They thought it was just another exciting story when the new book came out. But Twilight Sparkle and her friends soon learn that all fiction hides truths. Some more deadly then others.
They thought it was just another exciting story when the new book came out. But Twilight Sparkle and her friends soon learn that all fiction hides truths.
Some more deadly then others.
For Twilight and her friends, what began as a mere foal's story soon becomes a whirlwind of mystery and danger. As strange events begin to center around Ponyville, the fate of Equestria once again rests in their hooves.
The only light came from a lamp at her desk, and the only sound in the still night air was the steady clicking of her hooves on the typewriter.
If anypony had been watching, the sea-green pegasus would've seemed completely unaware of her surroundings, so focused was she on the story at hand.
But she was far from unwary. A fond smile graced her muzzle at the silent appearance of a figure in the second-story window behind her.
"I was wondering when you'd come visit me," she said softly, not turning, but pausing for a moment to rest her hooves.
"How could I not?" answered the hooded figure, adjusting his balance on the window sill. "You know that I worry about you. We all do."
"So you aren't here just because you want something then?" There was a trace of sarcasm in her voice as she glanced over the newly-typed page.
Silence greeted her, and she turned around in the swivel chair to stare at her guest.
Though he stayed in the shadows, her keen eyes could just pick out the chocolate-brown fur under his beaked hood. He was about the same age as her 35 years, but the white robes and red sash covering the rest of his body hid well-toned muscles and numerous small blades. She wasn't surprised that such a fit earth pony had reached her high window. But then again, she knew he could find her anywhere.
The stallion interrupted her thoughts by rubbing the back of his hood uncomfortably. "I wouldn't necessarily say that..." he muttered, hoping in vain that she wouldn't hear.
"I'm retired," the mare said evenly, turning her back to him. As she did so, the light caught one feathered wing - and the amputation stump were the other should have been.
"You know this," she continued, straightening her typewriting paper to ready a new page.
He looked away, saddened eyes unconsciously trailing to the prosthetic limb discarded on the nearby bed. Yes. He knew all too well what had happened.
"That isn't why I'm here," he eventually said, shaking his thoughts from that dark memory. "The Mentor is concerned about you. About this new story of yours."
"Let her worry about more important things than my foals' tales," said the mare in annoyance, beginning to type again. "The innocents believe us to be nothing more then fantasies anyway. Why not indulge them? Besides - " and here she looked back to flash a sly smile, " - if I remember rightly, some of our Brothers and Sisters also enjoy my work, including the Mentor herself."
The stallion cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to look anywhere but at her teasing face. His gaze came to rest on her flank, and the cutie mark of an open book and feathered quill adorning it.
A quiet chuckle escaped him, and he modestly averted his eyes again, saying softly, "Yes, you do have quite a special talent." Then his voice grew more serious. "Be that as it may for the innocents, our enemies might grow suspicious at your writings. Tread carefully in this."
By now she'd turned back to her paper, and paused again in her typing, as if considering his warning.
"Safety and peace be upon you, Brother," she finally said, indicating that the conversation was over.
"And upon you as well," he replied quietly, worry lacing his voice.
She didn't need to turn her head to know when he was gone. The lost comfort of his presence told her clearly enough.
It all started the day Rainbow Dash broke down Ponyville's library door.
"Twilight! Oh my gosh - you're not gonna believe how AWESOME this is!" yelled the electric blue pegasus, skidding to a halt in mid-air and prancing around with excitement.
"OK... Well it must be good if you had to break down my door just to tell me about it," said a confused Twilight Sparkle. The scholarly pale purple unicorn marked her place in the book she was reading, then went to said door to inspect the damage.
"Huh? Oh that. We can fix it later," Rainbow said dismissively, brushing her namesake colored mane from her face before starting up again. "Anyway - " she paused for dramatic effect, took a huge breath, and blurted out " - THERE'S A NEW DARING DO BOOK COMING OUT!"
"I know," Twilight said cheerfully, wincing from the noise, but smiling back at her friend all the same.
"I know right?! Isn't it gr - ! Wait. You knew?! How could you know about it before I did?!"
"I pre-ordered my copy a few weeks ago," she said, using her magic to levitate the book she'd been reading so that it hovered in front of Rainbow. "It just came in this morning."
The aerial athlete could only stare, wide-eyed and opened-mouthed, at the treasure floating before her. This went on for several minutes, to the point where Twilight was starting to worry whether her friend was still breathing, when a new voice suddenly broke in.
"Hey Twlight, do you know why our door's blown off its - whoa! What'd you do to Rainbow? I haven't seen her sit this still since - well, ever!" It was Spike, a purple and green baby dragon who served as Twilight's personal assistant in her studies as protégée to the ruling alicorn sisters, Princesses Celestia and Luna.
"I was just showing her the new Daring Do book I got this morning," said Twilight, poking a still-stunned Rainbow with her hoof. Not getting a response, she turned back to Spike and asked, "Did you finish sending out the invitations?"
"Yep," said Spike, grinning, "the others said they'd be over ASAP. They were just as excited about this as I was!" Then he noticed the trouble she was having with Rainbow, and snapped his claws in the pegasus's face.
This finally got a response as she yelped and fell over backwards. "Huh?" she shook her head, confused, then spotted the book again, which Twilight still held aloft. "Whoa..." she sighed happily. "Just look at that amazing cover! I gotta know where Daring ends up this time! And who are those weird hooded guys with her?"
Daring Do, the "Indiana Jones" of the pony world and heroine in question, was a mustard-colored pegasus with a grayscale rainbow-patterned mane, and a compass rose cutie mark. She also never went anywhere without her trademark green jungle explorer's shirt and pith helmet.
The cover of this particular story, titled Daring Do and the Order of the Eagle, had Daring crouched and baring her teeth at silhouettes of armed attackers which surrounded her in the foreground. Backed flank-to-flank with her and appearing to be allies, were several four-legged creatures in hooded white robes. Each of them wore a red sash around their waist, and all were armed with some sort of bladed weapon or bow, including what seemed to be bayonets attached to forelimb bracers. Some of them had wings, and others seemed to be unicorns, judging by the extra weapons magically floating before them, but the robes made it almost impossible to tell how many where actually ponies. One of them even looked like a griffin.
Finally, in the background, a full moon hung in the cloudy sky. Sneering down at the cornered group from within the white orb was the semi-transparent face of Daring Do's archenemy, the strange, midnight blue, dog-like creature known as Ahuizotl.
