A Half-Boiled Detective Story
Story By
MangaKamen
TTT – TTT
Act 1
Feathers of a Glass Stallion
TTT - TTT
Everypony has morals they live by – Words that chain around a stallion’s very core and cannot be shaken no matter what comes their way.
Not being swayed no matter what the situation.
To wear your heart on your sleeve to keep your opposition always guessing.
And to never stray from the path you have decided, even if the bridge you walk burns beneath your hooves.
It’s a stallion-among-stallions lifestyle.
That is what it means to be “GATHER YOUR BELONGINGS!”
“Huh?”
“Gather your belongings! We’ll be arriving in Ponyville in a few minutes! So please, gather your belongings.”
The roar of the train’s engine and the raindrops that clashed against the glass weren’t enough to stave off the sweet temptation of slumber. Only when he was lulled into the embrace did the conductor trot through the train’s aisles that he snapped back to reality. ‘That didn’t take long I guess. Still, I wish I could’ve gotten more sleep before I met with the client, oh well – The only time a stallion can be picky is when he chooses his coffee.’
With another sigh, the young stallion looked out the window to see a rain adorned reflection that stared right back at him – Same gun-metal gray fur coat covered with a ragged gray overcoat, messy white mane adorned with a black fedora that had a single white strip around the brim, and of course the navy blue eyes that told the tale of several sleepless nights fueled with countless cups of coffee.
‘I just wish I had a cup of Jo in my hooves right now.’ That thought graced his mind as the stallion looked past the reflection to see a small town in the distance gradually close in on the train. ‘Who knows if this place can make a decent cup?’
The clouded sky above and the rain that fell onto the town – This didn’t bode well.
The train slowly pulled into the station of Ponyville and rocked to a stop, the steam rose into the air as the engine began to cool down. The stallion slowly made his way off of the train with black saddlebags strapped to his back, his hooves splashed onto the wet, wooden platform. ‘Let’s see, the one I’m supposed to meet is…’
The stallion looked about the train station, there were only a few ponies who were there - a red earth stallion with a large horse collar around his neck who lazily chewed on a piece of hay, a teal unicorn mare who held up a sign over her head that read ‘BonBon’, and another mare, an earth pony with collar, glasses, a pale amber coat and gray mane. Where all three stood, the roof of the railway station kept them dry from the storm.
With a moment to adjust his fedora, the stallion slowly trotted over to the earth pony mare, “Miss Mayor Mare, I presume?”
The slightly older mare turned towards the fedora wearing stallion and sighed with relief, “Oh thank goodness! Are you the CIS agent I requested?”
“Night Jack of the Canterlot Investigation Squad at your service,” The fedora adorned stallion bowed slightly to the Mayor. When Jack raised his head back up, the stallion smiled slightly.
“It’s certainly good that you arrived,” Mayor Mare replied, her face however slackened a little bit. “Although, considering what happened the last time we enlisted the CIS’s services, I was a little hesitant in requesting their services again.”
Jack pulled his fedora down slightly, “Miss Mare, you have nothing to worry about this time. I’ve never failed a client for the CIS before.”
“That’s fantastic!” Mayor Mare gleefully proclaimed as she lifted her front hooves up and clapped her hooves together a few times before she landed them back on the wooden station. “Tell me, what sort of cases have you taken before?”
“None,” Jack said.
It took a few moments for that to sink in.
“E-Excuse me?” Mayor Mare questioned with a slight quiver of her left eye. “Didn’t you just say you never failed a client before?”
“Exactly,” Jack replied, his head lifted up slightly so he could look at Mayor Mare just beneath his hat. “You’re my first client with the CIS.”
Mayor Mare stumbled about the train station for a few moments, and sighed loudly. The fedora adorned stallion tilted his head at the mare, “Are you feeling alright, Miss Mayor?”
“It’s… Its fine,” Mayor Mare groaned as she trotted towards a bench that had a saddle umbrella on it. “At this point, I can’t be picky! This is an emergency!”
“Then by all means, let’s not waste any time,” Jack replied as he gestured with his head. “Please lead me to where we need to go – along the way you can inform me of the situation at hand.”
“Very well,” Mayor Mare said as she trotted alongside the CIS detective. “We don’t have a lot of time to stand around chatting.”
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“In order to drum up tourism and get our town necessary funds,” Mayor Mare explained as she led Night Jack through the soaked town. “I held a town meeting with some of the more prominent members of the town to discuss what could be done. After a few suggestions, the town decided to hold an exhibit of various cultures of Equestria – and thanks to one very supportive member, we were able to acquire a very illustrious, and classic piece of artwork from Neigh Zealand to serve as the lead attraction."
Night Jack held onto every word that Mayor Mare spoke.
“Tell me Mister Jack,” Mayor Mare mused, turning back towards the rather silent CIS member. “Are you familiar with the works of Crown Glass?”
“You’ll have to forgive me for not being too familiar with artwork,” Jack answered back.
“Well, he was a famous stallion glass sculptor from Neigh Zealand,” Mayor Mare continued onward, both with her explanation and to lead the CIS detective. “And we managed to get his last work as the main attraction for the exhibit – Known as the Fiery Mustang, a small statue, but has a big following to it – As well as a big number of bits behind it.
