My Little Investigations: Wonderbolts Under Fire

by Metool Bard

Boxing Shadows

January 17, 21:15
Wonderbolt Academy Airspace
***

After my tete-a-tete with Pine Talon and seeing Kierra off, I spent the rest of the day training for the Ghastly Gorge Gauntlet. Yeah, the threat of the Tengu Dynasty was not an excuse for me to slack off, or anypony else for that matter. Besides, we needed to be in tip-top shape for the tengu's inevitable attack at the event. That Tengu Empress was going to notice her top assassin (of course, I'm using the term loosely) was missing, and all Tartarus was gonna break loose once that happened.

Luckily, I had a plan to put the tengu in their place. But I had to coordinate with the Proud Pride in order for it to work, and I couldn't do that until Kierra brought Honor Bound up to speed. I just hope he'll believe her. Oh well. If he doesn't I'll gladly take him to meet Pine Talon face-to-face myself. Those tengu might have a lot of fancy toys, but in my mind, our ignorance is their greatest weapon. And that meant I had to tie up all loose ends by sundown tomorrow.

I still had time until then, so I figured now would be a good time to hit the hay. There were still fifteen minutes until Lights Out, but I could definitely use the extra time, considering how hard it has been for me to actually nod off lately. Speaking of which, this is gonna be the fourth night in a row that I force myself to sleep outside so that I don't get a headache in the morning. Man, I can't wait for all this to be over and done with.

I found a nice, mid-sized cloud at a low altitude and fluffed it a few times to create a makeshift pillow. But before I could lay down and close my eyes, I felt a presence behind me.

"I never got the chance to say this before, but you are quite brave, Ms. Spitfire."

Without even turning around, I knew who it was.

"So, you've been watching me sleep too, eh?" I said, still not bothering to turn around. "You don't have any respect for my privacy, do you Ms. Mare-Do-Well?"

"How am I supposed to protect you if I leave you alone?" Mare-Do-Well countered. "However, I'm a vigilante, not a peeping tom. I wouldn't stoop so low as to breathe down your neck during your more *ahem* intimate moments."

"Great. That makes me feel so much better," I said sardonically. "So, if you don't normally watch me while I sleep, why are you here?"

"I just wanted to offer my congratulations, of course," said Mare-Do-Well. "You managed to capture our quarry."

"I wouldn't celebrate just yet," I said tersely. "This mystery isn't over. Not by a long shot."

Mare-Do-Well flew out in front of me and tilted her head. "What makes you say that, Ms. Spitfire?"

"I think you know what," I said. "This isn't just about one dock-hole attacking my team anymore. This is about an entire army poised to conquer Equestria and the Griffon Kingdom. Or did you not know that?"

There was a heavy silence, and the air suddenly felt a lot colder.

"I have nothing to say to that," said Mare-Do-Well, obscuring her eyes with her hat.

"My flank you don't," I said sharply. "As it so happens, I've got a bit of dirt on you, Mare-Do-Well. And I've managed to discover that you may very well be connected to all this."

"I am not going to confirm nor deny that accusation," said Mare-Do-Well simply. "Like I said before, I want to show you the truth. But you have to show me some truth in return."

I snorted angrily. That was the last straw.

"Okay, listen up and listen good, you weirdo," I said, lifting myself off the cloud and getting right in Mare-Do-Well's face. "I've had it up to here with your riddles and your overly-cryptic crap. I've been busting my flank trying to catch this guy and figure everything out, and all you've been doing is playing hero and dropping me vague hints. Now, I'm going to ask you this one last time, and you had better give me a straight answer or so help me, I will rip that stupid mask off with my bare hooves. You knew more about what was going on from the very beginning. Why, then, did I have to play detective?"

If Mare-Do-Well was intimidated, she certainly didn't show it in her voice. "I thought you knew that already, Ms. Spitfire."

"Well, enlighten me then," I said, folding my forelegs. "Why didn't you do this yourself?"

"Because I didn't know everything, nor did I have the resources to find what you found."

I scoffed. "I don't believe you," I said. "You're connected to the tengu. Don't act like you aren't."

"I assure you, I'm not," said Mare-Do-Well. "At least, I don't think I am."

I raised an eyebrow. "You don't think you are? What the flipping heck is that supposed to mean?"

"To be honest, I'm trying to figure that out myself," said Mare-Do-Well.

Okay, now this was just getting ridiculous.

"So, we've gotten to the point where even you don't know what you're talking about," I said, rubbing the bridge of my nose with my hoof. "Great. That's just bucking marvelous. You know, if you were straightforward with me from the beginning, we wouldn't have this problem!"

"If I was straightforward with you from the beginning, you would never have believed me," Mare-Do-Well retorted brusquely. "I've been protecting you and your team for five days now. You should not be treating me like an enemy."

"Take your own advice," I shot back. "You said you were here to help me, but you've been keeping me at wing's length. I don't know how vigilantes operate, but in the Wonderbolts, you trust your partner. I'm willing to put my trust in you if you give me a good reason to. Maybe you should do the same."

Mare-Do-Well grew quiet. It was hard to tell because of the mask, but I think I hit a nerve with that one. I'm not sure why, though. Before I could inquire further, Mare-Do-Well's head shot up.

"Ms. Spitfire! Behind you!"