"I'm not really sure who those are..." mused Twilight, taking the book in her hooves for a closer look. "I haven't gotten that far yet."
"Can I borrow it?" Rainbow asked suddenly, her eyes pleading. "Pleeeease? I've gotta know what happens to Daring!"
"You won't have to!" said Twilight with a laugh. "That's why I sent Spike out earlier. I was inviting you girls over here so I could read it to you."
"Awesome!" squealed Rainbow, flopping down on the nearest pillow to get comfortable.
Meanwhile, Spike was busy putting the door back together - only to be flattened by the hyperactive pink earth pony who bounced through it a second later!
Eventually the party pony known as Pinkie Pie had to stop and catch her breath, shaking out her thick mane of bouncy raspberry curls. This gave Twilight the time she needed to actually process what Pinkie had been asking.
"No... You're not late, Pinkie. Actually you're early. Yes I'm going to read the story, but we're still waiting for Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy. And of course you can make some popcorn! That actually sounds like a great idea!" said Twilight, unable to help but smile at her friend's randomness. "How 'bout it Spike? Want some popcorn? Spike?"
"Over here..." groaned the baby dragon, pulling himself out from under the door. "I'm OK! But remind me to wear a hard hat next time..."
"Sorry I'm late, Sugar Cubes!" called Applejack as she entered the room a half-hour later. "It was the strangest darn thing ya ever did see... "
The palomino earth pony shook her head in confusion, adjusting her Stetson hat. "A couple of them royal contractors from the railroad company came up to the house, wantin' to know if they could run new train tracks through our western orchards. They even brought along the paperwork! Granny Smith told 'em straight to rights that we just weren't gonna sell 'em that plot. But they sure seemed mighty keen on layin' down those tracks. So finally, after a bit 'a hagglin', we got a lease out of 'em! With all that money they're willin' ta pay, why we can finally fix Granny's hip, and the roof and plow to boot!"
She beamed proudly at the thought, then continued.
"The Cutie Mark Crusaders didn't seem to mind either. It's far enough away from their clubhouse not to be a nuisance, and they can still watch the trains go by. ‘Seem ta think 'Train Watching' might be a good way to get their cutie marks."
"Our little sisters and Scootaloo are still doing their 'crusading' then?" asked Rarity. "But they already have wonderful talents! Sweetie Belle's singing voice is simply marvelous! And from what you've told me of Apple Bloom's work on their clubhouse, it seems clear that she has a flair for carpentry and decoration. As for Scootaloo..." the white unicorn trailed off, twisting a hoof through her wavy indigo mane, unsure of how to describe the pegasus filly.
Rainbow Dash would've answered instantly, but her mouth was too full of popcorn.
Surprisingly, it was soft-spoken Fluttershy who answered Rarity's unvoiced question. "Well, she's very good at doing tricks on her scooter," the yellow pegasus said quietly, "and I bet she'll be even better at those tricks once she learns how to fly properly. But not too high I hope! It can get pretty scary..." she shivered at the thought, ducking her head into her long rose-pink mane.
Spike gave her a sympathetic look and a comforting pat on the shoulder, before heading to the kitchen for more snacks. Unlike most dragons, he was wingless, and just as nervous around heights as Fluttershy.
Twilight Sparkle merely shook her head with a smile as the others continued to discuss the CMCs' latest exploits. It seemed their most recent one had been something involving a cannon, several wheels of cheese, a mini swimming pool, and a bungee cord. Luckily the girls hadn't caused any property damage this time, and so far nopony had needed to worry about injuries.
She sighed, thinking back to the stories of how she and her friends had earned their cutie marks, looking at each in turn. Rainbow Dash's tri-colored lightning bolt, representing her talent for daredevil speed flying. Rarity's three blue diamonds, showcasing her skills at gem finding and artistic design. Applejack's three red apples, taking after the rest of her family in apple farming. Fluttershy's three pink butterflies, matching her gentle nature in the understanding and care of animals. Pinkie Pie's three pastel balloons, which were pretty self-explanatory given how frequent and successful her parties were; and finally Twilight's own mark: a pink-purple six-pointed star surrounded by five smaller white stars that symbolized her powerful talent for using magic.
That train of thought ended with the discussion circling back to just how the Cutie Mark Crusaders expected to earn their namesakes by watching trains go through the orchards all day. But this brought another, more puzzling question to the mare's brain, which she quickly voiced.
"Hey, Applejack? You said those contractors wanted to run tracks through your western fields, right? Didn't you say those orchards were infested with fruit bats? Why would they want to put tracks through there?"
“Huh... Well, I don’t rightly know, Twilight,” said the farm-mare thoughtfully. “I guess I was so excited that I forgot to ask. If I had ta guess though, I’d say it was for them city folk who like takin’ the scenic route when they travel. Most city ponies never see real fruit bats. And they are kinda cute critters, what with them being different fruit colors and all.”
“Not that I don’t mind all the small talk,” interrupted Rainbow as she accepted another bowl of popcorn from Spike, “but shouldn’t we be getting to the story right about now?”
The others turned to stare at her, blinking in surprise. They’d all but forgotten about it!
Twilight quickly pulled out a checklist and quill from under her pillow and called out, “Let’s get started then! Everypony here?”
“Check!” called the girls, and Spike.
“Comfortable pillows?”
“Check!”
“Snacks and refreshments?”
“Check!”
“Extra lights and blankets in case we’re still here after dark?”
“Double check!” said Spike, doing a quick count of the blankets.
“Storybook?”
“Check!”
“Then here we go!” and with that, Twilight opened the the book and began to read.
“The sounds of battle and the buzz of wings could scarcely be heard over the roar of the white rapids rushing through the deep canyon below. At the top of one cliff, Daring Do fought to hold her ground against the combined forces of Ahuizotl’s hench-jungle-cats, and Queen Apoidea’s changeling warriors. --”
“Changelings?!” gasped Pinkie Pie. “Wow! One paragraph in and already the suspense is killing me! I hope it lasts...” she finished, sticking a curly false mustache on her face and then rubbing her hooves together evilly.
“Queen Apoidea is a new one...” mused Spike, rubbing his chin, “I wonder if she was based on Queen Chrysalis and her changelings?”
“Does it matter?!” huffed Rainbow. “We’re interrupting Twilight!”
