Pear and Velvet: Voltergeist

Ever the farm girl, Pear was up early even after a muddled sleep. After an all too brisk wash up with ice cold water, she got dressed and sat on the corner of Twilight’s bed.

“Vel?” She called.

The sheets shifted and Twilight slowly sat up with a tired sigh. “Morning already?”

“Yeah,” Pear chuckled. “C’mon city girl, how about I boil some water and make us some coffee.”

“You’re way too comfortable with all this.” Twilight laughed as she swung her legs over the edge of the mattress.

“Just like camping.” Pear noted as she stood and headed for the door.

Twilight took the time to get ready for the day herself, Pear returning soon with two cups of coffee. “Thanks.” She took a quick sip, the dark and strong brew hitting her tongue like a hammer.

“Still got close to two hours before breakfast,” Pear sat on her bed and took a drink. “Applewood says he hoped you slept alright.”

“That’s sweet,” Twilight smiled. “I didn’t… but that’s still sweet.”

“Yeah, can’t say I did much better.” Pear admitted.

“This jet fuel sure helps.” Twilight laughed as she looked into her cup.

“Every creature is so used to latte, frappa-whatevers now, they can’t handle real coffee.” Pear emptied the rest of her cup down her throat.

“Pear… be careful outside today.” Twilight reminded.

“Heh, don’t worry about me, sugar.” Pear said confidently. “Don’t need electricity to grow vegetables; just soil, seeds, water and elbow grease.”

Twilight giggled as Pear gripped her bicep. “Okay,” She quickly finished the rest of her coffee, eyes opening wide as it ran down her throat. “Hoo! Well, how about we see if we can help get things ready for breakfast?”

“Sounds good.” Pear agreed as she took Twilight's cup and hung it from her fingers along with her own.

The two caught up with Tanner and Hibiscus, offering to lend a hand with prepping the tables and flatware; the other residents slowly assembled as they worked and once Applewood arrived they sat down to eat. After the fact, Pear and Twilight parted ways with the former being guided towards the town gardens while the latter headed for the station. Twilight entered the already busy front lobby where the daily regimen for the remaining deputies was already in progress.

“Excuse me,” Twilight made herself known to the stallion at the front desk. “I’d like to speak with Sheriff Wyndham if I can.”

“Oh… uh, hold on a second ma’am.” He pushed his chair back and disappeared into the rear offices. He soon reappeared and motioned for her to come back with him; Twilight was escorted to the largest of the rear offices and stepped inside to find the Griffon at his desk.

“Good morning, Sheriff.” Twilight greeted.

“Wyndham is fine,” He gestured to the chair opposite him. “Titles really don’t mean much around here anymore.” He folded his talons on the desktop. “Twilight, right?”

“Yes,” Twilight nodded. “Pear is down at the gardens like she promised, but I wanted to talk to you more about this being we’re dealing with.”

“Rare for one of the out-of-towners to take up an interest in anything besides making it through the day.” He noted.

“Well, Pear and I have decided to do what we can to help with this situation.” She explained. “She isn’t too fond of the idea of just sitting and waiting and I agree with her. We spoke at length with Hibiscus last night and she gave us the basics of what happened at the power plant.”

“Hmm?” Wyndham’s brow raised.

“Which…I didn’t consider is something she might not want certain creatures to know.” Twilight said in retrospect.

“What exactly did she tell you?” He asked.

“She gave us a second hand account of a friend’s experience in the plant.” Twilight began. “The mysterious accidents and ultimately the deaths of close to a dozen workers, the plant manager’s insistence that it not be spoken of and his decision to not let your force inside the plant, and the abandonment of the plant which preceded the attack on the town.”

Wyndham slowly nodded. “A lot of the former employees were killed when the town was attacked, the majority of the ones that are left gave me some form of ‘I don’t know’ when questioned about what was going on in the plant.” He made a considering hum. “They were traumatized and too scared to say much I imagine. The biggest account I received was from a former employee who left before the big walk out.”

“Yes, she mentioned him to us.” Twilight corroborated.

“As you said, I tried to look into it but Alabaster wouldn’t hear of it.”

“Is that… Mr. Pollock?” She inquired about the unfamiliar name.

“Yeah,” He nodded. “Told me that whatever was said to me was the rantings of a superstitious fool; since the deaths were labeled as accidental and no evidence of foul play could be uncovered by the coroner, there wasn’t anything I could legally do.”

“That’s understandable, but Hibiscus also told us that he was really adamant about quieting any talk of anything supernatural.” Twilight continued. “He threatened the employees over the matter.”

