Chapter 3
“Ivy Rose”
“Now what do you want me to do now?” I asked into the phone. I was still in Canterlot following my very narrow escape from getting my friends hurt.
“Go to Manehatten, there’s a toy store there I want you to visit.”
“I didn’t think you’d ask me to do Hearth’s Warming Eve shopping.” I said.
“Far from it, the store has been closed for almost a decade. I want you to go in there, and find dear Ivy Rose’s mane.”
“You actually scalped her?” I said, blinking.
“I’m afraid I cannot take credit for that little stunt. I merely, pointed in the right direction.”
“I don’t know what kind of sick monster you hired to do what you did to Ivy, but suffice to say, don’t think that this excuses what you did,” I glowered into the phone.
“I wouldn’t think otherwise. The address is 1914 Wayne West, you’ll find it at the lower east side.”
“What’s the name of the store?” I asked.
“It’s called Little Filly’s Toys. You can’t miss it.”
“No time limit this time?” I asked.
“Oh no, I don’t think a time limit is necessary, once you have the mane you’ll take it to central park. Look for a tree sitting alone on a large hill. It has carvings on it, I will know your task is complete once you put it there.”
“Fine, but know this Shadowhoof. Once I find out who you are, you will think twice before messing with my friends and putting me on this insane quest,” I growled.
“Oh don’t worry Private Eye, if all goes according to plan, your friends will be home by dinner.”
I hanged up the phone and slumped against the side of the phone booth. No time limit, that meant two minutes rest. But, I had to get to the train soon, I had to find that mane.
I had to find my friends...
___________________________________________________
I took the train to Manehatten after dealing with Shadowhoof. Celestia’s sun had set towards the horizon and Luna’s moon would follow soon. I hated being shoved around like this. But this guy had Fluttershy and Big Mac, if I didn’t do what he says, he could hurt them. I’d never forgive myself if anything happened to them.
It was your typical pan-Equestrian train, too. Simple seating, with enough cushioning for ponies to catch twenty winks, if they wanted. If I wanted to pitch in a few more bits, I could have gotten a bunk, but… I can’t really sleep. This game worries me. I want to know why I’m having to see the ponies this stallion’s killed. And the killing, itself, serves no purpose. They had been caught, and were going to jail. Why kill them?
“Is this taken?” I heard a feminine voice say.
I looked up and lo and behold, Octavia was standing in the doorway. I smiled at the grey earth pony. “Hey Octavia, great to see you,” I said. “Have a seat.”
Octavia nodded and sat across from me. “I was on my way to Manehatten for my Orchestra’s concert. I had no idea I’d be sharing it with the great Private Eye himself.”
“Aw, cut it out, you know me better than that,” I said with a laugh.
“True, you never were one for basking in pony’s praises,” She said, a smile adorning her face. “So, I imagine you’re on the hunt for some crazed criminal?”
I shook my head, “Not exactly. But, close I guess.”
She blinked and I went on to explain what has been going on. Octavia was quiet and attentive throughout my story. She didn’t say anything until I was completely finished, “So, this Shadowhoof villain kidnaps Fluttershy and BIg Mac, and demands you play his sick game in order for them to go free?” She said.
“That’s pretty much it in a nutshell,” I said. “Sorry I can’t ask you to help out.”
“While I may not be able to help you with the game, I may be able to tell you something about the player,” She said, her face serious.
“You know this guy?” I asked.
“I’ve never seen him, but I’ve heard of him,” She answered, “I believe the rumors started about, four years has it been? It was around the time of the whole Nightmare Moon fiasco. I remember hearing rumors about a Shadowhoof. I coughed it up to your typical tin foil hat nonsense. But, as the years went on I kept hearing the name. So far, I can only guess he’d have to be somepony high up. With connections and the ability to enter a crowd without notice. That’s the only way I would imagine he got into the wedding.”
“So, I’m dealing with some kind of secret society nut job?” I asked. “Also, he killed those who I arrested, with the exception of Lightning Strike. It doesn’t make sense, why kill-”
Octavia looked down for a minute.
I frowned, “Same boat as you huh?”
“He’d have to be.” Octavia said, guilt in her voice. “Had I, had you not been there, I would’ve done the same.”
“Octavia…”
“I don’t ask for forgiveness for what I did,” Octavia said. “I made the mistake, I owned up to it. You helped me get past my hate and pain and see what I was doing. I wasn’t providing justice, I was doing petty revenge for my mother’s death. In the end, you and Vinyl helped me turn my life around.”
“So you think this Shadowhoof guy has been wronged by the police like you are?”
