> Wired
>  by canonkiller
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Talks of Old Times
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Two ponies sat in a dark room. 

One was undeniably female, her pure white coat unmarked despite the dinginess of the room. Pale wings lay slack at her flanks, feathers spread haphazardly across the floor. Pink hair fell limply around her neck, flowing around the unnatural bulges running down the side of her neck. Three faintly glowing pink dots lay in an inverted triangle between her closed eyes, their light glowing brighter as the lifted lines down her neck began to light up. The light traveled upwards through a messy tangle of wires previously unseen, until the space above the pony was a spire of rose.

Feathers began to fall from the pony's sides, carpeting the floor in fluffy white down, until nothing was left but the bare arm of two wings. The rosy light redirected into them, spreading out in a wide fan of insubstantial, immaterial bands. With a bright flash, the pink bands shone full force, creating a wide swath of insubstantial feathers in the real one's place.

She opened her eyes, their unmarked pink depths matching the hue of her new wings. Three spires of light lanced out of her forehead, connecting from the dots to form a pyramid on her forehead. She opened her mouth, gaping as she moved her wings.

The second pony opened her eyes as well, pale blue lights appearing on her forehead and flanks, expanding and shimmering into her own wings and horn. Her eyes glowed faintly in the dark, edging her limp, matted blue mane in light. She smiled, gently, a small band of white across the dark fur of her face.

"Still think you shouldn't have wired your protege?" 

The white pony frowned, her digital horn sparking as she mentally shoved her sister. "Shut up."


-----


Dark blurs raced at the edge of Crescent's vision. Her own hooves smacked relentlessly against the concrete, small stones and sand dust surging behind her half-open wings. She easily leaped a pile of discarded pipes, the nearest of the shadows crashing into the mess and disappearing as it collapsed. 

She quickly slowed her pace, turning back to see the disturbance. The jumble of pipes had fallen still, and the other shadows paced the edge of the rubble. Cresent trotted over, kicking a few of the rusted pieces herself.

One of the shadow walked up to her side, neon green lines crossing it's face before the dust cleared and she could identify her fello Changeling. 

"Seldom." She chirped.

"Cresent." He replied. "I think that was Leeway."

"Wouldn't surprise me." 

The two stood in silence as the rest of the dust settled, revealing the small group of Changelings that had joined to race. Cresent flashed her neon stripes as a signal to the rest that she had won, receiving submissive flashes in return. 

A surge of pride broke her stoic expression into a smile. Still the fastest Changeling in the pack.

A hoof pushed out of the pipes, followed by another, and a head. The red lines below the Changeling's ears flickered, and he grinned.

"Oy, Cresent! I almost passed you there!"

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, and I almost turned into a Diamond Dog." 

As Leeway - of course, it had been him - clambered free of the abandoned debris, Crescent glanced around at her fellow racers, summing them up with how they had fared.

Wildfire, wired red, orange and yellow, had been close behind Leeway, only having fallen behind because of her bad knee, a side effect of her Wiring. She recognized Crescent's gaze with a curious blink.

Seldom, one of the rare darkshell Changelings, was wired green and blue, having a small blue star on his chest to mark his rarity. He was slower in straight races like this one, but could out-turn any other Changeling on the city streets.

Leeway, wired red and purple, grinned as she surveyed him, flashing his wings in response. He was fast on the straight-aways, but often had difficulty with avoiding obstacles like piles of trash, other ponies and the occasional lamppost. 

Raven, wired purple and blue, didn't talk often, and when she did, it wasn't loud. However, she had surpassed any of the others in agility, able to dodge even the swiftest blows and able to gallop across falling bricks if the need ever arose.

The last of her opponents was the sole unWired of her pack. His name was Torch, and he was incredibly fast. Fortunately, he was also incredibly modest, and any wins he achieved were accredited to luck, or environmental fault. Crescent found him interesting, in the way that he was a unique specimen among Changelings. Not only unWired, but a darkshell as well. She was proud to have two darkshells in her pack, even if one seemed strange.

"Hey!"

Crescent snapped out of her stupor, glancing over at Leeway, who had shouted. "Hm?"

"I asked you if you wanted to race again."

"Well... I think Wildfire's knee is hurting her again." She glanced over at the Changeling, who was sporting a limp. "Tomorrow, city circuit?"

He snorted. "Fine."

Crescent flicked her tail and flashed her wings, beginning the steady trot back towards the empty factory they called home.


-----


A pale white Pegasus lay on her back, the mattress of her bed feeling lumpy against her wings. Her charcoal mane lay tangled across her pillow, the single red stripe in it weaving and wandering through the mess. She blinked, still not awake, and listened to the sound of the city waking around her.

She could hear her father slamming the door, the sound of the wind in his old wings as he flew off towards the Entropy Enterprises building, could picture the golden words sown into his company jacket.

She could hear her mother yawning, the shower running as she began her morning routine. In exactly one minute and fifty seconds, she would turn off the water. She would take twenty seconds to dry off, she would make it to the kitchen in ten, and toast would be ready in a minute. Thirty seconds after the toast had popped, he mother would call her down, and she would get out of bed.

"Redheart, come downstairs! Breakfast!"

The mare sat up, blinking pupil-less, blind eyes as she shook her mane into place. "I told you, mom, call me Anastasia."


-----


Leagues away from the city and the slums, a spindly colt hung from his knees, high above the dusty ground below. His long legs waved calmly in the soft breeze, and he closed his eyes, short tail twitching to ensure his balance.

Without a cue, he hooked one hoof around the bar he was hanging from, pulling himself up on top of it completely before swinging down again, upside-down by his elbows. He sighed, glancing forlornly at the ground below, and spun again, standing on top of the bar, all four hooves arranged neatly across it. He could almost hear the cheering of a phantom crowd, echoed by a single filly in the dusty, abandoned stands below.

"Hey, Pumpernickel! Didn't hear you come in!" He swung to face her, hanging from his knees like he preferred.

"That's 'cause I was sneakin'!" She replied, grinning. "You're mighty fine on that trapeze, Spider."

He smiled, trying to figure out just how much sneaking a filly with that orange a coat could do. "I aim to please."

"Ah're ya gonna come down, Spida'wick?" Pumpernickel questioned. "I hafta look up high enough when yer on the ground, and now yer way up there." 

"Oh, yeah. Right away." 

Spider swung up to his wrists, taking the short drop to the ripped overhang below, sliding down the threadbare curtain and grabbing the tassel to slow the last few feet of his fall. Pumpernickel grinned, galloping over. 

"How do ya do that so easy-like?" She frowned. 

Spider rubbed her forehead, spiking her messy green mane with static. "It's just practice, nothing more."

She pouted, fussing her hair back into place. "It's more than practice, Spida'wick! It's yer spechsul talent!"

"Well, yeah. But I got my special talent through practice."

"Ah want my Cutie Mark now, Spida! Ah don' wanna..." she scrunched up her nose, as if something vile was nearby, "...practice."

Spiderwick began his steady walk towards the exit of the old tent, the filly tagging along beside him out of habit. "You have to practice, Pumpernickel. That's just how it works."

"Why can't it work some other way?!"


-----


Two stallions sat side-by-side, steam rising from one's mouth as he exhaled into the cold winter air. Snow billowed around them, wildly serene, and neither flinched as the wind rose and bit around them.

The first to move was the smaller one, a charcoal Earth Pony with gray-white hair. His eyes flashed blue under his waving mane, and his front hooves were wrapped in golden boots. He had lifted a foot to shift it, a set of metal claws hanging from the boot gouging the snow below them. He flinched again as they clanged together, and looked up fearfully at his companion.

The second stallion was a Kirin, his bat-like wings folded tight against his sided to keep warm. The tufts on his ears tilted with the wind, though his gaze never faltered from straight ahead. Despite his unwavering vision, he snorted, another bout of steam rising into the air. "Don't worry, Lone, They aren't that close yet."

Lone Wolf rolled his eyes, ears pinning back at the horrid drawl his companion used solely on his name. "It's not 'Lawn', for daylight's sake! It's lone! Low-ne! Lone!"

"That's good," the Kirin grinned, "Lawn."

"Nox, if you say that one more time, I swear I'll- WHOOF"

Whatever statement Lone had been making, it was cut off as Nox shoved him into the snow. He went to get up and protest, only to be pinned down by Nox's wing, the owner quickly dropping into the snow as well. "Sh."

As if I was going to talk. Lone hissed to himself, ears lifting to try and detect what the Kirin did. Nothing appeared to him out of the storm, until a white, pony-like shape ambled towards them through the snow.

It was a robot, something not abnormal in the city. With a pony-shaped 'skull' to attempt to assimilate it, it walked more like a lion than a pony, wide swaths of black cable between every piece of white shell. Two inset red light blinked where it's eyes should be, casting a beam of bright light through the storm.

The beams fell on Nox's semi-exposed back, and it walked over. Static crackled from a hidden speaker. "And what time is it, Mister Wolf?"

"Cut to the chase, Cinnamon." Nox growled, shaking the snow from his back. "Don't have time for your games."

"I think you do." The voice replied, and the robot hissed, the small blades in its' mouth extending in a grimace. "Do you like my newest design? I call it a Reaver. Wait 'til you see it out of the snow, this baby runs like lightning." Cinnamon laughed through the speaker.

Nox flapped his wings angrily, and Lone slowly lifted himself from the snow. "Tell us why we're out in this sun-forsaken wasteland already!"

The 'Reaver' retracted its' teeth, but the speaker remained silent for a few moments. "I suppose you've secured the perimeter."

"Of what?!" Lone exclaimed. "There's nothing out here for miles!"

"That's where you're wrong, Wolfy!" The Reaver tilted back until it recoiled on its' haunches, whip-like tail wrapping around its' feet. "You're standing in the direct center of the Arctic Wastes!"

"And your point is?" Lone realized he was conversing alone, as Nox had seemingly vanished into the storm. Damn Kirin, he's too quiet.

"It means that the Crystal Empire is directly beneath you!"

"Crystal Empire. Really." Sarcasm dripped from every word, but if Cinnamon noticed, she didn't show it.

"No, after Sombra's second return, the Empire was trapped under the ice! If my calculations are correct, there's a tunnel within fifty miles of here that leads to the Empire. You'll need Nox's wings, because it's kind of a big dome..."

Lone stopped listening as Cinnamon rambled on, punctuated by the occasional shuffle of paper or scratch of pencil. Nox was still nowhere to be seen, but Lone no longer needed him for warmth. The spark of adventure - accented by treasure - had begun to burn, and he was more than ready to go hunting. 

"...and you should always stay close when in the Ice Caves, because..."

The riches he could find in a place called the Crystal Empire! The very roads, the bricks, all crystal, refined and pure! His back itched with the lack of saddlebags, and he realized Nox had taken those too.

"...and the structure of the dome might be compromised by your presence, so you might want to hurry, especially if..."

"You should listen to her."

Lone flinched and tumbled into the snow, once again unaware of his friend's travel. Nox grinned down at him, hoofing him his saddlebags. "And where were you?"

"Bathroom break." He replied. 

"Why'd you take my stuff?"

"'Cause you wouldn't notice."

Lone snorted, actually focusing on Cinnamon. Damn Kirin.
> Trigger 
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


BANG


Anastasia's eyes shot open. She sat up, the unfamiliar noise shattering her morning pattern. "M-Mom?" She yelled, panicking. "Mom!?"

"I'm here!" The door slammed open, and Anastasia flinched again, recoiling from the noise. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. What's going on?"

"There's a gunshot. Come along, let's open the window. Is that alright?" Her mother's hooves faded to what she assumed was the far wall, another unfamiliar noise entering as wind billowed in, flapping curtains she hadn't realized were there. "Oh no."

"Mom, what is it?" The Pegasus struggled to walk over, stumbling on debris not on her regular path. She felt her mother's wing brush her shoulder to guide her the rest of the way. "What is it?"

