Lustrous Harmony

Questions regarding divinity aside, the rest of the night back at the inn was hectic.

“You lost your cover already?!” Rusty exclaimed, only to be immediately shushed by several of the other members.

As opposed to discussing this matter on the first floor of the inn, we were all cramped into one of the rented rooms, I think it was Captain Morningstar’s and… maybe Dagger’s as well. The reason for this was exactly what you’d expect, we needed privacy, and the bottom floor was already proven to be insecure. A closed room worked well enough, but we still needed to keep our voices down.

“This quickly?” Captain Morningstar muttered,

“What did you even do?” Dr. Duck asked,

“I didn’t do anything!” I responded in a harsh whisper.

Captain Morningstar gave me a hard stare, “Don’t lie to me,” he growled,

“No it’s true,” Indigo began, “Phos didn’t do anything to give themself away, it was just a coincidence that we had to meet with Sir Manuscript at the same time he found us out.”

I mouthed her a thank you.

“Then what happened?” Captain Morningstar demanded,

Indigo sighed, “It’s partially my fault, I wasn’t paying attention to what was being said or who was listening. The walls have ears, and it’s safe to assume that our entire conversation downstairs last night was overheard.”

“Oh! So that’s why we’re all cramped in here!” Rusty said, clapping his hooves together.

“Yes, Rusty,” Indigo rolled her eyes, “Now will you please keep it down?”

“I make no promises.”

Captain Morningstar cleared his throat, “How much does Sir Manuscript know?”

“He knows Phos’s name, and that they aren’t a forest nymph. He also knows that we’re all in on it,” Indigo gestured around the room, “Any more than that, he didn’t really give anything off, but he’s definitely interested in us again.”

“Great.” Captain Morningstar said through grit teeth, “We probably won’t be leaving this town any time soon.”

Rusty groaned, “I can’t believe this!”

Again, he was shushed,

“It’s partially your fault too, you were the one joking about Phos’s past.” Indigo paused as she realized something, and she turned to me, “Oh, Sir Manuscript probably knows about that too, your disease.”

“Maybe that’s why he didn’t want me in his manor…” I mumbled,

“That’s beside the point,” Dr. Duck interrupted, “We need to come up with a better cover story.”

Indigo smiled, “Good thing Phos has already started on that then.”

“Huh?” I snapped back to attention,

They were all staring at me.

“Oh right! Yes. I thought I could be an advanced golem, like Indigo said before.”

“Doesn’t Sir Manuscript already know you’re not though?” Fletch asked, “You said you weren’t last night, and you even said you weren’t directly to his face.”

“That could be another lie,” Dr. Duck began, “We could say you were lying about not being a golem, and actually are one.”

“I doubt Sir Manuscript is going to believe us either way, so it’ll be better to just go with the easier option.” Indigo added,

“Fine.” Captain Morningstar said, “What’s your story then?”

“Well…” I tapped my chin a few times, “I’m a golem, which means I had to have been created, right?”

“Right.” Indigo answered,

“So why would a golem be wandering around in the wilderness?” I asked,

“It was told to?” Rusty tried,

“Uh…” I trailed off,

“It got lost?” Fletch suggested,

“Yes!” Indigo responded before I could, “It doesn’t have any direction.”

“So it must be searching for some.” I finished, “Why not have it that I was searching for my creator?”

“That’s believable,” Captain Morningstar said, “But why would you be searching a gem deposit along the border of the country with the volcanic lands?”

“Is that not okay?” I asked,

Captain Morningstar sighed, “No. You’ve already proven that you’re not an idiot.”

Indigo made a sound as if to interrupt, but stayed quiet.

“You think rationally,” Captain Morningstar reiterated, “So why would you have any reason to go there in the first place?”

“Um…” I thought for a moment, “Because it was related to my creator?”

“Gems are useful components in thaumaturgy,” Indigo said, “It would make sense for somepony that creates golems to go there.”

“Components…” I repeated, “Components! A-ha!” I snapped my fingers. “I was looking for components!”

I was quickly shushed,

“Oh, sorry. But think about it, as an advanced golem, I would need advanced components, right?”

“Er… I guess?” Dr. Duck began,

“Golems aren’t my specialty,” Indigo said, “but yes, that makes sense.”

