Day 1

THUMP

Dante let out a sigh and rubbed his leg as the loader drone in front of him beeped its acknowledgment that it had been provided a box. It dutifully picked up the box and trundled to the waiting van outside in its slow methodical fashion.

"Bastard could at least rig them rather than playing Everfree Shooter on my dime," Dante grumbled before sticking his head out the door. Yep, the rigger 'supplied' by the moving company was still slumped over in the cab pretending to work. The drones kept moving under their own pilots but Dante was having to supply a lot of the muscle needed for them to manage even a slow pace. He wanted to stop and rest, but only slowed enough to chug another bottle of tonic. A part of him was terrified that the hatchet muzzled landlord with bags under his eyes was going to turn up with a squad of Knight Errant officers in tow. There had been vague news reports, but so far nothing which clearly identified him had been issued, but the description of a 'pony of interest' was just close enough that someone might finger him on the off chance that it would earn them enough nubits to be in Cram for a month. Fortunately, he hadn't exactly fully unpacked from the move to Canterlot Gardens, otherwise, this would have taken far more time. The room with the faded floral trim in only the vaguest approximation of Canterlot Gardens emptied, the last box out was carried by Darkly personally, under a disguised layer sat a mana case with two objects that Dante was feeling increasingly possessive of, and left him worried about Silky's intentions.

A half-hour spent in traffic later, he exited his car, wearing a face subtly different from his normal face, but which matched the SIN photo of one Edmond Dantes. A weak tinny beep greeted him and a door swung open to a room that smelled faintly of deepweed. A few cactus decals decorated the walls along with a rope and buffalo motif in the trim. Faux plastic adobe in the entryway greeted him to Appaloosa Acres. He swore that the actual construction, the 20-year-old appliances, the carpet was all out of the exact same catalog that Canterlot Gardens had been built from.

"Welcome Home...sigh"

Day 2

Dante splashed some water on his face and tried not to gag at the chemical smell...the container at his hooves was cheap, his expensive dyes still in the mail. He would have preferred something more seamless but expediency had ruled. At least he had a decent explanation for the sudden change. The dye was two or three shades darker than his normal coat. It would keep him looking like Edmond rather than Dante, and if anyone raised an eyebrow he could simply claim that it was bad lighting when the photo was taken. It also hid the increasingly salt and pepper color of his coat. He had given up on counting the white hairs, it wasn't enough to change his coat color, but....but... well. He had no illusions about whether this was going to stop anytime soon.

Dante was not impressed. Silky Sheets had thrown a soiree with the team that was far too public for his liking, and now was hinting that the tiara and foci could be sold. Dante had no illusions, the offer would not be anywhere near the value, and Silky's lack of tact was going to reveal that the foci weren’t so much as missing as being held by one pony, namely Dante. Still, he had left with an upbeat tone, he should get a new suit with his windfall, it would make him feel normal.

Day 3

Dante's stomach growled the feelings of hunger were getting worse. The hunger that would not be satisfied with a soy-apple. He forced himself to focus again on the specifics of the Dream Spell. He had a plan, but there were things he needed to get first.

"Going to mingle with the criminals again, eh...more new friends..."

Day 4

Glass Darkly walked past the rows of stalls filled with the worst neer do wells and scum of Seattle. Various diamond dogs leered and fingered lumps in their jackets that ranged from pistol to SMG sized. He had no doubts there were larger weapons where he couldn't see them. He had again subtly disguised himself and had included a prominent patch on one shoulder, Manadyne Valued Customer. It was an unsaid declaration.

It wasn't entirely enough.

"What...what is the earth pony doing on dog turf?"

A large diamond dog loomed above him.

"I don't see anyone crowning you king. Now are you going to get out of my way so I can hit up the electronics section, or do I need to provide encouragement?"

Dante did his best to seem unintimidated...he knew if he showed weakness the diamond dog would press him further.

Glass Darkly let his amethyst magic sparkle briefly and planted an idea in the dog's head, that messing with a mage was unwise, for all he knew the mage could make him worship the ground the next unicorn he saw walked on.

The dog withdrew.

A moment later Glass was chatting up with Friendly Finn and a moment after that he was leaving. He had to suppress a sigh as the credits flowed out as fast as they came in.

A voice disguiser, and an ultra-wideband radar module carefully packaged away. A while later he gulped as yet more credits were deducted in exchange for another small box with the Mitsuheehawma foil being added to his haul.

Day 5

The hum of the City almost obscured a knock on Darkly's door.

"She's here," he stood up and made sure that in the next room his new-used Evening Mist drone was scanning for cameras. His UWB Radar was likewise looking for trackers, along with his radio signal scanner.