“We’re set to open the exhibit tomorrow, and had received the Fiery Mustang along with the other portions of the exhibit a couple of days ago. Everything was fine last night, but… But…”
Night Jack trotted a little faster and managed to get alongside Mayor Mare, the rain splattered onto his overcoat. “I think I can get the gist of this exposition dump – Something went wrong, right?”
“You wouldn’t be here if there wasn’t a problem,” Mayor Mare countered bluntly.
“Plot convenience at its finest,” Jack mumbled under his breath.
“I’d like to tell you what has happened, but I can’t risk anypony else hearing about this,” Mayor Mare stated as the two came upon a very large and fancy building in the middle of Ponyville. “I’ll continue telling you the details once we’ve reached the main hall.”
Jack’s eyes flashed to the large building in question, even in the mist and rain, he could see that the building stood proudly into the air. The many windows on the building were fogged up and the flags atop the roof danced with the wind.
What drew the stallion’s eyes however was the large blue tarp that was draped and tied down to one side of the building.
“There’s a story behind that, isn’t there?” Jack answered, his eyes locked onto the tarp.
“You have a keen eye,” the Mayor sheepishly chuckled. “That’s another problem, but one you don’t need to concern yourself with.”
Was that really true?
Night Jack wasn’t even told what the case was about yet, and more questions piled on the longer he was with this Mayor Mare. “No offense Miss Mayor, but I’ll be the judge of that – if this has any relation to the case at hoof then…”
“Miss Mayor!”
Both Jack and the Mayor turned their attention towards the door of the town hall, where a young sleek unicorn mare stood in the doorway. She was a lithe dame with a pure white coat, a straight blonde mane with deep magenta eyes. The mare kept under the dry cover of the town hall, but had her muzzle slightly scrunched up, “Thank goodness you returned so quickly! There’s somepony waiting for you in your office!”
“Can it wait?” Mayor Mare asked as she trotted up to the other mare, the CIS investigator right behind her. “I was about to show Mr. Jack here to the main hall so he can perform his work.”
“I’m afraid that this one can’t wait,” the unicorn replied with a worried look on her face. “Miss Sparkle has been requesting an audience with you for at least an hour now.”
Mayor Mare reeled back slightly before she turned to Jack, “I… I apologize, Mr. Night Jack. But this needs my attention immediately.” The mayor then turned back to the unicorn and nodded towards her. “Please make sure he gets to the main hall quickly and that he meets with security.”
“Of course Miss Mayor,” the unicorn replied with a bow before Mayor Mare trotted into the town hall. The unicorn then turned back to Jack and lowered her head towards Night Jack. “Well then, Mr. Jack, would you be so kind to follow me? Also, would you like me to take your coat for you as well?”
Before Jack could say a word, a deep green aura floated around his body and his coat disappeared in a flash of light. The stallion staggered about as the coat magically appeared over the mysterious mare. With his trench coat no longer on his body, it was revealed that Jack had a black vest on his torso, a black necktie and at his flank was a red question mark with a black exclamation point. The CIS investigator’s eyes spun about as he staggered into the town hall. ‘Damn Unicorn magic! I can never get used to that sort of stuff!’
“Now then, please follow me,” the mare requested before she trotted off into the building.
After he garnered his senses, Night Jack adjusted his fedora and followed the mare. “So, Miss, I take it you work here, correct? As Mayor Mare’s assistant?”
“Actually, I’m more of a temp who was hired,” the mare answered, not bothering to look back at the CIS detective. “With the exhibits going on, the town needed to hire some extra help – After all, even though this world is pretty peaceful, there are still some bad seeds – And with a number of fancy treasures all in the same room, you never know what eyes you’ll attract.”
‘Security, then?’ Jack thought to himself.
“And alas, it seems as though the worst has occurred,” the mare sighed loudly to herself.
“I’m a fan of monologues as any pony else,” Jack stated as he trotted a little faster to walk alongside the unicorn mare. “But if you’re willing to talk, would you mind answering a few questions of mine?”
“Of course not, sir.”
“Good, then let’s start with the obvious – What exactly happened here that requires the CIS to be called?”
The mare smiled brightly at Night Jack and calmly said, “I don’t know anything about that.”
Night Jack nearly fell face first into the ground after he tripped over his front hooves. All the while, the unicorn mare just trotted forward, “H-How is that possible?”
“Only a hooffull of ponies know about what happened,” the mare replied with a slight nod. “At most, I believe that only the Mayor and head of security know the full details of what happened this morning.”
The gears in the stallion’s head turned slightly. ‘So, a gag order was placed? Hmm, I guess that’s a bit of useful information to keep in mind.’
“So, I suppose that includes why there was a blue tarp outside?” Jack spoke out loud.
“Oh, that thing?” The mare questioned with a few blinks. “I know all about it.”
“Huh? Really?” Jack yelped out excitedly before he cleared his throat. “I-I see, could you explain?”
