New Moon (My Little Pony)

10 The Waiting Game

"None of you have still gotten it to work," a gold-coated stallion coldly said to a lanky stallion teetering before his office desk.

The gold stallion had been losing focus on his day-to-day activities in anticipation of any good news tonight. He hoped to receive some assurance to his ambition, but again, he was met with disappointment from his employees.

"I'm terribly sorry Mr. Gold," the lanky stallion nervously voiced. He was internally cursing the associates that elected him to inform their boss of their findings, which to his bad luck was nothing much. "Though we have discovered that the branch has an astounding amount of magic coursing through it, nothing we try seems to expel an ounce of it." The lanky stallion raised his eyes to meet Gold's and flinched when he noticed a glare from him. "W-we think that it may require a key of some sort to trigger it."

"I don't recall ever paying you to tell me about problems," Gold said. "I hired you and your associates to bring me results. And yet here you are again spouting more about setbacks."

"P-please understand Mr. Gold," the stallion begged. "This branch is unlike anything any pony has ever seen. We still need to run many more tests to understand its properties. Only then could we possibly grasp its capabilities."

"Is that so?" Gold was somewhat intrigued. "And how long must I wait before I can see its capabilities?"

"Well," the stallion nervously brushed his hoof. He hoped to Celestia that his boss didn't ask that. "From studying this branch for nearly three days, there are still a lot of grounds that must be made before we can pinpoint a deadline."

"That's not what I asked for," Gold was dissatisfied with the stallion's answer. "Give me an exact time frame for how long it will take."

"Uh, well...Depending on how far our progress develops, perhaps a few weeks. Or...maybe some months."

"I see," Gold reclined on his office chair. His indifferent gaze toward the ceiling worried the stallion. He could see that his boss was deep in his thoughts, but of what was concerning to the stallion.

But what also concerned him was the branch itself. Where exactly did his boss find something so abnormal? And more importantly... "Excuse me, Mr. Gold," the stallion found some courage to speak out again. "If I'm not infringing too much, might I ask what your intentions are for this branch?"

"You are excused," Gold waved a hoof toward him. "You can resume your research, but I want some results before the latter. I would hate to waste my time sharing my dissatisfaction with other companies in your service."

"Th-that won't be necessary Mr. Gold," the stallion stammered. "We promise we will not disappoint you again." The stallion backed away and then retreated through the door.

When the door closed before the fleeing stallion, Gold sighed and rubbed his temple. He turned his chair opposite from his desk and gazed through a large window that stretched through his entire wall.

The luxurious buildings that lit tracks of light through the night of Baltimare was a mediocre sight for the stallion. A sight commonly seen by other ponies and are owned by a plentiful amount made them plain, lacking any rarity that would make them deserving of his fascination. The only thing worthy beyond his window was the moon floating atop the night sky, showering him with its rays of moonlight.

He was growing irritated by the patience he must endure in acquiring the power of the branch. If he had it now he would've already undone his Princess's spell and gain access to the prize lying upon the moon. He could feel he was getting close; only inches away from reining her into his hooves. But yet again he was pushed away after receiving news of the incompetence of his employees.