeking out from cracks in the floor close to the entrance and the rank stench wafting out from within made Glacier's eyes water.
The unicorn mare stopped in her tracks and put a hoof to her nose. "You are not seriously walking in there, correct?" she asked with trepidation.
The two stallions stopped and looked back at her. Clout simply pulled up his face mask over his muzzle while Stratta glared at her. "Do you have to complain about everything?" he asked.
The mare only huffed in response as she watched the two turn back around and walk straight into the sewage drain. Glacier internally argued with herself over the fact that she could not lose Clout over refusing to go into a sewer. She groaned as she relented, telekinetically pulling a handkerchief from her saddlebag and holding it in front of her muzzle as she reluctantly walked forward.
As they walked, it became obvious that the rebels were in desperate need for a lot more housing. The sewage tunnels were just as crowded as the city above was. They stayed to the center of the drain, wading through a few inches of water as they traveled further in. To either side of them were walkways up out of the dirty liquid. They could see camp after camp where families were living. Each living area was separated by a curtain held up by metal rods. Everyone looked to have the same amount of space to call home no matter how many were in the family. Each camp was unique to its owner, decorated with trinkets, pictures or graffiti on the wall. Some had proper sleeping tents while others slept out in the open with just a blanket. A few had candles or lanterns while some had small campfires lit. Surprisingly, the methane from the sewer they lived in was not igniting from the flames. Glacier had guessed they had some kind of magic suppression to protect that from happening. Many parts of the wall looked to have scorch marks so it was obvious they had run into that problem in the past and had learned from their mistakes. Some had small shelves made from old boxes or scrap to house their belongings and food.
The ponies themselves looked ragged and fatigued. Many were obviously sick with missing patches of fur, a pale complexion and had really bad coughs. None of the children here were playing, instead most looked to be getting themselves ready for the day and following the healthy adults out of the tunnels. Two guard ponies and Desmund pushed past the three and swiftly made their way to a nearby camp where an infant foal was crying. The doctor ignored the child and immediately checked the mare lying on the stone floor. After a moment he shook his head and looked at his guard escorts.
"Hey, come on, stop gawking." Stratta told the unicorn as she was lagging behind.
"R-right…" Glacier trailed off as she looked at her surroundings with concern. She trotted slightly faster to catch up to her two stallions and watched them walk on as if this was all just an everyday sight for them. She looked back at the camps that they were passing. 'This truly is another world…' she thought to herself.
A few minutes later, Stratta jumped up onto the dry bricks and into a vacant campsite. As Clout and Glacier followed, the pegasus turned to the two and spread his wings out. "Welcome to my humble abode!" he said to them.
Stratta's space was the same size as all the others. At the front there was a wire strung across with a blanket draped along it to give him more privacy. On the left end were two bunk beds where three of the four were obviously used though his mystery roommates were nowhere to be found. In the center of the floor was an old carpet which had a wooden box surrounded by four cushions to serve as a table. Along the back wall was a makeshift shelf where his foodstuffs were kept. The back right corner was blocked off with another hanging blanket, probably hiding a bucket and not much else. The other half of the right side had yet another shelf-type structure. This one held books, trinkets and a deck of playing cards. The back wall of Stratta's space had several maps pinned to it using old nails shoved between the bricks. One was a world map that included Equestria, dragon territories, griffon lands, the zebra's domain and the massive desert to the south of the Luxurant Matron's jungles. There was a very detailed map of the bugbear territory and Fillydelphia. Another was just a large canvas sheet with hoof drawings of the Frozen North. A few notes were scattered here and there with a large portion of the Northwestern part circled. Several sketches of various structures, landmarks or animals were pinned in many places. A common painter's rendition of the Crystal Empire was also attached to the canvas so whoever was mapping the rest of the Frozen North didn't have to draw it themselves.
"So, you like it?" Stratta asked with a smile, "It's not much but I got all I need."
Glacier took a few steps as she examined her surroundings. "That is certainly an accurate statement." she said, "You do not have much at all."
"Hey, it's a lot more than some of us have." he snapped.
The unicorn mare turned to Stratta, "I had not–" she paused and took another look around at his neighbors, "This is quite a bit different from what I had expected. I had not anticipated culture shock from seeing the true nature of the lower class. I have seen ponies living in poverty before but nothing like this…" The mare turned back to see a perplexed expression on the pegasus's face. They stared at each other in an awkward silence for a moment before the mare decided to change the subject. "Well, we are staying here for the day, are we not?" she began, "So our mutual acquaintance may rest during the daylight hours? If that is the case I do have an errand to run. I am in need of postal services to reply to a friend of mine. I have been neglecting this task for some time now and I do not wish them thinking ill of me. This is not to mention the odor of… your… sturdy accommodations is actually making me feel rather ill and I could certainly use some fresher air."
Stratta couldn't help but be upset at her comments but the mare did seem like she was trying to make some kind of effort to lessen her amount of insults. He couldn't tell if she was being genuine or faking it. "Uh, yeah." he finally replied, "That was the plan."
"Splendid. Then I shall return shortly."
"You do realize that mail is taken at the train station which is outside of Ponyville." came Clout's remark who had been staring at the painted map of the Crystal Empire this entire time.
"Pardon?" the mare turned towards the thief.
Still looking at the picture, he elaborated, "It was hard enough for you to get in here the first time. You think they'll let you back in after you finally leave on your own without being tossed out by the guards? I'm sure they would rather keep you out than make a scene throwing you out the gates."
Stratta sighed, "Clout's right. I'd better go with you if you want to come back."
"Oh so you do have some manners enough to escort a lady. I would not have imagined you had any form of proper conduct." she quipped.
"Then again…" the pegasus rubbed his chin with a wing, "you have been really rude and annoying and I really don't like or trust you. So, maybe this is actually my opportunity to get rid of you."
Glacier folded her ears. "In that case I shall simply request Clout to escort me. I am fairly confident he does not wish to relinquish me of my debt to him." she replied haughtily.
"I'm not leaving you alone with him." Stratta said firmly.
"Why do we not simply ask and see what he decides instead of speaking on his behalf as if he is not here." Glacier shot back.
Both ponies looked to Clout who still hadn't taken his eyes off of the back wall. It was almost as if he was mesmerized by the map, lost in a memory of his childhood home. His eyes scanned the lines that made the roads, the blocky shapes that represented buildings, the green splotches that made the foliage and the ice blue structure in the middle of the map's center that was tall as a mountain. In his mind he could see how wrong the map was. It wasn't a pristine flat land, it was rolling hills made of black sand and stones. there were no happy little trees dotting the landscape, it was like a frozen desert where almost nothing grew. The castle in the center was massive, yes, but it was not made of beautiful blue crystals. It was cold, black and translucent. Obsidian from the ancient dead volcano that once stood in the land's center was what it was made from. His ancestors were charged with carving out the volcano's carcass to appease their king who wanted a castle like no other. Though it had been decades since he stepped hoof there, the crystal pony still remembered where he lived, who his bunkmates were, the faces of his school bullies and the voices of the guards who punished him for disobeying the stupidest rules. He looked at the train tracks at the South end of the city that led away from where he was born. Those tracks that had been buried under yards of snow were the only way in and out of the secluded city. He clenched his jaw at the thought.
A sudden hoof on his shoulder brought him back to the present and he quickly took a step away. As the thief moved out of Stratta's reach the pegasus opened his mouth. "Hey, are you alright?" he asked in concern.
"Yes, I'm fine." came Clout's quick response as he looked from Stratta then back to the map.
"Alright…" the pegasus replied, obviously not convinced, "We'll be right back. You can make yourself at home. Use any of the beds if you'd like." He watched Clout for a few seconds, not expecting a reply back before he sighed and began to walk out of the sewage drain with Glacier.
"Is there some significance to the map of the Crystal Empire I should be privy to?" the mare questioned as she walked beside him.
"You're asking the wrong buck." Stratta replied, just as confused.
The crystal pony looked at the map for a few more moments before he took a deep breath and finally looked away. He knew he couldn't stare at the picture all day and with both of his fanatics gone at the same time he was desperate for some fresh air from them. To Clout, they were more suffocating than being in the sewer. He turned around and hopped off the platform, stepping into the murky water once more.
As he slowly walked along the culvert, he examined each of the makeshift campsites for any thieving opportunities. Unfortunately, even though most of the healthy adults and foals had left there were still a significant number of residents remaining. With the way their housing was set up it would be quite easy for a neighbor to spot a stranger entering somepony's space. The thief was quite disappointed he could not indulge his urge to take everything of value in sight. Perhaps there will be someplace else in the city he could loot.
As he exited the sewage tunnel he had to squeeze his eyes shut at the blinding sunlight. He blinked a few times to get used to the brightness of the morning. He glared at the sky as if it could sense his hatred of it before he began to trot along the streets. He grumbled to himself at the thought that before he met Stratta and Glacier he had always been able to get home before dawn. He was at least glad that the cloak he stole from Merchant was long enough to cover all of him.
Interrupting his hateful train of thought, Thief poked her head out of his saddlebag and sniffed the air. Clout glanced back at her and grinned under his mask. "Morning sunshine. I'm surprised you didn't come out of there earlier." he said to his tiny furry friend.
The rodent sneezed and shook herself in response before scampering out and to the stallion's shoulder.
"Yeah, I get it. I didn't enjoy the stench either and that is a very different type of, eh, rotten food than you normally enjoy."
Thief twitched her whiskers as her ride continued down a random street. They passed many different creatures, mostly ponies and changelings, who were all working in some way. A few were escorting sheep to a pen, others were sheering them and the foals took the wool inside a clothing boutique. A white unicorn mare with an elegant purple mane was heatedly explaining to a stallion the difference between the colors red, cherry and cinnamon as he held a bucket of fabric dye in his muzzle.
A group of young teenagers ran past Clout, keeping inside the two yellow lines painted on the cobblestone. They kept in line with each other and when one fell behind a signal was given by one of the mares in the back of the group and they all slowed. This gave the exhausted foal a chance to catch their breath for a bit.
A minotaur hauling a cart of corpses entered into a large warehouse with the doors propped open. Curious, Clout slowed his pace to examine what the building was. It was obviously some sort of soot mill but unlike any he had seen before. Stone slabs lined most of the massive room large enough for an adult pony. Creatures dressed in personal protective clothing looked to be carving the cadavers up into very specific pieces.
Hide was put into more carts and full carts were then hauled out of the building to a different location. Cutiemarks were all collected and put into a basket on the top of a table set in a corner of the room. A changeling was sitting at the table, using various tools and oils to carefully turn the butt tattoos into trinkets. Bones that were intact were collected into another wagon set aside, its transport pony nodding off as she waited for the wagon to be filled. Tiny pony-like creatures with long bug wings buzzed around the building collecting the manes and tails set aside by the workers and the insect sized creatures put them in a large clay bowl in the center of the room. Any organs that could be repurposed were dumped into baskets on the floor next to each stone slab while the rest of the unusable bits and the meat were tossed into the furnace at the far end of the room. Any clothing the deceased had worn was collected by foals wearing baskets on their backs.
Clout shuddered at the thought of having somepony's hooves inside of him like that so he promptly moved along. Turning down a random street, he saw a large field that was fenced off and many people were practicing various fighting techniques. Some were throwing each other around with hoof to hoof combat. Some were shooting firearms or bows while others were fighting with bladed weapons. The thief's walk slowed to a halt as he watched in amusement at how terrible everyone trying archery were. He had a fleeting thought of going over to the range and showing them how it was done by someone much more experienced than the clumsy changeling who looked to be the teacher. That thought quickly vanished when he scoffed at himself for even thinking of willingly getting the attention of about two dozen ponies and other creatures.
He continued, passing an over crowded blacksmith where weapons and armor were being made in abundance. Next door was a tailor's shop where two wagons of hide sat just outside the shop's door, waiting to be tanned and turned into leather armor or other useful items. The carpenter and stone masonry buildings also looked to be crowded and crafting war supplies.
Clout sighed, wondering how to get out of the industrial section of Ponyville. He wouldn't have minded so much if it were empty, but full of people he had little to no chance of stealing much. That wasn't to mention the loud noises everywhere this early in the morning were giving him a headache.
After wandering around for another half hour through vast crowds, he finally came upon the less populated residential district. Clout decided he really should have paid more attention to where the pegasus had led him earlier but then again a crowded street looks a lot different from an empty one. He sighed to himself in relief as he casually walked along the street. Looking at the housing units around him, they were as densely built as he had noticed before. There wasn't much in the way of walking space as some tents were set up on the edges of the street. Every alleyway was filled with makeshift shacks and walkways made of wooden planks were often overhead so those living in the roof lean-tos could cross over to a neighbor's home.
