A Cloak In the Moonlight

It was a beautiful morning in Ponyville. Celestia's sun shined bright, casting its warm light across the streets.

This morning, Twilight Sparkle, element of magic and the newest princess of Equestria, trotted across the streets on her way to sugarcube corner for some donuts and coffee. While Spike normally made breakfast in the morning, he was exhausted after having to spend last night cleaning a massive mess Twilight made involving tomatoes and a growth spell. It was working at first, but in her defense, she didn't know the spell was going to implode and make the tomato explode all over her lab. Nevertheless, Spike spent almost the whole night cleaning and didn't get much sleep. As an apology, she let him take the day off, so he was still asleep at the castle.

Twilight still found it hard to believe it had only been a few months since her ascension to alicornhood and crowned a princess, felt like it had been only a few weeks. Nothing really happened since then, for the past couple of months she's been doing the same thing she always has. Other than the new wings on her back and the unnecessary royal treatment she had been getting from the locals of ponyville, nothing had really changed, something she was happy for. She still had her friends at her side, and despite her new status, they don't see her any different.

Rainbow Dash had spent these past couple of months trying to teach Twilight how to fly with her new wings, something she'll admit has been tremendously difficult for her. Despite how long they've been practicing, she hasn't made much improvement. In fact, she can still barely keep herself airborne. Rainbow Dash hasn't been helping much either, her only advice being “Flap em harder!” which Twilight is ninety-five percent sure is the reason she hasn't made much progress. She hoped she could improve on her flying practice soon, for the summer celebration was only three days away and her part involved her flying.

Twilight was still excited about it this year. She had always loved watching Celestia do the summer sun celebration, but now she actually got to be a part of it at her mentor's side. With that exciting thought in her head, she trotted faster to the sugarcube corner bakery, eager to enjoy her breakfast and get started on her practice.

When she entered, she found her friend Pinkie Pie at the front counter giving out orders to customers. Pinkie pie was an earth pony mare with a bright pink coat, paired with a messy poofed up mane and tail of a much darker shade of pink, making it look a lot like Cotton candy. On her flank was a cutie mark of three balloons. When Pinkie saw Twilight with her bright blue eyes, she Gasped with joy.

“Good morning Twilight!” Pinkie shouted with joy at the sight of her friend.

“Morning Pinkie Pie, I just came to have some breakfast and coffee, so I'll take a box of donuts to go please.”

“Breakfast? I thought Spike always made you breakfast.”

“It's a long story that I don't really want to get into.”

“Okey Dokey, one box of donuts coming right up.”

Pinkie left the desk to make her order. As Twilight waited, she took notice of Mr. Cake sitting on a round table reading the morning paper. At the front page she saw a story that looked very Interesting, but before she could ask Mr. Cake about it, she heard a ding and the door behind her opened.

“Howdy sugarcube,” said a very recognizable voice. Twilight turned around and saw her friends Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash entering the bakery. Applejack had a light orange coat and blonde mane and tail, wearing her usual stenson hat. Rainbow Dash’s coat had a bright sky blue and a mane and tail adorned in the colors of the rainbow. And Rarity was a bright white mare with a beautiful purple mane and tail, which she kept well trimmed and cleaned.

“Good morning girls, how's your day going so far?”

“Pretty good, but I'm curious about what you're doing here so early,” Rainbow questioned with a smug look. “Did Spike finally burn what he made you?”

“Rainbow Dash!” Rarity shouted at her. “How dare you insult my Spikey wikey’s cooking ability! I'll have you know, he can cook the finest pasta I've ever consumed!”

“Okay, jeez, I was just joking.”

“I gave him the day off today,” Twilight answered, “So I decided to come here for breakfast.”

Pinkie zoomed between everypony to interrupt the current conversation, holding two boxes of donuts. “Hey girls, you're just in time. I made enough for everypony.” Instead of questioning why Pinkie had made them donuts before they had even arrived, they took the boxes.

They found a large table to sit and started to dig into the donuts. they sat there for a while as they talked and laughed about the current things going on in their lives, Rarity talked about an edgy new dress she had commissioned for a customer, Applejack talked about how the old tools at her family's farm were cracking apart and that she wanted to replace them with sturdy new ones, Rainbow Dash talked to Twilight about the new moves she wanted to teach her that she believed might help her with her flying practice, which would only make her training more difficult.

