Lily Glamerspear

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Specialist Lily Glamerspear was pretty confused about what, exactly, Sparkshower's coping mechanisms were. At first, after the big break-up, she was comatose, arriving upstairs without a word, skipping lunch, and remaining incredibly quiet even as Lily insisted on taking her out. Then, she seemed to lose herself in minutiae, counting the tiles in the mosaic ceiling above the Spa Dalecarlia's indoor pool.

But, with the promise of some kind of gift from the pegasus noblemare, Major Amberline Growler, commander of the Valkyries, she’d swung completely over to the hyperactive side.

Artemis had hustled Lily out of the spa faster than anyone had ever been hustled out of a spa before. She'd immediately booked it back to the palace, alighting at every corner only just long enough for the unicorn to catch up before she burst ahead once more. By the time they arrived back at the complex of buildings Lily presently called 'home,' she was more worn out than after one of Anonymous' late-night 'jogs.'

‘Is this what Sparkshower can do when she’s not laden with the burden of armor?’

Anyways, after all that double-quick marching to get back to their quarters before Major Growler's mysterious gift arrived, what did Artemis go and do, her heartbroken pegasus fillyfriend? She declared that she was absolutely famished! ‘No duh, Sparks, that's what happens when you fly around all morning, and then skip lunch, and then race back to the castle at warp speed!’

Before Lily even got to rest her plot for ten seconds on the sofa, it was another race to the chow hall, which was surprisingly busy -- lots of guardsponies looking to get a quick, early snack before leaving on libo. It wasn't so busy that they had to push or shove, but it still took a few minutes to find a table, even with a wildmare recon pegasus floating overhead.

When the unicorn did finally seat herself, relieving her aching hooves, Lily’s pegasus quaternion-mate sat down as well with a plate so full she could have sworn Artemis had just grabbed the whole buffet stand. And then she ate it all, too! A filly who could stuff all that down her gullet oughtta... well, never mind. Now was definitely not the right time for that kind of playful innuendo. Lily was following her comrade around in order to provide emotional support, after all.

Finally, after the gallop to the palace, and the other gallop to the enlisted mess, and the metaphorical gallop to stuff her face with a meal, and the third, actual, real gallop out of the mess hall, Lily was finally, finally, back in her quarters at their shared apartment.

It was almost four o'clock, too; time for the shift change.

Sparkshower blasted through the door so fast that Lily didn’t even see her work the handle, and as the white-painted, elegantly-decorated wooden slab clonked angrily into the rubber stop on the inside wall, the unicorn was half-worried Artemis had knocked the thing completely off its hinges. Lily hustled up to catch her and stepped inside the common room, finding the pegasus zipping around.

"Is it here? Did it come yet?"

Before anypony could answer, she darted into her own bedroom, blowing through that second door like a hurricane. Seconds later, an unusually startled-looking Sergeant Ebonshield, dressed for duty, stepped out of the washroom.

"¿Qué? Is what here, Specialist?"

Eb barely managed to get the last word out before Sparkshower came screaming out of her room again like she'd been lit on fire. "The package! The delivery! I'm expecting something very important from somepony just as important! Did anything come for me, Sergeant?"

Ebonshield shook her head, still confused. "No, nothing has come, and I have been here since just after mid-day."

Defeated, Artemis finally started to calm down from her frenzied pace, dropping to her hooves. "Oh, trowal! I thought it'd certainly be here and we could go out and try it before the sun sets tonight... But I guess testing it may have to wait until tomorrow."

Lily narrowed her eyes. "Testing it? Sparks, you don't even know what it is."

Instantly, she brightened back up again. "Yes I do! Or, at least, I think I do!"

"Oh, yeah? What is it, then?"

Sitting on her haunches, the eager pegasus tapped her forehooves together. "Well, Major Amberline Growler is the leader of the Valkyries, and she's from the Cloudsdale Growlers -- you know who they are, right?"

Lily shook her head. "Never heard of 'em. Though, I tend to pay more attention to Canterlot noble families than ones from Cloudsdale."

Not that Lily had anything particularly against pegasus nobleponies, or even pegasi in general, but when it came to her choice in salt-licks, thrifty Cloudsdale colts couldn't compare to free-spending Canterlot elite or even the landed earth pony gentry. Besides, everypony knew Canterlot was the style and fashion capital of Equestria, with Manehattan coming in second. Cloudsdale barely even made the list.

Sparkshower pointed a hoof in her direction. "You may not have heard the family name, Lily, but I bet you'd recognize their property; you served us some last Wednesday, when we got to know Sergeant Ebonshield over some bottles of 'Maestra Cazador.' The Growler family owns the Dragoon brewery in Cloudsdale -- as in Dragoon Pale Ale."