“Uh, yes. Thank you Rainbow,” said Twilight awkwardly. “Now where was I... Oh yes!”
“Having just escaped from yet another trap-filled temple, and then being forced to flee with the treasure through hot desert wasteland, Daring was already beginning to tire from the fight. It also didn’t help that some of the insect-like changelings had transformed their vaguely alicorn-shaped bodies into the forms of Ahuizotl’s jungle cats, while the rest harried her from above with blasts of magic from their horns. But even against these odds, she knew she had to keep going! No matter what, the magical Ruby Heart could not fall into their clutches!
“ ‘We both know you have lost this time, Miss Do,’ an accented voice said smoothly. ‘why not simply hand the relic over and make this easier for all of us? I might even be generous and spare your meddling life.’
“ ‘Not going to happen, Ahuizotl!’ yelled Daring, spotting her old foe overlooking the scene from a luxurious sleigh parked nearby. ‘This belongs in a museum!’
“ ‘So do you, Miss Do!’ the half-dog, half-monkey creature replied. He sipped casually on a fruit drink, stroking his pet white cat and relaxing in the shade of an awning attached to the sleigh. Queen Apoidea lounged next to him, watching the battle with interest as two other changelings attended both of them.Though bigger and more alicorn-like than her subjects, Apoidea was unmistakably a changeling. Her horn was longer and gnarled, her carapace-like shell was green instead of blue, her sheer insect-like wings were larger, and her eyes were cat-like instead of insectoid, but she still shared the black coat, saber-tooth fangs, and strange holes in the lower parts of her legs as the rest of her hive. Like all changelings, she fed on the love of other creatures, and she was getting hungry.
" ‘How much longer is this going to take?’ she asked, glancing at Ahuizotl. ‘You promised me a good meal as well as this show.’
“ ‘All in good time, my dear.’ he answered charmingly, --”
Sudden gagging noises from Rainbow Dash and Spike nearly interrupted Twilight again, but she chose to ignore them, and kept reading.
“-- ‘Soon, Daring Do will be no more, and the Ruby Heart will be ours. When that happens, you and your subjects will have all of the love you desire.’
“ The Queen’s fanged muzzle twisted into a smile, and she licked her lips greedily. ‘Yes...’ she purred, ‘I can almost taste it now... Still, a little snack is in order, I think.’ With that, she stomped a hoof, summoning one of her attendants who brought forth a small, chubby, bear-like creature. It from these bears’ long-lost temple that Daring had retrieved the Ruby Heart, but now the adventurer pegasus could only watch as Apoidea slowly drained the love from the bear that had been her guide and loyal companion over the past few weeks.
“ ‘You’ll pay for that!’ cried Daring, as the bear fell limply to the hard ground, his bright colors completely drained away, and his expression miserable. While not exactly friends, she had grown to admire the plucky creature. He didn’t deserve what had just happened.
“Unfortunately for Daring, she had other problems to deal with. The changelings and jungle cats had managed to get her hat, which held the Ruby Heart, and had now backed her up against the cliff ledge! Try as she might to outmaneuver them, the cats and changelings had boxed her in from both the ground and the sky, and she was too exhausted to even hover at this point. Finally, gathering what strength she had left, Daring made a last, desperate charge at her opponents -- only to be blindsided with a magical blast from Queen Apoidea herself!
“ ‘So sorry, my little pony...’ she said, her voice mockingly sweet as she and Ahuizotl approached, ‘but I was simply too tired of waiting for you to give up.’
“Daring struggled to rise from where she’d fallen, but the cats were already tying her up with rope, and the changelings were starting to cocoon her with their sticky green wax. Still, her unstoppable fighting spirit was determined to win, even if it meant nothing more now than having the last word. ‘You’ll never get away with this!’ she said, just before a changeling gagged her.
“ ‘Oh, I think I will, Miss Do,’ Ahuizotl said. Then he noticed Apoidea’s glare, cleared his throat and quickly said, ‘Ah, I mean we will, of course.’ He took Daring’s helmet from his tiger, and pulled out the Ruby Heart so she could see it one last time. The name was self-explanatory, because the relic was in fact a large, red, heart-shaped ruby which glowed faintly with inner magic. ‘I really should thank you for doing all of the hard work in finding it for me, Daring Do,’ he added, ‘but once again we see that there is nothing you can acquire which I cannot take away.’ He sneered down at her, relishing the moment, ‘and you won’t be stealing it back from me this time, I promise you that!’
“He laughed triumphantly, and signaled his creatures to push Daring off the cliff! But as they reached the edge --
“ ‘Wait!’ said Queen Apoidea suddenly, cutting off his evil merriment.
“ ‘What?!’ snapped Ahuizotl. ‘What do you mean ‘wait’?! I’ve been waiting for this moment for weeks!’
“ ‘She’s missing something...’ said Apoidea thoughtfully, looking over the bound, gagged, and cocooned adventurer and ignoring her partner-in-crime’s outburst. ‘If what you’ve told me about her escapes is true, then we need to make sure she can’t get away this time.’ Getting an idea, she carefully broke the cocoon, then resealed it around their captive's neck, leaving Daring’s head uncovered, but the rest of her body imprisoned in the wax. That done, she spotted a nearby boulder, dragged the hapless mare over to it, and used more rope and wax to attach the boulder to the rest of the cocoon.
“ ‘There,’ she said, stepping back to admire her handiwork, ‘perfect.’
“ ‘Hmm... Yes, very nicely done, my dear. I think this might actually do the trick,’ said Ahuizotl, grinning evilly. Then he once again signaled their minions to push Daring over the cliff!
“It felt like forever as Daring Do fell towards the swirling rapids with the two villains’ laughter ringing in her ears. But even then her mind was racing, searching for a way out. As she braced herself for impact and took the deepest breath she could, something caught her eye.
“A white-robed figure stood out against the rock face, watching her from the shadows of a lower cliff ledge. But she had no time to wonder about that, for she hit the icy water a second later! As she sank beneath the rushing current, Daring struggled with all her might to free herself! The boulder sank quickly, but the speed of the river was still enough to dash the mare hard against other rocks and the bottom of the riverbed. Try as she might to escape, the blows left her stunned, and the fight before, coupled with the cold water, had sapped her energy. If only she could reach the surface, the air, so she could breathe! But it might as well have been miles away.
