Salt and Iron

Celestia sighed as her guards ushered out the mint colored unicorn. The poor mare had been visiting once a year for the past ten years, and even longer with her mother, both asking for any new information about what had happened almost two decades ago. Sadly, Celestia had once again been forced to send her away with no new information.

The Northwest Arctic Railway Tunnel Project had been progressing slightly behind schedule, but it all changed when a massive cave-in put the project permanently on hold. The surviving Foremares on the project had classified it as a runaway chain reaction that started in one of the smaller side tunnels they had been excavating, but later investigation had revealed that they had irresponsibly turned what should have only been a minor setback into a competition. The resulting chaotic mass of tunnels had caused serious instability in the mountain, and as a result, over half of the entire project had caved in.

To this day, the bodies of the entombed were still being recovered from their unexpected mass grave.

Celestia looked out the stained glass windows of her throne room at the waining sun, wishing that the event had gone differently. She mused for a few moments about what she would do if she could go back in time and change it all. Such a wish could never be achieved, of course, as even the great Starswirl himself had been unable to create a spell able to do more than create self-fulfilling time loops.

The moment of thought was sadly doomed to end. One of the guards at the door gave a slight cough, bringing her attention back to the real world. Once again forced to confront reality, she gave a small nod, indicating for the next petitioner to be let in. The guard acknowledged her with a quick nod of his own before quickly darting out of the room. After what seemed like an eternity for the solar monarch, the guard returned.

“Announcing Fatal Error,” the guard called out with a slight frown at the morbid name, “Agent of the A.S.R.F.”

Celestia was used to one of her little ponies occasionally naming their foals strangely, but even for her this was a little odd. Add to the fact that she had never heard of this ‘A.S.R.F.’ group, and why they would send an ‘agent’ to see her--let alone have them in the first place--, and it was quite troubling. In fact, if the expression worn by the guard that had remained by the door was anything to go by, he was in agreement with her.

After the announcement, what appeared to be a pony wearing a cloak walked into the throne room. Each step they took made the sound of metal on stone, indicating that they were likely wearing horseshoes. They also seemed to stalk rather than trot, moving far more smoothly than a normal pony. Sadly, the cloak they were wearing obscured almost all of their figure, leaving only part of a mask to stick out from under the hood.

The pony approached the edge of the throne’s dias before the guards decided to intervene. It was only when the guards had moved to intercept way that the cloaked figure showed any signs of slowing down. Once they reached as close to the throne as they could, the figure quickly reached for something under their cloak.

The guards, already nervous from the figure’s proximity and a seeming lack of respect for their princess, suddenly tensed up, readying themselves to defend against an attack. The guard’s horns flared with light, stun spells readied for use. The figure seemed to notice this, and halted for a moment before continuing their action at a much slower pace. Once the object was retrieved, it was lightly tossed forward.

The object turned out to be a simple set of saddlebags made out of some sort of exotic material. The sudden jarring that they took from hitting the floor caused them to fall open and spill their contents out on the lower level of the dias.

‘Salt?’ Celestia thought upon seeing the contents. ‘And are those... Diamonds?’

After having tossed their saddlebags, the cloaked figure took two measured steps backwards and dropped into a slight bow.

“Greetings, my dear Celestia.” The cloaked figure’s voice was too androgenous to tell their gender. Confusing the issue even more, it sounded like they had some sort of masking spell, making everything they said seem distorted. “On behalf of my country and employer, I greet you.”

The cloaked pony then stood up, and looked directly at the bringer of the sun. The mask the agent wore, now in full view, looked as though a pony had taken a metal block and attached all manner of strange metal pieces to it in ever increasingly complex layers. The overall effect gave the agent a visage that resembled a pony in nature, but with a dizzying array of harsh metal edges. The only thing that even hinted at a pony being underneath the mask were the two crimson colored eyes that the mask failed to conceal.

When the agent spoke next, however, the mask was revealed to not be just a normal mask. Each movement he made was mirrored perfectly by the components on the mask. Truly, it was as though somepony had taken a pony’s visage, and crafted it out of clockwork.

“I have been authorised by my noble employer to offer the items you see before you in a trade.” The clockwork mask, softly clicking with each movement, showed an expression of vague disinterest. “What my employer desires is simply information; specifically, an answer to a small question.”

Celestia, momentarily stunned by the almost living work of art in front of her, quickly brought herself back to the living world with a shake of her head.

“And what would that question be, my little pony?”

