The sun rose slow and steady over the eastern mountains upon the city’s first Saturday in October. A warm, orange-yellow light bathed the skyline. Most residents of Seaddle awoke to their usual routines as they would any other Saturday morning, but those with a nightlife opted to sleep in a little more.
Light invaded Doc’s little studio apartment through the sole window by his bed. The weather outside felt quite crisp through the glass pane, so he wished to use this opportunity to sleep in under the comfort of a heavy cotton blanket. Doc groaned and flipped over to face away from the bright morning light.
‘Mmph, freakin’ sun. It’s too early.’
He curled his hooves together under the blanket. Doc felt at peace with the sun on his back. His only discomfort was the gentle waft of stale breath upon his snout that came from the pony laying in bed with him.
Wait.
Doc opened his eyes. He found himself nose to nose with a familiar red-maned pegasus who wore nothing but a huge, cheeky grin.
“Morning, sunshine,” Jackie whispered in a sultry voice.
Doc jumped up to a sitting position. “Whaa! Why are you here? How are you here? Really, just… what the hell?!”
The pegasus laughed and slid off the bed. “Relax, Doc. I just got here. Didn’t lay a hoof on you, in case you were curious.”
“A small comfort coming from the mare that broke into my home,” he growled. Doc picked up his glasses from the nightstand and donned them. “So… from the top; why are you here?”
Jackie wandered into Doc’s kitchenette in the next room. “After that job we did together at the warehouse, I kept seein’ cops circling the block in my neighborhood. I think they’re looking for me. One of the cops we took down must of recognized my pretty face.”
“That job was four days ago,” Doc stated. “I reckon if they were looking for you, they would of knocked on your door by now.”
The pegasus raided Doc’s fridge. She opened the carton of soymilk and took a gulp from the spout. “You’d think that, but remember—I’m Springboard Jackie, mighty pirate! I could take two of them on at once, so I bet they’re casing my apartment building for a massive raid.”
“Or maybe they’re cops on their usual patrol and you’re being paranoid?” Doc countered. He got up and put on a plain black shirt for warmth.
“I didn’t want to take that chance; I grabbed what I could and flew the coop last night. In a literal sense, I suppose. So then I asked myself, ‘Jackie, who do you know that is a relative nobody in the shadows that you could lay low with for a few days?’” She pulled two slices of bread out of a container and dropped them into the toaster as she relayed her story. “And then I remembered you from our little adventure that one night.”
“Okay, let me stop you right there,” Doc interrupted.
The toaster exploded into sparks. The pegasus jumped back from the counter, wings spread wide apart. Bits of burnt breadcrumbs showered the kitchenette floor. The appliance made a distinctive electrical ‘snort’ and went silent.
“Guess I should’ve stopped you sooner,” he lamented as he hurried over. Doc unplugged the toaster without hesitation. He then flipped the appliance upside down and shook out the remains of the bread. Two surprisingly charred slices fell out onto the countertop. “Alright, so you decided to come here and hide from the cops. Fine. Next question—how’d you find me?”
Jackie slowly folded her wings. She stared at the toaster for several seconds before she answered. “Well, I know a pony or two that lived in the shadows for a while. I asked them for a list of street doctors in the north part of town. Your place happened to be number three on that list.”
“So you got lucky, then?”
The pegasus slouched. “Eh, if you’re gonna make it sound so dull...”
Doc’s commlink rang with Harvey’s image on the caller ID. He picked up the device and answered the call, but kept it facing away from his ‘guest’. “Hello?”
The bartender’s face came up on the video feed. “Hey, Vardo! Sorry if I woke you,” he greeted. He wore a large smile. “I recently reconnected with an old associate of mine, and she has an urgent job that you might be interested in.”
“Vardo?” Jackie asked with a smirk.
Harvey’s eyebrows lifted up. “Who’s that? Do you have company over?”
“No, that’s just—”
Jackie jumped right beside Doc and waved. “Hey there, chummer! Name’s Springboard Jackie, skilled Trotter! I worked with Vardo on a past gig.”
Doc pulled the commlink away. “Company like a bad cold,” he remarked. “Anyway, what’s this about a job?”
Harvey looked amused by Jackie’s presence. He continued, “Do you know about the art dealer, Al Fresco?”
“Can’t say that I do.” Doc replied.
“Not a problem if you don’t. Al was a ‘black market’ kind of dealer; he used to buy and sell stolen artworks until he did some time in Cali. He’s local these days and seems to have gone legit. However...”
Jackie snickered. “Once a pirate, always a pirate. Right, matey?”
“Exactly,” Harvey answered, “And now he’s gone a step farther down the slippery slope—ripping off his clients. My friend recently paid about sixty grand on a painting advertised as the real deal. Turns out it was only a high-quality reproduction.”
Doc needed a moment to process the price tag. “Why would she pay sixty grand for a painting?”
“I dunno, maybe she likes art that isn’t a couple red lines on white canvas,” the bartender replied. He switched the video from himself to an image of the painting in question beside the reproduction. The art piece was an oil painting of a chubby white mare on a swing that hung from a tree branch.
Jackie leaned over Doc’s shoulder to get a close look. “Is this one signed ‘I. C. Wiener’?”
“Pfft,” Doc huffed at the inane comment. He kept focus on his friend’s story. “Well, Harvey, why can’t your friend just go to the police?”
The bartender came back into view. “Cops ask too many questions, especially if they suspect you knowingly bought stolen art. Either way, she’d never see the genuine art piece or her money. However, she is a Johnson.”
That last line made Doc sigh out loud. “I see where this is going. You want me to join a Trotter team that’s going to steal the painting from Al Fresco.”
“Pretty much, yeah.”
“We’ll do it!” Jackie shouted out loud.
“Whaddya mean ‘we’, feather-head?” Doc grumbled at the pegasus. “What if I already decided that the Shadows aren’t my thing?”
The sound of a door chime rang out in the room. Doc swiped Harvey’s video aside on his commlink and opened a second window to see the camera feed to his front door. A tall, thin unicorn mare in a dark gray trench coat and wide-brimmed hat stood there.
Harvey chuckled. “Ah, that must be her. Well, if you aren’t interested, you can let her know and we’ll find someone else for the job. Gotta go, Vardo.”
“No, wait—”
The call ended. Doc ran a hoof through his mane, upset that his morning was out of his control. “Luna damn that stallion. Stay here, Jackie. I’ll go talk to her.”
“Ha! Like skittles I’m gonna just sit here, matey,” Jackie rebuked. “I could use the cash if I gotta relocate.”
In a hustle, Doc lead her down the stairs and through the clinic. He flipped the room’s lights on without a glance at the switch’s location. When he reached the front entrance, Doc paused a second, took in a deep breath, and then he opened the door. Before him stood a well-groomed unicorn; soft light blue coat, lavender mane, polished hooves. The mare smiled and presented herself with a bow.
“Good morning, I’m Mrs. Johnson. Would you happen to be Doctor Wagon?” she asked.
“He is!” Jackie answered. “I’m Springboard Jackie. Heard that you—”
Doc put a hoof over the pegasus’ muzzle and pushed her back inside. He then returned his attention to the unicorn. “Please, come inside,” he offered.
The mare walked in and followed him over to his clinic. Doc offered her the dentist chair, the most comfortable seat in the room. She sat down without a sound and removed her hat. The Johnson then fluffed her mane back a couple times. Jackie sat on the stool and Doc leaned against his examination bed.
“Thank you for hearing me out, doctor,” the Johnson began. “I believe my associate, Mr. Wallbanger, has filled you in on the high-level details?”
“Yeah, he said you need a team to steal a painting that you already paid for,” Doc answered.
The unicorn nodded. “It was my painting to begin with, in fact. Stolen from my galleria nearly two years ago.”
Doc exchanged a curious glance with Jackie. He was moments from politely declining this job offer before he even heard the full story. Sure, Trotters could potentially make a lot money in the shadows, but the risks included getting arrested, crippled, or shot dead. Yet, despite the known danger, Doc could not help but offer this mare a glass of water and another five minute of his time. He filled a small plastic cup with filtered water from the sink and held it out to her.
Jackie remained chatty as ever. “I like jobs where the cops aren’t involved. That’s still a thing, right?”
“Correct, the police were not called because I live a complicated life. The law complicates that further,” the Johnson explained. “The money I paid was akin to ransom, but Al reneged on the deal after I wired him the money. I don’t want justice, I want my painting back.”
“Well, I reckon that’s a fair statement,” Doc agreed, “But I’m not experienced with breaking into places quietly. Jackie here is more a match for your job.”
The Johnson shook her head. “Doctor Wagon, your friend referred you to me because you are a sociable pony. Tell me, do either of you have good etiquette?”
“Only when I’m drunk,” Jackie replied.
Doc rolled his eyes at the pegasus before he answered. “Yeah, I’ve attended a fancy party or two in my college days, mixing with elites. Used to date a… socialite. Why?”
“Those are the skills that I require for tonight,” the Johnson explained. She took her first sip of water. “Interested? I’ll pay you twelve grand to recover my lost artwork.”
He raised an eyebrow at the sum presented. Doc felt conflicted between taking a job that involved grand theft, and taking a job that would pay him several thousand nuyen in cash. He settled into negotiations that he hoped he wouldn’t regret later. “It’s mighty last minute, ma’am, so it’s gonna be a bit costly for me to set up. Sixteen grand,” Doc countered.
The unicorn grinned. “Fourteen, with four grand up front.”
Doc considered the proposal, then added one last condition. “I’ll accept the offer if I get to vet my own team.”
Jackie gave him a wide-eyed glance that he read as ‘Please pick me?’
“But of course, Doctor Wagon. I agree to your terms,” the Johnson said. She pulled out her commlink and sent a request to wire four thousand nuyen to his account.