“Eventually, though she didn’t know how long that was, the world began to fade at the edges, then to blacken. She was numb all over, and even the burning pain in her chest was starting to fade. She didn’t even realize that she’d finally lost the breath she’d been holding for so long. As her world sank into darkness, the last thing she saw was a white blur coming towards her. Was it a ghost? The lost soul of another drowned pony, come to lead her’s away? She didn’t know, and her mind was too numb and tired to care. Something new brushed against her, like the wings of some huge moth, then she felt nothing more.”
Chapter 4: Shelter and Fans Stunned silence filled the room as Twilight paused at the end of that first chapter. When she looked up from the book, it was to see varied reactions from each member of the group.
Rarity and Spike hugged each other, staring at Twilight in disbelief. Fluttershy had a spare pillow over her head, looking fearful. Both Pinkie and Rainbow were wide-eyed and slack-jawed in shock, with Pinkie's jaw actually reaching the floor. To complete the scene, Applejack was clenching her hat in her front hooves, chewing on the brim nervously.
"Don't worry!" reassured Twilight with a smile and a laugh. "Daring gets out OK! It'd be a pretty short book if she died within the first chapter!"
“”Pffff... Of course she will!” said Dash, a little too loudly. “Of course she will! I mean,” she added awkwardly, “why wouldn't she get out OK…? She does in every other book... heh heh...” She trailed off, blushing, before adding with renewed vigor, “But we still gotta know what happens next! Two bits says that guy in the white robe saved her!” As if to back up her claim, she tossed two of the golden coins into an empty popcorn bowl.
“I’ll take that bet,” said Spike good-naturedly, keeping a reassuring claw on Rarity’s foreleg as he tossed in his own two bits. Sighs of relief and embarrassed chuckles followed this statement, and the others visibly relaxed.
Suddenly, Pinkie asked, "Speaking of that, how'd you get this book anyway, Twilight? I thought it wasn't supposed to come out for another two whole months." Then she eyed the unicorn suspiciously and added, “You don’t secretly know the author and never told us do you?”
“Oh no, nothing like that,” answered Twilight, levitating a drink over to herself from the nearby snack table. “I won it in an essay contest. The topic was information on the constellation creatures living in the Everfree Forest. The author was considering using them in their next book.”
Impressed murmurs of understanding and congratulations followed this. Then the group got comfortable again, and the story continued.
“Nightmares haunted Daring Do as she hung in the darkness somewhere between life and death. At times she thought she heard someone calling out to her, willing her to hold on and come back to the light. Other times there were nothing but distorted dreams, or what she thought were dreams anyway. Dreams of being pulled from white rapids. Of somepony forcing the water from the her burning lungs and breathing life back into her. Of being carried through scorching fire, freezing ice, and howling winds that scratched her skin clean through her coat, threatening to tear her from the hold of her rescuer. Then after what felt like eternity, they had come to a place of stillness and safety. Finally there was one last dream, of creatures in white robes tending her wounds, then laying her in a warm, soft bed, with one of them always watching over her as she slept.
“But this last dream felt all too real, as awareness slowly came back to her. Daring kept her eyes shut and lay still, taking stock of her surroundings through her other senses first. She was lying on her right side, and could feel bandages on her legs and head. Her hat was missing, and her body was sore from what she recognized as healing bruises, and maybe a few cracked bones. Her wings felt stiff from disuse, but miraculously seemed uninjured. Another surprise was that her coat felt clean and brushed, with her mane and tail combed out, though she certainly didn’t remember bathing. It even felt like somepony had preened her wings for her.
“The bed wasn’t as comfortable as she remembered. It felt like a mix of straw and feathers inside the mattress, but she supposed that after sleeping on the ground in a tent for the past few weeks, this bed had felt soft as a cloud when she’d been laid here. The feather pillow was nice though. Next thing she noticed was that her warm blankets had been replaced by thin sheets, and that the air was cool and dry. She could smell a calming mixture of burning herbs nearby, but wasn’t sure which kind they were.
“Carefully, the mare opened one eye, looking around as far as she could without having to sit up. Daylight filtered in through heavy window drapes, creating a twilight effect in the small stone room. The room itself wasn’t much bigger than a closet, and was simply furnished, having only the bed, a nightstand, and a colorful woven rug on the floor. Daring noted with surprise that it wasn’t a cat-woven Purr-sian rug as she’d first thought, although the pattern was similar and the quality just as good. This looked more like sheep weaving then anything else. Pushing that oddity to the back of her mind, she continued examining the room. The masonry looked centuries old, but had been skillfully done, and was still in fine condition. Several small red and white banners on the walls also added color to the otherwise gray room. She took note of the strange black stylized arrowhead on them as well, resolving to find out more about it later. The burning herbs Daring had smelled came from three of what looked like tealight candles placed on the nightstand. Her hat was sitting next to them, looking not much worse for the wear, all things considered. At least it didn’t smell like fish from her dunk in the river.
“She was just about to reach for it, when she heard the sound of voices coming towards her. It was only then that she noticed the wooden door to the room was open, revealing a stone hallway beyond. She also noticed that her white-robed guardian was absent from his usual post near the foot of the bed. Instead, her shirt had been folded and placed on the stool he normally used. It looked as though somepony had cleaned and repaired it, for which she was grateful. But that left her puzzled. If her shirt was there, then what was she wearing now? A quick peek under the sheets showed her a robe of soft green fabric. She didn’t have time to examine it further, however, because the voices suddenly became hushed right outside her door. Daring quickly lay back, shutting her eyes and steadying her breathing as best she could to feign sleep.
“Nearly-silent hoofsteps slowly entered the room, stopping a short way from the bed. Curious despite herself, the adventuress slowly cracked one eye open. Standing off to the side of her bed and eyeing the pegasus cautiously were two school-age foals. Or at least, the young zebra was a foal. She wasn’t quite sure what a baby griffin was called. The two were dressed in dark gray robes with hoods. Both their hoods were down to reveal their faces, and they seemed to be arguing about something.
“ ‘See, Thistle?’ said the griffin smugly, male by the sound of his voice. ‘I told you she wasn’t a dragon!’
“The zebra, Thistle, who was also male, grumbled something that sounded like, ‘Know-it-all...’, and hoofed over four bits from inside his robe.
“Thistle peered closer at the mare and said, ‘I still don’t know, Cirrus... A pony tough and fearless as her has got to have at least some dragon blood in her line.’
