III.
“Aris…hey, Aris, get up.”
“Mmph?” Aris’s face scrunched up as he tried to block out the voice.
“Come on, let’s move.”
Reluctantly, Aris opened his eyes. He rubbed his face with one hoof as Golden Sword, his superior, watched him. Aris stretched as he tried to get rid of some of the stiffness in his body.
“Ugh…what time is it?”
“Time for your shift,” Golden replied. “You’re supposed to be on VIP duty, remember?”
“Yeah…” Aris furiously rubbed at his eyes.
“Here, I got you this,” Golden said. Aris felt something being pushed into his hoof and looked down at the object: an apple. “Not much of a breakfast,” Golden said with a shrug, “but it’s still food.”
“Thanks,” Aris mumbled. He took the apple as he got up from his couch-turned-bed. Meanwhile, Golden woke up the other three stallions in the car. They, like Aris, had difficulty escaping sleep, but Golden’s orders soon had them up and about. They filed out of the train car to their positions.
“We’ll be in the other cars,” Golden said a bit redundantly. Aris nodded, and the senior Guard left as well. The door slid shut behind him, and Aris was alone.
The sleeping car, where the VIPs were, and the passenger car, where the Guards had set up camp, were side by side. The result was that Aris only had to walk a car’s length to get to his post. He didn’t even enter another car; he just had to stand watch in front of the door that led to where the VIPs were resting.
He let out a soft groan. VIP duty, to him, was the worst job he could have pulled for the train ride. Protection duty gave him another Guard to talk and pass the time with, and locomotive duty provided the distraction of physical labor. But VIP duty? The post was little more than standing in front of a door all by himself.
He took a bite out of the apple Golden had given him, welcoming the juice that hydrated his mouth and throat as he swallowed. A single lamp in the corner cast long shadows across the train car, but Aris wouldn’t need it for long. According to the clock hanging on the wall, Celestia would raise the sun soon.
This was how Aris rang in the day: munching on an apple while listening to the steady rumbling of a train. He tried to remember a time when he had spent a night on a moving vehicle – tried, and failed. The scene was far from elaborate or normal.
He took one last bite out of the apple and tossed the remains of the fruit into a nearby wastebasket. The core made a satisfying thunk as it bumped into the basket’s walls. Lots of things aren’t normal, Aris thought.
As he stood at his post, the orange glow of the sun steadily grew behind the blinds of the car’s windows. After an hour, Aris pulled the blinds up, squinting a little when sunlight streamed in. He flicked off the lamp in the corner. His little bout of exercise over, Aris resumed his post beside the door.
It was another hour before the door slid open to reveal one of the VIPs. It was the pink earth pony with a poofy mane – Pinkie Pie, Aris remembered.
“Good morning, ma’am,” he greeted.
“Morning, mister!” she chirped back. “How’re you doing?”
“I’m fine, thanks,” Aris said. Pinkie hopped away from the door.
“I’m so excited for today! You know why? ‘Cause I get to learn all of your names and become friends with you all! Which I normally would have done yesterday when we first met, but I couldn’t since we were doing the super-secret sneaking around. But we’re done with that, and now I can learn all about you eight!”
“Umm…” Aris wasn’t sure how to respond to what he had just heard. But before he could dwell on the issue, Pinkie bounced over to him. “So I’ll start with you! What’s your name?”
“I’m Aris,” the Guard told her.
“Aris? That’s a cool name! It’s only one word, right? I’ve never met a pony with only one word in their name. Except for Spike. And Rarity. And Applejack, and Fluttershy – which sounds like two words, I know, but they’re put together as one – and Cheerilee, and Scootaloo, and…”
Aris, poor him, was completely lost at this point. Luckily, some of the other VIPs chose that moment to enter the train car. His ear caught the words “…just a few more minutes, Twilight…” coming from the sleeping car before the door slid shut again.
“…and Daisy, and Junebug, and Noteworthy…”
“Just what are ya doing, Pinkie?” the VIP named Applejack said.
Pinkie stopped her listing of names. “Oh, hey girls! Meet Aris,” she said as she pulled the Guard towards her. “We just became friends!”
Wait, what? Aris thought. Friends? We just began talking three minutes ago!
Aris’ face must have given something away, as the orange pony said, “Ah think you’re makin’ him a tad uncomfortable, Pinkie.”
