Just Pull the Trigger
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Her heart beat slowly, yet it beat harder and stronger than ever before. You could see it beat through her chest. Even when she and her friends faced Nightmare Moon it didn't beat like this. She had known then that her life was in danger but she had never faced such terror, such in-your-face danger like this. She lifted her hoof up and pushed the smooth, cold object into her mouth. This was it. The defining moment. If she did this and everything was alright it would all be over and she could go back to Ponyville with her head held high. All she had to do was...
Pull.
That.
Trigger.
Rarity stepped down from the carriage, the door held open by the chauffeur. She thanked him with a nod of her head and a fluttering of her eyelids that would make any stallion fall in love. Keeping her usual facade of elegance and grace, she walked through the doors in front of her. However, once she entered the club she felt nothing but gut-wrenching horror from earlier.
She had been invited to showcase her work in front of thirty of the most highly respected fashion critics in Equestria. Rarity knew her work was fabulous, it always had been. A line of dresses specifically for pegasi. They flowed freely, tinted with hints of weather's awesome power. Bolts of lightning danced through dark clouds, swirling with what seemed like the sun's own glowing light shining through and illuminating long streams of rainbows. Rarity could admit it was not her best line of work. She had thrown it together rather quickly, having only a week to prepare. But she knew her work was great; even Rainbow Dash had complimented her on it.
Unfortunately the critics did not seem to agree. Throughout the show it seemed like none of them even cared or were interested in what she had brought. After the show all she got for a compliment was from the stage director.
"Thanks Rarity. You did... pretty good."
She held onto her poise leaving the show, but as soon as she entered the limousine the producer had arranged for her, she nearly flooded the large compartment with her tears. Luckily the chauffeur was kind enough or indifferent towards her to notice the wailing sobs from behind him. Rarity was glad he had never stopped to ask what was wrong, but she was also madly depressed he hadn't. She really needed something to get her out of this funk.
And that's where this little nightclub came in. Club Basix it was called. It was named after its owner, Basic Beats. Rarity remembered hearing about the club from Twilight Sparkle, apparently being the first place she ever had a drink. Twilight really built this place up but Rarity was very disappointed when she reached the main hall. It was such a simple place. Simply ugly! Bland and contrasting colors glaring off mismatched furniture and wall decor intruded Rarity's vision from all sides. To her it looked more like a school gymnasium dressed up to look like a nightclub. The only things that didn't look out of place was a tiny crowded dance floor underneath a Disc Jockey station. Opposite the DJ was the bar, which Rarity immediately strode towards. She hopped up on the bar stool after giving it a quick wipe down with a handkerchief. She was very careful not to put too much of her hoof down on the bar, since it was covered in grease and grime from the years of the owner being too cheap to buy some decent cleaners.
A scruffy barkeep came up and looked Rarity once over before speaking in a gravelly voice, "What'll it be miss?"
She gave a brief smile, which looked more like a grimace. "I'll have a Thunder Quake if you don't mind, sir."
The barkeep gave her a blank stare before asking in a confused voice, "A Thunder... Quake?"
Rarity giggled nervously and cleared her throat. "Y-yes? You take a highball glass, put in one part cherry brandy, one part cognac and then fill it with..."
She stopped short when the bartender held his hoof up. "We don't serve anything like that fancy stuff. We have only a couple choices: vodka, whiskey, gin, or cider." He waved his hoof at the small liquor shelf behind him. "So, what'll you have?" he asked with an added air of impatience.
"Surely you must at least have some decent scotch back there?" Rarity whined.
"Well..." The bartender puttered around in his head a moment before he said, somewhat uneasily, "I do have some scotch, but this here bottle belongs to Howitzer. I s'pose you would have to ask him."
"Ah. And where might I find this Howitzer?" she asked.
"He's the head of security here. You'll find him over there."
He pointed back towards the front door. There was a little desk next to it with a large stallion sitting in front, his back hooves up. A black Stetson, not too dissimilar to Applejack's was tipped over his face. He had a black vest covering him, with the words 'Security' emblazoned across the front. Rarity nodded to the barkeep before hopping down from the stool. She moved through the dancing crowd towards the desk and cleared her throat when she reached it. The stallion either ignored her or just didn't hear her, so she nudged his hoof. Still no response.
