The Vagrant Star

Chapter 2: Working Vacation

September 14th, Year 1002 of Celestia’s Reign

(Present Day)

“Which scarf do you think looks more adventurous? Emerald, or fuchsia?”

“Ah dunno, which do ya think would look better in the dark?”

“I’m telling you this for the last time Applejack, it is not going to be pitch black the entire time. There will be many instances where I’ll be properly bathed in light, so I must without question”—

“Look good fer all the bats and snakes?”

“There’s no talking to you about things like this.”

Rarity let out a deep sigh and went back to packing her things. Applejack knew she was pouting and decided to cease her teasing for the moment and throw her a bone.

“Do yah happen to have anythin’ in red?” Applejack asked, already knowing the answer. “It makes yer eyes look real pretty.”

“Red is the spirit of adventure, isn’t it?” Rarity asked rhetorically, simply thinking out loud for her own benefit. “It has certain…je ne se quoi. Oh, you know me so well, Applejack!”

“Aw shucks. It ain’t nothin’.”

“Quite the contrary my dear.” Rarity said with a dreamy smile.

“So, what exactly are ya’ll lookin’ for anyhow?”

“We’re not looking for anything per se, or at least I’m not.” Rarity said, rolling her eyes distantly as she continued to stuff clothing and trinkets into her saddlebags. “Daria promised she’d let me know the next time she stumbled upon some location of interest.”

“And why exactly is that?”

“Because I threatened her of course. How else is a lady supposed to get ahead in these tough times? If not for a little good-natured persuasion where would we be?” Rarity asked, trying to sound innocent.

“Ah meant why aren’t y'all looking fer anythin’.”

“Oh.” Rarity blushed slightly before continuing. “It’s possible to find many treasures in the places we go. Daria is usually in search of something specific, whereas I play the part of an opportunist.”

“And y’all do this sorta thing often?” Applejack asked, sounding worried.

“Quite often, though usually on our own. We only go together when it’s in our interest to do so, which probably means she needs me for something.” Rarity said. “Where do you think I get some of my rarest jewels?”

“Ah didn’t think to question it.” Applejack said plainly.

“Whatever the case, I shouldn’t be gone long. I’m sure you have work to do while I’m away. At the very least you should try to make sure Fluttershy doesn’t have her hooves filled with…you know.” Rarity said somberly.

“Volt sure is handful these days. Hard to blame him after what happened to Aurora.” Applejack said in a disappointed tone. “And Ah wish. The harvest was finished a few days ago, an’ Ah reckon the clean-up is nearly through. Ah’m gonna have almost nothin’ to do until ya’ll wrap up winter again!”

Rarity’s eyes lit up and she focused all of her attention on the tan earth pony. “Nothing at all? You mean to tell me you actually have time to spend with me?”

“The only chores left to do aren’t anythin’ too demandin’, so the crusaders offered to take ‘em up in pursuit of their talents.” Applejack smiled sweetly as she thought of the trio. “Big Mac and Granny Smith are happy to watch ‘em rather than do the work themselves, so Ah’m out of a job so to speak.”

“Well then… Applejack?” Rarity asked, pouring on her charm and focusing her puppy dog eyes on the mare.

Applejack sighed audibly and rolled her eyes with a smile. “Yes, Rarity?”

“Do you think that since you’re very clearly free of any obligations…” Rarity said, pausing for dramatic effect, “…that you would do me the honor of coming with me on my little trip? I’ll even throw in a little reward for your trouble!”

“And what might that be?”

Rarity’s gaze softened as she leaned in next to Applejack’s left ear. She whispered something to the mare and giggled as she pulled away to behold the cowpony’s face. Applejack was a bright, flustered red, and she wore a very telling smile. She took off her Stetson hat and began to fan her face with it hurriedly.

“It’s mighty hot in here, don’tcha think?”

“You tell me.” Rarity said with a seductive look in her eyes.

