Chapter 13: "Secrets Of The Sands."

I had several more questions for Quill Feather. And she looked more then willing to listen (Although given the fact she was tied to a chair, I'm not sure she felt she had much choice. I needed to be sure to apologize about this, after I was done questioning her.)

"You asked me earlier why I thought Simon built this place. To be honest, it's impressive. But it obviously serves as more then a resort, doesn't it?"

Quill nodded. "Much more." she said cryptically. "This is how he'll do it. This whole place is one big mega bunker, inexhaustible in every resource imaginable. The technology in this place is designed to sustain a nation for centuries. But if Simon gets what he wants from that village...then his empire will last an eternity."

Clover. I studied her face and she wasn't exaggerating. or at least she didn't think she was. Clover was what Simon was after. Somehow, she was all part of this insane doomsday plan of his. But it was more then that, like she was crucial to it in someway.

Fantastic another maniac, hellbent on ruling the world. Except Simon, wanted to destroy it first.

Wait a minute...village?

"What village are you talking about?" I asked.

"There's a village somewhere on the island, supposedly where our friend Clover has been hiding for all these centuries."

"It is?!" I exclaimed. "Do you know where it is?"

"I was supposed to find that out, but somethings...shielding the place. Making it impossible to find with even our level of surveillance."

I took a minute to think it over. So, Clover really was alive and on the island. Never mind how huge a discovery this was (And believe me, it was astronomical) we had to focus on the big picture: Simon was after her. So we had to find her first. And we would.

Putting that aside I asked another question, this one meant the world to me. "Do you know where my parents are? Did you take them?" I asked, trying not to sound angry.....even though I was.

"I know where the other scientists are, but no. I wasn't the one who kidnapped your parents Meir. I did my job, and brought all the scientists to the island and they were taken here, to the Sands." Quill looked up at me. "I don't know where your parents are, Meir, but I know where we can start looking. This place is Simon's Ark. It's filled with all kinds of secrets he'd have me kill people over if they ever got out. I.....I can help you."

I looked at her skeptically. "Why should I trust you?"

Quill rolled her eyes. "Your the one that can tell if I'm lying at a glance remember? You don't have to like me, I wouldn't even blame you if you hated me, but right now, you're in the belly of the beast, and I'm the only one that can help you get the answers you're looking for."

She was right. I was in the middle of a hornets nest, and I couldn't risk stirring it any more then I already had. With Quill by my side, at least nopony would be suspicious of me while I looked around. And I needed to find out all I could while I was here.

Plus, I was generally interested in seeing more of this place.

"Alright." I agreed. "But, we go where I need to, and we stick together at all times. And if you think of trying anything-

"What can I try? You can practically read minds and I'm in no shape to fight you even if I wanted to. Plus....I already said I was done with this insanity. If helping you is my first step to restoring my honor, then so be it."

She had a point. "Okay, here let me untie you."

"No need." Quill stood up from the chair, letting the ropes fall to the floor. "Tada." she joked.

I blinked. "You've been untied this whole time, haven't you?"

"I got out around the time you started asking questions." she admitted with a curt smile. "Just proves that I really am on your side here, doesn't it?"

I gave a curt smile back. "I suppose it does."

Quill Feather has (reluctantly) joined the investigation!

Making my way around the resort would be easier with Quill in tow. But still, I had to keep an eye on her, while I was looking around. I couldn't risk her letting anyone know what I was up to, though she definitely sounded like she would rather help me find out more about Simon's plans then aiding him in anymore kidnappings.

And of course, I understood why. Still, I don't think she was too happy about helping me either.

We left Quill's office and came to a massive map of the place, hovering just outside the floor lobby. Quill went up to it and eyed the large star that pointed to our current location. "First place we should look into is the museum." she said putting a hoof to her chin in thought.

"Museum?" I inquired, raising an eyebrow. "Simon built a museum to himself, now?"

"Not exactly." Quill scoffed. "It's a museum to the achievements of Cobalt, namely all the stuff he built into the place to ensure it would be the last thing standing after doomsday. It's open to everyone, so we shouldn't have any trouble getting in and having a look around."

A museum where we can see everything Simon is planning for doomsday on display? Sounded good to me. According to the map, the museum could be found by taking the elevator at the end of the hall on this floor down to the second floor, then just following the staircase around the garden to the museum entrance.

Easy enough.

Or at least it would have been, if I didn't spot a certain somepony trotting around the gardens with a few Setting Sun cultists by her side.

Mara Villa, still adorned in her pink police uniform, yawned loudly as she stood in the gardens that acted as the centerpiece of the hall we were currently in. She sat on a bench, checking her makeup in a small compact while two, cultists stood on either side of her, eyes scanning the room, from beneath their hoods.

I stopped dead in my tracks, causing Quill to question as to why. "What's the matter?" she asked, sounding quite annoyed.

"That mare over there, shes the police chief I tried to question back in the city! The last time I saw her, she was supposed to be taking a tour of the ruins." I whispered, before turning to Quill. "What is she doing here?" I asked.

Quill rolled her eyes. "I honestly thought you'd have figured that out by now. Mara has been in our pocket for quite some time. She's a phenomenal actress in her own right, useful for keeping the public blissfully unaware of what Cobalt is up to."

I narrowed my eyes at her. "So she's just a puppet too, then?"

Quill looked unphased. "Easy, Meir. She's done the job we've given her, and managed to run the police department just fine in the process." She set her eyes on Mara, who was adjusting her police hat so it sat perfectly on her head. "Although as to why she's here....I can only guess she's here to talk with me." Quill explained with a sly grin.

"What for?"