"Um, excuse me, Mr. Howitzer?"
Howitzer didn't look up but he finally replied, "Just Howie, if you don't mind. What d'ya want?"
"Um, the barkeep said that he has some scotch and I could REALLY use a decent drink after tonight. He said to ask you, so I was wondering." She adopted a sweet and sultry voice. "If a nice handsome gentlecolt such as yourself would be willing to let me have at least one little glass? Hmm?"
The stallion grunted and tipped his hat up. Rarity was blown away, he was indeed a handsome colt. He looked her up and down much like the barkeep did with his deep blue eyes. "I'm afraid not," he said, tipping the hat back over his face.
Rarity dropped her sweet act and huffed. "And just why not sir?"
"I don't like you," he stated.
"Oh? And just how would you know you don't like me? You don't even know my name, let alone who I am or what I do!"
"I just know. I can just tell if I won't like somepony just by lookin' at 'em. And you..." He pointed his hoof at her. "...Don't look like a nice pony to me."
"Well that's just plain rude!" Rarity dropped her entire facade of kindness and slapped her front hooves on the desk. "You simply cannot know what kind of pony I am simply by looking at me! I'll have you know I am one of the most generous ponies around and almost the kindest!"
The stallion chuckled and tipped his hat up again. He looked at the mare huffing and puffing in front of him and smiled. Taking his hooves off the desk, he leaned forward towards Rarity and said, "Y'know what, you're right! So I'll tell you what, you sit down and have a nice chat with me and I'll let you have a glass of my scotch. If I do like you after our chat, I might let you have more."
Rarity blinked a few times. She had not expected her little rant to work. Plus she was halfway in between taking him up on his offer and disregarding everything she knew about being a lady by bucking his sorry flank up and down the club.
"Well?"
She dropped back down on all fours and lifted her nose in the air. "HMMF! I-I suppose."
"...So you were all enamored with this big rock?"
Rarity squeaked a little and looked around her to see if somepony might have heard him. Fortunately Howie had acquired them a little table away from everything. It was set back in the wall, so it was pretty private.
"Shh! Please, that was quite embarrassing for me!" She took a sip from what was now her third glass of scotch. "I've never been more embarrassed! But... yes, I had practically fallen in love with this huge boulder. I dragged it around Ponyville, which was very difficult seeing as Discord was constantly changing everything around us! He made the roads into soap, occasional chocolate drizzles and that was the worst! Because I was so in love with this... rock I had not even noticed my mane was getting crusty with chocolate!"
Howie leaned back and howled with laughter. Rarity glared at him, but her face softened into a smile and she even managed a small giggle. "Yes it is amusing now that I look back on it." She looked at Howie whose laughter died down to a hearty chuckle. He wiped a tear from his eye and looked at Rarity. She stared back at him. His sapphire eyes gleamed in the soft light of the club, flashing occasionally from the strobe and lasers from the dance floor.
She felt a blush spread on her cheeks and looked back down at her glass to hide it. Without looking up she said, "I really want to thank you for this. I really needed it."
"Well now, I'm glad you brought that up." Howie's voice because quite serious. "I wanted to ask you about that. What is it that's got you all down and out?"
"Oh, you don't want to know about that," Rarity spoke softly.
"You would be surprised, Miss Rarity. I might even be able to help you out. Now I can tell it's one of three things: it's either a stallion or mare that's got you down, work, or family. So which is it?"
She looked back up at him. What she said next was so quiet Howie almost didn't hear her over the cacophony of the club, "Work."
"Okay, that's a good start. You said you design dresses, eh?" Rarity nodded her response. "Well from what you are wearing tonight I can tell you are pretty damned good, so why the stress?"
Rarity brought her gaze to the dress she wore. It was a rather simple design but one of Rarity's favorites. She actually wore it to some of her shows, but nopony had ever actually complimented her on it. "W-well thank you Howie for the wonderful compliment." Howie waved it off.
"But... well, tonight I had a really big show. There were a lot of very important ponies there. Some were from the biggest magazines in Equestria! And I kind of... blew it."
"How so? Don't tell me old Hoity Toity gave you the silent treatment did he?"