Just like in the sewer, many of the young infants or elderly folk were still home. The older ponies cared for the toddlers and the living spaces. Several of the adults were cleaning wastematter off the street and into wheelbarrows while some others could be seen in their open sided camps sewing torn clothing that the older foals brought them. The apparel suspiciously smelt of rot and soot.
As he walked down the street, everypony that he passed smiled and waved at him. Most of them even greeted the thief with a, "Good morning." Clout quickly veered down a different street. This road was thankfully a bit more vacant but he soon realized that he had wandered his way back to Charity's orphanage. He folded his ears and desperately searched for an escape route before the old mare came out of the building to harass him again. He finally spotted an empty alleyway and swiftly made his way there. To his disappointment there was absolutely nothing of value in the four camps that cramped the small space. Grunting at the annoyances that kept piling up today, he pulled a rope arrow from his quiver and set it in his bow. Drawing back, he aimed and released his shot. The arrow dug deep into the top of a windowsill. Clout put his bow away before climbing up the side of the building. Once he reached the bottom of the window, he carefully peeked in to make sure there wasn't anyone inside.
The room looked to be a bedroom of a decent size with four beds in it. Each had a side table to their right and a small chest at their ends, lining the thin walking space from the door to the window. To the left of the door was a wardrobe while a sparsely filled bookshelf sat to its right. Satisfied that the room was empty, the thief hoisted himself up to sit on the windowsill while he pulled the arrow out of the wood above his head. As he was shoving it into his saddlebag a small voice came from within the room.
"Um, hello."
Clout turned his head to see a young mare had been hiding behind one of the beds. He furrowed his brows.
She flinched at his facial expression but decided to continue. "You m-must be… new here, right?" she nervously asked, "I know the city's crowded but i-if you want to sleep here my family can make room."
An awkward silence filled the air as the stallion stayed quiet.
"We don't mind sharing, really. If you're hungry my mom makes a pretty good cassar–"
Clout looked back out the window and toward the roof. It wasn't too far so he decided to climb the rest of the way without the help of his rope.
"O-okay…" the mare awkwardly trailed off as her intruder climbed out of view.
As he pulled himself up over the ledge, he could immediately tell why there wasn't another shack on top of this building. The entire roof was covered in mold and the wood bowed down with his weight. Carefully, he situated himself on the corner edge and laid down. He rested his head on his forelegs as he watched the townsfolk three stories below.
Ponies, changelings, donkies, some buffalo and even a couple griffons were all going about their day. They were helping each other when something needed to be fixed, greeting each other happily, laughing together and acting as if they were all friends. All of this behavior seemed foreign to Clout. He didn't see anyone yelling, throwing insults or kicks at each other. Nopony was being violent or even threatening. Most shockingly, he didn't see a single creature in chains. It was the weirdest thing. It was almost creepy that it didn't seem like there was a single slave here. He also didn't understand how life seemed so against this massively populated city yet everypony seemed so happy. Were the rebels actually one giant cult like Glacier said or did these ponies truly have that much faith in Wulf's plan to liberate them from the King?
The crystal pony gave a sigh, wishing he could make sense of anything these weird ponies did. Then he began to wonder why he should even care. He looked away from the street below him and toward the thicket of trees nearby that concealed the town of the Everfree. Someplace more familiar, someplace he understood with creatures he knew how to interact with. Folding his ears back, Clout decided he needed familiarity. He did not enjoy being out of his comfort zone. He couldn't even steal anything here to calm his nerves. He stood up and scanned the area for the closest section of the town's wall.
Thief climbed up Clout's withers and jumped onto the top of his head.
"Hm? Oh, we're just going to go home." He told her but the little rat jumped down to the top of his muzzle and turned around to stare at him. "Look, I know I accepted the job. I don't care. Wulf didn't even seem like he cared either." The black rodent continued to stare at him, nose twitching. "I-no, it's not an excuse," he sputtered, "Okay, yes, this town and these ponies are really kind of freaking me out and I need some kind of normalcy but it's not specifically just because of the pegasus." Thief twitched her whiskers, "Just, no but… I can't… look, the two of them are exhausting to be around okay. I can't take much more of them. A day and a half is already too much but an extra few days? Yeah, no. They fight all the time, they talk non-stop, they refuse to listen to me and demand I do what they want. I mean, why exactly are they so clingy anyway? The mare I can kind of get, she's an aristocrat and I'm, well, expensive. That doesn't take a genius. The stallion though," Clout sat back down on the roof, "He's… clingy in a different way. They both just need to back off and leave me alone. Things should go back to the way they used to be, not all this, staying awake past sunrise nonsense." Thief grinded her teeth a few times at him, "No! I'm not! Why would you even-" Clout's gaze at his friend faltered and he sighed, "Okay, yes, I am. But you know why I don't do that sort of thing and don't tell me that I can, you weren't there!" he turned his head and looked away, the rat still on his snout, "You don't understand." He heaved another sigh and felt her giving him a few licks. Looking at the rodent, Clout couldn't help but to give a small smile. "Okay, okay, you win. I'll go back and I'll do the job. No promises on me liking the two of them though."
Thief jumped back on top of his head and nibbled on one of his ears. "Hey, stop that! Okay, you win, again. I'll try to be nice, just knock it off." He shook his head gently and she jumped down, burying herself back into his cloak.
Clout groaned, grit his teeth and flattened his ears, wondering to himself why he gives in so easily all the time. He sucked in a breath and began to descend off the roof and back down to the cobblestone street. A couple creatures gave him strange looks but he just pulled his hood farther down over his face and trotted his way back to the sewer.
It wasn't long before he had reached Stratta's home and he was quite surprised the other two ponies had not returned yet. Having nothing better to do while he waited, Clout went over to the bookshelf to see if there were any secret documents he could snoop on. Unfortunately everything looked to be more maps or books on specific locations, encyclopedias on ancient cultures and a leatherbound book full of hoof drawn dragon-like creatures with no wings next to matching drawings of skeletons.
One book caught his eye though. It was an old bundle of papers wrapped in a small canvas sheet and tied together with a string. The first page acted as a cover of sorts, displaying the title of, 'Tagebuch der Dopplerunde'. He looked at the letters for a long moment, swearing to himself that he was familiar with the language but he couldn't make out what it said. He then flipped through a few pages, all with the same foreign words. From the text's format he gathered it was a diary of sorts but still couldn't understand the writing. Frustrated, he bundled it all back together and stuffed it in his saddlebag for later when he had more time to figure out the mystery.
"I'm surprised you're not sleeping, it's almost noon." an annoyingly familiar voice said accompanied by the sound of hoofsteps walking into the small camp.
"I am astonished you simply did not leave us behind." a mare said.
The stallion scoffed, "At least I have faith in my friends."
"He has, on a considerable number of occasions, expressed a disdain towards the both of us," the mare replied, "It is not a difficult conclusion to grasp."
Clout sighed, already missing the silence he had only moments ago. He turned around to face Glacier and Stratta. The moment he laid eyes on the mare it was obvious what took them so long to return. Glacier had herself groomed of the sewage muck from earlier and she purchased a few new things to wear. Protecting her hooves were large boots, not at all her style. She wore a raincoat with a hood to protect her mane, over her tail was an extra piece of cloth attached to the coat to keep it in place and to top off her ridiculous outfit she wore a gas mask on her face which distorted her speech a bit. Clout was not surprised in the slightest.
The pegasus adjusted his wings awkwardly before opening his muzzle. "Um, I hate to ask but… when we were walking up, did I see you put something in your saddlebag?" he asked.
"No." came the instant reply.
Stratta furrowed his brow. "Well, I could have sworn I saw you take something," he accused.
Clout rolled his eyes. "The sewer gas must be messing with your head," he told the pegasus.
"No, I saw you take something."
"No you didn't."
"Yeah I did, you put it in your saddlebag."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Then show me your saddlebags."
"I'm not showing you anything."
"What did you take?"
"I didn't take anything."
"Liar!"
"Pardon me," Glacier interrupted, "whatever he took he should have the rights to. You had instructed him to, 'make himself at home,' did you not?"
Stratta's frustration sputtered out and he heaved a sigh. "I… guess," he relented. He gave Clout another hard stare for a few more seconds before pushing past him to the bookshelf. The crystal pony rolled his eyes as the other stallion scanned for the missing object. After another moment Stratta's ears perked up in realization. "Oh!" he said, "So that's what you took. You should have just said so, it's yours anyway."
"What." Clout said as he watched the pegasus trot over to the carpet to take a seat.
"I was just worried you took something that belonged to one of my roommates." Stratta said as he waved a wing.
The thief gave him a concerned look.
"So, what do you want to do to pass the time?" the pegasus asked cheerfully.
"What do you mean it's mine?" Clout questioned.
"Oh, did I say that?" Stratta chuckled, "I… only meant that in reference to what I said earlier. Make yourself at home!" he opened his wings and gave a big smile, "What's mine is yours!"
"Bad excuse." Clout narrowed his eyes.
Stratta stood up. "So why don't I show you around the rest of Ponyville." he said, changing the subject, "Oh! I could introduce you to the queen of the Changelings, she's always fun!"
"Or you could inform him of the news about our mode of transport?" Glacier offered.
The pegasus put a hoof to his chin. "Actually she might still be mad at me…" he pondered.
"There's something going on with the train?" Clout looked at the unicorn.
The mare nodded. "Quite." she affirmed, "Due to a recent incident all locomotives have declared that until conditions at the Ponyville stop improve to their standards they will refuse to stop here. It seems quite the predicament and I am astonished this news was not brought to your attention promptly. I assume this will impede your plans?"
"It does." Clout said with a glare at Stratta.
The pegasus gave him a sheepish grin. "I didn't think it was that big of an issue," he said.
"Not that big of an issue??" the thief repeated in anger as he took a step forward, "The train is closed for who knows how long, you said we're on a time limit for this job and you're ignoring telling me the trains refuse to stop here now!"
Stratta fluttered his wings as he tried to mount his defense. "Well…" he began, "I just thought this would give us more time to hang out, get to know each other better and become better friends. There will always be a next time to try and take the amulet. It's fine, we can…" the pegasus trailed off as Clout began to trot out of the sewer. "Oh, wait up!" he called out to him as he ran after, Glacier not too far behind.
Stratta glared at the unicorn, "I blame you for this."
"Me?!" she said in outrage, "You are accusing me of his poor attitude due to the fact I had informed him of vital knowledge that will greatly impact his ability to do his job that you refused to disclose? You, sir, only have yourself to blame!"
"I was gunna tell him, I just… I didn't mean to…" Stratta trailed off as he looked at Clot who was angrily stomping through the sewer. He sighed and decided it was probably best to keep his mouth shut for a while.
The trio moved swiftly in silence through the town, the thief setting the pace. Glacier had removed her gas mask to be able to breathe in the fresh air but kept on the rest of her new outfit. The pegasus, lagging behind, almost losing his two companions in the crowded streets so he had to take flight to keep track of them. He was pretty sure he knew where they were going to go if they lost him though. They reached the large entrance of the town where Clout glared at the guards until they opened the gates for them so the small group could leave.
The buckskin stallion kept his pace, ignoring the two annoyances behind him and glaring at everything ahead of him. He quietly fumed at the pegasus, at his decision to not ditch them when he had the chance, at Merchant for basically forcing this upon him and at the sun for being so annoyingly bright.
They followed the train tracks South, no one uttering a word to each other. After an hour of silence, the mare was starting to grow bored of the situation. She looked behind her at the pegasus who still walked several paces behind them and was still looking sorry for himself that he angered Clout. She looked to the crystal pony who seemed to run out of fuel for his anger and had slowed his furious trot down to a decently paced walk a while ago.
After a bit of thought, she had an idea on how to break the silence and relieve her boredom in addition to helping her ignore her aching hooves. She knew the buckskin would be cross at her complaints and she did not intend on adding fuel to his fire.
"Say, how about we play a game while we walk?" Glacier pleasantly asked.
Both stallions looked at her in confusion.
She returned their gazes one at a time, "It will not slow our pace and it will get the pegasus to stop sulking."
Clout returned to looking straight ahead. "I don't play games."
She pouted. "You want to play, correct?" She looked at Stratta.
The pegasus looked away. "Let's just walk, okay?"
Glacier folded her ears with a harrumph. "Fine, be that way." she said haughtily, "And here I thought you wanted to get to know Clout better. I guess I was wrong."
Stratta's ears perked up and he glanced at her. He could only resist the temptation for a moment before he had to ask, "What game did you want to play?"
The mare smirked in triumph. "It is a game some nobles play for entertainment and if one is smart enough at it they may sneak secrets out of their opponents. It is a rather simple game, you say something that you have never done and if the others playing the game have, they take a drink." she explained, "For example I could say, 'I have never entered into a sewer prior to today.' and since you have, you would take a drink."
"That does sound kind of fun…" Stratta admitted.
"The only issue is that we do not have alcohol to drink so we will have to think of an alternative way to say that we have." Glacier said.