“No real mystery there actually,” the mare replied as she stopped and tilted her head back slightly to think. “Anypony who works here can tell you all about it – Earlier this morning, while we were getting set up for opening the exhibit tomorrow, the storm that you had the pleasure of dealing with was still going on.
“However, whether to a mistake of a pegasus, or a defective cloud, a bolt of lightning struck the side of city hall. You should’ve seen the head of security freak out when that happened – Hopefully there wasn’t too much damage or that the blue dress got ruined...
‘That explains the tarp then,’ Night Jack thought to himself. ‘It was probably put up to prevent the weather from getting in until they can repair the damage. If this has anything to do with the case then…’
“Mister Jack?”
With his thoughts interrupted, the stallion snapped open his eyes at the young mare before him – just in time for him to see her gesture towards a large pair of doors that had two uniformed ponies before it. “We’ve arrived at the exhibit hall. The Mayor has informed the security staff of your arrival, sir, so please feel free to go in.”
“Thanks,” Jack answered as he looked to his still floating trench coat.
“You do not need to worry, sir,” the mare stated without the stallion having to say another word. “I’ll take your coat to the Mayor’s office for the time being. Is there anything I can get you? Coffee perhaps?”
Jack’s ears twitched slightly.
TTT – TTT
The doors to the exhibit hall closed behind Night Jack after he trotted into the surprisingly large room. While some cupped lightning tantalized the stallion – He had a job to do, and it wasn’t to sip coffee.
Jack raised his head up and looked all around the large room. All around the room there were pieces of art, mannequins of ponies, buffaloes, and even a griffon mannequin that were dressed in exotic clothing, and a large, yet empty, podium in the middle of the room. On the right side of the room, Jack noted the large blue tarp – Most likely the same one that he saw outside.
‘So this was the room that was hit with the lightning?’ Jack thought to himself as he took a few steps into the room.
“HOLD IT!”
A bright flash of light forced Night Jack to stumble back a few feet, “The Tartarus?!”
“No ponies are allowed in here! How did you get past the guards outside? State your name! Hooves in the air! Get on the ground! NOW!”
With a hoof held up to his eyes, Night Jack attempted to see who blinded him, but the light still shone brightly at his face. “Is it really necessary to…”
Before Jack could finish, a pair of hooves slammed into his shoulders and forced him to the ground. While the CIS agent acquainted himself with the carpet, the hooves kept him down to the floor, “Do not resist! STOP RESISTING!”
“I’m not resisting!” Jack snapped back, only to get his muzzled back into the carpeting. “URK!”
“Enough talking!” The owner of the hooves barked back. “NOW! TELL ME YOUR NAME!”
‘Didn’t you just tell me to keep quiet?!’ Jack thought to himself. With a loud audible growl, the stallion slammed his hooves into the floor, “I am Night Jack of the Canterlot Investigation Squad, and our services were requested by the mayor here!”
There were a few moments of silence, before a loud static-filled screech echoed through the air before the hooves were removed from Jack’s body. With a deep breath, the CIS stallion pushed himself off of the ground and dusted off his vest, when he lifted his head up; Jack narrowed his eyes at the stallion before him, “Are you…”
The bright light flashed in Jack’s eyes, and blinded him once more. “SHOW ME YOUR IDENTIFICATION!!”
A growl slipped out of Jack’s mouth as he used one of his front hooves to reach for his tie. It was a common trait for all members of the CIS to carry their badges with them – A silver shield that had an outline of a pegasus on it with a number chiseled into it – It was required after all for them to have the badge with them whenever they were on the job in order to identify themselves to other ponies.
In Jack’s case, his badge number listed the number – 1010 – and he had it clipped on the back of his necktie.
Light reflected off of the badge and ironically struck Jack in the eyes once more. But when the light finally clicked off, Jack was finally managed to get a good look at the stallion before him.
With a hoof stationed at his forehead, this dark blue furred stallion towered over Night Jack, he was a taller pony than the CIS agent with a thin frame that had a light blue security jacket over his torso. He had long, wild yellow hair that had a tall blue horn sticking out from the top of his head and his orange eyes were narrowed down at Jack.
Jack noted that the stallion’s horn glowed a bright orange, with the same aura that was around a pair of flashlights that floated at the stallion’s sides. Those weren’t the only devices that the stallion had, around his neck was a chord connected to a bullhorn that had its speaker end clipped to his uniform collar. “My apologies, sir! But with everything has happened, I can’t take any more chances!”
‘For a security guard, he’s rather loud,’ Night Jack thought to himself. “I guess I can understand that – My name’s… Wait, I already said it…”
“Fulbright Search at your service, sir!” The security stallion announced as he saluted once more. “I am the head of security for this event! It is an honor to have a member of the CIS working here with us!”
Jack reeled back again at the loud introduction. And with a loud sigh, the CIS agent lifted his hoof up to Fulbright, “Well, I don’t know about an honor, but let’s work hard to solve this case.”
A moment later, Fulbright lowered his hoof into Jack’s and shook it, “Sir! Still, great to have you aboard!”
The two stallions retracted their hooves and Jack closed his eyes in thought. ‘Alright, let’s get to work.’