Rarity's eyes shot up to the stallion in shock. "How did you know?"
He chuckled again. "Ah, I know his grand Hoityness from school. Such a drama queen for a stallion... anyway, I know the guy, just because he is quiet doesn't mean there isn't somethin' turnin' in his head."
"Yes but he wasn't the only one. I think the only compliment I got from the entire crowd was from the director. And it was a half-arsed one at that!"
"Wow. But it may not have meant anything Rarity. Hell maybe they were all just shocked at how good it was?"
It was Rarity's turn to laugh, albeit mirthlessly. "No my dear Howie, I think not. Truthfully I may have just ruined my career with this last show. Even with me putting my life into it."
"You really love what you do, huh?"
"Yes. Yes I do." She looked back down at her glass, a small tear dropping into the already watered down whisky.
The two sat in silence, except for the occasional sniffle from Rarity and the deep thump of the music. Howie truly felt sorry for the beautiful mare. He could probably talk to Hoity Toity, but Howitzer Flintlock doesn't stake his reputation on just anypony.
"You know," he started slowly. "I have to say you really haven't put your life into it."
Rarity's head shot back up, a look of confusion and growing anger etched in her face. Her voice shook as she whispered, "What did you just say to me?"
"I said you haven't truly put your life into it." he repeated. "If you want, I think I can help you, but I don't put my reputation on the line if I know somepony isn't willing to truly give it their all. Would you like me to help you?"
"HA! How can you help me? Just because you know Hoity Toity from school doesn't mean you can run the fashion industry! I've failed and that's that!"
"Now there's no need to get hurtful. I'm willing to talk to Hoity Toity. He owes me big time after he got in a little ruckus a couple months ago. He sometimes comes here and plays some poker with a couple of fellas downstairs and the last time he won the entire pot, the boys didn't like that too much. But I don't tolerate fighting here. It's bad for business and Hoity is good for business."
Howie stood up from the table and tipped his hat back. "Now if you want me to help you, I'm going to give this one chance to follow me. If I get to that door across the dance floor and I don't see you coming, I'm going to tell Hoity Toity to forget he ever saw your show and focus on some other designer. If I do see you, I'm going to make you a one time offer. Right now this is all I'm going to tell you."
Rarity watched him as he began walking across the club. What in Equestria is he on about? she thought. A one time offer? If he truly thinks he can help me then what choice do I have? It may be my only chance to succeed now. She picked up her glass and drained it before sliding off her chair and crossing the club. Howie reached the door and looking back, he smiled, seeing the mare coming towards him.
I hope she doesn't take my offer, he thought to himself. Would be a shame to see that much beauty go to waste. Rarity walked up to him and nodded. He opened the door to reveal a set of stairs leading into a cold, dark basement. Rarity hesitated before perking her head up high and strolling down the rickety wooden steps.
Cigar smoke stagnated the air in the basement of Club Basix. One lone, bare light bulb illuminated through the haze a green folding table, around which three ponies and a mule puffed on stogies, two of them holding five cards in their hoof.
"Alright Hoity, this is where you finally lose." A forest green earth pony sneered as he looked at the redraw just dealt to him. Hoity Toity merely adjusted his sunglasses and stared down at the one card he was just dealt.
"Alright gentlecolts, cough 'em up, let's see who wins." The unicorn dealer nearly shouted.
The earth pony layed his hoof out and spread the cards across the table. The dealer looked at the cards. "A flush, nine-high. What about you Mr. Toity?"
Hoity Toity laid his cards down, only three of them face up. The seedy earth pony looked across the table at the hoof. "Three of a kind! HA HA! I knew I'd beat you one day!" He reached his legs up and began sliding the large pile of bits on the table towards him, but stopped as Hoity raised a hoof. He placed his hoof down next to the face down cards and flicked them right side up. The dealer looked down at the cards.
"Correction, full house, kings high!" He looked over at the green pony, "Sorry Trips, you lose. Again."
Trips' jaw hit the table. "But... how? How can it be?"
Hoity Toity laughed and spoke in his usual posh, holier-than-thou voice. "I say dear Trips, I am as they say, Fast Company. Where as you are simply a donkey." He reached up and slid the pile of bits into a small bag.