He opened the door and felt his heart skip a beat. The pair of blue eyes were almost entrancing, and her cream-colored mane streaked with gold was lovely. She even had that demi-alicorn body shape that was all the rage among unicorn mares.

"Golden Lace I presume," Dante tried to be debonair.

"Of course," she cooed. Her cutie mark glittered with a heart surrounded by delicate lacey strands.

Dante had to remind himself that she was here because she had paid her, and as he showed her in, he allowed his vision to switch to the astral. A frown crossed his face. He could see the data jack in the back of her skull, the implants that had stretched her legs and shaped her face into that vision of beauty, and the hair implants that had given her that lustrous mane. Her cutie mark was gray and dead on the astral, nothing more than a decal, underneath a pair of dolphins circled each other, glowing weakly from her depleted essence. She was no more real than one of his illusions.

He tried to let his disappointment pass through him and drain away.

"She's a call mare, what did you expect?" He told himself.

"I take it you moved recently, did you care for a housewarming, or something else?" She cooed.

Dante, slowly worked up a smile. Two mares had practically thrown themselves at him recently, and he had felt almost annoyed. This was his time though, and his money. There was no reason he couldn't enjoy this, and if one could ignore the slightly hollow look in her eyes and in her soul, she was gorgeous.

"I have a few ideas..."

....

Dante was getting annoyed, she was a good actor but he knew he was being at best mediocre. He just wasn't that into it. Something just wasn't clicking...it worried him for all of a few moments, and then Golden Lace took over and Dante's choice in the matter was gone.

....

"So, do you have time for another, or?" She sweetly nuzzled at his ear.

Dante knew what she was asking, and knew that there would be a charge associated with it...but now, now was the time for work. It took him two tries, but Golden Lace was too busy screaming in ecstasy to realize her danger. After the second casting of an Orgy illusion, the call mare blacked out as her brain overloaded from the spell induced pleasure. Dante moved a few boxes, to reveal a small arrangement of magical supplies. He carefully touched a few doses of Aisa to the sleeping Mare to ensure that she would not wake soon. He recovered her cheap commlink and made sure it wasn't recording or keeping track of time.

Taking a drink of coffee, he set to work.

It was slow work. Hours ticked by into the early morning but eventually Dante probed into the recesses of her mind and let subconscious details flow into a dream. Dante was tired and his stomach growled. His mind caught the briefest of impressions. A warm beach, a brown-haired filly playing. A dolphin caught in a net. A brave rescue and a chirping of thanks, answered by an instinctive knowledge. Flickers of thought. He looked down and tried to peer through his spell...he could see it. The dolphin cutie mark glowed a little more brightly, its owner, Sea Whisper almost radiant with Serenity, her personal Harmony at its zenith. There was no thought about what happened next. It was an instinctual surge.

With a growling cry, Dante pulled at that power, a thin trail of amethyst magic flowing from Sea Whisper to himself. Moments ticked by and slowly Sea Whisper's light dimmed and a glow of eldritch energy spilled out past the edges of Dante's contacts. Inside, Dante was increasingly alarmed as the idyllic beach scene mutated. The color drained from the sky, the ocean, the warm beach became naught but blowing abrasive sand, and the friendly dolphin grew ominous. Finally, Dante was able to stop himself, but barely a third of Sea Whisper's light remained. Dante broke the connection and tried to assense the flows of magic but struggled against the overwhelming emotion of the moment. Even with that, he could tell that Sea Whisper's aura had been badly depleted. Her cream-colored coat seemed a little fainter in color, only her artificial mane was unaffected.

He patched together an altered memory that had her elsewhere over the last few hours and while she was still woozy made sure she got into an auto cab to be taken home. He staggered back through the door of his apartment and over the sink and fought the urge to retch. Which was odd considering how utterly GREAT he was feeling otherwise.

"What have you done...?!" He asked himself, "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

A throbbing in his head was the only answer, his vision blurred and he struggled to take out his contacts. He had just removed them in time to see it... he looked into the mirror, rust along the trim as the glow in his irises faded, but the spots of amethyst grew and merged. By the time it was done, two full orbs looked back at him brightly, like liquid gems.

"No, NO, NO!" He chanted to himself, the pain in his head came again, and he staggered over to the bed that still smelled of Golden Lace, nee Sea Whisper, and collapsed. Exhaustion slowly took him and he did not see the amethyst sparks that ran through his coat. Over the next several hours several spots of gleaming pearlescent white pushed through the cheap dye.

Dante Haze slept fitfully as finally, the power subsided. His experiment a success…far too much of one.

…

Day 6

Dante groaned as he woke with a start, the shrieking laughter of a few colts and fillies in the distance as they scratched out some simple game around the bases of the large blocky buildings of Appaloosa Acres. Hazy afternoon sunshine filtered around the edges of the heavy curtains that darkened the windows. For a brief moment, Dante could have pretended, that he was just one of the chronically unemployed. He rolled out of bed and plodded over to the bathroom mirror and did not for the life of him recognize the eyes that looked back. For a long moment, he beheld those amethyst orbs before glancing downwards and grimacing.

