>>143691The unicorn nods.
"It was Olenia they struck at first, I have not forgotten. Preview of what was to come if they conquered Equestria. Is that what drove you to seek your way here?"
>>143692"No. You don't understand. It was almost a local legend that those in far cabins would go missing. What was more common - what I experienced - was the ghost walkers, who walked the woods, seeming to be lost hikers."
Then he abruptly stops
"Yes. There were other reasons, but... yes."
>>143694"Yes. That is what we called them. It is a legend in many parts of Olenia, but I know it to be real. I have seen it. Deer in the forest. They walked as if they were lost, usually. Like there was no purpose to their being there. They only wanted to find another deer. Usually they wore no special clothes. Fawns who strayed too far into the forest and got lost, stags who turn a wrong turn on a long and winding trail, or hikers or river prospectors who slipped and fell and bumped their heads and had no memory. Sometimes they wore special clothing that showed them to be a lumberjack, or a border guard. Sometimes the deer is a deer that is known to be missing, though that is less common than the legends say. But what you ought to know is they are not as they claim to be. Bortbytings; Changelings."
>>143695"Hmm. I have heard of changelings doing this but have never seen it with my own eyes. It is common in deer lands?"
>>143696"Perhaps it is not as common as some may think. But they try eveything. The stolen fawn replaced with a bortbyting, the doe in need of help on the roadside, and even the doe of ill virtue in the cities. They raided as well, when they could."
>>143697"Ahh, that is all more familiar to me. They have practiced their craft for as long as they have existed, and have honed it well. During war, if soldier wandered off alone they would be replaced in just couple of minutes with nopony realizing it had happened."
>>143698He slowly nods, maintaining his eyes on Silver.
“They will take any chance you give them.”
>>143699"Indeed."
He looks up and down at the stag laying in his hospital bed, while chasing away visions back to how he and the others had originally found him.
"So, what was it that drove you to seek out Equestrian shores, if changelings were only one part of it?"
>>143700His chest is not fully covered, and Silver can see stitching and bandages covering down the middle
"My daughter moved to Vancouver, near In-laws, about eleven years ago. She wanted to work on clocks and watches."
>>143701He nods.
"What about after Vanhoover stopped being...Equestrian..."
>>143702"She doesn't fix clocks" He answers
>>143703"Ah...I do not explain myself well. What was reason you went from Western to Eastern Equestria, after changelings took over?"
>>143704He turns his head slightly, angling his long muzzle a little closer in the direction of Silver
"Is the answer not in the question..."
>>143705"Yes, but you said there were other reasons."
I'm striking
>>143659 because I am not really satisfied with it.
>>143658"Why you? Don't you understand who you are? You
are Equestria. To them at least. The police, the occupation, the City. They see you with your heavy clothes, your frankly adorable demeanor... your innocence. They see
their little pony. The pony they think themselves the divinely chosen protectors of. The police aren't going to think you are running illegal gambling operations out of the backrooms. They won't stop you to search you for 'stolen goods' as you walk the streets at midnight. You look cute, with your little light colored muzzle - no fangs sticking out. No one would think to stop or challenge you, not police, nor soldiers, nor journalists, nor even gangsters. You could start a fire here, in my nightclub, and burn all I've worked for this past decade to a ground, and
I would be charged with manslaughter... that's
exactly what happened to that poor stallion up in Albion... But it's not just how others see you. You aren't scared. You probably would be if you knew what you were dealing with, but you don't, and that is what counts. You could run into Chrysalis, and just say 'sorry ma'am.'"
>>143710The 'cute' pony paws the carpet uneasily, and only when Dark finishes does she make eye contact.
"You don't want me to start a fire, do you? Or go into the Changeling Lands?
Hehe...." She nervously chuckles.
>>143711"No... No. Somepony else started the fire. We want
you to put it out."
>>143712She blinks.
"Shouldn't you call the fire department?
Why isn't everypony in a rush before it spreads--" Realization suddenly sparks in her eyes.
Oh, you're using a metaphor, sorry...."
>>143715"Don't you worry, little pony. So long as everypony is paying attention,
no one will get hurt."
>>143716"Erm, I hope so...." She shifts her weight nervously, not being able to work up the courage to say anything else.
>>143717"What is it, little pony?" She leans her head forward, with her tufted-ears straight up.
>>143719She smiles, showing her front fangs as she nods her head.