Stratta folded his ears and his grumpy expression returned. "Why would I want to play with you though? I don't even like or trust you. I'd rather just play with Clout but he's obviously not going to play." he grumbled.
"Well," the unicorn mare started, "we could start playing to show Clout how enjoyable it is and he may join us if he is so inclined." She gave a wry smile at the stallion ahead of her.
The pegasus gave the idea a bit to sink in before he decided he actually did want to play. He trotted to finally catch up to his two companions. "We could just say that we have done it instead of drinking." he offered.
"I suppose we could but it will not be as much fun without the partaking of alcohol." Glacier said as the two of them looked at Clout barely a step or two ahead of them. "Will you join us, Clout?"
The buckskin stayed silent as he walked.
"Have it your way then." Glacier said to him before she turned to the pegasus, "Would you like to go first?"
"Oh, uh…" not expecting to be the first one to go, he tried to think of something, "Well, I've never played this game before." He knew that was a pathetic way to start the game but he couldn't think of anything else on such short notice.
The unicorn smiled, "And now you have! Oh, and I have played this before obviously. Alright, my turn." She paused for a moment, "Despite what you may think of me, I have never owned a slave."
Stratta's ears folded. "Why do I not believe you." he said.
"What, it is the truth! Every slave I have interacted with belonged to somepony else. Most of the time they belonged to my parents, however, I am quite positive they will pass ownership of several to me in my inheritance. I have never purchased a slave myself nor am I the contracted owner of any, thus my statement is true." she told him with a smug grin.
Stratta snorted, still not believing her. "Well I've never been in debt with the mafia before." he retorted.
"Hm, fair enough, I have." was all the response the unicorn gave .
"You're not going to explain, are you?" the pegasus questioned.
The mare cleared her throat, "That is a complicated and personal subject that is none of your business." Glancing at him, she was rather pleased with the look of frustration on the pegasus' face. "Moving on," she said, "I have never been a slave."
Clout swished his tail, still silent, as Stratta replied, "I have."
"Oh? I honestly had not expected that, you do not have the standard slave brand."
"Different countries have different identifiers, customs and laws regarding their slaves. When my mom sold me she made sure it was to a place that would take care of me." The pegasus explained, "It wasn't so bad but not everypony is so lucky to have such a kind master." He paused for only a second before continuing, "My turn then, I've never been in prison."
Glacier opened her mouth, ready with a very rude comment before she thought better of it and closed it. The mare opened her muzzle again, "Well… hopefully that trend continues and… neither your alliance or… actions change that." She said with an obvious awkward tone of voice as if trying really hard not to insult him.
The pegasus narrowed his eyes at her as she took her turn.
"I have never dated a mare."
Without skipping a beat Stratta took his turn again, "I've never claimed I could time travel."
"I do not claim to do so, I can." Glacier corrected.
"You haven't proven it yet." Stratta commented.
"Are you requesting to stop our game?" she asked innocently.
"No." he glanced at her, "just reminding you that you haven't proven it yet."
"I will in due time, I have not forgotten." she said, "I have never been religious."
Stratta's ears shot back. "Is there something wrong with being religious?" he asked, slightly annoyed.
"I never claimed being religious was a bad thing, I just personally do not believe in anything of the sort." she said as she grew curious, "Do you?"
The pegasus ruffled his feathers. "I… don't know what I believe," he admitted, "At least I've never worn ten pounds of jewelry."
"It was not ten pounds of jewelry, that is quite the exaggeration." Glacier said with an eye roll. "I have never flown before."
"Wait, really?" Stratta asked, "Isn't that one of the main modes of transport for super rich ponies?"
She nodded, "You are correct but not every aristopony uses sky carriages."
"Well, I've never been on a boat before."
Glacier grinned, "I have. Luxury cruise ships are simply divine, you must try it someday."
"Eeh, I think I'll pass." Stratta said with a disinterested expression on his face.
The mare put a hoof to her chin in thought. "I have never… You know, I do not think I have ever seen any of my sister's films before." she reflected.
The pegasus blinked in surprise, "Your sister is in film?"
"Yes, she ran away from home at a young age. We got a letter from her several years ago telling us she was well and that she had been recruited to be in a film or two. I forget what it was titled though. I have been meaning to go watch it, I just have not had the time." Glacier said.
Stratta chuckled. "Why would a high class even want to run away from home when they have everything they could ever want." he commented.
The mare sighed. "You would be quite surprised. We have struggles we wish we could run from quite like everypony else." she replied.
"Well I've never seen any films before." the pegasus said, "Gotta admit I'm a little jealous, I hear they're a marvel of technology. I mean, moving pictures? Who even thought that pictures could move in the first place to invent it!"
She mused at his foal-like wonder at the thought. "Yes, they are quite the sight to witness." she said with a smile, "I have never… been to the Crystal Empire."
Clout swished his tail which caught the mare's attention.
"I've never stepped hoof inside a mansion or castle before." Stratta said as the buck ahead of them swished his tail again.
Glacier raised an eyebrow. "I have, obviously." she said before she looked at the pegasus then back to Clout. "I have…" she started, looking back at Stratta and tilting her head towards the crystal pony, "never used a weapon."
Clout swished his tail again.
For a moment, Stratta was confused as to what the mare was trying to silently tell him. "I have a pistol but I don't use it much." he tilted his head.
She raised her brows and tilted her head at Clout. Stratta's eyes narrowed in confusion. She gestured toward the crystal pony again.
The pegasus looked at the stallion in front of him and studied his appearance. He opened his muzzle, "I've never shot a bow though." As he watched Clout swish his tail again and understanding dawned on Stratta. Both the pegasus and unicorn stifled giggles.
"I have never been to Ponyville before today." Glacier took her turn.
Stratta couldn't hide his smile as he saw the buckskin swish his tail again, glad to see the stallion was playing along with them even if it was in his own way. "And of course I have." Stratta said, "I've never owned a pet."
Clout swished his tail and both his companions knew he was thinking of his pet rat.
"I had a cat when I was a little filly." Glacier said, "Unfortunately she escaped the grounds one day and was preyed upon by a pack of street dogs." she gave a sad smile, "Princess was her name. I loved that cat." After a moment of internal reminiscing she took her turn. "Other than Princess, I have never had an immediate family member pass away.
Clout swished his tail and the pegasus' ears drooped. "I have." Stratta said solemnly, "I don't know about my mom but my dad is dead."
"I am so sorry." Glacier said, "I could not even imagine my life without my father." Her expression of sorrow quickly changed to anger when she added, "My mother on the other hoof, we would all be better off without her at home."
With the amount of scorn in the mare's tone of voice, Stratta thought he'd be better off changing the subject. "Uh, I've never seen a dragon."
The mare looked to the pegasus as Clout swished his tail. "I have." she replied, "Foul beasts, most of them as very few have sophisticated themselves. Mrs. Roth and her descendants are truly the only family who understands what it means to be of high society. They are often invited to soirees but only attend those they deem worthy of their presence."
"Hm, I guess ponies aren't the only ones who can have fat heads." Stratta mused.
"Pardon me?" she said, offended at the remark.
He waved a wing, "Oh, nothing. Your turn."
She folded her ears and glared at him before talking again, "I've never killed anypony."
Clout swished his tail.
"Are you implying that just because I have that I'm a bad person?" Stratta heatedly asked.
"I do not know how you came to that conclusion. However, if the shoe fits, you said it, not I." the mare said haughtily.
The pegasus glared at her. "Just because some of u– oof!" He started but was cut off when he collided into the crystal pony. Clout glared at him as he took a couple steps back and gave the thief an apologetic look. "Uh, s-sorry."
Glacier looked at the crystal pony. "Oh, are we taking a break? I would be ever so grateful if we did, I have never walked so much in my life." she said as she lifted a sore hoof off the ground.
Clout gave her a flat look before finally breaking his silence. "We need to go off the trail for a bit."
"Pardon?"
"Can I ask why?"
"No." Clout stubbornly answered as he veered off the path and into the brush.
"Wonderful, you have soured his mood once again." she scolded the pegasus before daintily following their leader into the thick brush.
"I didn't– Ugh!" Stratta grumbled before he too followed.
Clout swiftly and mostly quietly made his way through the brush while his two companions didn't bother even trying to avoid making noise. It wasn't even a couple minutes before the uppity mare decided to begin complaining again.
"While I do understand that you have a sort of… method to your madness so-to-speak but might we return to the road? You seem to be unwilling to slow down so we can keep up and with us tromping through the woods I would feel safer being by your side rather than several pony lengths behind you." Glacier said, hopeful that she wouldn't anger him again.
"Then keep up." was all Clout said in response.
The pegasus looked at her, offended. "What am I, chopped liver?" he asked.
"You have expressed on a number of occasions that you detest me. I highly doubt in a situation requiring somepony's assistance that you would actually offer your support."
Clout turned around and glared at the two of them. "Would you two shut up!" he scolded. Just as he finished his sentence a dagger was magically held against his throat. He flattened his ears. "This is exactly why I travel alone." he said as the magic user brought it closer, "I hate both of you."
"Why are you trying to sneak up onto our camp?" the stranger questioned as he stepped out of the brush from behind the crystal pony. He was a young stallion, dark brown in color with a black patched coat. His yellow and orange mane stuck out from under his hooded jacket. He had another dagger in its sheath on his foreleg, a pistol in a holster attached to his saddlebag and several small bottles filled with unknown liquid attached to a belt around his back leg. His muzzle was hidden by a mask but his eyes gave both the mare and pegasus an icy stare.
"You know, hate is a really strong word and you use it a lot." Stratta pointed out, "Couldn't you try using another word that's… less? Like dislike or that you find us unpleasant?"
"No," Clout replied, "hate is accurate."
Before Clout could say anything else, the young unicorn levitated the dagger so close to the crystal pony's throat that it would break skin if he moved it a hair closer. "I asked you a question!" the stranger chastised, "Why were you sneaking up on us?"
"I do not believe we were attempting to." Glacier said, trying to calm the intruder, "Now please, if you would sheath your blade we may address your concerns in a more civil matter."
The young unicorn glared at her.
Clout glanced behind himself, trying to see his attacker. "We weren't sneaking up on you. I was trying to avoid you. We're on a time restraint and I was trying to prevent a stupid encounter exactly like this."
"Liar!" the stranger accused as he levitated his pistol out of its holster.
"Ooh, are you gunna shoot them? Actually, that's kinda disappointing, I was really hoping to see you use your poisons on them." came a young colt's voice from under some nearby brush.
Everypony looked towards its source to see a tan colored pegasus colt with a dark blue and silver mane.
"Rabbit!" the cloaked unicorn scolded as yet another stranger made her way past the foliage and to the growing group of ponies.
A darker tan pegasus mare with a long black and dark purple mane glared at the colt. "Rabbit, don't run off like that!" she chided.
Rabbit ignored the mare and asked the unicorn stallion another question. "What about putting your poisons on your sword? Does that even work?"
The pegasus mare picked up the colt by his scruff and put him on her back. "Ugh, sorry Jinx, he's just too fast sometimes." she said.
Jinx grunted as he allowed his dagger to ease up off Clout's throat. "Strangers can be very dangerous, you can't just go up to them. You must be cautious. You are still young and can easily be overtaken." he told the foal.
"I'm only four years younger than you." he shot back.
As the two continued to berate the colt, Clout grew bored of waiting and backed away from the floating blade before starting to walk away. Glacier and Stratta followed.
Tired of having his two elders give him safety lectures, he pointed a hoof to the three fleeing strangers. "They're leaving," he said. Rabbit's change of topic was successful as both Jinx and the pegasus mare looked at Clout and his stalkers.
"Where do you think you're going?" the cloaked unicorn asked as he levitated his pistol to point at them.
The crystal pony glared at him. "Leaving," he said flatly.
"Look, we really weren't sneaking up on you. We're on our way to Los Pegasus. We just didn't want a confrontation." Stratta explained.
"Well, if you really don't mean us any harm, why not join us for lunch?" the pegasus mare asked with a smile.
Glacier smiled back, "A rest after walking all day sounds absolutely delightful!"
"Sure!" Stratta replied happily, "Thank you for the offer."
With the situation defused, the group began to walk out of the brush and back to the road. The unicorn mare glanced behind them and noticed that Clout was not following them. "You are coming as well, are you not?" she inquired.
"We are on a time limit."
Glacier gave a dainty sigh. "We have several days, a couple of hours will not put you past your schedule and besides, you look like you could use a rest as well." she said.
Clout snorted and folded his ears back. "Fine, I'll just go alone like I've been wanting to," he said as he began back in the direction he was headed before Jinx had stopped him, "It'll be better for everypony this way."
Refusing to continue chasing after the crystal pony with how much her hooves ached, Glacier used her magic to grab his short tail. His rear end raised into the air so his rear hooves could no longer touch the forest floor.