Doc completed the transfer and shook her hoof. “Thank you. Where do you wish to meet up for the exchange?”
The Johnson stood up and placed the glass of water on the chair. Her horn glowed and a pen levitated out from her vest pocket. It scribbled a series of numbers on the cup. “I’ll swing by your neighborhood later tonight. Message me at this number when you are ready. Oh, and you’ll want to have these.”
Her horn glowed again, and this time a plain manilla envelope pulled itself free from inside her coat. It floated over to Doc. “Good luck, doctor. I am counting on you to deliver.”
Doc grabbed the floating object and then waited until the Johnson left his clinic before he opened the envelope. Inside were two photographs. The first was Al Fresco, the target of the theft job and a portly stallion with a long, swept-back auburn mane. The other pony was Al’s personal assistant, a petite white mare with a short black mane and thin glasses named Penny Inkwell. In addition to the photos, there were two gold-leaf invitations to an art gallery showing at Fresco’s residence tonight at 8pm. Formal attire required.
Jackie let out a cheerful whistle. “We get to dress up fancy and attend a party?! Yes!” She did a little jig right there on the stool.
“Huh… I’m not sure if I should be excited or worried,” Doc stated.
“So who else are you going to bring on? Not too many Trotters I hope. Hate to split the money too many ways.”
“I have Manco’s number, so I’ll give him a call,” he replied. “If your shadowy friends know the local gangs, I’d like you to track down a Nightmare Nighter unicorn named Switchblade.”
“A ganger?” the pegasus questioned. “You planning on trashing the party?”
“On the contrary, she’s a hacker. My gut tells me she’ll work well under pressure, unlike what happened with Ghost.”
Jackie tapped a hoof to her chin. “Alright, but can you give me something more to work with, like a description? Does she have a job?”
“She’s tall, with a gray coat and a spiky purple mane,” Doc answered. “She said she fixed things for the Nighters. Maybe there’s a repair shop somewhere she works out of?”
“Bah, there’s as many shady ganger spots around town as there are coffee shops. This could take a while, but I’ll see what I can find out.”
Doc nods and waves to the door. “Well, you better scoot along, then. We don’t have a lot of time to plan, and you’re gonna need to pick out a dress, too.”
The pegasus let out a pleased laugh and trotted out of the clinic.
Doc called up Manco on his commlink. He thought back to the question of whether he was excited or worried. In truth, both applied; excited to attend a fancy party that would return somepony’s rightful property to them, and worried that the Johnson fabricated her story in order to play on his sense of kindness.
The zebra answered the call and appeared happy to see him. “¡Buenos dias, Doc! What can I do for you?”
“Actually, I got something to offer you. How do you feel about art galleries?”
[]-----[]-----[]
Downtown Seaddle sometimes reminded Doc of his childhood in Manehattan; the streets were lined with tiny shops and food vendors, while hundreds of pedestrians cantered along the dirty sidewalks beneath brightly colored AR advertisements.
The bus braked hard and lurched to a stop. Doc grabbed the seat in front of him and braced himself before his face hit the cushion. He frowned at the pony-looking robot at the front of the vehicle. It greeted boarding passengers with a stiff hoof wave. He disliked self-driving vehicles, and held a particular disdain for this specific automated bus that drove with all the aggressiveness of a Neigh York taxi driver.
The bus drove onward once more and sped through a yellow traffic light. A mare’s voice spoke up from the bus speakers above, “Now approaching the Arcology Commercial & Housing Enclave.” Next to Doc, Manco leaned against the window with wide eyes. The bus approached the city’s largest building; an enormous flat-top pyramid structure set on the shores of Elliott Bay.
Manco picked up his commlink to get a picture. “Madre de Luna, ese edificio es enorme,” he muttered.
Doc elbowed the zebra. “First time seeing the Roanraku Arcology up close, huh? That’s what an over nine-hundred meter tall monster looks like. Can you believe it’s only the eighth or ninth largest building in the world?”
“Only?” Manco replied as he looked at Doc. “It’s big enough to be its own city.”
“Aye, probably was when it first opened,” Jackie interrupted from the bench behind the stallions. She poked her head in between them. “The mall at the base of it is, like, seven city blocks and five floors tall.”
“What else is in there?” the zebra asked.
Doc shrugged. “There’s about two hundred floors of public housing for the poor. Everything above that has been sealed off for years.”
“I bet the military still has all those bodies that died from the shutdown disaster,” Jackie whispered to them. “Using them for sinister cybernetic experiments.”
“I doubt there’s a hidden lab up there,” Doc said as he rolled his eyes.
Jackie pointed an accusing hoof at him. “Hey, would you miss a few dozen homeless bums now and then squatting among thousands in there?”
“I heard of that incident,” Manco said. “That happened on Hearth’s Warming a few years back, yes? All the computers crashed together?”
Doc winced a little. “Well, that’s... really understated, but yeah. A lot of folks died in that.”
The bus pulled into the ACHE’s public transit terminal and slammed on the brakes to a full stop. Half the passengers were thrown out of their seats onto the floor. The squeaky doors opened up and the synthesized mare voice chirped, “Welcome to the Arcology Commercial & Housing Enclave. This bus will depart in five minutes to its next major stop, the Seaddle-Tacoma Airport. Enjoy your day.”
The trio pushed their way out of the bus along with the other passengers. Jackie took to the air as soon as she exited and hovered over the shifting crowds. Other pegasi had the same idea, which made flying around equally as crowded.
Doc’s AR display flooded with dozens of pop-up advertisements; store sale listings, restaurant lunch menus, and ads for employment opportunities. He grunted, then closed the entire batch of unwanted holograms.
“Come on,” Jackie said as she urged her companions to follow, “I know a great soy ice-cream shop here.”
“Oh, eso parece bueno,” Manco chirped with a grin.
“We can’t linger for the sights,” Doc warned them. “We gotta find Switchblade and hire her on, then we need to buy ourselves nice clothes for tonight’s party.”
The pegasus lowered herself to eye-level with Doc. “I could tell you that you’d be missing out on the best ice cream served this side of downtown, but I could also tell ya to go to hell and I’m buying it anyway.”
“Do I get a choice?” Doc asked in a flat tone.
Jackie stuck her tongue out at Doc. She flew in front of the stallions through the crowded station and into the mall. They passed a large, blank steel sign that hung above the entrance. All that remained of the message were faded marks in the paint where letters were attached. The trio entered into massive food court. The open-floor plan gave a clear view of the mall’s first three levels.
Hundreds of ponies sat at the tables to eat. Hundreds more moved around them haphazardly. Nearly every fast food stand and cheap restaurant chain was found here.
“Where do we find this chica?” Manco asked as he looked at the different food stands.
Doc looked up at the second floor. “I think Jackie said there’s a Nighters-run repair shop upstairs?”
“Aye, a friend of mine said it’s the biggest one in downtown, and mostly legit,” the pegasus explained. “There’s only like… a dozens other gang around that cause ‘em trouble. It’ll be fine.”
Manco furled his brow. “Define ‘mostly legit’.”
“Fun and games until we get stabbed,” Doc commented. He headed towards the nearest stairwell and began the climb. Dozens of other ponies pushed their way in both directions. Doc kept an eye on the wallet inside his jacket pocket as he followed the ascending crowd. On the next level he pushed his way out of the crowd.
The shops on the second floor were comprised of small, square booths lined up in rows around the food court. They were individual businesses that dealt in little niche products; blown glass jars, hoof-made soaps, fitted car seat-covers, etc. The affair operated more like a flea market than a proper mall. Doc noticed many of the booths had changed tenants since the last time he came. He stopped in front of a store that sold little fish as pets.
‘Hmm, maybe a Betta would look good in the office.’
Jackie let out an audible gasp. “Yar, there’s the soy ice cream shop down there!” she shouted. Before Doc could protest, she dove off the railing and sailed over to get in line.
Doc looked down at the crowds and let out an annoyed snort. “Need a leash for her, honestly. Think she’ll cause trouble on this job?” he asked Manco.
The zebra looked down. “Creo que no,” he replied.
Several ponies below collided. An older mare fell over and screamed as a teenaged colt grabbed her purse. The two struggled for the item, but witnesses backed away instead of helping the old mare.
“Oh come on!” Doc grumbled. He looked back to the stairs, but the high traffic would make it hard for him to get down in time to help. “Shit, we should do something for her.”
“You have steady hooves, right?” Manco asked him.
“And what does that have to do with anything?”
The zebra trotted over to a trashcan and reached in. A moment later he pulled out a glass beer bottle. Manco jumped up on railing and leaned out precariously.
“Hold me Doc, I don’t want to fall,” he instructed.
Doc grabbed him around the waist. “Okay, we’re doing something crazy.”
“Sí, somos.”
Manco held the bottle up high and then pitched it hard at the teenaged thief below. The bottle flew in a tight arc and shattered against the thief's back. He howled in pain, but let go of the purse as he stumbled away. The crowd seemed to be oblivious to the incident.
Doc helped Manco down off the railing. “That’s some aim you got.” he remarked.
The zebra smirked. “That’s some grip you have.”
“Pfft, sure.”
Jackie returned and landed beside the two stallions. She held a paper bowl full of mint ice cream in her hooves. “Did you see that? Someone was throwing stuff. I think they nailed some kid down there,” she said between licks of her treat.
Doc rolled his eyes. “Yeah, we saw.”
“Mmm, look,” Jackie said with a mouth full of soy ice cream. She pointed with a wing.
A large storefront not far from them stood out from its neighbors with a display of spooky-looking posters of ghosts and pumpkins. Several tables flanked the entrance, all filled with an eclectic, but organized mix of electronic devices. The sign above the entrance read ‘Brix Fix’ in clean, well-lit letters.