“Ah was practically raised in a barn and that sounded dirty to me…”

Rarity laughed a bit, satisfied she’d made her case. “So, is that a yes?”

“Yer darn tootin’! Ah just gotta let the family know and get packed.” Applejack stated. “Anythin’ Ah should know?”

“You’ll learn along the way. Just wear the vest Reginald and I made for you and bring whatever you deem necessary for an exploratory trip.” Rarity said. “Oh, and Applejack?”

“Rarity.”

“Be ready to meet the one pony in Equestria more overconfident than Rainbow Dash.”

“Well, Ah’ve been ready tah meet her for over an hour now. Where is she?”

“She’ll be along shortly. Settle down.”

“Fine…”

Rarity and Applejack stood idly by the northern end of the Everfree Forest, clad in their vests and watching over their saddlebags as they stood beside them. The third member of their group had yet to show up, leaving Applejack in an impatient mood.

“She’s supposed to be worse than Rainbow Dash?”

“You’ve asked me that four times, dear.”

“But is it really true?”

“You can ask her yourself. There she is now.” Rarity nodded her head in the opposite direction of Applejack's gaze.

Applejack turned where Rarity was looking and her jaw almost hit the floor. Walking towards them was a very familiar looking pony. A khaki coat, Magenta eyes, and a gray scale striped mane were all ringing more than a few bells. The mare had a small orange rose in her hair and wore saddlebags labeled with a decorative compass face on either side. The bags left room at her sides for her wings, and showed her cutie mark, the same design seen on her bags.

“Ain’t she that story book character? Ah though she wasn’t real!”

“She isn’t the character; she’s the author of Daring Do.” Rarity explained. “Daria created Daring Do so she could exaggerate her own adventures.”

“She looks exactly like the mare on the cover!” Applejack said in surprise.

“Based on a true story, remember?” Rarity said in a sweet tone before walking towards the newcomer. “Daria! How are you darling?”

“It’s been far too long, Rarity.” The khaki mare said sincerely, wrapping her hoof around the unicorn. Her smooth, homely voice surprised Applejack. “I’m doing great. Now tell me, is this the humble little farm girl you’ve fallen head over hooves for?”

“Ah’d be the one. Mah name’s Applejack, and it’s a pleasure tah meet ya!” Applejack lifted her hat to the mare.

“I can see why she fell for you already. Well-mannered, a charming accent… And my god Rarity, her figure?” Daria said, pouring over the mare.

“Daria!”

“What? She’s absolutely gorgeous! I’ve been trekking across the globe for years and still don’t have a body like that!”

“Ah appreciate the compliments. Ya seem like a very nice pony.”

“Don’t sound too surprised. I know Rarity loves telling everypony how insufferable I am.” Daria looked over to the white unicorn with a sly smile. “The look on her face tells me that I’m right to think she’s prepared you for me.”

“In a sense. She never said anythin’ bad about you, just that you’re real enthusiastic.” Applejack said with a genuine smile.

“Well, it looks like this trip is going to be a lot more fun now that you’re coming.” Daria said with excitement. “C’mon ladies, lets hit the road.”

The mare walked straight into the woods without hesitation, breaking the tree line in the most random of spots. Rarity walked towards the same area almost immediately after.

“Don’t y’all think we should”—

“Trust me Applejack, this is the best way. Not the easiest, but the best.” Rarity cut her off and turned her head slightly as she walked. “We can walk and talk dear; it would be wise to keep up.”

No sooner had she finished her sentence did the unicorn disappear into the foliage as well, leaving Applejack to play catch-up. The Stetson-clad pony quickly walked into the brush after the two mares and found that they were already a ways away.

Applejack quickened her pace, stepping over odd looking plants and pushing low hanging branches away from her face. She saw no sign of Daria in the distance, but caught sight of Rarity’s back half entering a large shrub.