"Hey, I resent that! My father was a donkey!" the grey mule to Hoity Toity's right said angrily.
Hoity looked over his sunglasses at the mule. "Hmm, quite."
Trips growled a little at Hoity, but the four of them jumped a little as they heard the clip clop of hooves on the stairs. They looked through the smoke and saw one of the most beautiful mares in Equestria descending.
"Well what do we have here?" Trips said, slicking his greasy mane back. He jumped up and made his way over to the mare. Bowing in front of her, he said in what was most likely the worst debauchery of the Prench accent ever heard, "Enchanté, mademoiselle!" The mare cringed at the look of the dirty colt. She just about turned and booked it back up the stairs when Howie came down not a moment too soon.
"Hey now Trips, Rarity here is a classy lady. She doesn't want anything to do with you."
Trips looked genuinely hurt. "What and I'm not classy?" he said spitting onto his hoof and smoothing out his eyebrows, which he wiggled at the very obviously disgusted mare.
Hoity Toity stood up from his seat. "Good Celestia Howitzer, did you just say 'Rarity'?"
"Yes I did Hoity. She's what I came down to talk to you about, so..." He motioned for the others to leave. "If you wouldn't mind giving us a while boys."
Rarity stood in shock. She stared at the fashion designer before her, barely noticing the others purposefully bumping into her flank as they ascended the stairs. Hoity cut the awkward silence short first. "Miss Rarity, it is a... pleasure to see you again so soon. Your work tonight was um, interesting to say the least."
"T-thank you?" Rarity stuttered out.
"Mm, please don't mention it."
"Now, now Hoity, I gotta talk to you about something and starting things off this way ain't helping matters. You remember that favor you owe me?" Howie strode over to the table and drank one of the full shots still sitting on it.
"Ugh, how could I forget it, Howitzer? You remind me every time I see you."
Howie motioned Rarity to come over to the table. She did so, her legs wobbling violently as she walked. "Well Hoity, as I understand it, Rarity here says she may have ruined her career tonight. Do you think that's true? And please be honest with me, you know how much I hate wafflers."
Rarity sat down at the table next to the seat Hoity moved to occupy. Hoity looked over at the nervous filly and sighed. "Yes, I dare say she made quite the foal of herself this evening. I mean weather themed? Come now, Miss Rarity, why would the entirety of the fashion world be overjoyed by a line designed only for the interests of pegasi?"
"I-I just thought... It was a welcome change from what is in this year."
"Yes, but a change in the wrong direction I believe. Now what is this favor you want from me, Howitzer?" Hoity directed his attention directly at Howie as the security guard sat down opposite of him.
"First I want to know if you have sent your review off to your editor already."
"I haven't. I still have some minor details to work out about how dreadful it was." He tossed a glance in Rarity's direction, who recoiled from the glare.
"Okay Hoity, I want you to rewrite it. I want you to make it positive. Say that Rarity's work was a stroke of genius not unlike your own!"
Rarity couldn't take her eyes off Howie. "Howie, I-I don't know how I could ever repay—"
Howie raised a hoof to silence her as Hoity Toity scoffed, "And just why would I do such a thing?"
Howie laughed. "Because Hoity, if you don't your little poker sessions down here come to an end." Hoity's face dropped in a way Rarity never thought see would ever see from him again since the show in Ponyville.
"And Rarity here is going to show me how much she wants this to happen."
Rarity started to look uneasy. "How am I going to show that?"
Howie chuckled. "This is my one time offer, Rarity. If you can show me how much you want this, I'll make Hoity here stick to his word and he will rewrite his review. Have you ever played roulette, Rarity?"
"I suppose so. There were a few tables at the Gala last year."
"Well then this should be somewhat of an easy concept for you. Have you ever heard of Gallopway Roulette?"
Rarity's unease was very apparent now. "No, is it some kind of new way to play? Do I have to gamble to get this? I don't have many bits with me at the moment."
"It's a kind of way to play. And you won't be betting your bits in this game, Honey. You remember me saying you never put your life into your work. As in actually put your entire life into it?"