“That seems worth a gander,” Doc stated. He walked over to the store and looked around for the employees.
There were two earth ponies behind the counter, and a third who showed several used commlinks to a customer. Doc walked past them, toward the back area. He saw a door that might have led to the back room, so he inched up to it and peeked inside.
A pair of gray forelegs grabbed him from behind in a tight headlock. He flailed to break free, but couldn't get a good grip on his assailant. However, he recognized the wristbands and stopped resisting.
“Hey… Switchblade…” Doc gasped out.
The unicorn let Doc go. He gasped for breath and rubbed his neck. Nearby, both Jackie and Manco stood there with dumbstruck looks on their faces. Jackie had stopped eating her food to watch. Doc waved at them to relax.
“It’s okay,” he said breathless to his teammates. “This is Switch. She’s cool.”
“Never heard anypony in a headlock describe their attacker as ‘cool’,” Manco commented.
Jackie laughed into a wing. “Aye, that was hilarious.” She continued to eat her treat.
Switchblade slapped Doc on the back. “‘Sup, Doc? This your squad?”
“Yeah, sure, we’ll go with that.” He adjusted his glasses. “Switch, this is Springboard Jackie and Manco Correo. Squad, this is Switchblade.”
Jackie waved a wing as she kept eating.
The zebra bowed. “Es un placer conocerte, señorita Blade.”
“What?” Switch asked after hesitating.
“He said it’s a pleasure,” Doc translated. He noticed that Switch’s horn had fresh bandages wrapped around it. Instinctively, he reached up to check the dressing, but she slapped his hoof away.
“It’s a bit sore, no touchy,” Switch warned him. “So, you here to buy something or to bother me?”
Doc leaned a little closer and whispered, “To hire, actually. Do you have someplace private we can talk?”
“Yeah, sure. One sec.” Switch turned to the two ponies behind the counter. “Taking a break, Chisel!” she shouted at them.
“When you coming back?”
“I dunno, I’m not psychic,” she replied.
Switch opened the door to the back room and waved everyone inside. It was a cramped space with shelving along all four walls. Musty cardboard boxes overflowed from the shelves to haphazard stacks on the floor. Doc walked in and found a stool to sit on. Manco and Jackie did the same while Switch closed the door and locked it. She shoved a box off a table. It clattered onto the floor with a metallic sound on the inside. Switch sat down on the table’s edge, close to everyone.
“Alright, this better be worth my break time.”
Doc rubbed his hooves together and leaned forward. “We’re attending a fancy party tonight, and I need somepony skilled with subverting security networks to watch our backs while we swipe something valuable. Interested?”
“Trotter work?” Switch asked.
“Yeah,” Doc confirmed. “Already negotiated payment and got the info on the target. You want in?”
The unicorn crossed her forelegs. “Well, babysitting you lot seems easy, but cracking a good security network takes a lot of effort.”
“How about for two thousand nuyen?” Doc asked.
“You got the money on you?”
He pulled out his commlink and showed her an account with the full amount offered.
“Well, then I guess somepony is gonna get hacked,” Switch said with a grin. She gave Doc a friendly jab in the shoulder. “Alright, Doctor Evil, what’s your plan?”
“First, we go shopping,” he replied. “We’ll all need nice clothes and some new looks. After that, we’ll need to rent a fancy car and get a streetview of the location.”
“You just need me to hit a network, right? Do I need nice clothes for that?” Switch asked. She motioned down at her basic attire; a frayed sleeveless jean jacket, studded wristbands, and a spiked metal collar.
Jackie nodded. “Well yeah, you’d be pretty naked at the party without clothes.”
Switch raised a hoof and cuffed Jackie in the back of her head.
“That’s the least of high society’s concerns,” Doc commented, in reference to the unicorn’s ganger attire. “Switch, you only need a basic dress shirt. We’ll borrow the rest of the outfit later.”
“Okay, I’m a bit lost,” she interrupted. “What exactly are you planning here?”
Doc adjusted his glasses. “We’re smuggling you in as ‘furniture’. I’ve only got two invitations to the party, so to get you and Manco in, you’ll need to pose as part of the service staff. You like hors d'oeuvres?”
“I was about to slap you for the furniture comment up until you mentioned food,” the unicorn said. “Do go on...”
Doc loaded several files on his commlink and showed them to the unicorn. “Alright, we’re infiltrating a fancy party hosted by this stallion—Al Fresco. He stole a painting from our Johnson and we’re getting it back.”
The commlink displayed images of both their unicorn target and the painting to collect. “Switch, here’s his address. I want to know who’s catering so that you and Manco can go undercover as staff from the catering company. Meanwhile, Jackie and I walk in the front door posing as wealthy socialites.”
Switch pulled out her commlink and tapped something on the screen.
The zebra pointed to the painting. “How big is that?”
“The notes that our Johnson left says it’s roughly a meter squared,” Doc replied. “You and Jackie are the best infiltrators among us, so I’ll need you both to first locate it. Once we know where it is, we can plan out how to grab it. Maybe hide it under a serving cart if it’ll fit.”
The pegasus sighed. “Yar, I wanted to be the distraction. Doc, don’t you have some magic tricks to help you stealth about?”
“Mr. Fresco’s security probably includes at least one mage watching the astral space there. If I use magic, I’ll light up like a beacon and attract bad attention. However, I have another idea.” Doc swiped to the next picture, that of a young earth pony mare. “This is Fresco’s assistant, Penny Inkwell. I’m sure she knows where all the collections are kept. I can try to talk it out of her.”
“I found the catering company on the matrix,” Switch said. She turned her commlink to show a site with the information. “They’re called Black Tie Flair. They got pics of the uniform the staff wears, too.”
Manco leaned in. “Tengo una pregunta—what kind of party are we crashing?”
Switch pulled up another site. “He’s showing off some old art stuff he acquired from Everfrost. Heh, love how ponies post all their plans on social media.”
Doc frowned when he heard the word Everfrost. “So it’s a gallery of Viking relics.”
“You been there?” Jackie asked him. “I heard it’s a real pretty country to visit.”
He shook his head. “No, never been. I try to avoid islands where the main cuisine includes fermented shark. Anyway, that’s the framework of my plan. I understand it needs some details hammered out, but I reckon we’re a flexible bunch and can get past any complications down the line. So, what do y’all think?”
“Let's see, make more money in one night than I do all month working this dead end job?” Switch replied. “Yeah, screw this place, let’s go.”
“Your coworkers going to be okay with you bailing on them?” Doc asked.
“Pfft, what, you think this is a legit repair shop?” she countered. “Try finding a serial number on anything we sell here.”
Doc’s ears stood up. He looked at the items in a nearby box and then nodded. “Ah. Fair point.”
[]-----[]-----[]
Doc had not been behind the wheel of a vehicle in about two years. The car he rented was a fancy six-cylinder Cattillac, a vehicle worth more than he ever earned legitimately. He pulled into alleyway with an excess amount of caution because of this fact. A scratched up the rental car won’t impress anyone at the party, and they had to appear to belong.
Manco leaned out of the passenger-side window. “You’re awfully close to the wall on this side, amigo. Why don’t you let the car park itself?”
Okay, so the second-to-last thing Doc wanted to do was to scratch up the rental car. The last thing he wanted to do was to let a computer make all the decisions in a moving vehicle.
“Nah, I need to get a feel for how this thing moves,” he replied without averting his gaze on the alley. Doc’s hooves turned the steering wheel and pulled the BMW away from the wall. “The car ain’t going to break the speed limit on its own, and if we need to leave the party in a hurry…”
“Es verdad,” Manco agreed with an understanding nod. “Did you buy their insurance coverage too?”
Doc snorted. “Of course! Otherwise one bullet hole and we can kiss our paycheck goodbye.”
He parked the BMW beside a broken-down pickup truck. The two stallions got out, removed a large tarp from the trunk, and covered the fancy vehicle. The car blended in well with the other junked vehicles here that were covered in rags and tarps. Manco grabbed a canvas bag from the trunk before he closed it. Doc clicked a button on the car key and the vehicle’s alarm engaged.
Bwoop-Beep.
The two entered Doc’s apartment and went upstairs. At the top, Doc smelled the juicy aroma of warm soy-burgers from the kitchen. Hungry, he walked in to find the source of the food.
Switch sat on the only chair Doc owned. She dyed her mane black and slicked it down to either side. She also had one of Doc’s white towels wrapped around her neck to soak up the excess dye drips. Well, in all fairness Doc didn’t own any black towels.
She slid a bag with the giant ‘S’ Stuffer Shack logo across the countertop toward him. “Here, I bought you two something in case the party is serving fermented shark.”
“¡Gracias!” Doc exclaimed, the stained towel issue forgotten for now. He reached into the bag and pulled out a warm soy-burger.
Manco did the same. “¿Dónde aprendiste espoñol, Doc?”
“I grew up in Manehattan,” he explained. “More ponies speak espoñol there than in Pinto Rico.”
“Hmm,” Manco mumbled. He devoured his burger in four bites. Ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise dripped down the corners of his mouth. He wiped the mess with the back of his hoof.
Doc took a big bite of his burger and savored the flavor. What he enjoyed the most about Suffer Shack’s food were the liberal amounts of condiments they put into it. If the burger didn’t drip all over you by the second bite, it wasn’t done right.
He watched Switchblade concentrate on a cup of fries in her hooves. The mare’s horn flickered slightly with an aura of aquamarine. The same brief aura appeared on several of the fries. They twitched for just a moment... and then nothing.
“Eager to use your horn magic again, I see,” Doc said. “Well, don’t push yourself. It’s still healing.”
“Not fast enough,” Switch growled. “I don’t know how you can stand lifting everything with your hooves alone.”
