Something evil this way comes (Prologue)

(Audio Cylinder)

Scientist: "...Power core, test 2..."
Engineer 1: "Wah are we doin' this again?"
Engineer 2: "The big cities don't have enough power t' light them up. They got all excited from the Golden Age that they needed more lights to blind themselves with."
E1: "Heh, suits 'em"
S: "If you two are done, we can get started."
E2: "right..."
(rustle of metal is heard)
E2: "...electric output online."
E1: "Arcane cycler stabilized, waitin' fer input."
S: "Ready?"
E1: "Ready."
E2: "Ready."
(magic effect is heard, sounds like a laser beam. Power core begins to crackle with magic)
S: "Stabilize, stabilize!"
E1: "Whoa, Nelly! Hold together fer me, now."
(Crackle intensifies)
S: "Abandon the experiment. Evacuate the area. NOW!"
(sporadic shuffle of hooves)
S: "That means you, Cactus!"
E1: "Hold on, hold on, ah think ah got this."
S: "That was not a suggestion, come on!"
E1: "Almost..."
(crackling slows down, stops and is replaced with a melodic hum.)
E1: "...There"
S: "Wow,...I...that was...impressive. H...how did you...?"
E1: "Tuning crystals were out of alignment, quick fix an' boom! Power fer a thousand moons, an' then some."
S: "But I thought..."
E1: "That it was a lost cause? Hah! Mah'nd tellin' that lil' mic over there what ah did?"
S: "...Huh?...O..oh...sure."
(rustle of the microphone)
S: "Operation, successful. Experiment saved by miss..."
(Distant)E1: "CACTUS!"
S: "...Cactus. Results being reported to Applejack."

Power Cores.

Meter long and a hoof and a half wide cylinders of steel, glass, and crystals. Works by taking a single powerful unicorn blast being infinitely looped around the inside of the capsule, giving a constant stream of electric energy. They are so powerful, ten can power all of Manehattan for as long as you want. They're also inexpensive, if you know someone with the proper spell for it. It can be a bit messy otherwise.

They were invented not long after that little newspaper floated around. And the engineers were not kidding when they explained their existence. Manehattan soon became the city that didn't want to sleep, and Las Pegasus was a circus of bright lights with a massive influx of bits. And with AJ at the reigns of some of the best and most powerful technology in all the existence of Equestria, we have more things to put those cores into. Be it domestic or military, there will ALWAYS be a demand for power cores.

"Hey, Detective? You awake?"

I awoke at a start. Topaz, my assistant, was staring at me through her dark-blue eyes.

"Yeah, been awake all day, old sport," I quickly responded, trying to hide the fact that I was still worn out.

Smiling, she took a quick glance at the clock on the wall, "It's six in the morning, Nova," she said as she looked back to me, a sly grin spread across her face, "You've been working on this all night."

Really? All night? A quick glance at the clock confirmed her statement.

"Want me to get you something to wake you up?" Topaz asked.

"Coffee, please. You know how I like it," I answered. I don't usually drink coffee, but I felt especially desperate for a few more hours of consciousness.

"Coffee, coming right up!" Topaz responded as her tail disappeared behind the doorway.

Being a highly-depended upon detective isn't very easy, so having somepony to assist me in chores big and small is wonderful. Topaz Shine is just the mare for those chores. A blue crystal pony, she has helped me out on countless investigations and mishaps. She is also really good with foals as well, which I can't easily say the same for me. But as far as crystal ponies go, Topaz is an odd case. She is a crystal pony with a unicorn horn. Not that it is inherently bad, but she obviously garners a lot of unwanted attention.

She is a good companion, and friend. And I certainly can't say I'm not interested in her.

"Your drink, monsieur," Topaz said as she hovered over to me a mug of hot coffee.

"Ah! Merci beaucoup," I said as I took the mug in my hoof and began to blow on it.

"What are you working on, anyways?" She inquired as I began a few careful sips of my drink.

"A 'project' given to me by my uncle Shining," I said, grumpily, as I began to set my mug down on the table.

"Pretty extensive stuff. Let me see," She said as she used her magic to help set my mug on the table and began shuffling through the letters and what-not, "'richest mares in Equestria', 'Why I couldn't come to work today, captain', I think you need to get to the nitty-gritty of this."

"'Nitty-gritty'? What do you..."

"HERE!" She interrupted, floating over to me a journal with three butterflies assembled in an unmistakable pattern. The diary had a couple tabs pointing out some entries of interest.

"Fluttershy's diary? What is so 'nitty-gritty' about this, old sport?" I asked, taking a look at some of the tabbed entries. Nothing much of interest, for me.

"I remember hearing that she lives near Applejack's house," She said, "and that the plane flight tests were not quiet, so you might see something in there about that."

She was right. When AJ got her fortune from selling metal and tech (and produce) she moved to a giant mansion not far from Ponyville. It's also where many of her company's inventions get tested. And Fluttershy's house is not too far away, so she gets a great view of the runway.

"Alright, I see. Sure, let's see if there is something in here about that," I said, my curiosity peaked.

"Hey, do you need any help?" Topaz asked.

"Please. If you could look in there and see..." my response was rudely interrupted by the front door bell jingling.

"Oh! I'll go get that!" Topaz said as she darted off to greet the visitor.

I was alone again.

"Well, I'm sure that they would need her more than I do," I said to myself as I began looking at more of the tabbed entries.