The Immortal's Game

Chapter 4: Allies

         Twilight crept through the Canterlot library, using her magic as a light source as she wandered the shelves, searching for particular records. Everything in the library was chronologically ordered, so what she was looking for was at the far back. While she knew that none of the guards would really care if they saw her here and would think nothing of it. But she was disobeying Celestia’s orders. She wanted to find anything she could about Walker, and with his old name as a tool she might just be able to.

        She had already checked about 500 years back, and had found his old name once or twice in reports on information regarding other nations, like that of the minotaurs and gryphons. But she decided to check back further and further. She saw that about 200 years ago his name had changed, with no given explanation. She continued back through the written time: 600 years, 700, 750, 800, 900. She found a final mention, or as it would technically be the first mention of him, roughly 1000 years ago.

        He had come into service about a year after Luna had been banished, under his old name of course, at this time the castle that was in use was the one in Everfree forest. There was no mention of the forest itself, which seemed odd to her. She started going through and looking for the point at which it was abandoned, and found that it was first abandoned when there were strange reports of unnatural events occurring near the castle. Twilight recognized these as what defined the forest. However, she noted that these reports were within the castle itself. Not the surrounding area. This gave credit to the idea that Everfree was slowly expanding each year.

        She never found anything relating to Walker becoming immortal, however she did notice after the leave there was a drop in those employed under Celestia. She had never heard of anyone not wanting to be a part of her court, but was relieved when she saw that their leave was attributed to a smaller castle and thus a lessened need for staff. She continued to read through many of the pages, seeing if she had missed anything important.

        There was the sound of the door to the library opening, and Twilight shut off her magic glow to avoid detection. She wanted to see who would be in the library at this time of night, and hoped that it wasn’t Celestia. He fears were found to be true when she saw Celestia walk into the library, as well as a pegasus she had never seen. She had a pink coat with a yellow and blue-green mane. Her mane and tail were both curly, and Twilight was concerned about who Celetia would be meeting at this time of night in the library. Despite her every instinct to run off, she chose to stay to figure out what was going on.

        “Rosy, it’s good to see you came back in one piece from your trip. How did it go? And where are the others?”

        The pegasus, who Twilight assumed was Rosy, spoke next. “Fine, they are off taking a break. We had to restrain him again. For somepony so introverted and quiet he can be quite the troublemaker. We got what you wanted and the target was taken care of. May I ask where Rune is?”

Celestia looked at her. “That’s what I brought you here to talk about. Walker is on the run, and since none of you were available I had to use Rune. Now he’s recovering in the hospital from his fight with Walker.”

        Rosy gave a light laugh. “You honestly sent Rune after somepony like him? If you wanted to take down Walker you would need a battalion... No, a whole army.” She paused for a moment, then started to walk around Celestia. “Or, one of us. And seeing as how the boys are both away at the moment, that leaves me.

        “After all, would you really expect one of those blundering fools to kill off Walker?” Twilight shuddered at those words. Kill? Rosy continued. “I mean, sure you could send the others, but that would probably end up in a larger kill count of citizens and not with the demise of Walker, but if you send me I can turn the population against him. He’ll never see it coming, especially since I know he underestimates me.”

        Celestia spoke in her colder voice, one that Twilight had come to fear. “He underestimates no one. Remember that he may be immortal, but because of the way he acquired his life span he has a different outlook on life.”

        “What? You mean the fact he doesn’t kill? Please, the inability to kill shows that you’re weak. And the weak die quick deaths at the hooves of those that are strong. That is how survival works.”

        “Then explain how, despite his 1000 years of life, he has not been killed by a single other pony. Would that mean that he is the strongest? I have tried to kill him in the past, and I failed. Wouldn’t that mean that he is the most powerful.”

        “No, it simply means that Walker is a coward that runs from those stronger. The fact that he has fled proves that.” She turned around and started to walk towards the door. “Now if you excuse me, I have to prepare for a fun little game of chess.” At these words, Celestia seemed to cringe a bit. Twilight decided that now would be a good time to leave. She retreated back into the library and teleported away. She laid down on the bed, knowing that she needed some time for everything to sink in, and decide what to do next.