Manco shoved his snout into the Stuffer bag and pulled out another burger in his mouth. He dropped it onto his hoof. “No, we use our teeth too.”
The unicorn narrowed her eyes at him and put down the cup. She picked up her burger and bit into it. The buns made a toasty crunch between her teeth. The bread looked quite charred around the edges.
“Did you use my toaster to heat your buns?” Doc asked her.
“No,” Switch replied.
The toaster violently popped sparks into the air. Manco and Doc both jumped back in surprise. The angry appliance discharged an electrical buzzing sound as the sparks scattered across the floor.
“Mostly no,” the unicorn added.
Doc stepped forward and unplugged the appliance before it did that again, or worse, started a fire. The sparks dissipated and left just a hint of ozone-flavored toast in the air.
“Where’d you buy that fire hazard?” Manco asked.
“I suspect it wasn’t purchased so much as summoned to this world,” Doc answered. “The toaster was here when I rented this apartment. Can’t make toast, but it’s great when I need to test my smoke detector.”
Jackie walked in from the bedroom. She had colored her mane auburn and done it up in poofy waves. She wore a tight-fitting black cocktail dress, slipons for her rear hooves, and a simple silver necklace. The pegasus leaned against the kitchen doorway and sniffed the air.
“Is it smokin’ in here, or is it just me?” she asked in a sultry voice.
Doc swallowed his food. He admitted to himself that Jackie was definitely the better distraction. “Wow, you look great with your mane up.” He glanced over at Manco to see his reaction. The zebra stared at her with his eyebrows hanging up high on his forehead.
Switchblade got up and slapped both stallions on the back of their heads. “Shouldn’t you two finish eating so that you can get ready?!”
“Right, sorry,” Doc apologized. He stuffed the rest of his burger in his mouth and went for the cup of fries.
Jackie let out a soft laugh. “Thanks for the compliment, but I’d rather have kept my dashing good mane as it was. No stallion alive can resist the red.”
“Sí, and the police won’t hesitate to arrest the red if they recognize you later on the streets,” Manco countered.
“Eh, wouldn’t be the first time.” Jackie dismissed him.
Switch walked over to the counter and picked up her commlink. “Alright mares, you’re all pretty. Anyway, I compiled an app that encrypts audio. We can converse as a team without anyone eavesdropping on our conversations.” She sent an upload request to everyone’s commlink.
Doc downloaded the app and started it up. The barebones program had a simple interface—volume controls for microphone and speakers, a mute button, and a list of everyone connected together by the software. “Testing, testing,” Doc said into his device. His heard his voice on everyone’s commlink.
“Yeah, it’s working,” Jackie confirmed.
“Nice idea. You got a name for it?” Doc asked Switch.
“I dunno,” she replied with a shrug. “Call it whatever you want.”
“How about Team Chat?” Jackie offered.
Manco nodded. “Me gusto. Easy to remember and use in conversation without sounding strange.”
Doc put his commlink down and walked into the bedroom. He felt Jackie’s wing tickle the back of his ear as he passed her. He shivered, which elicited a chuckle from the pegasus.
The zebra sat down on the floor and opened his canvas bag. He pulled out several small devices and passed them around. “I have earpieces and hidden microphones for all of us. This way we can talk to each other and keep our hooves free.”
“Nice gear,” Switch complimented. She looked over one of the tiny microphones before she clipped it to the towel around her neck. “Where’d you get these?”
“Things I have laying around my apartment,” Manco replied. “I also brought guns and a few grenades—”
“No grenades!” Doc warned from the bedroom. “We’re infiltrating a mansion, not occupying it.”
Jackie snickered. “Technically we’d be occupying the premises once we’re inside.”
“Shut up,” Doc growled. He grabbed a towel from his closet and walked into the little bathroom for a quick shower. The splatter of auburn dye in the sink and several orange feathers on the floor annoyed his sense of cleanliness.
He wiped up some of the mess with toilet paper and tossed it into the trash can, the one clean thing in the bathroom. Someone knocked on the bathroom door, even though it was still open. Doc looked up and saw Switch there.
“Hey, I found some info on Fresco’s property,” the unicorn spoke up. “He’s got a commercial fire alarm installed. I could disable the alarm’s ability to call the fire department and then we could set it off to clear the building. ...If you want to use a false alarm as a big distraction, that is.”
Doc scrunched his nose. “My worry about setting off a false fire alarm is that with this group it’s not going to be a false fire alarm. Still, it’s not a bad idea. We could save it as a backup plan.” He tried not to sound dismissive. “I just want ‘Plan A’ to be subtle. The best way to get that painting out of Al Fresco’s hooves is by him not knowing about it.”
“Well that’s my plan too!” Manco shouted from the kitchen, “Only with more gun play and explosives.”
Doc closed his eyes let out a sigh. “Manco…”
Switch patted him on the head. “He’s messing with you,” she assured him, “But only I get to do that, so you want me to punch his lights out?”
He looked up at her with a confused frown. “No, why would I?” He saw Switch break into a giggle beneath her failing facade of seriousness. Doc rolled his eyes and closed the door. These ponies were going to drive him crazy! Are they going to follow the plan? Are they going to end up shooting someone? Did Jackie use up all the hot water?
He undressed and climbed into the bathtub. “Just concentrate on the job, Doc,” he told himself. “They’ll pull through when we’re actually on the clock.” He took a deep, calming breath and turned on the showerhead.
To that earlier third question—Yep.
[]-----[]-----[]
The city lights glowed like a raging fire at night. Doc sat in the driver’s seat and stared at the car’s computer. It drove itself using the city’s Grid Guide system to navigate, but despite it’s high safety rating, Doc remained nervous. The road-implanted sensors that fed the car directions did on occasion fail, which would have meant the car’s computer would have had to think for itself. He distrusted computers that thought for themselves.
Jackie sat to his right. She applied eyeliner using the rearview mirror. She offered Doc the brush once she finished.
“No thanks,” he said.
The pegasus shrugged and looked behind her seat. “Manco, Switch, either of you need some touchups?”
The zebra tried to comb his mane, but the black dye had made it clump together. He shook his head at Jackie and continued to fix his hair.
Switch covered her horn’s bandages with a black ribbon. She then looked for a mirror, but didn’t find one in the back. She leaned forward. “Just put a little on the top for me.”
Doc glanced at his mane with the car’s left side-view mirror. The chocolate brown dye suited him. He flicked a few loose strands with a hoof. The tux that he bought felt a bit tight around the waist, but he blamed years of beer and cookies for that problem.
Once finished with the makeup, Switch turned to Doc. “So why did you ask me to join your team? We only met that one time on the streets.”
“I don’t know any other hackers,” Doc answered without hesitation. “Well, there was one on colt from the job I did with Jackie and Manco, but he abandoned us after accidently alerting the cops. You seem professional enough not to screw up and bolt.”
“Lot of assumptions there, Doc,” Switchblade warned with a grin, “But no, I wouldn’t toss you all under the bus and run. If a Nightmare Nighter did that to a fellow gang member, they’d get shot for it.”
“Interesante,” Manco commented. “Does your gang have a code with non-gangers?”
“Yeah, don’t talk about the gang code with them.”
The zebra sat back. “Ah.”
“We will arrive at your destination in five minutes.”
The car’s voice sounded a bit too cheerful when it spoke. Doc looked back at his teammates. “Alright, we’re almost there. Switch, Manco, counting on you two to sneak around behind them like we planned. Jackie… follow my lead. And please be gentle?”
The pegasus smirked, but said nothing.
Doc took control of the car from the computer and pulled over to the side of the road. They were several miles from their destination, but the area here already looked like luxury high-living. No home anywhere around stood shorter than two stories or lacked a covered pool. Best of all, lots of tall bushes and trees to hinder anyone noticing what they were about to do.
Everyone got out of the vehicle. Manco and Switch trotted up a grassy hill toward the well-manicured bushes. Meanwhile, Doc popped the hood and lifted it up. He stared at the engine for several seconds.
“So…” Jackie trailed. “We just sit around and wait?”
“Yup. This is the easy part of the plan.”
Several minutes later, a catering truck approached on the road behind them. Doc flagged the driver down and approached the vehicle’s driver side. He saw two mares in the front seats, but couldn’t tell if anyone occupied the back. He attempted to look relieved from worry.
“Excuse me, I hope that you could help us,” Doc explained to the driver. “Our car broke down, and we’re late to our soiree. Would either of you fine ladies be able to assist us?”
The two mares in the truck glanced at each other. The driver checked her watch before she replied. “Sorry, but neither of us know anything about engines. I could call a tow truck for ya, but that’d be about all we could do.”
Doc tried to think of a plan to stall. “Perhaps if we tried to jump start it? Could be the battery.”
“Well, we don’t have any cables for that,” the passenger stated.
“Not a problem, I have a set in the trunk,” Doc offered.
“Sorry, chummer,” the driver stated, “But we’re on a tight schedule. I’ll call a tow truck, but we gotta go.”
Jackie sauntered up to the passenger side. She threw the two mares a flirty glance. “Are you two sweet things sure you couldn’t just pull up and give us a little... spark?” The pegasus flapped a wing once to accent her question.
The passenger mare opened her door and got out. “Well, guess I can’t say no to a pretty face,” she said.
Doc watched Jackie put a wing over the mare’s back as she walked her to their car. He mentally praised the pegasus for her ploy, but felt embarrassed that he couldn’t charm the mares himself.
The delivery truck engine stalled out without warning. The befuddled driver looked down at the console of lights behind the steering wheel. Three gunshots struck the driver in the head. She collapsed against the wheel like a sack of potatoes.
Hoooooooooooonk!