"H-hey!!" Clout said in sheer terror, "Let–let me go! Get your magic off my tail!" The stallion tried to grab onto anything he could reach as the unicorn dragged him to the stranger's campsite. Clout's little rat friend fell out of his cloak due to the extreme angle he was being held at and after she took a second to figure out what had happened, she began to follow.
"You are acting like a belligerent child and I will not tolerate it any longer." Glacier stated as she ignored the panicking thief behind her.
They returned to the road and followed it for only a short distance before bellowing laughter could be heard, an aroma of stew wafted on the soft breeze and two covered waggons could be spotted between the trees.
"My, that smells quite delightful!" the unicorn mare commented as her captive continued to fruitlessly flail in distress.
Just off the road in a small clearing that was boxed in by the waggons were seven ponies including Stratta. Three of them were Jinx, Rabbit and the pegasus mare. One of the remaining three strangers was an earth pony stallion bigger than anypony Glacier had ever seen. He was almost as big as the waggon he was strapped to. He had a long gray-brown mane that was tied back and his coat was a burnt orange color. He had a white laced shirt on and two large saddlebags at his sides. Almost hidden by his packs and the waggon straps was a large white splotch that painted his hindquarters. He was laying in the grass, holding a sharpening stone in one hoof and a large shovel in the other. The sound the stone made against the metal of the shovel head was almost drowned out by the joyous sounds of the other ponies and the boiling stewpot over the campfire in the center of the clearing.
A heavily pregnant skyblue and white mare held a wooden spoon in her wing that she used to stir the bubbling liquid. Her black and white mane was long and her tail had been braided, most likely a hygiene preparation for her inevitable childbirth.
The last stranger was also a pegasus. He was medium-gray in color with a pink mane and tail. His bright blue eyes looked lovingly at the pregnant mare as he hooved some bowls to her that he recently retrieved from one of the waggons. He wore a simple black cloak with a white neckpiece. Pinned to the chest of his uniform was a pendant of two alicorns revolving around the planet of Equus. It was obvious he was a priest of the Two Sisters religion.
"But I wanna see Jinx use his poisons!" Rabbit complained as he jumped in place.
Jinx sighed, "I told you the effects take time, they're not for immediate combat." he tried to explain and from the tone of his voice, they have had this exact conversation several times over, "Even if I use them, by the time I part ways with who I use them on, the effect would be barely noticeable as maybe a small rash. I have not yet the skill or rank to use anything more substantial."
Stratta looked over to Glacier and Clout, brows furrowing. "What took you two so long I thought you were right behind us." he said as he examined Clout's awkward predicament, "Um, are you going to let him go? That can't be comfortable."
"Hmm?" Glacier questioned as if she had no idea what he was talking about, "Oh, I was simply making sure our mutual acquaintance made his way safely here so he could rest as well instead of continuing along to Los Pegasus solo." She gave Clout a glare which he didn't even acknowledge in his continuing panic before she dispelled her magic, letting the crystal pony drop to the ground.
"Oof!" he exhaled as he collapsed to a heap, Thief running to him to lick his hoof. He quickly got up and shook himself off as the rat quickly climbed back up to his withers. Out of rage he galloped to cut Glacier off from entering the small clearing. "Don't you ever do that again!" he shouted at her through clenched teeth.
Everypony's attention was now focused on the two of them as Glacier took a step back. "Well pardon me for being tired of your infantilism. The least you can do is act like an adult if you refuse to use even the simplest of manners. When somepony offers you a seat at their table instead of stabbing you in the throat you either politely turn them down or oblige with their gift. You don't insult them by acting like a child."
"Fine, you want manners so bad. Payment is manners right, why not offer them a unicorn horn in exchange for your bowl of slop? Here, I'll help you take yours off!" The crystal pony growled as he pulled a dagger out from under his cloak and swung it at Glacier's face.
"How rude!" she shouted as she took several steps back.
Suddenly, a massive white hoof slammed Clout to the ground, knocking the wind out of his lungs and the blade from his hoof, once again throwing Thief off of her ride. The earth pony stallion was even larger standing up than he was lying down and he completely dwarfed the small crystal pony. He lowered his head just a few inches from Clout's face and gave a very deep growl in threat as he shifted his weight to the hoof pressing down on the thief's side.
"Spot Butt doesn't like it when ponies fight." Rabbit explained.
The unicorn mare blinked up at the massive stallion in shock at his swift appearance to defend her. "I thank you, good sir. Your assistance is truly appreciated." she told him with a small smile.
He simply looked at her with a neutral expression before glancing down at his prey. After a few more seconds he slowly lifted his hoof to allow the thief to get up.
As the earth pony backed the wagon into its previous spot in the clearing, the pink maned buck walked over to Glacier. "Are you hurt?" he asked as he offered her his wing, "Why don't you come sit down."
"Why thank you." the unicorn said as she walked over to him. She looked back at Clout briefly who was still lying on the ground, removing the mask from his face as he struggled to catch his breath. Satisfied that he was not crushed to death, she followed the stallion and they both walked over to the pregnant mare.
"Are you injured dear?" she asked Glacier.
"No, I am alright thanks to… Um, is that truly his name? It seems…" she replied, struggling not to insult her savior's name.
The priest chuckled. "No, but it was for a time. Tombstone doesn't talk much, so young Rabbit named him until he felt comfortable enough to tell us what he was called."
"Oh, that is a better name. It is a bit morbid, however." she admitted.
"Well once upon a time he was an undertaker so it is an appropriate fit."
As the three of them chatted, Stratta got up from his seat and walked over to Clout. "Hey, you alright?" he asked in concern.
Ignoring the pegasus, the crystal pony continued to try and stand while Thief gave his nose licks of encouragement. His legs were slightly shaky and he grit his teeth against the pain in his side. When the pegasus offered to help support him, Clout shoved him away with a hoof. "I don't want help!" he told Stratta.
"I know you don't want help but you need it. With how you're breathing he probably broke a rib or two. Not surprising considering how hard you hit the ground." the pegasus quietly said, hoping the stubborn pony would give in.
Clout turned and slowly made his way towards a tree as the rat climbed back up his leg, hoping she wouldn't get thrown for a third time. "I don't need help." he complained as he took out his bow and a rope arrow.
As the crystal pony shot the arrow into a branch of the tree, Stratta debated on if he should just fly Clout up to the branch. He didn't want his new friend to hurt himself more but at the same time he didn't want to make their relationship worse by having Clout be even more angry. His pride was probably damaged from the blow as well which might be made worse by Stratta helping. The pegasus sighed in disappointment at himself and he made his way back to everypony else while Clout climbed the rope and tried to get comfortable high above the group where he felt safer.
"I do hope your friend isn't hurt." the pregnant mare said as she watched Stratta sit down, "Spotts just wanted us to be safe from danger. I'm sure he didn't mean any harm."
The stallion rubbed a wing against the back of his head as he avoided eye contact. "Oh, I'm sure Clout's fine," he said, "Probably just a bruised pride."
"I'll be glad if that's true, we lack any sort of medical assistance." the mare replied.
"May I ask your names?" Glacier interjected, "I am Glaciated Era but you may call me Glacier."
The pregnant mare smiled. "Of course, I am Pepper Tree, my husband is Creed," she said as she looked over to the priest, "Those two are Rabbit and Dust Bunny," she said, pointing a wing towards the two younger pegasai, "Our unicorn here is called Jinx Hunter and our protector is Tombstone but most of us have taken to calling him Spots."
"I'm Garrett Stratta," the pegasus chimed in, "Our grumpy friend over there is Clout Upshot." He pointed a wing up to the tree and the crystal pony gave an annoyed growl.
Creed sat down next to his wife. "It is nice to meet you all despite the eventful start." he said with a chuckle.
"Yeah, sorry about that." Stratta rubbed the back of his head again, "He's usually grumpy but this is the first time I've seen him turn to violence. I can kind of understand why though, we're on a time limit for a job."
"May I ask what it is you three do?" Pepper inquired.
"Well…" the pegasus stallion started as he looked around at the group of strangers, unsure how they would react to them working with the rebels, "we're couriers basically. We need to get to Los Pegasus to pick up a delivery."
"That's very nice to hear you three make an honest living." Creed said with a warm smile.
"Hmm, yes, honest…" Glacier mumbled as she eye'd her two stallions.
Hoping nopony overheard the prissy unicorn, Stratta decided to try and steer the conversation. "So! Where are you ponies headed?" he asked.
"We're headed to Sanctuary!" Rabbit blurted in excitement before his older sister lightly smacked him with a hoof. He glared at her in return.
"Pardon?" Glacier inquired.
Pepper stirred the stew as she elaborated. "We're headed North to a town outside of the Equestrian border. It's kind of like a sanctuary. Safe from the plague at least." the mare sighed.
"It will be safe." Creed tried to reassure his mare. As he rubbed her back with a hoof he continued, "The plague, it has devastated this land, taken away our families. It almost took Pepper and our foal from me."
"Almost?" Glacier asked with furrowed brows.
Stratta had a huge grin on his face. "You survived the blight?" he asked with a hint of excitement, "Was it the new curative tonic by 2B? I knew their cure would work!"
"New tonic?" Bunny questioned.
Jinx gave a soft chuckle. "Everything 2B creates as far as tonics and potions go are nothing but jokes. None of them do what they claim." he chimed in.
Stratta's smile faded and his brows furrowed. His love of the idea that 2B Pharmaceuticals created the miracle that would solve one of the world's biggest problems taking a blow.
"No." Creed said simply, "It was no tonic or anything Flim and Flam's company produced. I do, however, truly believe it was a miracle from the Goddesses."
Pepper began to spoon the stew into the bowls to pass around as she spoke up. "It was a shaman from a foreign land. He traveled with his wife and daughter." she explained.
"It was a zebra!" Rabbit proclaimed.
"Was not you dummy. He was a pony." Bunny corrected.
"Nuh-uh, he was a zebra!" he glared at his sister.
"He was not!"
"He was black and white all over," he wiggled his hooves in the air to show what he meant by 'all over', "and he didn't speak Ponish it was some kind of funny talk. That's a zebra!" As he concluded the details of his analysis he crossed his hooves with determination that he was correct.
She rolled her eyes. "You have no idea what you're talking about. He was a black and white painted pony, not a zebra. Zebras have stripes." she corrected again.
"Ha! See, you admitted it. He was painted, that's why he didn't have stripes. Zebras use war paints, ponies don't. He was a zebra."
"Ugh! You're such a pain!" she exclaimed as Jinx chuckled at their interaction.
Creed hooved a bowl of stew to Stratta. "Well, whatever he was, whatever he did, he performed a miracle that day." he said as he gazed at Pepper Tree.
"But, how? What did he do that saved you?" Stratta asked.
The pregnant mare rubbed her belly as she answered, "To be honest, I don't know. I was so feverish that I don't remember most of the time that I was sick. I do remember my dreams filled with strange words that I didn't understand. A song I think. It was beautiful. I remember smells of some kind; something flowery, something with a sharp tone to it, something that reminded me of the woods on a rainy day and a few others I couldn't put my hoof on. I remember I was burning hot but then this wonderful wave of cold washed over me and there was the flavor of citrus. I don't have any idea what he did but when I woke up it was like the fog had been lifted, the fire extinguished and the pain in my body was gone. It felt like my body was made of lead and I was exhausted but I didn't feel like I was dying anymore."
"May I inquire as to what price he demanded for your treatment?" Glacier asked, "I imagine it would have been rather expensive for a proper cure."
"Nothing." Pepper answered.
"I had offered what little I had but he refused any kind of payment. He just asked for his family to have a hot meal and then they went on their way." Creed stated.
Glacier scoffed, "Well with an endorsed elixir for the blight and you as the living proof, he could certainly advertise his medical practices and profit quite well. Especially if he is a proper licensed physician. He could offer his services to the wealthy and become a concierge. I know many well-to-do who only use private medical practitioners and they pay them very well."
Stratta glared at her. "Not everypony's out for money. He's probably doing it out of the kindness of his heart. We need more ponies like that, then maybe Equestria wouldn't be such the shithole that it is." he argued.
Pepper had an uneasy look on her face as she attempted to change the subject, "The stew is getting cold, why don't we all dig in."
Taking her suggestion, the conversation was temporarily paused in exchange for compliments to the chef. Stratta looked up at the only pony in camp who still hadn't gotten a bowl of food. "Hey," he called up to Clout, "you gunna come get some food? It's really good, you should try some."
No response.
"Is he dead?" Rabbit asked with a muzzle full of food.
"Clout, did you fall asleep or something?" Stratta questioned.
The crystal pony's ears swiveled and he gave a growl, prompting Tombstone to give an icy glare at his back.
The charcoal pegasus gave his hosts a sheepish grin on the thief's behalf. "I-I'm sorry about him. The stew is really good, he just has trust issues. Probably thinks it's poisoned or something." he tried to explain.