I spun around just in time to see a large shadow bearing upon me with some sort of blade drawn back. I rolled out of the way, and felt a sharp breeze as the blade missed me by a hair. Before I could retaliate, Mare-Do-Well flew out in front of me.

"We were in the middle of something," said Mare-Do-Well firmly. "Leave. Now."

The shadow did nothing of the kind, but instead flew towards me, trying to strike again. Mare-Do-Well responded in kind by burying her hoof into the assailant's chest.

"Perhaps you didn't hear me," grunted Mare-Do-Well. "I told you to leave."

The assailant elbowed Mare-Do-Well in the neck and shook her off. Getting a better look at the silhouette, I figured out that it was a tengu. Looks like the Empress wanted to send someone to clean up Pine Talon's mess.

"What we have here is a failure to communicate," growled Mare-Do-Well as she recovered. "So, I'll make this easier for you. Nopony is getting hurt as long as I still draw breath."

The tengu must've taken that as a challenge, because his next attack was aimed at Mare-Do-Well. He threw one of those cyclone weapons at her, and she nimbly dodged to the side and flew towards him. Her charge was met by a parry and a slash. Mare-Do-Well was sent into a somersault, but once she got her bearings, she charged again. This time, her attack connected as she buried both of her forehooves into the tengu's gut.

"You cannot beat me," Mare-Do-Well snarled. "Not while you threaten the innocent."

The tengu once again elbowed Mare-Do-Well and shook her off. He then lunged and slashed. Her motions a blur, Mare-Do-Well ducked and flew behind him. She then propelled herself into a dive. I saw the assassin draw back his blade, waiting for Mare-Do-Well to get into range. I sighed. I still didn't trust Mare-Do-Well completely, but I sure didn't want her to die.

"Pull up!" I barked, as if she were my wingpony.

Mare-Do-Well did as I ordered, narrowly dodging the strike as she did so. While the assailant processed this, I saw an opening. Taking the cloud that was supposed to be my bed, I flew over the tengu and jumped up and down on it several times. The ensuing downpour certainly succeeded in throwing him off-kilter, as he had no idea how to react to that. I gave Mare-Do-Well a nod, indicating that he was all hers.

Mare-Do-Well nodded in return and swooped in, delivering several punches and kicks. The tengu tried his best to block and parry them all, but my downpour made him so confused that he made a lot of sloppy mistakes. While he managed to get a few hits in, it didn't hinder his opponent in the slightest. With one final uppercut, Mare-Do-Well sent the would-be assassin into a tailspin.

I peered over my cloud to get a better look. Mare-Do-Well looked like a complete wreck. Her costume was tattered and torn, and her flight was very wobbly. Fortunately, our rude guest didn't decide to fire off a parting shot, thus provoking Mare-Do-Well to do something stupid in order to protect me. I flew over to her.

"You alright?" I asked.

Mare-Do-Well panted heavily and gave me a look. "Never *gasp* better," she said breathlessly.

Yeah, I'm calling horse apples on that. Again, I know false bravado when I see it.

"Let me take you to the infirmary," I said. "You could..."

"I said I'm fine," Mare-Do-Well growled, cutting across me. "It isn't that bad, trust me."

"Give me a reason to first," I retorted.

"Is that any way to talk to a pony who just saved your life?"

"Is that any way to talk to a pony who's trying to help you?"

"You've got it backwards, Ms. Spitfire. I'm helping you."

"Yeah, well. I'm not letting you fly solo on this one."

With that, I flew next to her and put her foreleg around my shoulder. Mare-Do-Well struggled against my grip.

"Wh-what do you think you're doing?" she sputtered.

"Same thing you did when you saved my life back there. I'm doing what's right," I said, giving her a smile. "Thanks for that, by the way."

Mare-Do-Well snorted. "You just want me under your hoof so that you can force answers out of me."

"What? I can't have more than one reason for doing something?" I said with a chuckle.

Mare-Do-Well sighed. "Sharp as ever, Ms. Spitfire. Though I don't know why I'd expect anything different, considering that you made it this far."

"I'll take that as a compliment," I said as I flew her back to base. "Now, after I check you in, you let the doctors do their thing and get some rest. And don't you dare disappear on me this time. We have a lot to talk about tomorrow."

Mare-Do-Well gave another sigh. "I suppose we do, Ms. Spitfire. I suppose we do..."

Comments

[MariusIoannesP]

Looks like the Tengu have decided to bust out the big guns.

"What we have here is a failure to communicate," growled Mare-Do-Well as she recovered.

Cool Hand Luke, right?

[Godiswithus3]

Hmm. I was wondering when the Empress was gonna notice that Pine Talon has gone missing. Didn't last a day. This tells me that there are at least three Tengu in Equestria. Maybe a a lot more.

And that was a decent fight between Mare-Do-Well and the would be assassin. Mare-Do-Well can take some punishment.

And it looks like Spitfire is gonna have a chance to grill in on the Mysterious Mare-Do-Well on what the former (and the reader) wants to know. Mainly how she knew the attacks were gonna occur and how she got possession of the Toxic Truffles and the antidote. This should be enlightening.

[SilverDiamond]

FINALLY some friggin anwsers. This Well pony is NOT off the hook for all the riddles she pulled. This thing COULD have been stopped before it began. No, Mare Do Well HAD to go for theatrics.