“Officer Fulbright, please tell me what has happened. I tried asking the Mayor earlier, but she elected to not tell me the full details since we were in the midst of town.”
Fulbright lowered his head and had the two flashlights lower as well, “W-Well sir… You see, it’d be bad if this incident got out – That’s kinda why it’s a bit of a hushed incident between the Mayor, myself and the security staff at the moment. The town’s reputation would go down the drain and…”
“That doesn’t matter,” Night Jack answered as he pointed a hoof at Fulbright. “Even if the incident is covered up for the moment, if it’s a big enough problem, then it’s only a matter of time before every pony learns about it – and it’ll just get worse the longer its hidden.”
“B-But…”
“But that’s where I come in,” Night Jack continued as he trotted past Fulbright. “As an officer of CIS, I’ll use all that I have in order to make sure that this town is spared of that fate. All I ask is your full cooperation and the complete truth.”
Slowly a smile crept onto Fulbright’s face as he saluted once more, tears slowly welled up in the corners of his eyes. “SIR! YES SIR!”
Fulbright trotted in front of Jack and gestured towards the emptied column in the middle of the room. “As you no doubt have noticed, this is totally blank. Well, you see sir, this exhibit was the victim of theft.”
Jack’s face remain stone cold as he observed the column, noticing that there were a few chips missing from the wooden column and that there were some on the ground. “And what exactly was stolen?”
It took the dark blue stallion a moment to take a deep breath, and when he exhaled, his face drooped slightly. “It was the Fiery Mustang.”
The ears on the gun-metal gray stallion twitched a few times. Mayor Mare had mentioned the piece of artwork to Jack, and slowly he understood why she mentioned the piece of work earlier. The CIS stallion trotted around the column, “I see, what makes you think it was stolen?”
The horn on Fulbright’s head glowed a little brighter as a small square of white slipped out of his uniform. The square floated in front of Jack’s face, and revealed that it was a photograph of the exhibit hall that had a trio of ponies in it with the same wooden column right behind them that had a glass pegasus stallion mounted on it. Jack noted that the glass statue had bright red eyes and had a large purple jewel within the stallion’s chest.
Jack focused on the real ponies in the picture – Fulbright and Mayor Mare were there, but there was another mare, a light violet unicorn with a purple mane (with streaks of hot pink and dark purple in it).
“We spent the good portion of yesterday setting up the exhibits,” Fulbright explained as Jack pulled the picture from the air. “Went all the way till midnight last night, and we took a picture to celebrate when we finished setting up. Sort of a reminder of all our hard work.”
When Fulbright had finished speaking, Night Jack turned back to the photo and lifted it up to look around the area. From the angle, it looked like the photo was taken near the entrance of the exhibit hall, so Jack trotted back to the doors with the photo in his mouth. Now that he stood before the closed entrance, Jack pulled the photo up and made a comparison. “Fulbright, tell me, when did you notice that the glass statue was missing?”
“Oh, that was when lightning struck the building,” Fulbright answered as he turned towards the tarp. “And that occurred about, uh, I think it was eight thirty or so.”
“And you’re sure that you all stopped at midnight?”
Fulbright rubbed the back of his head with his hoof, messing his mane up even further. “I’m pretty sure – There’s a time stamp on the back of the photo.”
To make sure, Jack turned the photo around and noted that there was a time stamp on it that read ‘Photo 2 – 12:07:53’. ‘Magic certainly has its perks – I heard that cameras now have a time-stamp feature on them, but still…’
“So, we’ve got a gap of opportunity for anypony to come in and steal the fancy glass,” Jack stated as he flipped the photo back and compared it. “Fulbright, what was security like during this time frame?”
Fulbright puffed out his chest and had his smile planted over his entire face, “Only the best, sir! I lead only the best of the best in security! We not only help out with security, but also with the exhibits as well! And I can assure you that we do not slack!
“I was here all last night doing rounds inside the building, I had two guards stationed outside the doors to this room at all time and three doing rounds outside.”
“And they didn’t see anything suspicious?”
“No, sir!” Fulbright continued as he saluted. “Whenever I finished an hourly round, I personally opened the doors to make sure that the exhibit was safe! I also rotated the five guards at that time.”
“What about the room itself?” Jack questioned as he lowered the picture down. “Did you have somepony stationed in here?”
“Due to how important the treasures are in here,” Fulbright answered back. “The Mayor didn’t want to take any chances with somepony trotting around and accidentally damage an exhibit. But in order to make sure no pony could get in, we changed the locks to the doors and windows for the time being – and the only keys to enter are with me and the Mayor.”
From his vest pocket, the blue unicorn levitated a silver key up before he pocketed it again. “In addition to that, we enchanted the walls of the exhibit hall. The spells that were used were made so that way no magic could get through it – Magic can still be used, but spells like teleportation and the such won’t be able to get through the walls.”
‘All that preparation and you still failed to protect the exhibit,’ Jack thought to himself with his eyes closed slightly. “So, there wasn’t a gap of time when this place wasn’t guarded?”