Jackie spun around and in one solid hit with her wing knocked the other mare with her to the ground. She followed up with a downward hoof-thrust to the forehead and clocked her out cold.
Doc threw the driver door open and pulled the mare away from the wheel. The horn abruptly stopped. He checked her head and found three red welts against her temple; impacts from nonlethal gel rounds.
Up on the hill, Manco stood up and waved a small pistol. He and Switchblade trotted down to the delivery truck’s back door. Doc grabbed the truck’s keys and followed them.
“Let’s see if we got any more passengers,” Switch said.
Doc threw her the keys and took a step back. He focused magical energy in his left forehoof while she unlocked the door. Switch yanked them them open and jumped back. There were no other passengers inside.
With a sigh of relief, Doc let the partial spell dissipate harmlessly. “Good work stalling the engine remotely,” he complimented.
“Feh, told you it was easy,” Switch boasted. “The Bit Jockeys who program these vehicles can’t patch security loopholes for shit.”
Her eyes widened as she got a closer look at the contents in the truck. The unicorn hopped inside and picked up a small container. “Shiny! They got real chocolate in here!”
Jackie and Manco collected the unconscious caterers. Doc helped them undress the uniform vests and load the bodies into the back of the truck. Meanwhile, Switch helped herself to a couple eclairs.
“Forget the nuyen, pay me in these!” the unicorn exclaimed before she shoved one into her mouth.
Manco tossed Switch one of the vests. “Put this on, horn-head. You can stuff your pretty face later at the party.”
Switch snorted at the zebra and shoved the rest of the second eclair into her mouth. She slipped on the vest and pulled the ends together… but wasn’t able to button it due to her size.
“Here, suck it in,” Jackie said as she attempted to help get the vest buttoned.
“I am sucking it in!” Switch complained. “Manco, give me the bigger vest.”
“You have the bigger vest,” he replied.
Doc cleared his throat to interrupt the bubbling argument. “Here, use my collar expander.” He loosened his tie and removed a small looped button that widened his collar. Doc placed the expander around the top button of Switch’s vest and buttoned it together. The whole thing looked tight, but it held.
“There, it looks fine now,” Doc said.
Switch growled. “Not a word from anyone about my weight or I will kick in your teeth! Hmmph. Come on, let’s just go.” She slammed the back door shut.
“Creo que voy a conducir,” Manco whispered as he walked to the driver’s seat up front with the keys.
Doc walked back to the car with Jackie. As he closed the hood, the pegasus let out a giggle.
“What?” Doc asked, curious to know why she laughed.
“Nah, just amused by what you did back there,” Jackie responded. “I think you insulted Switch’s weight by putting a collar extender around her waist.”
It took him a moment to understand what she meant. “Oh… drek, I was only trying to help.”
“Don’t worry about it,” she assured him as they got into the car. “She’ll get over it after a couple more pastries. Come on, let’s ride to this party.”
Doc nodded and drove the car himself toward their destination.
[]-----[]-----[]
A pair of large, swaying spotlights lit up the beautiful three-floor mansion. Several crowds mingled on the manicured lawn and watched the passing cars to see who arrived. Doc drove the rental between the squared hedge sculptures at the front entrance, while Manco drove the truck around the back where other catering trucks were unloaded.
The rental came to a soft stop and a valet attendant opened the door for Jackie. Doc got out and looked around. The place threw the word Fancy around liberally. He saw several servers with trays of hors d'oeuvres he didn’t recognize. One mare held up a tray with wine served in wide glasses.
Doc threw the young valet the keys. “Be gentle on the brakes,” he advised.
The attendant drove the car away and Doc took a ticket from the other valet present. Jackie waited for him to take hold of her wing. He stood confused at first, being a wingless earth pony, but he caught on and hooked a foreleg around it.
“Seems awkward this way,” Doc commented as he led her to the front door, “You know, since I’m not a pegasus.”
“We all can’t be perfect,” Jackie teased him.
At the entrance, Doc gave the doorpony two invitations with their falsified names, Mr. and Mrs. Fletcher. The dye job that covered up his cutie mark looked something like a bow, so he came up with the surname off that. Jackie’s replacement mark, on the other hoof, looked vaguely like a shaggy wolf. Or a dirty throw pillow. Well, no one on the team had art skills.
They were ushered in with a nod. Doc looked around the large, spacious room and for a moment felt a sense of vertigo. The giant chandelier that hung from the vaulted ceiling sparkled under the many soft yellow-white lights that hung between its crystal ornaments and from the walls. The AR on his glasses lit up with a map that detailed where events went on and what areas were off limits.
“Switch, Manco, we’re in,” Doc whispered to a hidden mic in his collar. “Where are you?”
“Manco’s unloading the truck for other caterers so they don’t find the bodies,” Switch replied over the team’s private voice chat. She sounded clear through the earpiece. “I’m cracking the network right now.”
“Good. We’re moving from the main hall toward the ballroom,” Doc described as he led Jackie onward. “The art gallery is adjacent to that, and I see… one guard at each of those two rooms.”
Jackie tugged at Doc’s leg with her wing. “Hey, I think I see that assistant Penny talking to mare in a coat-tail suit by the kitchen entrance. She looks important.”
“Hmm, she might be the house butler,” Doc theorized. “What’s a mare butler called? A butless?”
Jackie turned and stared at Doc with a raised eyebrow. The voice chat also went silent.
“I’ll pay you all fifty nuyen if you ignore that,” Doc quickly whispered.
“Done and forgotten!” Manco exclaimed over the chat. “I finished unloading the food. I’ll be coming around with drink service in un minuto.”
“Okay, keep us apprised,” Doc replied. He noticed that Jackie stared at a crowd by the ballroom’s wet bar. He assumed they were all gossiping there. “If you want to mingle, go ahead. Just try not to make a big deal of it.”
“I am a big deal,” Jackie countered with a smirk. She trotted off to the crowd with a big smile.
Doc walked over to the gallery and stood in front of a large showcase of several small metalworks. The thick glass protecting the exhibit looked like it would resist several shots from a moderate-sized handgun, and the whole thing probably weighed enough to prevent nicking the entire display. Secured in the case were four old works of copper-gilt art, forged by long-dead Norse smiths. The popup AR window on Doc’s glasses listed what each of the fours objects were called and where they were unearthed. Two of them were from the small island of Everfrost.
“That collection is worth millions,” a deep voice next to him stated.
Doc turned and saw a rotund red earth pony beside him. He appeared middle-aged with a thinning mane. Doc nodded at his assessment. “I’m surprised that Everfrost would even allow their culture to have a price tag.”
“The government doesn’t,” the stallion agreed, “But they cannot keep track every work that exchanges hooves these days. They’re more interested in tourism revenue, so on occasion such masterpieces… mmm, shall we say, slip through the lax regulations at customs. The name’s Rosario, by the way. Appraiser by trade.” He held out a hoof with his introduction.
“Fletcher, sporting goods,” Doc replied. “I’m somewhat familiar with the ancient works of Everfrost. Was there some months ago on business, but I always make the time to see a culture’s art. I think it helps to know the roots of your customers.”
Rosario grinned. “Yes, that is sound strategy. Quite relevant in Everfrost; Unicorn supremacism is still quite strong there from what I hear.”
“Oh, I have some personal familiarity of such.”
The rotund stallion turned his head to look toward the ballroom for a moment. He then leaned in closer to whisper, “Well if that’s the case, I should warn you that I have seen Joar Ragnahild earlier at this party. I assume you’ve at least heard of him?”
Doc’s hooves went cold. “Sir Joar Ragnahild? The crime boss of Everfrost?”
“Well, a mine boss publically,” Rosario said. “I wouldn’t go throwing such rumors around lightly when the richest stallion in the aluminum industry is attending the same party I am.”
Doc covered his mouth, shocked at his faux pas. He brushed down his coat and tried to recover from this news. His heart beated hard in his chest. “Of course, yes. I shouldn’t believe things I read on the less reputable matrix sites,” he said to wave off the concern. “Well, it would still be an honor to meet him, but perhaps later... I still need to pay thanks to Mr. Fresco for this lovely soiree.”
Manco walked up to Doc with a saddle-tray of champagnes and wines on his back. “Would either of you gentlecolts care for refreshments?”
“Dear Luna yes,” Doc whispered as he snatched a champagne flute. “If you’ll excuse me, Mr. Rosario.”
“Of course,” he replied after he plucked a glass of wine for himself. “I will hope to talk more about Everfrost culture later. It is a fascinating subject.”
Doc nodded. “Yes, of course! It is a beautiful island, ha ha...” He trailed off with a stiff laugh. He then walked away from the conversation and gulped the champagne down. Doc let off a cough as the alcohol burned his throat. Huh, this wasn’t the cheap stuff.
Manco caught up with him and trotted alongside. “Hey amigo, everything alright?” he asked.
“At the moment, yeah,” Doc lied. “Everything’s shiny so long as I don’t bump into the one chance meeting that’ll tank this job.”
“How so?” the zebra asked.
Switchblade spoke into their earpieces, “Doc apparently knows a unicorn named Sir Joar Ragnahild. Owns Everfrost’s entire aluminum mining operation, making him the island’s most powerful stallion.”
“Sir?” Manco questioned.
“Knighted by the Queen of Great Breton herself,” Switch answered. “He’s also got six children. Probably because Everfrost looks like a boring place to live...”
Doc frowned. “You were listening in on my conversation?”
“Uh, yeah. It’s what you’re paying me for, isn’t it?” Switch questioned him. A faint chewing sound followed.
“Fair point.” Doc shrugged.
Manco stopped walking and allowed a pair of mares to grab champagne from his tray. “¿Ragnahild está aquí? Is he here?” the zebra asked the team after the mares walked away.
“He’s not on the guest list,” Switch answered, “Unless he’s using another name.”