The southern mare broke into a small run as she came up on the plant, trying to catch up to her companions. She pushed on through it and found Rarity standing there waiting with a smile on her face, and Daria rooting through her bags rather chaotically.

“Get ready.” Rarity whispered cheekily.

“Ready fer what?”

“Deep in the wilderness, surrounded by the menagerie of nature’s twisted fauna, Daring Do roots through her supplies, desperately searching for her most important possession!”

“No. She’s kiddin’ right?” Applejack turned to Rarity who stood idly with a smug grin plastered onto her face. “Right!?”

“Ahah! The adventure truly begins!” Daria produced a set of safari-like survival gear and began dressing herself with it.

“Clearly I do nothing but exaggerate.” Rarity said, rolling her eyes slyly.

“What does she do? Pretend to be the character from her book?” Applejack asked quietly, trying not to stare at the mare in disbelief.

“You misunderstand, there isn’t really a character. It’s her, and only her. She’s beyond theatrical, and writing about her own adventures is how she validates her own worth.”

“You mean it’s how I let the world know about the everyday struggles of a brave adventurer.” Daria corrected the unicorn. “It’s a service to those too ordinary to be extraordinary.”

“And that’s why she doesn’t write about her companions in a very flattering way.” Rarity said with evident disappointment. “Sharing the spotlight would be too much to ask of such a mare.”

“Wait, are we”—

“A part of my next best-selling novel? Yes, yes you are!” Daria said, raising her hooves into the air theatrically. “Daring Do and the Journey to Fire-gate!”

“What…” Applejack was visibly perturbed. “We’re goin’ where now?”

“Firegate! The last known gathering place of the Cult of Revelation!”

“The Cult of what?”

“Don’t worry about it Applejack. These wild goose chases tend to favor a dull resolution. While the dangers are certainly real, the actual events in her stories are distorted more than a smidgen.” Rarity said, shooting a look towards the khaki mare.

“I choose to remain silent in favor of avoiding self-incrimination, thank you very much.” Daria said, stowing her orange rose in her saddlebags. Now fully dressed in her gear, she looked the part of the adventurer of her creation. “And this time I did my research. There wasn’t much to go on, but there are real records of an organization that went by the name Cultui de Apocalypsis. The translation today equates to the Cult of Revelation.”

“But Firegate?” Rarity asked doubtfully.

“Ignis Portum.” The mare said decidedly. “Rarity, I only called you because I’m sure. You told me not to unless it was something really amazing. I’m telling you…this is bigger than Saddle Arabia.”

Rarity’s eyes lit up in amazement mixed with disbelief. “Daria...you can’t be serious.”

“I am. It’s a good thing you brought your marefriend here. We’re gonna need help on this one.”

“What have Ah gotten myself into here exactly?” Applejack asked, looking in between the two mares.

“Danger. Terror. Precarious positions and near death experiences,” Daria said calmly, looking at Applejack with wonder, “And quite possibly, the most important historical expedition of this century.”

“Ah can't exactly disagree. That sounds mighty interestin'.”

“Then it's settled! Into nature we go!”

“We're already in nature, dear.” Rarity supplied with a smile.

“FURTHER into nature we go!” Daria yelled enthusiastically, not missing a beat.

“Celestia help me...” Applejack said to herself, following the pegasus into the underbrush.

“I can't do this anymore! You keep leaving, and you don't come back for days at a time!” Fluttershy said, her voice becoming audible.

“I told you what I'm doing! Why don't you just let me work!?”

“Because that's all you do anymore! Ever since Aurora... You don't even talk to me anymore!” The mare shot back.

“I'm sorry, but this is important. I can't just sit here while her killer is running around out there.”

“Then don't! Spend some time with me! Talk to your friends!”

“I can't do that, Fluttershy.”

“Then I can't do...” Fluttershy let out a deep sigh. “I can't do this.”

“What does that mean?”

“No, Rainbow Dash. I literally can't do this...” The mare sighed, looking up at her polychromatic friend sadly.