“ ‘A dragon and a pegasus? Really?’ asked Cirrus skeptically, giving his friend a raised eyebrow.
“ ‘Hey, it could happen,’ said Thistle. ‘My cousin is half unicorn. Got both horn and stripes.’
“ ‘Sounds cool,’ said Cirrus, ‘But I still don’t think so...’ He quickly glanced around, as if looking for eavesdroppers, then whispered into Thistle’s ear so that Daring almost didn’t catch it, ‘You don’t think she could be a secret student of the Mentor, do you?’
“Thistle snorted with laughter, giving the griffin a playful shove. ‘A secret student!’ he chuckled. ‘Fat chance of that! Have you been getting into Cream Puff’s donuts again? You know those things always make you talk sun-crazed!’
“ ‘Hey! It’s just as plausible as her being part dragon!’ huffed Cirrus.
“Daring decided that now would be a good time to ‘wake up’. Otherwise those two might hang around all day and she’d never get a chance to explore on her own. The two backed away, looking startled as she moved.
“ ‘We should go,’ whispered Thistle, heading for the door. ‘Let her have some space when she wakes up.’
“ ‘Good idea,’ answered Cirrus, following close behind him.
“Daring took her time getting out of bed, both to make sure the boys were actually gone and to carefully stretch her stiff limbs. It wouldn’t do to strain something now after only just healing. That taken care of, she eased out into the deserted hallway. It had the same build as the room she’d just left, old grey stone, but well maintained. Other, identical wooden doors lined the hallway as well. More bedrooms, she guessed. Seeing daylight through an open door ahead, Daring could only stare in wonder as she entered the courtyard of a towering castle.
“Although the light had been strong coming through the bedroom window, here the area was cast in shadow and the cobblestones carpeted with mist. Only the tops of the high towers and domes were gilded in the sun’s light. Yet, as Daring continued to look, she saw that the courtyard wasn’t completely dark. Small fires in iron cages were spaced along the bases of the walls to provide light. Another thing she noticed were several wooden awnings scattered around with piles of hay stored beneath them. Also, more of the strange red and white banners hung from the walls and stood on poles scattered throughout the yard and atop the battlements. Flags, Daring realized, noticing four more, two large, and two smaller ones which were completely red, that framed the doorway to what she assumed was the main castle keep. The keep itself also had many windows, some tall and narrow, others small and circular. They had no glass, presumably to help with air circulation, but instead contained beautiful sunburst patterns shaped of wrought-iron.
“There was a railed stage in front of the doorway with stone steps curving down off to the left. Below the stage and off to the right was a fenced in ring floored with a sunburst mosaic in differing shades of gray. On the far right of this, next to the wall, stood several wooden and straw dummies. The ring and dummies were directly across from Daring, with the keep to her right. To her left were two more pathways, one leading up to a tower accessible by a ladder, while the other path twisted down to reveal a raised portcullis, also of wrought-iron. Behind her was another high wall, with the door she’d just come through set back into the shadows. Had she not known it was there, and come in through the main gate, she never would have noticed it.
“But even more noticeable than the architecture, were the ponies. Daring shook her head, berating herself. The courtyard was full of activity and here she was, standing slack-jawed and gawking like a newborn foal! I must look like a complete doofus! she thought. But looking again, it seemed that the other ponies either didn’t mind, or didn’t notice. Those that saw her nodded in acknowledgement, but gave her space and went about their duties. They acted as though it was perfectly normal to have a strange pony in their midst.
“As she looked around, she noticed that, although there were plenty of pegasi, unicorns, and earth ponies, they weren’t the only creatures. The fenced in area, clearly a training ring, held two donkeys locked in a sparring match while a crowd watched. Here and there, among the crowd and roaming the yard in small groups of what she thought must be guards, were also zebras, griffins, mules, horses, and even - she blinked again - where those deer and buffalo? A few of the group even seemed to be of mixed heritage, like Thistle’s cousin. What kind of place was this, to have so many different creatures all together?
“Another strange thing was that they all wore hooded robes. The cut and style of the garment varied to each individual, but the colors clearly split them into groups. It reminded Daring of the uniforms and ranks she’d seen in military and some school districts. The children of the group all wore dark gray, like the two who had visited her room. Those in their teen years and older seemed to be divided by rank instead of age. These outfits ranged from having a gray robe with a white overtunic, like the guards, to plain white robes with a red sash around the waist. She noted also that everyone except the children was armed with blade or bow, and wore varying types of armor.
“Speaking of children -
“ ‘Hi there! You’re Daring Do, right?’
“Daring jumped away from the voice, startled, then quickly tried to compose herself. Looking down, she saw that Thistle and Cirrus had found her again.
“ ‘Yeah, that’s me,’ she said, smiling, ‘You two heard about me?’
“ ‘Yeah!’ cried Thistle, trotting in place happily. ‘We’re really big fans! Oh, I’m Thistle, by the way, and this is Cirrus,’ he added, pointing to his griffin friend. .....................................................................
Meanwhile, back in the real world... “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS TRAIN WATCHERS YAY!” Five minutes later... “99 buckets of oats on the wall! 99 buckets of oats! You take one down, pass it around, you got 98 buckets of oats on the wall!” sang out Sweetie Belle as they waited. “98 buckets of oats on the wall! 98 buckets of oats! You take one down, pass it around, you got 97 buckets of oats on the wall! 97 buckets of oats on the wall! 97 buckets of oats! You take one down, pass it around - !” 96 buckets of oats later... “This. Is. So. BORING!” moaning Scootaloo, throwing her hooves up. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle nodded glumly in agreement. Just then, Daisy Joe walked past them, contentedly chewing her cud. “Why hello there girls!” said the cow cheerfully, “Lovely day for watchin’ trains ain't it.” The three fillies just stared at her, dumbstruck as she walked by. Once she was out of sight, they looked at each other, shrugged, and went back to watching the train tracks again. Five more minutes later... “Know where we can find a few proton packs at this hour?” “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS GHOSTBUSTERS YAY!”
A gentle knock on the front door roused Twilight from sleep. At first, she thought she’d only imagined it, but then it came again, louder this time. Still half asleep, the unicorn looked at her clock. It was almost midnight. Careful not to wake Spike, she trudged past his basket bed and down the stairs to the front door, trying to straighten her bedhead of dark blue mane as she did so. Opening the door, she jumped back, startled into wakefulness at seeing a black-cloaked figure looming before her.
