Crime drama! · 1:05am Sep 28th, 2017
Sizzling sidewalks made ponies prance with every step and the entire city baked in oppressive heat. The glass, steel, and concrete made for hot, unfriendly surfaces, and the many air conditioners only added to the scorching temperatures that seared the air that everypony had no choice but to fill their lungs with. Even the water fountains—with their pipes buried beneath the streets and sideways—only had hot water to offer thirsty passers-by.
Las Pegasus was a miserable city if you were stuck outside, but it was great for the many casinos. A pony that stayed indoors all day and all night did a lot of gambling. Casinos, theatres, and music halls all had signs that promised ice-cold air conditioning. With the ultra-modern construction, air conditioning was a necessity. The ponies of Las Pegasus no longer built with adobe and compressed straw bales, proven barriers against the soul-searing heat.
This was a city that saw Princess Celestia’s sun as an oppressive tyrant, but the moon was no better due to the crime that was done in its pale, gentle light. This was easily the most corrupt city in Equestria some said, though others would argue and insist that it had to be Manehattan. The rule of the Royal Pony Sisters was not seen as absolute here and many followed the Golden Rule: that is to say, those that had the gold made the rules. Capitalism ruled the city and exclamations for a free, unrestricted market were the battlecries of its chosen champions. Las Pegasus was the place where fortune favoured the wealthy, the house was always rigged, and being poor was the worst possible crime that you could commit.
All in all, Yam Spade prefered Canterlot, which tended to have a cooler climate and better views.
He didn’t know what he was looking for, but moved in relentless pursuit of it anyway, led by some unseen, unknown, unfathomable mystical force that he could not even begin to comprehend. Something was blocking him from Honey Dew, so he had latched on to the idea of finding something that would help him get around that. Yam tended to put a lot of trust into his talent—since when had a cutie mark ever led a pony astray—and he was confident that something would turn up.
Much to his surprise, Yam found himself at a drugstore that resided on the bottom floor of a mixed development building. Wasting no time and not wanting his frogs to flash-fry on the cement sidewalk, he ducked inside to have himself a look around and ask a few questions.
The manager of the drugstore was a prim pink pegasus pony with a pale orange mane and thick glasses that caused her eyes to be magnified to a ridiculous size. A little older, she wore a light cotton corded cardigan to ward off the chill of the air conditioner. This struck Yam as being a little odd, because pegasus ponies did well in the cold.
“I don’t know anypony pony named Honey Dew, but I do know Miss Penny. Nice mare. Likes to help others. Charitable. Soft spoken. She had a knack for gaining the trust of others and everypony liked her.”
“Ma’am, you sound like you were friends,” Yam remarked.
“Not friends, not exactly. More like acquaintances. But we did get to know each other quite well in the past few months. Miss Penny was always coming in to speak to the pharmacist about drugs… side effects and the like. She was a good heart, and she was always looking out for her clients. Must have been real worried about how drugs might affect her youngest clients, because most of her questions were about drug interactions with foals. Such a dedicated therapist.”
“I see.” Yam repeated everything he heard inside of his head a few times until he was certain that most of it would stick in his memory. This was certainly interesting, to say the very least. He thought about the enormous stash of drugs in Tweedy Penny’s apartment and the many missing foals. It could have been coincidence, but it sure was interesting and his talent had brought him here for a reason.
“For about the past month or so, she looked especially frazzled. Overworked. She said that she was about to leave on vacation the last time I saw her. I hope she’s having a nice time. Poor dear was overworked.”
“Ma’am, when was the last time you saw Miss Penny?” Yam asked while he kept his face a neutral, emotionless mask. His unremarkable mug was one of his best assets and according to Azure, his most handsome feature. It also doubled as a comfortable place to sit, if his wife was to be believed.
“Two days ago,” the middle-aged manager mare replied. “She came in here to get some pills for motion sickness. Said she was leaving on vacation and airship travel didn’t agree with her. Poor dear.”
“Did she say where she was going?” Yam looked the old mare in the eye and hoped that luck would favour him.
“No, no she didn’t.” the mare replied. She blinked once, twice, and on the third time, a look of concern crept over her face.
Luck was a dirty, dirty whore and Yam hated her fickle nature. He had been inside long enough with his sweat-soaked shirt that he was now feeling a little cold, and he shivered a bit as evapouration had its way with him. Even worse, Yam could see that the mare knew that something was wrong, and was either polite or to afraid to ask about it. It was time to blow this place, time to make like a banana and split.
I really like the opening of this chapter, but I worry that it is too much exposition. It might be trimmed. I dunno.