"It's..." Her voice hitched, another entry in a chain of abnormality. "It's your father."

"What about him?" She nearly screamed, her wings spreading as her anger grew. "For sunlight's sake, I can't see it!"

"He's been shot." 

Feeling her eyes widen, she took an unsteady step onto the window-ledge and flapped her wings once, ready to begin a hasty descent. Her mother's hooves wrapped around her belly, her own wings beating instead. Wind billowed by as her mother dropped faster than Anastasia would ever dare, and within seconds they had all eight hooves firmly planted on the ground.

Of course, her mother cantered off to where she assumed her father was, and she was left lost on the street. Another pony, a colt by voice, led her over, a cautious wing against her shoulder. Once she could hear her mother's sobs, she broke away from the colt, stumbling over her hooves to keep from trampling anything. 

"Honeydew?" Her fathers' voice, seldom heard. It was rich and full when he laughed, but now it was weak, faltering, unsure. Anastasia didn't like it. "Honeydew, is that you?"

"Yes." Her mother whispered, obviously leaning over him. "I'm here, Flash. I'm right here."

"Is Redheart here too?"

She didn't bother correcting him. "Yeah." Her voice sounded weak, fractured with emotions she didn't know she was feeling. "I'm here, Dad."

"Redheart, you need to know... need to know what's going on. The company, the Wiring, Red, they're planning something."

"Who? What?"

"It's going to break everything. It's why I'm dying, because I know, because I heard things." His voice had taken on a fervent energy, similar to when he talked of dreams and aspirations, with a panic underneath laced in blood. "You're in danger, Redheart, so I can't tell you everything."

"What can you tell me?!" She replied, growing angry at herself for not being able to do more.

She felt his gaze on her muzzle, could detect the smile in his voice, even as his breath sped and hitched and his heart pounded. "You'll find allies and enemies, inside and outside the city. But they aren't... not all of them... are..."

"Stay with me." She whispered, leaning towards him, resting her muzzle against his chest. Her chin grew damp as what she supposed was blood soaked in.

"...not what... they say they are."

And as her mothers' cries increased, her father's ceased to exist.


-----



BANG


Leeway stumbled ahead, tumbling close to the edge of the roof. Crescent lunged forward, grabbing the nape of his neck as he fell. Within moments, Torch was beside her, helping her lug the racer back onto the roof. 

She worked her jaws, trying to get the odd tingle from the Wiring bands out of her mouth. Despite having a near-death experience, Leeway grinned up from the concrete. 

"Your mouth is all purple now." He grinned, pointing a hoof at the band her mouth had grazed. 

Crescent frowned, trying to wipe it off with a hoof, only to have it spread. Ignoring the problem for the moment, she leaned over the building's edge.

A Pegasus stallion lay on the ground, a pale white coat spattered with red that matched his mane. The other racers appeared on the rooftops around, a haunting audience to a haunting occurrence. The dawn sprayed surreal pink light over the whole scene, giving a further dreamlike quality to the other two ponies arriving on the scene. 

Crescent merely skimmed over the older mare - a pale cream with a dark orange mane, also Pegasus - and focused on the younger. By her appearance, she seemed to be their daughter, but something in her glazed red eyes made it hard for Crescent to determine her emotion. And, assuming that the blue colt who had just ran up and guided her with a wing was unfamiliar with her, she was blind.

Interesting.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Torch said, his voice so surprisingly low that it sounded like a growl. Crescent momentarily wondered why she'd never heard him speak.

"No." She admitted. "The shot's in the exact place where the shoulder blade ends, and before the sternum begins. Directly through a lung, and you hit heartflesh. If he's not going from injuries alone, he's going from hemorrhage."

"Hm." His ears pricked, flicking minimally to pick up as much noise as he could. 

Unlike her pack, Crescent turned away, scanning the rooftops to gauge reactions. As she presumed, most were watching with the general morbid curiosity, as were some of the ponies below. Although...

Her eyes narrowed, focusing on a small, dark shape she didn't recognize. It glanced up as she watched it, meeting her eyes with a green glint. Pony. Scoped.

Without a word, Crescent jumped off of the building, her frail digital wings beating wildly to clear the gap. She touched down on the rooftops across, the shooter already fleeing. Adrenaline filled her veins as she fell into her racing state. Yells of fellow Changelings became nothing but her heartbeat in her ears, the rough scrape of her hooves on the cement and steel nothing but wind, her breath nothing but an afterthought.

She was gaining. Sharpshooters, when not classifying themselves as assassins, ran slow. Something her experience had yielded true on. With a furious chitter, she ended her last bound squarely on his shoulders, shoving him into the concrete.

She balanced as he skidded forward, blood smearing behind her victim. Fear and pain radiated from him as he desperately turned to face her.

Crescent brightened her Wiring, the bands of green seething into the dim light. Blue flashed under her eyes, and red swirls flamed up her neck. Three colors, a sign recognized everywhere as fame, as riches.

It did not lose any effect on the shooter.

He simply withered, curling in under her hooves. "Y-you're one of the Rainstreak Changelings, aren't you?"

She didn't grace him with a response. He knew full well. 

"Crescent Rainstreak. Left to find her own pack after her brother became the leader." He was rambling, but since she wasn't killing him, it was probably all he could do. "Formed a racing pack here. Four members, five with her, with you, included. Banded blue for wisdom, green for speed and red for power."

Torch landed beside her, disdain showing through his eyes if not his expression. "You caught him."

"Yes." She blinked once, hiding her emotion from her prey. "Did you doubt it?"

"Not in the least." He dipped his head, grabbing the shooter by the neck and lifting him, jaws ready to clench at the first sign of struggle.

The killer went limp, whimpering.

Crescent grabbed his jacket and pulled it off, the limp fabric tasting of grease and dirt. Underneath, a series of metal rings covered the pony's chest and belly, obviously protection against return fire. A silver-shod hoof unlatched into a standard-level Cannonblast, the most readily available magical gun on the market. Crescent unclipped it, kicking it away with a glare at it's owner. With another buckle, the silver bands clattered away, revealing pale green fur. Other than the laser guide over one eye, the pony was completely naked. 

"Drop him." Crescent commanded.

Torch rapidly withdrew, the shooter falling with a sickening thud. Crescent nodded, and Torch pushed him down onto the concrete.

"Name."

"C-Clover Cross."

"Age."

"Twenty."

"Gender."

"Male."

"Place of birth."

"Unicorn Range, Paintelsa."

"Reason."

He paused, as if he wasn't ready for this. Had she not been able to detect his honesty, she would have thought she'd found a hole in his alibi.

"Money." 

"You were paid?"

"Yes."

"How much?"

"Two-hundred bits."

"On an equine life? What else?"

"Safety." He clapped his hooves over his mouth, staring up at her in fear. As she glared, he continued. "I'm immune to attack from the Whitewall and Shadowslice gangs."

"Oh. A gang problem." She looked up at Torch. "Release him. But don't let him leave."

The pony scrambled to his hooves, tail between his legs and ears pinned back. The poster child for terror. 

"Let me tell you something you'll remember." She growled, taking a few steps closer. She was slightly taller than him, furthered by his hunched stance. "Whitewall is a bunch of pansies. One shot to any member and they'll all flee. Protection from them is like protection from a cloud. Shadowslice has power, but only on the Everfree circuit. Anywhere else, they're overpowered."

He whimpered, shrinking down under her furious stare. 

"So, you may have enough bits to buy groceries for a month. Good for you. But let me tell you, the Rainstreak pack will be on your heels the whole time. And our fangs aren't false." She stepped back, Clover reduced to a quivering pile of horseflesh. 

"Leeway, Raven," she flicked her tail, the small blue fringe on the bottom flashing their codes. They landed behind her within seconds. "Raven, notify the family below - the blind ivory and the cream - that the killer has been caught. Leeway, find the nearest law enforcement, and if you have to run to the Griffon Empire to find somepony then so be it."

The two fled, and Crescent kicked Clover's jacket towards him, taking the metal bands and Cannonblast for herself. The silver fit quite nicely, a worthwhile addition to her current armory. She bit down on the armor gently, a surge of bile rising in her throat as a bitter taste filled her mouth. 

Iron; a killing weapon on any creature, regardless of age or species. Legend says iron could pierce the skin of an adult Alicorn, but the theory wasn't tested. However, it absorbed magic and most elemental attacks, and wasn't damaging through contact. 

Regardless, she wondered how much trouble a pony could have gone through to outfit an amateur assassin. Iron wasn't even common on the black market, nor was it cheap. She decided she would smelt it. Her old battle claws were growing dull, and she needed a new tail blade. Armor wasn't much use to a Changeling, after all.

Of course, Clover did look a bit thin...

"Colt." He glanced up, fear flowing in new waves. "How are you financially?"

"I live on the streets."

"Family?"

"Wife and filly, living in one of... my employer's safeshouses."

"Get them out." She pried the bands apart with her hooves, careful not to break the edges too sharply. Out of the ten he had been wearing, she gave him three. "Take these and sell them to the highest payer. Iron isn't cheap, don't sell it for it." She paused, considering. "And if your employer tries to attack you, even after the deal, come to a Rainstreak. We'll... take care of the problem."

Leeway landed behind her with a thud, followed by a series of heavier landings as a group of Pegasi landed, a few carrying chariots with seated Unicorns. 

"Take him away." Crescent said, stepping back. "Let him keep his metal. He's helpless anyway."

The guards obeyed, shoving him into one of the empty chariots. Magical bands snapped into existence around each foot, binding him to the chair. "Lady Crescent, is that..."

"Don't call me 'Lady', it's iron, we've discussed it." She kicked a hoof passively, and began the tedious repetition of Clover's information.


-----



BANG


Spider flinched mid-swing, nearly dropping off the bar. Pumpernickel screamed, burying her head under her hooves. Without a moments' hesitation, he dropped to the ground, pulling the shivering foal into a hug. 

"N-no... not..."

Sh," he ran his hooves over her mane, rocking her gently. "It's okay. You're okay, I'm okay, everyone's okay."

She looked up at him, tears running down her face. "B-but Mom and Dad..."

"They're in a better place now. It's always summer there, and it's just as warm as they want it to be. And every day they sit down and have a picnic lunch with the Princesses, and every night there are fireworks and shooting stars. And they smile, and laugh, and run, and they've never stopped loving you." 

Despite the slowly-calming foal in his arms, Spider felt a spark of anger. This poor foal had lost everything after a robbery, and now some callous imbecile was shooting again. What if the victim had a family, a daughter like Pumpernickel to leave behind? What if she went to living on the streets too, taking up dangerous relay to pay for food, without the intervention of a passers-by? How many deaths would happen then?

"You're s-sure they still love me?" Pumpernickel whimpered, burrowing her face into her foster brothers' warm fur.

"I wouldn't doubt it for the world." He looked around, seeing nothing that could have made the noise, nothing he could pin it on. "Do you want to stay here for the night?"

She nodded, wiping her muzzle. "C-can we look at the stars first?"

"Of course."


-----



BANG


Nox stumbled back, eyes spinning from the collision. He eyes the large icicle warily, testing it again with his nose. Wolf frowned back at him. 

"Are you coming?"

Nox's ears pinned, dragon stubbornness rising. He took a few steps back, huffing and snorting, and charged full-on into the icicle.


BANG


"You realize this is getting you nowhere, right?"


BANG


"Honestly. You're going to knock yourself out."


BANG


"I'm not going to carry you if you do."


BANG


"I'm going to kick you the whole way."


BANG


"You'll help, right, Cinnamon?"

"Yep."


BANG


Wolf snorted, spinning and bucking the offending column. It splintered, crumbling into the snow as Nox watched. He frowned, glancing between the ice and Wolf.

"What?" Lone Wolf said, beginning to trot away again.

"How'd you do that so easily?"

"I'm an Earth Pony. Unlike you, my strongest weapon is my kick. Not my thick skull."