LIly raised her eyebrows. "Really? Huh. I wouldn't have figured Major Growler for a brewery heiress."

Sparkshower nodded. "That's because the Growler family is more famous for their soldiering; every generation of Growlers has served with distinction in the Royal Guard. The Dragoon brewery was founded by Barclay 'Blondie' Growler who was wounded and honorably discharged while serving in the Princess' Dragoons almost two hundred years ago, hence the beer's name."

‘Hmm…’

That made Lily wonder what she would name her drink if she retired and founded a brewery -- or a distillery, or maybe even a winery. She could do without the heroic injury, though. Just the heroism would be good enough for her.

"Okay, okay, so they're a big name. What does that have to do with Lady Amberline's gift to you?"

Sergeant Ebonshield perked up a little bit upon hearing the reason for Sparkshower's excitement, but she didn’t interrupt, allowing the pegasus to answer Glamerspear.

"As a result of such a long history of service, the Growler family is also famous for having amassed a considerable collection of arms and armor. And it was a Growler -- Griselda 'Ginny' Growler -- who petitioned Princess Celestia to found the mares-only Valkyries battalion, donating some of the Growler family collection of weapons for use by their top soldiers."

Sitting up straight, she continued, a look of awe in her distant expression. "All the Valkyries of the elite First platoon of 'A' company, Major Amberline Growler included, are equipped with an heirloom ancestral spear and magic helmet."

"Spear and magic helmet?"

"Spear and magic helmet!"

"Magic helmet?"

"Yes, a magic helmet! And if that's what she's given me, I'll give you a sample! Valkyrie magic helmets are said to be able to control weather with the merest thought, or to ward off the most devastating blows, or even to suppress other spells around them..."

Wings spread wide, she gestured with her forelegs. "...And the spears are no less impressive, either, said to be capable of shooting lightning, or of instantly returning to your hoof after being thrown, or are even capable of aiming themselves at targets and never missing."

She clapped her forehooves together and inhaled deeply, looking up reverently at the ceiling. "That's what I think Major Growler is giving me, or else why make such a big deal about it like she and Captain Goldenfoil did? And that's why I'm so excited! Joining the Valkyries was a childhood fantasy. This'll be like being an honorary member!"

Turning back to the unicorn, Artemis quickly got back down on all fours. "Lily, do you know how to use a camera? If it's still light out when the gift arrives, I want to go outside to take some photos to send to my family!"

Lily shrugged. "I mean... Sorta, yeah. Look in the window, make sure you're in it, push the button, and then twist the windy-thing, right?"

Her answer seemed to dismay the pegasus somewhat. "Well, it's more complicated than that, at least with a nice camera like I have. There's focus and aperture and shutter speed and... Oh, but I can set that all up for you ahead of time. Yes, all you'd need to do is just what you said! Let me go get it ready right now."

Without waiting for a reply, she zipped into her room and shut the door. "Nopony come in while I'm preparing! I'll be handling film, so I don't want any stray light!"

‘How long is she gonna be this energetic for?’

Lily wasn’t sure if she could keep up. Maybe Honour could tag her out if it kept going late.

Standing beside the beleaguered specialist, Ebonshield cleared her throat. "Well, this is interesting. I am now curious about this gift, and the circumstances behind it. But it is time for me to go and relieve the Corporal Bound; I will have to find out tomorrow, or perhaps later tonight, if anyone is still awake when my duties are finished."

Something about Valkyries and their magic hats and super spears made Lily think back to the fantastic performance that the batpony 'Balladeer of Ghosts,' Ignacio Blazon, gave them with his animated sand-creatures. How he did it was still a frustrating mystery to her, but maybe the sergeant could give her a clue with that...

"Sarge, can I ask you a question before you go?"

She stopped and politely turned to face Lily, but -- thankfully -- didn’t get all up in her snout. "Of course. What is it?"

The unicorn raised her eyebrows pleadingly. "Do you know anything about the kind of magic that Ignacio used? He asked me to try to figure it out, but I'm kinda stumped."

Ebonshield smirked. "Oh, you are? Interesting. I think it will amuse him to hear that you, a unicorn, could not comprehend his magic."

Lily frowned at that. "Why's that? He's, like, twice my age; there's plenty of older unicorn mages trotting around Canterlot with tricks I'd have trouble figuring out on my own without some more experience under my yoke, or at least some clues."

The batpony nodded. "Yes, of course. But you must understand, although the Children of the Stars have been taught that our form is the most superior out of all the kinds of pony, we have also been taught to beware the unicorn magic most powerful. It is said that even the spells of our Eclipse can compete with the speed and the power of the unicorns only through the preparation most thorough."