I nodded, “So as my old ones started to break down,” I held up my stump, “I began looking for new ones, gems could be an integral part of my… uh… makeup? Circuitry?” I guessed,

“Matrix.” Indigo answered,

“Matrix,” I repeated, then frowned, “Wait, wouldn’t that make me more of an automaton?”

“An auto-whatnow?” Fletch asked,

“Uh… Y’know, a robot?” I tried,

“What’s a robot?” Rusty asked,

Blank stares all around.

“Phos, you’re oddly well versed in magic for somepony who doesn’t even know the basics,” Indigo began, “but even I have no idea what you’re talking about right now.”

“Hm,” I thought for a moment, “It’s like a… You know what, nevermind. It’s not important.”

“Alright then,” Dr. Duck concluded, “Let’s get this straight then. You’re an advanced golem who is searching for their creator, and the reason you were at the gem deposit is because you were looking to replace some of your worn down parts?”

“That sounds like everything.” I said,

“Not quite,” Captain Morningstar interrupted, “You forgot one thing, your disease.”

“Uh oh,” I realized, “That complicates things.”

“Indeed,” Indigo joined in, “Golems can’t get sick, they are immune to all afflictions. There’s no way Sir Manuscript will believe us if we say that.”

“Is he going to believe us at all?” Fletch asked,

“It’ll be better to give him something he could believe rather than something obviously false.”

“So we need to come up with something else then?” Rusty wondered,

“Hold on,” I leaned forward and rested my head on my palm, tapping my cheek with a few fingers, “What if… I wasn’t the one who was sick?”

“What do you mean? It’s your disease.”

“I don’t think it was ever explicitly said who had it.” I said, thinking back to last night’s conversation, “What if it was my creator that got sick, and instead of me searching for them, I’m carrying out their last wish before passing on?”

There were a few moments of silence as the rest of the group thought about it.

“What would that last wish even be?” Dr. Duck asked,

“Why would someone create a golem capable of intelligent thought and speech to begin with?” I countered,

“To serve?” Fletch tried,

“Any golem could do that.” Captain Morningstar said, “It would have to be doing something that a normal golem cannot.”

“If a golem was on Phos’s level, it would have to have incredibly complex tasks in order to not be a waste.” Indigo paused to think for a moment, “Unless it was just an experiment…”

“What if it’s learning?” Rusty ventured,

I looked at him and smiled, “That’s it! My last purpose from my creator was to learn. To explore. To become independent.”

The rest of the group looked at me, then to Rusty, then back to me.

“Okay…” Dr. Duck began slowly, “Let’s go over this again. Phos is an advanced golem, with gem components. They were created by a mystery pony, who contracted an incurable illness which they slowly succumbed to. Their last wish was for Phos to go out into the world to explore and learn on their own, which led to them having to replace broken parts, getting attacked by a dragon, saved by us, and their decision to join the group. That leads to today, with all these forest shenanigans.”

“Wow” I began, “I did not think it would sound so dramatic.”

“Or so sad,” Fletch added,

“Or so close to the truth that it’s barely even a lie.” Indigo finished, “What’s even the point of lying if it’s going to be arbitrary?”

“Exactly,” Captain Morningstar said, “How does this story protect you any more than the truth? Lord Tungsten is looking for gems, why would you even say you’re made of gems in the first place?”

I blinked, “Uh… Because as a golem I would only have gem components as opposed to being made purely of them?”

“That alone will still put you in the lord’s sight.”

“What’s the ratio?” Indigo asked, “How much of you will be purely gem components?”

“Hmmm…” I thought for a moment, “Let’s say less than ten percent.”

Indigo nodded, “That’s not a lot. Depending on the gems used, you might be worth more as a magical artifact than the sum of your parts.”

“Lord Tungsten isn’t interested in magic.” Captain Morningstar said,

“Good.” I responded, “That means I can get out from under his radar.”

“What’s a radar?” Fletch asked,

“It’s… uh…” I trailed off, “I mean it would be easier to convince him that I’m not worth it.”

Captain Morningstar grumbled, “I don’t like this.”

“Do we have a better idea?” I asked,

“Ditch Phos.” Dagger finally spoke up.

I blinked, then looked around at the group with a grimace, “Is that something you guys would actually do?”

“If it was necessary.” Indigo answered without hesitation.