Nox frowned deeper, giving in and following his friend. "I weakened it for you."

"I'm sure you did."

The Reaver tilted its' head, eyes flashing in a mimic of a blink. "Are you done? We have an Empire to find."

Lone shook his head, trotting up beside the robot. "How much further do we have to go?"

Cinnamon immediately replied with a projected map, a small red dot moving towards a large, pale blue circle. "See, that's where we need to go, but floods and freezing changes the tunnels there all the time. Luckily, the Empire isn't too damaged. A minor shield spell was placed before it was encased, in theory so the ponies would live. The event around it was that Sombra, the Dark King, had returned, and the shield was meant to keep him out as they fought. But then he opened the ice, and bam! No more Crystal Ponies."

"Are there going to be ponies living there when we find it?" Lone questioned, watching the ever-nearing circle on the map. 

"Probably not." Papers shuffled through the speaker, and Lone could almost imagine her cluttered desk. "Not much was known about Crystal Ponies, as they seemed to exist in very finite times; from the Birth of the Princesses to about... oh, about a year before the Eternal Night. There was no real 'science' at that time, and ponies assumed they'd be around forever. About a thousand years after that, they returned between the Release of Discord and the Ascension of Twilight Sparkle, and then Sombra returned and they haven't been seen since."

"They've been gone since the Ascension? Yeesh, even if they haven't starved to death, they'll be inbred to no end." 

With nothing more than a laugh from Cinnamon, the three continued in general silence. Just as the map said the tunnel would open, they were met with the one thing none of them expected. 

A dead end.

"What?!" Cinnamon yelled, the Reaver running up to the wall and examining it. "It's not the right time of year for walls to form!"

"We're in search of a semi-mythical empire full of gemstone ponies, trapped under miles of ice by an ancient dark power. Did you really think we wouldn't hit any problems?" Lone tapped the wall with a hoof, the ice sounding anything but breakable.

At which moment Nox screamed in a very feminine way and fell through the floor. 

"Hey!" Lone spun around, pressing himself against the wall as cracks spider-webbed from the hole. Cinnamon planted the Reaver quite firmly into the ice with a set of spikes. 

There was a heavy thud, and then the flap of leathery wings. Nox's head appeared through the floor, a cut above one eye but grinning. "I found it!"

"You're a genius!" Cinnamon cheered, picking her way over to the hole. 

"You're a genius." Lone deadpanned, following.

Nox let Lone clamber onto his back before Cinnamon threw the Reaver into empty space. As the Kirin began a more cautious descent, the Reaver's white plates faded into the dark, and ended with an extremely loud and expensive-sounding crunch. 

"Should we follow her?" Lone asked, squinting into the dark. 

Nox's glowing eyes scanned the general area, and he shrugged. "She knows what her machines can do. It might have a dislocated wire or something, but she'll be fine. Remember, she is just a speaker on that thing."

"I guess." Lone folded his hooves, shifting his saddlebags. "Can you see through this?"

"Not any more than you. Too little light."

"How do you know we're not about to hit anything?"

He paused. "Maybe I can see a little better than you. We're almost at the ground."

Sure enough, the gleaming red eyes of the Reaver appeared in the dark, stopping in front of them to watch their descent. Even from the sky, they could hear Cinnamon hyperventilating. 

"Guys - crystals - oh sun my lungs - crystals - so - many - ow - guys..."

Lone hopped off of Nox's back, trotting up to the Reaver. "Take a deep breath, Cinnamon. Wouldn't want you passing out."

"Again." Nox added. "Remember that time in the Amarezon?"

"I... full well remember... the Amarezon." She hissed. "We promised to never speak... of that again."

"Guys. Crystal Empire?" Wolf waved a hoof at the darkened surroundings. 

The Reaver blinked. "Oh. Yes. Right. Oh, the light code is around here somewhere... no, no, no... ah! Here it is! Uhm... illuminábit semita pro amore!"

Torches hidden in the darkness burst into flames of green, pink, blue and yellow, racing down the revealed road like controlled wildfire. Lone stared up as columns of flame spiraled towards the ceiling, casting a brilliant light before solidifying into glowing crystal columns. The whole area shimmered and crackled brilliantly, before falling silent.

Cinnamon let out a small squee through the speaker.

"Welcome to the Crystal Empire!"
> Chill
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spider's tail flicked idly as he grazed, bones starkly shadowed in the daylight. He glanced over at Pumpernickel, her coat looking much healthier than his own. Of course, being her...

"Why're ya so skinny, Spida?"

"I don't have much money to spend on food, Pumpernickel. And whatever I have, I spend on you."

"Why?"

He sighed, pulling up another dusty mouthful of dying grass. "Because I can live like this."

The filly pouted, scuffing a hoof in the dirt. Spider's ears pricked as she sighed.

"I... I don' want ya tah die."

He looked back at her, her ears pinned back and eyes cast down, a small rock being her current focus.

"Pumpernickel..." He trotted over, aware of how rigid his shoulders were as he reached out to embrace her, unable to keep from staring at his joints grinding at the underside of his skin. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I... I know." She sighed, leaning into him. His heartbeat pounded loud and clear under his skin. "But..."

Spiderwick pressed a gentle hoof to her mouth to silence her. "No buts. I'm here. I'm not leaving."

She mumbled something inaudible and snuggled closer. Spiderwick held her for a few minutes, until she withdrew. He continued grazing, the brown weeds suddenly seeming ashy in his mouth. 

"Pumpernickel?"

"Yeah?" She looked up from another rock she had unearthed, dirt and grass clinging to her hooves. 

"We'll go into the city tomorrow, and I'll get us some real food, okay?"

She grinned widely, and began kicking the rock around the small meadow, laughing.

As she was distracted, he frowned. A dim light shone in his eyes as three golden lines banded down from his mane to his cheek, marking it like a claws' wound. 

I thought you weren't ever going to reactivate.

Spider frowned. Hello again, Warden. His ears pinned back as he thought back to the metal box under the stands, dusty and disguised in the old tent. He could almost feel the metal Kickers back on his hooves, and he couldn't withhold a smile.

The voice seemed to grin in return. The pleasure is all mine, Spiderwick. Or should I say, convict 716?


-----


Crescent buzzed her wings, pacing outside of Clover's cell. On one side was the cell, the steel bars ringing as Clover kicked them angrily. On her other side was the dull-eyed Pegasus, ears pricked and following her footsteps, wings half-folded. As the blind mare flapped her wings to stretch them, the white feathers revealed their red tips, the transition between the two colors a mere blur.

"Clover." He looked up, the last kick resounding in the small hallway. "Tell Redheart..."

The mare's eyes darkened. "My name is Anastasia."

Crescent glared back, Wiring brightening as a warning. "Tell Anastasia exactly why you killed her father."

"Well... ah... you see..." Clover stepped back from the bars, his eyes widening as Anastasia loomed towards him. "I-I-I was-"

"Lady Crescent!" A heavily armored guard thundered down the stairs, folding into a bow at the Changeling's hooves.

"At ease." She rolled her eyes. "I was in the middle of an investigation. This better be good."

"Uh, yes, Lady Crescent. There is a visitor upstairs for you, he refuses to speak to the guards or any official." 

"Ugh. Clover, answer any question she has.  Anastasia, don't kill him." She glared at the two before following the guard back up to the main floor.

Standing in the pristine whitewashed waiting room was a tall Changeling. Unlike most of them, he wore a dark black cape, closed around his neck with a golden clasp. His eyes flashed with Wiring glow as he yelled at the poor receptionist. 

"And you think you have any right to defy the wishes of Lord Faction Silverfang?!" He screeched, stomping a hoof. His wings buzzed, throwing his cape up like a parachute.

"Father!" Crescent shouted, standing between him and the cowering worker.

"Ah, Crescent! It's been so long!" His mood changed instantly, sweeping the mare into a hug. 

She growled, struggling free. "Why are you here?"

"Can't a dad visit his daughter every so often?" He grinned, an expression that faded quickly under Crescent's steady glare. "Ah... well... your mother said I should come ask you something."

"What?"

"She wants you to rejoin the Silverfang pack. Not me. Her."

Crescent bristled, Wiring glowing as she hissed. "I cut all ties to your stupid pack the second I took my name as a Lady. There's nothing you can do to bring me back."

"You're a free spirit, Crescent, but you need to settle down at somepoint, find a male, have some kids..."

"That's what this is about?!' Crescent screamed, tail whipping. "Me having kids!?"

"Well, your mother-"

"For goodness sake, if I cared what mother thought I would have stayed a Silverfang!" Her Wiring glowed as she pulsed out the summons to the other Rainstreaks, Torch's wireless summon the only one her father could have possibly heard. Luckily, he wasn't listening to the hive mind at the moment.

"Look, Crescent, you should really settle down, before you get too old to find yourself a husband... wouldn't that be easier? There's a bunch of single stallions in Silverfang, I'm sure they'd love to meet you."

Crescent grit her teeth, taking a few steps back as the front door slammed open, her own pack rallying to her sides. Torch took up his regular place beside her, laying a wing across her side. "And, Lord Faction, you are on Rainstreak territory. Will you take your leave willingly, or will you need to get your flank handed to you on a platter?"

He glanced between each of the Changelings, fear slowly beginning to radiate off of him. "I'll go." He blurted, his horn lighting as he teleported away.

Crescent immediately relaxed, her wings folding and her ears flicking back to neutral. "Thanks, guys. There's not really any way to get him to do anything without overpowering him."

"I feel bad for your mom." Leeway chimed, sitting down with a heavy sigh. "Imagine that bullhead after dark."

"Stop it, you." Raven chided, sitting down on a chair as well. 

Crescent rolled her eyes. "I'll only be a few more minutes, and then we can go see if there's any new recruits at the market. Just let me talk to Anastasia..."

The Pegasus in question slammed the door open, stalking past them with eyes blazing furiously. She flicked her ears to find the door, and blew out, kicking the offending exit shut on the way by.

The Changelings sat in short silence, each one taking a few moments to unravel the ball of emotion in her wake. 

"Well." Crescent chirped. "I guess we can go now."


-----


Anastasia quickly discovered it was raining heavily, the cold water soaking through her feathers and lowering her tail until it dragged on the ground. She blinked to clear the stinging sensation in her eyes - briefly wondering why the stupid things could hurt if they couldn't see - and lifted her ears, able to define surfaces by the noises they made under the pounding storm.

To her left, a gutter flooded with rain and dead leaves, a passer-by cursing as the puddles it formed soaked his fur. Behind her, a metal drainpipe rattled, obviously clogged with something. On her right was the brick wall of some building, the usual in this city.

No, not 'this city'. She had to learn to call it by its' proper name. Even if it wasn't her hometown Stormdale, which hovered above and couldn't hold criminals of the unwinged kind, the Wired-In city of Ponyville was a major piece in her father's game.

Her game, now.

Her hooves buzzed as her new Earth Wiring resounded into the concrete, her hooves leading where her eyes couldn't. She'd learned a lot from the conversation with that criminal, despite herself. Her wings flared angrily, and she shook her head, clearing emotion to let in solid facts.

Fact; her father had been shot by a pony employed by... a gang.

Fact; Entropy Enterprises was immersed in the black market, and almost every worker knew something about somepony they shouldn't.

Fact; the sun and moon she could envision above her were not themselves.

Fact; the energy around Canterlot and Sharptooth mountain was the true sun and moon.

Fact; her father was shot for plans to release them.

Fact; and now, she was going to.

She snorted again, feeling suddenly weak and vulnerable. Anypony could be watching her right now, and she wouldn't know.  Her nerves spiked as she imagined the triple-needled nozzle of a Cannonbolt or Firedart aimed towards her, a pony shrouded in darkness ready to fire...

Heart racing, she ducked into the nearest doorway she could find. The room inside was strangely quiet for having an unlocked door, and she glanced around blindly to try and determine her surroundings.