"Ooh, is that something you can do with your poisons?" the colt asked Jinx in excitement.
"Please don't give him ideas." Bunny groaned at the unicorn's grin.
Note: This chapter contains some French. I do not speak French but I tried to find the correct usage of each phrase that the character from Prance uses. If I am incorrectly representing the language, please let me know so I can make corrections. I do not mean to misrepresent the language but I did try my best. I am currently learning German for future chapters. I plan to learn French too but my brain can only handle one thing at a time.
Phrases I used and their translation:
Bonne soirée monsieur -> formal greeting Excusez-moi? -> Pardon? Monsieur -> Sir Oh, je suis désolé -> I'm sorry Si vous plaît -> Please Mon nom est Cloud Glitter -> My name is Cloud Glitter Oui -> Yes Comment vous-appelez vous? -> Formal of what is your name ta mère et ton père -> Your mother and your father Bonne nuit -> Good night un instant -> One moment Au revoir -> Good bye (Can be used in formal situations)
"You can count on me like one, two, three. I'll be there. And I know when I need it I can count on you like four, three, two and you'll be there. 'Cause that's what friends are supposed to do." Bruno Mars - Count on Me
"Those ponies were actually quite pleasant, unlike the present company." Glacier commented as she and her two stallions continued on their way to Los Pegasus.
Stratta folded his ears. "You know, I thought you were actually trying to change your attitude after we left Ponyville." he retorted, "I guess you're just a bitch, aren't you?"
The mare scoffed, "Well, you are no gentlecolt yourself, sir."
The three ponies had stayed only a few hours with the group of strangers, chatting with each other and exchanging stories prior to parting ways. Stratta had given them a few bits as compensation for the meal and Glacier was happy to be rid of the ugly boots, coat and gas mask she had recently purchased. Creed insisted on saying a prayer to his Goddesses that they would have safe travels and a prosperous life then they all said goodbye. The three of them walked away as the other six packed their camp back into their waggons.
Clout was setting an even slower pace than before but he was still determined to reach his destination. Stratta had suggested the two groups travel together but he received a rather irritated glare from their leader.
Knowing Clout's mood was still sour, the pegasus decided it would be better to not get into another childish fight with the mare. He decided that he needed to come up with a way to cheer him up. Stratta furrowed his brows as he figured stealing something might be the only way. He didn't know much about the crystal pony yet but he definitely knew almost everything irritated him. He glanced up from his hooves to look at the buckskin. Clout's ears were drooped down and his head was lowered. Though Stratta could not see his facial expression, his body language definitely said 'exhausted'. Finally he decided on somewhere they could get some proper rest. However, knowing what little he did, he figured the crystal pony would opt for scouting the soot mill first instead of going directly to sleep.
They had been walking in mostly silence for several hours and it was almost evening. They had followed the train tracks South through the thick White Tail Woods and Los Pegasus was finally within sight. Massive snow peaked mountains rose high to the left of the city and the sporadic cloud cover seemed to connect them to the highrise buildings. The large Applewood sign was clearly visible from their vantage point as it sat attached to the side of the mountain below the clouds. The tallest buildings in Equestria towered almost as high as their neighboring peaks and they were covered in lights, signs and advertisements.
Even the road they traveled on was not safe from the city's decor. As soon as they crossed over the bridge that provided passage over the swiftly flowing river, billboards and signs were everywhere. Advertisements for small businesses, community events, theatre shows and nightlife entertainment in the red district covered most of them. Some had new product advertisements from well known companies such as Hive Mind Industries, 2B Pharmaceuticals, Frozen Paradise, The Corporation and Lightning Ideas. There were a few with the King's symbol, reminding ponies to behave or be punished by his law ponies. There were even newspapers littering the railway and caught in the brush beside the road thanks to the wind from the nearby sea. They shouted discounted prices or sale events, job opportunities and contests for prizes. There were some notices of religious gatherings but compared to the boisterous noise of all the other publicities, they were barely noticeable.
It wasn't long until they came upon one that Glacier had to voice her opinion on. It showed a yellow-gray unicorn stallion wearing a thin banded diadem. He had a short black and light red striped mane. He wore a pair of spectacles, a red cape lined with white fur and a purple scarf. The stallion held a fancy looking cane in his hoof and he pointed the end of it away, showing off the dark circus tent behind him 'Come witness the horrors of Equestria at Simon Says' Unhinged Circus!' the advertisement insisted. Along the bottom of the billboard, it showed a date when the show would be in Los Pegasus.
Glacier wrinkled her nose in disgust as she commented, "Why on Equus would Prince Simon partake in sponsoring such a vulgar show. He really should be doing something more princely."
"Well you've got to admit there are a lot of strange looking creatures thanks to Discord's magic." Stratta replied, "Some are so horribly disfigured that they can't earn money for food or a place to sleep. I'm actually glad he's willing to give them a job."
"He is a prince," she scoffed, "It takes an abundance of lessons to fine tune one's essential qualities that are required for those in aristocracy. I can imagine those in royalty must have twice as many lessons. Prince Simon should be at home attending to his princely duties."
Stratta fluttered his wings. "I doubt those he's paying to teach him stuff can tell him what he can and can't do," he replied.
"Hmm," the mare mused, "I suppose you do have a point. Still, that child should realize he has better things to do with his time."
The trio finally reached the entrance to the city of fame. Many apartment lofts towered above them instead of city gates. Right by the entrance was a large parking garage for the city's taxi service. A few ponies strapped to rickshaws or carriages were pestering folks to take their services. Clout glared when one tried to coax him into riding. As they continued on, many buildings had huge neon signs, lit up even though it wasn't yet sunset. Though the marvels of technology were new, they were grand and demanding attention. The glass structures were shaped to the desires of the building owners, twisted into a logo, letters or bordering a wooden sign. There were a couple buildings with ponies installing the lighted signs in an attempt to keep up with the fast pace of the day's evolving technology.
They passed Hotels, restaurants, banks and casinos, all fancied up to attract customers. The museum and churches were even spruced up with flashing lights and bold colors. Fancy ponies in feathery costumes stood outside the comedy and magic theatre, enticing bystanders to come in and buy a ticket. Right next door was a large outdoor amphitheatre where a live performance was playing. An orchestra was just below the stage and there was seating filled with hundreds of ponies, some of which were standing in the street just to watch the show because it was so crowded. A structure that was partially made of clouds offered pegasai flown waggon rides to tour the city from the sky. A railway weaved around the metropolis; once being a path for minecarts through the nearby mountain's coal mine, it now served as Equestria's very first 'roller coaster' as the inventor called it.
Another piece of architecture they passed advertised film shows where there were no actors or actresses present but pictures that moved. Next to the famous Golden Horseshoe Casino, notably owned and operated by the Spectrum Fliers, was the turf accountant who took betting odds of all sorts. Boxing matches, raceways, how long somepony famous would live or which factions would be victorious in ongoing hot conflicts. Nothing was off the table to bet your bits on. After they had passed a street lined with the noticeable red lights that informed it was the adult entertainment district, Glacier decided to pester their leader.
"Pardon me Clout but, might I inquire as to what our destination might be? We've been walking for some time and there seems to be many locations that actually look to be quite inviting to indulge in. Well, Specifically not that guided tour of the coal mines. I do not desire to entertain the prospect that it is haunted as the advertisement indicates," she scoffed at the very thought.
"To do my job." the crystal pony said flatly.
"W-well yes, of course." Glacier responded awkwardly, "However, King Sombra shall not arrive until tomorrow evening so do we not have time to enjoy ourselves a bit?"
Clout stopped to glare at her.
Seeing his opportunity, Stratta decided to take the lead. "Hey, what a great idea! I know the perfect place, come on!" he said before turning around and starting off in a direction the thief did not want to go.
The unicorn furrowed her brows. "Are you being genuine or are you mocking me?" she asked over the noise of the city.
Looking back to make sure they were following, the pegasus saw neither pony was budging even with the flow of the crowded streets shoving against them. Taking to the sky above the herd of ponies so his two companions could see him better he gave Clout a sly grin. "You'll like it, I promise!" he tried, "Now come on or I'll pick you up and carry you there."
The crystal pony folded his ears at the threat, hoping whatever stupid idea the pegasus had wouldn't take too long. Wanting to get this next torture over with, he begrudgingly followed the pegasus through the city. They arrived at Freemare Street which was directly across from the red district. From there, they entered a hotel that was brightly labeled The Pioneer Club.
Clout glared at the pegasus above him. "Why are we here." he complained.
Landing next to them, Stratta gave a smile of success. "I told you, this place is fun!" he said in excitement.
The pegasus trotted in followed by a very grumpy Clout and a curious Glacier. The inside of the structure was dimly lit with candles along the walls. This struck a stark contrast from the pazzazz of the outside. A fancy chandelier hung above the lobby lit with electric bulbs that looked as if they were struggling to stay bright. The shape of them caught Glacier's attention and she opened her muzzle for a comment.
She leaned uncomfortably close to Clout and whispered, "Is it just me or do the lights on the chandelier look like… phalluses?"
"What?" the crystal pony asked while taking an annoyed step back from her.
The mare at the front desk gave the group a sultry look. Her coat was off white and she had varying shades of yellow and light blue for her mane. She wore a lacy outfit, barely covering any of her body, and a slick leather saddle. The decorative bridal on her face was intricately designed with ting hearts carved into it. "Welcome to the Pioneer Club. We have entertainment of all kinds, we host broadway shows here, there's gamblin' and we also have adult activities. As a group or in private...." She gave them a wink, "My name is Sugar Rain, how can I pleasure you today?"
"What kind of place did you bring us to." Clout interrogated the pegasus.
Stratta waved a wing at him. "Relax, relax, it's fine." he turned to Sugar, "We need three rooms. One mare and two stallions please."
Glacier stood to Stratta's side, "Pardon but if we are to get rooms for the night would it not be cheaper for you to have us all rest in the same room?" she asked.
The desk mare chuckled, "Well we do have group rooms if that's what you desire."
Stratta opened one of his wings to block the unicom's view of the hostess. She glared at him in response. "No, the three rooms are fine, we don't need one." he replied.
After an exchange of bits for different colored and numbered keys, they began down the hallway. Several times the trio passed double doors that had been propped open for anypony to enter. They passed a massive buffet, the gambling hall, a small theatre where an opera singer filled the room with his voice, and many other fun looking activities that essentially made the building a miniature version of the city. As they climbed the stairs, the sounds of excitement died down to a low rumble.
"I am quite surprised you paid for all our rooms, " Glacier said, " I thank you for that."
"I didn't do it because I wanted to," Stratta admitted, "I did it because I didn't want you to convince her we only needed one room."
"I can compensate you if you would like." Glacier remarked.
The pegasus pondered this for a moment, debating on if he wanted to be paid back or if he wanted to be a gentlecolt to the mare he didn't like. His ears swiveled as he decided on the latter. "It's fine." he replied in exasperation, "I paid for Clout's and I know you'd probably complain if I refused yours but paid for his."
"Well, I suppose that would be accurate." the unicom admitted.
When they finally reached the doors that matched their room numbers, Stratta passed out the keys.
"Why exactly are we here." Clout asked.
The pegasus grinned at him. "Well, I know you don't like me, you've said as much many times, and you've... I wanna say, endured my company well. So, I want to treat you!" receiving only a growl in response he continued, "Trust me, this place is nice. It's kind of like a spa hotel, they'll relax you, you'll get some rest and you'll be ready for the mission in no time! Maybe it'll make you less grumpy." he finished with a wink.
The crystal pony's expression turned to annoyance. "I'm not going in there. I don't sleep in inns, I sleep at home where no pony can rob me," he replied.
"The way you describe it makes it sound divine!" Glacier commented, "I shall see you in a few hours gentlecolts, perhaps we can explore the city a bit tomorrow before your job, Clout." The mare happily made her way into the room, leaving the two stallions in the hallway.
"Come on, just try it." the pegasus encouraged.
"Absolutely not."
"If you only sleep at your home, why did you say earlier that you'd sleep on the train?" Not getting an answer he continued, "Geeze, you are stubborn aren't you?" Stratta took the key out of Clout's hoof, unlocked the door and pushed it open. "Look, it's not a trap. Would you just trust me for once? I'm not out to get you, I just want to be helpful."
The crystal pony gave him a look of suspicion for a moment longer prior to looking into the room. The pegasus was correct, it didn't look like a trap, it looked like a standard hotel room. A large bed, a dresser with an attached mirror, a small section of the wall protruded out with a door on it which he assumed was the closet and another door which was probably the bathroom. His ears swiveled, he didn't like how normal it looked. Clout took a step back and turned to Stratta, "I don't trust it," he said.
The pegasus rolled his eyes. "You don't trust anything," he said with a sigh, "Just go in there, get some rest, and then in a few hours when you're ready we'll go check out the soot mill okay?"