“N-Not under my watch, sir!” Fulbright answered with a slight tint pink now on his cheeks. “I like to think I run a v-very tight ship of security here. In fact, one order I gave was that nopony was supposed to enter this room unless I was with them. They couldn’t anyway, because the only pony here at night with the key was myself.”
Once more, Jack looked at the photograph. ‘If that’s the case, then the only time the statue could’ve been swiped was when…’
“Fulbright, do you mind if I hold onto this photo for a while?”
“Huh? S-sure, but why?” Fulbright asked with his head tilted slightly.
Instead of answering verbally, Jack trotted over to side of the room where the blue tarp was over and stood in front of it. Three mannequins were displayed right in front of the CIS stallion. On the right, a buffalo that was garbed in tribal clothes with a blue feathered headdress (with a single yellow feather on the side).
In the middle, a griffon that had silver (if not a little rusty) armor covered over its entire body (save for its wings) it with a sword at its side.
And at the left, unicorn that had a beautiful, blue silky dress on it. The carpeting around the three was clearly wet with a few bits of splintered wood on it.
"Were these mannequins moved during the accident earlier?” Jack asked quickly, his head craned back to Fulbright.
“Of… Of course!” Fulbright coughed out. “We had to move the displays out of the way of the storm and debris so they wouldn’t get ruined. Luckily when we got in here, we were just able to move them out of the way. But, is that really important?”
“If the testimony you just gave is correct, then yes, yes it is,” Jack replied with a nod. “The accident that caused this damage may not have been an accident at all. What we’re looking at here is potentially how the thief managed to get in here.”
“W-What?!” Fulbright yelped out.
‘Combined with what Fulbright just told me,’ Jack thought to himself as he pushed up his fedora to take a better look at the exhibit. ‘The only time the thief could’ve gotten in here was when the lighting struck to make a way to get in here. In which case, the perpetrator is probably a pegasus.’
“Fulbright, after the lightning struck, how long did it take you to return to the exhibit hall?”
“Uh, w-well, I was in the middle of my round, and I was on the upper levels of the city hall,” Fulbright recalled as he rubbed his chin. “If I had to guess, it took me about ten, maybe fifteen minutes to get to the doors so that I could get the rest of security in here.”
‘So there was a chance for somepony to sneak in, grab the statue and sneak out into the storm. Maybe one of the guards who were stationed outside saw something – but for now, there’s something that I need to see.’
“Uh, sir,” Fulbright questioned as he trotted up next to Night Jack. “Is everything alright?”
“Fulbright, could you levitate that thing down here?” Jack requested as he lifted his hoof up.
Fulbright looked at where Jack was pointing at, but tilted his head in confusion, “Uh, levitate what down?”
“Ya know, that feathery, tribal, thingamabob on the buffalo,” Jack coughed as he pointed once more at the buffalo mannequin. “The thing on its head.”
“You mean the headdress?” Fulbright questioned with a flat look in his eyes.
There was a tint of red on the CIS stallion’s face, “Y-Yeah.”
The orange aura slowly wrapped around the stuffed buffalo’s headgear and gently floated it down in front of Night Jack’s face. For a moment, Night Jack looked over the headdress and lifted up one of his hooves to his chin. “I don’t want to risk damaging this flashy thing, but Fulbright, can you tug on one of the larger blue feathers? Gently, of course.”
“Sure, no problem, sir,” the head of security announced.
The orange aura glowed a little brighter around one of the feathers and proceeded to tug on the charm slightly. However, the feather was merely rustled amongst the rest of them. Jack nodded a few times as he observed the headdress, “Okay, then, now, could you do the same for the yellow feather?”
Fulbright nodded again as he focused his magic on said feather. Gently, the magic pulled on the feather and actually managed to pull it from the headdress. Fulbright’s eyes widened and he staggered back in surprise, “Gah! I broke it!”
“Not really,” Jack stated as he immediately slapped his hoof through the aura and latched onto the feather with his hoof. “I thought it was odd, this feather doesn’t match this thingy’s – Length and color are completely different, and it wasn’t attached like the other feathers.
“Fulbright, I think we may have ourselves a clue here.”
Fulbright’s flashlights immediately lit up a few times, “R-Really!?”
The investigator looked at the feather closer at in his hoof and raised a brow at it – while the vane of the feather was a bright yellow, the calamus and afterfeather of it was black. With a quick sniff, Jack drew his head back in deep thought. ‘A bitter smell, black coloring, inconsistent with the rest of the feather – Looks like the feather was charred a little bit…’
Jack opened his mouth once more and prepared to speak when all of a sudden both of the doors to the exhibit hall opened up with a violet aura around them. Both stallions turned to the doors to see a rather familiar violet unicorn mare stomp into the room, the saddlebags on her back billowed about with every step she took. The mare looked towards the wooden podium and gasped as she quickly dashed towards it with her eyes wide, “Oh nonononononononononoNO! It’s gone! It’s gone!’
Jack could’ve sworn that he saw a single hair on the mare’s head spring up from her dark purple mane. As he reached into vest, the CIS stallion pulled out the photo he borrowed from Fulbright (while at the same time, he slipped the feather into the same pocket). ‘The same mare in the photo.’