"I look like a damn Holstein cow...." He morbidly joked, "moo..I guess?"

Except for a spot of bluish-green on his shoulder halfway between turquoise and aquamarine. And another on his back...and... He stopped it didn't matter.

....

With a plop, Dante wearily settled into his chair and after a moment turned on the recording from his commlink camera.

"This is probably inadvisable but I want. No need to get this on record while my thoughts are fresh. The experiment last night, well, from a technical standpoint it was a triumph. The improvised Probe/Dream extended ritual did exactly what I expected and fed the subject's subconscious experiences of her moment of greatest serenity and associated emotional high back to her via the Dream. From a moral and ethical viewpoint, however... I..."

Dante choked back a shudder.

"I did something only a monster would, I pulled something directly from that nexus. I mean, on some level I could talk about Clover the Clever's theorem of unified emotion-magic field theory, but that is a hill of beans compared to feeling a pony's internal magic draining from them into you. I think with time Sea Whisper will recover, but the potential to permanently damage some pony in a deep-seated way is there.

More so, the number of conditions that would grant such an abominable power is limited. The most terrible thing is aside from my personal revulsion I feel GREAT. I thought that maybe this was PMPVV, some strange variant, but this wasn't like the surface draws I've done before. It's like the difference between a shallow surface water well, and boring down to tap an aquifer. I..."

Dante paused a moment and breathed.

"I've become a parasite, and the number of ways that could happen aren't many."

Dante's eyes wandered over to the chip detailing the fall of Queen Erytora.

"I refuse to jump to conclusions, but in terms of fixing THIS, I have no clue. The only thing I can do is refuse to use the power. So, I make this vow, today is the first day of the rest of my life. That goes for being a criminal as well as a...whatever."

Dante turned off the camera, pulled the chip and put the recording in a safe place, he wasn't going to carry around what amounted to a confession on his commlink.

Fortunately his dye had arrived, a cloaked pony retrieved a box from the mail drop off, and a few hours later, Glass Darkly emerged, looking mostly like himself.

....

Twilight came early as it always did to this section of Seattle as the sun sank behind Arcology Row, the looming bulk of the Apple-Zap arco-barn casting a particularly long shadow. Glass Darkly walked through the front door of the Neigh for Nirvana Temple and Wellness center. A few hanging lights and art stencils did their best to impart a feeling of harmony but couldn't entirely distract from the layout choices which reflected the locations past as a Japanese restaurant.

Dante stopped at the offering tree, small imitations of money tied to the branches as requests for good fortune. He said his own prayer before dropping a cred stick into the slot set into the heavy pedestal. Clear Chakra was a monk, not a fool. Dante with a wince thought of all the things he had spent money on at the crime Mall compared to the very modest cred stick he had offered towards a second chance.

"priorities...," Dante whispered.

Turning he paced back past the end of the rock garden and found Clear Chakra leading a group of the usuals in centering meditation. A few young ponies clearly experimenting. A unicorn mare that had clearly been dragged there by her friend next to her, probably from a start in a yoga class somewhere. A few smartly groomed older ponies, looking to fill the holes in their souls excavated by the Bellevue rat race, and a few Japanacorp deserters.

Dante found a space in the back and watched the worn frame of Clear Chakra go through the lesson. The old hippie had been forced from San Francisco for refusing to toe General Saito's line and preach the nationalistic version of Buddhism the Japanacorps favored. So like many, he had headed north, skipping the lands between populated with unwelcoming unicorns.

Eventually, the class broke up and the room emptied save for Dante. He was both waiting for and dreading the greeting when it finally came.

"Ah, Dante, I was sure you must have found Enlightenment as long as you have been away.

"I, I have had other things on my mind."

"I gathered, you do not look well, Dante."

"The urban jungle has been less than kind lately Clear Chakra."

The bearded monk regarded Dante for a moment, "Are you lost Dante?"

The quiet question caught Dante off guard he fidgeted for a moment before sheepishly answering, "Yes..."

"Good, you recognize that at least, come in, make some tea, we'll get the bottom of it."

Dante had no response as he was shown into Clear Chakras' modest rooms and a small tea set.

"Master Chakra, shouldn't..?"

"The student makes tea, the master imparts his wisdom."

Dante shrugged and set about the steps, careful to follow the semi-ritualistic rote. After a moment he poured a cup for Chakra and for himself. The old monk took the cup and sipped it silently. Getting down to the last he swirled the tea fragments in the last few drops of tea. Finally he handed the bowl back to Dante.