Twilight wasn't listening though, as she saw Mr. Cake get up from his table with the newspaper in his hooves. As he trotted past her, she called out to him, “Excuse me, Mr Cake?” Mr. Cake stopped and turned his head to her. “I was wondering if you were done with that newspaper, the headline on it looked interesting?”

“Oh sure,” he replied, handing her the roll. “Knock yourself out, your highness.”

“Please, just Twilight.”

“Oh, I'm sorry, that's something I'm still getting used to. Anyway, my break's over so I'm heading back to the kitchen. Enjoy the story, I'm gonna warn you though, that headline is a little concerning.” With that, he trotted to the kitchen to get back to work. The rest of the girls were now curious due to Mr. Cake's comment, and decided to listen as she read the headline aloud.

Slave Trading Operation Busted

Innocent ponies rescued from slavery, fate of slave traders unknown

One week ago, the royal guard had received a distress call from an unknown voice about a trafficking operation happening on the equestrian docks near canterlot. The royal guard had hurried to the docks only to find that the civilians were already freed and none of the traffickers were to be found. Witnesses say that they had heard screaming from above the cellar they were locked in, most thinking it would be the end for them, only to find a hooded figure freeing them. As they came out, their kidnappers had vanished, as did the hooded figure who freed them. Many believe that the hooded figure killed them, one mare even claiming that she saw three cloaked figures, and believe that they had saved their lives. Could these figures be vigilantes or something else entirely?

-Mane Focus News

“Mr. Cake was right, this is disturbing.” Rainbow Dash said as Twilight finished reading.

“It's absolutely wretched!” Rarity spoke with disgust in her voice. “Whatever happened to those brutes, I hope it was as cruel as the situation they put those poor ponies under!”

“Ah personally think it's just some propaganda,” Applejack replied. “Ain't no way this could be true.”

“Oh, on the contrary Applejack, this was articled by Mane Focus News. They've been confirmed for always being one hundred percent true in their stories.”

Twilight was still holding the newspaper, looking at it with interest. “Personally, I find it hard to believe as well. But if this is real, these ponies should be found and tried.”

Her friends looked at her in confusion, the moment of silence broken by Rainbow Dash. “What are you talking about, Twilight? They saved those ponies; and if they did send those scumbags straight to the void, good riddance. They probably deserved whatever happened to them.”

“Rainbow, putting the law into your own hooves like that was bad enough, killing is out of the question. Those slave traders should've been arrested and put away where they can't harm anypony else, killing them makes you no better. For all we know, they could've been removing competition.”

“I've got ta agree with Twilight, Rainbow,” Applejack chimed in, “There are better ways to have dealt with em.”

Rainbow defended her opinion. “Why would they have let the ponies live if they weren't trying to help them? And remember when you all made Mare Do Well? She was a disguised pony who helped people.”

“We made her because you were getting over your head, these three are actively killing ponies because they think they're above the law.”

“Well, if villains like Chrysalis and Sombra have taught me anything, it's that some people can't be redeemed, and they knew that.” Rainbow Dash looked to Rarity who had been silent the whole argument. “What do you think, Rarity?”

“Personally, I hate the idea of shedding blood at all and would never wish that fate upon anyone. I don't know if they are an ally or not, nor do I really care. Justice has been served on the traffickers and those mysterious ponies might never appear again. The innocent ponies that were saved are back to their normal lives and that's where we should end it.”

“Yea, I suppose you're right Rarity,” Twilight said as she put the paper down on the table. “I think we're getting too sucked into this. Well, gotta head to the market. Fluttershy said she'd be going there this morning and she needed my help carrying some stuff.”

“Okay, I'm heading out for a mas- a nap. See you guys later!” Rainbow Dash declared as she zoomed out the door before anyone could ask questions.

Rarity ignored her suspicious sentence to give her reason to leave. “Okay… Well, Applejack and I are going to the spa for some relaxation, I've felt some wrinkles on my face and a mud bath would do wonders.”