‘What?’

"I don't get it. Batponies think they're the best pony, except they're not?"

Ebonshield shook her head. "No, no, we do think ourselves best, but it is because of our combination of traits." Extending a wing, she elaborated. "We are not as swift as the pegasi, but we are agile, and we do not tire as easily -- though we cannot endure as long as the earth ponies, though against them we have the advantage of flight."

Ebonshield folded up her wings and looked up at Lily’s horn. " ...Against the unicorns, we are taught to pit our guile and cunning, to confuse and terrify and scare them away. But if one of the Children is caught by a unicorn out in the open, and this is not part of some greater plan of the Child, and the unicorn does not run from fear, then, even if that Child is of the Eclipse, the unicorn will almost certainly triumph. The rapidity of the magic, and the power brutish of it, we cannot match head-on."

Lily nodded. "Okay, I guess that makes sense. Your average unicorn has been practising telekinesis for about as long as they've been able to walk, after all."

Eb shrugged. "Yes, exactly... But as for explaining the magic of Ignacio to you, this I cannot do. Nopony understands the magic of the Eclipse besides the Eclipse themselves. What Ignacio said to you about his kind being held apart from the rest of the Children is true; they interact very little with the other Phases. I have never heard of them having ever shared this knowledge outside of their own circle."

‘Damn.’

Looks like Ignacio was just yanking her reins when he asked her to try to figure it out. The sergeant was right; that old coot would probably get a real kick out of hearing she failed.

‘Well, damn it, I’m not giving up yet!’

There were still books in the library she hadn't consulted, and pages in the 'De Magia Unicornis' she hadn't studied! Lily would show that creepy old batpony that unicorn magic really was the best in Equestria!

Perhaps seeing the frown on her face, Ebonshield spoke up. "... Specialist Glamerspear, I must say also that I do not think Ignacio set you this challenge in order to mock you." Lifting her eyebrows, she grinned and spread her bat-wings. "Like the rest of the Children, I am certain that he has heard many stories about the power fantastic of the unicorns. You are probably the first one he has ever met in person, and I think he simply wishes to know if the stories are true. Your curiosity inspired his own; if the challenge is impossible, do not take it as an insult."

‘Hmm…’

‘Maybe.’

Lily nodded. Ignacio did heal Ebonshield, and for a cranky old nag, he had been somewhat pleasant, if cryptic. Even the sergeant had expressed surprise at his supposed 'good' manners when they’d all been down there.

Squinting, the unicorn looked her local batpony up and down. "Say, what's the deal with you and Ignacio, anyways? He called you something strange in your language when he healed your wound."

Ebonshield sighed. "He called me his 'little angel of death,' yes..."

Inhaling deeply, she glanced anxiously at the clock. "...It is complicated, our relationship; too complicated to explain at this moment. Let me say only that between us there is a bond of admiration mutual." Turning back to Lily, she pleaded. "Ask me this question again, when there is more time."

‘What a weird answer.’

Well, whatever, it was two minutes to four, and now really wasn't the right time for more chit-chat anyways. She nodded. "Sure, Sarge. Talk to you later."

"If you are not awake when my shift is ended, then I bid you goodnight, Specialist." Receiving a casual nod from Lily in response, the batpony Ebonshield headed out the door.

With Sparkshower still fussing over her camera in her room, Lily profited from the moment of quiet to finally, finally, lay her back on the sofa.

‘Ahhh…’

‘Damn mare had me running around for almost two hours straight.’

‘Damn, heartbroken mare...’

With a sigh, she looked over at the enormous 'De Magia Unicornis' tome on the coffee table, and the skimpy pair of 'Cosmoponitan' magazines next to it. Mailedhoof hadn't sent her a note yet, which probably meant he didn't need -- or maybe 'want' -- her around tonight.

Tomorrow, probably. He couldn't go a week without having a little of the Glam, she was certain.

She could take it easy for tonight -- watch Sparkshower wave around her fancy new whatevermajig, snap some photos of it for her folks, maybe head to the commissary to pick up a six-pack of 'Dragoon' Pale Ale in tribute to Her Ladyship, and then just relax on the sofa, before splitting the bill and sharing the booze with Honour and Artemis.

As Lily dreamt of a simple evening, Corporal Bound stepped into the common room. Pulling off her helmet, she gave the specialist a nod.

"How's she doing?"