“He’s got powerful enemies, so I reckon that’s the case,” Doc affirmed, “But why would he be all the way out here in Seaddle?”
Switch hummed out loud for a moment. “I’ll watch the security cameras. If I see him, I’ll let you know where so that you don’t bump into him. Until then, how about you all make like mice and sniff out that cheese we’re after?”
“Thought it was a painting?” the zebra asked with a grin.
“Manco…” Switch warned.
Doc cleared his throat to get their attention. “Alright, let’s get to work. Jackie, you following this conversation?”
No answer.
“Switch, if you can get Jackie’s attention with a loud sound into her earpiece, do it and tell her to search around the galleries,” Doc instructed. “Manco, you and I will start on the second floor. Everyone should have the image of the painting on their commlinks. Call once you spot it and don’t blow your cover!”
Doc headed for the stairs. In the distance, he faintly heard Jackie cry out ‘Oww! What?!’ He couldn’t stop the smirk that appeared on his lips.
The AR display on Doc’s glasses lit up with a miniature map of the second floor once he ascended the stairs. A large ballroom space had been dedicated to gambling, but the rest of the floor remained off limits. Guests lined up at several tables to play Blackjack, Poker, and Roulette. They tracked their earnings and losses not with poker chips, but through commlinks and holographic AR displays.
Doc walked along the tables, curious to see the games played. A mare with a green mane gave him a dirty look, but Doc ignored it. One of the Blackjack dealers waved at him to take an empty seat at his table, but Doc shook his head and continued on.
The ballroom and adjacent hallways were sparse when it came to works of art. A few tiny paintings decorated the area, but Doc didn’t see any empty hooks or floor stands that might have suggested that more art had been packed away for the party.
Doc also didn’t see the pegasus mare that tried to cross his path with a tray of Tuna Pâté. They collided, and the two ponies both grabbed the tray together, losing only half the contents to gravity.
“I’m terribly sorry, sir!” the mare apologized. She brushed off the tuna from her skirt and then sat down to pick up the mess on the floor.
“No, no, was all my fault,” Doc countered. He helped her clean up the dropped snacks off the floor. “I was musing to myself that Mr. Fresco’s walls were rather bare of his art collections up here.”
“Oh, that’s the way he prefers it. He’s a private stallion; keeps most of it upstairs.”
Doc gave the mare a warm smile. “Well, I reckon he doesn’t need to show off works of art when he’s got a lovely staff working for him.”
The mare’s wing dealt a playful slap on his shoulder. “Bah, I’ve heard that one a dozen times tonight alone,” she said. The mare turned around and walked away, but after a few steps, she glanced back at him.
Doc followed her out into the hallway and to the far end where the servants collected the trash. He watched the mare dump the ruined food. Once she finished, she turned and raised an eyebrow at him.
“Name’s Fletcher,” Doc introduced with an outstretched hoof. “Again, sorry for making a mess of your fine Pâté. I’d buy you a drink, but that would probably be more work for you.”
The pegasus snorted, but face wore a fine smile. She walked over to him and stood nose to nose. “I’m Twistee Treat. You’re not one of Mr. Fresco’s regular guests. You have a sense of humor.”
Doc felt her left wing scratch him behind the neck. He raised an eyebrow. “I’m from the east coast scene; Bolton, Phillydelphia, Jennet City. I can tell you all about it later if you got a break coming up.”
“Well,” Twistee began to say, “Give me a couple minutes to freshen up, and maybe I’ll be curious to learn what an east coast stallion is doing out here in Seaddle.” She turned and walked away. Her tail flicked in Doc’s face.
Manco walked up alongside him, his serving tray empty. “Who were you flirting with?”
“One of the servants, I reckon,” Doc answered. “She let slip that most of the art is up on the third floor. I’m going to see if I can get any more details out of her.”
“Ten cuidado,” Manco warned. “She might be expecting you to make a bad move on her. Don’t give her a reason to shoot you in the face.”
“Wasn’t on my list of things to do tonight.” He glanced back in the direction Twistie walked off to. “You think she’s got a gun? Must be a tiny one.”
The zebra nodded. “Yeah, probably between her legs.”
Doc narrowed his eyes at him. “You… you’re kidding right?”
“No, serious. You’d be surprised how easily a mare can sneak a gun under a dress.”
“You know, I’m just gonna take your word for it before the topic gets weird. Now go find a way up to the third floor.” Doc started walking away, but he stopped and turned back to him. “And Tell Jackie, too. Need you both searching.”
Doc continued down the hall to find Twistee Treat. The AR map didn’t show any restrooms in this direction; There were rooms to either side with just a sparse collection of furniture in them. He stopped to contact Switchblade.
“Hey, Switch? Looking for a mare here.”
Something grabbed the commlink in his pocket. Doc reached down to stop this robbery, but his attacker shoved him into one of the rooms. Doc tripped and tumbled to the floor. The door shut behind him with the assailant in the room. He looked up and saw the green-maned mare.
She turned off Doc’s commlink and approached him. “Vardo Wagon?” she asked.
Doc heard a thick Scandineighvian accent in her voice. He stood up and answered her. “Fletcher, actually. Is this a robby, or does the service around here take after Stuffer Shack?”
She pulled out her own commlink. Doc watched her swipe through several images. She then held the screen up to him. Doc saw a picture of himself from four years back. Beside him stood a unicorn, a mare with a long pink mane and an eggshell coat. He frowned, confused as to where she got this photo. Was she a stalker? A cream-colored stalker with a long green mane that showed slight pink roots…
‘Oh.’
“Your dad’s here,” Doc said in a dry voice. “I didn’t expect he’d bring you along.”
“I know, and he did not bring me. I ran away from home.”
Doc scratched his head. “Okay, then I’m confused, Freya. Why would you want to be at the same party as your father?”
“Fresco stole priceless artifacts from Everfrost, Vardo. I think my father helped him steal them,” she replied with a scowl, “And do not use my real name! I am Mirror Armor here.”
“But you used my… wait, are you a Trotter?”
Mirror tossed Doc’s commlink back to him. “Trotter? I am spying on my father. Is that the same thing in Equestria?”
“Well, there’s more to it,” he answered. He turned his commlink back on. “Trotters are mercenaries hired from one corporation to spy and steal assets from another. I’m one, and I go by Doc now.”
A heavy pause lingered in the air. Mirror then let out a laugh. “You? No, you always followed the rules. Why would you want to be a mercenary?”
“Eh, it pays pretty well,” he said.
The door unlocked and flew open. Manco stepped inside in one stride, pulled a gun on Mirror, and closed the door with very little sound made. He kept his gun pointed at Mirror’s chest. The mare froze in place; her ears and lion-like tail stood up in fear.
“And I’ve made some friends,” Doc added.
The zebra studied the mare. “¿Amigo o enemigo?” he asked.
Doc held up a hoof. “Friend, actually.”
“Hmph!” Mirror protested. “Was more than that last time we talked.”
Manco lowered his gun. “Oh? So were you two… ah! I bet you’re the mare Doc talked about at the park. I’m Manco Correo, friend of Doc here. You are much prettier than I imagined.” He turned toward Doc. “Aren’t you the lucky diamond dog?”
“He is also an idiot,” Mirror said in a deep growl. “Left me without so much as a goodbye.”
“I had two broken legs because of your father!” Doc protested. “I left because I was fond of the remaining two.”
“You could have called!” she countered.
“Yeah, like your dad wouldn’t screen your calls?”
Manco stepped in between the two ponies. “Mirror, I know Doc is pretty pony, but we have a job to do. Would you like his number? You two can catch up on old times after we’re done and paid.”
Switchblade’s voice spoke up in Doc’s earpiece. “Well this argument is interesting and completely stupid. Alright colts, Jackie confirmed a big collection of paintings stored up on the third floor. If we’re ready to be grown adults again, take the stairs at the end of the main hallway on your right. I’m going to loop empty hallway footage on the cameras as a cover for you two.”
“Right, we’re on our way,” Doc said. “Let’s go, Manco.”
The zebra nodded. Doc walked three steps to the door, but Mirror grabbed his sleeve with her ponykinesis. He pulled his leg free and looked back at her.
“Vard—I mean, Doc. Please take me with you,” Mirror requested. “I will help you on this job if you help me get proof that Fresco stole that Everfrost art.”
The offer surprised Doc. “You’re willing to work with me on this job, even though we left on rocky terms like… three years ago?”
“Yes. You know I can be helpful,” Mirror replied. “You get paid, I get proof. Deal or no?”
Manco addressed Mirror. “One question, señorita, what can you do to help us?”
“I am a good spellcaster,” she answered. “I know how to fight with spells and summon spirits; many different things with magic.”
Switch snorted over the call. “She’s not getting a share of our pay, right?”
“Your eclairs are safe,” Doc assured her with a straight face. He nods to Mirror. “Alright, you have yourself a deal. Come with us to the third floor. I’ll show you what we’re after when we get there.”
The zebra leaned over to Doc. “You sure about this?”
He shrugged. “Well, she knows her magic, better than I. She might know a trick more useful than Plan Z.”
“What’s Plan Z?” Manco asked.
“You streaking naked across the gambling tables as a distraction.”
Doc opened the door and pointed out the path to the stairs that Switchblade mentioned. He watched Mirror dart into alcoves as she moved along the hall, hidden from the gambling rooms. Doc followed in a similar manner. He walked with silent steps and utilized the shadows to make himself harder to spot. He stopped for Manco to catch up only once.
The three arrived at the end of the hall. Around the corner a small stairwell led up to the third floor. Doc ascended the stairs first. He looked up to check for security cameras, but the path seemed clear. Halfway up the stairs, Mirror stopped.