“Oh... Sorry.” Rainbow Dash said, dropping the act. “If it makes you feel any better, you're getting a lot more forceful with your comebacks.”

“I guess... I just don't know what I'm going to do when I see him again...” Fluttershy looked down at her hooves, scraping at the floor.

The dark tiles of the floor succeeded in bringing the mares mood down as always. The laboratory underneath Luna's guards chambers was truly a depressing place to be for the cream colored pony. Though her choice in activities weren't helping. Ever since Thundervolt began his self-imposed mission, he'd become increasingly distant and unavailable.

Maybe it wasn't the rooms fault she felt sad, but it wasn't exactly helping her either. She couldn't imagine ever feeling happy down there. The place was just brimming with unpleasant memories and the odd sensation that you were being watched.

“Fluttershy?”

“Oh-what?” She replied, stumbling on her words.

“I asked if you were alright.” Rainbow Dash said. “You just need to talk to him, get him to see your side of things.”

“I suppose...”

“If you want, I'll even herd him towards you. Celestia knows he's hard to get a hold of when he does show up.” The cyan pegasus rolled her eyes with disdain at the thought.

“T-Thank you...”

“What are friends for, Flutters? Come on, lets go see what the others are up to.”

“Ok. I wonder if Twilight and Reggie have made any progress?” Fluttershy said, perking up as she fell into step behind her friend.

“Progress with what? Every time I walk past him he's messing with something different.” Rainbow Dash said idly, keeping a relatively quick pace.

“I think he just like's to work on a few projects at time...”

“Well if you ask me, dividing your attention like that can't be good for efficiency.”

“Well I guess you've seen Twilight today.” Fluttershy remarked, smiling when she saw her friend blush slightly.

“Shut up.” The pegasus mare chuckled. “Every minute I spend with her I learn another new word and then suddenly I have the vocabulary of an egghead.”

“We've all been there.”

The two mares laughed with each other, both of them happy to shift their focus from the depressing subject matter. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy both heard voices coming from a room at the end of the labs left side and shifted their direction accordingly. As they got closer, the voices sounded more and more distinct, until they finally entered a small workshop that housed the three ponies they were looking for.

Vinyl Scratch was arguing with Reggie, as usual. Sometimes it was hard to tell they were together, because you'd never hear them say anything nice to each other. Octavia, Vinyl's long time friend, was standing in the corner of the room, watching the two with an amused stare. It seemed like she'd grown to enjoy the two yelling at each other.

“Vinyl, I asked you for the pneumatic drill. This is the pneumatic screwdriver.” The khaki unicorn stallion said, shooting his magenta gaze at his goggle-clad companion.

“Well sue me for not being an engineer! If you need me to differentiate between a bar chord and syncopation then you know where to find me.” She said, turning towards the newcomers. “It's about time you two showed up. I heard you guys yelling a mile away.”

Fluttershy's face turned red, and Rainbow Dash replied cooly. “That was nothing, just some rehearsal.”

“I hear that, sister.” Vinyl Scratch replied knowingly.

“Have either of you two heard from Twilight today?” Octavia asked.

“She's fine. Said she was going to try and talk to the princess about something.” Rainbow Dash replied.

“Sounds about right.” Reggie said, staring incredulously at a piece of machinery lying on the table beside him. “I hope she remembers to request an audience with Princess Luna for me.”

“You're trying to get an audience with the Princess?” Vinyl asked, turning towards the khaki stallion. “What for?”

“I just want to run some things by her.”

“What things?” Octavia asked, the rest of the room now curious as well.

“Things that I feel need to be addressed by the leadership. Come on guys, I'm underneath their castle. The least I can do is ask before I blow anything up.”

Vinyl Scratch went to reply, but closed her mouth and awaited for somepony else to ask her question.

“B-Blow up?” Fluttershy managed to choke out before she locked up.

“What are you doing that involves explosions?” Octavia asked nervously.

