Mark of Baen

The following morning, Baen sat up straight, picking an hour before his train had to leave to start packing the essentials.  He placed a saddle bag on his kitchen table and started to stuff food, a canteen, and other small things into it.  As he packed, he heard a knock on the door.  Straightening himself, he ventured to the front door and opened it to reveal two familiar faces.

“Hey Baen,” Vinyl stated, “How’re you doin?”

Baen glanced at both Vinyl and Cheerilee, “Um…fine, what brings you two by so early?  Something happen?”

Cheerilee waved her hoof, “Oh no, nothing’s wrong we were…just curious.”

“About?”

Vinyl gestured behind him, “Well the bag packing for one.  And the fact that me and Lee here were out and about last night and saw you getting train tickets,” she raised an eyebrow, “So spill.  What’s going on?”

Baen flatly stated, “I’m going on another vacation for a while.”

Cheerilee blinked in surprise, “But you just got back.”

“Yeah,” his eyes looked to the side for a second before focusing back on them, “I remembered that….I left…something….in the place…..,” he quickly added, “It was nice talking to you two again and I hope that we can do it again, but I’m in a rush sorry.”

He slammed the door and locked it.

Vinyl tilted her head, “Somepony is lying,” he glanced at a steeled Cheerilee, “How long do your holidays last?”

Cheerilee responded flatly, “All this summer starting today.”

Vinyl smiled evilly, “Perfect.”

*

Sitting in her throne within her citadel, Vida consulted her crystal ball and looked into it intently.  Baen was looking from side to side ensuring he wasn’t followed as he navigated the streets of the rustic town she herself had frequented for a time.  Tittering lightly she smiled at the image of him boarding the train.

“Hm…it seems Baen isn’t going to lay down and wait for me,” she pursed her lips and spoke in a kissy voice, “He’s going to pay me a visit.”

Mulberry stared incredulously at the stallion displayed in the ball from his spot beside the throne.  He couldn’t understand why, but he felt a bigger dislike for this…Baen stallion.  Was it dislike?

“My lady,” Mulberry asked, “If he does intend to come and do you harm, allow me and some of the stronger dogs to intercept him.”

Vida shook her head with a light smile, “Oh my dear Mulberry, you must understand,” she kissed him lightly on the cheek, “I have everything well in hoof.”

Mulberry started drooling like an imbecile after the kiss.

Vida turned her attention back to the ball and tapped her chin, “Hm, this Crystal Empire, it’s in the tundra correct?”

Mulberry nodded, “Blah.”

Vida stared evenly at him for a moment before her smile returned and took a much darker edge, “Well if that’s the case,” she reached into her robe and pulled out a tarot card, “I suppose I could make his journey there a little more interesting.”

The back of the card was jet black with an odd arcane marking on it.  On the front, it depicted a pony garbed in a garment of some form of which Mulberry couldn’t make out.  But the picture itself resembled stained glass in appearance; below the picture was an unfurled scroll for a name tag with two words in spidery hoof writing scrawled on it in black.

‘The Star.’

*

Baen yawned lightly as he curled up in his seat and started to doze off.  It had been a few hours since he had left Ponyville far behind him.  The train had long since transitioned into a calm mountainous region.  The calm rolling hills and the steady pace of the train coupled with his early awakening was the perfect excuse to catch up on some sleep.  As he drifted, he started thinking on his game plan, on major factor he had to look into was the sheer fact that he would have to get six magic swords…..and he only now realized he had no way to carry them.  His mind tried to piece together some form of sling of sword sack, when he heard his booth door open.  He remembered the last time he traveled on the train that a snack cart mare would go from booth to booth and offer snacks or tell passengers to make their dinner table reservations in the dining car.  He cracked open one eye to tell the kindly mare that for now he wanted to nap…but his eyes soon both opened fully.

“Wow, swanky booth B,” Vinyl casually stated as she entered, “how much you pay for it?”

