//------------------------------// // Cold Deck // Story: Batmare Begins // by Silver Tongue //------------------------------//         A white, brown-haired unicorn sat idly at his desk. His blue eyes scanned the documents strewn about haphazardly. Smoothing out his mustache, he came to a decision. Sighing, he began to organize his desk as he waited. A soft blue glow surrounded his papers are they were slowly sorted into their appropriate piles. Once organized, a pen was lifted into the air and put to paper, thus beginning the mind-numbing process of paperwork. His head hit his desk as he saw the stack of papers he needed to look through. So…much…paperwork…         One complete.         An initial here.         A signature there.         A new policy that he really did not want to read.         Another sigh.         He was jerked back to reality as his door slammed open, revealing a white pegasus mare panting frantically on his doorstep. A red mane clung to her neck and her police uniform was disheveled. Her chest heaved with heavy breaths as she began to speak. “Commissioner, we’ve lost the trail. He’s still out there. Ran back to the North Canterlot District. Detective Shot went back to the crime scene and wants to know what we should do now.” He was silent for a moment as he mulled it over in annoyance. He watched the mare fidget as she waited for his answer. “Tell her that we can’t follow him. Not yet. Not until our department is finished changing our jurisdiction policies on the districts. We have no authority there except in the event of a royally sanctioned emergency or crisis. Until we are given the clear for North Canterlot, just patrol and keep watch for his return.” “Understood.” She nodded her head and left his office. This was a problem. He knew it. There was a dangerous criminal on the loose, and he’s out of reach. Turning in his chair, he studied the map pinned behind him of his city. Canterlot was a large. So large, it had to be divided into individual districts, each with its own police force to keep the crime level under control. And the criminal fled to North Canterlot. The area had been affectionately dubbed Gotham District by the residents for its tall structures, as well as being currently known as one of the most dangerous and crime filled areas in the city. The other districts’ crime rates were increasing at alarming rates as well, but they were out of his power. His department was being transferred to North Canterlot, but the officials were taking too long in signing. “The paperwork needs to get through so we can catch him. Darn politics…” he mumbled to himself as he levitated a little red pin and placed it on the map, right at the district’s center. The pin now resided on top of a large square marked Mayne Enterprises, the very heart of Gotham. ~~~          “Madam, I don’t believe it would be wise to go spelunking, as you seem to call it, in the caves after your previous experience,” Alfred deadpanned as he looked down the gaping hole before him.         “You make a fair point Alfred, but I did learn to hold my breath longer in the event that it happens again.” He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the slight grin on his Mistress’s face. Watching as she slowly rappelled down the hole, he raised a brow as the rope became dangerously taut. And then it snapped. After hearing a thud at the bottom of the hole, he pricked his ears forward as he listened for signs of life. Sticking his head into the opening, he called out.         “I would appreciate it if you didn’t die, Madam. This is a rather dangerous activity and the press would have a field day.”         His ears were soon met with the voice of his Mistress.         “Stop worrying so much. I’m a little dusty, but perfectly fine. Who knew being tossed from a steep cliff by a deranged griffin would have its uses, don’t you think so Alfred?”         “That is not a comforting notion, I’m afraid.”         “May I have another flare? I seem to have dropped mine in the fall, and it is terribly dark in the tunnels.”         Octavia stared into the large tunnel openings before her as she waited for a flare. If the area under her home was large enough, it would suit her purpose.         It should be big enough. I don’t particularly enjoy the thought of lair hunting through all of Canterlot. The mountain should have enough caverns for the task.         The feeling of something hitting her skull snapped her out of her thoughts. Looking down at the offending object, she noticed that it was a new flare. Looking up at the mouth of the hole in question, she was greeted by the sight of perfectly calm butler. He was smirking. In his mind. She just knew it.         “Pardon me Ms. Octavia. It seems that I miscalculated.”         No. He wasn’t smirking. He was laughing in that head of his. She was sure of it.         Picking up the flare, she began her trek into the caves with an eyelid twitching in annoyance. ~~~         The red light of the flare illuminated the dark cavern, exposing every nook and cranny, while showing just how expansive the tunnel system under Mayne Manor really was. Octavia scanned the cavern with a critical eye. The shadows danced among the walls, fueled by the red light in her mouth. The light reflecting in her eyes grew in their intensity. The fire resting there was indistinguishable from the light or her inner thoughts. She could hear a waterfall in the distance, mostly likely the source of the enormous pool of water covering the floor of the cavern. It surrounded a small, raised island of black rock that sat at its center.         Suddenly stepping to the side, she let a colony of bats fly past her in a flurry. The sight of them sent goose bumps down her back and a chill up her spine. She released the breath she didn’t know she was holding as the group flew away.         “Bats…” she muttered to herself. She was about to step forward when a small shadow caught her eye. Turning to look at it, she noticed it was a small bat struggling to fly, still technically a baby. “It must have fallen when the colony went to feed…,” she murmured. As much as she saw that the pup struggled to stay in the air, she didn’t lift a hoof to help. The pup flailed around, trying to stay upright. Her violet eyes narrowed at the sight, lip curled in annoyance. “Spread your wings, pup. Fly…” The pup kept flailing as she began to seethe. Memories of nobles attempting to gain favor with her recently orphaned self invaded her mind. “Spread them. Prove that you don’t need anyone’s help.” The command coldly echoed in the cavern as she continued to observe. Her gaze softened as the pup leveled out mid-air and flew haphazardly in the direction of the others. As it flew towards her, it caused a shadow to float along the wall, stretching out from behind Octavia. Rooted to the spot, she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the flying bat as her chest heaved. “Show them. Show them that you are a force to be reckoned with,” she spoke, barely a whisper. The pup’s shadow faded away from behind her as the flare went out. ~~~         “Sir, we have good news and bad news.”         A white unicorn looked up through his messy, brown mane. Setting down his pen, he gave the light brown, pegasus mare his full attention.         “The good news is that we apprehended one of the accomplices of the criminal. I was able to get some information out of him.”         He watched her quiver nervously as her dark brown eyes looked every which way. Her breathing was slightly ragged, and the dark grey streaks in her black mane seemed to shine as a thin layer of sweat made it obvious she hadn’t had the chance to clean up yet. Even the new, gold, badge hanging around her neck appeared to have been through better times. He stroked his mustache as he thought about the recent information. He wasn’t able to chase this criminal as he was busy investigating the headquarters of the pony responsible for possible clues as to his whereabouts and identity. Normally, such information would make him feel better about their current situation, but he dreaded the bad news that would inevitably reach his ears. “And the bad news Quick Shot?” Her body drooped as she tried to avoid looking him in the eye. She caught herself after a moment and straightened back out, locking gazes with him. “The accomplice was with him at the time, and while the perpetrator gave us the slip, we at least caught sight of certain identifying details about the individual before he ran. We put the information away for the time being so we could interrogate the accomplice. We still don’t know his name, but he revealed to us that the criminal responsible is not one pony. It is many. They mask the pony so he is not obviously given away, but also in the event that if we do catch him, we are only given an underling of the operation. Each time he strikes, the pony at the time is only given details about the job in particular and nothing else. None of them know anything besides that.” He sat in silence as his brain processed the information. There was more than one. It answered many questions, such as why they couldn’t decide whether or not the criminal was a mare or a stallion, blue or red, the height, or why the chase seemed different every time they found him. The thought that if they caught him or her, the one in question would just be replaced with another did not sit well with him. It was not one pony, but an organization they needed to find. An organization that stole what it saw fit, and destroyed anypony in their way. A headache began to form as he stood from his chair. Grabbing his tan overcoat from the coat rack, he slipped it on and made towards the door. The mare stepped aside to let him through before following him down the hallway. “Sir?” “Tell the officers that there will be a meeting in the conference room at five today. There are some things that I need to do before they are given any information.” “Understood.” He kept moving as a flash of brown took off down a separate hallway to pass the message to the other officers. He needed to give this information to the Royal Guard. It was a breakthrough and the Guard needed to know about dangerous gangs in the city, no matter the location. ~~~         A large stallion opened the door to the bar, the small bell announcing his presence. A red sweater covered his torso. The hood covered his face; shrouding it from recognition, save for a lock of purple mane. His orange coat gave an unearthly glow as it shone under the building’s dimmed, fluorescent lights. Taking a look around, he noticed the patrons of the bar were but a handful. It explained the silence. His short, purple tail swished around as the earth pony took a seat at the counter. Lifting himself onto the barstool, he adjusted his hood as a bartender came down to him.         “What can I get ya, hun?”         Looking up, he realized the bartender was female. He grinned.         “Surprise me.”         Chuckling softly, the mare disappeared to fulfill his order. Watching her, he noticed she was a pretty little thing. A blonde mane fell gently down her slender neck, revealing the soft blue of her coat. His head tilted as he studied her cutie mark. It was a white butterfly. No, wait… It was an image of two ponies staring at each other…or maybe it’s a fancy drinking glass? His brow furrowed in concentration as he tried to pinpoint just what it was that was on her hindquarters. He finally settled on a butterfly just as a glass of green liquid was placed in front of him.         “Negative space illusion.”         