Behind her, the door clicked shut. 

She spun, grasping onto the last shreds of the noise to reflect her surroundings, but the sound faded before she could discover anything new.

Something metal squeaked, and paper resettled. Four hooves landed on the floor. 

"Hello."

The speaker was strangely quiet, as if it meant to keep her in the dark. She spread her wings threateningly, snorting.

"Now, now, no need for such aggressiveness."

Two wings pushed hers closed, and a hoof lifted her chin. A Pegasus. One slight fact against her captor. And feathers, too. UnWired. Female by voice.

Anastasia growled, taking a step back. "Why did you shut the door?!"

"Oh. I'm sorry. Would you prefer the backdrop of a roaring storm? I'm sure you'll find it's still unlocked." The mare sounded like she rolled her eyes, and the out-of-place humming twinkle of magic filled the room.

"Y-you're an Alicorn?!"

The sound stopped, followed by settling paper and a metallic clink. "Oh. I know you. You're name is... Arabia? Albania? Alexstraza?"

"Anastasia." Inwardly, she was happy this pony knew her by her chosen name. Outwardly, she frowned.

"So, of course you would see me as an Alicorn. The truth is, I'm an inventor. Unfortunately, Pegasi aren't taken very seriously in the intricate machine department. So, I made myself a horn. Channels the natural magic of the earth and the ponies around it the same way a Unicorn's does. I wish I had made more when I still had some moonstone." The voice trailed off in a frown. "Anyhow, I created robots and machines for the cities and weapons for the armies. And, admittedly, the gangs."

Anastasia blinked, feeling herself smiling despite every part of her telling her not to. "Can you make a blind pony see?"

"I can try." The voice beamed. "Oh, I'm being rude, not introducing myself."

A hoof wound under Anastasia's, shaking it in greeting. 

"The name's Cinnamon."


-----


Nox jumped as a loud slam emenated from the Reaver. Lone quickly joined him as a frenzied discussion took place between Cinnamon and another mare. There was the loud shout of 'Y-you're an Alicorn?!' before the speaker cut off with a click.

Lone slowly turned to look at Nox, his fearful expression matching Lone's. "Cinnamon's an..."

Nox gulped. "W-we've never seen her in-pony, have we?"

"N-no." Lone shook his head. "She never told us which race she was, either."

Silence reigned as they watched the Reaver, it's hidden gears clicking as it idled. The speaker snapped once, and Cinnamon's voice returned.

"Sorry guys, had a bit of a surprise visitor. Anything exciting happen?"

"No." Nox replied, his voice seeming hollow. 

The Reaver tilted it's head, cameras adjusting on the Kirin. "Are you okay? You don't look too good."

Lone glanced at his partner, his usual dark fur having taken on a pale, wet sheen. His pupils dilated as he blinked, and his wings trembled. "I-I think I'm going to be sick."

"What?! Why?"

Nox cantered off behind a building, tail flicking and sides heaving. Wolf flinched and turned back to the Reaver. "He's just a bit shaken by such a big discovery."

"Hm." The cameras flicked over to where he had vanished before scanning the area. "I guess we should start going through some houses. Remember, there's no real information on Crystal Ponies, so any bit of culture counts. I'm taking pictures all the time, too, so if you find something you can't move, call on me." With that, the Reaver began trotting off to explore.

Nox walked back out of the alley, still pale-faced, and met Wolf's eyes.

Are you going to ask her? He mouthed.

Lone shook his head. Later, once we're done here. Out loud, he added, "Come on, let's see what we can find."

Nox nodded, a little bit of color returning to his face. "Y-yeah. How 'bout here?" 

He pointed a wing at the house behind Wolf. It was a pale pink, with yellow shutter and doors. Small, brown crystals littered the planters in front of the door, and - even stranger - small, purple flowers grew out of them. Lone quickly uprooted a mouthful of them and deposited them into his saddlebag, one of Cinnamon's handy 'infinipockets' taking the mouthful with ease.

He had never questioned how she had made such complicated creations, and never sold them. With her heritage at doubt, however...

Lone shook his head violently. She's still the same pony we've been adventuring with. He remembered her Plainswalker malfunction back in the Amarezon, the shining tan machine caught belly-deep in a bogswicker's pool.

With a start, he realized that, like with the bogswicker, they had traveled beyond the reach of encyclopedias and research. Where the Amarezon held a wolf-like amphibian with venomous teeth and a spiked back, a Crystal Kingdom held much more potential.

He stumbled over a small ridge, finding himself face-to-face with a charcoal stallion, his white mane a pale shock against his face. He went to speak, only to realize he had been facing his own reflection. 

"A pool?" He looked up, noticing the elaborate, dry spouts, each one shaped after a different monster, all but the dragon at the peak unknown to him. "A fountain?"

He dipped a hoof in, retracting it as the icy water stung his skin. Glancing away to check for frostbite - it hurt quite a bit - he lost his visual of the fountain. When he looked back, a set of bright blue eyes looked back. 

He gulped.

These ones were not his.
> Entropy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lone jumped back as a pony's head surfaced from the fountain, a pair of hooves hanging daintily over the edge. 

"You're not a crystal pony."

He blinked, dumbfounded. The pony in the fountain rolled her eyes, waving a hoof at the surroundings. "You're an Earth Pony. What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing in a fountain?!"

The pony grinned, showing two sharp canines. "I was put her for my own personal good and for the betterment of society! Also, I can't walk!"

"You seem pretty cheery for somepony who can't walk."

"Why would I be sad?" She tilted her head. "I can do this!"

Lone stared as she ducked back under the water. Just as he was starting to worry that she'd drowned, she launched back up, spraying water everywhere. Her hide glistened sky blue, and her pale yellow mane ran all the way down to her... tail?! She dove back under the water, pulling herself up onto the ledge until where her hindquarters would have been could be seen.

"You're a seapony? I thought those didn't exist!"

"I guess I'm the one and only, then! What, you thought I was sitting in a fountain for fun?" She giggled, lifting her tail out of the water. "So, I've answered your questions. Now, why are you here?"

"I'm a treasure hunter. This is called the Crystal Empire. It's not really a difficult concept."

"You're a looter? A thief? Sound the alarms!"

"What?! No! Hey!" Lone jumped to hang over the fountain, watching as the seapony glared up at him, one hoof poised to hit a small red button against the wall. 

"I'll release the kraken on you!" She yelled up, the water garbling her voice.

"There's no way you can fit a kraken in that little pool!"

"A Crystal Drake, then! Diamond Dog! Chimera!"

"They'd all be dead!"

She popped out of the water, glaring daggers at him. "What do you mean, dead? Did you kill them? Are you a murderer and a thief?!"

Lone stomped a hoof. "For the sun's sake, no!"

"I don't believe you."

"It's been... what, close to a hundred years since this place even saw the sun! I don't know how you're still alive, but nopony else is! There's no bodies, no sign of decay... we're here for research as much as anything!"

"We're?"

Lone sighed, dropping onto his haunches. "My travelling partners. An inventor named Cinnamon and a Kirin named Nox. I'm Lone Wolf."

The seapony hauled herself out of the fountain, sliding ungracefully onto the crystal floor. She smiled, extending a hoof towards him. "I'm Crystal."

Lone shook her hoof. "How did you live this long, anyway?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. Every so often, I felt weak, but then... something would happen and I'd feel good again."

"Hm." He looked around the abandoned square, crouching down to get his back close to the ground. "Well, if you want to come along, you can."

"I do like adventure!" Crystal chirped, hoisting herself onto his shoulders. "Onward, steed!"


-----


"Fifty bits."

"I'm not giving you any more than twenty."

"Fifty bits, Scrawl." Spider hissed, tapping his hoof on the counter.

The pony behind the window grinned, a lopsided thing with a gold tooth. "No can do, amigo. You're a felon, I can't loan that much to you."

Spider glanced around the ratty room, before leaning in towards the other colt, the golden wires on his face brightening against his dark makeup. "Pen Scrawl. Fifty bits. Or do you forget what I was marked for?"

The colt showed no fear in his expression, but he relented. "Only for the filly, amigo. Don't think you're getting any more from me."

Spider accepted the bag hastily shoved in his direction, and took a step back, returning Pumpernickel from the magazine rack with a swift look. They exited the small shop onto a backstreet, where Spider immediately sat down to make sure Scrawl hadn't 'miscounted'.

"Why do you have such weird makeup on, Spida'?"

"Because... some ponies know me as a very bad pony, and don't know that I changed myself. You don't need to know what I've done, but these ponies know me as 'Redback', so you'll have to call me that when they're around, okay?"

"Your back isn't red."

"It's a type of spider. Do you understand? You're my daughter here, and you have to act like it. Don't answer questions you don't understand, and don't take anything from anypony other than me, unless I say it's alright."

"I unda'stand." Pumpernickel nodded, hugging Spider anyways. 

Spider hugged her back, sliding her onto his shoulders as he stood up. "I have to go into a place called the Marvelous Mare, and I have to make sure you do not ask about anything you've seen. Understand?"

She nodded again. "...What didya do?"

Vivid memories of a darkened room, kickblades on his heels and a dagger in his mouth; blade's edges slick and wet with greenish-yellow toxin, a stallion sleeping alone in a wide bed, his blade drawing closer, closer, closer, until the stallions' eyes opened and all he could see was silver-

"I'll tell you when you're older. For now, we need to go see my former employer."


-----


Cinnamon kicked back in her chair, back hooves resting on the table as she guided her Reaver with a full-body controller. Anastasia idled nearby, testing out a makeshift locator on various objects. Cinnamon glanced back at the mare - frowning only at how gawky her invention was - and watched her find a small pin, easily lifting it between two feathers. 

"You're doing well." Cinnamon called back, disengaging her link to her robot. 

"I guess so." Anastasia responded, clicking the device in her teeth again to make sure she put the pin back on the right table. "Not the same as sight, though."

Cinnamon laughed, helping her take the headgear off, including the activator bit. "Of course not! It's just artificial echolocation, with a bit of a hearing aid to help you define objects. It's the same thing you've always done, you can just control it better."

Anastasia pouted, scuffing a hoof. "How long do you think it'll take to make working eyes?"

"Depends." She answered, tapping a hoof in thought. "If my fortune proves true, my supplier is back in the running, which means I can have all the parts I need, whenever I need them. I just have to figure out how to take pony eyes and machinize."

"That's not a word."

"It will be." Cinnamon grinned, "when you get your sight."

Anastasia frowned, but edged her way over to the computer, it's soft hum guiding her without fail. "What's this?"

Cinnamon placed a helmet over her eyes, a few clicks emanating from the device as it booted up. "One moment."

"Your voice changed."

"That happens," she dropped a backpack on the pale Pegasus' shoulders, wrapping bindings around each of her hooves and her belly, "when I get an idea."

"What?"

"Reaver connection; audial. Reboot from initial startup. Powerdown purposeful. Re-engage." Cinnamon clicked a few buttons on the helmet, sliding a binding under Anastasia's chin, her orders aimed towards the device instead of the pony herself.

"What are you doing?"

A soft click emitted from the backpack as Cinnamon connected the wires. All of a sudden, noise filled Anastasia's ears, coming from every direction and outlining a whole new world from the small room she knew she was standing in. Huge buildings lined the narrow road, abandoned market stalls hunched in the gloom. She could see another pony a ways ahead, with a cropped tail and a thick muzzle. She couldn't tell what color he was, but he had the wings of a dragon at his sides instead of the soft feathers she knew.

"Cinnamon?" He called, his own voice defining his form further. 

"Temporary disengage." She replied, the mic strapped firmly around her muzzle. "Got a newbie in the Reaver, how's she doing?"

"Hasn't moved yet." He replied, turning to face Anastasia. 

"How do I move?" She whispered, turning to where she thought Cinnamon was. Her artificial vision danced with a series of chirps, echoes bouncing off the world around and painting a new view of the world. 