“It doesn’t do anyone any good for that kind of talk to run rampant without any proof.” Wyndham countered. “I mean, we know more now after the attacks, but before?”

Twilight made a quiet sigh. “In my experience, for what it's worth, creatures who work so diligently to keep others from not talking about something… aren't doing it because they don’t believe it.”

Wyndham absorbed her words quietly before continuing. “Two of the former employees did say something about Alabaster’s behavior.” He finally spoke. “They said he seemed nervous and paranoid every time it was brought up; which, if you knew him, are two words that would never be used to describe him.” He leaned back into his chair. “So, you think he actually believed it was a ghost?”

“Only because of what Hibiscus told us.” Twilight carried on. “She believes that it isn’t just a ghost but a poltergeist, which according to her, is a spirit driven by vengeance. She questioned why it kept everyone in the town here and why it hadn’t used the outgoing lines to travel to other larger areas; she thinks it wants revenge for something.”

Wyndham let out a long breath. “If that’s so, then Alabaster would have something to do with that thing; which would mean conducting a criminal investigation in the middle of all this.”

“Let Pear and I look into it,” Twilight asked. “We want to help, and this may be our way of doing it; if we can find out more about this entity then it may lead to learning what we can do to stop it.”

“That’s extremely dangerous.” He gravely toned.

“Yes, but just getting by day by day isn’t going to get us out of this.” She retorted. “Hibiscus said that as long as that thing keeps the plant running then no one is going to come to help. We have to do this ourselves.”

A smiled formed on his rugged beak. “Alright, I’ll give you free run of the town and access to wherever you need to go. But be aware, the farther out into the town you go from this central spot we’ve carved out, the more at risk you are to be attacked. We weren’t able to shut every single thing down and knock out every place it could show up.”

“We’ll be careful.” She promised. “And whatever we find out, we’ll make sure you’re the first to hear about it.”

“Appreciated.” He nodded. “With all the focus of day to day we…” He stopped as the office door opened, a mare’s head peering inside.

“Boss, the team is ready to make another push.” She relayed.

“Alright, I’ll be right there.” He replied as the door shut. “Sorry, that’s all the time I have for now.”

“What’s going on?” She asked as he stood.

“Well, I don’t advertise this too much as not to get hopes up, but we’ve been working to clear a power free path to the plant.” He explained. “With protective suits I’ve been having a team of workers move very slowly through a planned route, as they go they take out and remove anything that monster can use to conduct itself. We’re hoping to make a safe road to the plant so we can gain access.”

“You go with them?” She asked further. “Shouldn't you stay safe, you are in charge after all.”

“Never ask someone to do something you aren’t willing to do yourself.” He chuckled. “Especially when it comes to fighting electric spirits.”

“Than can I join you?” Twilight stood.

“Look, I appreciate your courage and willingness but…” He paused as he saw the look of determination in her eye. “Heh… alright, I certainly can’t stop you. But let us handle the work, stay back and stay safe.”

“Thank you, Wyndham. I need to see this for myself and an extra pair of eyes won’t hurt.”

“Can’t argue with that,” He opened his office door and gestured for her to proceed. “Come on, we’ll get you set up with some insulated gear.”

Pear had given the gardens a once over, being provided a tour by the lead of the agricultural team tasked with ensuring that the town would have fresh food. Cataloging everything in her mind as they walked, she was ready to give her opinion once they reconvened with the other workers.

“So,” The stallion introduced as Picket began. “What do you think?”

“Well, it ain’t pretty,” Pear noted. “But given the circumstances, it’s impressive what you pulled off in such a short time. That being said, there are a few things I’d tune up.”

“What have you got?” He asked.

“Well, you’ve got some redundancies in the irrigation system; that’s leading to over-watering in some areas and under-watering in others. Also, if you’ve got some EZ-ups or something, you need to cover your peas, beans, leaf greens and broccoli for half the daylight hours.” She pointed out towards the edge of the parcel. “Your compost looked pretty dry on the top; make sure you get some water on it and churn it more often. And your berries are honestly too close together; not much to do about it now, but you can use some twine to pull them apart a little to get more air flow to the fruit.” She looked over the team. “If you do all that, it should help improve your yield, although here’s hoping we won’t be here that long.”

“Wow,” Picket said as he finished writing everything down. “Nice to have a real farmer here to help with this.”

“Well, you all did a pretty fine job.” Pear commended. “Most farmers don’t have to plan in the middle of a crisis.”

“Thanks,” He gave her a coy smile. “I suppose it’s too much ask that you be single too?”

