Disappear

by ShimmeringStallion

Answers

Answers

Seeing Apple Bloom hovering so precariously in the air, Applejack wanted to charge at Vanish, but knew she couldn’t do anything to stop his magic from throwing her little sister out of whichever train car window he would choose. Regardless, she went for it, dashing right at the stallion. “WAIT!!!” Apple Bloom’s scream stopped her sister in her tracks, as the yellow filly continued to panic. “Y-YOU CAN’T DO THIS!!! Y’JUST CAN’T!” Apple Bloom would be shaking in fear, had the gray-maned unicorn not been using his magic to balance her in the air.

He was used to this tension, but such vague statements were not what he was hoping to hear. “Well, this is an interesting answer.” Vanish dropped Apple Bloom on the floor of the train compartment, where she landed with a thud, before using the magic of his horn to close the train compartment windows. The other ponies couldn’t understand the stallion's actions, given how he had the perfect advantage over them as long as the windows were open. Vanish lowered his head and smirked. “I apologize, but the wind blowing in my ears was making it hard to hear you.” The ponies’ jaws dropped at the collective thought they had developed: “He just wanted to hear her better before tossing her!?”

Vanish continued questioning the filly. “Well? Why can’t I?” Apple Bloom was shaking, but racked her mind for an answer, saying the first thing that came to mind. “If y’do that, then… T-Then…” The dark blue pony’s patience was wearing thin at the pauses of the filly that shook before him. “‘THEN’ WHAT!?” Apple Bloom was intimidated into a silent state, but mumbled incoherently. Vanish laid down to hear her, placing his hoof on his ear. “I’m sorry, my dear, please speak up.” The Earth filly found herself incapable of doing anything other than swallowing nervously. Vanish saw her looking down, so he motioned for the other ponies to come closer with a wave of his hoof. Confused at the unusual gesture, they did as he motioned, as Applejack stood next to Apple Bloom, helping her relax with a gentle nuzzle. “It’s alright, Apple Bloom. I’ll protect ‘ya.”

Apple Bloom calmed down slightly, and Vanish tried a more calm approach, giving a look of genuine concern. “It’s not like you’d be in necessary danger, you know. What if you hit some shrubs, or leaves?” The young filly felt insulted by the stallion's claim, as a look of shock became reflected within her nervous, orange eyes. “But I wouldn’t! I’d be hurt real bad, and then my sis w-would…” Vanish barely hid the smile that was creeping onto his face. “Continue…” Apple Bloom swallowed nervously once more before speaking. “W-Well… nopony could beat my sis in a fight, I-I know she’d win… She’d get ‘ya back, you bully! S-She’d make ‘ya pay for tossin’ me off this train!”

Vanish activated the magic of his horn once more before scoffing at the filly. “You’re seriously using that, as your response?” Vanish picked Apple Bloom back up delicately with his magic, as a look of fury shined through his glare. “Let me clarify your answer: You’re saying that I shouldn’t throw you off, because your sister would pose a threat to me? Such a ridiculous and spontaneous answer, and that is what you’re going to say!?” Apple Bloom thought it over quickly. As much as it didn’t seem like a good answer, it’s exactly what she believed. “You bet that’s my answer! Well? What’re ‘ya gonna do!?”

The silence was only being broken by the sound of the wheels of the train car as they rolled on the tracks, and Vanish’s aura of unicorn magic that was levitating Apple Bloom precariously. Vanish turned his head to the window, smirking. “… You’re either smarter than you look, or very, very reckless. For the record, your answer, should it come to pass, would prove to be a most … troublesome occurrence.”

Vanish lowered the filly slowly, gently placing her on the floor of the train car before releasing her from his aura of magic, enabling Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle to run over and check on her as he spoke to the ponies in the cart with him. “None of you could best me under normal circumstances.” The stallion stepped towards a window off to the left of the train compartment, sitting on one of the seats while he spoke. “If you aren’t going to fight me with everything you’ve got, then you are destined to fail to stop my client. Why are you even coming to Canterlot if you won’t do anything to stop his plan?”