“Nothing.” Vinyl Scratch shot Reggie a look. “Nothing deliberate.”

“Lets just make sure we don't have to survive another explosion, alright?” Vinyl Scratch said in an oddly grim tone.

Everyone in the room knew what she was thinking of. They'd heard the story, and some had been there. A large block of explosives was made to go off in Reggie's old lab, a large skyscraper in the center of Manehattan. The explosion took out multiple floors, almost killing Vinyl Scratch, Reggie, and of all ponies, Pinkie Pie.

There was nopony left in the building at the time, so they were the only victims, but it was still a tumultuous time for the city. The incident was very obviously not an accident, and the resulting investigation culminated in the arrest of the C.E.O of Doodle Corp., Vivian Quartz. As the majority shareholder of the company, Reggie Doodle had to take control of the aftermath. He managed it, but ultimately decided to pursue other, more interesting research.

“Agreed. It's about time I got back to work on the main project anyway,” Reggie said, “We wouldn't want Twilight to have an aneurism, now would we?”

“Watch it Reggie, you wouldn't want me to have to kick your flank, would you?” Rainbow Dash replied, perhaps a little too darkly.

“Sorry. Please don't hurt me...” Reggie said, thinking about how badly the cyan mare could probably beat him.

“Yea, please don't. I need him in peak condition for sexytimes.” Vinyl Scratch said, diffusing the mood. “And Reggie, she's buff as hell. If you piss her off I'm not even gonna try to stop her.”

“This is so much better than any soap opera.” Octavia said quietly to Fluttershy, almost startling the mare as she stepped alongside her. “Though I wish they'd stop arguing once in a while.”

“Yes. That would be nice.” Fluttershy replied idly.

“Still not quite yourself?” Octavia observed, turning her gaze to the pegasus, “Would you like to talk about it?”

“If by 'it', you mean 'him', then no. Why would I want to talk about someone who doesn't even stop by to give me the time of day?”

Fluttershy surprised herself with her words, blushing slightly as the mare beside her chuckled in understanding. She looked at her friends, and took in a deep breath as her head sank towards the floor. Everypony else acted like nothing was wrong, as if the world wasn't falling apart around them. As the heartbroken pegasus let out a sigh, she thought that they didn't act like that because she was the only one who felt that desperate.

Octavia wore a look of surprise which she promptly wiped from her face as she responded.“I suppose that's a fair question. I'm willing to bet that you have a good enough reason.”

“Y-You are?”

“I may not know the details, but I can see you're eager to put this conflict to rest. Regardless of the outcome.” The cellist said with a slight melancholy.

“I just want to talk to him...”

“I'd like to see him as well... He promised to fill me in about”--

“Aurora?” Fluttershy put the word in her mouth. A warm look of recognition passed through Octavia as she let slip a small smile.

“Yes. Aurora.”

“Well if he'd ever come back for more than a few minutes, I'm sure he'd be happy to help you out.” Octavia was surprised at how sarcastic the sweet-voiced mare could be.

“Fluttershy?” Fluttershy and Octavia both turned their heads towards the open lab door.

Fluttershy recognized the voice after a moment and spoke with a confused tone. “Twilight? Twilight, where are you?”

The lavender mare poked her head through the door a few seconds later, answering Fluttershy's question without a word. Twilight Sparkle surveyed the room and found the usual suspects arguing in the corner with Rainbow Dash, along with two very confused looking mares burning a hole in her head.

“I've been looking for you, Fluttershy.” The unicorn perked up as she spoke. “I've got some good news!”

“What is it?”

“He's finally back.” Rainbow Dash froze and turned towards her marefriend with concern. Fluttershy looked at Twilight with a mix of features fighting for room on her face. “You've been waiting to talk to him.”

“It's gonna be alright, Shy.” Rainbow Dash spoke with conviction. “You can do this.”

Fluttershy inhaled deeply, letting out a pained sigh.

Thundervolt...