Pinkie’s eyes got huge. “Oh no!” She jumped away from Aris. “Is Applejack right? Am I making you feel bad? Because I’m really really sorry if I am, it’s just that I want to become friends with as many ponies as possible.”
“Uh…no, it’s okay,” Aris said, not wanting to hurt Pinkie’s feelings. “But how about we take things a bit slower? Get to know each other better before saying we’re ‘friends’?”
“Okie-dokie-lokie!” Pinkie was grinning once again. She stopped. “Oops! I forgot something. Gimme a second,” she said before disappearing back into the sleeping car.
Once Pinkie was out of the car, Applejack apologized to Aris. “Sorry ‘bout that, Aris – Ah mean, sir,” she hastily corrected.
“Aris is fine,” he assured her. “But is Pinkie always that…energetic?”
Rainbow Dash, the cyan pegasus, let out a snort of laughter. “Sometimes she’s even more hyper than that.”
Aris raised an eyebrow. He had a hard time imagining Pinkie more hyper than she just was. “In any case, can you tell her to not be so…upfront, shall we say, with my colleagues? I know several of them are real sticklers for formality and would probably not like Pinkie jabbering at them.”
“Of course we can, sir,” the white unicorn named Rarity said.
“Aris,” he absently corrected.
The door opened and out walked Pinkie, Spike, and Twilight.
“Hi, girls,” Twilight said. “And sir,” she added upon seeing Aris.
“Aris. Just Aris,” he said for the third time that morning. “Did you get what you were looking for?” he directed at Pinkie.
She tilted her head. “What was I looking for?”
“You said you forgot something,” Aris said.
“Oh, right!” Pinkie happily shook her head “Nope!”
Aris blinked. “Okay then. Anyway, are any of you hungry? I’m sure some of my colleagues have prepared breakfast in the dining car.”
“That sounds good,” the yellow pegasus – Fluttershy, is it? Yes, Fluttershy – said.
Aris led the way. Behind him, he heard some of the group talking to Pinkie in low murmurs, likely relaying his message about his fellow Guards. He didn’t hear any protests from Pinkie, so it seemed like the mare had understood.
Like the sleeping car, the dining car was adjacent to the passenger car. Golden Sword and White Star were already in there. Aris noticed that several tables had plates and utensils laid out on them for the VIPs. As well, one table had various foods placed on top of it. From what Aris could see, the foods included fruit, pastries, and, just for Spike, a bowl of gemstones.
“Good morning, madams and sir,” Golden said. “Had a good night’s sleep, I hope?”
“Yeah, it was nice,” Spike said, already eying the gemstones.
As the VIPs settled down to eat, Aris continued on. The next car was the storage car, where the crates of food were located. The apple he had eaten earlier had done little to ease his hunger.
“Hey, Aris, catch!” Strong Charger called out as Aris entered the car. The Guard threw something at Aris, who instinctively raised a hoof to snatch the object. He caught it, and looked at the item: another apple.
He looked around. Strong Charger and Rough Spirit were lying on the floor next to an opened crate of fruit, chewing away at its contents. Iron Mace and Long March, meanwhile, were standing on either side of the chest they had brought on board last night.
“You’re not eating?” Aris said to Iron and Long.
“We already did,” Long said. “We might be on protection duty, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do anything besides stand here.”
“Funny. I thought being on duty meant just that,” Aris joked. Strong snorted.
“Come on, have a rest.” He pushed a crate away and patted the now-empty spot on the floor beside him. Aris settled down.
“The others and I were just talking about home,” Strong told Aris.
“Home?”
“Yeah, home,” Rough Spirit said. “Today’s the Summer Sun Celebration, after all.”
“It is?” Aris shook his head. “I completely forgot.”
“Well, Happy Celebration,” Strong said. He passed out more food for his friends.
They sat in silence for a little while as they ate. Rough swallowed. “So, Aris, what about you? Got anypony close back home? A fillyfriend, perhaps?”
“Not especially,” Aris said. “I haven’t met my special somepony yet – don’t laugh – and all of my family live outside Canterlot. My parents are all the way in Vanhoover.”
“Vanhoover, huh? Lucky,” Long commented. “Northwestern Equestria’s probably the best place to be right now.”
“I also have a brother; last time I heard from him, he had moved to Ponyville.”
Silence ensued. The others glanced at each other. Then Iron tentatively spoke up. “You mean ‘had’, right?”
Aris shook his head. “That’s what everypony asks me when I tell them. I know Ponyville was ground zero, and I heard about the losses there, but…I still hope that he got out in time.”