“Same here,” Dr. Duck admitted,

Fletch shuffled her hooves, “I wouldn’t want to, but…”

“Me neither,” Rusty began, “but I gotta look out for myself first.”

“That’s all you ever do.” Indigo sneered,

Captain Morningstar cleared his throat, and the rest fell silent. He then sighed, “It has not come to that… yet. Just know that you are not a full-fledged member, and my team’s safety is the priority.”

I gulped. Well… I couldn’t actually, but I did a similar enough action. “But I can still be a part of that team, right?”

“Yesss,” Captain Morningstar drew out the word.

“Okay,” I relaxed a bit, rolling my shoulders. “Then unless we can come up with something better, I’m officially a golem.”

“Fine.” Captain Morningstar stood up, “Has everypony got that?”

There were a variety of nods.

“Good, then from this point onward, that's the truth. We're still going to be hiding it though, so keep that in mind when speaking openly about Phos. I don’t want to see any more slip-ups, is that understood?”

“Sir yes sir.” Several of the mercenaries replied,

“Uh, sir yes sir.” I saluted,

“Dismissed.”

The rest of the mercenaries quickly got up and shuffled out of the room, I went to follow, but Captain Morningstar pointed at me.

“Stay.”

I stayed, and when the door closed behind me he continued,

“Progress report.”

“What?” I asked,

Captain Morningstar placed a hoof between his eyes and sighed, “How is your ‘job’ going?”

“Oh! Uh… Sir Manuscript is open to revising the road plans, but first he wants proof that there is a reason to, and that I’m actually with the forest.” I detailed,

“And you can get it?”

“Y-Yes,” I nodded, “I will be heading into the forest tomorrow morning to do just that.

“And you’re sure you can get this to work out?”

“I’m trying my best.”

Captain Morningstar frowned slightly, “Mercenaries don’t ‘try their best’, they only do what they can. Otherwise you run a high risk of failing the job.”

I pursed my lips, “I’m still learning.”

“I know.” Captain Morningstar sighed again, “but in this case it’s better to learn from example than it is from experience. Some jobs won’t give you a second chance.”

“I’ll… keep that in mind.” I nodded slowly,

“Then you’re dismissed,”

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For the third day in a row, I entered the forest. This time with Fletch and Indigo in tow. I technically still had them under my employ, but they each had their own reasons for being here. Indigo still needed a few plants for dye, and would be using this time to find them. Fletch simply had nothing better to do. Both of them made sure I knew that.

Indigo was just being Indigo, but I had a sneaking suspicion that Fletch didn’t like the forest. Which was weird, because she looked like the type of person that would be the most at home in one. Green fur, blonde mane, good with a bow, she had all the stereotypes of a typical elf. Except she wasn’t an elf, she was a pony, one that didn’t seem to appreciate getting snagged by branches every few steps.

“How much further?!” She practically gasped out.

“Not much,” I replied, pushing a branch out of the way as I passed.

It snapped back when I let go, and… didn’t hit anyone since I was taller than both my companions. I wouldn’t have let that happen anyway, I was being careful and choosing the path of least resistance as we retraced my steps. Because of that, it took a bit longer to reach the flower patches, but we made it all in one piece.

“Lucky find.” Indigo noted, gazing across the plucked patches, “With all these flowers here, it’s almost like you wasted a bunch of time before coming back.”

“You know I got side-tracked,” I replied with an eye-roll.

“Yeah, with your new ‘forest friends,’” Indigo said,

“Is this where we’re meeting them?” Fletch asked,

“Not quite,” I began, “This is just where I met the Breezies, we still have a little ways to go before we reach their… home, I think?”

Fletch groaned, “How much is ‘a little ways’?”

“It’s… uh… I don’t really know.”

“Did you get lost and wander into it by accident?” Indigo remarked,

“No!” I said quickly, “It’s just… I had to be guided there, and it wasn’t in a straight line.”

“Then how are we supposed to get there?”

“We need a guide, and luckily I know how to get one.”

I pulled my hood down and gazed into the forest, tracing the foliage with my eyes. There was nothing immediately visible, but I could assume we were already being watched.

“Breezies?” I called out, “I am in need of your assistance.”

We waited for a few moments.

“It’s Phosphophyllite,” I continued, “and we need guidance.”

“Phosphophyllite?” Fletch repeated quietly,

“My full name,” I whispered back,

Nothing, not a single response.

