The Fall Of Innocence

   Intentional Misgivings

                  "...Around every bend...every corner. There is an enemy. There is also a friend...."

      - Equinna, The Discovery of Dreconi

Atla, Luna, and Celestia walked into their rented room. It was a feeble, cheap room. It was also fairly dark, except for one candle in the corner of the room on a nightstand. There were four beds, each with their own pillows, and each with their own thin blankets.

"Look at this place! This isn't worth TWO bits!" Luna scoffed. She was much dissapointed with what eight-teen bits had got her at this inn.

Atla consolidated his sister, "It's alright, dear sister!" He moved over to a blanket and pulled of a small, pathetic insectoid. "At least we'll be kept company in our beds!" He gave a brief fake smile, and he threw the bug carelessly away from himself. His temper was almost as hot as his sister's, but not quite. Celestia had no words for this, she was shocked. How they live here, like they are barbarians! No standards of living, no cleanliness! It's disgusting! She had thought.

Atla walked over to the window, pulling apart the blinds. He looked outside to the darkness, altogether unhappy. Just then he heard the floorboards creak outside their room. He quieted his sisters and motioned for them to prepare some hexes of Paralization. He didn't like the way the floorboards had creaked so suddenly, then became dead still. A silhouette was prominent from under the door, indicating the presence of a sneak outside the door.

Luna was in the process of perfecting her hex when the door exploded outwards in the room, smoke obscuring their aims. Splinters flew everywhere, multiple spells were loosed in every direction. Celestia's hearing was cutt off for a second as a bright red bolt whizzed an inch above her head and tore apart the wall behind her. Luna was hit full in the face by a Paralization Hex thrown by off course in the confusion. Two heavy thuds were audible over the chaos, and the Alicorns stopped their frenzied defence. As the smoke cleared Atla identified the body of the attacker. He was a Unicorn, obviously none other could have fired curses at them. His mane was black, his coat red, and his cutiemark that of a black, shapeless blob. Atla searched him as Celestia looked for the other body. She found it--Luna. In the pandemonioum, Atla had whirled around and sent a bolt of Paralization straight into Luna's face. Celestia worked on counter-acting it's effects as Atla weeded out anything useful on the prone stranger. Atla tore through his pockets, seeking some useful information. He found a letter on the mystery pony. He ripped open the seal and read the address. He got the name of this pony, Soular Shadow. He read what he could as the ink magically erased itself, and managed to find that this pony was contracted for this little escapade.

Atla stood back up and turned to his two sisters, Luna now recovered. She gave him an irritable look, and went to sit down on a pest-ridden bed, thought better, and sat on the floor. Celestia looked inquisitively at her brother.

"What did you find?" Celestia asked.

Atla turned and said, "Well, look for yourself." He said in a jaunty tone. Atla passed the blank letter to her. She caught it, looked it over eagerly, was dissappointed that it was blank, and saw Atla suppressing laughter.

"What is this? It's blank!"

"Exactly! But it wasn't so when I found it." Celestia gave Atla an impatient look. "When I found it, I read who it was addressed to. It was addressed to this bloke," Atla pointed down at Soular, "his name being Soular Shadow. I ALSO read that he was CONTRACTED to burst through our door and become paralized!" He grinned at his explaination, enjoying his sisters' amused faces.

"So somepony doesn't want us in here..." Luna said in a thoughtful voice.

"Shall we find out who and why?" Celestia prompted.

Atla's green eyes glinted, "Definitely, dear sister."

After the trio had agreed upon the investigation, Atla had walked down into the main part of the inn to find everypony gone. The bar tender, the consumers, everypony. Celestia had stayed up in their rented room to help Luna regain some feeling after the accident. Atla decided to search this area for some leads.

He walked further downstairs and examined the chairs and tables. It was apparent to him that everypony had left without struggle. But there were still remaining mugs of cider that they had drank from sitting on some of the tables. Atla checked their contents. They were drained. Obviously these ponies didn't want to lose any of their coin unnecessarily. Then he walked to the bar.

He examined the many glasses that lay washed and unwashed, but to no avail. Then he looked in the many cabinets covering the wall behind the bar. He pulled cabinet after cabinet with no leads sprouting up. As he closed the last cabinet, he had an instant idea. The drawer. Atla swiftly moved over to the drawer behind the counter, and excitedly opened it. The drawer slid open seamlessly, and he saw a small poster type paper in it. Curious, he reached down and lifted it from storage. He put it on the counter and gathered his mind for an Illumination spell. The tip of his horn suddenly glowed bright green, throwing light on the paper.

The light revealed that this paper was more imporant than Atla had originally thought. Up at the top was a seal, obviously that of an official. And it wasn't just a paper, it was a letter addressed to the innkeeper. It gave explicit orders to seek a guard should she see a Unicorn. The rest was instructions to clear out her customers and go to another inn. The Smoldering Flagon. "Well, here's where we can start." Atla thought. He searched the bottom of the letter for a signature, but was thrown back by what was there. In the place of a signature, in a swooping font, was scrawled the words, "Protection of Bliss." Atla read this twice over, not sure what he saw was real. He then stowed the letter in his saddlebags, closed shut the drawer, and rushed upstairs to find his sisters just leaving their room.

Atla skidded to a stop. "Where were you two going?" He asked.

"To find you. In case of more sneaks." Luna answered her brother while Celestia closed the door behind her.

Atla nodded his approval. Then Celestia asked, "Did you find anything? I was going to look in the cellar. I have already prepared an Invisibility Spell. But it looks like it isn't needed."

Atla was about to tell her to dissipate the spell, but he stopped. "Keep it ready. We may need it soon." Luna and Celestia's faces bemused, Atla says, "I'll explain on the way."