Rarity gulped and nodded. Howie continued, "Well this is your chance." He reached his hoof into his vest and pulled out a long, silver revolver which he placed in front of Rarity on the table.
Rarity was visibly shaken by the sudden appearance of the weapon. It was not a common weapon, as most ponies either didn't know how to use one or even needed one. Robbery and assault was something only bars and banks experienced, so outside of those venues guns were rarely seen. It was a formidable sight nonetheless. Howie picked the gun back up and popped out the cylinder. He began unloading the shells and placing them primer side down on the table until six rounds had lined up in front of him. "I'm glad to see you know exactly what this is. This game is quite simple Rarity. You put one bullet in and spin the cylinder. Then you cock the hammer, put it to your head and pull the trigger."
Rarity gasped, appalled by what she heard. Howie went on, "After that, if you are not dead, open it up and you put one more bullet in. Spin the cylinder again and pull the trigger. Then you do that once more. If you are still alive after three shots, I will have Hoity Toity rewrite the review. But right now, this very moment is your only chance to leave. If you leave, I won't blame you and I won't give it a second thought. Quite a few stallions and mares stronger and less wise than you have left without playing."
Rarity's jaw hung open from the speech she was just given. "H-how many others have actually done something like this? Who could be so foalish?"
"You would be surprised, Rarity. I've lost count of how many have agreed to do this. Not all of it was to get my help on something though. A lot of times they played just to see if they could do it. I myself have played. Twenty seven times to be exact. A lot of times I play with another pony. We take turns until one of us is the unlucky one." The stallion winked. "And think of this, the fact that I'm still here means I've never lost."
She put a hoof up to her mouth to close it. How could somepony ask her to play such a horrible game? Even worse, what kind of pony would invent such a game? What kind of mare does he think I am? she thought. But... if he's serious, and Hoity Toity will actually do it... No. NO, just no! I can't do such a thing. If I did this and died, what would my friends do? What would Sweetie Belle do? I can't just abandon them like this. If my career is actually over, I'll just accept it and live out my days selling jewels.
She got up from her seat and slowly walked towards the stairs. Behind her she heard Howie sigh. "Now ain't that a shame, Hoity? I really thought she would give it her all." Hoity Toity responded with an befitting grunt.
Rarity, on the other hoof stopped dead in her tracks. She whipped around and glared at the two ponies. But after a moment her gaze softened and she walked back to the table. She grasped Hoity Toity's sunglasses with her magic and pulled them off his face so she could look at him eye to eye. "I want your absolute word that you will write my review the way Mr. Howitzer said to. Can you give me that promise?"
Hoity gazed back into Rarity's eyes, a mix of uncertainty and amazement shining through. "I do owe Howitzer a large favor. If he wants me to write it in a way that puts you up on a pedestal then I will stick to my word. Not that I think it will help you of course."
"We will see about that." Rarity turned towards Howie. "And you give your word that if I go through with this... ludicrous idea of a game, that you will make him rewrite that review?"
Howie stared at her, honesty emblazoned in every feature of his chiseled face. "I give my word as a stallion. I swear on my father's grave that if you do this Hoity Toity will rewrite his review."
Seeming pleased with the answer yet still visibly nervous, she sat back down at the table and loaded one round into the chamber. She lifted the heavy pistol up with her magic and pointed it at her head. Howie reached over and put a hoof on the gun, lowering it. "Just remember, if you play you play for keeps. Once you pull that trigger the first time, you must play until the end. I say this because I don't actually want you to play, Rarity. It's just... I just have to know you can pass this test."
Hoity spoke up. "After thinking about this Rarity, if you can do this I guarantee I will do what I can to make your show seem like it was Celestia's gift to Equestria. Not just every pony would or could do something like this to save themselves."
Rarity nodded to both of them and Howie took his hoof off the gun. He stared right into her eyes. "Now take a breath. Take it deep."
Rarity breathed in as deep as she could and let it out slowly. Her hooves started shaking against the table. "Calm yourself, Rarity. This is the worst part."
Rarity started sweating then. As much as she hated perspiring she knew she couldn't help it. But this was no time to think. She moved slow, picking the gun back up.
"Are you okay?" Hoity asked, only mildly intrigued.
"Do you think I'm okay?" Rarity pretty much screamed. "I'm terrified!"