“Oh, this Shadowhoof, whoever he is, is far more filled with conviction then I am. The bad thing is, he has the means to carry out that conviction.”
___________________________________________________
So now, I walk the streets of what looked to be a bad part of the city. I rarely came down to this part of town, the last time I was in a place like this was during that whole Discord fiasco.
The buildings around me were old, crumbling, and would be demolished if somepony cared enough to file the paperwork. I was lucky that the street lights even worked. Graffiti was splashed here and there like some kind of wasting disease Litter covered the sidewalks and there was almost nopony in sight. Well, nopony that I would want to meet in such environs. Why would Shadowhoof want me to come here?
I rounded a corner and saw the toy store in question. It looked totally abandoned. The walls, which showed signs of pink paint with stars on it, looked chipped and worn from use. There was an old sign showcasing the place’s name above it, along with a picture of a clown next to it. Two letters were missing and the clown had lost an eye. Very creepy, never understood the appeal of clowns.
The building itself was small, only a single story. It’s walls and broken windows were boarded up almost completely. Except...for a couple boards on the door, they were barely attached to it.
Somepony else had been here recently.
I went up to the door, and gave it a gentle push open. The interior was dark, but what I could make out was shelves. Empty shelves, and torn advertisements on the walls was my first impression. Brittle cardboard standees showed the fads of bygone times, and would probably crumble to dust at the barest touch. There were a few old toys that weren’t taken, but not much else than dust was there.
I lit my horn and the light shone into the darkness of the toy store. I moved slowly, my hooves breaking broken glass under me. I shined my horn over the shelves, no sign of Ivy’s mane. I think her mane was green if I remember right. Well, no dolls were using it as a wig. That’s something…
“Nopony else is here…”
I hushed up as I heard a voice. I shut off my horn light as I saw somepony coming out from the back of the counter. I hid behind a shelf as I heard a young female voice speak.
“Somepony here? No, No, nopony comes here. Not even Big Brother. He knows I like it here, all by myself.”
Wait...Big Brother…?
I was quiet as I heard hoofsteps moving around the store.
“Other kids? Come to mess with Scarlet? Call her names? No...no you not call her names. Because, Scarlet will make you dead ponies. Oh yes, very dead ponies…”
Okay, I did not just hear that come out from a kid.
I poked my head out from my hiding spot and there she was. Her red coat was the color of blood. Her verdant green eyes were looking around all over the place. Her long red mane was a little disheveled. I could see some hairs had fallen out. Or...dare I say ripped out? This was definatly the same mare I saw during Tappy’s case.
She had something in her hooves, it looked like a doll. It looked like a morbid Smarty Pants doll. It’s arm was ripped open, and the stuffing was colored with red marker. It’s black button eyes had red paint tears coming down from it. Wait, I know that mane color it has. That isn’t yarn...it was Ivy Rose’s mane…
No wonder why Shadowhoof didn’t need a time limit. This crazy mare was a challenge in and of itself. I had to get that doll away from her somehow.
She held the doll to her chest, stroking the mane. “You are my newest friend Ivy Rose, yes you are. You don’t make fun of me or call me names. Or else Scarlet will have to cut off your other legs. You don’t want that do you Ivy Rose?”
I tried to back up, and my hoof cracked a piece of glass under my hoof.
The mare stiffened and looked over at me. I couldn’t duck behind the shelf in time. She screamed “Burgler! Come to steal from Scarlet!”
“Wait miss please!” I yelled, coming out of my hiding place.
She blinked when she saw me, and said, “Wait, I know you. You’re the weird pony who talked about the...milk shake..” Her eyes weren’t all there. They seemed to be somewhere else as she stroked the doll’s mane.
“Listen, Scarlet is it?” I asked.
“Have you come to make fun of me?” She asked.
“Why would I make fun of you?” I said, a little nervous.
“All the kids make fun of Scarlet. They call her weird and say she should die. They don’t like Scarlet, so Scarlet doesn't like them.”
“Look, I don’t what’s going on with you and the other kids,” I said. “But, listen, I’m not here to make fun of you.”
“Then why have you come to see me?” She asked.
“I need, the doll’s mane,” I said, trying to make that bizarre sentence come out as normal as possible.
“NO!” She yelled, hugging the doll to her chest, “She’s mine! My doll!”
“Look, I don’t need it long.” I said, holding up my hooves, “I just need it’s mane. I don’t need the whole doll.”
“Big Brother said ponies would try and take her,” She said, slowly smiling a very creepy smile. “Big Brother is always right. He knows you’re a bad pony. Try to steal, try to make Scarlet believe you.”