Long nodded in sympathy. “That’s the worst part of this mess,” he commented. “You can’t get any news about your family or friends, but at the same time you can’t go see them for yourself.”
Aris heartily agreed with Long. He opened his mouth to voice his opinion, but, feeling something odd, instead uttered, “That’s weird. You all feel that?”
“Feel the same as Long? You bet we do.”
“No, not that. The train; it’s slowing down.”
The telltale screech of locomotive brakes confirmed Aris’ observation. Rough got up and made his way to the other end of the storage car. He opened the door to the locomotive and called out, “What’s wrong? Why are we stopping?”
“There’s a train up ahead,” Steel replied from the locomotive’s cab. “Looks like the Friendship Express; it’s probably been sitting here for who knows how long.”
“Can’t we just drive it out of the way?”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Steel replied. “One or two months without any maintenance are sure to cause some problems.”
Rough groaned. “So what we do? Push it?”
“It might still be in working condition,” Steel said. “But we’re just outside of Whinnypeg, too. Quite a lot of ponies living nearby; we’ve got to make sure we aren’t seen.”
“You just had to add that, didn’t you?”
“Hey, I’m just the messenger,” Steel said apologetically.
The Guards went back into the dining car to inform Golden and White of the situation. Iron and Long were the exceptions, since the two were on protection duty and forced to stay with the chest. When Rough told Golden the news, the senior Guard immediately began devising a plan.
“The Friendship Express? Hmm…Steel, are you sure that we can move it out of our path?”
“Considering that we’re near a train station, there should be a switch that leads from this track to another.”
“But the locomotive might not be functional?”
“We can still give it a shot, sir,” Steel offered. “But in the event that it doesn’t work, we’ll have to do something else to move it.”
Golden mused some more. However, Twilight spoke up.
“Sir, Rarity and I are unicorns. We could help with our magic if the train can’t be driven.”
“She has a point,” Aris said. “Using magic has got to be easier than physically moving the train.” The other Guards eagerly nodded. However, Golden wasn’t having it.
“I’m sorry ma’am, but we can’t let you go outside. It’s too risky; you might be recognized by somepony.”
“But we still have the camouflage amulets, don’t we?” Twilight pressed. “Surely they can do the job if they got us past those two crystal ponies last night. Plus, magic will finish the job much quicker than if your stallions tried to do it by themselves.”
Golden thought over this. Twilight’s logic presented a convincing argument. Finally, he accepted her offer. “All right, we’ll do as you wish, ma’am. But remember this: under no circumstances are you to get careless out there. I can’t stress how fatal it’ll be if we lose one of you.”
“I know, sir,” Twilight reassured Golden. “But I’ll need to charge the amulets that belong to you and your stallions. You six will use them as well, right?”
“Five; I’ll be staying behind to look over your friends,” Golden said. “But yes, my stallions will use the amulets. You’ll find them in the passenger car.”
The Elements and Spike left the car to do their work with the amulets. While he waited, Aris took a look at their surroundings through the windows. The train station Steel had mentioned earlier was the closest structure to them; indeed, the only structure near them. Everything else was grassland for as far as the eye could see. They were lucky that the station wasn’t in Whinnypeg itself and was only on the city’s outskirts.
“They’re taking their time,” Rough commented.
White Star raised an eyebrow. “As if you know how magic works.”
“I don’t,” Rough admitted. “But I do now that it’s been almost ten minutes for seven pieces of jewelry.”
As if she had heard, Twilight came back into the car with Rarity and Spike in tow. The amulets were piled up in the baby dragon’s arms. “Sorry about that, sirs,” she apologized. “But I also had to adjust Cadance’s spell on the amulets. They were still creating illusions of crystal ponies.”
“Are they good now?” Strong asked.
“Yep. Here, try them on.” The amulets glowed magenta as Twilight levitated them to the Guards. Aris clipped his on and tapped the crystal twice. Once the activation flash cleared, he looked down at his right foreleg to see if the adjusted illusion spell worked. The limb was now brown, showing that Twilight had succeeded.
Golden opened and held the door that led to outside. “Let’s go, madams and stallions. We’re on a tight schedule.”
The group of seven hopped down onto the grass. Golden closed the door behind them. Steel and Strong, being the ones who knew how to operate a locomotive, immediately headed for the head of the abandoned train. White, Twilight, and Rarity followed them. Meanwhile, Aris and Rough followed the tracks to find the switch that Steel had mentioned.