"You still have a chance to go, Rarity, all you..."
"NO! No, I'm not leaving. As you said, I have to pass this test."
"Okay. Now count to three."
Rarity took another deep breath. She could feel her heartbeat pick up. "One."
"Two."
"Three."
Rarity hesitated. It was if her magic told her not to do it. She willed and pushed at it inside her head. Just... pull the trigger.
*click*
Rarity let out the breath she was holding in and laughed maniacally. "Oh my Celestia! I can't believe I just did that!" She looked at the two stallions in front of her and saw that they were grinning ear to ear.
"Good Rarity, good! The hardest part is over. Now put one more in its place." Howie slid one of the nickel-plated shells towards Rarity. She was breathing hard, her whole body shaking. She opened the cylinder and stuck the shell in next to the other. Spinning it, she flipped the cylinder back into place with a flick of her magic like a pro. "Hey, careful now! I don't want you bending the crane!" Howie said, concern for his "baby" clear on his face.
"The... what? Oh never mind, let me concentrate," Rarity said. She cocked the hammer back, but this time hesitated to put it to her head.
"Okay Rarity, I did say the hardest part is over, but I didn't say these parts were easy. Speaking of Celestia, you should say a little prayer to her. And this time close your eyes. Sometimes it helps."
Rarity nodded and closed her eyes. Please Celestia, watch over me. Guide my hoof so that I can get through this alive. And if not... please watch over Sweetie Belle and all my friends. They probably won't understand. Sweetie Belle most of all. She kept her eyes closed and brought the barrel back to her temple. She took another deep breath and held it in. It was oddly silent for being in a nightclub, only the soft beat of the bass from upstairs could be heard. No that wasn't bass. That was Rarity's heart.
Again Rarity's magic wouldn't do the deed. She nearly screamed it out loud, JUST PULL THE TRIGGER!
*click*
Rarity sighed. Inside, she began berating herself for getting her into such a mess, How could you do this to yourself, Rarity? To your family? To your friends? Would you blame them if they never wanted to be your friends again, if they learned you did something like this? So many won't even get the chance to say goodbye. Then and there, Rarity nearly broke down in tears but she couldn't let herself do it. She bit her lip and focused on the icy revolver still pressed to her head.
"Very, very good, Rarity." Howie's soft voice snapped her out of her inside torment. "Only one more to go and this one is the most dangerous." He slid one more round towards Rarity. She opened her eyes gazing at Hoity Toity and Howitzer. Howie looked on the verge of tears himself and Hoity looked dumbfounded, probably due to the fact he never expected somepony to go so far to get ahead in his industry.
This mare absolutely deserves my attention. The attention of the fashion world! he thought to himself. If she actually survives, she will be my shining star.
Rarity took the bullet that was placed before her and tried to put it in the revolver's cylinder. It slipped out of her grasp and hit the floor. Howie slowly reached over and took the gun from Rarity. Leaving the dropped round on the ground, he grabbed another from in front of him. He put it in next to the other two. Gently, he closed the cylinder after spinning it. He purposely avoided looking at it, so he wouldn't know the outcome. Then he put it back down on the table and slid it back over to the mare.
Rarity reached for it with a hoof this time. She grasped the cold steel, gliding her hoof along the intricate etching in the metal. If it had not been an instrument of death, she would have been awestruck at the beauty of the design. Reaching up, she pressed the barrel to her head. She held it there for a moment, then lowered it from her head. Howie and Hoity looked confused.
"Now Rarity, remember what I said. You gotta keep playing. Until the end," Howie said rather sternly.
"I know," Rarity's voice broke. "I just had a thought. If I don't survive, would I want an open casket? If so, I should put it in my mouth."
She giggled at the thought. Both Hoity and Howie at least smiled, but it was a sad smile. Rarity stopped giggling. She took one last look at the stallions in front of her and closed her eyes. Suddenly her life flashed before her eyes. Her horn bringing her to that jewel filled rock; the day she discovered her talent and finally got her cutie mark. Coming home after school when her parents told her she would be having a baby brother or sister.
