Conduits in Equestria: The Four Aces

Moondancer was a simple unicorn of simple needs. A decent home, a proper meal at twice a day, and her aspiration to graduate from one of the prestigious universities in Equestria, almost all of which were located in Canterlot, her home city. Of course, that all fell through on the day of the ‘Canterlot Crisis’. It burned her up just thinking about it.

The other residents of Canterlot gave her a wide berth as she continued to grumble to herself angrily down the street. It just so happened that the source of her ire had somehow picked the one path that intersected her route and unforgivingly bowled her over in the streets. Samuel Reed, AKA, the Wire Wraith, and the bane of Moondancer’s existence. Her life had been set until he came. Much like everypony else during the Canterlot Crisis, Moondancer was forced to flee the city. Although grateful to be alive, she had lost just about everything.

Her home that her late parents had left to her and her sister had fallen in the warpath set by Visionary Dusk. Anything that was remotely salvageable could fit into a singular, small cardboard box. This also included her research for her final term in the university. The professor gave everypony extensions due to the crisis, but Moondancer’s research had taken almost the entirety of her university years to conduct, time that the extension did not offer.

“Don’t they know how much work I put into it?” Moondancer seethed under her breath, “They wouldn’t even let me appeal for more time. Of course, what did I expect from a broken, unreliable government? They were so underprepared for the crisis. Not even a bit of financial aid for me or my sister. Homeowner insurance? Denied. Liability claims? None! Not even a proper apology for their lack of ‘help’.”

Much like many other residents, aid was slow to be received and left them to either leave the city to find somewhere affordable or scrounge for what they could to make ends meet.

Moondancer snorted in anger as she continued to rant, “Harmony bless my sister, but being a cafe barista is not what I aspired to be in life! It barely pays enough for that damned apartment! I hate it, and that pegasus that keeps trying to hit on me? Get a clue, asshole! If it wasn’t for the fact that I needed this job, I’d give that sleazy stallion a swift kick in the face! I had everything I wanted! I was going to have everything I wanted and more, but now? Gah! If it wasn’t for conduits, everything would be better off! I hate them! I hate Visionary Dusk! I hate Samuel Reed!

“They’re no better than that two-faced ‘Princess of Friendship’. Don’t think I’ve forgotten about you,” an old, familiar pain resurfaced in Moondancer’s heart at her words, “You were supposed to be my best-friend! What kind of friend abandons their friend? On their birthday no less. The same day my parents were killed! Not even a letter after I found out you became some national hero. No, you just up and left and made ‘new friends’. You were even one of the first ponies to successfully establish first contact and good, ‘friendly’ relations with extraterrestrial beings. Now, and now, you’re the ‘Princess of Friendship’? What a joke!”

“Hello, Moondancer,” a bland, unenthused voice spoke up to break Moondancer from her vigorous tirade.

Without even realizing it, Moondancer had made it to her destination. The Canterlot Library, one of Moondancer’s only safe havens in a city she was trapped in. Inside was the largest collection of knowledge known to Equestria, a veritable oasis in the desert, and yet, plagued with the constant nuisances that were other ponies. Also inside, sitting bored-looking as ever behind the reception desk, was another pony that Moondancer hated, though for vastly different reasons than the people in her internal rant.

“Musty Tomes,” the beige unicorn said the other unicorn’s name as if she was sucking on a lemon. Said unicorn behind the reception desk was the head librarian. She was old, as her wiry, grey mane displayed her age, only matched by the wrinkles lining her pale-blue face. A few more creases were set in her brow, but not from age, but rather to show her displeasure upon having to converse with the younger, combative unicorn.

The head librarian huffed as she adjusted her horn-rimmed glasses up higher on her muzzle and spoke, “Here to pilfer more of my books from my shelves?”

Moondancer narrowed her eyes at the elderly mare, “I’ve never stolen any books, Ms. Tomes. I’ve only ever checked them out, like any responsible pony would. Why should I be singled out just because I take my education more seriously than more than half the other ponies that come here to read nothing but trashy, romance novels?”

“Well, if you brought them back in a more timely manner, you wouldn’t have to pay for all your exuberant late fees. Or have your checkout times significantly reduced.”

The elderly mare said this in a matter-of-factly tone, all while shuffling and stamping some documents she had been working on behind the counter.

Moondancer ground her teeth at the chiding remarks, “How do you expect anypony to study the material properly with how little time you give them to check these books out?!”

“Volume, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes chided again, “Two weeks is the standard amount of time given to everypony, Moondancer. An amount you’ve taken for granted more often than not, and that is why your allotted time had been cut to only one week.”

