“That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard!” Sacred Lance huffed, her helmet held underneath her foreleg.

“It makes sense to me.” Vitamort said, stepping forward. “Eclipse, even if he seems soft in the head, seems to know his way around when it comes to stuff like this. I know he’s a chaos mage, but we should trust him.”

The paladin snorted. “I trust him as much as I trust you, necromancer.”

“For a holy warrior, you don’t see very much good in the world, do you?”

Eclipse, for his part, remained mostly quiet, disinterestedly watching the exchange from his place next to the entrance to the bar.

Silver Lining and her caravan were unpacking their cart just down the road, but Sacred Lance and Vitamort couldn’t decide where to start their search for Cane. When Eclipse had suggested that they check bars, pubs and inns first, they had spiraled into a debate that was now stretching on towards the fifteen minute mark.

“At least that makes it easy to defeat the enemies of peace! It doesn’t take me long to find them.”

Before Vitamort could utter a response, the door to the bar slammed open and Dust Demon stepped out. The sounds of several ponies groaning in pain came from inside the establishment.

A deep voice called out after Dust Demon. “Thanks for handling the rabble!”

“My pleasure, Barkeep.” Dust Demon closed the door and turned back to the trio that had been waiting outside. “Cane’s favorite hole happens to be a few minutes over, just that way.” He pointed his hoof further down the street. “Tavern called ‘Wayfarer’s Stand.’ Sounds like a nice place.”

Eclipse stretched his legs. “Great. Let’s get going everyone. Before I leave some of you behind and finish this myself.”

Sacred Lance frowned. “Is… is he mad at us?”

Vitamort rolled his eyes. “And mother wonders why I didn’t become a cleric.”

He ignored the pointed glare from the paladin as he trotted forward, looking to catch up to Eclipse and Dust Demon.

Sacred Lance frowned. “I’ll admit that he does have a good idea of what to do, but I still say we should have found town hall and started there.”

The paladin stood in place as she watched her companions continue forward. Dust Demon and Eclipse had begun chatting amiably, though the words were lost to the distance between them and the paladin’s ears.

Holding a hoof up to her breast, where a small medallion hung, hidden by her armor, Sacred Lance uttered a small prayer. “Let this decision help me. Please, let me find Royal.” She looked up surprised to find the trio ahead staring back at her.

She gathered her resolve and trotted forward. “I know she’s close. The spell tracked her to Braycover. I know she’s close…”

Vitmort frowned as Sacred Lance caught up to the group. “You seem a little… off, today.”

Sacred Lance scowled back.

“Nope. She’s fine.” Vitamort drawled, shaking his head.

Dust Demon chuckled as they started walking again. “Reminds you of our group, doesn’t it?”

Eclipse shrugged. “I just want to get this over with and put that necromancer’s head on a spike.”

Vitamort glanced at Eclipse.

“You know damn well I’m not talking about you.”

Vitamort chuckled, speeding up his walk into a trot.

The Wayfarer’s stand was a stereotypical tavern, filled with stereotypical drunkards whose minds were clouded by stereotypical levels of alcohol.

Eclipse groaned. “I already hate this place.”

Dust Demon stepped to the side, avoiding a flying mug that banged against Vitamort’s head before it found a place on the ground.

Vitamort rubbed his head as most of the tavern turned to stare at the group.

“Hey, ain’t those the ones tha’ old coot wanted us to look out fer?” Someone in the crowd asked.

It didn’t take long for an older unicorn stallion with a gray coat and white mane to step forward. He glanced at a note that was in his hoof, rubbing his chin in concentration.

Eclipse frowned. “Was someone expecting us?”

Dust Demon laughed. “That can’t be right. We weren’t even expecting to come here until a few minutes ago.”

The older pony in front of the crowd nodded, stuffing the note somewhere out of sight. “Despite what that colt wants…” He grinned, his eyes twinkling mischievously. “I’ll tell you exactly where to find Scribe.”

“You bitch!” Scribe cursed, slamming his hoof against the table as the quill continued its scratching along the parchment. “I sent you that note so you’d do the exact opposite of that!”

“Poor lad doesn’t even realize how much he needs to get out of that cottage.” Card Deck finished. “Needs to get a marefriend, too.”

“Screw you!”

Eclipse sighed. “I’m sensing a ‘but’ in there…”

“Well, I was going to just give you directions and send you on your way, but if you insist on being helpful…” Card Deck smirked.

“God damnit.”

“I’m not gonna mince words here; I’m no cheater.” The stallion’s smile was gone, having vanished as he idly shifted the cane that was strapped to his back. “But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t sore losers.”

Sacred Lance growled underneath her helmet. “We are not here to play games, stallion. Explain what you want from us and we’ll get it done.”

“Tch. Stay awhile and listen, hm? You might learn something important by paying attention to the details.” Card Deck chuckled as his horn lit up, closing the tavern door behind the group. “Come on in. I’ve got a table for us.”

By then, the tavern’s normal activity had returned and the patrons were paying no heed to the newcomers. Eclipse and Dust Demon were first, taking seats at the table Card Deck had led them to.

The unicorn had started shuffling a deck of cards, masterfully flitting them from hoof to hoof in an indiscernible pattern. “I’m not the greatest, but I’m damned good at a round of poker.”

Vitamort remained standing beside the table as Sacred Lance took a seat next to Dust Demon, opposite Eclipse.

“I played with Scribe’s mother all the time. Helped her pass the time when he and his father had started to reorganize their library.” The stallion chuckled. “I go back every few months, but Scribe himself isn’t that much of a player. Enjoys blackjack well enough, at least.”