Sitting next to her mother, swaddling her gorgeous sister. Putting that grand opening sign up on Carousel Boutique. Meeting all of her friends, her best friends in the whole world. The Sister Hooves Social, where she discovered how important Sweetie Belle truly was to her. And now she was risking it all. Just to be a star in the eyes of every high fashion pony in Equestria. What an idiot I am.
Then she heard that beat again. The beat not coming from upstairs.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Her heart beat slowly, yet it beat harder and stronger than ever before. You could see it beat through her chest. Even when she and her friends faced Nightmare Moon it didn't beat like this. She had known then that her life was in danger but she had never faced such terror, such in-your-face danger like this. She lifted her hoof up and pushed the smooth, cold object into her mouth. This was it. The defining moment. If she did this and everything was alright it would all be over and she could go back to Ponyville with her head held high. All she had to do was...
Pull.
That.
Trigger.
With a final thought of prayer and love for her friends family, Rarity opened her eyes. Just in time to watch the hammer swing.
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You glorious bastard.
Woah. Dark, tense, and Rarity. I enjoyed it thoroughly, good sir.
Damn, the suspense is killing me.....
Haha, I get it. Russian Roulette, a One-Shot story, I see what you did there.
(Joke) Alt. Title: Trigger Happy!
Well, don't leave us in the dark!
Did she survive... or did she lost the game?
2010821 Never heard of Russian roulette?
One of my favorite one-shots because of the suspense. When I first started reading I thought it was going to be a suicide story. But i'm glad i was wrong.
the tension was so thick that I cut it apart and served it for supper and baked the rest into cupcakes
Wingless, you magnificent bastard, I read your fic!
I am shaking. Brilliantly written, and you could not have ended it better.
I have to ask, though, could you possibly edit the story to specify the number of chambers in the gun? For some reason, I feel like there's a big difference between a five-round cylinder and a six, maybe enough to change Rarity's initial decision to play the game.
Do you want me to die? This is the worst cliffhanger I have EVER read. I may die of a heart attack or aneurism if this isn't updated soon!!!
Oh. My. Goddesses.... This is AMAZING! The only thing beating this on a suspense scale is waiting for the new season. Hats off, 2 hooves up, slow clap, whistles and whinnies, and all other signs of approval to this fic.
2342448 Hmm I do suppose the number of chambers in the cylinder would change up the odds of actually shooting oneself. Although when I wrote this I had envisioned a standard six round .38 or .44 Mag. (Remember: LITTLE ponies. I doubt they'd be waving around the five round .500 magnum or a four to five round .45 LC) But anyway, good point. I may or may not change it. Just have to wait and see.
So since this says incomplete will we get a finishing chapter or is it meant to end like this? Please... i need to know!
Very good story. Only 2 complaints. "Suddenly her life flashed before her eyes." Extremely cliche stock phrase. I know many disagree, though I think not having an ending is lazy writing. "If I'm going to imagine the end, I might as well imagine the beginning and the middle" http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=prometheus_nutshell
I will say that was quite good. But I will go on to say that I think any kind of actual ending will ruin the whole thing. I mean that's the point of this you're supposed to fill it in however you like.
If you think she blows her head off. She did
If you think she survives. She did
If you think they stop here before it all goes south. They did
If you think Discord came in and turned the gun in to snowflakes. Then by Celestia he did.
That or you just enjoy the suspense.
2343073 Maybe. You will have to wait and see the next update.
2343310 Yeah I know it's cliche, but I saw it as more of an expression of character on Rarity's part. Who and what does one think of when they stare very probable death in the face? What was so important to her that they would be her possible last thoughts? And yes, you're right. Prometheus was crap.
2343350 See sentence two of the beginning of this comment.
2342808
With five chambers, total odds of survival are (4/5) * (3/5) * (2/5) = 19.2%
With six chambers, total odds of survival are (5/6) * (4/6) * (3/6) = 27.8%
Not a trivial difference when your life is on the line, but the important point to take away is that Rarity is pretty crazy either way.
Speaking as someone who doesn't know much about guns, I automatically assumed a standard Western-style six-shooter.
2343457 Hmm thanks for doing the math. I can't math. But yeah she crazy.
I know what happened and I'll never tell! XD
That made me jittery. In a good way. On edge as it were. Good story so far, and I most definitely want to see how this ends.
