New Trottland Yard Case 04 - Silver Cross behind barsby VisualPonyChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 1Silver Cross behind bars Chapter 1 “Let me at him! Damn it, let me go!”, I screamed, while ten Unicorns pressed me to the ground with their magic. Their faces bore a mutual expression of extreme strain. Absorbing the Luna cross seemed to have extended the amplifying spell to the rest of my body, so they had a hard time holding me. My boss stood in front of me, shaking his head as I tried to free myself from the magical grip. “We can't do that Inspector, and you know it. That Changeling was transferred here from Trottingham for trial. He's given a full confession, so it should be a quick one, but I just can't let you harm him while he is in our custody. Even though I understand your feelings ….”, he said in what I assumed was meant to be a comforting tone. Why was I acting out like this you might ask? Simple. Quickie, my boss at the Lusty Licker, had rallied a few friends after he had noticed my disappearance and overwhelmed the last surviving Changeling in his club. Smooth Tongue was his name, and he had confessed to having killed my cousin Frostmane by nailing her to a tree. I could only assume that he hoped to get off easy and avoid execution by confessing... As soon as my real boss had told me about this, I had galloped out of his office, trying to reach the holding cells. The result had been, that my boss had contacted every available Unicorn in the building to stop me. Four had been injured when I charged right through them, before this group subdued me right in front of the door that led to the cells. “He killed her! I don't care what you say! He doesn't deserve a fair trial! I'll turn him into paste!”, I shouted, tears running down my face. I had endured so much to get a chance for payback, and now the stallion that had sent me on this mission was denying me my revenge... “I'm truly sorry Silver... I shouldn't have sent you on that mission in the first place once I found out you two were related... But you leave me no choice. You are hereby suspended until further notice. Maybe a night or two in one of our special cells will cool your head a little. Don't think I enjoy this though....”, he said, nodding to the other Unicorns. The special cells were in the basement, or to be precise four hundred hooves below it, in solid rock. They had been build there to hold extremely dangerous prisoners, that could break out of the normal cells. Minotaurs, Hydras and other creatures were usually held there. That the boss thought I was dangerous enough to get a free stay there for a night or two was.... worrisome... I was remotely teleported into an empty cell, that was barely furnished. There were only a bed, a sink and a toilet in there. All of them were made out of magical metal, and therefor very hard to break. It didn't stop me from trying. My hooves connected with the sink first and I could feel them crack a little under the pressure of the blow. At that point, I didn't care. The physical pain was a welcome change to the emotional torture that I was living through. Frostmane, my favorite family member, was dead. Her murderer was just a few floors above me, and I didn't even get the chance to show him a thing or two... My left forehoof shattered under the force of my tenth blow. I screamed in pain, clutching the bleeding appendage to my chest while crying. How could the boss deny me my revenge, after all I had went through to fulfill my stupid mission? It just wasn't fair. Couldn't he just have turned a blind eye for once? After a while I wanted to start bucking at the bed again, but a low hissing sound stopped me. Somepony had decided that it was bedtime apparently, since I soon recognized the sweet smell of sleeping gas.... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Smooth Tongue lay in his cell, a ring on his horn blocking his magic. These Ponies would most likely kill him for what he did, but he didn't care too much. His soul would feed his mistress once he died, and so he would still serve his brothers cause. There had been a commotion earlier, and the guards had talked about a mare called “Silver Cross”, that had apparently wanted to turn him into paste... He wondered why they didn't just let her do her thing. If he was correct, then this mare they had talked about, was the same mare that had started to sniff around the Lusty Licker. She deserved her revenge in his eyes, and he would be glad to give it to her if he had the chance. Even though, deep inside, he didn't want to die, it was surely better then this tedious waiting game he had to play right now. Just as he was about to drift off to sleep, the entire floor of his cell went dark. The light from the hallway was suddenly unable to illuminate the concrete floor, and he could hear a small chuckle from the darkness. A mare came from the darkness, shrouding herself in shadows so he could barely even make out her gender. Her icy voice addressed him, and his blood froze in his veins. He didn't care about dying but this... this.... A spear of pure darkness formed in the air next to the mare, and shot right through his left foreleg. Smooth Tongue screamed in great pain as it nailed him to the wall. Hoofsteps came galloping towards his cell. The guards were coming to help him. They must have seen what was going on through the security camera in his cell, but Smooth Tongue barely noticed that as three more spears impaled his remaining legs. He was now nailed to the wall, his legs spread wide. “No... Mercy... Please have mercy...”, he pleaded, but a fifth spear shot through his lungs, transforming his pleas into bloody coughs. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO The two Unicorn guards reached the cell of their only prisoner, their horns already glowing with magic. What they had seen on the screens was unbelievable. How had that mare gotten in there? They came just in time to see the prisoner stop breathing. In the middle of the cell stood a white mare with a black mane and tail. Her face was splattered with Changeling blood as she looked at her work with an insane grin on her face. Then she looked over to the pair, and two blue eyes made their blood freeze. With a swishing sound, the mare disappeared into the ground, still smirking. One of the two stallions rushed off to get a doctor, while the other unlocked the cell and tried to help their prisoner. To his dismay, he had to discover that he was already way too late... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO I awoke slowly, my head pounding as if I had just went ten rounds against Celestia herself, when I noticed that I couldn't move. My eyes opened lazily, and I found myself strapped to a gurney, a magical forcefield engulfing me for additional security. Even my head was fixated, so I couldn't get a good look at my surroundings. “Finally awake, are you?”, I heard the familiar voice of my boss from my right. “What... What's going on here boss? Why am I bound like this?”, I asked, confused. “Don't you play innocent with me, Miss Silver Cross. You know exactly why you are here.”, he shot back angrily. “Ehm... What if I told you that I have no idea? The last thing I remember is being knocked out in that special cell, after I broke my hoof.”, I replied, trying to turn my eyes so I could look at the stallion. “You are charged with murder, Miss Cross. Last night, you used unknown means to enter the prisoners cell and murdered him brutally. Two eyewitnesses saw you escape through the floor, using some kind of shadow magic.” “Murder? You... You're joking, right? I admit that I tried to get at him yesterday, but you subdued me and