Pear laughed and shook her head. “Sorry, got a whole mountain of stallion waiting for me back home.”

“Worth a shot.” He shrugged innocently. “Alright, you heard the lady, let’s get to work.”

As they dispersed, Pear headed back to the motel to clean up and wait for Twilight.

On the opposite side of town, Twilight was a few yards behind the work team with her eyes scanning everything around her. She noted how slow and meticulous the work was; with the team moving only about ten yards at a time, combing the street for anything that could give their opponent an access point to attack them. Dressed in protective wear with face shields, rubber covering for their hooves and claws, insulated gloves and insulated electrician’s tools, they entered each building one at a time. Shutting down fuse boxes, knocking down lighting fixtures, blocking outlets with boards or furniture and turning off the water and gas; each structure was rendered electrically impotent. The quiet was so intense that the slightest rustle of a stray plastic bag was enough to catch Twilight’s attention. Being in back, seeing how her nerves were, she could only imagine the stress of those putting themselves directly in harm’s way. As Wyndham guided the operation, she swore she caught sight of a bizarre flicker down the street. Straining her eyes at a single spot, her suspicion was confirmed with a bluish flash.

“Wyndham!” Twilight hurried up to his back.

“Twilight, what is it?”

“Can you see that?” She pointed. “Down the road, just past that white sedan.”

Wyndham’s superior, avian eyes narrowed in on the spot and he let out a sharp gasp. “Shit…” He muttered. “Everyone back out! We might have a situation!” He yelled into the adjacent building.

“What is it, sir?” One of the team asked as they hurried out and to his side.

“Downed power line,.” He pointed to the spot showed to him by Twilight. “And it’s in a pot hole full of water from the last rain.”

“Is it live?” Another asked.

“Saw a spark.” He answered. “What about you?” He glanced back at Twilight.

“Yes, I saw one too.”

“Damn it,” The worker peered down the way. “We’ll need to move that line, if it’s just setting off some sparks then that probably means it’s just stray electrical discharge. I’ll take care of it.”

“Chaplin,” Wyndham toned. “Anything looks off, clear out.”

“Will do, sir.” He nodded before stooping down and making a move for the line. His eyes were affixed to the area above him as he came upon the arrant power line, he signed that there was no sign of activity and stepped around the small pool; reaching down to take hold of the cable, his heart skipped as he saw a pair of eyes in the water. “Oh fuck…” He felt a sharp impact in his chest as a massive surge of electrical discharge blew into him and launched him several feet in the air.

“Chaplin!” Wyndham called as he and the others began moving over to aid the stallion.

The electric swell within the pool of water began to increase and a horrid cry unlike anything a mortal creature could produce shook everyone to their core. Twilight’s body froze and she watched the energy contort into a misshapen but clearly pony form; while no solid attributes could be realized, an unmistakable pair of eyes stared at them with absolute contempt.

“Oh my god…” Twilight raised her hand to her shielded face.

Wyndham had Chaplin up in his talons and screamed for them to fall back; but before they could move, the entity raised its arm and fired a bolt over their heads and into a nearby fire hydrant; the metal cracked open from the blast and water began to spew across the street.

“It set a trap for us.” Wyndham concluded, the hardened Sheriff’s voice laced with a shock that seemed rare from him. “Run, now!” He commanded as he, Twilight and the rest of the team began sprinting to escape the pooling water.

Twilight could swear she heard a distorted laugh from behind them as a massive arc of electricity flew over their head and landed in a fresh pool of water; the being instantly manifested before them and spread its arms wide.

“No… no!” One of the workers panicked and ran to the side into a building.

“Amber!” Wyndham called after the mare. “That building isn’t clear!”

Ignoring the warning, she hurried inside and skidded to a stop as she found herself in an electronics store. “Oh no.” She barely managed to whisper as the display televisions came to life, each screen displaying a single, scowling eye. “Please… don’t…” The others watched as the front window of the store blew apart, Amber’s body rag-dolling through the glass and onto the asphalt.

“Take Chaplin!” Wyndham passed the unconscious stallion to another worker who proceeded to run with the others as the Sheriff rushed to save Amber. Twilight, driven by instinct, followed Wyndham to help. As they came upon Amber, the mare struggled to rise; her protective suit was shredded from the glass and her body was covered in water. As Wyndham reached out to grab her extended hand, the entity materialized behind her and halted them.

“Leave her alone!” Twilight yelled out, her body running only on adrenaline.

The thing looked at them and they were convinced they saw a smile form within the swirling electricity of its face. “Kill… you…” It uttered in a voice of crackling static.