“I have an idea,” she whispered. “I could summon a watcher spirit to alert us if someone comes up these stairs.”
Doc shook his head. “No, bad idea. Any security mage on sight would easily see it with astral sight.”
“What’s a watcher spirit?” Manco asked.
“It’s a… fairly harmless magical being,” Doc attempted to explain. He wasn’t versed in summoning spirits, so words failed to form on his tongue.
Mirror interrupted. “Watcher spirits are summoned creatures from astral space. They are small and weak, but suited for simple tasks like scouting and delivering messages.”
The zebra tilted his head to the left. “Ah, okay. We call them something different in my language.”
Doc cleared his throat. “Magic lessons can wait. Come on.”
He lead the other two up the remaining stairs. The lights from the hallway chandeliers were dim up here. Doors lined both sides of the hallway, and interspersed between them were large paintings that depicted maybe exotic locales around the world. Security cameras were present; motionless and unblinking.
“Switch, which room is Jackie at?” Doc whispered into his mic.
“Uh, from the stairs go down the hall to the... fourth room.. the...”
“The? The what?” Doc asked. There was no answer. “Switch, still with us?”
Manco touched a hoof to his temple. “I hear nothing from her end.”
Mirror glanced back at the stairs and let out a sigh. “Should we go back?”
“Frag it all,” Doc grumbled. “We press on. Let’s be quick about searching the room. Switch might of been noticed by security and hid somewhere.”
Doc trotted his way down the hallway to the fourth door on either side. He tried the doorknob on the left. It opened up to a huge and lavish bedroom. A king-sized four-post bed sat in the middle of the room, with a small hot tub and bathroom to the right, and a closet on the left that dwarfed Doc’s apartment. The walls were decorated in paintings of nude mares laid on various beds, posed in saucy, compromised positions.
“Too bad we can’t steal that bed,” Doc remarked. “The mattress alone would cover half my apartment floor.”
Manco smirked. “What do you want to cover the walls with?”
Mirror slapped Manco on the shoulder. “Drool later. We have things to find.”
The door opposite the bedroom opened. The three startled ponies jumped into the bedroom. Jackie poked her head out from the opposite doorway. She looked around and then stepped out.
“Hey, you three aren’t as quiet as you should be,” Jackie stated with a frown upon her face. She stared at Mirror for several seconds. “Alright, who’s the pretty lass?”
“Her name is Mirror Armor,” Doc answered. “Did you find the painting yet?”
Jackie pushed the door open further. “Not yet, but come inside. There’s a bunch of paintings stored in here.”
Doc motioned for Mirror and Manco to go first and he followed. They walked into an unfurnished bedroom. Heavy red drapes covered the windows, while the floor was only half covered in new wood paneling. To one side stood a half-bath with sealed cans of paint stacked on the floor. Opposite that in the room were two dozen cardboard boxes in haphazard stacks. Three were open.
“A lot of rooms in this place are empty,” Jackie stated. “Must have been one heck of a yard sale.”
Manco stroked his chin. “I smell a front for smuggling art.”
Doc looked inside one box and saw paintings of various sizes and subject matter, each wrapped in bubble wrap. He flipped through the packaged collection for his mark. “Well, one way to find out. Everyone grab a box and get to it.”
The team opened boxes and perused the paintings inside.
Jackie tapped the shipping label on one of the boxes. “These are all going to the same address overseas to Neighpon. Rather eclectic collection to ship there, don’t you think? There’s no theme to any of these boxes.”
Mirror squeaked. She pulled out an old painting that depicted a longboat with several figures standing in it. The unicorn turned the painting around and then took pictures of a placard affixed to the back.
“Whatcha got there?” Doc asked her.
“This tag is from a museum in Everfrost,” she explained. “They put it on all their collections to identify them.” Mirror put the painting back and continued looking.
Manco shook his head. “So, señior Fresco forgot to take the tag off that one after purchase?”
“Our museums are state run,” Mirror said. “We do not sell things to anyone.”
“It’s a joke,” the zebra defended. “I’m sure whatever shady character sold him a stolen painting didn’t bother to take their time removing labels.”
Mirror furled her eyebrows. She pulled out another stolen painting and took a picture of the tag on the back.
Jackie pulled out a large painting from one of the boxes. It had a chubby, white mare on a swing depicted as its subject. She held it up for everyone to see. “Yar, this is it, right?”
Manco catcalled the painting. “Hola, señorita.”
Doc smiled. “Yeah, that’s the one. Surprised Al didn’t put that one in the bedroom.”
“Maybe if she was licking a banana,” Mirror said with a frown.
Hoof steps were heard from the hallway. Doc peeked out and saw Penny Inkwell. Two earth ponies in black suits accompanied her. Their eyes met and everyone paused. The two ponies in suits galloped toward the room. Doc jumped back inside and slammed the door shut.
“Okay, slight problem,” he said as he locked the door. “We’re about to get beaten up by security.”
“How bad?” Jackie asked.
The door burst inward and slammed Doc to the floor. He slid several feet across the wooden surface. “About that much,” he wheezed out.
Manco pulled out his pistol and fired two gel rounds into the first suit that stepped in the room. His target staggered to one knee, but the other suit pulled out his own gun and fired back twice. Manco jumped jumped to the side, but caught the second bullet in the shoulder. He winced, teeth bared.
“Hold this!” Jackie tossed Doc the painting before he got up. She dashed forward and swung her wing upward at the suit’s gun. The weapon popped out of his hooves and skittered away on the floor. She then followed up with a solid jab to his face.
Penny reached the room and growled. “I’ve already called the police! Give yourself up and come quietly!” she demanded.
Mirror made several gestures with her forehooves. A stream of water sprung forth from the floorboards and formed a snake-like shape. The watery serpent’s body glistened despite the sparse lighting in the room. It nodded to Mirror.
“Engulf the mare!” Mirror commanded.
The creature whipped it’s body forth and wrapped around Penny. She fell over onto her side; water splashed around her as she struggled to hold her breath inside the creature.
Doc got up with the painting and galloped over to the nearest window. He yanked one of the drapes off and lifted the window pane up. “Jackie, time to go!”
Manco shot the suit that stood over Jackie. The stallion staggered back and took cover in the hallway. Jackie leaped into the air and flew over Doc’s head. She grabbed the painting and then pulled her wings tight against herself as she dove out the window.
The other suit crawled over to the dropped pistol. He picked it up and fired. Doc took the bullet in the chest. He mentally thanked Manco for the bullet-resistant vest under his clothes, but then cursed the sharp pain in his chest from the real bullet that struck him. The suits were not using gel rounds!
The zebra fired again and struck the armed suit in the ribs. He dropped to the floor and curled up. The other suit retreated toward the stairs.
Mirror dashed to the doorway and commanded the water serpent. “Stop him!”
The serpent released Penny and slithered at an incredible speed. It whipped its body at the retreating stallion’s back. He tumbled and slammed his head against the floor. The suit stopped moving and the serpent evaporated in a puff of steam.
Manco pointed his pistol to Penny. She remained on the floor and coughed up water.
“¿Y ella?” he asked Doc.
“Knock her out already,” Doc replied with a stern voice. “We gotta go.”
The zebra took the butt of his pistol and struck Penny hard in the head. She cried out with a short yelp and passed out.
Mirror galloped over to Doc. “You okay?”
“Just fine,” he assured her. “Out the window, we’re skedaddling.”
She made another gesture with her forehooves and then hopped out of the window. Mirror’s spell slowed her descent as she fell. The unicorn still hit the ground hard enough to tumble onto her side. Several witnesses outside stopped to look as Jackie picked her up.
Switchblade’s voice rang out in his earpiece. “Anyone there? I got a damn sec stiff looking for me in the kitchen. A little help?”
He turned to Manco instead of the window. “Did you hear Switch’s call?”
The zebra nodded. “Si. Let’s go save her.”
“Hang in there, Switch, on our way,” Doc spoke into his hidden mic. “Jackie, take Mirror with you and grab the car.”
“You have the claim ticket, dummy,” Jackie radioed back to him. She looked up at the window and shrugged.
Doc grabbed a small painting. He jammed the claim ticket into the frame and tossed it out the window. It landed with a hard crack against the lawn “Now you do,” Doc stated. “Go!”
He galloped out into the hallway with Manco. Doc stopped and grabbed Penny’s commlink. He shut it off. “I apologize on behalf of my friend for the splitting headache you’ll no doubt wake up to.”
Manco whistled from down the hall. “Doc, I’ll take the elevator, you take the stairs.”
“Wait, what elevator?” Doc questioned.
Manco climbed into a dumbwaiter, pushed a button on the control panel next to the door, and then descended down below inside the contraption.
“Ah, that… well, that’s now a thing.”
Doc ran to the stairs and hopped down several steps at a time. He assumed security knew a fight just occurred, so he ditched subtlety. Doc galloped around the gambling tables and down to the ground floor. He headed for the kitchen and pushed his way past the door.
He met four chefs and one zebra security guard in the room. Behind him sat Switchblade. Her forehooves were tied together by a plastic zip tie. Doc took a couple of slow steps to the dumbwaiter, but the guard pulled out a pistol.
“That’ll be far enough, sir,” the guard commanded. “You will come with me for questions.”
The dumbwaiter sounded off a ‘ding!’ and opened. Manco fired two shots and caught the guard in the face. “¡Estás equivocado, Capitán Sánchez!”
The guard hit the floor and dropped his pistol. He writhed in pain. Doc rushed forward and punched at his head several times. The guard stopped squirming and laid there unconscious.
Doc shook his hoof. “I didn’t think head trauma was more prevalent than getting shot in this business.”
“You’d be surprised,” Switch remarked. She pointed to her horn.
Manco climbed out and held the cooks at bay with his gun. “Beautiful meal, to die for,” he complimented.