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        After about three days of on and off walking from Appleloosa to Dodge City, I had finally arrived. On my way I had grabbed a cloak to help hide myself, seeing as how Celestia was getting more and more desperate to take me down. I figured that it wouldn’t be too long before she sent the remaining reapers after me. Since I was also wandering through mostly dry area unpatrolled by pegasi teams, it also helped to keep the sun from burning me.

        I had arrived in town, quickly checking the notice boards to make sure that Celestia hadn’t put up wanted posters of me yet. If she had resorted to that I figured it may have been safer for me to leave equestria rather than stay. It had been almost a month since I had run off, and by now Celestia would probably be pretty annoyed at my refusal to be caught. I continued onwards, hoping to find a place to stay, but I was stopped. Have you ever had an urge to go somewhere, do something despite the fact that you can’t think of a logical reason to do so? I was experiencing that right now, and it wasn’t the first time. When you’ve lived 1000 years, you tend to trust this feeling.

        I followed the almost magnetic pull, away from the edge of town where I would have prefered to be and towards the center. When I arrived I saw there was an impromptu trial going on. I figured I might as well stick around to see how it played out. I turned towards one of the purveyors of the scene. “What exactly is going on here? It’s been awhile since i’ve seen a public trial. Especially in a town like this one.”

        “Her name’s Scarlet Wing. They’re saying that she stole from the sheriff's son.”

        “Is there anything to support that? I can understand looking into it because it was the sheriff's son, but a full on trial?”

        “The sheriff's kid says he saw her, and there’s a witness as well. I’m not sure on the details of what was taken but they say she had a hefty bag of bits on her when they found her. The weird thing is I know her personally and she’s as straight as an arrow. I mean, she came here with some nasty rumors but that’s all.”

        I pondered what he had said. I usually don’t care much about this kind of thing, especially since it usually brings criminals to justice, however he defended her to a degree and my subconscious dragged me all the way over here. I went around, asking several others what they knew about her. They all agreed that she was generally a good pony, but had an unfortunate habit of making enemies with the fact she usually put troublemakers in their place. After that I found out that the other “witness” was somepony she had recently dealt with.

        Although it went against my usual code of conduct, since I saw this as a bit of an abuse of power and position, I decided to step in. I moved my way through the somewhat small crowd, apologizing and excusing myself as I went through. I arrived at a small clearing, briefly interrupting the proceedings. Scarlet Wing, the red pegasi with a yellow colored mane. She was shackled to the ground and there were two similar looking earth ponies that I assumed were the sharif and his son.

        “Hello.” I said, a smile on my face. “I have a question, is there anypony defending Miss Scarlet here?”

        The sharif Grunted. “No, but if you feel like you could defend her good luck. Evidence is stacked higher than pies at an eating contest. But i’ve never seen you before, so who are you?”

        I walked over next to Scarlet, who was eyeing me with suspicion. “My name is Walker. I’m just passing through the town and I heard that there was a trial going on. From what I gather this is a matter of theft?”

        “Yeah, I gave my kid here something of mine to keep an eye on. Thing is almost priceless, even in it’s own right. Both he and one of his friends say that Scarlet was the one that took it, and I think that the large bag of bits she had on her proves that.”

        “I told you already, I didn’t steal it! I got that money from working with the weather patrol here!”

        “Well, it’s a shame that the captain of the weather team is out on vacation right now and can’t confirm that. So until then-”

“Excuse me, but this just seems to be word versus word. And if I’m not mistaken one of the witnesses has a bias against Miss Scarlet from what I hear. I would like to get this over as quickly as possible, so if you would allow me to borrow your son and allow me to use my magic I could have this settled in a matter of moments.” I interjected, stopping the already rising tension for a moment.

“How do I know that you won’t make him tell lies? I know how magic works, I didn’t just get this job because of my good looks.”

        “If this were not a public spectacle and I had something to gain from this, honestly I was just going to continue on from this and I would actually need to know something about him. And I am a unicorn of his word.”

        The sherif hesitated for a moment. “Alright, fine. But if I suspect that you did something to his memoires then I will shove your pointy little head into a cell with Scarlet too.”

        “Thank you.” I walked over to his son, who now had a drop of sweat forming on his brow. I was gambling on him chickening out and telling the truth about this whole thing. From my skills as a spy I had already figured out he was hiding something simply from the way he was acting, but what that was exactly I wasn’t sure. I stood less than a foot away from him, then I focused my magic. I reached out and began to grasp his mental structure with an iron whoove. I made him experience intense fear for a brief moment, and threatened to make him feel that a thousand times over if he didn’t say what he knew.

