She ran through the barren streets of Canterlot’s midnight. The sound of her hooves and heavy breath echoing through the dark boulevards. She looked over her shoulder and found her pursuer missing, but she refused to give up as she knew what happened to those who were caught by this killer. She took a desperate turn down an alleyway in order to cut closer to her house, but was blocked by a high wall. Looking around, she spotted a large stack of crates that she could go hide behind.
She clutched a charm she kept on her as she regained her breath. The sole sound of hoofsteps permeated down the corridor, before they stopped, and a long shadow appeared on the wall that closed the alley. All was still for five seconds, which felt like hours to the hiding pony as she held her breath and cowered from the shadow, praying to the Alicorns for help. The sound resumed and faded away as the shadow disappeared. The hiding pony let out a sigh of relief.
She left her cover of crates, and a shriek pierced the night before she collapsed, dead. A figure stood before the corpse, holding a gleaming, red knife.
The figure walked away from the body, and disappeared out of the alley, just as several guards surrounded it. The expressions of the guards quickly turned to horror by the sight.
“Princess Luna, Princess Luna! It has happened again!” a guard rushed into Luna’s chambers, awaking the slumbering princess with the near perfection of the statement.
Wide awake, she inquired about the event, “Another pony was found? Are you sure it was the work of ‘The Alicorn Caller’?”
“Yes my Princess. The body was found hanging in the center of a closed alleyway, strung by the arms by their own intestines. The abdomen was sliced and pinned wide open, completely empty of said intestines. There was also wasn’t a single drop of blood anywhere on or in the body or in the alley except for on the far wall. The blood was unmistakably painted in the shape of an Alicorn,” the guard confirmed.
“The family was notified?”
“Yes, Princess Luna, they had been informed upon identification, and have received compensation for the loss. They were consumed in grief upon receiving the news.”
“And cleanup, how has that progressed? We don’t need any more publicity during this temporary peaceful time. It would just be more of a humiliation to us if this continues,” Luna continued her inquiry.
“Well, not so good. We were able to remove the body with ease, but we can’t seem to wash the blood away as it has once again been enchanted with the same magic we can’t identify. It’s only a matter of time before the media gets ahold of this and creates more panic.”
“I see… Make sure that the ponies who cleaned the site receive their payment.” Luna pondered a bit before continuing, “You said that the blood was on the far wall of the alley?”
“Yes, Princess.”
“Have you tried casting an illusion spell to cover the wall, or make the alley disappear completely?”
“I’m sorry, but we have. It didn’t work. The same magic that is keeping the blood on the wall, is keeping us from doing anything to the alley. We can’t even block it.”
“Very well then. This is a very puzzling situation. I’m not sure how this killer manages to elude us of themself, but let’s lay out what we know of them. Firstly, the calling card of blood in the shape of an Alicorn, and the strung up body. Secondly, they use magic, so they must be a unicorn...”
It was this moment that another guard rushed through the doors and submitted their statement, along with a newspaper, “Princess Luna, the media has gotten ahold of the newest mark and printed.”
Luna remained calm, already prepared for this, and took the newspaper. After reading the newest headlines, which was full about the killer, she announced the deciding actions to take, “I want the guard to harass the unicorns. We need to reduce the undertones of accusations in this paper, and show that we are working to solve the main subject. We need to find this killer to stop the developing of a terrible royal reputation. Take me to the site; I will see if I can dispel the magic.”
“Yes Princess,” the two guards simultaneously announced.
Luna flew down into the center of the alley, feeling the strong residual magic as she came into proximity. A rancid scent hung in the air and was easily distinguished. She looked back at the crowd that had gathered, at current dawn, to see the spectacle and ridicule to the Alicorns. Among them was the distraught family of the mare, wondering what type of moral this abominable pony, which had done this, had.
Luna watched for only a short time before refocusing, but it was enough see the crowd grow as news spread like a parasite. Focusing back on her task, she started to manipulate her magic, distorting and pulling the heavy residual magic around her into a new state. Slowly, the magic wavered, then broke, flowing free from its confines.
Turning back to the ponies who were still gathering, she notice that she had wandered past the crates. Something about the crates caught her eye, and upon inspection, the object was noticed as a white charm with a sun in the center. She called over one of the guards that was holding back the line and inquired about it.
“Strange, we did a thorough check on the alley for anything. This is the first time we have seen this,” the guard responded.
“Was that before or after you removed the body?” Luna questioned.
“Before, my Princess, we always have checked places for clues before we touch or remove anything, as standard procedure.”
The family of the dead mare watched this interaction and faintly spotted the paper. The mother called out, “That isn’t a fake, right? Is that really the charm that was given to our daughter?”
Luna walked past the guard, whom she had called, and approached the family, “You know of this charm?” the family nodded, “Then tell me what you know of it. You wouldn’t want to obstruct our investigations, would you?”
The mother continued to speak, “No, never Princess Luna, any information that will help catch this pony, whom we detest, we will gladly give.”
“Good. But we can’t talk about it here. I don’t want to possibly start more panic. I’m going to give you a choice this once; if you want to back out, now is the time to do so. However, I will make sure you get the proper protection if you cooperate with me. I will have some guards escort you to the castle so that we may talk more privately. I will expect to see you and possibly your family in our conference room in an hour, if you so chose to come. Right now, I need to finish up here,” Luna concluded before she faced the mark and cast a long spell to destroy it completely.
Luna met with the parents, of the family of now three, in one of the castles many, secure conference rooms. Before she began her inquiry, she made sure they understood the risks, “You realize that by doing this, you three are liable to become the next victims of this killer?” the whole two nodded, and Luna continued after laying the paper on the table, “Alright, first is what you know about this charm: when your daughter received it, from whom, were the transaction took place.”
The father was the one to speak first, “Our daughter had been distressed for about a year before this whole murder thing took place. Her conditions had been getting worse, and no amount of therapy or medication seemed to do anything for her. Then the first murder happened, and we all went into a panic, just like the rest of Canterlot.”
The mother took over at this point, “We all thought that the killing was a random event. Well, except for our daughter. She was affected more deeply than the rest of us because the pony that was killed was a friend of hers. She met up with a couple of her other friends around noon the same day. She had disappeared for the night and we were starting to get worried until she walked back into the house around 4 A.M. the next day. She had come in happy, almost all traces of her distress gone. We tried asking where she had gone, but she refused us an answer. She, instead, told us that she was feeling better thanks to this charm that she had received from her friends.”
Luna once again spoke up, “And these friends, what of them?”
Both parents looked away before the father answered, “They were all killed as well. We now think that whoever was targeting these ponies, were after her and her friends. I don’t know why, but this killer was after them.”
“Are there any more of her friends that I could pull in and talk to?” Luna inquired.
“No, we kept good track of our daughter when her distress continued. Part of this was the ponies she hung out with, and all of them are now dead. We beg you, Princess; find the pony responsible for these murders. We fear that we might be the next targets,” the mother pleaded
“Don’t worry my subjects. I will take the proper precautions to make sure that you, and your family, are safe. I thank you for this information as we now have a commonality between the victims. Now go home. A few of my guards will make sure that you are protected.”
The two parents bowed and said their thanks before leaving, escorted by four guards, leaving Luna to think about the actions that she could take.