"That, that was terrible, I see now why you are so lost, you lack any semblance of balance. All of the ingredients, all of the steps are correct, but you are at war with yourself. It clouds your karma badly."

Dante stared at his cup, it had tasted like tea to him.

"You know the precepts, you must clear your mind of distractions, push past the crass wants of the flesh and mind and focus on seeking enlightenment."

"That's all and good Master Chakra but that doesn't help when I'm starving and about to be thrown into the gutter."

"You focus on a single solution to myriad problems, the carpenter that only trusts his hammer, will inevitably bemoan that his projects cannot be finished solely by hammering nails. Your thinking has grown muddled, you have accepted pollutants into your body and mind, this has led to you being pulled by degrees further and further away from enlightenment."

Dante was quiet before nodding, but not denying, "I needed an edge."

"You are a gifted stallion, many others would have seen their magic fade much sooner."

Dante shrank a bit from the judgment, "actually I'm not suffering from that."

Now it was Chakras turn, "You...you are fortunate then, burnout is no minor matter...I would know," and for the first time in their conversation, it was Chakras that turned away with a pained look. Continuing,...

"I have always worried about you Dante, you are powerful, but great urges buffet you, and an uneasiness always seems to lurk in your shadow. I ask you to mind your thoughts and ensure that you are their master and not the other way around."

A bead of sweat formed at Dante's maneline, but he persisted.

"I foresee a period of re-centering and trial ahead, can you help fortify me for the times to come," Dante thought to Silky's designs on the crown and had an idea, "I would also like your recommendation on some of the better texts, I have a gulf between my magic and my understanding that is in need of a bridge with a strong foundation."

Chakra smiled, "Of course, let us meditate..."

It was quite late when Dante finally showed himself out, a list of reading material in hoof.

...

Day 7

The Mortimer of Trottingham door was heavy, solid, a statement without a word said in brass, old wood, and frosted glass.

The inside was cool and quiet, with a faint hint of old cigars and leather. The no-smoking sign was the only clue that the scents were being piped in. There were no price markers, if you had to ask, you didn't belong here.

"May I help you sir?" A pony with a shock of white mane and a tape measure about his neck appeared from seemingly nowhere. Dante noticed as the stallions eyes flicked to a small HUD reflected in his glasses. The change in the tailor pony's expression confirmed for Dante that his SIN with attached lack of employment was being displayed.

"I must note that we are not currently hiring, and we have no public restrooms."

Dante forced his expression to remain neutral as he put down a cred stick on the real oak counter.

"I trust cash is acceptable?" Dante let the smallest hint of a smirk creep into his smile.

The tailor pony's expression changed subtly even if his tone did not, it was part of the experience after all.

"Of course, right this way sir."

A few moments later Dante was enjoying the attention, though the logical part of his mind was uneasy with dropping the better part of his monthly expenses on a single suit. This was entirely secondary though to his plans, he was going to walk into the Horizon compound, impress everyone, and get his old job back, Speculum be damned. No more sketchy meetings in Touristville, no more stare downs with smelly Diamond Dogs, and no more moments of sheer terror anticipating the approach of booted security ponies.

"I don't need a full scan, I have my measurements from before," Dante proudly proclaimed as he admired a spinning AR mock-up of him in various styles.

The tailor mumbled something followed by a 'very good sir..' and went about plugging the numbers provided by Dante. After a moment it was done, but a small indicator light on the scanner base flickered red.

The tailor spoke.

"Sir's measurements don't match. Sir might have had the misfortune of being measured in a badly calibrated scanner."

Dante thought to his nigh insatiable appetite for soy apples and fought back a grimace. "Hah, well, I suppose I have taken a few fine meals at Chez Pierre le Pierre's since my last suit," Dante went with the easy lie.

The tailor gave him a look.

"Actually Sir's waist is an inch less, not more than stated. Also, Sir is a half-inch longer in the sleeves and chest."

The Tailor spoke as if nothing could matter less, but Dante was struggling to keep his face neutral, his own voice dancing hauntingly through his memory, '...where the hell is all the calcium I'm eating going?'

Dante suddenly had a sneaking suspicion. Now though was not the time, he was a professional and he played the part, but for the first days of his renewed dedication to breaking free of the whirlwind that had consumed his life, this was an unwelcome reminder.

....

Day 7 evening

Dante strode into The Backlot, a swanky club off the Horizon media compound, and got a few looks from old co-workers and strangers alike. He was crisp in Mortimer's latest, mane freshly trimmed. The only thing keeping him from feeling like a million nu-bits were the contacts in his eyes and the feeling of dye in his coat. So began his personal battle, time would tell whether like Napoleon Bonapony if it would be his Waterloo.

Day 8, 9, 10, 11.

