Appleoosa - Chapter 1

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

Shrugging the mare wasn’t sure. “Not sure, maybe the least informed of any found it. Though I won’t say the idea that somepony beyond Blondie might be after it. Won’t really know till we get to Las Pegasus, I mean weren’t their rumors some of the dragons were seer’s or something? Dad and Breaker tend to go quiet on somethings even now, as does the rest of their friends.”

[Lucy Took]

Iris nodded and laid her head down on the bed. "You're right, speculating is worthless when we lack information. And at least Mustang and Breaker will talk enough to go quiet, my parents just act like the whole war never happened, I found out they were involved in history class." She moved over. "Are we having a sleepover like we did when we were fillies or do you want to go check on Smooth Criminal before get your own room?"

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

Not answering the question, the mare didn’t move beyond a slight nod. “I don’t know how ponies just act like nothing happened.” shifting her voice the mare wasn’t really miming anypony in particular, “Where was I during the war, what do you mean, there wasn’t a war we just had a few years of grey skies!” Shaking her head the mare lays her head on her fore legs, eyes

[Lucy Took]

Iris snorted in agreement and then rolled over and tried to fall asleep, she was tired, but she had a lot on her mind. After awhile of silence she finally let the tired part of her take over.


~~~~~~~

The next morning Iris rolled out of bed, shaking her mane as she let the cover fall to the ground, at least the part of the cover that wasn't weighted down by the other sleeping mare. She wasn't normally an early riser, doing much of her work at late nights and then sleeping into the late morning. But she'd managed to get to bed early by her standards the night before, and she hadn't been able to sleep soundly and decided to just get up with the sun when it woke her up from a shallow dip into slumber. Besides, it was nice to finally wake up before Silver for once.

"Let's get a move on, I want to get on with my life." she said, throwing a pillow on the sleeping form still on the bed.

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

Unfastening a few buckles the mare mumbles, “I’m up, I’m up.” Blinking sleep from her eyes she rolls out of bed leaving her harness and kit behind, only to collapse to the floor. “Ow… or maybe I’m not.” Standing slowly Silver rubs the last vestiges of sleep from her eyes. “Shower, check on Blondie, then food.”

[Knight Tyrfang]

Bronze "Blondie" Scales
The Unquiet Princess

"Well it's a personal offer, so I don't think there has to be any definite sort of deadline." Blondie said with a stretch. "As for conditions... Well to put it simply, don't disappoint me. I don't like being disappointed."

"I believe it'd be best if we all get some sleep, don't you agree?" She said, shooing the more sprightly mare out the door.

---

Blondie slept very lightly, and woken up immediately as the sun broke the horizon. And in a few moments, she was alert and ready to be out the door, or to stick a knife in something in case she was in danger. Until then however, she sat quietly in her chair and listened intently to the activity of any the neighboring residents, to judge if it was acceptable to step out the door or not.

After a few hours, the building began to quietly teem with the sound of ponies here and there rustling, as the Unquiet Princess began to rouse from sleep. Taking that as her cue, she stepped out of her room, making sure that she stepped on the threshold as the boss assumed that it had to have been rigged somehow to detect her actions, before heading down towards the lobby.

However on her way down, she happened to pass by a room where she thought she heard her name come from. Blondie peeked in, and found what looked to be Iris and Silvershine both just waking up rather haphazardly. She clicked er tongue quietly in disapproval.

"Well you can check one of those things off your list." The boss said leaning on the doorframe. "But my dear, you'll need more than just a shower to fix the state you're in..."

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

She wanted to groan at the intrusion, in truth she hadn’t slept well, even with Iris she’d had a few nightmares last night. Instead she just moved towards the bathroom her tail grabbing hold of her pack. With a thud if falls to the floor the sound of leather and metal dragging across the hardwood floor behind her. “And we can add locks being useless to the list of things. We’ll be down in a few.”

[Lucy Took]

"Pack up what you need, Criminal" Iris said, pulling some baking soda out of her bag, and then a piece of paper and wrote something on it. "And would you give that to the clerk when you head down? It'll save the time of ringing for breakfast if they'll get it ready." she sprinkled the powder on her fur and started brushing it through after mixing it with a few drops of a liquid. "And if you wouldn't mind getting up the others that would be great. And as I'm sure you've already guessed I've got you on a leash even if locks don't seem to be working, so don't try any funny business, though that seems unlikely given that you've stuck with the program so far."

She brushed her tail, shooing Blondie out of the door and then followed Silver to the door of the bathroom, brushing through her homemade dry shower through she she talked. "Are you alright Silver? You weren't a quiet bunk mate."

[malonromani]

Lucky Find
Appleoosa - The Unquiet Princess - Blondie's Room

Bronze "Blondie" Scales

"Well it's a personal offer, so I don't think there has to be any definite sort of deadline." Blondie said with a stretch. "As for conditions... Well to put it simply, don't disappoint me. I don't like being disappointed."

"I believe it'd be best if we all get some sleep, don't you agree?" She said, shooing the more sprightly mare out the door.

"Alright, alright, I got it..." Lucky said good-naturedly as she hopped and flapped her way to the door, just barely resisting the urge to stick out her tongue at the mafioso. "Good night, sleep light, don't let the parasprites bite, etcetera!" She offered one final wave as she pulled the door shut behind her.