“What?” Wyndham’s beak fell open.

“Kill… you… ALL!” It lowered its arm and poured a stream of raw, high amp voltage into Amber’s compromised gear. The two watched helplessly as the mare screamed for her life; her eyes bulged and exploded, the inside of her face shield coating in blood while her frantically jerking body began to smoke.

Twilight screamed out all the breath in her lungs as Wyndham took her up in his arms and started to run after the remainder of the team. Bolts rained down around him but he opened his wings and leapt, gliding out of the water and onto the dry asphalt before keeping on without looking back.

Pear sprinted up the road at full bore after having been sent word that Twilight was at the station following the attack. The front door nearly came off its hinges as she rushed in, the deputy at the desk pointing her to the Sheriff’s office.

“Vel!” Pear scanned the room, finding Twilight in a chair with her head lowered.

“Pear.” Twilight looked up at the sound of her voice.

“Vel, are you alright!” Pear skidded onto her knees in front of Twilight and took her shoulders.

“I’m okay, Pear,” Twilight laid her hands on Pear’s forearms. “Please, calm down.”

“What happened!?” Pear looked back at the Sheriff.

“She was with us on a job in town,” Wyndham began. “We’ve been making daily trips to push closer to the plant but… this was the first time we’ve ever been attacked like that.”

“Why the hell would you bring Vel out on something like that!?” Pear asked angrily.

“I asked to go.” Twilight called her attention. “Don’t blame Wyndham.”

“You…” Pear eyed her worriedly. “Why in the world would you do a fool thing like that?”

“Because I wanted to see the town for myself and learn what I could, like we said we would.” She answered. “I… I saw it, Pear. It’s real.”

“You did?” Pear looked back to Wyndham.

“Yes,” He nodded. “Apparently it’s been aware of what we’ve been trying to do… damn thing laid a trap for us; honestly, Twilight saw it before I did, if she hadn’t warned me before hand none of us might have made it back. She was very brave and we owe her our lives.” He stepped around his desk. “Still, we did lose Amber. I’m… sorry you had to see that, Twilight.”

“See what?” Pear returned her attention to Twilight.

“It was so horrible…” Twilight muttered and shook her head. “It killed her right in front of us.”

“I was on the fence about this ghost business,” Wyndham continued. “But when I heard that thing speak…" He trailed off. "Hibiscus was right, that monster was a stallion at one point and clearly has it in for everyone in this town.”

“It talked?” Pear repeated.

“It said it wanted to kill us,” Twilight explained. “All of us.”

“So what now?” Pear glanced back at Wyndham.

“For now, I need to speak to the rest of the station about Amber. Chaplin is being treated, he has some interior injuries but he’ll live.” He went to the door and looked down at them. “Please take her back to the motel so she can rest.”

“Thank you.” Twilight managed to give him a smile.

“Thank you.” Wyndham said in return as he headed out.

Pear got Twilight up from the chair and quickly hugged her. “I should have been there with you, I’m sorry, Vel.”

“What you were doing was just as important.” Twilight assured, squeezing her back. “I’m alright, really; just shaken is all. I’ve… never seen anyone die before, at least not like that.” She took a breath to compose herself. “But at least we know we’re on the right track now; I’ve got some more information too, let’s get back and we can share what I learned with the others.”

“Okay.” Pear rubbed her shoulders with a reassuring smile. “But from now on, we tackle this kind of stuff together.”

“You got it.” Twilight nodded.

Once Pear got Twilight back to the motel, they met up with Applewood who was waiting to inquire about what had happened. Relived that Twilight was okay, he offered to bring her some fresh tea; Twilight accepted and asked that he also bring Hibiscus and Tanner with him so she could discuss what she had learned and seen. Applewood and the others assembled in the room with them and Twilight detailed the attack on the work team, the death of Amber and the chilling words with which the manifestation had left she and Wyndham.

“My god.” Applewood held his chin.

Hibiscus glanced over at him shakily. “So, do you believe me now?” She asked.

Applewood sighed and slowly nodded. “I suppose I do; so, it really is after the townsfolk in particular.” He shook his head longingly. “And poor Amber, knew her since she was little.”

Tanner looked at Twilight with regret. “I know how it feels to see that,” He quietly began. “When the major attack on the town happened, I was out with my two best friends; the local alarm siren began going off, it was supposed to be a warning for the town in case of major trouble at the plant so we didn’t know what was happening.” His face soured as the memory returned to him. “Things started blowing right and left, creatures were panicking and running all over the place as anything electrical began to go haywire. We were running to my family’s house and all we did was pass a transformer box on the corner… it looked like lighting jumped out and struck them but it wasn’t a quick hit, it just… wouldn’t stop…” He gritted his teeth, fighting tears. “Hearing your friends scream in a way you didn’t even think they were capable of… watching them just… catch fire like dry timber…” He stopped.