Days passed in hope as time and time again two-bit directors and production ponies ate, laughed, and drank with him always leaving with statements about how they'd review their special effects needs. Dante spent the rest of his time combing texts suggested by Chakra about Buddhist spell lore always keeping an eye open for any mention of the crown. Increasingly though time in meditation was needed to combat the growing hunger.

Day 12

"I'm telling you Glitter Glam, I just need one pony here to give me a chance, it's been the exact same thing every time, the moment some pony gets away from me, it is like they forget I exist. How the hell does Speculum have that much pull?

“He’s effectively running the special effects guild in the city Dante, you know that. Work with Dante, and he threatens that the next time someone needs an illusionist they’ll get the wettest behind the ears colt that can barely turn blue to purple.”

Dante gave Glitter a look.

“Besides that man, have you considered maybe, you know, looking elsewhere, Speculum is limited to one city. I know Manehattan isn’t the totally nicest place, but Zoe by Carousel Boutique has been hiring for ads. You’re like a hammer looking for a nail in an Apple-Zap easy-assemble furniture store.”

Dante sighed, but Glitter Glam continued.

“Also, you were joking and personable a few days ago, you’re starting to look a bit…haggard might be a bit strong a word, but you should have seen the look on your face when Ms. Feather Caress walked in.”

Dante didn’t follow, he tried to deflect.

“Really, come on, most stallions would listen to a week of Apple-Zap Rock Themed poetry if it got them a night with Feather Caress.”

“Yeah but you weren’t looking at her like you wanted to brush out her tail, you were…well…it was more like she was a canteen of water and you’ve been crossing the deserts of Saddle Arabia for a week. You don’t look well Dante…what’s going on?”

“I’m….,” Dante debated, “I’ve been reduced to groveling because Speculum Shine got lucky, now followed by suggestions that I trot off into self-imposed exile with my tail between my legs…and you’re asking…what’s wrong?”

Glitter Glam sighed…, “okay I understand, but seriously man chill a little, you’re getting intense…look I’ll have a chat with Speculum, this feud isn’t doing any of you favors. If he’s willing to finally bury the hatchet, are you?”

Dante wanted to object, but Chakra’s words flitted through his mind…and the memory of what the alternative was…heavy booted pony hooves and always the threat of Tartarus.

Dante Nodded, he slowly worked at a drink but by the end of the night, he was shivering a bit. Damn, he was hungry.

Day 13

Dante tried to think about anything other the churning, gnawing ache in his stomach. He tried to meditate, he tried to follow up on job leads, he couldn’t bear to bring himself to go out, and the self-assured, actor ponies counted among them at least a few that had that wonderful glow that drew him like a moth to a flame.

Day 14

Glitter Glam’s face told Dante all he needed to know.

“It didn’t go well.”

“I gathered.”

“He attached certain conditions, but I suppose its an offer,”

“And?”

“I’m not sure that this is going to help.”

“My feelings aren’t going to be hurt.”

Glitter Glam brought up a bit of AR text.

“To one Dante Haze, guild apprentice, your transgressions are well known, but I have begun to tire of the constant attention necessary to dissuade gullible producers from making a terrible mistake. Thus I will be magnanimous and should you apologize, in person, in my office, and accept formal censure for your reckless, aggressive, and anti-social behavior towards myself and others, and prove the validity of your contrition by personally cleaning out the guild hall storage, and handling the 4:30 am coffee service for the next five years, AND handle the 10-year contract for effects work on the Tele-Foals show, then I will consider the matter resolved.

Signed, Master Speculum Shine, Esquire.”

“Dante?”

“I….I need some air…”

Dante Haze walked out the side entrance to The Backlot, a pit of burning indignation in his stomach which did little to quiet the shivers or the empty ache within him. He wasn’t going to be allowed anywhere near honest work. He could become a wage-mage… and grow as empty inside as Sea Whisper had been. Or…

Raucous voices approached. Dante stepped back into the shadows. He recognized Buster Goodmane among them, a blowhard that Speculum’s work had rendered just marketable enough to make him forget his days as a personal fitness instructor and take up the pompous lifestyle of an up and coming action star.

A slight glow lit the shadows as a corona of amethyst light leaked out from around two fake contacts. A small voice whispered in the back of Dante’s mind, but he was beyond listening to the words about keeping one’s thoughts and actions in balance. He was hungry and he was a parasite. He couldn’t change that, but he could choose who would suffer his wrath. He swore there would be no more Sea Whispers, but no such generosity would be extended to the wicked. He would become the fist of karmic retribution.

He stepped back through the door. Through the ward, and immediately turned himself invisible. Glass Darkly had a Pegasus with good hair to hunt.

…

It was a simple thing to step back through the club’s ward. Like many establishments, the security was focused outwards. Glass Darkly was already checked in, the sensors had no complaint as he reentered through the service door. Once inside it was trivial to become invisible.