"Just like that. The gear'll move if you do. You don't need to actually walk, but it is your first time, so go ahead."

Anastasia took a cautious step, vaguely listening to the stallion snap back a quick 'better than your first time... in the Amarezon', which was responded to violently and rapidly by Cinnamon until the colt was laughing too hard to stand.

Anastasia managed to nudge the machine into a limping trot, her hooves dancing awkwardly in place. She kept scanning the area, taking in every little detail. She hadn't known such machines existed, able to move the blind where they were not in danger.

A small etching on one of the stalls caught her eye, and she trotted over. She sent a series of chirps at the small icon, burning it's image into her brain.

"Daddy, what's this?"

"That's my work jacket. See, you can feel the letters."

His large wing guided her small hoof, lines turning to letters turning to words. 

"It spells out 'entropy'. E-N-T-R-O-P-Y."

"Entropy what?"

"Enterprises. It's where I work."

"What's this?"

She had moved her hoof between the words, following the angular swirl between them. 

"That's the logo. It's what shows ponies that we made something."

The lines burned bright under her hoof, one more tie to the world she could only dream of entering.

"Entropy Enterprises?"

"Hm?" The stallion trotted over, entering her field of vision to examine the mark. "Entropy Enterprises?"

"My dad used to work there. He's... gone now." Her voice caught, a wall of strength tumbling down. "But why would they... they be here?"

The stallion stared up into the Reaver's cameras, his face looming in Anastasia's mind. "I think we need to come back."

"What?!" Anastasia hissed, backpedalling. "Come back where?!"

"Whoa, filly." Cinnamon's hoof darted over a keyboard, and Anastasia's connection went dead. She panicked, stepping back, stumbling. 

She tripped over her tail and crashed over, breaths heaving through her lungs as she shivered with terror.

"Come back to me now, you're okay. Shh, now." Cinnamon's gentle wings ran down her forelegs, one hoof brushing her mane away. "He wasn't talking to you, it's okay."

Anastasia felt tears running down her muzzle, and threw herself at Cinnamon, collapsing into her hooves. "M-m-my d-d-d-dad..."

Cinnamon hugged her close, gently rocking on her haunches as she calmed down the mare. "Hush now, quiet now, it's time to lay your sleepy head..."


-----


Crescent sat on her haunches, casting darkened glares around the restaurant as she tore chunks of cheese out of her sandwich. 

"You okay?"

Crescent glared up at Torch, swallowing. "Peachy."

"You just gave a foal the stare of death." He commented idly, lifting a forkful of salad. "Not that it seems to mind."

As he chewed, Crescent took a few deep breaths, placing her meal on it's plate to avoid mauling the poor thing further. "I hate that that filly just... vanished! I wanted to talk to her, but no~o, gotta run away and be free."

Torch lifted an eyebrow, glancing across at the rest of the pack, which gave a collective shrug. Crescent ripped another bite out of her sandwich. 

"I have to find her. I think she knows something about Entropy Enterprises."

"Don't start this again." Raven sighed from across the table. 

"Quiet, you. You know as well as I do that it takes a lot of energy to do Wiring, and Entropy commands all the centers around here! Where do you think they get all the power?"

"The ancient princesses." Leeway answered dully.

"The ancient princesses!" Crescent repeated, grinning. "If we can break into that Tartarus-hole, we can liberate them! We won't be in this depressing spiral of control and command anymore!"

"Crescent, please relax. Ponies are staring." Raven added in a hushed tone, tapping a hoof. 

"I will not relax! I am in the state of mind of adventure and adventure means shouting!" Crescent reared up, slamming both hooves down on the table and tipping the drinks over. Leeway subtly leaned down and began licking up his chocolate milk. "You guys'll know when I make it! The sun and the moon won't be artificial any more, and-"

The waiter glared at the Changeling, two burly stallions shuffling along behind him. 

Crescent smiled awkwardly. "Ahh... I'll leave a big tip?"

"Any other great ideas?" Torch piped up from beside her. 
> Silvertongue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Crescent rifled through her coin purse, pulling out a mouthful of silver bits. The pony who took them seemed reluctant to hand over the product at hand, but Crescent pocketed it before he could claim it back.

"Silver dragon's tongue. Check." She muttered to herself, Torch striking through a listed entry on the other side of the hive mind. "What's next?"

"Fragglewort?"

"Ignore my wonderful handwriting." She chirped.

"Frog's warts!" He replied happily.

Crescent scanned the dark market, thin slants of sewer grates and small candles the only illumination. Despite the grimy setting, she knew many of the ponies here, and all of the eateries established kept a clean kitchen and cleaner dishes. She snorted angrily as somepony shoved her, and she rounded on them, teeth bared and Wiring flashing.

The pony who had bumped her took a few quick steps back, foalish eyes staring up in fearful wonder. Crescent immediately dimmed, folding her wings and meeting the eyes of the filly's guardian. A wispy stallion with black marks over his back and face, and gleaming eyes under golden bands of Wiring. 

"Redback." She nodded, ears flicking.

"Eclipse." He returned, dipping his head. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"I've been around, though. Where were you? And more importantly, who's the kid?"

"She is Spice."

"Her real name?"

"Of course not."

Crescent smiled down at her, the stifled tension between the two ponies breaking. "Hey, kiddo, I'll treat you to a 'shake at Creams'! You can bring Redback along, if he'll lift his ears long enough to order."

The stallion snorted, flicking his ears up with conscious effort. "We're in a hurry."

"You've never had a Cream's shake, have you?" Crescent grinned, prancing a circle around him. "C'mon, I'll invite the gang, it'll be like old times!"

"No." Redback repeated, sweeping his tail around his blackened flank. "I'm in a hurry."

"You said it was just you in a hurry that time. Does that mean the kid can have a treat?"

Redback glowered, but turned to face the faded cafe. "Fine. But I'm not leaving her with-"

"Me alone? I understand completely!" Crescent air-trotted away, flying just out of ground's reach. "I'm crazy!"

Redback frowned, but scooped Spice onto his back. 

Spice grinned. "I like her." 


-----


Pumpernickel happily downed her milkshake as Eclipse harried the poor waitress for a cup of blood. After scaring her off into the back room, the Changeling leaned back onto the bench, spreading her hooves to let her elbows hang over the edge. Spiderwick glowered at her.

"Poor filly, she'll probably get all frazzled. I wonder if she'll be back soon so I can order a soda."

"So?"

Eclipse's ears pricked, and she turned slightly to look at him. "Hm?"

"Why'd you invite us over?"

"Do I need a reason for everything?"

"Yes." Spider flicked his ears forward. "Every time you do something for me, that is."

She smiled, lopsidedly, and her eyes unfocused slightly as she tuned into the hive mind. "I'm in need of a couple spools of silver wire and a set of mana crystals. I know you've run these supplies before. Where do you get them?"

A black Changeling entered the diner, the small bell chiming over the door as he called a welcome to a passing waitress. He joined Eclipse, sliding in subtly under one of her outstretched hooves. 

"Redback, I assume you've met Spark from a previous escapade?"

"Good runner." He confirmed, nodding towards the darkshell. "I may need him if you want all of those supplies at once."

"What? The great Redback in need of backup?"

He frowned, tilting his head towards the oblivious foal. "Need someone to keep an eye on the kid."

"I'm not good with foals." Spark rumbled.

Eclipse shoved his shoulder. "Like you'd know, you brute. Anyhow, I have a few packmates who'd be more than willing to watch such a nice tyke. As long as she doesn't run into the racers' path."

"She's got sense." Spider muttered. "Who've you got in mind?"

"Ah, forgot you knew my pack. Well, Nightwing's been lame lately, so she'll probably be sitting out races for a while. You know, Jewel Blackclasp's dam?"

"The Jewel that changed packs?"

"Yeah." Eclipse nodded, thinking. "She does like being with the little ones. Brightens her day."

Spider smiled gently. "What kind of payment are we talking for this kind of run?"

"Bits, and if all goes well, some firestone gems."

Spider nodded, noticing Pumpernickel running out of milkshake. "Well, I have a few pickups I need to do first. Expect your package in about a week."

"Make it two days and I'll raise your pay."

"Two days it is."

He slid out of the booth, Pumpernickel close behind him. He glanced back to make sure the darkshell wasn't following, and met Eclipse's glowing eyes.

She smiled again, but it was hollow and lined with fangs. "And if you fail, Spiderwick, do not expect mercy."


-----


Lone trotted up just in time to see the Reaver crash head-first into the wall. He looked up, seeing Nox perched on a windowsill nearby.

"What's going on?" 

The Kirin grinned. "Cinnamon's got a newbie in the gear. Blind, too."

Lone winced as the Reaver stumbled and crashed again. "Cinnamon let somepony other than herself near her stuff?"

"Apparently."

"Get up, you stinking pile of horseapples!" The Reaver cursed, struggling to regain it's balance. It stilled suddenly, moving again a few moments later to fluidly stand up. 

"She's going to go cool down. As Nox here knows, she's been at this for a while." Cinnamon seemed tired, and the Reaver's slouch echoed that. "Anyway, have you found anything?"

"Nothing of value. Crystal says most of the valuables were taken a long time ago, but she doesn't quite remember why they vanished."

"Where is she, anyway? I haven't actually met her yet." The Reaver looked around, checking to make sure she wasn't missing something.

Lone shrugged. "She said she had to take another swim, but she found an old cart, so she could be anywhere."

"How does a seapony use a cart?"

Lone's eyes widened and he darted into a doorway. "Like that!"

Cinnamon turned just in time to see Crystal's horrified expression and the shimmering panels of a cart before she was promptly run over. The Reaver emitted a loud snap as the cart surged over it, and Crystal managed to jump clear before the runaway vehicle exploded into shards on the wall behind.

"Is she dead?!" The seapony slid over, tail swinging wildly to attempt traction. "Please please please, don't let her be dead!"

"I'm not dead, you reckless pile of scales!" The Reaver struggled to pull itself up, but they could all see the severed wires protruding from the line between it's white plating. "For goodness sake, somebody help me up!"

Nox glided down from his perch, careful not to land on any shards. "Cinny, you might want to..." He waved a hoof towards his own shoulder.

The Reaver's head twisted around, and Cinnamon let out a string of extremely inventive curses. The Reaver turned towards Crystal - a glare was felt, but not seen - and Cinnamon sighed. "Where did you find the cart?"


-----


"I'm going out." Anastasia called back to Cinnamon. 

The mare waved a wing, still hooked up to the Reaver. "Make sure you remember how to get back here."

'I will." She stepped outside, gently shutting the door behind her, and lifted her ears to take in the scenery. Her hearing was slightly muffled by the hood Cinnamon had commanded her to wear outside, accompanied by a set of boots and a long cloak. She had torn holes for her wings and ears in secret, but the rough fabric had frayed strangely and itched. 

Flicking an ear, she set off down the street. It was market day, even in a ground town, and she could hear the din from where she was. The market she was heading for was not the one everypony else was, however, as she quickly darted off into an alley and shoved open a hanging door. She was used to the sudden hush that came with entering the thickly-walled factory, and she avoided most of the old equipment strewn about. 

She ducked under a set of hanging pipes, and her hooves dropped down to the first step. She could feel the Entropy logo carved into the center of each plate. Cautiously, she edged down the spiraling staircase, careful to keep one wingtip on the wall and one on the hoofrail.

She was so concentrated on the steps themselves she didn't notice the other pony until they collided. 

"Huh?" The other pony's hooves backed down a few steps, presumably staring up at Anastasia. "Oh, jeez, sorry! I didn't see you there! Are you okay?"

"Fine." Anastasia analyzed her as she spoke, her voice creating more than enough din to locate her. 

A Changeling, Wired judging from the hum she was emanating. Female by voice, and looking horribly worried. "I've never seen you use this path before. What's your name?"

"I'm Anastasia, and I use this path all the time. The Old Lot?"