“Who- who are you?” she asked, trying to see under the stranger’s hood.
“What? Don’t you recognize me, Twily?” asked the figure. He stepped further into the room and removed his hood. The older unicorn’s voice was more than enough to give himself away, but the white coat and blue mane made him unmistakable.
“Shining Armor!” cried Twilight, rushing forward to hug him. “What are you doing here, Big Brother? And why are you wearing this cloak? It’s not supposed to rain tonight.”
"It's good to see you again too, little sis," said Shining Armor happily, returning the hug. "But we have a lot to talk about -- and not here..."
His voice became subdued as he spoke those last words, causing Twilight to stare at him in confusion. He released her from the hug, silently pulled out a smaller cloak from a pocket inside his, and draped it over her. She opened her mouth to question him further, but he merely shook his head, replaced his hood, and started walking, signaling for her to follow. She kept silent as they left the library, watching her big brother closely. After a few minutes, she realized that he was leading her outside of Ponyville altogether, seemingly towards Sweet Apple Acres.
As they walked, she noticed that he seemed more alert than usual, despite trying to hide it from her. His eyes were constantly scanning the area around them, especially the sky, and he looked ready to charge at the slightest sign of trouble. It was making Twilight nervous, but she wasn't sure how to tell him. Finally, to get her mind off her growing apprehension, she asked the question that had been bugging her since his arrival moments before.
"Not that I'm unhappy to see you, BBBFF (Big Brother Best Friend Forever), but what are you doing here in Ponyville? Shouldn't you be helping Cadance lead the Crystal Empire?"
"Cadance can look after things just fine for awhile," Shining Armor said, smiling and breaking the tension as they reached the new railroad tracks into the farm’s western orchards. "She is Celestia's niece after all."
And she's my sister-in-law! thought Twilight with a happy spring in her step. Suddenly another thought struck her, and she quickly sat down, stunned. "Wait... If Cadance is Celestia's niece, you're my big brother and you married Cadance making her my sister-in-law, then that means... that means..."
Shining chuckled, playfully nudging her in the ribs, "That's right, Twily, Princesses Celestia and Luna are officially you aunts-in-law!"
"Wow..." was her only reply as she got back on her feet.
This time he actually laughed out loud. "Did you only just now figure that out?" he teased, taking the lead again.
"Heh, yeah..." Twilight said sheepishly, blushing, "I guess it just never crossed my mind before." Then she frowned in annoyance. "Ugh, does this mean we get that snobby Prince Blueblood as a brother-in-law too?"
The white unicorn grimaced, and nodded. "Yeah... Try not to think about it too much..."
As they continued along the tracks, Twilight noticed that they weren’t set in a line straight through the fields, as she’d expected, but curved in places, so that at times whole sections of track were hidden from view behind a thick curtain of apple trees. It reminded her more of a rollercoaster the a railroad, but she shrugged it off as being part of the “scenic view” route for city ponies.
The deeper they went into the orchards, the more Twilight felt a strange mix of wonder and nerves. Wonder, because the fruit bats and other night creatures were awake now, going about their normal lives in the treetops. Nervous, because she and Shining Armor were walking on train tracks, in the dark, which she knew wasn’t safe even in broad daylight. “Sh- shouldn’t we get off the tracks?” she asked fearfully, looking behind and ahead of them. “What if a late night train comes?”
“It won’t,” he said absently, his eyes scanning the treetops now for anything out of place. “No trains ever come down here, because these tracks aren’t meant for them.”
“What are you talking about?” Now she was even more confused. “why build a railway if nopony’s even going to use it?”
“This is why,” he said, stepping out of the treeline. “We’re here.”
They had reached a clearing near the farthest edge of the western fields. Though still surrounded by apple trees, Twilight could see that through them, off to their left, was the clearing that separated the orchards from the Everfree Forest, and then beyond the clearing she could see the edge of the forest itself.
Then she saw the reason for the railway, and did a double-take in surprise. Parked in the middle of the clearing was the shortest train the mare had ever seen. It was nothing more than an engine, its fuel car, and a single sleeper car. But this wasn’t the only strange thing. Its very appearance was unusual. While most trains were in pastel colors and pleasantly reminiscent of cakes and other sweets, this one was streamlined to favor speed over decor, and was painted the colors of a moonless night.
Such a thing would be all but impossible to see in pitch darkness, even if it were moving, Twilight reasoned. The only reason she could see it at all now, she supposed, was because tonight was a full moon, and because there was the faint pink bubble of her brother’s shield spell surrounding it. She looked to him for an explanation, but Shining was silent as he brought her to the sleeper car, leading her under the spell’s dome. He unlocked the door with his magic, then stood back to let her inside first.
Twilight couldn't help but stare as they entered the dimly-lit train car. It looked like something out of a detective story, or else a very messy journalist's office. There were papers scattered and stacked haphazardly on nearly every available surface, even covering the walls, and the window blinds were down, casting bars of shadow over everything.
Looking around, she noticed that the main focus of the room was a large wall map of Equestria with differently-colored pins stuck into it. Closer inspection revealed most of the papers to be old documents, scrolls, and newspaper clippings, but there were also a large number of sketches, paintings, blurry photographs in both color and black-and-white, and several small-scale models. Strangest of all, every piece seemed to depict a large white eagle.
"What is all this?" asked Twilight, eyeing one of the finer-detailed models.
"The reason I'm in Ponyville," Shining said quietly, removing his cloak and hanging it on the wall rack, which also had papers stuck to it. "These creatures have been spotted all over Equestria throughout the ages. Normally only one or two are ever seen at a time, and even those sightings are rare, but once in a blue moon they flock together. Bad things always happen when they do, and now they seem to be flocking again."
The purple mare turned to stare at him, her mind already buzzing with questions. "What do you mean 'bad things'?" she asked rapidly, "What do you know about these things? What are they? Why haven't I ever heard or read about them before? What -- ?"
He gently clamped a hoof over her mouth, silencing her for a moment. "I'll tell you everything I know, but you have to slow down a little with the questions, OK?" he said, trying not to laugh. She blushed, nodding slowly, and he let her go again before answering, "Nopony really knows what they are, but recorded sightings date as far back as the Pre-Classical Era. Rumor has it that Starswirl the Bearded himself made a study of them, but that his work was destroyed during the Three Tribes War. Most ponies who encounter them keep quiet because others would think they're crazy or drunk. That's why you've never heard of them. These things don't even have a scientific name. Those few who do hear the stories just pass them off as ghosts, phantoms, or hallucinations. Their most common name, though, are 'Night Eagles'."