“Nothing’s happening,” Indigo announced,

“I realize.” I replied, “Stay here for a moment.”

I continued forward, pushing my way through to the second, then third flower patch I had harvested. I then kept going, heading down the path I remember being taken down before and making sure both Indigo and Fletch were well out of sight. Once I was far enough, I stopped and looked around again.

“Breezies?” I tried again, “It’s just me this time. Can you come out now?”

A few seconds later, a green sparkle descended from the canopy, and a few more sprang up from the bushes around me. I turned to the closest one to talk to it, only for another to come shooting through the trees, almost smacking me in the face as it screeched to a halt in front of me.

I had a feeling I’ve seen this one before.

“Hello again,” I greeted with a smile, “I’m back.”

“Phos, Phos!” It exclaimed,

That pretty much confirmed it.

“Why didn’t you come out earlier?” I asked,

There was a tiny gasp, and the Breezie jittered slightly, “Ponies, ponies!”

“Oh,” I said, “Oh…” I realized,

“Scary, scary!”

“They’re with me,” I said, “You can trust… Well…” I wasn’t actually too sure about that.

Fletch probably wouldn’t do anything bad, but Indigo…

“I won’t let them hurt you.”

“Promise, promise?”

“I pro-” I stopped myself. Was it really a good idea to make this sort of promise with a Fae? A Breezie? I suppose I had it make a similar promise before, and that was broken without issue. “I promise.” I held out a finger, “We can even swear on it.”

The Breezie slowly moved to touch my finger.

“Now let’s go meet them, shall we?” I smiled,

“Um, um. Meet, meet.” It said shakily, before falling in behind me as I started walking back,

It didn’t take long to meet back up with Fletch and Indigo, mostly because they had decided to come after me first. We stumbled upon each other as we each pulled the same bush to the side.

“There you are!” Indigo exclaimed, “What are you doing? What are we even waiting for?”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got it. Everything’s under control.”

“Can we go now?” Fletch pleaded,

“Not yet,” I smiled lightly, “There’s someone I want you to meet first.”

I stepped to the side, and there was nothing behind me.

“Phos…” Indigo said in a low voice, “Please tell me you weren’t just hallucinating everything.”

“I am not!” I defended, turning in place. “Just give me a second.”

The Breezie was nowhere to be found, not in the leaves, not in the grass, not in the trees. I doubted I could find it even if it was, but I didn’t care about that right now.

“Where did you go?” I asked aloud,

There was a tiny squeak behind me.

I turned again, and there was still nothing. Then I paused, and tilted my head to look down my back. I couldn’t see much, my hood was in the way, so I began feeling around with the back of my hand. There was another squeak, and something began crawling up the back of my cloak.

From the inside.

“There you are. What are you doing?”

I wriggled around as the Breezie reached my lower back. I could reach it, but I couldn’t really get at it, one of the downsides of wearing a single, solid piece of cloth. My movements only spurred the Breezie to continue upwards, and it reached a point where I could no longer easily reach it. I could still feel it, and I imagine if I wasn’t made of crystal and covered in a layer of dirt it would be quite ticklish, but at the moment I was just turning in place as I repeatedly switched from reaching over and under to try and dislodge the sprite.

Indigo and Fletch just watched my charade as I struggled. Eventually my gaze landed back on them, and I cleared my throat awkwardly before unclasping my cloak and pulling it off. The Breezie went with it, and as I held it up by the collar I gave it a few light shakes.

Only some residual dirt flittered down.

“If this is a joke, it’s not funny.” Fletch said,

“I agree.” Indigo joined in.

I ignored them, instead orienting the cloak so the inside was facing me. “It’s okay,” I said calmly, pulling it close so I could open the folds with my stump, “You can come out now.”

There was a little whimper, and a moment later a little green light fluttered out from the depths of the cloak.

“There we go.” I began, “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

Pulling the cloak back around my shoulders, I clasped it again.

“Everyone, this is… Well… I don’t know your name. Do you have a name?” I asked,

“No, name.” The Breezie answered,

“Alright then,” I pursed my lips, “Well this is one of the Breezies I was talking about.”

Looking over, both Fletch and Indigo were staring at it with wide eyes. A long stretch of silence began, with Indigo’s face twitching every other second, and Fletch’s eyes beginning to dilate. Neither of them moved a muscle.

To Be Continued…