Said mare turned her attention towards Fulbright and stomped up to him, which elicited the security guard to step back slightly. The violet mare leaned at the blue stallion and had her eyes narrowed, “What were you doing when this happening?!”
“Uh, w-well,” Fulbright gulped at the mare’s glare.
“This isn’t good at all!” The mare yelled out loud as she turned away from Fulbright and dashed back to the column, another hair from her mane stuck up. “Do you know what this means?!”
Night Jack blinked a few times as the violet mare kept on with her panic attack, and seemed to ignore the fact that he was even here. Back at the door, the CIS stallion noticed that Mayor Mare and the temp assistant were at the doorway, the former with a hoof to her forehead. “I take it this is what you were called to your office for, Miss Mayor?”
Mayor Mare sighed as she lowered her hoof to the floor, “Indeed, Mr. Night Jack, that is Twilight Sparkle, it was thanks to her that we were able to get this exhibit off the ground – And it was also thanks to her that we were able to acquire the Fiery Mustang for the exhibit. She had to call in a pretty big request to do so.”
“I would imagine it would,” Night Jack muttered under his breath.
“But tell me, Mr. Night Jack,” the mayor mused as she trotted closer to the stallion in question. “Have you learned anything at all about this incident?”
“At the moment, I do have a theory and some evidence,” Night Jack answered back as he lowered his fedora. “And with what information that I have, I believe I’ve found out when the theft occurred.”
“R-Really?! That’s great news!” Mayor Mare sighed with relief. “You’ve only been here for less than half an hour and you already pinned down this much? As expected of a member of the CIS! Please tell me what you’ve found out!”
“Before I do, Mayor Mare,” Night Jack replied as he sat down on the carpet and rubbed his hoof on his vest. “There are a few things that I need to confirm with you.”
“Anything to help with your investigation, Mr. Jack,” Mayor Mare said with a nod.
“Good, now, from what I was able to gather from Mr. Fulbright over there,” the CIS started as he craned his head around to see that Fulbright was getting his ears chewed off by Twilight. “He was the only one with a key to this room last night, is that correct?”
“That it is,” Mayor Mare replied.
“Isn’t that a little risky though?” Jack questioned as he lifted a hoof up. “What if the key got lost, or if Fulbright wasn’t trustworthy?”
“We had a little trouble a couple years ago with security,” Mayor Mare sighed with her head lowered slightly. “So this time we wanted to make sure nothing went wrong. Mr. Fulbright is one of the best in the security business – and he was recommended for his reputation: Canterlot, Hoofington, Manehatten, and many other cities who had hired him said that he was one of the best around.”
‘The guy certainly seems gung-ho about his job,’ Night Jack thought to his head. ‘And a little too quick to jump into action – He tackled me without a second thought!’
“As for the single key issue, there is a spare key, but that one was kept with me at all times, and I still have it with me.”
‘Consistent with what Fulbright said,’ Night Jack noted in his head. “Alright, then tell me, were you here when the lightning struck the building?”
“Why, yes I was,” Mayor Mare answered with a nod.
“And what time would you say that happened?”
“Well, I was in my office at the time,” Mayor Mare recounted to herself as she tapped her chin with her hoof. “Oh, but I was too busy with my paperwork to look at the clock…” She turned to the temporary assistant. “Do you remember what time it was when that happened?”
“Actually, I do,” The temp replied with a smile. “I was making you some tea at the time and I had to watch the time to make sure it was just right – The tea was finished around twenty after the eighth hour, and it took a few minutes to prepare and serve it, so, I would guess a touch before eight-thirty, maybe.”
‘Once again, consistency,’ Night Jack thought to himself before he crossed his forehooves at his chest. “Then one more thing Miss Mayor, I assume you have a list of everypony who was assisting with the setup of the event?”
“But of course,” Mayor Mare said. “This office is nothing, if not organized!”
“Could you check to see if a yellow pegasus was amongst the workers and security?” Jack requested as he waved a hoof. “Also, if it is possible, do you have a listing of the weather ponies who work in town as well?”
“I’m not sure,” Mayor Mare answered with her head lifted up in deep thought. “I could request it from the Weather Ponies though… But may I ask why?”
Reaching into his vest, Night Jack pulled out the yellow feather and lifted up to Mayor Mare and her temporary assistant. “It’s just a theory at the moment, but there was this feather I found where the lightning struck – So, I’d like to confirm my suspicions.”
“A possibility for a suspect?” Mayor Mare asked as Jack slipped the feather back into his vest.
“Depends – Could just be a witness or a random feather that was dropped by a pegasus,” Jack answered. “But I’d need those listings.”
“Right, we’ll go get those as soon as possible,” the mayor answered before she nodded towards the temp assistant. “Let’s go immediately.”
“W-Wait a second,” Jack coughed out, which garnered both mares’ attentions. “C-Could I trouble either of you for a cup of coffee?”
“Oh right! My apologies!” The temp gasped with a nervous smile on her face. “I forgot about your coffee!”
“It’s alright,” Jack sheepishly chuckled. “But whenever you get a chance I could really, go for a cup of… And you’re gone.”