"But that doesn't make any sense!" blurted Twilight, pausing from where she'd been taking notes with a spare piece of parchment and quill that had been lying on the cluttered desk. "Eagles are diurnal; they're daytime hunters! Are you sure it wasn't owls these ponies were seeing?"
"You'd think that would make more sense, given how silent these things are supposed to be, but no. All the reports say they're way too big to be owls. Besides," he pointed out, "isn't your pet owl active during the day sometimes?"
She considered that for a moment. "Good point," she said, starting to write again. "This is amazing! We could be dealing with an entirely new species here! What else can you tell me?"
"Well, like I said, there's not much to go on. Nopony knows where they come from. They appear suddenly and vanish just as quickly. As far as I can tell there are at least four color variations. Gray eagles, or shades of grey ranging to white with a grey head are the most common sighting. Others are pure white, and the rarest are white with thick red stripes."
"Hmm... Now that's interesting..." mused Twilight as she wrote, talking more to herself then her brother, "the change in color could be a difference between juveniles and adults, like with some other birds... starting grey, then molting to white and getting the red markings as they mature... Maybe the flocking is a migration pattern? Like with dragons! I'd love to see that!"
"No!" snapped Shining Armor suddenly, stomping his hoof and breaking her train of thought.
"Huh? What do you mean 'no'?" she asked, startled.
"I don't want you anywhere near those things." he said sternly.
"But why?" she asked, confused, "it's not like eagles eat ponies -- " The look on his face stopped her mid-sentence. She gulped, eyes widening in fear, "Wait... are you saying these -- these things actually do eat ponies?!"
"Worse..." he answered grimly, looking away from her. Much as he wanted to spare her this, she needed to know...
"These things... actually scare you, don't they?..." she asked, eyes widening in shocked realization as she set down her writing materials and moved closer to him. When he didn't answer, she gently lifted his chin with her hoof, and saw the genuine fear and worry in his eyes. Her big brother, captain of the Royal Guard and now Prince of the Crystal Empire, was truly afraid, and that thought alone was enough to terrify her beyond everything she had ever faced before.
"Shining, I -- I don't understand," she began again hesitantly. "There are lots of other creatures that can eat ponies if they're not careful. What's so different about Night Eagles?"
"Because they don't eat the ponies they kill," the white stallion said, his voice deadly serious as he looked down at her. "Because they seem to kill without reason. They strike like lightning, without warning, and vanish like shadows. The kills are quick and clean, but their prey is chosen at random. Survivors of the attacks are rare, and those that do survive are traumatized for life. I don't want that to happen to you!"
By now he was breathing hard with rising emotion, the need to protect his little sister, yet trying to calm himself at the same time. Slowly bringing himself back under control, he gestured to the pins stuck in the wall map, which Twilight now noticed came in three colors: white, red, and black. There were white pins scattered all over the map, but most seemed to clump in big cities and around high landmarks. There were even some in the seldom-traveled and dangerous Everfree Forest, not that she was surprised by this given everything they'd just discussed. The red pins were far fewer, and placed in populated areas and along travel routes. The black pins were in the same areas as the red, but there were more of them, though fewer than the white.
"I've been trying to find a pattern to their behaviors but I've got nothing so far," he continued. "The white pins are sightings only. The red pins are survived attacks, and the black pins..." he let the sentence hang.
The younger unicorn nodded slowly in understanding, then asked. "Why are you so worried about them flocking? And why tell me all this?"
"I'm telling you because I know you can keep a secret," he say, giving her a tiny smile, which quickly faded. "I haven't told anypony else about this because I don't want to cause a panic." He held up a hoof to forestall her question, and finished, "And I'm worried, because death always follows where these eagles flock, and now they seem to be focusing on Ponyville."
I'm not sure when I'll update this again, but it seems rude just to leave you all hanging. I know I don't like having my favorite stories drop off the map on a cliffhanger.
So in the meanwhile, I thought I'd go ahead and let you guys know what I had planned to do with this story. Granted, what with the additions to the lore we've had over the past seasons, I might change a thing or two, but these are my original outline notes:
storyline: Daring Do and the Order of the Eagle
- Author of the daring do series is a maimed and retired assassin
- an old friend cautions her about her newest book featuring an order based on the assassins
- sometime later, Twilight and friends read the new book
- in the story Daring Do teams up with the assassins to recover a magical relic from ahuizotl and a changeling queen
- ahuizotl plans to use the relic to make himself loved by all creatures, which would make him their ruler, meanwhile, the changelings get to feed off that love in return for helping him find more relics and wealth and becoming his army while their queen rules with him
- ahuizotl may or may not have fallen in love with the changeling queen, and/or vice versa
- as that story progresses, strange events begin to happen around ponyville
- train tracks are run through sweet apple acres, but only one train car comes, and parks itself there, nopony notices it but the cutie mark crusaders who decide to watch and keep it a secret for now
- Twilight and friends catch glimpses of strange ghost-like creatures on the rooftops of ponyville
- the CMCs try to investigate the strange train car, but don’t have any luck getting inside, they overhear Twilight and friends discussing the daring do story and decide to become “a’sasprin” hunters, by using the methods they could see through the train car windows with their telescope. they also conclude that their “new neighbor” is an eccentric bird watcher, and therefore harmless, if really weird
- they eventually do catch an assassin completely by accident, but don’t realize he’s what they’re looking for and apologize. the assassin takes it in good humor and tells the kids to be more careful
- meanwhile, the rogue assassin, now an alicorn, is on the prowl, looking for powerful relics to add to his collection. he’s traced the elements of harmony and the alicorn amulet to ponyville, and is searching for them, which is why the brotherhood is out in force patrolling the town
- meanwhile, shining armor finds twilight and informs her of the “night eagle” problem
- the rogue assassin finds the elements of harmony but is unable to steal them due to celestia’s protection spell, and so goes after the alicorn amulet instead
- zecora is injured in the attack, and left temporarily mute due to poison joke extract delivered by the rogue’s hidden blade, however, she later manages to communicate through pantomime and her magical green powder (from “Luna Eclipsed”)