“Okay then, I'll see you girls later,” Twilight said as she trotted out the door as well. Twilight walked to the desk where Pinkie still was and dropped some bits on the counter. “Thanks for the donuts, Pinkie, they were delicious.”

“You're welcome Twilight. Oooh, I almost forgot!”
Pinkie then pulled out a cup holder with two paper cups of coffee on them. “The second one is for Fluttershy, Caramel Macchiato, just how she likes it.” She gave a large grin stretched across her face.

“Uuh, thanks Pinkie.” Twilight took the cup holder with her telekinetic hold, And trotted out the door. Pinkie, now alone, continued to stand behind the counter as she waited for her next customer.

Rainbow Dash flew through the streets where several ponies were working, selling or just passing by. Many stopped to give a “Hey,” or “Hello,” upon seeing a familiar face, but she flew past them in a hurry.

Whew, that was so close, Rainbow thought to herself, I almost let it slip. Hope Rarity and the others don't get the same idea; I've had some tension in my wings that's been killing me. Rainbow Dash flew to the spa to have one of her “secret spa treatments” that she'd never tell her friends about, worried of how embarrassing it'd be if they saw her soft side. Maybe I'll have my wings preened, then I'll do a hooficure, followed by a soothing sauna bath. Such thoughts filled her with enthusiastic glee.

*BAM*

Lost in her thoughts, she failed to notice her sudden collision into a large figure who had their back to her, causing her to fall on her flank. “Oow,'' She groaned, rubbing her sore behind. Angry at having her nice thoughts interrupted, she instantly got up and shouted at the large figure before her, "Are you blind, you large oaf?! Why don't you watch where you're going you-”

Every ounce of anger she felt dissipated the instant they turned their face towards her, giving her a piercing glare that tore into her soul. “You got a death wish, mare?” He growled with a low, masculine voice. In all her life, Rainbow Dash had never felt as intimidated as she was at that moment.

He was a griffin, one who looked taller than Big Mac and twice as strong. His lion body was dark gray like ash, his feathers coal black with highlights of ruby red on the tips of his wings, a hawk-like beak that looked as sharp as a spear, and the same color of red accents around his sapphire blue eyes that gave her a terrifying glare that gave off that of a predator who had cornered his prey.

Rainbow Dash’s knees shaked and beads of sweat dripped off her forehead, she knew he could easily snap her in half if she said the wrong thing. She tried to calm herself, thinking she shouldn't try to judge a book by its cover. Just because he was a griffin, didn't mean he was like Gilda, he could be cool and is just having a bad day. To try and ease the situation, she let out a nervous laugh and rubbed the back of her head.

“Heeeeeey, sorry about that, my bad,” She said nervously, while putting her hoof on his shoulder. “I gotta ask, you're really large for a griffin, what's your diet?”

Rainbow Dash felt what little bit of calm she had left shattered, as she felt him grab hold of her head faster than she could act. “Looks like I was right about that death wish,” He growled as he lifted her off the ground.

Rainbow Dash was wrong; this book definitely had the right kind of cover. Her face was covered by his talons, making her unable to see past his claws. She let out muffled screams, she kicked and wiggled to get out of his grip, only for his grip to get tighter.

Suddenly, she heard a new voice, “Valr, what in Luna's name are you doing?!” She couldn't see who it was, but it sounded like a much younger stallion.

“Do you mind, I'm a bit busy here.”

“Are you crazy?! Put her down!”

“She started it.”

“I don't care who started it, I'll finish it! Put! Her! Down! You're making a scene!”

The griffin let out a scoff before releasing Rainbow’s head, dropping her hard on her flank again. Her vision was blurred from having her eyes held shut and could only see a blur of the griffin and her supposed rescuer. As her vision cleared, she saw the two of them arguing.

Her savior was a pony, his coat a much darker blue than her own and a blue mane that was so dark it almost looked black. Rainbow could see he was a unicorn, but he had other features she couldn't fully make out yet. As they argued, the unicorn spoke in an accent that she didn't recognize, almost sounding Hisponic.

“Signore aiutami, I can't leave you alone for two minutes! We haven't been here two hours, and you're already assaulting the locals!”

