The Kingpin

by ocalhoun

The Shooting

Chapter 21 – The Shooting

The two of them waited, still, hiding in the bushes across the street from Sugarcube Corner. The sky was turning orange, and crickets were beginning to chirp.

“Can we go home yet, Twilight? They must have put the twins to bed by now.”

“I know.” Twilight didn't take her eyes off the building. “I'm counting on it.”

The minutes rolled by, and the sky slowly moved from orange to purple.

Finally, just as the first stars began to twinkle in the sky, two shadowy little shapes slipped out of Sugarcube Corner, softly closing the doors behind them.

“There,” Twilight whispered. “Keep close, but not too close. They can't know we're here.”

Slinking around corners and snooping through the gloom, the two of them followed the twins. Street after street, two small shadows paused, with two larger shadows scurrying behind. The crickets chirped and the cool night breeze ruffled through the leaves; the secret travels of the four ponies were seen by none.

Finally, the twins stopped. They stood still next to Ponyville's water tower.

Twilight shoved Pinkie and herself into a nearby bush before they could be spotted.

The twins did indeed look around carefully before proceeding. After a moment of tense silence, one of them nodded, and they began climbing the tall ladder on the side of it.

Twilight and Pinkie slowly rose a little higher in the bush, watching the foals go.

“Ohmigosh, Twilight, look!” Pinkie jumped up straight. “It's Princess Luna!”

“Pinkie! Ssh!” Twilight whipped around to look where Pinkie was pointing. She was just in time to catch a glimpse of Luna slinking away behind a building.

High above, from somewhere inside the water tower, an alarm rang out. It clashed incessantly and insistently.

From their house nearby, Daisy, Lilly, and Roseluck popped out of their door. They took one look at Twilight and Pinkie, then rushed back inside.

Twilight grimaced. “I've got a bad feeling about–”

The three flower ponies jumped back out. They held huge, multi-barrelled machine guns in their hooves, with long chains of flowers leading into them. All three sets of barrels started to spin.

“Take cover!” Twilight shoved Pinkie out of harm's way and into the recessed entryway of a nearby building. She used the reaction from her shove to push herself into the middle of the street and behind a stone fountain.

The three guns erupted into a constant, ear-splitting, heart-stopping buzz. Trails of flower stems plugged themselves into the ground just behind Twilight.

She pulled herself closer in behind the fountain and brushed a few stems out of her tail. She gasped for breath. There was no way she and Pinkie could stand against that kind of firepower! She looked over at Pinkie, hoping for the best.

Pinkie cowered inside the entryway, pressing herself tight against the wall to avoid her own hail of flying flowers. She tried the doorknob, but she didn't seem successful; it must have been locked.

Twilight knew what she had to do. She would teleport over to Pinkie, and then teleport them both to safety. Then they could find some way to sneak into that tower. If it was this well defended, it must have been–

The shooting stopped.

Twilight looked back over at Pinkie... just in time to see the door behind her friend open.

Lyra jumped out of the door and grabbed Pinkie. There was a bright yellow flash, and both of them were gone.

“Pinkie!” Twilight ducked away, pressing her back against the foundation. They had Pinkie! She looked up.

Bon Bon ran toward her out of the darkness. The mare looked unstoppable.

With the flower trio covering her escape route and a strong earth pony barreling toward her, Twilight had only one option.

She teleported away.

With a violet flash, she reappeared safe inside her library... but without Pinkie.

“Pinkie!” Twilight hid her face with her hooves. How could she have let them take her prisoner? She should have acted sooner! And how could she ever get Pinkie back? They could have teleported her anywhere! Who knew where they would take their prisoners.

There was no way now that she would be able to rescue Pinkie. It wasn't as if the ponies who took her would nicely take Twilight Sparkle to the same place, now was it?

Or was it?

A plan began to form. If she was captured, she would be taken to the same place, wouldn't she? But how could she rescue Pinkie if she herself was a prisoner?

She would need help.

Comments

[howard035]

There was no way she and Pinkie could stand against that kind of firepower!

Talk about flowerpower!