The mask displayed a brief expression of amusement at her statement before returning to an indifferent glare to deliver the figure’s question.

“When is Princess Luna returning?”

Shock. That was all that Celestia could feel.

“W-what?”

“When,” the agent said again, more slowly, “is Princess Lunar Glory, goddess of the night, returning?”

If Celestia hadn’t been shocked before, she was now. She hadn’t heard anyone call her sister by that name in a long, long time. Even more baffling is how this agent’s employer knew her sister’s name to begin with. It had almost been lost to all but her thanks to the test of time.

“How?”

“Hmm?” The figure continued to stare at her with a disinterested expression, as though her question was expected.

“How do you know her full name?”

The cloaked figure stood still for a few moments, staring off into space. Soon, the agent spoke with a slightly more masculine tone.

“My employer once had a sister, too. She too once risked a descent into darkness, though with a different outcome.”

The cloaked figure played with the edge of their cloak for a moment, revealing a hoof encased in iron. Seemingly satisfied with their readjustments, they continued with the same indifferent tone as before.

“My employer’s sister was rather fond of stories, you see. She enjoyed them for their exotic nature, using them as an escape from a world she felt had rejected her.”

The agent paused again, seeming to intently study one of the guard’s spears.

“She especially enjoyed a story about six mares that changed the world. More than once, she recounted the stories to her brother; my employer.”

Returning his focus to the solar monarch, the figure seemed to change their stance, slightly. It still retained the same tension from before, but seemed more subdued now.

“One day, while attending a social gathering, a dark entity sought to use the sister for what my employer only assumes was for its own entertainment. It set a trap for her, and was going to spirit her away while others looked on helplessly, dooming her to an existence of near eternal madness, with no hope of rescue...”

The agent seemed to shrug, but it was hard for the other equines in the room to tell while they were covered in layers of fabric.

“...The dark entity did not count on the actions of my employer.”

A lifeless chuckle sounded from the mask. The way the sound carried no warmth seemed to chill those present in the room, as though a window had been opened to the deepest winter.

“Just as the dark entity reached out to throw the girl to the abyss, my employer saw what was happening and reached her first. As the trap was sprung, my employer threw his sister clear, and instead took her place.”

Celestia found herself speared by the eyes of the cloaked figure. The eyes themselves seemed to have undergone some sort of change, almost seeming as lifeless as the laugh.

“He found himself tossed across time and space before being placed in the prison meant to contain his sister. Sadly for the dark entity, while the sister would have suffered greatly and most likely lost her sanity, my employer was quickly able to thrive.”

Another lifeless laugh worked its way out of the mask, and the figure continued in a different tone of voice; this time more femme.

“My apologies, I seem to have diverged from the question. Allow me to answer it now.”

Celestia hesitated a moment, trying to keep up with all the agent had told her so far. Not only did the story imply that their employer was not of this world, but that they had succeeded where she had failed with her own sister. Soon, though, she found herself motioning for the agent to continue.”

“You see, a long time ago, an immortal queen was buried alive. She was trapped until my employer found her and set her free. She spoke of so much darkness, and with so much pain, that my employer was compelled to help her. With her dominion, and his knowledge, it would be easy for both to aid the other in their time of need.”

The odd, clockwork smile was once again upon the metal mask, and the figure returned to their original androgynous voice.

“It was from her that he learned of the moon goddess's name, and it was from her that the payment for the trade originated.”

Celestia stared at the cloaked agent for a few moments. Something about the reference to a buried queen sounded familiar. Perhaps her student had mentioned reading about it from somewhere? Of course, the fact that they were asking about Luna didn’t bode well either. What was their agenda? Did they want to aid her in bringing about night eternal?

Just who and what is the A.S.R.F.?

“Now,” the agent said, interrupting her thoughts. “If you would be so kind as to answer the question I originally posed?”

Celestia blinked for a moment, quickly catching up. Focused on the task, she quickly took stock of the situation.

‘A group of ponies that I’ve never heard of are looking for Luna. They’re obviously organised, and well financed if the diamonds they’re offering are any indication. Who is this employer of theirs, and who is this ‘immortal queen’? Why do they want Luna?’

Before Celestia could reach a decision, a warbling, chirping noise broke the silence in the throne room. The guards were quick to turn their spears in the direction of the noise, but only found a scroll resting on the floor. The ‘threat’ identified, one of the guards quickly picked the scroll up with his magic, and presented it to Celestia.