“She rammed into me and called me fat!”

“Well, maybe she's got a point, you could use a few more salads!”

“What did you say?!”

“Rainbow Dash, wha’ in the hay is happening over here!?” The blurriness in her vision instantly disappeared when she heard that country voice. She turned her head behind her to see Applejack and Rarity running to where she was. She dashed over to them faster than any speed she had done in her life and hid behind Applejack.

“Applejack, you gotta save me! That crazy griffon just tried to kill me!” Rainbow Dash screamed as she pointed her shaking hoof over to the griffin. While confused, Applejack looked to where she was pointing and saw two figures looking at them. The griffin Dash was afraid of was huge, easily taller than her brother, and just as burly. The unicorn next to him however, while much smaller, was a complete shock in appearance.

He had an average, but fit build for a unicorn. His coat was blue with a much darker shade for his mane and tail, which were not very long, but were shaggy. He wore what looked like a medallion on his neck, a simple chain with a beautiful silver pendant shaped like a circle with a waning crescent moon and a four point star engraved on it. His cutie mark was a sword and shield with a four-point star at the center of the shield. But the thing that caught her attention most were his tufts of fur sticking out the top of his ears and slit eyes that shined like bright gold. His eyes looked more predator than pony, and the two fangs poking out of his upper lip further implied he wasn't normal.

With a heavy sigh, he trotted past the griffin to the three confused mares. “I am so sorry about this,” he apologized in an unusual accent that didn't sound equestrian at all. “My griffin friend, Valr here, is not what you call a ‘people person’. And he still needs a few lessons in manners!” Valr responded to his friend's complaint by giving an intense stare and flipping him the bird.

“Anyway, where are my manners? Caio, my name is Night Stalker.” He brought his hoof up to exchange greetings. “I believe I didn't get your names, miss…?”

“Rarity!” Rarity shouted before Applejack could speak, trotting past her to eagerly shake his hoof. “My name is Rarity. These are my friends, Applejack and Rainbow Dash. It is quite nice to meet your acquaintance.”

Night Stalker took Rarity’s hoof and gave it a soft kiss. “A pleasure, Mia Signora.” His voice charmed Rarity into a flustered giggle through reddened cheeks, her legs feeling like jelly before the charmer.

“Oh brother, every time,” Valr whispered with obvious disgust.

Applejack continued to look at the unicorn stallion, confused about what was with his fangs and eyes. He looked just like those terrifying night guards that Luna brought with her on Nightmare Night; was he a part of her guard? Surely he's related to them in some way? He must have realized what she was thinking, as he took notice of her staring.

“I imagine you are confused about my appearance. I apologize if I frighten you.”

Once again, Applejack was interrupted before she could say anything as Rainbow Dash blurted out, “Yea, are you some kind of vampire or something?!”

Night Stalker seemed unamused at her question. “No, I am not a vampire; I am a Vesper.”
He said in a deadpan tone.

“A what?”

Stalker let out a deep sigh and put his hoof on his face. “‘Vesper’. We're a species of pony from an island north of the Lunar Ocean. We're what you equestrians refer to as, ‘Bat-ponies’.”

Applejack finally got her turn to speak and questioned them, “Alrighty, what brings a… Vesper and Griffin like yourselves to a small town like Ponyville? I ain't ever seen either of y’all here before.”

“Actually, You can call us its newest residents. I had been wanting to open a blacksmith shop for a long time, so after leaving my home and coming to equestria, Princess Celestia herself gave me a deed for property here in Ponyville. A shop that'll be run by me, Valr, and another colleague of ours who's currently at the city hall getting us the deed.”

“your new residents?” Rarity spoke excitedly, “Well, it is an absolute pleasure to have you here. If you ever have any questions, be sure to tell us. And if you are ever in need of a new suit or a patch job, I own the carousel boutique down the street.”

“Thank you Miss Rarity, I'll be sure to stop by. But right now, I'm afraid we must depart. We planned on going to the local cafe here for breakfast and later meet up with our colleague. It was a pleasure meeting you three, and I hope we meet again soon.” He then turned away from the three mares and walked off, waving at Valr to follow, who promptly did.