Lily jerked a forehoof in the direction of Sparkshower's door, speaking quietly. "She's all excited. We ran into the commander of the Valkyries, of all ponies, at the spa. Apparently, us wrecking Kilfeather and company two weeks ago did them a big favor for the MXP Games, so she promised me a favor and Sparkshower a gift, which Sparks thinks is gonna be some ancient magic stick or hat from the Valkyries' collection, on account of her being warned not to use it indoors."

Honour stopped and screwed up her snoot. "The buck? Just for winning the pas-de-sabots we didn't even really want to fight? And where's my favor or gift, then?"

Lily shrugged. "Sorry, Corporal. Her Ladyship said I wasn't due to get anything more than a thank-you card, originally. Seeing me there changed things. But I guess she also had something to make up to Sparkshower this morning, too -- something about her being arrested for espionage?"

Honour's snoot went from 'scrunched' to 'mega-ultra-scrunched' in no time flat. "What? Arrested? She didn't say anything about that when she came back from delivering the calling-card."

The unicorn shook her head and snorted. "Apparently they're paranoid about infiltration over there at the Watchtower. Misplacing papers and chasing shadows and thinking it's super-secret spies. It sounds like just a bunch of bored-but-creative illusionists to me, but it was enough for them to accuse Sparks of trying to impersonate a Valkyrie."

The corporal looked over at Sparkshower's door. "Whatever. I just hope it doesn't screw things up for us tomorrow. Major General Hoofstrong sent her message -- she's invited the Royal Engineer to her office in the morning."

Honour looked down at Glamerspear. "We're on deck, you and me. Me, because I'm the senior member of the Quaternion, and you, because you're a decorated Centurion; we'll leave the batpony and the Valkyrie impersonator back here, got it?"

Lily nodded. "Sure, Corporal. Makes sense to me."

Lifting her head up from the sofa, she peeked over the back of the seat at Sparkshower's door. "...I'm still worried about Sparkshower, though. She hasn't... y'know... cried or anything. Wasn't she with this colt since, like, high school? She hasn't said one word about the breakup since she came upstairs. Heck, I barely got a little laugh out of her before Major Growler came and swept her off her hooves. You don't think it's unhealthy for her to hold it in?"

Honour shook her head and exhaled, puffing out her cheeks. "Maybe, but don't bring it up unless she does. Let her handle it her way."

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Before either Lily or Honour could answer it, Sparkshower whipped her bedroom door open and launched herself towards the hallway passage, nearly knocking the sofa over in her wake.

"Yes! Coming! I'm here!"

The door slammed open, shuddering against the rubber stopper, revealing a well-dressed unicorn deliverycolt levitating a small clipboard in front of him and a long box behind him.

"Good afternoon, I have a delivery for Specialist Sp-"

"YesThat'sMeWhereDoIsignIsItHereOkayDoneThereYouGoBringItRightInPlease."

Having yanked the clipboard out of the colt's telekinetic aura, she signed her name in a flash and thrust the papers back towards his chest, eyes on her prize. Momentarily dazed by her speed, the unicorn took a second to find his bearings, then stepped inside and lay the package on the ground. From her spot, Lily could see that it wasn’t actually just some shipping crate, but a glossy case with an elegant wood grain.

"Have a good even-"

"YesThankYouGoodEvening." Once again, Sparkshower slammed the door, this time narrowly avoiding the hapless deliverycolt's face.

As she scrambled over towards the delivery, Lily placed her forehooves down at her sides and pushed her back off the couch. "Come on, Sparks, this isn't the barracks, don't go slamming Her Majesty's doors like that."

Sparkshower paid no attention to her, and immediately proceeded to set her hooves opening the case's five latches -- only to be immediately stopped by Corporal Bound, who placed a hoof down on top of hers, to the pegasus' shock and indignation.

"Negatory on opening this up in here, Sparkshower. Whatever this is, you were told to play with it outside."

Before Artemis could protest, Honour looked over at Lily and continued. "Come on, Glamerspear. Pick this thing up and let's take it to the drill field. At this hour, on a Friday, it'll be empty."

That had Sparkshower happy again. "I'll get my camera! Oh, this is going to be amazing! I can't wait to see what it is!"

A little voice in Lily’s head told her this wouldn’t be the quiet, relaxing evening she’d hoped for. Another little voice piped up and said that thinking those kinds of thoughts was a sure sign she was getting older and wiser and, probably, slower.

With Sparkshower loading her camera into a saddle-back and Honour looking wary and tired, but interested, Lily picked up the wooden case in her teal aura.

And she told both little voices to shut the buck up.

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Suggested watching: Bugs Bunny & Elmer Fudd - excerpt from "What's Opera, Doc?"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kH0Bag0akc

Next Chapter: Chapter 94 Estimated time remaining: 18 Hours, 10 Minutes