“Tanner,” Hibiscus stopped him. “I know that was horrible for you but I’m sure she’s scared enough.”

“I’m not trying to scare her.” He looked at her sharply but soon just sighed as he calmed himself. “I just… want her to know that whatever she’s feeling right now, she isn’t alone in it.”

“Thank you, Tanner.” Twilight smiled up at him from her chair. “I’m sorry you’ve all been through so much, all the more reason we need to keep pushing and put an end to this.”

“You still want to keep going?” Tanner asked in surprise.

Twilight nodded. “Losing that girl Amber is a tragedy, but between that and talking with Wyndham, I’ve learned some things that may help.”

“What have you got, Vel?” Pear asked.

“Well, and I’m sorry if you didn’t want this getting around Hibiscus, but I told him what you told us last night.” Twilight started apologetically.

“It’s okay,” Hibiscus assured. “I mean, my friend and I could have gotten in trouble before, but now… what can happen that’s worse than what we’re already dealing with?” She asked rhetorically.

“Well, he added some things to what you said that were interesting.” Twilight continued. “For one, about the plant manager Mr. Pollock, Wyndham said that few were willing to say anything about what went on in the plant but two of them pointed out his behavior in particular. They said he was acting very out of character for his typical demeanor and I thought it was odd how a creature so lacking in belief of the supernatural was going to such extreme lengths to shut conversation about it down.” She looked over the group. “Where is he now?”

“Holed up in his mansion with his daughter.” Applewood answered. “After the city was attacked he locked the two of them inside and cut off his home from the power grid. He was so well off from being the plant manager he had plenty of stored food and water to survive for some time without any aid.”

“He didn’t help you at all?” Pear inquired.

“No,” Applewood shook his head. “We tried to go to him but he refused to let anyone inside his home and demanded to be left alone so that we wouldn’t attract that monster’s attention.”

“Some manager, huh?” Hibiscus scoffed. “Selfish old bastard.”

“Well, there’s a chance he may know more about this than he wants any creature to know.” Twilight carried on. “I’d like the chance to talk to him if we can.”

“Good luck with that,” Tanner chuckled. “He won’t let his own neighbors get close to him, much less outsiders like you two.”

“Well, we’ll keep it in mind.” Pear noted. “Anything else, Vel?”

Twilight nodded lightly. “Wyndham was shocked when we found out it set a trap for us, even more so that it was able to speak. Even when it manifested in front of us… it was clear that it was a stallion at one point in time.”

“Since this started at the plant, that would likely make it an employee.” Hibiscus surmised. “Some kind of accidental death that got covered up to protect the plant? That would make sense as to why Pollock won’t talk and fits the profile of a poltergeist.”

“It’s a good place to start.” Pear looked to Twilight.

“Yeah,” She agreed. “Are there any former employees we can speak with?”

“Maybe,” Applewood hummed in thought. “Though, a lot of them clammed up like Wyndham said.”

“We can start working on that in the morning.” Pear came in. “Today has been enough, and you need to rest.”

“She’s right.” Applewood concurred. “Listen, you two seem determined in this so… I’ll help as much as I can.”

“Really?” Twilight offered him a hopeful smile.

“Count me in too,” Hibiscus added. “My hobby has been studying the supernatural, I’ll help however I can.”

“Same here.” Tanner added, the uncharacteristic offer drawing the room's attention. “You’re right, this needs to stop and just sitting on our damn hands isn’t cutting it.”

“Thank you all.” Twilight said genuinely.

“We should get started on dinner.” Applewood reminded his two remaining employees.

“Right,” Tanner headed for the door. “Sounds like a good night for comfort food.”

“Definitely.” Hibiscus agreed as she and Applewood followed. “See you at six.” She waved as they left them to rest.

Twilight sighed and moved from the chair to the bed, Pear joined her and put her arm over her shoulder. “I’m glad you’re okay, Vel; but don’t just try and play what happened off for the sake of being tough. What you saw is something that no creature should have to see.” She rested her head against Twilight's.

Twilight let out a staggered breath as, finally alone and free from the adrenaline rush of the day, her tears were free to fall. “Thank you.” She muttered as she gently wept. Pear wrapped her other arm around her and pulled her close; setting her chin on the top of her head and staying silent as Twilight let the fear and grief of the day out onto her shoulder.