"Do you judge me?"

The question posed by Thea seemed to silence all sound in the area. Sweeper placed the braid back in makeshift saddlebag. Her eyes narrowed, her smile disappeared. The two sisters looked intently at each other in silence. Scroll braced himself as the tension rose. 

"Well…", Sweeper looked to her left and right. ", I think had you taken the time to cast the spell correctly, then the destruction would have been much more through. There's still plenty of ruin when there should be nothing but ash. And I think the ground should have rumbled considerably as well. But despite not quite achieving the full effect, the accuracy and range made up for that. Overall, it works." 

Scroll relaxed, and didn't fall over in shock this time. Wullf had warned when they said their destination was Old Hoof: [i] "Ponies don't go there. Dogs don't go there. Miles and miles they go around to avoid the place," said the Diamond Dog. "For five years, shinny pony, no one has come back. All merchants avoid the place." The traders begged them not to go, or at least not land there. "If I'm right," Sweeper said ", that town won't be a problem." [/i] Based on Sweeper's earlier words, Scroll could only assume something evil was in this town that required such retaliation. 

To change the mood, Scroll replied to the Huntress' question. "Lady Thea, I am honored by your words. But though I may be an academic, we are not all hermits with an aversion to physical activity. Quite the opposite really. I've been in a many a fight over scholarly matters long before the Sister's disappearance." This was true - the first time he met Star Dancer was during such a brawl in a classroom. There was a dispute between two groups over the structure of the Equestrian star system. "And my travels across the land, one becomes adept at fighting, if a crude brawler I may be. It's almost second nature, instinct perhaps, one for survival." 

----

Torrential's answer was still being digested by Dancer. Both were alone for miles, surrounded by breathtaking scenery. In the sky, here and there was an opening for the sun, allowing majestic rays of light through. In some areas, the rain refracted the light to create rainbows unlike any seen before. 

After a while she responded, "We haven't had any direct dealings with Arcon yet. We just know two our members have disappeared, maybe being held by him. So there may be a chance that he doesn't know about our mission, assuming the missing Scholars keep silent. 

"And even if they let something slip out, they would only know the location of a few of our facilities and vaults. He wouldn't know were all of them are, unless Arcon is omniscient. Dean Iron Spoke would have sent me directly to Sweeper if there was ever a raid on the Vaults involving an alicorn. We may have time." 

Dancer mind went over to Sweeper, and Torrential's next question. "I was thinking also about the Lady Sliver. It just seems odd that she wouldn't tell us much about Arcon, such as his personality. She spoke of her various relations before, including yourself High One. But more like a brother or a father, and never anything negative. In fact, she seems to think all of her kin quite fondly. Why is that?" Dancer's face was one of concern, a shadow of doubt about the lady clouded her mind.