Clout narrowed his eyes, not sure what ulterior motives this buck had but at least he wasn't shoving him into the room forcefully. The crystal pony flicked his tail in frustration and he finally relented. "Fine," he grunted, "but this better not be a trap-"
"Or you'll kill me, got it." Stratta said as quickly as he could so the crystal pony wouldn't have a second to change his mind, "Here's your key back, see you later!" He waved his hoof, gave a big goofy grin at the other stallion and then happily trotted off to his own room.
Clout furrowed his brows, unsure of what to make of the situation. He couldn't trust the feather head and he sure as tartarus wasn't going to start now. He looked down the hallway back the way he came from for a moment. Back towards the crowds, the noise and the lights. The thought of it all was starting to give him a headache. He sighed and looked through the open door in front of him. Solitude, quiet and dark were quite an appealing option to him but the crystal pony couldn't shake the possibility that the pegasus had ulterior motives in this venture.
This could very well be a trap. Would the pegasus have 'saved' Clout from the auction only to capture the crystal pony for his own purpose? Maybe not, if that were his intention he would have set an ambush using his rebel friends in Ponyville. Did the pegasus truly want help with this job and to be friends? No, it had to be something else, it just had to. The crystal pony just couldn't see it yet. There wasn't any pony in the world who didn't have an ulterior motive for their actions. The only reason anypony ever did anything was for profit but what exactly did he have to gain? No matter how much Clout rolled his thoughts around he still couldn't make sense of it.
Resigning to his mental failure, he heaved a sigh and cautiously entered the room. Creeping along slowly to make sure he didn't miss any tripwires or pressure plates. Thief popped her head out of her hiding spot in the pony's cloak and looked around. Clout looked at her and offered his hoof. She climbed atop it and he gave her safe passage to the carpet below, giving her the opportunity to help him inspect the room. While his little friend went to explore, the stallion made sure to stop and inspect every crack or water stain on the wall just in case it was a cover for a hidden door. He came upon the dresser and gave it a thorough check as well. No hidden buttons or the false bottom drawers, no hidden treasures to steal either. It was just an average dresser for clothing and personal items.
He only gave the bed a quick glance. It was big enough for at least three ponies and it was neatly made. Next, he went over to the protruding wall with a door. The stallion readied his bow with a sharp pointed arrow and then he slowly opened the door. Not surprisingly, there was nothing of interest. It was a simple closet with an open safe and a piece of paper that sat atop giving instructions on how to reset the lock so somepony could stash their valuables. There was some room to the side for bags and a rod above to hang jackets on, he even checked behind the safe but there was nothing else there. Closing the door, he kept his weapon readied and crept around the bed, looking underneath it as he went but still there was nothing there. He was beginning to suspect the pegasus was telling the truth.
Hidden from the view of the doorway by the large bed was a basket with a blanket and a pillow. It was big enough for a large dog, maybe an adult pony, and it was something he had not expected to see. Before he had gotten the chance for a close examination of the basket he heard water beginning to flow behind the suspected bathroom door. Clout swiftly turned to face the door, teeth clenched and aim focused. Whatever was behind that door, he refused to go down without a fight.
Pausing for a second, he could hear hoofsteps in the other room. He listened and waited. There was a soft giggle and a small splash of water. He gave a low growl and took a step back. Whatever poisonous concoction the mystery pony was brewing up, the crystal pony wouldn't give them a chance to use. He backed towards the exit but kept his gaze on his target. He wanted to just turn and leave but he had no idea where Thief had scampered off to, he couldn't just leave her behind.
Suddenly the door swung open and a mare stepped out. The moment she saw the bow and arrow pointed straight at her she froze in place. Her orange-cream colored eyes went wide with the obvious threat the intruder posed. She began to tremble slightly and eventually took a step back into the bathroom. Both ponies were silent, just staring at each other until finally the mare decided to try and defuse the situation.
"B-bonne soirée monsieur." she said lamely.
Clout raised an eyebrow.
"I-I… uh…"
"I saw you yesterday." the stallion said.
"Excusez-moi?" she blinked in confusion.
The crystal pony slightly lowered his weapon. "Last night in The Everfree. You were being carted off by some slavers."
"Oh," she replied, still focused on the threatening object in his hooves, "Oui, I 'ad just been sold at auction last night." After another brief moment of silence, she decided to take the chance and ask, "Might you lower your weapon monsieur?"
Clout's gaze drifted to the bow in his grasp for only a moment before he looked back at the mare. Not trusting the stranger in the room that was supposed to be his, he stubbornly replied, "No."
She gulped and took another step backwards, trying to hide behind the door.
"Why are you in this room." the crystal pony pressed, "I was informed I was renting this room, I was not informed I would have a roommate."
The mare gave a small sigh of relief. "Monsieur, do you not know what kind of establishment zis is?" she asked, hoping to clear the misunderstanding.
The stallion furrowed his brows.
"Zis is a companion 'otel." she said, "Ze rooms 'ere come wiz a pony zat is tasked wiz pleasing ze customer. I am 'ere to serve you, monsieur."
Clout took his turn to be confused from the conversation. "You're– What?" was all he could say as he lowered his bow completely.
She gave a sigh of relief. "Well, in zis 'otel, if ponies wish to have sex wiz zeir companion we are to do zeir bidding. If zey wish to cuddle or desire a massage, we do as zey desire. If ze customer wishes to be washed by a pretty mare, we do as zey say." she says, looking back to the bathtub that was still filling with warm water, the steam softly rising into the air, "Zat is what we are 'ere for. We are to do your bidding while you stay with us, monsieur."
Clout blinked and sucked in a breath as he stared at her. He grit his teeth as the realization that the stupid pegasus had brought him to a brothel had dawned on him. "I am going to kill him." he quietly muttered.
"Excusez-moi?" she asked for the second time.
The stallion sighed as he put his bow away. "Nothing." he spat.
The mare flinched at his tone of voice. "Such anger, are you alright monsieur? You seem… not happy." she said.
"It's nothing," Clout repeated more sternly, "I just have a pegasus to murder two doors down." As he turned around and began to open the door, the mare let out a shriek. He looked at her to see Thief had found the bathroom and the mare that was occupying it. She took flight so fast to get away from the rodent that she hit her head on the ceiling. "Thief." he called to her and clopped a hoof on the ground. The little fuzzball sniffed the air in the mare's direction once more and then she bound back to her friend. He watched her climb his cloak, made sure she was settled in and then he turned back towards the door.
"Monsieur–"
"Why do you keep calling me that." he cut her off. Clout heard her land and walk toward him gingerly.
"Oh, je suis désolé, I am from Prance you see. I am still learning my Ponish."
He turned back to her, not only out of curiosity but to make sure she wasn't sneaking up on him to try something. "Then what does it mean?" he asked.
"It, um…" she looked to the floor as she put a hoof to her muzzle in thought, "You are a stallion and I do not know your name." She wasn't sure if she explained it right so she gave him a sheepish grin.
Clout tilted his head slightly in thought. "So, it's a placeholder name?" he asked.
"Place 'older?" she asked in return, "I do not know zis word."
The stallion sighed, not wanting to be somepony's language teacher. "Nevermind." he said, "I'm just… gunna go."
"M-monsieur, I know I 'ave only been 'ere one day but I know I can pleasure you!" she said, "I 'ave worked in places like zis my 'ole life, I 'ave much experience, I can assure you. Si vous plaît, give me a chance monsieur!"
He hesitated as he saw the desperation in her eyes. This wasn't an act, she was terrified of him rejecting her company. The hoof she extended towards him trembled more than when his bow was pointing at her. What did she get out of him staying? Was she going to drug him and steal his supplies? Did she have a quota of how much she had to steal for the week and was in desperate need to fulfill it? Why in Equus would a brothel worker fear her client leaving? He had to find out what her angle was.
"Is it–" she continued, "You wish for a unicorn, oui? Je suis désolé, I… I may not have an 'orn to–"
Clout gritted his teeth and interrupted her, "Stop, just… What do you want from me?"
The mare flinched and retracted her foreleg. "Monsieur, I… Zey tell me zere is punishment for not pleasing a customer. I 'ave only been 'ere one day, I will be punished." she finished, hoping that the stallion would understand.
He stayed silent for a moment as he contemplated her. She seemed sincere but, just like with everypony else, he still had a hard time trusting her. She looked well groomed for a slave, probably a rule of the brothel. Her coat was a very soft gray with shiny colorful beads tied here and there to accentuate her curves. Her mane was longer than most pony's and it partially dragged on the ground. It had thin streaks of different hues that reminded him of a prism light that reflected off a clear jewel. Her wings were petite but fluffy, he wasn't even sure how she could fly with them so different from what he was used to seeing on a pegasus. The fur on her hind legs was so long it hid her light orange hooves and her tail was a small puffball that was similar to a rabbit's. She wasn't wearing any lingerie like the desk pony had been so he was able to see her cutiemark. It was a glittering star shooting up past the cloud layer. The mare wasn't bad to look at but he would still refuse the kind of services she was offering.
"Monsieur, si vous plaît…" she said weakly, losing hope at preventing a beating from her new owners.
Clout sucked in a breath and avoided eye contact as he awkwardly tried to explain, "Look, I just don't… do… that."
"You like… stallions?"
"No!" came the immediate answer, "No, I don't I just–"
She blinked at him and understanding dawned. "Monsieur, we do not 'ave to 'ave sex. We can talk if zat is what you desire. I am just 'ere to keep you company."
The stallion hated the conversation more than anything in the world right then. He wanted to crawl in the closet, lock himself inside and wither away to nothing. He needed an out, some way to change the conversation topic. It was fate that he found one so quickly. "The bath water's overflowing."
As the mare rushed to turn off the water, Clout let out a sigh of relief. Finally, a chance to breathe and think. He understood what she had tried to explain, that she would be severely punished because they just purchased her. If he had made a bad financial decision, he would want someone to blame too. The mare seemed nice enough, he supposed, but he didn't want a roommate. He couldn't sleep in a room with somepony he just met. The crystal pony was exhausted after walking all day and his side still ached from being pummeled by Tombstone. If he couldn't sleep here, he would much rather be scouting out the soot mill for his job but if he left, this mare would be in a lot of trouble. He knew he shouldn't care if somepony else was punished because of their master's rules but that look he gave her… He folded his ears as he made his decision, hoping he wouldn't regret it.
Clout closed the door to the room and walked towards the bathroom. She was still soaking up the water with some towels as he demanded, "What's your name."
The mare stopped to look at him. "Mon nom est Cloud Glitter." she told him.
He smirked at how similar their names were. "Look, if we don't… do anything… we can just talk." he said, hoping that would make her smile again. She looked better with a smile.
"Oui!" she replied with a grin, "We can!"
Once Cloud Glitter was finished cleaning the bathroom, she got on the bed and padded the empty space next to her to invite him up. The stallion folded his ears and just sat on the floor. She cocked her head at him but accepted his decision. "Monsieur, what would you like to talk about?" she asked.
"I–" Clout started but stopped himself. He didn't think this far ahead and he was stumped on what to do. He didn't want to talk to her about his job, what he was or the goings-on of his life. He definitely wasn't going to talk to her about sex in any capacity and he wasn't knowledgeable enough to discuss the politics that controlled the cities he ventured in and out of. He never talked small talk with Merchant, they usually just traded quips so he didn't have much experience in that either. He couldn't decide on where to start in terms of a conversation and he really wished he had thought this spontaneous decision through.
Seeing the stallion struggle, the mare decided to start for him. "Comment vous-appelez vous?" she asked.
"Uh, what?" Clout asked in utter confusion.
"Oh! Uh," she stuttered as she realized she was speaking Prench again, "Your name, monsieur."
"Oh, I'm Clout." he replied.
Cloud Glitter giggled, "Your name is so close to mine."
"Y-yeah…"
"May I use your name monsieur?" the mare asked him.
Clout scratched the back of his head with a hoof as he said, "Sure, I guess."
She gave him another smile. "Clout," she said, "you 'ave a very nice name, monsieur."
"If that word means you don't know my name, why are you still using it?" he asked.
Cloud Glitter scrunched her muzzle, "Well, it is 'ard to tell. I do not 'ave ze words."
"Never mind then."
Getting the feeling he was still not really wanting to talk even though he was the one who made the offer, the mare decided to try and get him a little more at ease by talking about himself. "Monsieur Clout, may I ask about your little… friend?" she inquired hesitantly, "I 'ear you say, Zief?"
Clout could tell she was getting a little nervous again. Most ponies were quite reasonably nervous when talking about rodents such as the one he had hidden in his cloak so, he wasn't surprised. What he was surprised about was that this mare was willing to ask about her. He didn't want to frighten her so he didn't take his rat friend out. "Yeah, she's a friend of mine." he told her, "She's not sick and she won't get you sick. I've been around them for a long time and I've never gotten the blight so you don't have to worry."