He sighed. “Few weeks ago, I played a few rounds against some pompous stallion called Pin Drop who heard about me and decided to prove his skill. Hrph. Skill my ass. He cheated in three different ways and I still beat him. Anyway, he hired some thugs, I started moving around a lot more. Turns out Scribe caught wind of it with those books he keeps. He’s been helping me keep track of some of Pin Drop’s movements, but I’m getting annoyed with it. If you can clear the thugs that have tracked me to this town, it’ll send a message of ‘leave me alone’ to him that he can’t blow off. After that, you get to meet Scribe.”

Eclipse leaned forward. His ears had perked up when Card Deck mentioned Scribe’s ability to keep track of events that he wasn’t actually a part of. “And just how does Scribe know where the thugs are looking?”

Card Deck laughed. “Pin Drop’s found himself in the role of the antagonist in one of the books. A certain mare’s family has been on the receiving end of his terrible rent rates for a while, so she’s been trying to dig up dirt on him, get him imprisoned and buy the house cheap enough that they won’t go bankrupt. She ended up stumbling onto a whole racketeering shebang. She’s been halfway down to Trottingham and back again, fighting and avoiding Pin Drop’s thugs the whole way. Now, she thinks they’re going after Card Deck, a stallion who’s been in Pin Drop’s side for years. Instead, she’s going to get a gambler who got nicknamed Cane for being good at hitting people with a stick.”

Eclipse frowned. “But that doesn’t explain how Scribe knows all this.”

Card Deck stopped shuffling his cards. “True enough. His family developed a spell that essentially keeps tabs on anything interesting happening in the world. Sort of like a crystal ball that automatically zooms in on the entertaining stuff. Adventures and the like, with maybe some other oddities mixed in. Except, it just makes quills record everything in books.”

Dust Demon leaned back. “Like with this whole thing involving Pin Drop? His spell writes down what that mare does until it ends, one way or another?”

“It doesn’t record all the details.” Card Deck shrugged. “You won’t find anything about someone in the restroom, unless something adventure related happens while they’re in there. But yes. That’s about how it works. While we’re on the subject, you should know that he’s been a big fan of you. Last time I stopped by for a visit, Chaotic Harmony was all he could talk about.”

“Chaotic Harmony? What kind of lame name is that?” Eclipse said, crossing his forehooves.

“He likes to name every story. It helps every one be a little more unique than if they just had a bare cover, or something.” Card Deck shrugged.

“Well, that’s dumb.”

Vitamort stepped up to the edge of the table. “How does he keep each story separate? And what if two things happen at the same time? What happens?”

Card Deck sighed. “I don’t know how it actually works. The one time I tried to make heads or tails of it, Penline, Scribe’s father, nearly talked my ear off explaining it.”

“Heh, serves you right.” Scribe said, as his eyes looked over to a second book and quill, which had begun moving. Reading what was going on, Scribe gathered a piece of parchment from his desk.

“Ready or not, here they come.” He said, as the words magically appeared on the note. “Let Eclipse and co. handle the lifting. She’ll be in right after the thugs.”

Scribe sighed, sending the note along in a quick item teleport spell. “…I guess life is full of surprises.”

Eclipse noticed the note first, barring Card Deck himself, as it popped into existence. Card Deck took hold of the note in his magic, eyes scanning it before he nodded.

“They’re here, if you want to accept my offer.”

Eclipse nodded. “Just tell us who to pounce on.”

The tavern door slammed open and a trio of burly stallions stepped inside. The first raised his head. “CARD DECK!”

Card Deck sighed. “They’d be--“

“I figured it out, thanks.” Eclipse jumped onto the table and launched himself over the crowd, landing between the trio of thugs and the rest of the bar.

“Who the hay are you?” The thug leader shouted.

Card Deck came through the crowd not a moment later. “Gentlecolts. Give Pin Drop my regards.”

“Card Deck.” The thug sneered. “Who’s this punk?” He asked, gesturing at Eclipse.

Eclipse grinned, eyes lighting up in a blaze of red as he charged his chaos magic. “His regards.”

Eclipse sent himself rocketing forward, slamming into the thug shoulder first and sending both of them flying out into the street.

The thugs friends followed them out, but they only arrived in time to see Eclipse throw the first thug into the wall of a nearby building.

Eclipse turned and slammed his hoof into the ground, a line of spikes erupting forward and slamming into the second thug, knocking him out cold. The last stallion turned tail and ran.

Before he could get very far, Dust Demon crashed into him from above, sending the stallion down into the dirt.

Card Deck followed Vitamort and Sacred Lance out of the tavern. “Hell of a show, Eclipse. Hell of a show. Here’s the directions you wanted.” He handed a map to Vitamort, with a mark where Scribe’s house was.”

Eclipse rolled his shoulder. “No problem. Hopefully, he can help us out with our problem.”

“I wouldn’t doubt it.” Card Deck said with a curt nod. “Now unless you plan on leaving right away, you could always--“ He paused when he realized that they had already begun to leave.

“Sorry, but we’re kind of in a rush. Braycover’s counting on us!” Eclipse said, waving.

Sacred Lance turned him around, Dust Demon and Vitamort leading the way as they set off once more.

Ear twitching, Card Deck turned to find a young mare wearing a cloak and staring at him in disbelief. “Not what you expected, I know.” He said, fully aware of who this mare was. “Come on in. I’ve got some explaining to do.”