Twilight stepped forward with confidence. “We’ll stop him. We have each other, and when we get to Canterlot, Gather won’t be able to stop us.” Twilight’s eyes shone with a look of hope and concern. “But we know you aren’t our enemy.” She sat next to Vanish, as he gave her no acknowledgement of her presence. “So why are you doing this? Is it really just for money? Just for a few thousand bits? Why do something if you don’t want to?” Rarity moved closer to the two unicorn ponies, feeling the need to point out something that Vanish had mentioned. “If I may be so bold, you look like the kind of pony who could just walk away from your contract without feeling regret… I mean, you said so yourself earlier!”

“Do not attempt to convert me to your cause, my dea-…” The purple mare quickly interrupted the dark blue stallion, determined to get him to remember her. “Twilight Sparkle.” Vanish looked at Twilight's faint reflection in the window pane, but didn’t turn to face her, seeing a look of determination in the reflection of her eyes off the window as he responded. “… Don’t enter a fight you can’t hope to win, Twilight Sparkle.” For the first time since they had met, he called her by her name. It was a minor victory, but the way Twilight saw it, it could mean more if they could only help each other. Vanish took notice of her faint smile in the reflection of the window as he spoke to the purple unicorn. “You are truly committed to the belief that you can come out victorious, aren't you?” He turned his full attention to Twilight. “Alright, you played my game, I’ll play yours.”

Twilight raised her eyebrow, wary of the stallion's statement. “Are you sure? I mean, Gather didn’t even say anything about this!“ Vanish laughed at Twilight’s surprised reaction. “My dear, you are as naïve as ever. My client knows he will win. He has known ever since he learned I had acquired the wings of Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow subtly glanced at her back, seeing the bare spots where she once proudly brandished her wings for all to see (even if somepony didn’t want to, given her natural state of bragging) as Vanish spoke to Twilight. “You can’t win, but if you want to go over your game plan with me, then that's just fine. It’s ‘an exchange of information’, and my client allowed it.” The gray-maned stallion took out a scroll from his saddlebag’s other pouch, where he had placed his fedora moments ago. “This is today’s list of events, leading up to us reaching Canterlot, not that I’d need reminding, given how we went over it almost as often as we had went over the names of Cloudsdale Pegasi, prior to the instigation of our plans.”

Twilight took the scroll from Vanish, and read it to herself. Vanish was honest in what the list depicted. ‘Give and receive information about Canterlot plans’ was right near the bottom of the list. She skimmed the contents, surprised at the detail listed, before rolling it back up and using her magic to place it into Vanish’s saddlebag. It was all of events that had occurred, with some simple exceptions to recall if she needed to. She got her information, but wanted more. “… Alright, fine. What is Gather planning after getti-…” Vanish cut her off with a rather ignorantly dismissive wave of his hoof. “Save your breath. Do not even try to ask about that which I will not remain here to observe. Once I get your monarch’s wings, he’ll pay my fee, I’ll give him what he has paid me to obtain, and then I’m done here.” Vanish looked back outside the train, acting like he was ignoring the ponies as Twilight groaned in annoyance before asking her next question. “Alright, Vanish, when will you be getting Princess Celestia’s wings?”

The smoke gray-maned stallion remained looking out the window, his face unchanging, which prompted Twilight to almost repeat the question under the assumption that he was ignoring her until he opened his mouth. “Tonight, maybe, assuming everything goes as…” He paused for a while, before continuing. “… Tonight.” Twilight could see what Vanish was trying to say: ‘There’s no way Gather’s plan would fail.’ Vanish could see Twilight considering his words, and continued promptly. “Twilight Sparkle, know this: Every plan is…” The dark blue unicorn thought about what to say, looking up at the sky outside the window before shifting his gaze to the train floor beneath his hooves. “… Like a moving train. It has two points of weakness, when one may secure the highest probability of halting its progression: When it is starting, and when it’s about to reach the end of its track. Most plans are simply too strong to be stopped in the middle, much like a train in motion.”

The ponies contemplated Vanish's words to the best of their abilities as he continued his speech. “That moment of overconfidence at the approach of the end of a plan, and that struggle at the start: Through countless jobs, I’ve found those moments to be when I’m at my least prepared, despite how well-prepared I think I am. I need not the help of my memory to remember my feelings of shock, surprise, and doubt I have felt in the past. Remember this, or disregard it should you so desire.” Vanish walked to the front of the train cart, leading to where the ponies had left Pinkie Pie and Spitfire to rest. His chestnut brown eyes sized up each pony he walked by until he found himself face to face with Derpy. He looked into her eyes, in the same manner that he looked into the eyes of any other pony, paying no attention to the wayward directions her eyes were looking in; he wasn’t looking into them, but rather through them.