        He snapped out of it and fell backwards. “Alright! Alright I’ll tell the truth, just please, don’t do anything.” He got back up and calmed down. “I took the box and sold it for some fast cash to Sevens, (I figured that the other “witness” was Sevens, as he got a look of fear on his face when that name was mentioned) he said that he could get me the cash and he would take it, we just had to frame Scarlet for theft. I knew she picked up her pay once a month so I waited for that day so that she would look more guilty with a lot more money, it was luck that her boss was gone.”

        Sevens looked at him with rage in his eyes that betrayed that he was telling the truth, the sharif looked on dumbstruck at what had just happened. “Well,” I said, “my work here seems done.” I walked over next to Scarlet again and just looked on. Sevens bolted and the sharif chased after him, with the keys to Scarlet’s shackles in tow. Aw crap... “Hey, Scarlet, if I were you I wouldn’t move. Lockpicking with magic can be pretty tricky.”

        “Alright, fine. But after this you’ll have to explain who you are.” I spent about the next two minutes removing the lock on her shackles, by now the large crowd that had gathered was dispersed and the citizens of the town were back on their daily routines. I had Scarlet lead the way to wherever she was going, I chose to follow. We arrived at a small apartment and she led me inside. “Why would you help me? I don’t know who you are and you said yourself that you were just passing through, so why stop to help someone that seemed guilty of a crime?”

        “I have no idea. I just did what I felt like doing and that happened to be helping you. That and I felt a strong urge to help you, like something was just egging me on. The more important question is who are you? Normally I can puzzle out a personality with a moment’s time but you seem... Different.” I wasn’t lying, I could pick out the one honest guy from a crowd of liars any day, but for some reason she wouldn't give up her secrets that easily.

        “Just a normal pegasus that moved here to dodge city, nothing more than that.”

        “Then why is your cutie mark a skull?” After I asked this question, she remained silent. I figured there was more to this than just a simple odd cutie mark. The only other ponies I had seen with marks like this were an undertaker and one pony I hoped would rot in a coffin forever. The thing that threw me off was that her mark was exactly his. Even down to the number of teeth on the skull. However, the previous bearer of the mark was long dead.

        “It’s... Complicated okay? I don’t even know how I got this damn thing, it’s been there forever. Hell, I was sent off to an orphanage because of it, so I couldn’t ask my family unless I found them. I’m sick and tired of responding to this stupid question. Whenever I meet someone new, they always ask about it before anything else.”

        “If I really thought it mattered, do you think I would have helped someone that was on trial with a skull for a cutie mark? I could care less about what a cutie mark means. Those who use it as an excuse for doing something are just fools. So unless you happen to be a killer I respect any job you took with that. Doesn’t really help that you share the first name of a serial killer, right?”

        “You got that right. Anyway I didn’t catch your name, and what exactly are you doing in a dinky town like Dodge?”

        “I’m just passing through. I pissed off the wrong pony so now i’m just going from town to town keeping a low profile. Oh, and call me Dream Walker.”

        “Nice to meet you. And I don’t think schooling someone in a trial that badly is a very good way to keep a low profile. You said that you just got here, right? Do you need a place to stay?

“Yes on both account’s I was planning on staying at a inn or the like, but seeing as how you pointed out I just sent up a flare of sorts to my location I should probably leave soon.” I sighed, realizing that I had to change my plans once again. “How about we go get something to eat, my treat. You seem like you’ve been having a rough day.” Scarlet shook her head in response. She led me out of her apartment and towards a little cafe. We both sat down and ordered our drinks.

        “Really? Hot chocolate? It’s eighty degrees out and you’re ordering hot chocolate?”

        “Hey, I find that it helps and the temperature doesn't really bother me. Besides, it tastes good too.” Our drinks arrived, Scarlet had ordered something that she had called “her usual”, so what was inside the cup I had no idea. We ordered our food next, both of us just got sandwiches. After A while I struck up a conversation regarding the town's history, but we were interrupted when an older pegasus showed up.

        “Thank goodness I found you Scarlet, I heard about what had happened. When they said you had been arrested for theft and you wanted my testimony, I rushed back. But it looks like you were proved innocent, correct?”