The Changeling snorted. "This is the Old Lot path? Dangit! I knew I shouldn't have let Redback give me directions! I'm Eclipse, by the way. Do you know where the Subway Tunnel is?"

Anastasia shook her head. "This is the only one I use, sorry."

"Heh, no worries." Eclipse rubbed a hoof along the back of her head, folding her fin-like mane. "Here, I guess we can go down together. Where you headed?"

"Not sure. Just needed to get out for a while." Anastasia shrugged. 

"I'll treat you to a shake at Cream's, if you'd like! I'm in no rush, and last time I was there I may have accidentally on purpose scared away the waitress. You know they don't find blood a normal menu item?" She grinned and started trotting back down the stairs, leaving Anastasia to stumble after.
> Runners
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anastasia listened to Eclipse's babbling, cautiously investigating the room around them. For a diner, it seemed pretty clean. Some of the patrons acted a bit unfriendly, but she knew most of them from her father's stories. She jumped as Eclipse tapped her hoof. 

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you. What day is it today?"

"I think it's Sunday."

"Day of the month." Eclipse clarified. 

"Uh... the twentieth or something."

Eclipse slid out of the bench, trotting around the edge of the table to start pulling Anastasia after her. "Okay, time to go. Let's move, right now."

"Huh?" Anastasia stumbled, hooves slipping on the slick tiles. "Why?"

"Just trust me." Eclipse growled, shoving her towards the door. "Put it on my tab, Creamy dearest!"

"You maxed out your tab last week!" A stallion called back.

"Yup, leaving!" Eclipse pushed Anastasia though the door, passing her on the edge of a gallop. "Come on, we have to hurry!"

"Why?!"

Eclipse glanced around before fixing Anastasia with a dark glare. "Because I have access to every Changeling's mind in a large radius, and this place is going up in flames."

"What?!" Anastasia spread her wings, half-gliding after the escaping Changeling. "Who? Why?!"

"They've got charges set up in the lower tunnels. Changelings are good at camouflage, and the second they sensed an access of emotion in the lower tunnels, they went to investigate. Heard a lot, spread the word. They're going to set them off, but I didn't know it was today." Eclipse cursed as she turned into a dead-end, spinning and loping back past Anastasia. "I didn't remember it was today."

"You're a runner, aren't you? Why don't you just get out now?"

Eclipse turned back over her shoulder, smirking. "Because the blind aren't good at leading themselves." She turned away, her tail flicking. "Rainstreaks! Seek out Redback and get him to the surface. Don't harm him, but do what you need to!"

Anastasia looked up as a pack of Changelings dropped down from the rooftops, galloping alongside Eclipse for a few strides before breaking away. A final Changeling landed behind Anastasia, gently lifting her onto his back. 

"Torch, take her up to the nearest surface access. Do not leave her!" 

The Changeling under her nodded, taking off at a canter away from the mare. 

Anastasia held on as the Changeling's wings snapped open, buzzing loudly as he lifted away from the cobblestone. She flattened her ears against the blinding noise, her world turned to a single blank panel. 

"We're going into a tunnel." The stallion advised. "Keep close."

"I will." She muttered, pressing down against his cold shell. "What about Eclipse?"

He sighed. "She knows what she's doing."


-----


"Dammit, Redback!" Crescent shouted above a crowd of ponies. "Where'd you run off to?!"

"Eclipse! What are you doing?"

The Changeling turned, smiling as her target emerged from the throng. "Redback!"

"Yes, what?! I have things to do!"

"Not right now you don't." Crescent chirped happily, watching the disbelief slowly appear on his muzzle as the Rainstreak Changelings circled him through the crowd. "Come along now, not meaning you any harm."

Redback stammered in confusion as the Changelings shoved him along, ears pricked and wings flicking. "What's going on?!"

Crescent hovered down to his eye level, giving him the most honest look she could muster. "You have to trust me, and my pack. They won't harm you, or your foal, but you have to get out."

Redback was shoved away through the crowd, protesting. The little foal clung to his back, seemingly excited about the whole premise. Crescent allowed herself a smile at the innocence of the filly before she beat her wings and rose into the air. 

"Okay, miscreants and wrongdoers! This place is going to blow!"

Panic rippled across the crowd, ponies turning up to her in shock and fear. Other Changelings transformed among them, aiding in rushing them towards the exits.

"Don't harm anyone! You should have enough time to get out if you stay calm and orderly!" Crescent flashed her Wiring, a surefire means of control over Changeling that weren't hers. "Go into the shops and evacuate everypony. Leave nopony behind! Now move!"


-----


"Spida, what's going on?"

He turned to spare a loving glance at the foal on his back before refocusing on staying upright in the crowd. The Changelings around him moved with enough purpose to keep most ponies away, but they were not all-powerful. 

"Nothing. Don't worry about it."

"What's going on?" She repeated, leaning off of Spiderwick's back and prodding one of the herding Changelings. 

His red-purple Wiring flashed in surprise. "Hm?"

"What's happening? Why's everyone so scared?"

"Oh, that's because," Spiderwick shot him a sideways glare, "there's a big party going on and we're all invited."

"You've never been a good liar, Leeway." A second Changeling quipped from Spiderwick's other side.

The first hissed in shock. "Cut it with the names! Surrounded by strangers, remember?"

"We're all going to die if these ponies don't get a move on." The second hissed. "Come on, everypony! Move some flank, here!"

The ground behind them erupted in a pillar of fire. Ponies screamed, fell, ran, the Changelings barely holding back the waves of terror.

"The first charges!" Leeway cried. "Raven, Wildfire, clear the way ahead and carry the injured. Seldom, you take Redback, and I'll take the foal."

Spiderwick struggled against a pair of chitinous hooves as Leeway tried to lift the foal from his back. "You can't take her!"

"I swear, by my Wiring and my pack, that I will not harm her." He crossed his heart with one hoof, smiling softly. Screams echoed in the strange silence they found themselves sharing. "To be a Rainstreak means you have the highest speed and the greatest loyalty. I will protect her with my life."

And with that, he hoisted the filly into his forehooves and took off over the crowd, Spiderwick following in Seldom's hooves a few moments after.


-----


Nox jolted as the Reaver went limp. "Cinnamon?"

"Something's wrong." The speaker crackled. "The ground is shaking, and ponies are surging out of the sewers. I have to go. Disconnec-"

The speaker crackled once and was silent.

"We have to get to her." Lone Wolf stated, pawing at the ground. "If something's wrong where she is, it's going to affect all of us."

Crystal frowned, leaning over the limp Reaver. Her scales sparkled like sapphires. "In the castle."

"What?" Lone turned to face her. 

"In the castle. There's new machines, terrible machines, that belched smoke and fire." Her pupils shrank in terror, and she shut her eyes. "They came with them, when all the ponies were taken away. You have to go to her, she's the key."

"Are you alright?" Nox turned towards her, frowning. 

Her ears flattened, her entire body seeming to shine with a white glow. She spoke with a voice that was not her own. "The Crystal Heart must be preserved, do you understand?! Without the ponies to fuel it, there'll be nothing left for the Enterprise! What do you mean, the ponies can still fuel it? What do you plan on doing!?"

The two stallions shared a panicked glance, and all of a sudden, Crystal seemed to recover. Her eyes shot open, and she stared at the two. "I'm all that's left." She whispered, "they killed them all."

"Who?" Nox pressed, frowning. "What's going on!?"

"She killed the Crystal Ponies with her machines." Crystal stared down the the limp Reaver below her, awe and terror dancing in her eyes. "And she's going to do it again."

"What do you mean?" Lone shouted. "She's not a bad pony!"

"And what have you seen of her that makes her good?" Crystal whispered, running a hoof down the sleek metal shell of Cinnamon's latest creation. "What pony could create such horrible beings?"

Lone and Nox watched in shock as she peeled up the side of the plating, revealing a small, shining orb inside of a thrumming metal cage. The air around the core seemed to shimmer in rhythmic beats, the pulse echoing in Lone's ears and in his heart. 

"I-is that...?"

Crystal calmly pried apart the bars, weak and fragile without their covers. She pulled the small orb free, holding it up so the two treasure hunters could see. Under her hooves, the robot seemed to wither, coiling in on itself and relaxing fully. 

"It's a heart," she whispered, "just like yours or mine."

She tilted her head, rotating the orb. With a snarl, she threw it down at the ground, the sphere shattering into a hundred thousand pieces on the crystal roads.

"And they took them because the Crystal Ponies were trapped in a dying world." She spat, turning her angry gaze to the stallions. "There is a teleporter in the castle. We have to go to her.

"The last Crystal Pony would like to have a few words with her."
> Walls Fall Down
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first thing that Spiderwick realized was that his head was ringing. 

The second was that what he had assumed to be the concrete ceiling of the underground was the sky itself, dark and churning with heavy smoke.

The ground moved beneath him, and Spiderwick soon found himself rolling to the side as what he had been lying on slowly got to its feet.

"Whitewall and Shadowslice are here." A third pony muttered, placing something cold over his eyes. Her tone sounded motherly, and from the way the Changeling he had rolled off of didn't flee, he assumed it was another Rainstreak. "They're helping."

"Pumpernickel." Spider hissed, trying to sit up.

"Is fine," the Changeling replied, gently pushing him back down. "If you think you're ready to see, I'll take of the gauze. If you need it back, just tell me."

His vision slowly returned, blurred a bit around the edges, and he scanned the area. He seemed to be lying on a towel, with at least two dozen Changelings patrolling the area. Many other towels were lined up, cycling through ponies. A dim glow caught his eye, and he turned his head, vision going dark for a moment as the ringing returned. When he squinted them open, he was happily greeted by the ground dropping straight down into a gaping pit of fiery hell.

Or at least, that's what it seemed like.

Flames danced over huge chunks of rubble, leaving black trails over their surfaces. The sides of the pit shone with embers, illuminating small, flitting silhouettes through the flames. One of the black shapes dropped suddenly, consuming itself in a green bubble before vanishing into the flames.

A few others dipped down towards it, and within moments they had hauled something out of the wreckage, darting back over the edge to deposit their catch.

Spider saw a glimpse of blackened hide dappled with blood, and he realized exactly what the ponies were doing.

They were retrieving the dead.

He watched in horror at the sheer numbers of bodies that were dragged out as the swarms grew, new Changelings and Pegasi flying in from every direction to help. A small group of Unicorns stood together with a small Changeling pack, sorting through what looked like records. Every so often, one of the Unicorns would wave a hoof between one of the papers and a body, and another would shoot a crackling beam of magic up into the night.

"They're counting the dead." The Changeling beside him muttered. He turned, finally recognizing Eclpse sitting beside his makeshift cot, wringing a red-stained towel dry above a bucket of water. "The vigil will be tonight, should you choose to stay."

"Eclipse? I-I don't understand. What happened?"

"In these times, just call me Crescent." Crescent sighed, wringing out the towel again, despite the fact it was already dry. "They knew about it, the underground markets, and they didn't want anyone trading goods they could sell for more. The turned their retribution on us."

Loud shouts erupted from the surveying ponies as they hauled something huge and shining up from the rubble, pieces glowing orange from the heat. As the other groups swarmed to aid them, Crescent got to her hooves. "They've found a drone!"

"A what?"

"One of the robots they use to attack us. They can't risk using real ponies, we can identify their dead Normally the robots burn up, this one must have been made of tougher stuff." Excitement slid into her voice, and she grinned down at Spiderwick. "I'll get one of my pack to bring the kid over here, I need to go check that thing out."

She darted off towards the shimmering machine, leaving Spiderwick on his cot. He turned his head, looking at the fallen around him. Directly beside him, a white-coated Pegasus curled up on her towel, gauze wrapped around her eyes and head while her ears gently turned. 

"Hello?"

She lifted her head, teeth gritting as the reddish smear above where her eyes were hidden growing slightly. "Hello?"

"Over here." Spiderwick clarified, tapping a hoof on the concrete.