"Zem?"
"Oh, yeah, I've got a lot of rats back home." he elaborated.
"Where do you come from? You say Ze Everfree earlier." Cloud Glitter asked.
"I don't live there. Well, I do but I don't. I used to, my friend lives there and he lets me stay sometimes. I'm… kind of lucky that way." Clout realized.
"Lucky?" she questioned, "What do you mean lucky?"
The crystal pony wasn't entirely sure he wanted to go into detail about his past for her but, he didn't know how to steer the conversation. He let out a sigh and tried to give the simplest answer he could think of. "I… I did something a long time ago and he got really mad at me. I pushed him away and I think he hated me for a time. He's the only pony I have in my life so I'm really lucky he forgave me." Clout said as he looked at his hooves.
She looked at him sympathetically as she asked, "Can you tell me ze story?"
He rubbed his aching side with a hoof as he avoided eye contact. "I… don't want to talk about it." he admitted quietly.
After a short silence, Cloud Glitter decided this buck needed a change of topic. "May I see your face, monsieur?"
He looked up at her, still on the bed, and he stood. That was a question he was not prepared for. Was this part of her ulterior motive, to get his mask off so it would be easier to drug him? The stallion refused to cooperate with her plan. Clout narrowed his gaze at her as he asked, "Why."
"I am only curious, you are covered muzzle to tail so I cannot see you."
"You don't need to see me." he stated.
"Oh, oui monsieur. As you wish." she said in disappointment. She thought of another way she might get him to talk. "What is it you do zat makes people not see you?"
Clout looked at her, trying to suss out her question. "Are you asking what my job is?" he asked and she nodded. Taking a moment to decide whether telling her was a bad idea or not, he concluded it would be fine. Most ponies in The Everfree knew what he did so what was the harm in telling this whore what he did for a living. She didn't need to know the specific details though. "I'm a thief." he finally said.
She was only slightly shocked at his reply. It was obvious she had met more than her fair share of criminals being sold at auction, especially in The Everfree. "You steal zings, oui? Why not do a work zat will not get you in trouble?"
The stallion didn't know how to answer other than, "Uh, because it's what I do. What else would I do to earn a living?"
"Zere are many zings you could do," Cloud Glitter said with a smile, "Your cutiemark is not chains. What are you good at besides steal zings?"
"Uh… I can shoot a bow and pick locks, I guess. Why do you care what I do, I'm a complete stranger to you."
The mare gave him a sincere look as she said, "I may not know you, monsieur, but all ze ponies matter. Zose who do bad zings just to live, zey are just trying to live. Ze law of ze land disapproves and will punish you. Everyzing is, 'ow you say, à l'envers. Um… up, down? Ze law need to help ponies and zen ponies can be 'appy. Zey can live and not do bad and ze land will be better. I zink, ze law will not listen so ze ponies must try to start ze change. I cannot do much to 'elp but ze one hoof for change is an idea. Zat I can 'elp ponies with even zough I am 'ere."
It took Clout a moment to process what she had said; her accent was decently thick and she used some words in unusual places. "So," he thought out loud, "you're trying to change the world one client at a time because you think the way things are is backwards and because you're a slave, putting an idea into their heads is the only thing you think you can do."
"Oui!" she said, happy he understood.
"I-" the stallion cut himself off with a shake of his head, "Someponies just can't change. I can't change and neither can the world."
He walked in a half circle, turning away from her. "You don't understand. Somepony like me can't do anything else. There's no trying anything else for me, I'm stuck like this because I'm…" he trailed off as he stopped himself from telling her the truth. He grit his teeth in frustration at himself. Why was he getting so invested in this conversation with a complete stranger? He shouldn't be talking with her, he should be doing his job so he can go home. He enjoyed his solitude, loneliness and only the company of his rats so why was his mouth moving when his brain was screaming at him to stop? The same thing was happening around that stupid featherhead too. Merchant had told him many times when he was a colt that ponies are social creatures, they cannot live in solitude forever. Was this what he meant? Was his mouth going to keep spouting off words whether he liked it or not? Whatever this was, he hated it.
Clout sighed and looked back to the bed where the mare laid. She was patiently waiting for him to be ready to talk again. She didn't look bored or annoyed, she looked content to listen to him ramble on, not giving her any details. He decided that he changed his mind. Maybe this wasn't so bad. Maybe it didn't require the word hate but instead, something less like perhaps dislike or unpleasant. That stupid pegasus was getting into his brain.
"I can't explain it to you," he started again, "I really can't. But I can say that I would be in a lot more trouble if I took off this cloak than if I got caught stealing something." He hoped that was a good enough explanation.
"Well, we can, 'ow you say, play?" Cloud Glitter offered.
"You mean pretend?" he asked.
"Oui! Pretend!" she happily replied, "If you could, what would you do monsieur?"
Clout kicked the carpet below with a hoof as he answered, "I'm not sure, I've never thought about it before. My friend has a shop, maybe I could help him?" He shook his head at his own words. "No, after what happened he'd never let me. I don't know what I would do."
Noticing the melancholy in his tone of voice, she tried to think of something for him. She put a hoof to her chin in thought, tapping it a few times as she stared at the comforter she laid on. Then her eyes went wide with an idea. "Ze locks!" she blurted out, "You can do ze locks!"
Clout furrowed his brows. "I can– Uh, yeah, I can pick locks. What do you mean?" he probed.
"Ponies, zey need ze locks, oui? You can make zem and open zem!" she nickered in excitement.
He blinked. "You're… talking about a locksmith." he audibly thought. It actually wasn't a half bad idea. He could easily unlock most any lock and he knew each brand's strengths and weaknesses which made them easy to open. If he had the facilities to create his own line of locks and advertise them as more secure than any other brand on the market, his would be the ones everypony used. And, of course, he would also be the one ponies called to unlock things when they lost their keys but making them was really a brilliant idea. Almost perfect for him in fact. He knew the ins and outs of locks just like his cutiemark opened the door to his natural bow skills. It was an honed craft after more than twenty years of working with them.
Clout looked at the mare in astonishment. She really was right, she could change Equestria one idea at a time. The only flaw was that crystal ponies were not seen as citizens. His kind didn't have any rights under the law, they were only seen as property, a tool for others to buy, sell and use until it's worn out and becomes useless. Just like she was in this room, not a pony but a piece of furniture for the customer to use. He wouldn't be able to even try this idea of hers as he was, as the King's laws were. If he actually wanted an honest job he would need to pick a side and try to change things in his favor. He would actually have to side with the rebels like Wulf told him to. Everything would have to change and he would have to spend his dragon's hoard to accomplish it. He wasn't ready for that, not at all.
Shoving all those fantasy thoughts of a different life and a massive change away, Clout turned away from her once more. "Yeah, maybe." he admitted.
Cloud Glitter gave a smile, seeing that her seed was planted. She had given him that tiny little spark and she hoped it would turn into a beautiful flame inside of him that would urge him to a new goal in life someday. She was happy that she helped him imagine a new way of doing things. She knew it wasn't much but it was all she could do.
"Monsieur Clout," the mare began, "I know you don't disrobe 'ere but ze tub is ready if you wish for a bath. Ze door 'as a lock."
His thoughts became a trainwreck as they flipped a u-turn. She had mentioned her clients getting washed by their room companions. That was too intimate, way too intimate. Hadn't he told her he wouldn't undress? He could have sworn that's what he said. Clout looked at her and tripped over his words as he tried to answer. "I-I don't, no, I, uh, no," he shook his head, trying to get rid of his embarrassment as she giggled, "Why did you make a bath?"
Still daintily laughing at his plight, she replied, "Zey let us know wiz zese little buzzers zat we are going to 'ave a customer and zey usually want a baz before… well, you know. It is a sort of, 'ow you say, forward play?"
The stallion was lost for words. He didn't know how to respond. He knew what she meant and he wanted to be as far away from that conversation as possible. He looked at the ceiling as he turned around. "Yup, I'm going to…" he trailed off, looking for the non-existent window he could use to escape without her getting into trouble.
She laughed again at his awkwardness and how much he was blushing. "You do not 'ave to monsieur Clout," she told him with a grin, "it was just an offer."
"Right…" Clout sighed while still avoiding looking at her.
"May I ask, what 'appened to your family? You say your friend is all you 'ave."
"My family…" he started, trying to steady his thoughts that this mare was batting around with every question, "I– um, my, my family is dead. My mom, I was told, died during childbirth and my dad was eaten by a dragon."
Cloud Glitter put a hoof to her muzzle as she let out a small gasp. "Oh my, monsieur Clout, I am so sorry! Zat is so sad. I am truly sorry about ta mère et ton père, monsieur." she told him.
The stallion swished his tail. "It's fine, it doesn't matter. Happened a long time ago." he said.
"Monsieur Clout, it does, zey were tes parents. Zey– It matters!" Cloud Glitter insisted without explanation.
He looked at her, seeing a determined expression on her face. She was so expressive compared to his anger and disinterest. It made him want to believe her regardless of her not giving a justification as to why it mattered.
"I just never think about it." he confessed, "I've never met my mother so I don't have any feelings one way or the other about her being dead. My dad, that was… It was a day I'll never forget but I resented him when I was a kid. I hated him. It was because of him that I was bullied by my classmates. Look, I can't tell you everything but I have my reasons why I'm fine without them."
She looked hurt at his words as if the thought of him not caring about his parents was the worst possible thing. As he saw tears forming in her eyes, the stallion had no idea what to do. He had very little experience with ponies, and with mares, even less so. Clout furrowed his brows and took a step toward her as she wiped a tear away with a hoof. He didn't like this new expression on her face.
Cloud Glitter sucked in a breath and gave him a sad smile. "Will you tell me about ze dragons, monsieur Clout? I 'ave never seen one before."
He hesitated for a second, waiting to make sure she was really wanting to discuss something else. Then he wondered if he should ask about her parents, if that was the reason she was really upset. On the other hoof, if that truly was why she had tears in her eyes and she was just projecting herself into his answers, that might be a bad idea. He had heard mares can be temperamental and if her parents were a touchy subject it might really make her cry. So, he decided to take her lead and talk about dragons.
"Well, they're big." Clout started by stating the obvious, "I mean, really big. They could probably fit about six ponies in their mouth at one time if not more. They don't have fur, they have hard skin. See these shells on my cloak? Those are dragon scales." He tapped one with a hoof.
"Oh my!" Cloud Glitter gasped, "Zey are bigger zan your 'oof! If zey 'ave shells, do zey live in ze water? I was told zey make fire."
"Uh, no, they aren't shells, they just look like shells. The scales on dragons are like fur on ponies. To them, these are so small they couldn't count them all." he explained, "They don't live in the ocean, they come from the sky like pegasai do. They have claws like spears and teeth like swords. Their massive tails can knock down a castle like it was a pile of sand. They have a voice like thunder and they move like lightning. They rain fire down from the sky and they can turn the land to glass, melting everything it touches to nothing. Not even metal or stone is strong enough to withstand their fire," he knew he should stop talking but the words just kept pouring out, "When you're standing there, the fire is so hot you can feel yourself burning even if you're a mile away from it. Your fur shrivels like a burning piece of paper and turns black. Your skin bubbles up and turns red like the flames and no matter what you do the burning just won't stop. You can scream and try to escape them but it's useless to run. They–"
He let out a shaky gasp as he realized he was trembling. He could feel the heat of the inferno even though the air around him was chilly. He could see the flames even though there were no lights present other than the small lit candle in the bathroom. He could hear the loud report of the beasts and their wing beats as they circled above even though the space was silent. He could hear the shrieks of pure terror as the ponies around him boiled and melted before his eyes even though he and the mare on the bed were the only two in the room. He could feel his side burning and aching as if he were feeling the flames against his skin, melting the flesh to his ribcage. He shut his eyes tight and tried to shove the memory away.
The pounding of his heart in his ears didn't let Clout hear the creek of the bed as the mare got off of it. She gingerly walked to him and tried to look into his face which was still hidden by his hood and mask. "Monsieur Clout?" she quietly said, "You are safe." Gently, she put a hoof on his, hoping that he would come back to her.
The simple touch brought him back to the cold, dark room. His side refused to let go of the pain from his flashback, however, but he knew he exacerbated his injury. Garrett was probably right, he may have cracked a rib or two. He took a slight step back away from her touch and he saw the look of concern she showed on her face. "I-I'm fine." he stated, praying in his mind to a god he didn't believe in that she wouldn't ask any more questions. It was scary how easily she pulled information out of his willing muzzle.
She simply gave a smile, relieved he was okay. After giving him a little time to just stand there and breathe, she opened her muzzle again. "I zink it is time for bed, oui?" she asked, "No sex, just sleep."