- to nip a future problem in the bud, and frame the brotherhood so that they’re too busy hiding to stop his plans, the rogue tries to assassinate twilight, as she wields the most powerful element of harmony. she’s saved by a brotherhood member, but suffers a concussion during the fray, distorting her memory of what happened
- when she recovers, the main six try to find the truth behind the night eagles, and how twilight survived her assault
- realizing he needs a more attention-drawing target, the rogue attempts a public strike at celestia, luna, and cadance when they attend the official release of the new daring do book
- although the princesses survive the attempt, it has the desired effect, with every guard in the kingdom and empire on high alert for the assassins, making the brotherhood’s job that much harder
- shining armor’s paranoia get even worse, zecora reveals herself to twilight as an assassin, while the other girls interview the maimed author and learn her secret as well
- the main six are lead to the order’s headquarters and the situation is explained to them
- meanwhile, the rogue assassin steals several spells from the canterlot archives and uses them and his enhanced power to break celestia’s magic on the elements of harmony, scattering them across time and space before using some final spells to send himself back in time
- suddenly, shining armor busts into the place with a large number of guards! he reveals that he put a tracking spell on twilight after her attack. but before anything else can happen, everything around the main six and the brotherhood begins changing as history rewrites itself into an alternate timeline
- discord suddenly appears as well, teleporting the remaining group out of the shifting room and into the everfree forest. he quickly explains what’s happening, but says although his chaotic powers offer him some protection from the time change, it’s only for a short while, and the same is true of the everfree forest. they only have a few minutes before it too will change
- of the group from the order’s lair, only the main six, shining armor, zecora, the maimed author, and the author’s friend are left
- using the last of his power, discord marks the locations of the elements of harmony, and combines his magic with a shield spell from shining armor to protect their group long enough to ride out the time storm
- discord vanishes as the time shift overwhelms him, but the shield spell holds until the danger passes
- in the new world of the altered timeline, the rogue assassin is tyrant king over all of equestria and the crystal empire, and the brotherhood have become his enforces (cruelty and ruthlessness of the templars mixed with the deadly skills of assassins)
- the small band of heroes are given sanctuary by the cutie mark crusaders, and learn that discord, the princesses, and cadance’s family had joined forces against the rogue, but were defeated. sombra was also defeated, though his curse on the crystal empire never activated.
- it’s decided that they need the elements of harmony to restore the timeline, but they need a time spell to reach them first
- twilight is able to manipulate the time spell with some difficulty, and so the group journeys across time and space to recover the elements of harmony while fleeing the rogue’s apprentices: assassins who have been specially trained to follow their prey through time.
Chapter fragments:
Meanwhile, back in the real world...
“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS TRAIN WATCHERS YAY!”
Five minutes later...
“99 buckets of oats on the wall! 99 buckets of oats! You take one down, pass it around, you got 98 buckets of oats on the wall!” sang out Sweetie Belle as they waited. “98 buckets of oats on the wall! 98 buckets of oats! You take one down, pass it around, you got 97 buckets of oats on the wall! 97 buckets of oats on the wall! 97 buckets of oats! You take one down, pass it around - !”
96 buckets of oats later...
“This. Is. So. BORING!” moaning Scootaloo, throwing her hooves up. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle nodded glumly in agreement. Just then, Daisy Joe walked past them, contentedly chewing her cud. “Why hello there girls!” said the cow cheerfully, “Lovely day for watchin’ trains ain't it.”
The three fillies just stared at her, dumbstruck as she walked by. Once she was out of sight, they looked at each other, shrugged, and went back to watching the train tracks again.
Five more minutes later...
“Know where we can find a few proton packs at this hour?”
“No! Sweetie Bell, don’t!” cried a voice from the mist, just as a foal-sized shadow came hurtling towards them, plowing into Rarity and clutching at her in a death grip.
Rarity, acting on instinct, held the trembling body close to her, stroking the tangled mane and gently shushing the sobbing little pony. She stared at the others in shock, utterly at a loss. Had that voice called the filly, ‘Sweetie Belle’? It couldn’t be her little sister! This pony felt half starved under Rarity’s hooves, and the coat was much too coarse and ragged.
Clearly the others had the same thoughts, because Twilight and Shining Armor moved closer, so that their lit horns cast more light on the pair. The rest of their group gathered around as well, staring in disbelief. But there was no mistaking the color of the unicorn filly’s mane and coat. It was Sweetie Bell.
Two voices rang from the mist now, calling Sweetie’s name, but she didn’t seem to hear them. An instant later, they appeared, galloping flat out towards the group, only to stop suddenly at the sight of them. It was Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. Both looked as ragged and thin as their friend, but most shocking of all were the looks on their faces.
Apple Bloom’s expression was a strange mix of shock, disbelief, and longing as she stared at Applejack. Her stance was tense and rigid, as if she wanted to rush forward as Sweetie Bell had, but was holding herself in check.
Scootaloo’s face, however, held only fear and hatred as the shock ebbed away. “Sweetie Belle!” she yelled, “Get away from them! It isn’t real!”
“I DON’T CARE!” Sweetie wailed, half screaming as fresh tears streamed down her face. She buried her face deeper into Rarity’s fur. “I don’t care if it is an Assassin trap! I just want my sister back!”
I don't know how many people read the blog posts in this site, so I'm putting this in my stories too, just in case. Please spread the word about this upcoming art auction! https://twitter.com/Eliyora/status/1445818357777903616
The Fairy Witch (@Eliyora) Hey everybody!! Guess what! I'mma hold an auction for some art commission packages!!
Artists include @DogiCrimson @FluffDragonArt @Lightning_Bliss and more!
October 17th, come to my Twitch channel for a chance to get art from some truly talented artists!
Twitter•10/06/2021
Her Twitch channel: https://www.twitch.tv/eliyora This auction is to help a dear friend of mine (Lunacorva) and his roommate afford a house. They've been homeless and living in a tent for half a year now. The person organizing this and storing the funds is Eliyora, a mutual friend of ours. Donations are also gladly apricated if somebody can't attend or afford anything at auction. Money is being stored here until we can send it: https://paypal.me/EliyoraProductions?locale.x=en_US
Note from 𝔻 𝕆 𝔾 𝕀 — If you cannot afford the art bundles as they are by your own (which I won't blame you for!), here's a friendly tip: Team up with your friend! There's plenty of art in a single bundle to share with your bestie, loved one etc!