The agent carefully watched as the Monarch read the scroll, and wrote out a response on a new scroll. With two quick burst of magic, the new scroll turned into a smoky substance and made its way out of the throne room, while the second scroll was teleported somewhere outside the agent’s view.

“I’m sorry for that,” Celestia said once her task was finished. “I’m afraid I can’t tell you what you--”

“You no longer have a need to answer the question,” The agent interrupted. “I already have my answer.”

Celestia blinked owlishly for a few moments, before intelligently stating, “What?”

“Your precious student--Twilight Sparkle, was it?--just sent you a letter with the answer on it.” The cloaked figure turned around, and started walking away from the throne. “Your response to your student simply confirmed what we suspected, though we will have to confirm it by interviewing her.”

“Wha--How did you read what was written on the scroll?”

“I didn’t,” the figure said with cold humor in his tone. “You simply reacted exactly the way my employer predicted you would.”

And with that, he closed the doors behind him.

The room remained silent for a few moments, before Celestia whispered to the guard nearest her.

“I want them followed. They are not to come into contact with my student.”

“Yes, your highness.”

The cloaked figure was walking down market street when the guards found it. Occasionally, the figure would stop to inspect one of the stalls for a few moments, rarely buying something before moving on.

The two guards followed a distance behind it, trying to stay out of the figure’s vision. While both were armored in the standard golden barding of the solar, one had a white coat and wings, while the other was grey and had a horn. Both were trying to be as stealthy as two beings wearing fifty pounds of bling and using magic could be; the unicorn using a ‘notice me not’ spell so the highly reflective gold they were wearing wouldn’t be an issue.

“What’s he doing?”

The unicorn shrugged, causing some of the gold plates to clink against each other.

“Maybe buying a present for his wife? Celestia knows, I’d rather be at home than following this creep around.”

The two guards watched as the figure turned a corner, and quickly followed into Market Square. All around ponies sold their merchandise, some using carts while others had brightly colored kiosks to catch attention. Those that saw more regular use or competition were even going so far as to call out their prices in an attempt to attract business. The constant arguing of those bartering over prices, clop of hooves, and criers from the larger shops created a background noise unique to bazars everywhere.

The cloaked figure blended right in with the herd of ponies.

“There he is.” The Pegasus said, while pointing at a cloaked figure.

“Wha-No, that’s him!”

The two guards looked at each other for a moment, before realizing what had happened. They both rushed into the market, trying to locate their charge. It soon became evident that they had lost the figure in the cloak.

“Great,” Said the Unicorn Guard. “Now what?”

The Pegasus was about to respond, when another voice interrupted them.

“E-excuse me, sirs?”

The guards looked over, and then down, at a small earth pony filly. She had an off-blue coloration, with a white mane, and looked like she hadn’t been eating right. She looked up at the guards with despondent eyes, and held up a spherical object with one hoof while pointing with another..

“T-that stallion over there told me to give this to you…”

Looking in the direction the filly was pointing, the Unicorn Guard saw the cloaked figure they had been looking for. It stared at them with glowing red eyes for a moment, before smiling turning to walk away. The Pegasus, however, had a different priority and failed to notice this, in favor of attending to the foal.

“Here, let me see--”

The unicorn guard found himself lying on his back. Why was he lying on his back? He had a perp to follow.

Why did his head hurt, and what’s that ringing noise?

The guard rolled over, and tried to get his bearings. He tried to call out to his partner, but found he couldn’t hear himself speak over the ringing noise. What happened?

Looking around, the guard saw a stampede of ponies running away from him, while a few were lying on the ground. Some of the ponies that were prone were holding bits of themselves and seemed to have an expanding red puddle underneath them, while others lay still. It didn’t take long for the guard to realize that they likely weren't getting up again.

The grey unicorn looked over to where he had last seen his partner, and had to quickly look away. His partner was missing a large portion of his head for some reason, and had doubtlessly joined the other fallen ponies. The filly had fared slightly better, only missing her foreleg, but her glassy and bleeding eyes with ears limp against her head dashed his hopes for her.

‘The Perp… They did this!’

The unicorn slowly and painfully got to his hooves. The ringing in his ears was slowly fading away, letting all manner of chaotic and panicked cries enter his brain. He looked once again in the direction the Perp had gone, and began limping after them.

As the situation sunk in, the Unicorn started trotting, and then galloping. As an afterthought, he launched a flare into the air, signaling his pursuit and need of reinforcement. Adrenaline coursed through his veins, and

DATA END

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