Glass slowly picked his way between the tables towards Buster and his flunkies. There were a few close calls with serving drones but soon he was close enough to pull out his sensor package with the directional microphone and listen in intently. Minutes then an hour ticked by in empty bravado and self-congratulatory celebration over various modest triumphs.

Finally, the conversation turned.

"Hey, did you hear? I have it on good authority that Haze has been trying to get work again. Speculum thought the screw up had finally packed it in after not hearing anything for several months but he's turned up again. Hothead should know when he's done."

A round of laughter followed, which nicely covered up the sound of Glass Darkly's teeth grinding.

There was more boisterous revelry. Though slowly Buster seemed to be getting distracted. Eventually, his thoughts became clear.

"Hey fellas I'm getting bored, how about we move this show to the Show pony Secrets Club?"

One of Buster's lackeys snickered, "You've got it bad for Lavender, eh Buster?

Buster's eyes narrowed.

"Fine by me, as long as you're buying the first round buddy," another groupie answered and it was settled.

Glass had heard of the place, a bit upscale though still not a place any mare would want her fillies to wind up. Glass Darkly slowly stalked the party as they left.

As he got into the unending traffic of the 405, a part of him asked if he was going to go through with this. A growl of his stomach answered to emphasize just how hungry he was. Glass cleared the half-finished text from his commlinks memory as he set it to hidden mode.

"Sorry Chakra but I’ve gotta eat something and platitudes aren't cutting it."

He turned into the parking receptacle and went past the premium valet. He took a parking ticket but no pony approached the door, at least none appeared too until the next group came. A pair of Diamond Dogs loomed but the pounding bass from inside, the low light, and the antics of the stallions made it difficult to notice that the inner door from the cover charge payment area was a little slow to close.

Inside Glass Darkly nearly gagged at the astral backwash, but after a moment the feeling of emotional filth passed. Muzzles lit in the barest amount of light pointed upwards to watch the mares that cavorted provocatively.

Glass was not a fan of places like these, no matter how enticing the displays might be. For one to whom the world of magic fueled by emotion was always a blink away the inherent artificiality of it all was overwhelming. Drunk, lonely stallions trying to find answers in lust, used mares trying to siphon money. He wasn’t immune to the lure but unlike his rendezvous with Golden Lace, the cumulative effect on the manaspace in such places was never pleasant. But Glass Darkly was not going to be dissuaded. His foe the pawn of his nemesis was here, his....food.

Invisibly he waited and watched, lingering around their table, occasionally having to move as mares walked by wearing glowing acrylic platform shoes. He had no trouble recognizing when the moment of action had arrived. A rather alluring Pegasus mare that reminded him far too much of Golden Lace sided up to Buster. Written artfully on her flank in UV gel was the name, Laviscous Lavender.

She worked Buster over with her wings playfully until he swept her up and they shared a few quiet moments of whispers broken by Lavenders enticing giggles. She nodded with her head towards the private rooms in the back where the lights were extra dim. Buster got up eagerly but Lavender just stood there glancing down at the stocking around her back left leg.

"A mare's got to eat stud muffin, and my classes at the university are always so expensive but if you'd prefer one of my friends with a more open schedule...."

Buster wasted no time in sticking a credstick into the band of Lavender's stocking. She blushed and coyly brushed Buster with a wing. Glass took grim satisfaction that on the astral Lavender might as well have been an ice statue, there was not a shred of emotional warmth or desire. More importantly, he noticed the subtle panic button and taser built into her mane ties.

Glass followed as silently as he could, but the ever-present thumping bass would have made hearing his hoof falls require a near miracle. Into the dim warren of private rooms he followed then. Finally, Lavender stopped, and invited Buster inside.

Glass, still invisible, hit Lavender with an Influence suggesting she make a show of entering the room, stopping to pose in the doorway.

With enough time to enter Glass crept through the door. He waited for Lavender to start her performance in earnest so the two were firmly distracted before he pulled out his Evening Mist drone.

It was dark but the little drone quickly scanned and blanked out any cameras.

Glass Darkly waited for the best possible moment before he struck. Lavender was practically draped over Buster when his Orgy spell hit.

As an added precaution he hit them with a Control Actions spell as the two blacked out, the two never even got a chance to scream as they blacked out.

Glass, still invisible, aware that someone might come in, left his drone running, and propped the two against each other, blots of Aisa in their hooves. Within a moment, he was ready to get down to business…he figured he wasn’t going to have the time to do this right…but…

It wasn’t the artesian borehole into Buster’s soul Darkly wanted, but he still got deep into the action star’s desires, but his efforts to craft the Dream were exquisite.