Her ears turned towards the noise, followed by her head, and he was suddenly unnerved at how well she had located him without her eyes. One of her wings slid down her side, soft blue bruising showing through her feathers. "Oh, hi. Were you down there too?"

"Uh, yeah. I'm not really sure what happened to me, though. Eclipse," he paused, "Crescent got me and my foal out of the worst of it, though."

"Oh, you have a foal?" She smiled gently, her tail sliding across the bloodstained towel to lay up against her side.

Spiderwick blushed, dipping his head. "W-well, she's more like a sister, but I-"

"You stole a baby!?"

Spiderwick turned towards the yell, hearing the soft hiss of pain as the mare did the same. He noticed Crescent some distance away, half-hovering as she glared at her pack-mate. A small, white foal hid between the others' front hooves.

"I didn't steal a baby!" He whined, ducking under her glare. "I-"

"Kidnapped a baby?" She interrupted, glaring at the foal. 

It backed up between the second Changeling's legs, and he stood up to match Crescent's height. His voice dropped, ending the eavesdropping. 

"What was that about?" The mare asked, ears pushed so far forward they seemed about to fall off her head. "I can't see that far."

"Oh, Crescent's yelling at somepony." Spiderwick halted, turning to the mare's half-bandaged face. "'See'? You've got stuff on your eyes."

She tapped a hoof to her ears. "I'm blind, it doesn't matter. I can half-see the stuff closest to me when noise bounces off of it, but that's too small and too distant."

"You're blind?" He repeated, stunned.

"Yeah. Crescent helped me out of the underground before she went back to help the others. She may be one of the greater powers in the black market, but she's got a good heart."

Spiderwick watched as Crescent lead her pack-mate a few steps away from the foal, muttered to him, and then fluidly flipped him onto his back, muttering at him while prodding his chest with a hoof. 

"Yeah. Good."

"I don't think I caught your name, Mr...?"

"Spiderwick." He smiled, extending a hoof and gently tapping it on her towel so she knew where it was. "And you?"

She slowly extended her hoof, careful not to kick him. Her tail fell away from her bare flank. "Anastasia Redheart."


-----


"-and I swear, if you hide something like this from me again, I will personally rip your throat out of your neck and stick it-"

"Lady Crescent?"

She lifted her muzzle from Torch's terrified eyes, standing up to face the newcomer. As Torch scrambled to his hooves, the younger Changeling pinned his ears and flashed single yellow bands under each of his eyes. "Yes, Shadowslice...?"

"Dusk Shadowslice, Miss."

"Grand. Torch, take your kidnapped baby over to the Rainstreak tents, okay? And bring Redback his kid." Torch trotted away, carrying the foal on his back. The Shadowslice peered after him for a moment, snapping to attention as Crescent stomped a hoof. "Who sent you?"

"Phoenix Shadowslice. Our leader."

"Of course. Why?"

"He thinks we've found a way into the Enterprise building, but he doesn't want to try it first unless he's discovered and it's closed off."

"I'll meet him tomorrow, here. Tell him the vigil will be tonight if he wishes to mourn with us."

The young Changeling nodded, bowing gently before turning and loping back across the concrete. She sighed, turning back to the impromptu bonfire before her. Her horn lit with green fire, drawing the heat out of the flame and directing it into the clouds. 

A bright orange streak tore into the sky as it met the smoke, her magic flaring wildly to control the flame. Her teeth ground together as she sent the flare up through the layer of smoke, spreading out the tendrils of flame until she could feel their weaving heat against the cool hum of her magic. 

With a last push, she knew the flame had completed it's task; she could see the dim glow of a sketched insignia through the smoke. A sun with eight beams, half-filled by a moon's gentle curve. The flame glowed for a few more moments before is diminished, vanishing into the smoke.

Crescent watched where it had been, forehead burning with the residual energy. She released it in a few waves of disguises, changing rapidly between forms to burn it off. 

"Entropy Enterprises," she hissed, her breath steaming slightly from her spiked temperature, "we're ready to end this."

Her hoof ground into the concrete, darkening it with soot as the last of her disguises burned away.

"Once and for all."


-----


Anastasia sighed, fluffing her wings up against the fading heat. She could hear the rain around her, but the Pegasi, having deemed the fire safe to soak, were controlling the blaze surprisingly well. Waves of hot and cold rolled from the clustered storm as steam and smoke mixed with drizzle, spitting and spiraling away from the blaze itself.

"S-S-Spida... I thought you'd..."

"I'm fine," the colt muttered, shifting to pull the young filly closer. "I'm right here for you."

Anastasia had her back turned to them, but her ears wouldn't filter out their noise alone. She sighed and pinned her ears back, the little she could see of the world dimming dangerously. She could still see the two hugging in her mind, Spiderwick's hooves wrapped around her as she sobbed, bandages wrapped around her hoof for a small cut.

She didn't really know why, but she was jealous.

No, I know why, she corrected herself, because they care for each other. Because they love each other like... like family.

She sighed, wings shuffling around again as she tried to get comfortable on the hard ground. She was sure to cover her flanks this time; she had felt his gaze hover over the blank spot, like everypony else's did. 

It's not my fault I never got to try my talents, she thought to herself, not even mother wanted to let me out of the house for such a silly reason.

She jumped as a small hoof touched her back. Her ears flicked up and she growled, blindly searching for the intruder.

"Pumpernickel!" Spiderwick shouted angrily. 

The foal was suddenly defined in a silver halo, blinking fearfully at the mare she had disturbed. Her hoof was still-half raised, forgotten in her terror.

"I'm so sorry, Anastasia, she didn't know-"

"It's alright." She interrupted, wiping the frown from her muzzle and relaxing her bunched muscles. "Just shocked me, is all. Is this your sister?"

"Yeah." He flattened his ears and looked away, hooking her with a forehoof and pulling her back. "I'm so sorry she scared you, she's kind of bullheaded sometimes, and-"

Anastasia lifted a hoof, silencing him. "I told you, it's fine. So, little one, what happened to your foot?"

"Oh, ah banged it off'a the ground when I was runnin' over to see Spida. It's not that bad, but Miss Crescent wanted me to bandage it up right away. It kinda hurts when I do this." She stretched her leg out as far as it could go, wincing slightly.

"Just don't do that." Anastasia advised.

"That's what Spida' said!" Pumpernickel chirped happily, "didn'cha, Spida?"

Anastasia turned her focus to him, noticing he had been staring at her. He quickly looked down at Spiderwick, smiling. "Yes, I did."

"Spida, why's ya face all red?"

His ears pinned back, and he quickly swept the filly over to his other side, smiling awkwardly. The filly's head popped up over his back, and she leaned over his spine. 

"You like her, don'cha?" She teased. "She's right pretty."

"Shh!" Spiderwick hissed, rolling over and tipping her back onto the towel. He turned back to Anastasia, smile shaking and ears pinned back in embarrassment. "Uh... she says the weirdest things, doesn't she?"


-----


"Here!" Crystal shouted, skidding past a wide doorway as her front hooves lost traction. Nox darted past, hoisting her backwards by her armpits and setting her down back on track. 

Lone trotted to a stop, panting. "How... can you two... run that fast?"

"I wasn't running." Nox shrugged, landing and flapping his wings for emphasis. 

Crystal nodded. "I was mostly sliding."

"Great." Lone rolled his eyes, sides still heaving as he turned to the door Crystal had indicated. 

The large door stood out with inlaid designs, the pale blue crystal backing patterned with small ponies and wondrous illustrations of monsters he had never seen before. "Nox, report?"

"Mostly made of of lapis lazuli, accented with large amounts of topaz, tiger's eye and ruby. Hints of opal, diamond and amethyst, with detectable trace amounts of malachite and chrysocolla." He leaned forward, licking the gemstones. "Also covered in a thin layer of chalk dust."

"Estimated value?"

"Nearly priceless, at this size." He tilted his head, licking access dust from his muzzle. "Nearly priceless with about twenty bits if we don't clean it."

"Not unnecessary." Lone pointed out. "And before you ask, if you're hungry, eat something that's not pretty."

"Eat something that's not pretty." Nox repeated mockingly, kicking the ground and sending a small blue shard into the air, which he caught and chewed pensively. "I'll make sure to remind you of that next time I find you out drinking."

Lone blushed, scowling. "You were the one out drinking, I came and found you!"

His Kirin companion grinned, holding a thin sliver of crystal between his fangs. "Says the one who we found on the roof the next morning."

Lone sputtered angrily as Nox smiled, swallowing the last bit of stone. "C-Crystal! What do we do about the door?"

"Looks like it's shut by some kind of enchantment." She ran her hooves over the delicate designs, squinting up at engraved scrawl. "For those in the Princess's stead."

"Wasn't this made after the Princesses vanished?" Lone questioned. 

Crystal rolled her eyes. "Of course not. This was how the Empire protected itself. In an emergency, it connected the Empire to another teleporter somewhere in Central Equestria. It closed when the Princess left, and nopony's been able to open it since."

"So how're we supposed to use it?" Nox questioned. "It'd be near-sinful to destroy it."

"It's enchanted." Crystal stated, sliding over to a different patch of text. "Those who are born to protect the Empire and the Heart shall be allowed entry when they are ready."

"The Heart? Could they mean the Crystal Heart?" Lone tilted his head, trying to decipher the foreign scrawl. 

Crystal sighed. "Nopony could find the Crystal Heart when it was needed. It's like it vanished too. Even I don't know where it is, and I explored the whole city when everyone was gone."

"Crystal, do you remember how you were born?" Nox interrupted, not taking his eyes from the door's design.

"Uh... well, not really, now that I think about it. I remember... I remember these brilliant wings, shimmering pink crystal, and a gentle voice. I remember being in the fountain, in water, and her being with me, and then the sky burned with fire and she was lifted from the water. I-I heard yelling," Crystal's voice rose in panic as she stared up at the blue crystal inlaid in the top of the door, "a-and she looked at me as she was being pulled away, and she said..."

"Yes?" Nox prompted as the seapony trailed off. "What did she say?"

Crystal swallowed, her gaze drifting down the shimmering blue crystal band from the heart down to a small, inconspicuous fountain below, hidden in small pony designs. "She said 'do not fret, my Crystal Heart, they will not find you here.'"

A haunting silence hung between all of them as Crystal took in a second, shuddering breath. "S-she said 'never lose hope, because hope is everything... is everything you are.'"

The crystal in the top of the door shone brilliantly, light dripping down the center to fill the fountain's pool with rippling blue glow. A small, crystal seapony shimmered dark against the shine. The door swung open, small pools of liquid light weaving spiderwebs on the walls.

Nox gently lifted Crystal onto his back, Lone trailing behind. The shadows loomed between each pool, draping an eerie, surreal darkness over the ponies. 

Crystal yelped as she dropped off of Nox's back. "We have to get out of here!"

"Why?" Lone turned, ears swiveling as he heard a strange clicking noise behind him. "Crystal, what's going on?!"

"It's the last defense of the Crystal Empire." She whimpered, curling her tail around her belly as she cowered before the looming darkness.

"Dammit, spit it out!" Nox shouted, snarling as something brushed against his hooves.

A two pairs of jet-black talons crunched into the stone on either side of Crystal's cowering form. A set of blue eyes opened on one side, countered by a pair of red on the other. They paced around Crystal, hissing with off-white mouths at the two foreigners. 

"The Crystal Ponies used to call them 'felis condimentum dicax'." She reached out to touch one of their shoulders, muttering softly. The cat flinched as she touched it, but stopped prowling. "They're cottonmouth cats."

"Are they dangerous?" Nox whimpered, glancing at the large felines.

"They're venomous, potent enough to kill six ponies with a single bite. The claws help." She reached up, touching one of their heads. "It's alright. They're with me."

The two cats glowered at Nox and Lone, one yawning widely to display two sharp fangs among dozens of smaller teeth. "They aren't going to eat us?" The Kirin questioned.