"She probably wants to report on a discovery she's made about the village's location. She may have even gotten that old fool to show her exactly where it is."

Old Fool? Wait...

My mind flashed back to the police station, where Mara had been talking to that old archaeologist Daring had warned me about: Solitaire. So he was just a puppet too. It made sense that Cobalt would have a pretty starlet like Mara, charm Solitaire into showing her where the village was. After all, he was here for that exact same reason.

So what happened? Did she find the village? and if so....what had she done with Solitaire, now that he was no longer needed?

Then, I had an idea. I turned to Quill, who seemed to be thinking the same thing. "You want me to go over and talk to her. Find out if she knows where the village is, right?" Quill scoffed.

"Yep." I said simply. "I'll wait here, out of sight, till-

"No you won't. You're in the heart of the welcome lobby, where everypony makes their way to the other areas of the resort. You'll be spotted in an instant, if you just wait here." Quill scolded.

I felt my face get hot. "Okay then, so where exactly can I go then?" Quill was not the easiest pony to get along with. Did she really need to act so superior all the time?

But then she smiled. "You need to learn what I know. How to hide in plain sight, become an inaudible whisper in the room, just another pony in a crowd." Her eyes suddenly burned into mine. "Be like Hashashin." she whispered.

Sapphire Sands Indoor Gardens, 6:30 pm

Doing everything Quill had told me to, I sat on a bench, to the far side of where Mara sat. For all intents and purposes, I felt like she should have spotted me by now. But she didn't pay any mind. And the cultists were too busy bowing in respect to Quill as she talked with Mara, who only seemed to complain.

"Honestly, I don't see why I have to come all the way here to report this stuff to you." she whined. "It's nearly seven already, and I need my beauty sleep!"

Quill rolled her eyes. "I'm sure." she scoffed. "Better get your report over with then."

Mara pouted, but nevertheless gave her report. "I came back to the police station and did what you asked. The revised map gave us a clear location, but that archaeologist is stubborn. He insists that the area is too dangerous for us. Wants to excavate the place with his own team."

Quill shook her head. "Out of the question. We can't afford to rile the tribals up with big machinery and burly diggers tearing up their village. We do this by the plan we've set. If he doesn't like it, send him to me and I'll convince him to see reason."

Mara looked like she couldn't have cared less. "Fine" she sighed. "As for the village itself, we have a location, but getting to the place might be....tricky."

"Tricky how?"

"The jungle...it's....alive or something. While I was out there, it felt like there were eyes on my back the whole time, but I sowre it was just us out there. I got what info I could, and got the heck out of there!"

Quill sighed. "I see. So what happened to the team you were with?"

Mara shrugged. "Don't know." she turned to the two cultists at her side. "These are the only two that made it back with me."

Quill put a hoof to her chin. "What did Solitaire say about the target? Is she there or not?" She demanded.

Mara thought for a moment. "He said something about how she apparently....preserved herself? Frozen in some sort of crystal stuff."

Listening to Mara, I could tell she was telling the truth. So...there was something in the jungle, that protected the village? Was it Clover, casting some sort of spell to keep her new home hidden from the likes of Cobalt? No. Clover wouldn't need to cast a spell like that, she would have no trouble keeping the village hidden with the most minimal amount of magic. She probably wouldn't even need to use magic. And then there was that last part....

Preserved herself. Frozen in some sort of crystal.

It made sense. Clover easily could have preserved herself for all these years by encasing herself in a form of magically enriched crystal. But for this long? After so many years, crystal wouldn't be able to sustain her magic, let alone keep her alive. So if it wasn't crystal she froze herself in....what was it?

Mara wasn't a genius. But she clearly knew that the Voiceless Jungle was too dangerous for her. I could tell she was trying to get Quill to feel like she had done enough, so she wouldn't have to go back there. But the look in Quill's eyes spoke for itself.

She didn't care. She had no interest in any part of Simon's plans anymore. The finding of the village meant nothing to her. She really did have a change of heart then.

But I still kept an eye on her as she and Mara parted ways. The stuck-up policemare payed me no mind whatsoever as she trotted past me, yawning and muttering about wanting to turn in for the night.

Quill came up to me and gave another almost-smile. "So, looks like we learned something."

Indeed we had. Clover really was hiding out in a village. A village protected by the Voiceless Jungle. Not only that but we now knew how But there was more to it then that, I knew it.

It was then that I realized that I had to investigate this on my own. I couldn't move about as freely as I wanted to with Quill by me. Too many people recognized her, and that just meant sooner or later they would recognize me. Then we'd both be in trouble.

I had to go off on my own for now. Maybe I'd be able to find out more if questioned some of the visitors in the museum.

It was worth a shot. "Hey, Quill? I think I'm going to head off on my own for awhile." I said politely.

Quill raised an eyebrow. "Really? Here I thought you'd want to keep an eye one me." she scoffed. She was being snarky as always, but I could tell she was generally interested to know why.

"Turns out, It'll be easier for me to investigate without ponies recognizing you with me." I explained. "For a ninja master, you're not very good at staying out of the light." I added with a smile.

She looked taken back a bit, but nonetheless smiled curtly. "Fine. I guess I'll head back to my office to pack up my stuff." she said simply.

"So, you're really leaving Cobalt?" I asked, as she walked past me.

She didn't turn around, as she was lost in her own thoughts. "I meant what I said. It's time I started doing what's right, for a change." Then she left without another word.

Quill was a tough pony to read, but she clearly felt bad about what she had let herself fall into. She was determined to restore her honor, and that meant she was willing to help stop Simon. Having her as an ally would definitely turn the tables for sure.

But I had to put all that aside for now.

It was time to see what else this place was hiding.

Starting with that museum.