        “Yeah, Gale. Thanks to this guy.” She hit me in the shoulder,  despite her stature she had a lot of muscle hiding there. “He helped me out and pretty much proved my innocence in about 30 seconds, I don’t think you would ever find a better lawyer in town.”

        “Nice to meet you, I’m Eastern Gale. And you would be?”

        “Dream Walker, and it was my pleasure to help out Miss Scarlet here.” Gale just looked at me silent for a moment, not saying anything and seemed to scrutinize me. He chuckled, and for a moment I was confused. “Something the matter?”

        “No, it’s just that I thought of something that would be impossible.  When I was young there was somepony with that name that looked just like you who saved me from some diamond dogs. But he would be long dead by now. Dream Walker wouldn’t happen to be a family name, would it?”

        I distinctly recalled helping a pegasus from some who was being attacked by some diamond dogs some fifty odd years ago. I had seen him running and I stepped in, but I never expected to run into him again. “No, it must just be a coincidence. But funny how the world works like that.” I gave a reassuring laugh.

        “Yeah, I guess so. Anyway, looks like my vacation was cut short. Well, that’s a hundred bits wasted.” He looked down and sighed. I was glad to see that there were still ponies out there that gave a damn about those close to them, even if they were just an employee.

        “Wait here for a moment, I need to grab something.” I got up and started a quick run to the bank, and made a withdrawal for a hundred bits. I had enough money in my account’s to put most nobles to shame, most of my needs were provided for when I was at Canterlot so I never really spent my pay. I rushed back to the cafe and put the sizeable bag of bits on the counter. “Here, it’s a shame that you wasted so much money. I don’t really have much use for this so you might as well take it. Both of the pegasi at the table looked at me dumbstruck. I just smiled back. “Well, I better get going. It’s quite a walk to Baltimare from here.”

        I turned around and started to walk towards the larger city. My work here was done, and it was clear that I already had put up the flag of me being here. “Hey, Walker, wait up.” The voice that had called to me was Scarlet, who was following right behind me. “I’m coming with you, whether you want me to or not.”

        “Trust me, I may seem like i’m just a normal unicorn who’s walking from town to town. But I have powerful enemies that want my head displayed for all to see. Coming along with me could end with you in a coffin, or worse.”

        “Well, I doubt it’s that bad. And besides that I have enough enemies here to last me a lifetime. I figure before Sevens decides to call out his gang to get revenge, I should probably get out of here. I can handle myself you know.”

        “Then why come along with me?”

        “Because I can tell that there’s a lot more going on with you than there seems. There’s not a single pony out there who would give up that much money without batting an eye.”

        “Who says i’m not insane?”

        “No one, you helped me out and you just gave a lot of money to a stranger. Everything says you are insane, but my gut says you’re just an idiot.” That last part struck a bit deep. But seeing that cutie mark made me worry.

        “Fine, but only until Baltimare. Then we go our separate ways and you get out of my way. I have a lot longer way to go afterwards.”

        “Deal, just one condition. You can’t complain when I save you from whatever bugs us. You egghead unicorns couldn’t fight your way out of a wet paper bag.”

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Celestia sat upon her throne, contemplating her rule and many of the laws that were going to be passed. But above all else her mind was focused on Walker’s movement. His first target seemed to be either Manehattan or Hollow Shades, after that he went all the way to Appleloosa. Why so much farther in an odd direction? She had just gotten a report that he had been sighted in Dodge City, helping out with a trial. By her logic he was heading north, so his next stop should be Baltimare or Manehattan. She was deep in her thoughts when there was an arrival in her throne room.

        “Hello Rosy, are you ready to leave?” The pink mare shook her head. “Good, He’s likely heading for one of the northeastern cities. That’s where i’m sending you.”

        “A lot of ponies in a tight space? Sound’s like my kind of place. Any restrictions this time?”

        “Just don’t cause too much chaos. I don’t want any problems coming across my desk any time soon.” Rosy gave a sigh of disappointment at that. She turned around and started walking out of the room when Celestia spoke up again. “You do know that it will be much harder than normal, seeing as he is a lone wolf. You can’t turn friends against him.”

        Rosy smiled. “Celestia, you know my better than that. I wasn’t going to turn one or two ponies that were his friends against him. I’m turning the entire city against that bastard.”