"That's the spirit. Don't worry, we will pay. There is nothing to be uneasy about. We might look a little different from what you are used to. But we are creatures just the same as you. Not every blemished fruit is rotten underneath."
>>143720Amber gives a feeble smile and a nod, though her ears are still pressed against her head and her coat is standing on end.
>>143721Her eyes turn away from Amber down to an object she manipulates on her desk, which from Amber's limited perspective, seems to be a pocket watch. Then she turns back up to Amber
"Do you want to relax a bit?"
>>143723"Then settle down. Become a bit more acquainted with the night. You will be more effective relaxed, and there are fewer ponies out the later it is anyways."
>>143725"Have a drink. Listen to the music. Let a stallion make a pass at you. Have a dance. You don't seem too familiar with the night life."
>>143726I don't have work or anything to do tomorrow morning, do I?She glances back to the door.
"Alright, I think I'll try that. Is there anything else, ma'am?"
>>143727"Of course. There is your task. But I'll get to that a little later. Best you ease up a bit."
>>143728Amber nods and slowly turns to head back into the hall. Only when she reaches the main floor does she allow herself a breath of relief.
>>143729Amber has not been bitten and drained of all blood yet. The stallion is gone, and a pony, who seems to work there, turns to look attentive when Amber exits out from the rear hallway.
The lights are fairly dim, and a number of ponies occupy the tables and the bar in front of the dance floor. The music isn't exactly to dance to, being a rather intense classical-styled piece played from a viol.
>>143730Amber's ears perk up at the sound of the music and she trots over to an empty table near the musicians, where she sits. Almost absent-mindedly she takes off her cloak and headscarf as she listens intently.
>>143731This is possible by going to a table on the edge of the dance floor.
Amber sees that there is one, and only one musician playing - a grey, almost discolored-looking griffin who is wholly consumed by his playing of the viol. The stage holds room for more musicians besides a drum set and a grand piano. The piano especially is missed, as the music could use accompanying instruments. Nevertheless, the griffin does a commendable job in filling the whole room with intense rhythm and sharp notes that convey as much fear and anguish as mirth and joy.
>>143733The music turns, and returns to a warm spring. If the music could form images in the air, it would be of a family of rabbits, each hopping across an open field before the falcon swoops. A note lands at each hop.
>>143734Amber happily moves her head in tune to each dip. The song reminds her of happier days, not too long ago but an eternity away, of family and fertile fields.
>>143735The music is not content to stay on a happy note, however, as the intensity ramps up, and there is a sharp sound as the falcons swoop down at their prey. Whether they are successful - or indeed, whether it is the rabbits or the falcons we cheer for, the music provides no clarity, instead keeping a tone as joyful as afraid, and as cheery as distraught.
>>143736Amber draws in a breath and remains transfixed by the drama of the music. It's been a long time since she's heard such soulful meandering in music.
>>143737And meander it does. Amber can tell the lone musician has significant talent as he plays. Whether specific notes and portions are inspired by more famous works, or whether the similarity is purely an invention of Amber's mind as it tries to place the music is hard to say. But the music as a whole does not sound like any piece known to Amber, at least, not a specific piece. Nor indeed does the music seem demarcated into separate and distinct songs. Rather, the griffin plays continuously, with portions being of a nature wholly different than others, in just the same way as a traveler across land may never notice the fine dividing line between the forest, the plains and the desert.
>>143738Amber's mind gets lost in the whimsical(?) meandering of the piece. However when the tune shifts to the desert motifs of southwest Equestria--or is it Zebrica in its exoticness?--she remembers that she's a bit thirsty and had forgotten to bring her canteen. Having been brought back to reality, she hopes that she can meet the musician sometime later for a chat.
>>143739Amber is taken not to the deserts, but to something more remote. Something beyond the furthest reaches of the earth and out into the dark expanses beyond the terrestrial sphere, or perhaps, to another realm entirely, defined by harmonies of music than by time and space.
None of that helps with the thirst
>>143740This magic of music quenches the soul more effectively than drinks can quench the body, but that doesn't mean the latter just goes away. Dark Denizen mentioned a drink, and Amber would hate to mooch off her, but surely it can't hurt? An orange-yellow foreleg gestures to a waiter.
>>143741A flaxen colored mare in black outfit with her mane tied back and green eyes partly lidded responds.
Not simply taking the request for a drink at face, she asks
"What do you want?"