“Up ahead,” Rough said. Aris could see the track branch off into two paths. One track, the one that went straight ahead, led east. The other track curved left and led south. Quickening their pace, the two Guards soon arrived at the junction. There was a lever connected to a curved rail that lay in the middle of the track: the switch that Steel had talked about.
It was then that the two were faced with a new problem.
“You know how to work this, right?”
“I thought you did!” Rough shot back. He grabbed the lever. “Anyway, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out.” He tested the switch by moving the lever back and forth, which in turn shifted the rail left and right.
“I think it should be on the left,” Aris said. “It’ll connect with the main rail which should make the train go left.”
“Your call,” Rough said. He shifted the lever to slot the rail in place.
Since they would have to move the switch again once the abandoned train was out of the way, Aris and Rough chose to wait beside the junction for the others. They watched the Friendship Express, which soon let out a puff of steam.
"We're in luck!" Aris said.
The train didn't move, however. Aris could see a somepony stick his head out the locomotive's window and talk with the others. Steel and Strong must have run into a problem.
"Time for Plan B," Rough said.
The Guards continued spectating the train. Aris saw two figures on the ground crouch slightly, as if bracing for something. Then an impressive sight unfolded: a magenta aura enveloped the locomotive which slowly began moving forward.
"Wow...I admit, I didn't think those two could do it," Rough said.
"Twilight is Celestia's personal student," Aris said.
As the Friendship Express got closer, Aris could see that the two unicorns were working as a team to move the train. The locomotive was the biggest burden and therefore being taken care of by Twilight. Rarity supported her by pushing the caboose of the train. Both mares had their teeth gritted in concentration and exertion, sweat glistening on their faces.
Aris and Rough stepped off to the side to give the train some clearance. To their delight, the Friendship Express turned left onto the southern track once it came across the junction. Aris’ hypothesis had been correct. The train cars, slightly faded in color from the elements, rolled past them.
The final wheel of the caboose rolled off the eastern track, and Twilight and Rarity ceased their magic with obvious relief. Steel and Strong hopped down from the locomotive’s cab and trotted over to their comrades.
“That was fantastic!” Strong said. “Thanks for your help, ladies.”
“Any…time…dear,” Rarity replied in between deep breaths.
”Do you two need help getting back?” White asked.
“We’ll…manage,” Twilight said.
Rough slid the switch to its original position, and the group headed back to the Royal Express. Despite Twilight’s statement, the Guards kept a close eye on the two mares. They were passing by the train station when White halted.
“Hold up,” he said.
“What’s wrong?”
“I thought I saw something…” His head turned as he scanned the scene.
“There, in the station!”
Aris quickly turned left, just in time to see the shadow of a figure move behind one of the windows. He and the other Guards continued to watch the structure, but the figure did not reappear. Then the door slowly opened, and a small head stuck out.
It was, to their surprise, a filly. Aris guessed that she was no older than four or five years of age. Her coat was orange, and a ragged yellow mane showed signs of grime.
Most important was the discoloration on her forehead.
“Everypony get back!” White barked. “We can’t stay here.” He pulled Twilight and Rarity with him as he continued on towards the Royal Express. His fellow Guards followed suit, except for Aris. He stood where he was, unable to look away from the small pony.
“Aris, come on!” White shouted. Aris detached his eyes from the sight, hurrying away. Once he was back with the group, White shot him a glare.
“What were you doing?” he scolded. “You could have destroyed the mission right there and then!” White suddenly backed away from Aris. “She didn’t get near you, did she?”
“No, she didn’t,” Aris said. White cast him a suspicious look, but took his word for it. He rapped on the door of the passenger car, which Golden opened.
“The track’s been cleared, sir,” White said. “We’re free to move, but we were spotted by a young filly on our way back here.”
“She didn’t recognize any of you, did she?” Golden demanded as he helped the group into the car.
“Not that we could tell, sir,” White said. “She also didn’t get near any of us, so rest assured that we’re all perfectly fine.”
“I certainly hope so,” Golden said. “But we’ll find out in a few days, won’t we?”
“Sir, you have my word that we’ll be just like we are today.”
Six minutes later, the Royal Express began moving once again. The train slid past the station, then disappeared into the horizon as it continued on to Haliflanks.
The filly watched all of this. And when the last sign of the train had vanished, she turned her eyes on the crate of food that sat on the ground.