---

Appleoosa - The Unquiet Princess - Hallway, Outside Blondie's Room

Once outside, Lucky took a minute to sprinkle Iris' tracking powder on the floor. She placed most of it in a rectangle just outside the door, then used the rest to draw a curly-cue border around what she guessed was the edge of the area, attempting to match the pattern of the inn's wallpaper.

Once satisfied with her small amount of invisible flair, Lucky tucked the container into her backpack, and sat down on the opposite side of the hall to wait for Longshot.

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

Letting go of the harness the mare started the shower not immediately responding. “Nightmares, not the full on terrors, but bad enough. Sorry if I kept you awake.” The apology felt half-hearted, given the how bad her actual night terrors were. Normally sleeping near somepony she knew kept them at bay, or with the stuffed version of her sister that Star had given her before leaving home years ago. Yet the stuffed pony was at home, and Iris had only partially helped last night. “Kept seeing one of the elders splitting the sky and rampaging across the skies.”

[Kroll]

Kroll
Appleoosa - The Unquiet Princess - Hallway, Outside Iris and Silver's Room

Kroll loomed behind Bronze Scales as she made her way down the hall, carbine firmly in his talons. Having been stuck with the last watch shift, the tercel had remained posted outside of the prisoner's door from the late hours of the night until the wee hours of the morning. The criminal everyone referred to as "Blondie" seemed to have been oblivious to the griffon's presence as he followed her down the hall, but given how much sound his weapons and armor made when he moved, Kroll highly doubted it. Even so, he was grateful that the mare had made no attempt to speak to him.

The tercel remained silent as the mares spoke amongst themselves in Iris and Silver's room, but spoke up when Iris had assigned Bronze Scales with work. "I will handle that task, Equestrian, should you assume watch over the prisoner." the mercenary volunteered dryly, the strange acoustics of his helmet's faceplate giving his voice a rough, tin-like quality to it. "To invest trust into her would tempt disaster for you, would it not?"

[White Mocha]

Longshot
Outside the Unquiet Princess

Longshot had slept hard. He generally tended to when he had the time back in civilization. Despite that though, he never felt truely rested. There was always an... itch when he spent too long in towns like this. He liked to think he it was because he was taught by the wasteland to 'know' that if it was peaceful where he was it just ment there was somewhere out there that needed him and he needed to go. But something would whisper to him, sometimes literally when one of his less-friendly spirits wanted to goad him, that he was just addicted to the action and couldn't settle in and enjoy the peace.

For today, such thoughts were easily quelled. He was right where he was needed this time, and was pleased to have such a straightforward mission. Still, when he woke in the pre-dawn hours, he knew he wouldn't be getting back to sleep. With the promise of something worth doing, he could truely relax into his favorite things.

First was a hot shower. The steaming water relaxed sore muscles, and delicate soaps washed away the grime of hard work. It even left one scented, in a maddening variety of options. Longshot just preffered scents that weren't too overwhelming, there was something unnatural about the stronger scents to his nose.

Next was coffee. Longshot recognized he was addicted to the caffeine, but where such a thing could be debilitating where he was from, in this place and time it wasn't so bad. The withdraw effects were easily avoided as the drug in question was plentiful. It was practically impossible to run out. The effects of the drug were beneficial, giving a boon of energy and focus. No hallucinations, no blood rage, nothing. He always swore he'd never take anything addictive, but he was warned of caffeine far too late. And he honestly saw no draw backs.

But what really made the coffee something truely enjoyable was his third luxury. The sunrise. He couldn't begrudge the ponies of this world for taking the sky for granted. They had never known anything else. To his eyes though, it had never lost it's splendor. Midnight and sunrise were his favorite times. When the moon and stars shown bright on a clear night it was nearly as bright as the constantly overcast days of his youth, but an untold number of times more beautiful. And the sunrise... It seemed different everytime, and a desert sunrise was full of colors he'd never seen before...

He smiled to himself as he watched the colors spreading, sipping his coffee and remembering the first time he'd seen one in the desert.

He'd watched the whole thing from begining to end, freshly cleaned and slowly savoring his mug of caffeine. For that bit of time, he'd let himself feel... settled. Mind empty of the rushing thoughts, possible scenerios and how to be prepared for them. He was quiet and content, much more refreshed than any amount of sleep had ever given him.

He started to hear the noises from inside, distant and muffled, but the thump of the water pump starting was a sure sign others were rising. He'd give it ten more minutes before heading back inside.

[Knight Tyrfang]

Bronze "Blondie" Scales
Appleoosa - Unquiet Princess, Iris's Room

"My my..." Was all Blondie said to the icy reception, she didn't feel the need point out that lock picking was like breathing to her, considering her reputation. She was willing to bring the note down for room service, but with the griffon's statement, she needn't bother. Although his comment made her want to tap on his helmet, to see if it'd ring.

As much as the mare would've enjoyed a little more banter for the morning, she decided to keep quiet as she made mental notes of everypony's status as well as what some of the group had said.

[Lucy Took]