“I’m telling the truth!” I yelled, “I’m not trying to steal it! My friends are counting on me!”
“Friends...stupid…” She said.
“What?”
“Friends are stupid...they don’t stay...they lie...say you’re pretty...say you’re smart...then the teasing starts….they hurt you...laugh at you...say you’re nothing...they don’t know...that they bleed like me...they bleed so well…”
I took a step back from her as her eyes showed almost pure madness.
“Make bad pony see...what happen…not like mane...but...will still make bleed…” Her horn glowed a bright green and suddenly…
I felt the most unimaginable pain I’ve ever felt. It’s like every part of my body suddenly stopped moving. I grunted at the pain as I felt my legs move by themselves. This was telekinesis alright. But I’ve never felt so much power behind it. Who was this filly?
I screamed in pain as my legs were stretched painfully out as I hovered in the air. If this keeps up, my shoulders are going to pop. I slammed into the wall behind me as the filly walked over. I struggled as she slowly withdrew a knife from the doll…She started..singing….
“In and out...goes the knife…”
My horn glowed and I shot the teenager straight in the chest. She fell back a bit, I gasped for a moment as her magic canceled on my limbs. Who would’ve thought, that a teenager could have power like this.
“KILL NOW!”
I had barely a eye blink to react before I was shoved onto the ground by her. She held the knife above her in her magic. She stabbed down and I moved my head to get out of the way.
I didn’t want to shoot her, she was still a kid after all. She probably had no idea what she was doing. I tried to fire another blast before she hit me with her hoof. The spell went wild and blew out the window.
She glared down at me and snickered manically, “Yes...now Scarlet will make sure...bad pony never steal….”
My silver eyes went wide as the knife came down.
SLAM!
Suddenly a grey blur came out of nowhere. I looked up, and saw that Scarlet was going flying towards a shelf. She hit her head on it and fell unconscious.
I got up, and saw my savior…
He was, a teenager. Probably sixteen, seventeen maybe. He had a grey coat, with a long violet mane...and...bat wings…
I stared at the bat pony before me. His cutie mark was showing a pair of slitted eyes, stars in them. He was rather skinny too, looked be from hunger rather than lack of muscle. His ears were longer than your average pony’s, also a little furrier.
He turned to look at me, his yellow slitted eyes gazing at me. Fear entered them for a moment and he zoomed off out the window back into the night.
Okay, now I’ve definitely seen everything. Who was that kid? I’ve never heard of Bat Ponies living in the city. From what I heard, they hated living there. Too much noise for their sensitive ears to take.
But, that guy was just a kid. I hoped wherever he lived, he gets there safe.
I looked over to the doll and I picked up Scarlet’s dropped knife. I used it to cut the mane from the loose stitches that held it to the doll. I grimaced as I put the mane in a plastic bag. I hate to imagine how she got a hold of this. I considered leaving Scarlet behind as I looked at her.
But, Scarlet needs help. She really needs help.
I used an anaesthetic spell to make sure she stays unconscious as I picked her up. I set her on my back, put the doll in her hooves, and walked outside.
________________________________________________________
Luckily there was a hospital not too far from the toy shop. I carried Scarlet inside and the nurse, a plump unicorn with a white coat and blue mane, came by with a wheelchair. “Oh, Scarlet again?” She said upon seeing her.
“Again?” I blinked.
“Oh poor Scarlet is always found around here,” The nurse said, helping the sleeping Scarlet into the chair. “To think, such a well behaved and smart child would want to come to this neighborhood.”
I’d like to debate the accuracy of that statement if I wasn’t in a hurry. “Listen, just make sure she gets the care she needs,” I said.
“Oh we will, poor dear,” The nurse wheeled the chair with Scarlet on it into the hallway. Scarlet was okay, now, to deliver the package.
___________________________________________________
The character of Central Park is completely different at night. The trees make everything darker, and there are no streetlights here. Apparently this park is meant to be used during the day. The shadows are deeper, and anypony, or anything, could be lurking there.
I kept my magic on Blackbird as I moved through the park. Shadowhoof said to look for a tree sitting alone on a hill. Seeing as Central Park was covered with trees, I had little idea of what he meant.
Then I saw it, I looked up and there was the tree. It was a simple oak tree sitting all by itself on the hill. I walked up the small clear hill and saw a hollow in it. I’m guessing this was where he wanted it. I put the wig inside the hollow and leaned against the tree. Having your life nearly taken from you does take a lot out of your system.
I looked up at the tree, and then tilted my head as I saw something along the other side. I got up, walked over to the side of the tree…
Somepony carved initials into it…
D.B.
&
C.B.
B.F.A.S.F.