Indeed, the two mares had walked away while Jack asked for his drink. With a sigh, Night Jack slowly trotted back to the column and looked it over in deep thought. ‘Until I get that information, I won’t be able to continue with that theory at the moment. I suppose I could question…’
“Excuse me,” a familiar voice called out to the CIS detective.
Night Jack turned his head slightly to see Twilight Sparkle now standing a few feet from him. The stallion coughed slightly and smiled, “Ah yes, how can I…”
“You’re the CIS agent that Mayor Mare hired, correct?” Twilight interrupted as she looked deep into Jack’s eyes.
The CIS detective nodded as he adjusted his hat. “Indeed I am, Detective Night Jack.” The stallion lifted up his hoof towards Twilight with a slight smile on his face. “A pleasure to meet you.”
Hesitantly, Twilight took his hoof and they shook their hooves for a few moments before they pulled back, and the mare sighed slightly, “Twilight Sparkle, and thanks for coming all this way.”
“It’s in the job description,” Jack answered back as he turned back to the column. “Tell me if I’m wrong, but are you also a part of this exhibition?”
“No, that’s right,” Twilight sighed as she looked to the same column. “I still can’t believe that this happened though. Thefts hardly ever happen in Ponyville.”
“These sorts of things happen more often than you think,” Night Jack answered back under his breath. “But that's beside the point, would it be alright if I asked you a couple questions? Any information you have could be helpful.”
For a moment, Twilight didn’t answer. Rather, she took a deep breath and slowly turned towards Night Jack. “Mr. Jack, if I may say something?”
“Of course,” Jack replied.
“I… This town hasn’t had the best record with the CIS,” Twilight stated rather bluntly, which made Jack blink a few times. “I mean, I’m not trying to be rude or question your personal abilities, but the last time there was an incident like this and we had an agent of the CIS come here, one of my friends was accused of being the leader to a dragon egg smuggling ring. That agent made the accusation, but of course the allegations were false of course, but…”
Jack’s eyes widened, he brought his hoof to his chest which forced his fedora to slouch slightly over right eye. A small cold sweat slowly dipped onto the side of his head, ‘Damn it! I know exactly who would pull a stunt like that! Well, at the very least, now I know why Mayor Mare said she was reluctant to get the CIS’s services again, but if his reckless actions cause complications now…’
Trying to regain his composure, Jack adjusted his hat and turned towards Twilight, “R-Regardless of past experiences, the CIS is only here to help solve this mystery. So I ask that you please answer my questions – The more information I have at my disposal, the better chance that such false accusations will be avoided. I give you my word as an investigator.”
Twilight smiled as she turned towards Jack, “Very well, Mr. Jack, please ask away.”
‘I think I can still sense a little bit of hesitation with her,’ Jack thought as he sat down on the carpeting once more. ‘I wonder if she’ll hold back on some information – Well, one way to find out…’
“What exactly was your role in the exhibit, Miss Sparkle? Fulbright showed me a photo of you, himself and the Mayor in here last night.”
“Yes, we did take a photo last night,” Twilight answered with a hoof to her chin. “We wanted to make sure everything was set up for the exhibition. Ever since I came to Ponyville over two years ago, I wanted to help this town in any way possible.”
“Was that all the help you gave?” Jack questioned.
“Hmm? Does it really matter how much help I provided?” Twilight retorted with her head tilted at the investigator.
“You never know what sorts of details can be helpful in an investigation,” the CIS detective replied as he adjusted his hat. “Even the tiniest of instances can hold the biggest of clues – So, how else did you help out with the exhibit?”
A small twinge of pink graced Twilight’s face before she coughed, “W-Well, you see, I was the one who managed to get the Fiery Mustang here.”
It took a few moments to sink into Jack’s mind before his eyes widened, “W-What?! Wow! R-Really? How’d you get something like that here?”
Twilight rubbed the back of her head with her hoof, “I kind of got some connections with some very important ponies. And it wasn’t easy to get it here, the Fiery Mustang’s practically a national treasure in Neigh Zealand.”
“Sounds like you’re just the pony who can tell me what’s so special about this Fiery Mustang thing,” Jack mumbled out loud.
“You never heard of it before?” Twilight asked as her horn glowed a bright violet and from her saddlebags, the unicorn levitated a small yellow leaflet in front of the investigator. “Here’s the exhibit’s pamphlet – It has some information about the Fiery Mustang as well as a map detailing the exhibits.”
“Thanks,” Jack stated as he lifted the pamphlet from the magical aura and unfolded it. “Mind if I give it a quick look over?”
“Not at all,” Twilight replied as the investigator poured his attention into the small paper.
Inside the paper, there was a large circular diagram in the center of it with several different notes on it. On the right side of the circle was a small square block that was named ‘Clothing of Cultures’, on the left side block it read ‘Many forms of Art’, opposite of where the door was ‘Stage’, and in the center was another circle that had ‘Fiery Mustang’.
Jack raised an eyebrow at the drawing. ‘That’s a… Rather simple looking design.’
The CIS Investigator turned his head to his left to see that a number of clothes covered what appeared to be several paintings hung on the wall. ‘Dunno how I missed those things… I guess I was more interested in the blue tarp area.’