In the darkened shadows, the very slightest glimmer of amethyst reflected on the dark velvet walls as Glass Darkly took his due. He forced himself to stop, he couldn’t risk Buster being totally discombobulated, a bad night out on the town would be written off, leaving him a blubbering wreck might invite medical attention. Between the drain from his spells and the elation Glass Darkly was feeling he was struggling to keep his head clear.

He debated taking Buster’s commlink, but leaving the pony without the means to pay his bill to the club could cause issues. His eyes roamed…and with a smile he leaned down and pulled the cred stick in Lavender’s stocking out and pocketed it…with a whisper noted to the comatose show mare, “Sorry cheesecake, but a mare’s got to eat, and my hobbies have gotten expensive.”

The last thing Darkly did was Alter the Pony’s memories.

Opening the door and slinking out, keeping his drone out to blank cameras until he was past the door, Darkly struggled to walk straight. The pounding bass, the lights. He waited and passed out the front door behind some exiting ponies, staggered into the night, and it became a blur.

Day 15

Dante woke up in his own bed, his mouth feeling like cotton, but feeling luxuriously full. The lack of protest from his stomach was more than enough to offset the hangover. He stirred and a bottle of empty cider fell off his bed and clattered to the floor. He looked down and half froze…he had company.

Locks of a luxurious blue-green tail sparkled in the morning light, emerging from under Dante’s leg mixed with his own dark shade. The color was mesmerizing, a soft gradient that shifted towards a cerulean blue as the tail strands fell off the edge of the bed and fell in gentle curls towards the floor. He reached down and ran the back of his foreleg across the strands of the tail. It was soft and silky and reminded him of Golden Lace’s tail in quality. How had he managed to convince a mare with a tail this nice to come back with him to this dump? Half his stuff was still in boxes. He must have rolled over onto her tail last night. He tried to remember where they had met…but couldn’t recall, it was all a blur after Buster. He wondered why she hadn’t woken him, or even stirred, but no matter might as well bite the bullet. Darkly rolled over.

….And found the other half of his bed empty…for a moment he didn’t understand, but as he began to move eventually some of the glittering hair that shifted between turquoise and aquamarine got caught under his back leg and a wincing feeling of hair being pulled planted a thought that spent a terrible moment germinating through Darkly’s mind before it finally reached fruition.

“What the HELL?!” Darkly choked as he dug the tail from under him, and found that evenly interspersed with his dark tail were the strands he had been so recently admiring. He shifted to his feet, and a blue-green bang feel into his peripheral vision.

He grabbed at it, trying to pull it from his head as if it was a wig…the pain that resulted confirmed that the mane was in fact his natural mane.

Like a stallion condemned he ran to the mirror and it took all his will to suppress a scream. The other half of him that he hadn’t dyed had turned the pearlescent white, his mane half his, the other half wouldn’t look out of place on the cover of Cover Mare.

“Why is this happening?” He sobbed and finally noticed that one of his contacts had fallen out overnight, one golden eye was matched with one amethyst. He was certain that the only part of his coat that was his ‘natural’ color was the part he had colored with dye.

Dante sat down against the wall and fought to keep from hyperventilating.

Slowly he came to a realization, he was dead, there was no way he was going to be able to hide this…the piles of boxes were scant comfort though they seemed like tall shielding towers. The heavy hoof falls of Knight Errant ponies would come.

No!

He couldn’t let it end like this, there was only one way left he knew that might give answers… With a surge, he got up and pulled ritual samples together. He had never dared risk it before. Mages died all the time trying to harvest secrets from the realms beyond, but Dante was desperate, and desperate times…

The day half disappeared before he was ready…still, it was with painfully little preparation that he hurled his astral being, the manifestation of his existence into the far beyond and towards the gates to the deeper planes.

He expected to be struck from the planes at any moment. But the Watcher did not challenge him. Eyes in the dark came to watch him, he thought he heard a whisper.

“The price for the knowledge you seek was paid by another long ago, this time come and witness to square the circle, the next will cost you much more.”

Dante wanted to ask but his awareness fell towards a point. All became white light and he lost his sense of time and space.

“Blank Flank, Blank Flank, Blank Flank!!!”

Dante recoiled, this again?

“Blank Flank, Blank Flank, Blank Flank!!!”

Dante found it increasingly distressing. Holding up his legs, he was horrified to see them starting to turn white. He looked down and his cutie mark was starting to bubble…

“No, NOT AGAIN!”

“Blank Flank, Blank Flank, Blank Flank!!!”

“SHUT UP!”

Dante screamed and the crowd parted, but a small pony with a cream-colored coat and a brown mane was still standing there frozen as an arc of amethyst lightning hit her. She fell to the ground, and her cutie mark of dolphins faded along with the rest of her color.

Dante was stunned as the teacher pony looked over his desk wearing Speculum’s face.