Crystal gently pressed down on the cat's forehead, pushing it until it lay down. The other followed suit, purring and rubbing it's wide, shimmering head against her hooves. "Not any more."

"Why didn't you run?" Lone asked, taking a cautious step closer. 

Crystal tilted her head. "I'm not sure. I'd never heard of them attacking somepony, even after I read all the books left behind by the Crystal Ponies. They'd always been gentle protectors of the Empire." She smiled faintly, "maybe they just needed the same kindness you'd treated me with."

"Uh..." Lone glanced over to Nox, who had suddenly decided the best place for him to be was further down the tunnel. "I think we'd best be going."

"Of course." Crystal gently rubbed the cat's head, slithering over. "The teleporter's just up ahead, if I remember correctly."

"It'll be good to be back." Nox rumbled from behind Lone. 

The Earth Pony jumped forward, skidding harshly on the crystal floor. "Hey! When did you-?!"

"I flew over here while you were distracted." Nox grinned, fangs shining crescents in the dim light. "Damn Kirin?"

Lone frowned. "Damn Kirin."
> Sun and Moon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


From fire and dancing sunlight,
From ice and blowing snow,
Let the starlight guide your footsteps,
And the night song guide you home



-----


The air fizzled around Lone and Nox, tasting faintly of mint. The crystal machine that they had been shoved into seemed to spin without moving, light and sound glancing off of it's uneven surface. Nox's nostrils flared in a snort, and suddenly the world was eerily quiet and still.

Crystal was the first to move, unwrapping her finned tail from Nox's belly and sliding to the ground. "We're here."

Lone shook out his coat, glancing around. "Where's 'here', exactly?"

"I..." Crystal looked around, holding a hoof over her forehead as if it would help, "I'm not sure. Do either of you have a light?"

"I don't smoke." Lone snorted. A small bead of orange flame appeared in front of his muzzle.

Nox drew the lighter away, the dim glow lighting his smug grin. 

"You don't smoke."

He shrugged. "I like fire."

Crystal tapped her hoof on the floor, bringing their attention back. "There's a tunnel this way. Bring the light."

Lone fell into step behind Crystal as Nox took the lead. "Bring the light, she says, not like he just admitted to being a pyromaniac, she says."

"Be quiet back there!" Nox called over his shoulder, flame dancing as he tried to talk around it. "We don't know if we're in enemy territory."

"We're thieving criminal scum! Tomb raiders! We literally just broke into an abandoned Empire and kidnapped a resident! What places aren't enemy territory?!"

In a blur, Nox had one hoof pressed against Lone's chest, dark wings spread behind him, golden eyes shimmering in the flame dancing in front of his muzzle. "I think it's high time we figured out just which one of us is in charge here."

Lone frowned, blue eyes shining. "Well, it's obvious you're not a feather-brain, so you know it's me."

"You did not just bring my wings into this."

"I figured the rest of you couldn't possibly leave them behind." Lone's lips curled in a sneer, and his hooves scraped the ground as he found footing.

Nox's hoof swung before he spoke, smashing into Lone's cheek and filling his eyes with stars. He spat out the lighter, the flame bouncing towards Crystal before going out entirely. "I never needed you. You're nothing but an Earth Pony!"

Lone ducked, feeling the rush of air as another swipe passed overhead. Aiming blindly, he felt his hoof connect with gut and the Kirin hissed. "Says the one who can't go to the market without being stared at!"

Crystal backed up, holding the unlit lighter in her mouth. She glanced down as her body started to glow. "G-guys?"

Nox's eyes glinted, and he pounced forward, pinning Lone by the shoulder. "Say that to my face, ground-lover."

"I would, but your breath stinks too much!"

"Stop!" Crystal's light shone brighter as the two stallions turned towards her.

The resulting effect could only be described as a valentine's heart, cut in half, slamming through the backs of the stallion's heads and connecting between their muzzles. The small gemstone heart glowing through Crystal's skin dimmed back to nothing as Lone and Nox kept staring at each other.

Lone's lower lip jutted out. "N-Nox-san?"

"Cut it out." Nox sat back on his haunches, cuffing Lone's ears with a hoof. "I'm sorry I called you a ground-lover."

"I'm sorry I... didn't call you a feather-brain?" Lone's apology trailed off, "I guess this is a little stressful for both of us."

"Maybe if you just shut up in the first place, none of this would have happened."

"You know me! I never shut up on command!" Lone grinned, rolling onto his hooves. "Crystal, what was that?"

"I don't know. I think the Crystal Heart's power was used to make ponies remember their love for each other after they fought." She looked up from the crystal slowly, as if the realization had just dawned on her. "Y-you two...?"

"What?" Lone tilted his head.

"You're together?"

Nox rolled his eyes. "Well, duh."

"Why didn't you tell me?! I'm like, the physical embodiment of a love-powered artifact and you didn't tell me you were together?"

"It didn't seem relevant." Lone pointed out. "You weren't exactly writhing in your death throes."

"I hear something." Nox interrupted, holding up a small flame. "Everypony shut up."

"You had two lighters?!"

He frowned, swatting Wolf's head with a wing. "I told you, I like fire! Now shut up!"

Lone frowned, ears lifting as he tried to pick out a sound other than their own breathing. "I hear it too."

"It sounds like a song." Crystal put in. "But it hurts."

"The crystal?"

"Yeah. It's... it's a mourning song."


-----

Until the day when I will meet you
And I'll see you again,
Just know that I'll be waiting
And I won't break till then

-----


Anastasia sighed, an act that created a bubble of steam around her muzzle. "I've never heard a Changeling sing before."

"They have beautiful voices." Spiderwick agreed, leaning up against her.

"How many of them are there?" She tried to scan the area, but it was too open, even with the sound. In fact, the sound itself seemed to beg her not to see.

"Well, I can see all of Crescent's pack over there, and I'm pretty sure there's two other packs here too." There was the sound of him turning, and he sighed. "She's over with the Unicorns, readying the projections. They're going to project the names and pictures of... of the dead, on the clouds."

"Will you read them to me?" She asked, finding his face.

His smile was small, but earnest, and when he moved to nuzzle her cheek, she didn't move away. She was, however, aware of Pumpernickel's little 'ew' from his other side. "I will."

"How many are dead?" She was aware of her voice cracking, but she would not let her own feelings through. 

"Many." Spiderwick replied hesitantly. "But knowing Crescent, she'll have some way to avenge them."

"You know her?"

"I've done running jobs for her before. She's been mentioning something about the real sun and moon being held in Canterlot, so I think she'll be readying the attack on them soon enough." He paused, tapping his chin with a hoof. "She's not really a murder-spree kind of pony, though, so she's probably got something planned."

"I don't want any more ponies to die." She stated simply.

"None of us do." 


-----

Because days I live in sorrow
Are days you wouldn't love
And in dreams, I will still meet you
In the stars above

-----


Spiderwick shivered as Anastasia's wing draped over his back. 

"You're cold." She muttered.

He leaned up against her, breathing hot air on her neck. "So are you."

"But I can deal with it."

"Remember, my dear, you've got a fiery heart."

"I will, daddy."

"Are you sure?" He shifted, rubbing his hoof over her shoulder.

"You're a very special pony, you know."

"Why am I special, daddy?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." She sighed, flicking her tail over her flank.

"Because when you came to us, your eyes were made of rubies, your bones were made of steel and your heart was made of fire."

"What about the rest of me?"

"If you say so." Spiderwick settled his head back on his hooves, staring out across the crater.

"The rest of you was made of magic."

She let out another long breath, suddenly aware of the fact his breath wasn't clouding. All of a sudden, she felt like the loneliest pony in the world. 

Above the smoke layer, high atop Canterlot's towers, a small sun insignia began glowing.


-----

But wait for me, my brother
Wait for me my friend
Wait for me, my sisters
Be there for me in the end

-----


Crescent leaned up against Torch's shoulder as the song around her ebbed. Her companion's voice was among them, a strong, deep sound that hummed through his entire body and up to her own where she touched him.

"They'll be remembered in our hearts forever." He muttered, wrapping a wing around her side. "Don't let them go."

"I'm not." She leaned into him, feeling tears on her face but not knowing when they had started. "But... Entropy killed so many for nothing."

"It was a display of power. It was them trying to show that they still controlled us." He nudged her to her hooves, guiding her over to where a group of Unicorns were waiting patiently.

They each dipped their heads in respect as the two approached, stepping away from a large amplification crystal awkwardly shoved into the ground.

"We need your identification skills before we can start."

"Of course." She sighed, sitting down behind the crystal. A crackling screen appeared in front of her, and she quickly calibrated the magical device to her own aura. "You can begin."

The Unicorns each funneled their magic into the crystal, creating a single, blue-tinted panel against the cloud cover. With a mere flick of magic, Crescent projected up the first image, another few flashes adding the name.

"Gemstone, Unicorn, mare, age twenty-seven."

Her voice rang out through the crystal's amplification, loud and clear.

"Fossil Scrape, Earth Pony, stallion, age forty."

"Chimera, Changeling, stallion, age seventeen."

"Silver Foil, Earth Pony, mare, age thirty-five."

"Strongheart, Pegasus, stallion, age fifty-one."

Her voice cracked momentarily.

"Cream Top, Earth Pony, stallion, age seventy."

She swallowed, continuing. 

"Sweet Song, Pegasus, mare, age fifteen."

"Honey Harvest, Pegasus, stallion, age fifteen."

"Stone Cut, Earth Pony, stallion, age twenty-six."

"Facet, Changeling, mare, age thirty."

The names droned into each other, each one another icy dagger in her heart. Names she had known, had helped; stars that shimmered beyond the smoke.

"Inkspell, Unicorn, mare, age twenty."

"Candy Bar, Earth Pony, mare, age twenty."

"I can't do this."

There was a moment of quiet as Crescent took a deep breath, allowing herself to breathe in the emotions around her; sadness and pain danced black shadows across her eyes.

"Gemstone, found in her shop, was still polishing the rings and necklaces she sold. Fossil was in the museum, toiling over his latest find. Chimera was waiting at the chariot stops, protecting Silver Foil, who rarely leaves her shop on the main street. Strongheart was in the hospital, fixing up somepony's x-rays. Cream was back in the kitchen of his shop, making new flavors for the foals to try. Sweet Song and Honey Harvest were sitting together on a bench, trying to grasp love before their parents separated them again. Stone Cut was fixing the sidewalk near the fountain. Facet was playing with a group of foals in the square." Faces, smiles, laughs, ringing in her head, wove their way into her words and spilled over the edges with their enthusiasm, "Inkspell was no doubt watching, writing up another story for the bookstores around. Candy Bar was probably out there with them, handing out chocolates to the ones that couldn't afford them."

"Crescent," Torch warned.

"Our whole world has been torn apart for nothing other than the shock factor. Could you imagine any of those ponies fighting the oncoming fire? No!" She waved a hoof, papers scattering from the movement. "These lists are full of foals and children, the very weakest of us! In killing them off, they think they've made us weaker."

"Crescent."

"We can't let them get away with this! We are ponies, and we have just as much right to live as them, as any who come after us or those who came before us! Are we going to stand by and let our children be born into this hell?!"

"Crescent."

She turned to Torch, fangs bared. "In the Sun's name, what is it?!"

"You're crying," he whispered softly.

She was aware, now, of the rivulets down her muzzle, of her throat itching, her lungs heaving, of Torch's gentle wings around her. The Unicorns continued reading names, slowly but steadily, and Crescent was pulled ever-closer in Torch's embrace.

"Give them time," he rumbled, "and they will follow you."

She sniffled, burrowing into his chest.

He gently kissed her forehead, rubbing her back with one hoof. "Just give them time."


-----

I will not forget you
As the years go by
Be forever with me
Don't let me cry

May the sun and the moon
Guide you home
Let the sun and the moon
Guide you home

-----