"Don't worry, you didn't, family matters did that well enough. I could have knocked myself out if I wanted too, but sleeping light's better when you've got an active case." Iris said, brushing out all of the quick cleansing powder and starting to arrange her mane into the tousled bun that she wore on lazy off duty days or in the rare non-undercover field work days, any time she didn't want to worry about the care and keeping of her normally perfect coif.

She waited until the sound of the water stopped to say anymore. "I'm sorry. Even with my work it's like the war never touched me, I can't imagine what it would have been like to have lived in the thick of it."

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

“Perspective,” was the first word out of her muzzle as she tossed a towel over her head. “A really warped and fractured one. Sometimes I remember things from the war that no pony else remembers, ” shaking the towel across her neck and mane saying nothing for a moment. “Well almost no pony, only a few friends remember the same things, weird things. Like my mom...” shaking her head rears up her hooves holding the towel as she rakes it across her back, “Either way, it messes with you, some ponies more than others.”

[Lucy Took]

"Yet you and Scarlet seem to be the well adjusted ones out of our lot, and you've got the most reasons to go mad." she chuckled a bit to herself, "And yet out of all of the war babies I'm the one that never saw a hint of combat and ended up the killer. Maybe that perspective really did help you as much as it hurt."

She sobered up a bit as she packed up her miniature chemistry lab of a saddle and started tying the various vials in their proper places, deciding to forgo putting the concealing dress back on and just putting the items from the hidden pockets into pouches on the saddle. "Though it really must suck about those nightmares. And alternate memories, I might keep multiple personalities in check for cases but at least I know what memories are mine."

[Kroll]

Kroll
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Ground Floor

Kroll let out a breathy yawn as he trudged down the stairs, each footfall punctuated by the clanking of his gear and the faint creak of wood. Sporting a mix of modified war-era weapons and armor, the tercel took great pride in looking like some had described as a walking war museum, as he believed that it reaffirmed his existence as a remnant of the Alliance. Not only that, but the sheer feeling of being cocooned in such armor made him feel safe, almost indestructible; like a brick wall with guns fixed to it.

Striding up to the customer service counter, Kroll flicked the call bell with a claw, evoking a sharp chime that caused the clerk in the back of the office to jump with a start. The stallion on the other side of the desk approached the armor-clad griffon apprehensively, not taking his eyes off the tercel's shielded face. Without a word, Kroll placed the sheet of paper he took from Iris on the counter and slid before the pony, his claws raking gently against the polished wood surface. The clerk looked down at the slip of paper before glancing back up at the mercenary with an incredulous expression, doubtful that the griffon before him had any affiliation with the paper, let alone the possibility that he was its author. Nontheless, it was too early for the stallion to muster up the willpower to contest with this stranger, and he simply took the slip of paper with a huff and disappeared into a back room.

The mercenary smirked triumphantly as he saw the clerk concede to the wishes of his employers, entertaining himself with different little scenarios of how he would've reacted if the stallion had refused him. There was little point in doing so now, but it was still something to do. Kroll was midway through his fantasy of picking up the clerk by the head when it dawned on him that he didn't know what to do now. Sure, he could go up and report that he finished his task, but he didn't want to risk getting stuck with prisoner watching again. With a sigh, the tercel propped himself up against the counter and stared off into space, his claws absentmindedly drumming along the holster for his carbine.

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

The laughter was welcomed, even if it felt a bit cruel. “I don’t know if I’d say well adjusted, every other pony I know can sleep without a stuffed toy or a friend in their bed and have a peaceful slumber.” Though the less spoken about death the happier she’d be, the same night that messed up her memory also ended with her killing Pranks mother. That entire evening had been odd, even as the scent of oranges seemed to waft into the bathroom. “But, yeah the dreams have never been a fun thing, though speaking of that how’s Onyx?”

[Lucy Took]

"I wouldn't say that, Mom's always used to be cranky when Dad went out of town. Took me awhile to realize that she just wasn't sleeping and her mood improved when I crawled in bed with her. At least she's got Sugar to keep her company now." Iris said, smelling the oranges and noticing that the scent was starting to mix with bacon and pancakes from down below.

"It's been awhile since I've seen Onyx, last I heard he was doing some archeology work at the Crystal Empire. I've lost touch with a lot people I was friends with as a kid, I guess it comes with not being home as much to greet my parent's guests and their children." she said, going to the door in response to a knock.

She looked out the peephole and opened the door, receiving a try with two plates on it in exchange for a few bits. "I ordered haybacon, pancakes and some dandylions for both of us, hope that's fine with you."

[MagusZeal]

Silvershine
Appleoosa – Unquiet Princess, Iris room

Staring at her reflection in the mirror the yellow mare pondering when she’d lost contact with so many of the ponies she’d grown up with. “That sounds fine, though should we really be eating up here instead of with the others? I don’t think Kroll will like being made to wait.” Star kept in touch with infrequent letters to her and dad, Dawn was busy in the Crystal Empire, and Fair had vanished soon after the official ceasefire. The only pony she really kept up with was Prank, in between their relationship spats.