The stallion folded his ears. Sleep? No, he didn't need sleep, he needed to do his job. He needed to focus on something so the flames would die down and the dragons in his head would go somewhere else.
At Clout's non-answer, the mare decided to take charge again. "Monsieur Clout, ze bed." she demanded gently, pointing to it with a fluffy wing.
The stallion lifted a hoof, hesitated, and then made his way over to the basket next to the bed. He still didn't want to sleep in the same room as a stranger but he was willing to at least lie down.
"Monsieur Clout."
He looked at her after climbing in.
"Ze basket is for me, ze bed is for ze customer." Cloud Glitter told him. The stallion stayed silent as he rested his chin on the edge of the basket. She gave him a thankful smile, said, "Bonne nuit monsieur," and got into bed.
The crystal pony heard the creek of the bed, the rustle of the blankets and then her soft breaths as she drifted off to sleep. Needing something to keep his mind occupied, his thoughts drifted back to Garrett Stratta. He just couldn't figure that pony out. What exactly were his intentions by bringing Clout to a brothel? What did that featherhead get out of purchasing Clout somepony to do whatever he wanted with, was this all one big joke? It was obvious the pegasus stallion enjoyed teasing him but there had to be something else, it just didn't make sense.
A loud thump, thump, thump on the door made Clout's eyes pop open. He quickly stood up and looked around, trying to get his bearings. Everything was the same as last night. The room was the same, the bed next to him, the dresser with its mirror and even the mare still fast asleep despite the knock on the door. She hadn't even moved in her sleep. Out of morbid curiosity, he checked to see if she was still alive and he was pleased that she was fine. The stallion climbed out of the basket and checked his gear. Everything but Thief was accounted for, nothing was out of place or missing. He wasn't sure where his tiny friend had gone but he was pretty sure she was off searching for food. She must have made her way out of the room somehow. He folded his ears and gave the room another look around, the normalcy of it all was making him uneasy.
A louder banging on the door woke the mare up. "Mmm, un instant, s'il vous plaît," she sleepily mumbled as she crawled out of bed to answer the door. She put a hoof over her mouth as she gave a small yawn and she opened it.
"Morning!" an overly cheerful charcoal pegasus greeted, "Oh, you're pretty." The compliment didn't register with the half asleep mare.
The light green earth pony with his short dark purple mane that stood behind Stratta gave a frown. "Is she prettier than me?" he pouted.
The pegasus stallion looked at the buck and told him, "Hey Mister Jealous, who did I want in my room, you or her?"
"Yeah but–"
"I can give other ponies compliments too." Stratta gave the stallion a sly smile and then he turned back to the open door, "Hey Clout! Did you have a good night?"
The crystal pony growled as he strode over to him, using a hoof to move Cloud Glitter out of the way of his wrath. "Next time you do something like this I will murder you." he threatened as he gave him an icy stare, "I will not make it painless."
Stratta chuckled, "Ya know, all your threats so far have been empty ones. Buuuttt you're saying you are giving me a next time so I'll take that as a win. And I'm assuming you did have a good night since you're being so nice though, hmm?" He raised an eyebrow and grinned at the mare, "You did a good job with him, he's normally more grumpy than this!"
"I-I, uh…" Cloud Glitter wasn't sure how to respond.
"Let's just go." Clout demanded.
"Alright, alright, don't throw a horseshoe now." the pegasus stallion said as he started walking down the hall.
The thief took a step out of the doorway and hesitated. He looked back to the mare he spent the night with, looked to the floor and gave a quiet, "Thanks." before he followed the pegasus.
She gave him one last smile and a little wave as he trotted away. "Au revoir, monsieur Clout."
As the three stallions began walking down the hallway, another door opened and Glacier peeked her head out. "Oh, but of course it was you. Who else would be so loud this early in the morning." the unicorn complained.
The earth pony was the first of the three to stop and look at her as a stallion walked out of her room. "Morning Regie." he told him.
"Paxton." the other buck replied. Glacier's room companion was a dark brown stallion with grey stripes. He had a short mane and tail that was varying shades of brown. It was obvious he was half pony and half zebra.
"Reginald, would you be a dear and fetch my effects please?" the mare asked.
"Of course." Regie replied as he trotted back into the room.
Leaving her room companion to his task, she trotted out to follow the group downstairs. "Tell me the truth, were you or were you not attempting to abandon me again?" Glacier asked with a bite in her voice.
"Sorry, you're just so forgettable!" Stratta replied with a cheery snark.
"And you are insufferable!"
"Do we know when exactly King Sombra is going to be at the soot mill?" Clout asked.
The pegasus chuckled at the mare. "Not yet but we can ask around town," he replied.
Clout grumbled to himself.
Regi caught up with them, passing Glacier's belongings to her and then he followed them downstairs. The five ponies continued past the rooms of enticing entertainment once again but they were much emptier. A couple of slaves were seen cleaning the rooms while they were mostly empty. The slaves could be seen picking up empty cups, sweeping the floor and tossing the cigarette butts from the ash trays. There were a few ponies in the dining room, sitting down to eat some breakfast. The hotel's recreation rooms were quite a bit less exciting with the rising of the sun.
A black rodent darted out of the cafeteria with a bit of sausage in her mouth, halting the five in their tracks. The two room companions went wide eyed and darted to put themselves between the fuzzy bringer of the plague and their clients. Both stallions reared up as Thief came to a stop and looked up at them, blocking the path to her friend. Seeing that they planned on stomping Thief to a pulp, Clout quickly ran over to defend her by threatening them with an arrow in the face. Glacier stood in place and watched the scene as Stratta ran in between them all, trying to distance everyone with a shove of his wings.
"Wait! Wait! Just, calm down!" he exclaimed. Addressing the room companions he said, "She's not a threat so don't hurt her!" Then he turned to Clout, "They didn't know. Just, calm down."
The two stallions lowered themselves and stood there, utterly confused but they obeyed and backed up a couple of steps. Clout lowered his bow but kept his deadly gaze on them. Thief looked up at Stratta for a second before she ran over to the crystal pony and climbed onto his back. She nibbled at her prize happily, unawares that a second ago she was a hoofstomp away from death.
Stratta gave a sigh of relief and said, "Thank you. We definitely don't need bloodshed this morning."
"No, we don't." an irritated voice said.
The group turned around to see another stallion standing in the hallway. He was a light blue and gray painted pony with half black, half pink hair that was slicked back into a small bun. He wore a slim dark gray suit, glasses and he had a thin mustache. The stallion raised an eyebrow as he asked, "Gentlecolts," he dipped his head at Glacier as he said, "M'lady, do we have a problem?"
Both of the room companions opened their muzzles but it was Paxton who spoke first. "No sir, there's no problem."
Reggie closed his mouth and just nodded in agreement. The well-kept stallion gave the two of them a suspicious look. He then regarded the three hotel guests. "If there are any issues, please let me know. I am the Silver Jester, the owner of this establishment and I run a tight ship. Discrepancy is not tolerated here under any circumstance from our room companions. That being said, it is quite early in the day and somepony was shouting. I will ask you to please refrain from being so loud as it may disturb our other guests who were up late last night."
"Oh, sorry, that was me!" Stratta admitted, "Won't happen again."
"Good, it is much appreciated." Silver said. Since he was satisfied the noise issue was dealt with, he turned around and started back towards the front desk.
Reggie and Paxton stayed a few steps behind Clout as the group continued. When they all reached the entrance to the building, the two of them split off and went down another hallway some other room companions were entering.
Clout, Stratta and Glacier checked out of the hotel, the pegasus wandered over to give Paxton an intimate farewell and then the three of them began to walk down the streets of the city. Now that the sun was over the horizon, the neon lights of the city were shut off and the excited atmosphere was dulled. The crowds on the street were thinned out but there were still some suits off to an early morning start wherever they worked.
They eventually passed a large studio building where shouts were coming from. A scream sounded and there was a loud pop. More ponies yelled at each other and the three of them stopped to stare at the building. The other ponies on the street paid the noise no mind as they casually walked past; apparently they either didn't care or they knew something the three tourists did not.
"Should we… help?" Stratta asked.
"It's none of our business." Clout stated.
"Well, to be honest, that scream sounded like my sister. I would be remiss if I were not to assist her when she is in trouble." Glacier admitted.
With a cheerful smile that it was time to help somepony, the pegasus said, "That's two to one, let's go!" and he opened the door.
"Still don't like you two." Clout told them.
"That's fair." Stratta replied with a chuckle as the three of them entered the building.
The room was tiny compared to the outside of the building and only contained a desk, an office plant, a trashcan, a door to another room and a receptionist. The mare had a cigarette in her muzzle, looked up at the group from the magazine she was reading and blew out a puff of smoke. She raised an eyebrow and asked in a dull tone, "Can I help you?" There was another scream and some more shouts but she ignored them.
"Well, we just thought somepony needed help. There's screams and gunshots coming from inside this building." Stratta said, not expecting the tiny reception room.
The desk mare gave him a slow blink and a bit of silence, wondering if he was going to figure it out himself. Determining he was as dumb as a box of rocks, she finally replied, "If youse didn't see the sign on the top of the buildin', this is a movie studio sir. They are currently in recordin' which means the're actin' out the movie and getting it on film. If youse is not in the know, a movie is movin' pictures that tell a story. Nopony needs help and I can't allow youse to go in while they're in progress."
"Oh, uh, okay." Stratta said, partially disappointed. As he began to turn around to leave, the unicorn mare spoke up.
"Are you sure you are not to let anypony inside? I am the elder sister to one of your actresses and I would love to visit her." Glacier said, trying to be charming.
The receptionist gave her a flat look and just said, "Youse think I'm dumb or somethin' sweetheart?"
Glacier recoiled at the accusation. "N-no, that was not my intention madam, I only wished to inquire on visiting my sister." she said.
The desk mare took the cigarette out of her mouth with a hoof and leaned on the desk. "Look, sugar, I get loads of ponies claimin' this and that so they can get in to see what's what. Tryin' ta pitch their actin' skills cause they seen a movie or two and wanna be on the big screen or tryin' ta talk coin ta demand bein' in the show. It ain't gunna work." she told the unicorn, "But, if youse really do gots a sister in there, gimme her name and when they take a break this afternoon youse might be able to see her."
"Oh, why thank you!" Glacier replied with a grin, "Her name is Diamond Dust, she is a silver unicorn with a short white mane and blue eyes."
The receptionist scribbled a note on a piece of paper and then she asked, "Your name sweetheart?"
"I am Glaciated Era."
"Right," the mare replied, "I'll get your message to her. Come back around noon, might be able to get youse in."
Glacier bowed her head in thanks and the three of them walked out of the building.
"Well that was a waste of time." Clout commented.
"Hey, just had to be sure no pony was getting hurt." Stratta told him.
The crystal pony only grumbled in response and the trio continued on their way. They passed a street full of little townhouses which looked out of place for the bustling city, they passed a large park with some trees, a pond and walkways paved with colorful stones. They passed a few family owned businesses such as pawn shops with all kinds of trinkets in them, A bakery filled with the smell of bread and pastries and a clockworks shop that displayed clocks of all shapes and sizes. There were book stores, a small corner news stand with magazines galore and newspapers, they passed a boarded up building that looked like it had once been a small bank and they passed a toy store with all kinds of colorful wooden creations for colts and fillies.
It wasn't long before they could see a large, dark smoke stack flowing into the sky. As they got closer, they saw it was coming from a huge building that was fenced off as it was closed to public access. There were several wagons, overfilled with coal that were parked all along the outside. The sign that emboldened the outside of the building said it was the city's power plant owned and run by Lightning Ideas. They were burning the coal to create the massive amount of electricity the city required to be flashy and functional.
Glacier cocked her head as she looked to the smoke in the sky. "Does that not interfere with your pegasai cloud cover?" she asked in curiosity.
"Probably." came Stratta's answer, "I don't live up in the clouds so I don't really know."
The next building they happened upon was Clout's destination. It was a great brick building that was stained with soot. The old company name was still etched into the outside of the bricks, Skinner's Swine Slaughter. It had a large label from the city guard overtop it that declared the place condemned.
"This is what they turned the new soot mill into?" Stratta asked no pony in particular.
"I wonder if a building can be condemned twice." Clout commented.
"Ugh, must we enter? The smell is atrocious." Glacier complained as she put a hoof to her muzzle.
Stratta fluttered his wings in thought. "I don't think we have to right now, King Sombra's not supposed to be here until this evening so we should have some time to kill." he told the mare.
"You two can stay here, I'm going in." Clout said as he trotted ahead.
"What, why?" the pegasus asked.
"Wouldn't you like to know." the crystal pony said.
Stratta rolled his eyes and followed. Glacier stood in place, unsure what to do. She tapped all four hooves on the ground anxiously, almost dancing in place as she tried to convince herself she still needed to follow. Against her better judgment, she gave a dainty rear and galloped ahead to catch up with her two stallions.