He looked at her in confusion.         “My cutie mark. It’s an example of a negative space illusion. You see whatever your mind decides it wants to see. It tells much about a pony if you think about it. What did you see?”         “Everything. The ponies. The butterfly. The glass.” She closed her blue eyes and hummed in thought at the response before his voice broke her concentration. “You know a lot about it. You sure you’re just a bartender? That doesn’t really look like a cutie mark a bartender usually has.”         She giggled at his teasing while turning to look at him.         “I’m just working here until I can find another job. My old place was shut down because of funding issues, so I lost my internship there. Not many places looking for a shrink with no experience. As for you, what’re you drinking all alone for? Don’t you have someplace you’d rather be?”         The grin he sported sent chills down her back. She wasn’t sure if it terrified her, or if she liked it.         “A therapist working as a bartender. Haven’t met one of those yet. Anyway, I’m just killing some time. My wife left me and took everything. Now I need to meet up with a few of my buddies in a few. Said they had a job for me. Nothing special really.” Noting the sadness behind the outward cheer, she decided not to comment as he addressed her. “As for you, why are you giving me so much attention? Don’t you have other customers to attend to?”         Her gaze caught the reflection of harsh green eyes under his hood. She swallowed at the amount of grief in them. “Not really. The others left. In case ya haven’t noticed, you’re the only one here, puddin’.” Turning to look, he noticed that she was right. He was the only patron left, so by default, he got special attention. “These buddies of yours, gonna play some card games?” She mistook his look as one of confusion. She didn’t know what else it could be. He was staring at her. She just knew it. His jaw was also tense, so she just assumed he was thinking. “Your cutie mark. You’ve got a royal flush going on there, ‘cept there’s a joker card where the ten usually is. I’m assuming you play with your buddies a lot? Usually walking away with all the chips?” His grin unnerved her. “Poker actually. I actually got invited this time. You don’t want to play against someone with my cutie mark after all.  You might as well hand over all the money.” His deep laugh made her stomach do a flip in anxiety. This stallion...there was something wrong with him…and she didn’t like it. The cruel and bitter tone in his voice made her want to turn tail and run. Blinking, she knew she was probably overreacting, but it’s never wrong to be too careful. Might as well play along. “Makes sense. Hey, since we’re talkin’ and all and I seem to have forgotten my manners, you can call me Hayley. Everypony does.” Her small grin was met with a chuckle. She shivered. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came. Instead, they heard an explosion in the distance. Turning to look through the window into the dark street, she caught a flash of orange out of the corner of her eye. Her patron had run off. Without paying. “Hey! You can’t just drink and run!” “Gotta go! Places to be, times to meet!” She fumed as she angrily lifted the empty glass off the counter. The glass shattered as it slipped from her hoof as another explosion shook the building. “Oh, horseapples…” ~~~         Octavia began to pull her cowl over her face, before giving herself a once-over to make sure that everything was in place. Looking at her reflection in the nearby water, she inspected her equipment. Every part of her body was covered by a dark gray, flexible and durable material, giving her full-body armor. Usually, it’s generally bulletproof when finished. Currently, it’ll only stop a knife. Maybe. Her bat-like cowl was a deep black, covering everything but her muzzle. The ears were longer, pointier than a pony’s would be. The hard material traveled down the expanse of her neck before flaring out into a large, scalloped cape that covered her long, black tail at the back of the suit. Dark, leather gloves matching her cape in color sat snugly up until her knees. Three scalloped fins protruded from the sides as they rested on an outer bracer. Violet eyes stared approvingly at the stylistic, black bat emblazoned on her chest as she minutely adjusted the muted gold utility belt sitting snugly around her middle.         “Is there a particular reason for the bat design, Ma’am?”         Her eyes narrowed at her reflection.         “Bats terrify me. Might as well place my fear into the ones I seek. Make the beasts useful.”         Aflred stared at the bat suit. A list of all the features built into it passed a quick checklist in his mind.         “Madam, you do realize that neither the suit nor any of its equipment has been properly tested or finished.”         She turned to look at her butler. A small grin formed before it was wiped from her face.         “Now is as good a time as any to see what needs improvement. What better than a field test? Let’s see what it can do, shall we?”         His blue eyes noticed every detail, and very few things got past him, but in that moment, he was genuinely impressed at the sudden disappearance of his Mistress. She truly had become a creature of the night in order to combat injustice.         “Alfred! Don’t forget to feed the bats today! I’m sure they would appreciate it.”         His eye twitched as he heard his Mistress’s disembodied voice, now deeper and more seductive than it usually was, echo throughout the cave.         She was a creature of the night all right. She was not a bat, however, but an obnoxious demon. With a sigh, he went to prepare the bats’ dinner. He discovered that they prefer extra virgin olive oil. Who knew?