Cheerilee sheepishly nudged the door closed, “Vinyl, it’s not polite to enter somepony’s room without knocking.  Even if it a friends room.”

Baen sat up fully, “Well that’s one way to put the term, stalking.”

Vinyl crossed her front legs as she sat down, “We weren’t stalking you, we were following you.”

Baen opened his front legs in mild anger with a flustered tone, “WHY?!”

Cheerilee was next to speak, “Because you’re acting suspicious.  We come to see you after you go on vacation and you rudely make us leave,” she then started to use the tone of voice she used when she scolded one of her students, “Then we find you packing again for another trip so soon.”

Vinyl tilted her glasses up, “Not only that, but we found out that you nabbed a ticket to the Crystal Empire, if that doesn’t scream suspicious, I don’t know what does.”

Baen scowled at her, “I can tell you this right now, I’m about to do some screaming.”

The ponies were about to start a threeway argument when the train gave a violent shake.  Baen snapped his head to the window and saw the vast tundra stretch out before them.  Shaking his head he turned back to the ponies, but he noticed they were staring out the window in mild fright.  Baen followed their gazes and noted that the rolling fields of white were passing by a little too quickly.  Baen got from his seat and ran into the hall, and he smelt it.

“Smoke….,” he turned to Cheerilee and Vinyl, his anger forgotten, “Who else was on this train aside from us?”

Vinyl shrugged, “Just the staff, dude, it’s an early commute.”

Baen’s eyes widened as the train shook violently once more, “We need to move.”

Cheerilee looked at Baen curiously as he gathered his axe and saddlebags, “What for?  I mean sure the train is going faster than normal and there’s smoke,” she placed a hoof on Baen’s chest, “The conductor probably wanted to get us there as soon as possible, and maybe the cooks burned something.”

Baen was about to voice his opinion, but a much harder shake and a loud screech met their ears.

Vinyl stood up sharply, “I say we get going while the getting is good.”

Cheerilee piped up in a high voice, “Agreed!”

The three ponies ran from the booth and into the dining cart and skidded to a halt.  Standing at the far end near the connecter that lead to the next cart over was another pony.  This pony however, was something entirely new to them.  The pony in question was garbed in odd attire to say the least.  Its body was garbed from head to toe in a marble white and smooth looking stone armor.  If anything, it was like its body was the armor.  The area’s where its joints were had gaps allowing for movement, and the armor plating fit it’s form snugly giving it it’s pony shape.  Its head was made of the same material and was carved in the perfect likeness of a pony unicorn with an emotionless face.  Within the eye holes of its mask was nothing.  Around its neck was a silver collar with metal spikes and attached to the collar was a black cape with silver insignia on the back.

Baen backed up as the pony advanced one step, “You two get behind me.”

Vinyl stared at the pony in question in mild fear, “Who…or what in the hay is that?!”

Cheerilee trembled as the masked pony advanced further, “Do you know him…or her Baen?”

Baen nodded, “It’s known as The Star.  All you need to know for now is that it’s not one to be taken lightly.”

From under The Star’s cape, it pulled a staff and placed it firmly standing up at its side.  The staff itself was made of polished dark brown wood with a large silver adornment at the top that resembled an upside down church bell with a runic star on it.  Surround the star was a circle of interlocking runes.

Cheerilee backed into the hall, “Do you think it killed the crew,” her voice evidently filled with terror.

Baen shook his head, “I doubt it.  It just wants us.”

The Star then stood flawlessly on its hind legs, its left front hoof curling around the staff.  Baen’s eyes widened in fear not only for himself, but for his new charges as The Star raised its staff.  Baen whipped around as he tackled both mares to the ground as the staff came down.  A loud metallic chime was heard as the star mark and runes gave off a bright white glow.  All that could be heard for miles around was a massive explosion of steel and wood.   And what could be seen?  A rolling infernal train half plummeting into the harsh tundra, and an odd pony vanishing in a flash of white accompanied by a bell toll.