“Yea, you better run!” Rainbow Dash shouted at Valr. The goliath griffin stopped and turned his head towards them, giving another terrifying glare. Rainbow Dash yelped and ducked behind Applejack again, much to her annoyance.

“That's what I thought,” Valr grumbled. With that said, he walked behind Night Stalker, making their way to the diner.

“Farewell!” Rarity shouted to them before turning to her friends. “Well, let’s find Twilight and Fluttershy, shall we?” She trotted past them with an extra gallop in her step, a wide smile on her face. Applejack and Rainbow each gave a raised eyebrow at each other, fully aware she had it hard for that stallion.

Twilight and Fluttershy were walking out of the pet store carrying several bags. Fluttershy was a butterscotch colored Pegasus with a long pink mane and tail, the lock of her mane draped over one of her teal blue eyes. Her cutie mark was a trio of blue and pink butterflies.

“Thank you Twilight,” She said in a small voice, “I always try to keep myself stocked on food for the little creatures, but sometimes I get a little carried away.”

Twilight held ten twelve pound bags in her telekinetic hold, which felt hard to carry even with her magic. A little carried away, huh?

“So how are your flight lessons with Dash going, any improvement?”

“No,” Twilight sighed, “I'm still at hover level right now, not to mention Rainbow Dash's ‘lessons’ have basically been her saying the same thing again and again.”

“Well, Dash is a hard mare to understand, but there's no pegasus I trust more to teach you. She'll have you flying in no time, you'll see.”

“I'm sure she will Fluttershy, but at the moment, I don't have the time. The Summer Sun Celebration is only three days away, and I still can't do the part Celestia gave me. This is the first time she's able to celebrate with her sister, I need to be able to do this, or I might let her down.”

“I'm sure you'll do just fine. Me and the girls have seen your part, it looks simple enough that even I could do it. You won't let the princess down, I promise.” She gave Twilight a warm smile that could brighten anypony’s mood; she couldn't help but smile back.

“Thanks Fluttershy. Who knows, maybe things will be just fiiii…!”

Before Twilight could finish her sentence, she was startled by a lone quesadilla left on the ground, sending her stumbling backwards a few feet away from Fluttershy and landing on her back. The moment she hit the ground, Twilight lost concentration of her spell, sending the bags a few feet above Fluttershy to fall. Fluttershy shrieked and covered her head, curling into a ball to brace herself.

But before Twilight could redo her spell, a red blur swooped past her, snatching Fluttershy before the bags landed with a loud thud. She had never seen anything move that fast, In fact, she didn't know if Rainbow Dash could move like that. She quickly got back to her hooves and saw Fluttershy next to a stallion she didn't recognize.

Fluttershy expected to be crushed by her own groceries, instead feeling only a harsh breeze and hearing a loud thud. As she confusedly opened her eyes, she noticed she was in the forearms of a stallion, one she had never met before. He was a bright red pegasus with a lean but strong build. His mane and tail were shaggy, a yellow and orange color that looked like bright flames. His cutie mark was a roaring comet soaring across his flank. He looked at her with blue eyes as bright as the sky.

“That was close, are you okay?” he asked calmly.

Fluttershy instantly regained her thoughts when he spoke. As soon as she realized she was still in his arms, her face turned redder than his coat and instantly pulled herself out of his embrace. “Ye-yes, I'm okay. T-thank you,” she answered quietly.

“Fluttershy! Thank Faust you're okay, I'm so sorry!” Twilight yelled as she put Fluttershy in her embrace next.

“I-It's okay Twilight, you didn't see it.” Fluttershy tried her best to look away from the stallion while keeping her face hidden in her mane.

“I should've though. If I wasn't so put off by them, I wouldn't have lost focus.” Twilight turned to the stallion, “Thank you dearly, if you hadn't swooped in, she would've been hurt.”

“No problem, just glad I could help,” he replied politely, giving a kind grin to ease the tension.

“Wait, I don't think I've ever seen you here before. Are you new in town, mister…?”

“Ah, where are my manners?” He brought his hoof out to Twilight and Fluttershy. “My name is Scarlet, Scarlet Blaze.”