put me into that cell. I raged a little in there, before I got knocked out by some kind of sleeping gas. Besides... Shadow magic? I haven't even figured out how to use the powers of the Luna Cross yet, so how am I supposed to even do what you claim I did?”, I inquired defensivly. “I would really love to believe you, but I can't. All the evidence points to you as the culprit, and then there is the witnesses. As of today, you are dishonorably discharged from the New Trottland Yard. Fifty Unicorn soldiers have been stationed outside of this room, in case you act out of line. They will kill you if you do, so please don't.” “But... boss... I'm innocent! Check the recording of my own cell! I didn't do anything!” “The surveillance equipment in the special holding cells malfunctioned yesterday evening, so there is no recording of your time in that cell.”, he said, and I could hear him pace up and down the room. From his behavior I could tell that he didn't like that part one bit. Neither did I for that matter. All the cameras failed, while I was supposed to have killed that Changeling, while the one in his cell conveniently worked? That sounded like a giant pile of Horse-apples to me... “Are you sure you did not do it, Silver?”, he asked after a while. “Yes, sir!”, I confirmed with all the enthusiasm that I could muster. “Very well... I'll look into it, since you have never once lied to me so far. Even if you have a motive, it just sounds way too much like you were set up for my taste. I'll try and delay your transport for a while to give me some time, but the high council wants to get this over quickly, so there is only so much I can do. Not an hour after the incident we already had an agent from the Equestrian Intelligence Service here, demanding your immediate execution... The more I think about this... the less I like it...”, he grumbled, sitting down next to me and bringing his face into my field of vision. “Don't do anything rash. They've tried to remove your cross, but failed. That's the reason you are bound like this. Don't try to escape. I hate to admit it Silver, but you have quite the amount of potential for an Earthpony. I would hate to loose you as an Inspector. At the very least, I'll try to get you a fair trial, instead of an exemplary execution. Even the council has to abide the laws...”, he added, looking really uncomfortable. “It's OK boss. I trust you. I promise I'll cooperate, so now go and clear my good name.”, I smirked, and he couldn't help but chuckle a bit himself. “Good name, huh? Well... The department certainly thinks of you as “talented”, after what your “boss” told them when he brought that Changeling in.”, Gruff said, and I went beet red. Chapter 2Silver Cross behind bars Chapter 2 “What in the name of all that is holy is taking so long, superintendent? I've presented all the necessary papers to you. Inspector Silver Cross is to be executed by disintegration. The sentence was to be carried out three hours ago! If I don't do it soon, it's not only my neck on the line, you know!”, the completely concealed mare protested as she paced up and down in Gruffs office. Gruff Tone fixed the mare with his gaze. She was concealed from head to hoof in a black cloak with red trim. Her golden face mask covered even her ears, and distorted her voice. The only two things he could say for certain, was that he was talking to a mare and that she was a Unicorn... “Special Agent... E. I know what kind of predicament we both are in, but the council seems to have forgotten that this is an institution that seeks to find the truth before prosecuting our prisoners. It's even in the constitution. Everypony has the right to get a fair trial, even those who are charged with murder.”, the stallion relied calmly. The mare suddenly turned, her golden mask with the star symbol of the Alicorns prophet seeming to glare at him, even though it didn't have any opening in it. “The council does not take lightly to disobedience! They decided that this mare has to die, and I am not willing to risk my own life just so you can investigate some imaginary doppenganger! I hereby relief you of your duties as superintendent of the Yards Canterlot branch! Now get me somepony who can bring me to her!”, she screamed at him in her mechanical sounding voice. Gruff sighed, hitting a button under his desk with a hoof without the mare noticing. A cage appeared out of nowhere, falling on the mare in front of him. The bars were enchanted with an anti teleportation spell, and would take her a while to break. “WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING? YOU'LL GET BOTH OF US EXECUTED!”, Special Agent E shrieked as she tried to teleport out of her prison, only to find it impossible. “I might not particularly like Silver Cross, and you have stripped her of her rank, but she is still one of our own. You will find that the Yard does not stop investigating, especially if one our own is the suspect, until we have exhausted all of our resources. Even the council has to follow the laws, and I will not stand for an execution without trial. You won't be able to break out of that cage for a while. When you do, I will accept your apology.”, he said sternly, trotting out of the door to his office. He knew that, if he failed to find any evidence for Silvers innocence, or if she was indeed guilty, he had just forfeited his life, but he didn't care. The mare might have been a slack, but she had solved the two cases he had assigned to her splendidly. She had never lied to him either. Even her reports on those two cases included details, that other Inspectors might have left out... But where was he to start his investigation? Best he started at the scene of the crime. With some urgency in his step, that he hadn't displayed since he his own days as an agent, he galloped towards the holding cells. Gruff had ordered the whole place to be sealed off until further notice, so nothing should have been removed yet. Even the dead Changeling was merely put into a stasis field where it had died. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO On the way to the cells, Gruff came by the security station, deciding that he would check the tape of the prisoners cell once more before heading there. The guards inside left him alone at his request and he went to work. After watching the gruesome execution of a prisoner in his department, he played the video in slow motion. The mare that had murdered the Changeling had concealed herself in shadows until the two guardsponies had arrived. She had plenty of time to disappear before they did, yet she chose to stay until they did. That was one more indication that something was wrong here. Silver Cross may have been clumsy from time to time, but she was not stupid. If it had been her, she would have made a run for it as soon as her target had been eliminated.... Then there was that strange magic this Pony seemed to use. Being a graduate from the Canterlot magical academy he recognized dark magic when he saw it. So far Silver Cross claimed she didn't have the time to unlock any of the powers her cross had gained, by absorbing the Luna one, so she shouldn't be able to use this kind of magic yet. The spears were another thing. They were a mixture of summoning and shadow magic. Nothing more then actual spears wrapped in a sheath of shadows. According to what he had been able to find out while talking to one of his agents however, the Alicorn of the night had been able to fire spears made out of pure shadow. In comparison to that, these things looked like bad fakes. But there was another thing bothering him... Just as the mare on the video disappeared into the ground, she tossed something away. The video quality wasn't good enough to see what it was, but he saw where it had landed. One might even miss that she was leaving something behind intentionally, if one did not watch the video in slow motion. Whoever this mare was, if it wasn't his Inspector, she was one damn fast bitch. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO In the cell the Changeling had been imprisoned in, Gruff didn't find much of anything in the term of clues. The body was still there, impaled on the wall by five wooden spears. Their shadow enchantment had faded so everypony could now clearly see what they really were. The ground had nothing to offer either, until he crawled under the bed of the cell. There he found the object he had seen the imposter throw away before fleeing. Grinning, he took it in his telekinesis and stowed it away in his saddlebags. Special agent Es case had just fallen completely apart... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO I was bored. Being strapped to a gurney with nothing else to do then to look at the ceiling couldn't get much more boring. The soldiers, who were supposedly stationed outside, didn't come in for a chat either. What was the worst however, was that my nose was itching hard and I couldn't move my hooves to scratch! I was just about to try and sleep some more, when I heard a ruckus outside in the hallway. It almost sounded like... fighting? What the buck was going on out there? After a while the sounds of gunfire and offensive magic ceased and it was deathly quiet again. A few minutes passed until I heard the gentle clip clop of hooves coming closer and closer. Soon after, the door opened and a completely concealed mare trotted in. Her formerly black coat was soaked in Pony blood, while she herself didn't seem to have a single scratch on her. Not that I could actually see an inch of her hide. “What happened out there?”, I asked cautiously, already having a pretty good idea of what had happened. “That is none of your concern. The only thing you should be worried about is your long overdue execution, Miss Cross.”, the mare said, in a low and almost insane tone of voice. The cross on my chest began to heat up, while the blood in my veins seemed to freeze. This was the EIS agent that had come here to execute me? What was I supposed to do? There wasn't much that I could do either way. I was still strapped down, and the shield spell was preventing me from moving around too much. The mares horn lit up, coming closer and closer as it did so. “Hey... ehm... wait? The superintendent said he wanted to investigate my case... Doesn't that mean I still have some time left?”, I asked hopefully. “I fear not. The good stallion will share your fate after I'm done with you, for interfering with direct council orders, and because I don't like him.” I was speechless. The boss had put his neck on the line to help me, and now he would loose it. The only thing I didn't understand was, why somepony was going through all this to get rid of me... unless.... “Identify yourself!”, I demanded when the mare was almost next to me. She seemed startled at that, cocking her head in confusion. “What?”, she asked perplexed. “Before you execute me, I want you to show me some kind of identification. You EIS Ponies are supposed to have some kind of mark that shows your allegiance, have you not? Show it to me!” “There is no need for me to prove who I am to you.”, she said coldly as she prepared to release the shield spell around me. I could have pointed out that this was not a smart move, but I never interrupted my enemies when they made a mistake. “So you are an imposter! I knew it! So who sent you? The Changelings? That miniature Nightmare Moon joke? At least tell me that before you kill me!”, I tried to stall. To my amazement, it actually seemed to work. “DON'T YOU DARE SPEAKING OF THE MISTRESS THAT WAY!”, she exploded, hitting the shield with her front hooves where my face was. It had no effect on me at all, but I couldn't help and flinch as her hoof came towards my face. That was all I needed to hear. As soon as she had undone the shield spell, I used all the additional strength the power of the two crosses granted me to break free. I was just fast enough to dodge the execution spell that hit the gurney where my head had been just a moment ago. I really hoped that the crosses would give me an edge against this mare... But I was wrong. As soon as I had landed on my hooves, her hoof already connected with my rump, sending me flying face first against the wall. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Gruff tone found a scene of pure carnage as he stepped out of the elevator. There were dead Agents and Inspectors left and light, and he almost slipped due to all the blood on the ground. How had this gone unnoticed, and who had caused this? He broke into a gallop towards the execution area, jumping over the dead bodies of several of his best investigators... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO A hoof barely missed my face as I planted my own forelegs on the wall and pushed back with all my might. I flew into the opposite wall of the room, knocking it down on impact. The air was knocked out of me, as I tumbled into the hallway. “Note to self: Be careful how much strength I use in the future.”, I mumbled as I tried to stand up. In a blur of red, black and gold that insane mare was on me. How had she gotten here so fast? Even in a full gallop she shouldn't have been able to do that, and I was pretty sure she didn't teleport. Her hooves pressed down on my shoulders as I struggled to free myself, pinning me to the ground. Maniacal laughter erupted from under her mask. “You're mine... YOU'RE MINE!”, she laughed as her horn began to glow again. “NOT SO FAST!”, I shouted in her face, as my rear legs came up and bucked her off of me. I heard a crunching sound as my hooves connected, and I felt satisfied when I realized that I had broken a few of her ribs. That feeling however, was quickly diminished as I tried to struggle up again. I had knocked the mare all the way back into the room, but she was already on me again. Damn that mare was fast! I could see blood dripping our from under her mask as she charged up her horn again. The blood was green... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Gruff Tone had reached the doors to the execution area of the building. On his way here he had passed over a hundred dead Ponies, who had been literally torn apart. A green light from inside caught his attention. It was followed by a scream that was full of pain..... Chapter 3Silver Cross behind bars Chapter 3 A bolt of disintegration magic clipped me in the shoulder as the mare pinning me to the ground was knocked off of me by a blur of green and orange. The pain was excruciating, and I screamed. Two mares tumbled over the ground, one of them being a very familiar Pegasus mare. When they came to a stop, Dancing disentangled herself from my attacker and positioned herself between the two of us. “Dancing Cross....”, the other mare hissed, suddenly charging at Dancing. Her speed made me forget my pain, since she was too fast for my eyes to follow her. The Pegasus flapped her wings in an attempt to dodge the attack, but she wasn't fast enough. That crazy Pony would get her! Suddenly the shadows around us came to life, creating a barrier between the two. Not a moment too soon either. The cloaked mare collided with it with a force, that made the whole building shake but the barrier held true. A black hoof helped me up, and I looked into the amber eyes of Shadow Cross... “How... you... WHAT?”, I stuttered, my mouth hanging half open. “I don't know what you mean sister, but whatever it is, always remember that time is relative to us. Now, are you ready to kick our dear brothers flank?”, she asked, her grin never leaving her face. “I am sure you two have a lot to catch up on....”, Dancing called out to us as she dodged another hoofstrike from the cloaked mare. “....but I could use a little help here!” I did not understand this one bit. This mare was supposed to be my “brother in destiny”? But... Why was she attacking me then? I decided to get the answers to those questions later. There was a fight to be fought here after all. Clenching my teeth, I charged at the mare, Shadow close behind me. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Gruff Tone was barely crushed when something flew past him as he wanted to enter the execution area. It was nothing but a blur of black, red and gold. It impacted in a filing cabinet on the other side of the room, quickly followed by a green Pegasus, a white and a black Earthpony. A cold chill ran down his spine as he saw the Pegasus mare. He knew her from his history lessons at school. But how could that be? Dancing Cross, the heroine of the third Changeling invasion, was supposed to be dead for about two hundred years! He watched as the three mares attacked the EIS agent that was already on her hooves again. All four of them moved with such a speed, that he found it hard to believe that he was watching a fight between mere mortal Ponies. Gruff also knew that he would only be in the way, if he decided to help, so he made his way into the execution are where he deemed it safe for now. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO It was strange to fight alongside Shadow and Dancing. It was as if we had done this hundreds of times. When I reared up and spun to hit the mare in front of me with my forelegs, Dancing swooped in and mirrored my motions perfectly, while standing back to back with me. That way we hit our opponent twice, instead of only once. Her freaky speed was no problem anymore either. Shadow was constantly using her cross to create walls of pure darkness around the mare, giving her not enough room to move around freely. She certainly could take a beating, seeing as Dancing and I had hit her directly in the face several times already. Then, something changed. She began to glow in a bright light, and I got knocked back onto my back. Dancing fell back to all four hooves, spreading her wings and taking up position between me and the cloaked mare. I could hear the mare scream in an immense pain as she shielded me from the light. “DANCING!”, Shadow screamed, coming towards us at a full gallop, shadow speard hovering by her side. She shot several of them at the now glowing mare, making sure she herself stayed out of the light she was emitting. I could smell the stench of burned fur as an immense heat rushed through me once more. I knew that feeling. Standing up, I bit into Dancings tail and puller her out of the circle of light that surrounded our opponent. Her complete forefront was burnt, devoid of any fur. Some of the feathers on her wings were singed and she was breathing hard as I pulled her behind a desk. I hated to just leave her there, but Shadow needed my help. She wouldn't be able to defeat that mare on her own. With that intention, I jumped forward gaping at the spears that peppered the mare unrelentingly. Shadow was crying as she jumped around to avoid the lightning bolts that shot towards her. One of them barely missed her, and I charged at the still cloaked mare. “DON'T!”, Shadow screamed as she was what I was doing, but it was already too late. Several of the lightning bolts hit me straight in the chest. It hurt like hell, but I went on. Only on the edges of my mind did I realize that this was the first time I had been hurt while I was feeling that heat. I barreled into her, head first, at full speed. There was a pained outcry from her as I rammed her against the wall. The last thing that I saw, before she blurred out of existence, was a silver cross hanging from her neck. It had a six pointed star that was surrounded by five other stars at it's base... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO “Ok... what the buck is going on here?”, I asked, as Shadow and I carried Dancing towards the medical station. “I kinda figured you didn't know. You look like your pretty early in your journey, so I'll tell you. The one we fought there, is the only one that can match your cross. Her name is Broken Cross and she is actually a Changeling.”, Shadow explained. I hadn't seen my boss since we had charged out of the execution area, but I didn't care at the moment either. All that mattered was that we got Dancing to the infirmary as fast as we could. “But... why? If she is one of us, then why did she try to kill me?” Shadow just shook her head. “The Nightmare found her first. You must know that we can only travel to those of our sisters, that have already obtained their cross. Broken was corrupted by the Nightmare before she found it, so there was nothing we could do. As far as I know, she tried to resist the corruption, but she paid the price for it. She's totally insane and the strongest of us after yourself. A dangerous mix. As for why she tried to kill you... well... You never told me how you got my cross.”, she said, pointing at the crescent moon on mine. “But... it's OK... I can guess that I gave it to you before I died. These are the conditions you know. We can only take the cross of another if that Pony is dying, or giving it to us willingly. Broken has tried to get our crosses several times, but in my era she is totally outmatched against me. Too many shadows for me to use to attack her or to disappear into. In Dancings era, she can't get at her without having several very powerful Unicorns as opponents... She is a soldier you know... If Broken was to attack her in her own era, she would be subdued, even if it would cost the Equestrian army major casualties.”, she added. “So... how am I supposed to get her cross then? Do I have to kill her?”, I asked, horrified. “Most likely. Dancing knows more, but seeing as she is out cold....”, the mare that was splayed over both our backs suddenly disappeared, leaving behind a key that clattered to the ground. “Horseapples... You think she will be OK?”, I wanted to know, turning towards Shadow again, but she wasn't there anymore either. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO After a while I finally found my boss in the execution area. It turned out that he had found a fake cross in the holding cell the Changeling had been murdered in. Cleaning up the mess Broken Cross had left behind took quite some time to clean up. During that operation my co-workers found the body of a dead mare in a janitor closet. We later identified her as EIS agent Simple Heart. Broken had murdered her and falsified the documents the mare had carried with her. She had actually been sent here to investigate my involvement in the murder of the prisoner, and not to execute me. The evidence my boss found, in addition with the witness accounts, cleared my name and I got my rank as an Inspector back. I didn't help with the clean up operation, however. As soon as the heat in my body had subsided, I had collapsed once more. The injuries Broken had inflicted on me, were pretty serious, and the doctors told me I wouldn't be able to leave the hospital for at least six months. My only entertainment during that time was the folder my boss had brought me from the archives. It was the folder of a murder case. A case that had never been solved. Several Inspectors had tried their hooves at it, but all of them had failed at it, which was frustrating since the victim was a hero.... It was the murder case, of Dancing Cross...