Moondancer could feel a blood vessel about ready to burst at that. She really used to love this library. She really did. She even had a rather fond relationship with the head librarian, despite how crabby she could be, along with a few of the ponies she once considered to be more than just passing acquaintances that also came to this place with her. Though after the Canterlot Crisis two years ago, they all turned their backs on her.

All for different, but equally, selfish reasons. Two had to move to a different city, as they no longer could live in the prestigious city, their families no longer able to afford it. Another was on track to be accepted into the Royal Archives’ staff in the castle, like Moondancer herself wanted to be, but turned it down to pursue her selfish dream of ‘getting out and exploring the world before it was too late’, whatever that meant. And of course, there was the one that upped and became a national heroine, princess, and liaison for Equestria’s relations with interdimensional monkeys.

Twilight Sparkle. That name was enough to get poor Moondancer’s blood pressure to spike dangerously. They used to be more than friends, until Twilight stabbed her in the back. She was willing to give her a second chance during the time she heard that the purple unicorn was back in the city two years ago. Moondancer waited and waited, but she never came around to apologize. She never even came to say a simple hello. No, she apparently was too busy ‘helping’ a wayward space monkey who did nothing but cause trouble for all of ponykind.

Now, no matter where Moondancer went, she was surrounded by incompetence and stupidity. Even here, in her once so-called second home, the Canterlot library. It, too, had been infested with ponies that were looking to do nothing but make her life more difficult.

Moondancer fought to keep her volume down even as she sniped back from the earlier remarks, “I have been a loyal patron to this library for years! I’ve always respected the system and the books I check out! Unlike some ponies that think that a stupid comic book belongs in the same place as Galineigho’s works.”

“Your opinion is noted, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes replied dryly. She put her signature on the last form in front of her and then shuffled it, and the rest of the papers she had been working on, to the side. She finally looked up to let Moondancer know that she had her undivided attention. Moondancer internally rolled her eyes, knowing that her complaints were inevitably going to go unheeded.

Musty Tomes readjusted her glasses once more before addressing Moondancer, “Now, are you here to return your latest binge readings, or to complain about your own personal gripes?”

Moondancer was about to snap back at the elderly mare, but the first question made her gasp in dreading realization. Her mind went to the books tucked away in her saddlebags. The same books that had met an unfortunate fate, much like herself.

“Ahem, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes said impatiently.

And just like that, the beige unicorn was back to being furious. With a hesitant flick of her magic, she procured the ruined set of tomes from her bags and placed them on the head librarian’s desk in a heap. Musty Tomes took one look at the ruined books and clicked her tongue.

“I’m sorry, Moondancer, but this is unacceptable.”

“It wasn’t my fault,” Moondancer growled.

“Was it now?” Moondancer heard the skepticism which only made her angrier. A passing pony yipped in surprise and gathered up his fallen exam papers from his saddlebags. He was certain that he had secured them more thoroughly. Maybe it had to do with that frayed looking edge they slipped out of, but that made no sense, as these bags were practically brand new. He shrugged as he chalked it up to a mere draft.

“No, it wasn’t,” Moondancer hissed, “I was on my way here when I was attacked by one of those bipedal monkeys the princesses thought was a good idea to summon back.”

Musty Tomes sighed in frustration, “Moondancer, no matter the circumstances, you know the rules of this library, better than anypony I suspect. Once you’ve checked out a book, it is upon you to take responsibility for whatever happens to it. No exceptions."

Moondancer sputtered in anger before slamming a hoof on top of the reception desk, “But, I just told you, it wasn’t my fault!”

“Volume, Moondancer,” Musty Tomes shot back.

She didn’t think the beige unicorn had hit the desk that hard, but nevertheless, it appeared enough to flip the books up top open and fan out the soggy, torn pages.

The elderly librarian closed the books again and set them aside, “Now, seeing as these books are damaged beyond repair, I will need you to cover their costs in full. Also, as this incident is not your first violation of library rules, I’m afraid I’m going to have to suspend your privileges for two months.”

At first, Moondancer was just too gobsmacked to speak. Some of those books were limited editions that she had been waiting on for weeks while stuck on a waiting list to read. She certainly didn’t have the bits to throw around frivolously. She barely made enough to cover her half of the rent as is. Despite all that though, what caused her ire to return with a burning vengeance was the ludicrous punishment of her suspension.

“You can’t do this to me!” Moondancer screamed, and continued on before Musty Tomes could interject, “No! This is completely unfair! I was the one who was attacked! Why do I have to keep paying for others’ mistakes?!” The irate pony punctuated each statement by striking the reception desk with her hooves. “All I’ve ever wanted was to have a steady career and a peaceful life, but you, and everypony else, just keep taking it all away from me! I’m sick of it!”