With a quick flip of the pamphlet, Jack looked at the illustration of the Fiery Mustang with a little text box underneath it. ‘The Fiery Mustang was made by Crown Glass in Neigh Zealand over two hundred years ago. Within the statue’s chest is a Fire Ruby.'
‘I dunno why ponies make such a big deal over these shiny things, I guess gleaming rocks in smooth glass are just attractive.’
Night Jack quickly slipped the pamphlet into his vest pocket, “Well, that was informative.”
Twilight nodded at the investigator, “Good to hear. I try my best to give the best possible information to anypony.”
“Then shall we continue with our little Q and A?” Jack questioned, getting another nod from the purple mare. “Thank you. Was there anything out of place last night while you were setting up the exhibits?”
Twilight took a few moments to reach deep into her memory, her eyes closed to recall the previous night’s events. “Hmm, well, nothing really comes to mind – Then again, I was busy helping setting up the exhibits and made sure that the Fiery Mustang was safe throughout the preparations. The security and staff here at City Hall are some of the most dependable around.”
“Interesting that you bring them up,” the investigator continued with a small smirk as he tucked one of his hooves into his vest. “Tell me something Miss Sparkle, where there pegasai amongst the crew working here last night?”
“Well, we needed to set up some of the paintings and tarps, so yes.”
“Then perhaps you could tell me if any of them happened to be yellow?” Jack stated as he pulled out the yellow feather. “I found this feather here and…”
Jack stopped himself when he noticed something – Twilight’s eyes pupils had shrunk at the mere sight of the feather, her muzzle had scrunched up slightly and she remained silent as Jack trailed off. “Miss Sparkle, is everything alright?”
Twilight shook her head and turned her head slightly. “W-Well, yes. Yes, I’m fine.”
The CIS stallion raised a brow. Though he was about to speak…
“Mr. Jack!”
Night Jack turned his head back to see that Mayor Mare and her temp assistant trotted through the doors to the exhibit hall. The temp assistant’s horn glowed a bright green, two manila folders levitated over her form. The CIS agent slipped the feather into his pocket before he trotted over to the two, “Miss Mayor, Miss… I don’t think I ever caught your name.”
“Oh, there’s no need to worry about that,” the temp assistant replied as she floated the two folders before Jack. “I am but a simple temp employee.”
“And introductions are the least of our concerns,” Mayor Mare continued as Jack sat down and lifted his hoof up to take the two folders from the aura. “We managed to get the files you requested Mr. Jack – The listing of the weather ponies as well.”
“That… Was actually pretty quick,” Jack admitted with a couple blinks. “I’m surprised you were able to find the files rather quickly.”
“Never underestimate the power of city hall,” Mayor Mare proudly proclaimed. “Thanks to the keen filing system we have, we were able to find the listing for the ponies who worked on the exhibit.
“And as for the Weather Ponies, one of my assistants flew out to get the information in question from their office.”
‘How many assistants does a mayor need?’ Jack thought as he looked through the file – Taking note that alongside the name, age, and type off ponies that were listed there was also a photo of said ponies next to the information. After a few minutes, Jack closed the folder and opened the other folder to scan the information – Luckily, it was recorded in the same manner.
After letting the information sink in for a few moments, Night Jack took a deep breath and closed the folders. “Just as I thought.”
Everypony in the room turned towards the CIS agent as he lowered his hat over his eyes. Mayor Mare trotted up to the stallion, “And what exactly are your thoughts, Mr. Jack?”
“According to the files you just handed me,” Jack replied as he craned his head up. “There were no yellow pegasai here during this exhibit’s planning or when it was being set up. In addition, the report from the Weather Ponies also says the same thing – There were no yellow pegasai currently employed in the weather service.”
It was then that Jack reached into his vest and pulled out the yellow feather from it, “So that leaves a rather interesting question at our hooves – Where did this feather come from?”
“You can’t mean that…” Fulbright questioned.
“Yes, there is a strong possibility that the feather could belong to the thief,” Jack interrupted as he held the feather up higher.
“S-So, what should we do now?” Mayor Mare asked as the CIS agent pocketed the feather back into his clothing. “I think we have a registration of ponies here in Ponyville… But looking through all the files would take a lot of time and…”
“There’s no need to do that,” Jack answered back with a slight smile on his muzzle.
“Huh? Why is that?” the Mayor asked.
Jack didn’t answer.
All he did was trot over to Twilight and looked down at her. The purple mare stepped back slightly from the taller stallion, “W-What is it, Mr. Jack?”
“Miss Sparkle,” the CIS agent calmly stated. “Would you mind if we continued our little conversation?”
“Huh? Why?” Twilight asked.
“Mr. Jack, this is not the time for idle chatting!” Mayor Mare stated as she trotted alongside the Canterlot Stallion. “We need to find out what to do next!”
“That’s simple Mayor Mare,” Jack answered as he pushed up his hat before he turned back to Twilight. “Miss Sparkle – I believe we’ll continue with my line of questioning with this...
“Do you know the owner of this feather?”
TBC