Chapter 1Silver Cross behind bars Chapter 1 “Let me at him! Damn it, let me go!”, I screamed, while ten Unicorns pressed me to the ground with their magic. Their faces bore a mutual expression of extreme strain. Absorbing the Luna cross seemed to have extended the amplifying spell to the rest of my body, so they had a hard time holding me. My boss stood in front of me, shaking his head as I tried to free myself from the magical grip. “We can't do that Inspector, and you know it. That Changeling was transferred here from Trottingham for trial. He's given a full confession, so it should be a quick one, but I just can't let you harm him while he is in our custody. Even though I understand your feelings ….”, he said in what I assumed was meant to be a comforting tone. Why was I acting out like this you might ask? Simple. Quickie, my boss at the Lusty Licker, had rallied a few friends after he had noticed my disappearance and overwhelmed the last surviving Changeling in his club. Smooth Tongue was his name, and he had confessed to having killed my cousin Frostmane by nailing her to a tree. I could only assume that he hoped to get off easy and avoid execution by confessing... As soon as my real boss had told me about this, I had galloped out of his office, trying to reach the holding cells. The result had been, that my boss had contacted every available Unicorn in the building to stop me. Four had been injured when I charged right through them, before this group subdued me right in front of the door that led to the cells. “He killed her! I don't care what you say! He doesn't deserve a fair trial! I'll turn him into paste!”, I shouted, tears running down my face. I had endured so much to get a chance for payback, and now the stallion that had sent me on this mission was denying me my revenge... “I'm truly sorry Silver... I shouldn't have sent you on that mission in the first place once I found out you two were related... But you leave me no choice. You are hereby suspended until further notice. Maybe a night or two in one of our special cells will cool your head a little. Don't think I enjoy this though....”, he said, nodding to the other Unicorns. The special cells were in the basement, or to be precise four hundred hooves below it, in solid rock. They had been build there to hold extremely dangerous prisoners, that could break out of the normal cells. Minotaurs, Hydras and other creatures were usually held there. That the boss thought I was dangerous enough to get a free stay there for a night or two was.... worrisome... I was remotely teleported into an empty cell, that was barely furnished. There were only a bed, a sink and a toilet in there. All of them were made out of magical metal, and therefor very hard to break. It didn't stop me from trying. My hooves connected with the sink first and I could feel them crack a little under the pressure of the blow. At that point, I didn't care. The physical pain was a welcome change to the emotional torture that I was living through. Frostmane, my favorite family member, was dead. Her murderer was just a few floors above me, and I didn't even get the chance to show him a thing or two... My left forehoof shattered under the force of my tenth blow. I screamed in pain, clutching the bleeding appendage to my chest while crying. How could the boss deny me my revenge, after all I had went through to fulfill my stupid mission? It just wasn't fair. Couldn't he just have turned a blind eye for once? After a while I wanted to start bucking at the bed again, but a low hissing sound stopped me. Somepony had decided that it was bedtime apparently, since I soon recognized the sweet smell of sleeping gas.... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Smooth Tongue lay in his cell, a ring on his horn blocking his magic. These Ponies would most likely kill him for what he did, but he didn't care too much. His soul would feed his mistress once he died, and so he would still serve his brothers cause. There had been a commotion earlier, and the guards had talked about a mare called “Silver Cross”, that had apparently wanted to turn him into paste... He wondered why they didn't just let her do her thing. If he was correct, then this mare they had talked about, was the same mare that had started to sniff around the Lusty Licker. She deserved her revenge in his eyes, and he would be glad to give it to her if he had the chance. Even though, deep inside, he didn't want to die, it was surely better then this tedious waiting game he had to play right now. Just as he was about to drift off to sleep, the entire floor of his cell went dark. The light from the hallway was suddenly unable to illuminate the concrete floor, and he could hear a small chuckle from the darkness. A mare came from the darkness, shrouding herself in shadows so he could barely even make out her gender. Her icy voice addressed him, and his blood froze in his veins. He didn't care about dying but this... this.... A spear of pure darkness formed in the air next to the mare, and shot right through his left foreleg. Smooth Tongue screamed in great pain as it nailed him to the wall. Hoofsteps came galloping towards his cell. The guards were coming to help him. They must have seen what was going on through the security camera in his cell, but Smooth Tongue barely noticed that as three more spears impaled his remaining legs. He was now nailed to the wall, his legs spread wide. “No... Mercy... Please have mercy...”, he pleaded, but a fifth spear shot through his lungs, transforming his pleas into bloody coughs. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO The two Unicorn guards reached the cell of their only prisoner, their horns already glowing with magic. What they had seen on the screens was unbelievable. How had that mare gotten in there? They came just in time to see the prisoner stop breathing. In the middle of the cell stood a white mare with a black mane and tail. Her face was splattered with Changeling blood as she looked at her work with an insane grin on her face. Then she looked over to the pair, and two blue eyes made their blood freeze. With a swishing sound, the mare disappeared into the ground, still smirking. One of the two stallions rushed off to get a doctor, while the other unlocked the cell and tried to help their prisoner. To his dismay, he had to discover that he was already way too late... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO I awoke slowly, my head pounding as if I had just went ten rounds against Celestia herself, when I noticed that I couldn't move. My eyes opened lazily, and I found myself strapped to a gurney, a magical forcefield engulfing me for additional security. Even my head was fixated, so I couldn't get a good look at my surroundings. “Finally awake, are you?”, I heard the familiar voice of my boss from my right. “What... What's going on here boss? Why am I bound like this?”, I asked, confused. “Don't you play innocent with me, Miss Silver Cross. You know exactly why you are here.”, he shot back angrily. “Ehm... What if I told you that I have no idea? The last thing I remember is being knocked out in that special cell, after I broke my hoof.”, I replied, trying to turn my eyes so I could look at the stallion. “You are charged with murder, Miss Cross. Last night, you used unknown means to enter the prisoners cell and murdered him brutally. Two eyewitnesses saw you escape through the floor, using some kind of shadow magic.” “Murder? You... You're joking, right? I admit that I tried to get at him yesterday, but you subdued me and put me into that cell. I raged a little in there, before I