“Go slot yourself, you striped-face horse!” the head chef growled.
“Tsk, such language,” Manco remarked.
“Don’t antagonize the cooks,” Doc warned his friend. He grabbed a knife from the counter and cut the ziptie off of Switch. He tossed the knife into a nearby trash can. “Alright, let’s bug out of here.”
Switch got up and grabbed the dropped pistol. “Waste not,” she said with a smile. She also grabbed a paper bag from the floor near herself.
Doc lead the way back out of the kitchen. He contacted Jackie on the way to the front door. “Hey, Dread Pirate Robbins, you and Mirror got the car yet?”
“Working on it, ya scallywag,” Jackie snapped back. “Where’d you find this chick, anyway?”
“I am his ex-marefriend,” came Mirror’s answer over the comm.
Jackie paused. She then spoke in a softer tone, “Ah. Yeah, driving up front now.” The call ended.
Doc stepped outside the front entrance. The valets looked surprised that he ran out of the front door in such a hurry with two others. Doc brushed his suit down. “Sorry, just catching my ride.”
“Hey, that pegasus you came with almost roughed us up for your car keys,” one of the valets spoke up. “We thought you got ditched for the pretty green-maned mare.”
“She’s the ‘bring a friend’ part of the evening,” Doc answered. He felt Switch’s hoof slap him in the back of the head.
The rental car pulled up to the front and screeched to a halt. Doc walked over to the driver’s side and helped Mirror out of the car.
“You learned how to drive?” he asked her.
“Nope. Car knows how,” Mirror replied. She got into the back with Jackie and Switchblade.
Manco hopped into the front passenger seat. “And the art?”
“The goods are in the trunk,” Jackie answered.
Doc got behind the wheel. He hit the gas pedal hard and the car sped off the property at a brisk speed. He slowed down to the appropriate speed limit once they were several blocks down the road. He entered his home address into the car’s navigation to let it drive itself there.
“Anyone following us?” Doc questioned his passengers.
Jackie looked over her shoulder for a few seconds. “Nah, we seem to be in the clear. Security will be all over that place like stink on dog mess, though.”
Switch shook her head. “I tangled up their radio channels. They don’t have any communications right now. By the time they straighten that out, we’ll be too far for a chase.” She undid the button on her vest and then pulled out pastries from the paper bag she brought along.
“Bueno, eso fue divertido,” Manco said with a grin. “How are we gonna almost get arrested tomorrow?”
Doc stuck out his tongue and chuckled, but that brought back the pain in his chest. “I think I’ll take a few days off to recover from being shot. Switch looks like she’ll probably spend tomorrow in a sugar coma.”
Switch belched. “I got the better deal here.”
Mirror fanned the air away from her snout.
“Were you hit badly, Doc?” Manco asked. He pointed to the bullet hole in his jacket.
“Hurts like hell.” Doc unbuttoned his shirt. The vest underneath stopped the bullet, but he saw a sizable bruise under his fur. “I’ll live. What about you?”
The zebra unbuttoned his shirt and exposed a blood-soaked shoulder. “Eh, a little less alive.”
“Ouch! I’ll patch you up at my clinic,” Doc stated. “Jackie, call our Johnson so we can meet up and deliver her painting. Mirror, is there someplace you want me to drop you off?”
“No, I will come with you,” she answered.
“Can’t believe you brought her along,” Jackie muttered.
“Manco, let me see?” Mirror asked the zebra. She leaned forward and placed her hooves on his wound.
Mirror closed her eyes and in a few seconds, her hooves glowed with a soft blue light from a spell. Manco grunted. The wound pushed out a piece of metal and closed itself up. The light then faded away.
“I could of done that,” Doc complained.
“Please, you cast one healing spell and you pass out,” Mirror reprimanded.
Doc folded his forelegs together. “Still.”
“Yar, I take that back,” Jackie said with a grin. “Maybe bringing the lass along is a good idea after all.”
Manco stretched his shoulder. “Wow, feels almost good as new. ¡Gracias! Doc, we have to keep her. She knows magic better than you and can summon some kind of water spirit.”
“Uh, hello,” Doc rebuked. “Her father breaks legs. Did you forget that part?”
Jackie let off a snort. “Pfft, what, is he some kind of crime boss?”
“He is,” Mirror confirmed aloud.
Everyone hushed. Doc shook his head at the silence. He took control of the car from its computer and changed over to the fast lane.
“Don’t worry gang, broken bones heal,” he assured with a smirk on his lips.
[]---[]---[]
The Johnson scrutinized the painting under the light of the flashlight that hovered beside her. The dim street light outlined the Johnson’s body and the car parked next to her on the street with an eerie yellow glow. In the distant sky lightning flickered above the city glow.
Doc stood there in silence with Jackie. He watched the Johnson ‘hmm’ and sniffle every few seconds. He assumed she was looking for specific marks that would identify this painting as hers and not another reproduction. It certainly looked like her painting, but since she paid sixty grand for it originally, Doc assumed she knew more about art than he did. He wanted to be paid, so he patiently waited for the Johnson to complete her examination.
He glanced over at Jackie. The pegasus stood on the tips of her hooves, but otherwise remained quiet. This might of been the longest Doc had seen her hold still.
The hovering flashlight turned off. The Johnson grinned wide. “Yes, this is my painting. Thank you, Doc. You and your team have come through for me. As agreed upon, here is the remaining payment for your services.” The Johnson levitated a credstick to Doc.
He took it and nodded once. “You are most welcome. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
“You as well.” The Johnson opened the passenger door of her car and placed the painting in the back seat. She climbed inside and her chauffeur drove off into the night.
Doc shook his head. “Yeah, enjoy an evening with my crazy old marefriend and my crazy new Trotter friends,” he muttered.
Jackie pounced Doc and yanked the credstick out of his hooves. “Haha! We got our booty for a job well done!”
“Yes we did, now calm down,” Doc said in a firm tone. He pushed the short pegasus off him. “We don’t need to advertise this to the entire block. Let’s go inside and divide it up.”
The walked into the alleyway together and reached the entrance to Doc’s clinic. Mirror, Switchblade, and Manco milled about on the steps. Doc fished for his keys and unlocked his clinic.
Switch stood up first. “Well, I’m going to guess by Jackie’s shout of ‘we got our booty’ that we got paid?”
“Ha har…” the pegasus purred. She flashes the credstick for the team to see.
Doc ushered the group inside. “Mosey on in, we’ll divvy it out upstairs.” The group trotted into the clinic and up the stairs. Doc locked each door behind him as he followed the others. Several empty bags and unused gear cluttered his apartment; spare radios, weapons, and AR capable glasses. The kitchen trash can overflowed with empty Stuffer Shack containers.
Jackie held up the credstick high. “Yar, time to live it up like royalty!”
“Well, your highness can first help clean up this place to make it livable.” He pointed to the trash in the kitchen. “You also should save up your nuyen and rent yourself a new place.”
“Bah, why bother gettin’ my own place? Can’t I just crash here?” she asked him.
“You already crashed here. I’m looking for the insurance claim.”
Switch let out a soft laughed. “You know, my gang invests in a few safe houses around our turf. Good place to lay low when the heat is on, and I’m sure it is after we beat up Al’s guards and ran off with a painting. I think they can arrange a place for us to crash in now and then for a small rental fee.”
“Mister Fresco will not call the police,” Mirror interrupted. “His house is full of stolen paintings. He will try to send away all the art now.”
“Hmm, I guess that’s true.” Switch shrugged.
Manco removed several items from his pockets and stuffed them into his duffel bag. “A safe house is still a good idea. Keeps us hidden from the police, and gives Doc back his place so he doesn’t kill us.”
“Pfft, got that right,” Doc agreed. He removed the ear piece and hidden mic. “Y’all good ponies to work with, but this place barely fits one. Plus, I know most folks living in this block. I reckon half of them would sell me out for a case of beer.”
Mirror walked over to him and shook her head. “Vardo, I do not like you becoming a Trotter. I remember you as a very kind and gentle doctor. Why did you change?”
“Because I’m tired of being the only one who plays by the rules!” Doc barked back. He unbuttoned his shirt with a sigh and pulled out his commlink. “Here, everyone come get your share of the take and we’ll call it a night. You can crash up here you want. Just… please clean up after yourselves.”
Jackie gave him the credstick and Doc plugged it into his commlink. He transferred an equal portion to each member of the team, including himself. Once the last transaction completed, he pushed several boxes of medical supplies out of the way to clear the floor space.
“Alright, two can share the bed,” Doc instructed. “A third can make a nest out of the towels and laundry, I guess. Someone can sleep in the dentist chair downstairs. It’s not bad.”
Everyone nodded and claimed spaces to sleep for the night. Doc looked over at Mirror. She stared at him with a look of disappointment. He could tell, he knew how to read her.
Doc walked downstairs to the clinic. Thunder rolled outside with the intensity of a passing train, loud enough that he felt it through the walls. He reclined the dentist chair and pulled out two small blankets from the cabinets. Manco arrived and hopped up on the examination bed.
“You alright, amigo?” he asked.
“I don’t know. Kinda,” Doc replied. “Mixed feelings from seeing Mirror again. I’m happy, but I’m not happy, you know?”
“Hmm.” Manco nodded. “You miss her, but not the memories from when you broke up.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right.”
The zebra leaned back on the bed. “Well, if she hated you, she wouldn’t still be here, right?”
Doc shrugged and sat on the dentist chair. “Unless she’s planning on killing me in the morning.”
“At least you’ll have a good night’s rest.”
“Yeah, but gonna miss that cup of coffee first thing.” He dimmed the lights and laid back.Doc let his thoughts scroll through his mind until fatigue took over and he fell asleep.