Despite who he was looking at, he clearly remained focused on speaking to the same unicorn he had been conversing with for most of the train ride. “We’re not friends, my dear. Regardless of what you want, regardless of what you may believe you want. I’ve played ‘host’ to a rather comfortable life without friends, allies, or accomplices.” Derpy blinked, her stare unwavering, her eyes unmoving. Vanish gave a hollow smile as he continued his walk to the front of the train car, voicing his thoughts of the purple unicorn. “You’re naïve, yet I find myself envious of that… With that in mind, follow me to the train car where we had left your friends and personal belongings, if you please.”

Vanish walked forward, sliding the doors out of the way with his hoof. The ponies looked at each other, thinking it could just be a trick, but chose to stick together as they followed the dark blue unicorn to the train car they had boarded. He walked to the front of it, looking at the ponies they had left behind as they appeared to be asleep. Pinkie Pie in particular was snoring in a rather adorable manner, made all the more humorous by her tongue sticking out of her mouth as it had been when she was put to sleep, causing her exhales to vibrate her tongue from the air hitting it.

Vanish smiled at the sight, but turned around when he reached the front of the compartment. “How about asking me some actual questions of merit?” He sat down, blocking the entrance to the front train cart. “Or perhaps I’ll just ask some of my own? Either way, I know at least one of you has had time to think of their question, haven’t you, little flyer?” Scootaloo was at the back of the line, but knew that the stallion was addressing her. As the ponies stepped out of her way, she walked forward, still mad at Vanish, but at this point she just disliked him. It wasn’t furious anger towards the stallion, but more akin to a form of dislike for what he was doing. “Please tell me the truth.” Vanish smirked, but Scootaloo frowned after seeing his change of expression, causing the stallion to respectively wipe the grin from his face.

After a moment, Scootaloo finally asked her question. “Why didn’t you take my wings back in the Cloudosseum?” Vanish laid down on his stomach, as Scootaloo trotted right up to his face, trying her hardest to look tough, truly believing she could intimidate the mercenary into responding, as she elaborated. “Tell me the truth. Was I really just being used? Was it because of me that Rainbow Dash lost her wings to you?” Vanish raised his head, looking down his nose at the orange filly before responding. “It sounds like you already believe in your own answer, so why are you aski-UGH!” The young Pegasus filly jumped up, smacking Vanish in the face with her hoof. The other ponies were about to dash ahead, before seeing Scootaloo turn her head, with tears in her eyes. “Just… Just say it! Just tell me the truth!”

Vanish kept his face turned, almost proud of the hit Scootaloo landed on him as he rubbed the spot where the impact had been made. “… If you ask a question, I won’t answer if you turn away from me. It just tells me that you either don’t want an answer, or you’re not ready to hear it. In which case, you forfeit your right to ask.” The stallion opened the door behind him with his magic, stood up, and turned around. Scootaloo made a dive for his hind leg, grabbing onto it with tears in her eyes. “JUST SAY IT!!!” Vanish’s hoof slipped out of her own grasp, before he took a couple more steps towards the next compartment’s door, prompting the filly to grab his leg again. “TELL ME!!! PLEASE!!!” The other ponies wanted to stop her, but knew they shouldn’t interfere. Vanish used his magic once more, this time to lift her into the air.

As she was thrown over the other ponies, colliding into the closed rear door of the train car with vicious force, the ponies ran over to help her. She was down, but not out. Vanish made sure that she was watching him before responding, knowing that any answer he’d give her would just be ignored by the young Pegasus filly, so long as it was not the answer she was seeking. “You’re not ready to listen.” With those words, Vanish walked into the front train car to speak to the conductor, as he closed the door behind him with his magic. Scootaloo could hear the voices of the ponies and fillies around her as they resonated with reassurance and concern, but she wasn’t listening. She just wanted to hear those three words: “It’s your fault.”