“I always knew you were a hothead, and apparently also a monster.”

“MONSTER!”

The assorted school ponies shouted.

“No, I’m not, I’m not a…”

Heavy booted hoof steps rang from the playground outside…and a heavy hoof pounded on the door.

Dante dove through the crowd and ran for the other exit…as he passed through the door he found himself in the Bellevue KE station.

From behind him, the calls came, “the white-coated, purple-eyed monster is in there…it went in there!”

Dante dove behind a desk and shuddered trying to wipe the white coat from his arms. Blue hair falling into his vision.

“IT IS IN HERE! FIREWATCH, ADVANCE!”

“No…no…” Dante rocked himself…and wished as hard as he could to remove the offending color from his body.

A few faint amethyst sparkles crackled between the hairs of his coat, and slowly the white faded, replaced by his normal slate gray…An agonizing moment passed but as he checked his reflection he was himself.

A Firewatch pony stuck his head over his hiding place…

“You…you’re not the monster?” The voice came heavily through the burly pony’s face mask.

Dante weighed whether to lie…It was easier….it was wrong…

“Oh, I was so scared, I’m sorry mister, I hid when it ran through…it kept going that way…” Dante pointed…

“Alright, I’ve got one colt from the school ponies that need evac…,” the Firewatch pony pushed him towards a shadowy door and away from the door that led outside, for the briefest of flashes, Dante thought he saw Clear Chakra standing in the garden, a tear rolling down his bearded face. Dante was pushed through the door in his guise and suddenly the KE station was gone, old worn down hovels instead framed a narrow alley. A group of four ponies huddled together tightly, one mare holding a bundle to her chest. They spoke as if he wasn’t there…

“Is this it,” a grizzled gray-haired pony asked.

“The traitor’s agents got the other group.”

“Damn her worthless hide, only four of us left out of the whole bunch.”

“Is she,” the mare questioned.

“Yes, though her youngest survived, our leader is dead.”

“Don’t you mean?” Another asked…

“Don’t say it, do you want the traitor’s agents to find us…we can’t say her name. The traitor has the backing of two of the greatest archmages to ever walk this world. The other scions are dead and scattered, their strength wasted in pointless campaigns…we cannot be found.”

“But what about Trottingham?”

“The base in Trottingham is gone, I have it on good authority. The Princess of the Sun is a weakling that refuses to use her power, but the champions that aid the traitor are too great…we must bide our time until they have forgotten about us.”

“How long will that take?”

“As long as necessary. I will go with B4 and decoy the agents of the traitor away. You must keep it safe…it is the future of our people. Hide it well, you can slip in among the Canterlot City refugees better as a family.”

“As you command,” the assorted three ponies whispered, the fourth clutching the bundle tighter to her chest.

Dante didn’t understand, what was this all about, none of it made sense…He could feel himself being pulled as the scene receded…he tried to hold onto it, to understand…but his awareness fell towards the point.

There was one thing though…he could almost swear he heard something whispered in the stillness that overcame him.

“…wake up…you’ve slept far too long…wake up…. Tisiphone.”

Dante catapulted back to consciousness, the windows dark, the shadows in his room deep.

“That didn’t tell me anything!” He groaned. He checked, his blue hair was still falling from his head…his tail was still a weird mix…

But as he looked at it with disgust…an idea…

He started to concentrate…as hard as he could, as hard as he had meditated…and when he thought he could not put an ounce more of will into it, something…gave…

Slowly, achingly…a slight amethyst spark ran through his coat, and the color of it shifted…

So surprised was he that he felt his concentration lapse and his coat once again turned white…again...

Again he tried, and again he lost it, but with each try he got closer…the morning sun was rising the next day when the door to his apartment opened…and Dante greeted the morning, bleary-eyed, but never happier. His eyes were gold, his coat gray, and his mane black.

“Who’s the monster now, Seattle?” he whispered in question.

As of yet, the city did not answer him.

Author's Note

September W3, 'Worth A Thousand Pictures'.

The Team is sent to retrieve the data records concerning the arrest of one Cobalt Cloud and the theft and disposition of stolen goods. These 'goods' are hinted to be the Foci from the prior mission, stolen from a high profile Talismonger. This requires the team to infiltrate the Knight Errant (private police) Station in Bellevue. This is accomplished by Glass Darkly successfully impersonating a Knight Errant lieutenant via illusion, while Split Klaw and Silky Sheets provide a distraction, and while Vixie/Gwynn access the utlity space of the station via a utility pipe and hack the electronic security of the records room. We are still detected while exiting and a chase ensures. We go from being unknown criminals to being unidentified criminals at large.

SHADOWRUN Conversion Notes
Firewatch - Elite Security force specializing in destroying paranormal threats.