got knocked out by some kind of sleeping gas. Besides... Shadow magic? I haven't even figured out how to use the powers of the Luna Cross yet, so how am I supposed to even do what you claim I did?”, I inquired defensivly. “I would really love to believe you, but I can't. All the evidence points to you as the culprit, and then there is the witnesses. As of today, you are dishonorably discharged from the New Trottland Yard. Fifty Unicorn soldiers have been stationed outside of this room, in case you act out of line. They will kill you if you do, so please don't.” “But... boss... I'm innocent! Check the recording of my own cell! I didn't do anything!” “The surveillance equipment in the special holding cells malfunctioned yesterday evening, so there is no recording of your time in that cell.”, he said, and I could hear him pace up and down the room. From his behavior I could tell that he didn't like that part one bit. Neither did I for that matter. All the cameras failed, while I was supposed to have killed that Changeling, while the one in his cell conveniently worked? That sounded like a giant pile of Horse-apples to me... “Are you sure you did not do it, Silver?”, he asked after a while. “Yes, sir!”, I confirmed with all the enthusiasm that I could muster. “Very well... I'll look into it, since you have never once lied to me so far. Even if you have a motive, it just sounds way too much like you were set up for my taste. I'll try and delay your transport for a while to give me some time, but the high council wants to get this over quickly, so there is only so much I can do. Not an hour after the incident we already had an agent from the Equestrian Intelligence Service here, demanding your immediate execution... The more I think about this... the less I like it...”, he grumbled, sitting down next to me and bringing his face into my field of vision. “Don't do anything rash. They've tried to remove your cross, but failed. That's the reason you are bound like this. Don't try to escape. I hate to admit it Silver, but you have quite the amount of potential for an Earthpony. I would hate to loose you as an Inspector. At the very least, I'll try to get you a fair trial, instead of an exemplary execution. Even the council has to abide the laws...”, he added, looking really uncomfortable. “It's OK boss. I trust you. I promise I'll cooperate, so now go and clear my good name.”, I smirked, and he couldn't help but chuckle a bit himself. “Good name, huh? Well... The department certainly thinks of you as “talented”, after what your “boss” told them when he brought that Changeling in.”, Gruff said, and I went beet red.
Chapter 2Silver Cross behind bars Chapter 2 “What in the name of all that is holy is taking so long, superintendent? I've presented all the necessary papers to you. Inspector Silver Cross is to be executed by disintegration. The sentence was to be carried out three hours ago! If I don't do it soon, it's not only my neck on the line, you know!”, the completely concealed mare protested as she paced up and down in Gruffs office. Gruff Tone fixed the mare with his gaze. She was concealed from head to hoof in a black cloak with red trim. Her golden face mask covered even her ears, and distorted her voice. The only two things he could say for certain, was that he was talking to a mare and that she was a Unicorn... “Special Agent... E. I know what kind of predicament we both are in, but the council seems to have forgotten that this is an institution that seeks to find the truth before prosecuting our prisoners. It's even in the constitution. Everypony has the right to get a fair trial, even those who are charged with murder.”, the stallion relied calmly. The mare suddenly turned, her golden mask with the star symbol of the Alicorns prophet seeming to glare at him, even though it didn't have any opening in it. “The council does not take lightly to disobedience! They decided that this mare has to die, and I am not willing to risk my own life just so you can investigate some imaginary doppenganger! I hereby relief you of your duties as superintendent of the Yards Canterlot branch! Now get me somepony who can bring me to her!”, she screamed at him in her mechanical sounding voice. Gruff sighed, hitting a button under his desk with a hoof without the mare noticing. A cage appeared out of nowhere, falling on the mare in front of him. The bars were enchanted with an anti teleportation spell, and would take her a while to break. “WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING? YOU'LL GET BOTH OF US EXECUTED!”, Special Agent E shrieked as she tried to teleport out of her prison, only to find it impossible. “I might not particularly like Silver Cross, and you have stripped her of her rank, but she is still one of our own. You will find that the Yard does not stop investigating, especially if one our own is the suspect, until we have exhausted all of our resources. Even the council has to follow the laws, and I will not stand for an execution without trial. You won't be able to break out of that cage for a while. When you do, I will accept your apology.”, he said sternly, trotting out of the door to his office. He knew that, if he failed to find any evidence for Silvers innocence, or if she was indeed guilty, he had just forfeited his life, but he didn't care. The mare might have been a slack, but she had solved the two cases he had assigned to her splendidly. She had never lied to him either. Even her reports on those two cases included details, that other Inspectors might have left out... But where was he to start his investigation? Best he started at the scene of the crime. With some urgency in his step, that he hadn't displayed since he his own days as an agent, he galloped towards the holding cells. Gruff had ordered the whole place to be sealed off until further notice, so nothing should have been removed yet. Even the dead Changeling was merely put into a stasis field where it had died. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO On the way to the cells, Gruff came by the security station, deciding that he would check the tape of the prisoners cell once more before heading there. The guards inside left him alone at his request and he went to work. After watching the gruesome execution of a prisoner in his department, he played the video in slow motion. The mare that had murdered the Changeling had concealed herself in shadows until the two guardsponies had arrived. She had plenty of time to disappear before they did, yet she chose to stay until they did. That was one more indication that something was wrong here. Silver Cross may have been clumsy from time to time, but she was not stupid. If it had been her, she would have made a run for it as soon as her target had been eliminated.... Then there was that strange magic this Pony seemed to use. Being a graduate from the Canterlot magical academy he recognized dark magic when he saw it. So far Silver Cross claimed she didn't have the time to unlock any of the powers her cross had gained, by absorbing the Luna one, so she shouldn't be able to use this kind of magic yet. The spears were another thing. They were a mixture of summoning and shadow magic. Nothing more then actual spears wrapped in a sheath of shadows. According to what he had been able to find out while talking to one of his agents however, the Alicorn of the night had been able to fire spears made out of pure shadow. In comparison to that, these things looked like bad fakes. But there was another thing bothering him... Just as the mare on the video disappeared into the ground, she tossed something away. The video quality wasn't good enough to see what it was, but he saw where it had landed. One might even miss that she was leaving something behind intentionally, if one did not watch the video in slow motion. Whoever this mare was, if it wasn't his Inspector, she was one damn fast bitch. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO In the cell the Changeling had been imprisoned in, Gruff didn't find much of anything in the term of clues. The body was still there, impaled on the wall by five wooden spears. Their shadow enchantment had faded so everypony could now clearly see what they really were. The ground had nothing to offer either, until he crawled under the bed of the cell. There he found the object he had seen the imposter throw away before fleeing. Grinning, he took it in his telekinesis and stowed it away in his saddlebags. Special agent Es case had just fallen completely apart... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO I was bored. Being strapped to a gurney with nothing else to do then to look at the ceiling couldn't get much more boring. The soldiers, who were supposedly stationed outside, didn't come in for a chat either. What was the worst however, was that my nose was itching hard and I couldn't move my hooves to scratch! I was just about to try and sleep some more, when I heard a ruckus outside in the hallway. It almost sounded like... fighting? What the buck was going on out there? After a while the sounds of gunfire and offensive magic ceased and it was deathly quiet again. A few minutes passed until I heard the gentle clip clop of hooves coming closer and closer. Soon after, the door opened and a completely concealed mare trotted in. Her formerly black coat was soaked in Pony blood, while she herself didn't seem to have a single scratch on her. Not that I could actually see an inch of her hide. “What happened out there?”, I asked cautiously, already having a pretty good idea of what had happened. “That is none of your concern. The only thing you should be worried about is your long overdue execution, Miss Cross.”, the mare said, in a low and almost insane tone of voice. The cross on my chest began to heat up, while the blood in my veins seemed to freeze. This was the EIS agent that had come here to execute me? What was I supposed to do? There wasn't much that I could do either way. I was still strapped down, and the shield spell was preventing me from moving around too much. The mares horn lit up, coming closer and closer as it did so. “Hey... ehm... wait? The superintendent said he wanted to investigate my case... Doesn't that mean I still have some time left?”, I asked hopefully. “I fear not. The good stallion will share your fate after I'm done with you, for interfering with direct council orders, and because I don't like him.” I was speechless. The boss had put his neck on the line to help me, and now he would loose it. The only thing I didn't understand was, why somepony was going through all this to get rid of me... unless.... “Identify yourself!”, I demanded when the mare was almost next to me. She seemed startled at that, cocking her head in confusion. “What?”, she asked perplexed. “Before you execute me, I want you to show me some kind of identification. You EIS Ponies are supposed to have some kind of mark that shows your allegiance, have you not? Show it to me!” “There is no need for me to prove who I am to you.”, she said coldly as she prepared to release the shield spell around me. I could have pointed out that this was not a smart move, but I never interrupted my enemies when they made a mistake. “So you are an imposter! I knew it! So who sent you? The Changelings? That miniature Nightmare Moon joke? At least tell me that before you kill me!”, I tried to stall. To my amazement, it actually seemed to work. “DON'T YOU DARE SPEAKING OF THE MISTRESS THAT WAY!”, she exploded, hitting the shield with her front hooves where my face was. It had no effect on me at all, but I couldn't help and flinch as her hoof came towards my face. That was all I needed to hear. As soon as she had undone the shield spell, I used all the additional strength the power of the two crosses granted me to break free. I was just fast enough to dodge the execution spell that hit the gurney where my head had been just a moment ago. I really hoped that the crosses would give me an edge against this mare... But I was wrong. As soon as I had landed on my hooves, her hoof already connected with my rump, sending me flying face first against the wall. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Gruff tone found a scene of pure carnage as he stepped out of the elevator. There were dead Agents and Inspectors left and light, and he almost slipped due to all the blood on the ground. How had this gone unnoticed, and who had caused this? He broke into a gallop towards the execution area, jumping over the dead bodies of several of his best investigators... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO A hoof barely missed my face as I planted my own forelegs on the wall and pushed back with all my might. I flew into the opposite wall of the room, knocking it down on impact. The air was knocked out of me, as I tumbled into the hallway. “Note to self: Be careful how much strength I use in the future.”, I mumbled as I tried to stand up. In a blur of red, black and gold that insane mare was on me. How had she gotten here so fast? Even in a full gallop she shouldn't have been able to do that, and I was pretty sure she didn't teleport. Her hooves pressed down on my shoulders as I struggled to free myself, pinning me to the ground. Maniacal laughter erupted from under her mask. “You're mine... YOU'RE MINE!”, she laughed as her horn began to glow again. “NOT SO FAST!”, I shouted in her face, as my rear legs came up and bucked her off of me. I heard a crunching sound as my hooves connected, and I felt satisfied when I realized that I had broken a few of her ribs. That feeling however, was quickly diminished as I tried to struggle up again. I had knocked the mare all the way back into the room, but she was already on me again. Damn that mare was fast! I could see blood dripping our from under her mask as she charged up her horn again. The blood was green... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Gruff Tone had reached the doors to the execution area of the building. On his way here he had passed over a hundred dead Ponies, who had been literally torn apart. A green light from inside caught his attention. It was followed by a scream that was full of pain.....
Chapter 3Silver Cross behind bars Chapter 3 A bolt of disintegration magic clipped me in the shoulder as the mare pinning me to the ground was knocked off of me by a blur of green and orange. The pain was excruciating, and I screamed. Two mares tumbled over the ground, one of them being a very familiar Pegasus mare. When they came to a stop, Dancing disentangled herself from my attacker and positioned herself between the two of us. “Dancing Cross....”, the other mare hissed, suddenly charging at Dancing. Her speed made me forget my pain, since she was too fast for my eyes to follow her. The Pegasus flapped her wings in an attempt to dodge the attack, but she wasn't fast enough. That crazy Pony would get her! Suddenly the shadows around us came to life, creating a barrier between the two. Not a moment too soon either. The cloaked mare collided with it with a force, that made the whole building shake but the barrier held true. A black hoof helped me up, and I looked into the amber eyes of Shadow Cross... “How... you... WHAT?”, I stuttered, my mouth hanging half open. “I don't know what you mean sister, but whatever it is, always remember that time is relative to us. Now, are you ready to kick our dear brothers flank?”, she asked, her grin never leaving her face. “I am sure you two have a lot to catch up on....”, Dancing called out to us as she dodged another hoofstrike from the cloaked mare. “....but I could use a little help here!” I did not understand this one bit. This mare was supposed to be my “brother in destiny”? But... Why was she attacking me then? I decided to get the answers to those questions later. There was a fight to be fought here after all. Clenching my teeth, I charged at the mare, Shadow close behind me. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO Gruff Tone was barely crushed when something flew past him as he wanted to enter the execution area. It was nothing but a blur of black, red and gold. It impacted in a filing cabinet on the other side of the room, quickly followed by a green Pegasus, a white and a black Earthpony. A cold chill ran down his spine as he saw the Pegasus mare. He knew her from his history lessons at school. But how could that be? Dancing Cross, the heroine of the third Changeling invasion, was supposed to be dead for about two hundred years! He watched as the three mares attacked the EIS agent that was already on her hooves again. All four of them moved with such a speed, that he found it hard to believe that he was watching a fight between mere mortal Ponies. Gruff also knew that he would only be in the way, if he decided to help, so he made his way into the execution are where he deemed it safe for now. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO It was strange to fight alongside Shadow and Dancing. It was as if we had done this hundreds of times. When I reared up and spun to hit the mare in front of me with my forelegs, Dancing swooped in and mirrored my motions perfectly, while standing back to back with me. That way we hit our opponent twice, instead of only once. Her freaky speed was no problem anymore either. Shadow was constantly using her cross to create walls of pure darkness around the mare, giving her not enough room to move around freely. She certainly could take a beating, seeing as Dancing and I had hit her directly in the face several times already. Then, something changed. She began to glow in a bright light, and I got knocked back onto my back. Dancing fell back to all four hooves, spreading her wings and taking up position between me and the cloaked mare. I could hear the mare scream in an immense pain as she shielded me from the light. “DANCING!”, Shadow screamed, coming towards us at a full gallop, shadow speard hovering by her side. She shot several of them at the now glowing mare, making sure she herself stayed out of the light she was emitting. I could smell the stench of burned fur as an immense heat rushed through me once more. I knew that feeling. Standing up, I bit into Dancings tail and puller her out of the circle of light that surrounded our opponent. Her complete forefront was burnt, devoid of any fur. Some of the feathers on her wings were singed and she was breathing hard as I pulled her behind a desk. I hated to just leave her there, but Shadow needed my help. She wouldn't be able to defeat that mare on her own. With that intention, I jumped forward gaping at the spears that peppered the mare unrelentingly. Shadow was crying as she jumped around to avoid the lightning bolts that shot towards her. One of them barely missed her, and I charged at the still cloaked mare. “DON'T!”, Shadow screamed as she was what I was doing, but it was already too late. Several of the lightning bolts hit me straight in the chest. It hurt like hell, but I went on. Only on the edges of my mind did I realize that this was the first time I had been hurt while I was feeling that heat. I barreled into her, head first, at full speed. There was a pained outcry from her as I rammed her against the wall. The last thing that I saw, before she blurred out of existence, was a silver cross hanging from her neck. It had a six pointed star that was surrounded by five other stars at it's base... OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO “Ok... what the buck is going on here?”, I asked, as Shadow and I carried Dancing towards the medical station. “I kinda figured you didn't know. You look like your pretty early in your journey, so I'll tell you. The one we fought there, is the only one that can match your cross. Her name is Broken Cross and she is actually a Changeling.”, Shadow explained. I hadn't seen my boss since we had charged out of the execution area, but I didn't care at the moment either. All that mattered was that we got Dancing to the infirmary as fast as we could. “But... why? If she is one of us, then why did she try to kill me?” Shadow just shook her head. “The Nightmare found her first. You must know that we can only travel to those of our sisters, that have already obtained their cross. Broken was corrupted by the Nightmare before she found it, so there was nothing we could do. As far as I know, she tried to resist the corruption, but she paid the price for it. She's totally insane and the strongest of us after yourself. A dangerous mix. As for why she tried to kill you... well... You never told me how you got my cross.”, she said, pointing at the crescent moon on mine. “But... it's OK... I can guess that I gave it to you before I died. These are the conditions you know. We can only take the cross of another if that Pony is dying, or giving it to us willingly. Broken has tried to get our crosses several times, but in my era she is totally outmatched against me. Too many shadows for me to use to attack her or to disappear into. In Dancings era, she can't get at her without having several very powerful Unicorns as opponents... She is a soldier you know... If Broken was to attack her in her own era, she would be subdued, even if it would cost the Equestrian army major casualties.”, she added. “So... how am I supposed to get her cross then? Do I have to kill her?”, I asked, horrified. “Most likely. Dancing knows more, but seeing as she is out cold....”, the mare that was splayed over both our backs suddenly disappeared, leaving behind a key that clattered to the ground. “Horseapples... You think she will be OK?”, I wanted to know, turning towards Shadow again, but she wasn't there anymore either. OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO After a while I finally found my boss in the execution area. It turned out that he had found a fake cross in the holding cell the Changeling had been murdered in. Cleaning up the mess Broken Cross had left behind took quite some time to clean up. During that operation my co-workers found the body of a dead mare in a janitor closet. We later identified her as EIS agent Simple Heart. Broken had murdered her and falsified the documents the mare had carried with her. She had actually been sent here to investigate my involvement in the murder of the prisoner, and not to execute me. The evidence my boss found, in addition with the witness accounts, cleared my name and I got my rank as an Inspector back. I didn't help with the clean up operation, however. As soon as the heat in my body had subsided, I had collapsed once more. The injuries Broken had inflicted on me, were pretty serious, and the doctors told me I wouldn't be able to leave the hospital for at least six months. My only entertainment during that time was the folder my boss had brought me from the archives. It was the folder of a murder case. A case that had never been solved. Several Inspectors had tried their hooves at it, but all of them had failed at it, which was frustrating since the victim was a hero.... It was the murder case, of Dancing Cross...