Musty Tomes tried to interrupt Moondancer’s tirade, but the beige mare kept funneling her frustrations into the unblockable words. Moondancer herself began to feel weird, like her whole body was on fire. Though it did not stop her from spitting out the unending stream of vitriol in the overwhelmed librarian’s face. Her head was pounding from the sheer volume of her voice as she cursed out everyone that she believed had wronged her in her life. Her legs felt numb, yet hypersensitive at the same time. She ignored the concerned shouts from the head librarian for her to 'stop'. She even tuned out the rising tide of panicked cries from the ponies around her as they made for any exit they could to escape the evolving chaos.

Blinded by her rage, Moondancer let out one final agonizing scream to vent her overflowing frustrations to the world. When she was done, the world around her was quiet, aside from her ragged breaths. She slowly came back to her senses, and when she did, what she saw shocked and confused her.

“Wh-what?”

It was all she could manage in her startled state. Where once there was the ambient buzz of ponies meandering throughout the library, there was now near silence. There was a dull commotion coming from outside, but Moondancer paid it no mind. Looking to her surroundings, paper of all manner, from books to parchment were strewn about, but not in a random fashion. They all seemed to radiate out from around her.

Panic started to settle in. Moondancer was unsure, but it seemed like she had experienced a magic flare-up while lashing out. Not uncommon for unicorns in high stress scenarios. At least, that’s what she thought at first. As she took a step back from the epicenter, a few of the pages at her hooves followed. Not in a way like it was caused by the shifting of air from her movements, but rather as if the stray pieces of paper had a mind of their own.

“What in Tartarus?!” Moondancer gasped.

She tried to kick the pieces away, but they always floated lazily back toward her. One such piece made contact with her hoof, and she cried out at a weird sensation it gave her. She thought it gave her a papercut, but when she looked, she was completely fine.

She looked up and gasped again, “How-...Wait, what the-?!”

Embedded in the reception desk was that piece of paper she flicked away. Not only that, but more pieces of paper were also embedded in the desk and the wall behind it. Most, if not all, were folded into geometric shapes that she was very familiar with from her studies into various magics.

Moondancer looked down at her hooves upon feeling that weird sensation again. Pieces of paper floated around them, folding into more geometric shapes which would sometimes float into and out of her body. Lifting one of her hooves up to examine the phenomenon, she found that it was not caused by some magic she was using. Her horn was unlit, and the feeling of the paper moving about her was as if they were a part of her. Being a quick study, she found that she could manipulate the pieces of paper to her desires. Folding and unfolding them with a mere thought and simple gesture.

“I’m...one of those conduits.”

She had read the news, studied the publications on the subject, so there was no mistaking what she was going through. At first, Moondancer thought she should be scared, perhaps even panicked, but the more she thought about it, the more a welling sense of pride began to surface.

Moondancer clicked her tongue and giggled to herself, "And they said conduits were nothing but dangerous sociopaths. Obviously, they meant the ones who have no self control, unlike me." Moondancer emphasized her statement by fanning a display of folded paper in front of her with a hoof. "Shoot, I’m going to be late for my shift… You know what, no! I have better things to do than be harassed by that chauvinist asshole at work all day. In fact, I’m going to go give that poor excuse for a stallion a piece of my mind.”

With the finality of that statement, Moondancer gathered up her things and trotted swiftly for the main entrance, floating pieces of geometrically folded paper following in her wake the entire way.

“Hmm... why stop with that one stallion?” Moondancer continued to talk to herself, “Maybe I should give that monkey a piece of my mind as well. It’s his fault this all happened to begin with. I’d have to find him though, but he should be at the princesses’ castle. Oh well. One thing at a time, I suppose.”

The glass doors swung closed behind the newly delighted mare, leaving the library in a state of complete disarray and near silence. However, if Moondancer had paid just a little more attention, she would have noticed something amiss. Beyond the reception desk, amid the cascade of sharpened paper embedded into the environment was a patch devoid of any of the projectiles, a vaguely equine shaped patch.

For behind the desk laid an elderly mare, by the name of Musty Tomes, desperately clinging to what little life she had in a growing pool of her own blood after being peppered with numerous sharply folded paper. She tried to cry out for help, but the shock from all the pain and blood loss made her voice hitch into the tiniest of squeaks at best. The world was growing colder and dimmer with every second she laid there. Scared and alone; those were the last feelings she had before the inky blackness around her vision consumed her.