Magnificent!
I think this sums it up better than any comment I could write:
One of the most compelling stories I've read in a while. I understand if it's just a one-shot story, but seeing it as "incomplete" tortures me, one of the few instances where that is a good thing
A great way to "end" it - you know what - A great story all around
I'm quite enthralled with this story.
Very nice, it eased me in before leaving me on the edge.
AAAAGH CLIFFHANGARRRR
SPOILER WARNING
images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080720234613/metalgear/de/images/9/91/Young_ocelot.jpg
It's a blank.
2344410 Oh come on! That would be horrible! Right in the mouth like that, it would burn her throat so badly, she'd probably never speak again.
I'd prefer there to be an actual bullet than that.
Are you going to end this?I want to know if she...dies.
It does say incomplete.....
2342808 I see you changed it, and rather elegantly, as well. Thanks.
Even apart from the raw effect on the probabilities, a five-round cylinder simply seems more psychologically intimidating: after you hear the description of the game, you would instantly think "Wow, the last spin is probably going to kill you." It's a stupid reaction, because the odds are technically against you either way, but you'd have to be truly insane to play the game with a five-shot weapon, in my opinion. Specifying six rounds characterizes Rarity as more desperate than crazy, which I think is the intention.
I kinda want it to end in media res, or with a thematically linked non-sequitur.
Anyway, I may have paid for the whole seat, but I only used... THE EDGE. Great suspense and ambience, specially how you built up to the point that Rarity going ahead with this crazy idea was believable.
If I have any issues, it was mainly with how fast the two first shots went. It felt rushed, but I also have no idea how it could be changed.
Masterful build up of suspense. Loved it.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that they're duds. Not blanks, just empty shells or something. Howie's only trying to show Hoity that she's willing to put her life on the line. They'd be in a fuckload of trouble for actually getting her killed. And don't say that because she was willing and she pulled the trigger that it's her fault, just means it's manslaughter(ponyslaughter?) instead of murder.
2349177
An excellent deduction, my dear Twilight.
fc00.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/199/c/a/good_point__my_dear_twilight_by_the_wizard_of_art-d52upoj.jpg
Except that it's wrong.
2349730
Not duds, eh?
2344496 But then she would be a world-famous MUTE fashion designer! That would be amazing for her career, in and of itself!
2349730
If they believe they are getting away with having one of Elements of Harmony killed on Princess Celestia's turf, they are quite stupid.
On the other hoof, they just may be quite stupid.
Quite excellent. I did catch a couple of small grammar mistakes, only one I was able to get in copy and paste because I really wanted to keep reading.
"You really love what you do huh?" You should have a comma right after "do" so it reads "You really love what you do, huh?". At least it seems. If there purposefully wasn't supposed to be a pause there, then ignore me. There was one other minor grammatical issue immediately thereafter too, but that was all I caught. I know your proofreaders did an excellent job and can't catch 100% of things. Infact, this is a story I will be referring the authors I'm proofreading for. It was very good, and I for one, am excited for the next chapter.
Nice Story. I heard of Russian Roulette But I never imagine anyone ever playing or consider how scared shitless they must feel.
I just had a bad thought in my head and it really scared me.
Thanks for the story. Now I’m going to try my best and sleep now. Good Night.
2343310 Also... if you listen to the song this story was originally based on, you'll see why I used that expression.
2356577 It's not like they would of been the ones to kill her.
2404395
Incitement to suicide is a serious crime. And I doubt they'd see much in the way of mercy.
Also, while Howie might get away, and merely serve prison time for unknowingly assisting, I guess Hoity-Toity would be hanged for high treason, conspiring and causing a major damage to Equestria's defense. He managed to disable the Elements of Harmony, exposing Equestria to critical threats, and he'd be very hard-pressed to claim ignorance of Rarity's importance. (and it would make quite the waves, anypony ever associated with him would be suspect of being a spy, and become a pariah.)
2404485>>2356577>>2349177 Your comments doth stir things in my head, and I must reply to thou henceforth.
I have/had thoughts on this particular problem. "She's an Element of Harmony! How could such a thing happen if she DOES die?" Well my first thought would be to write up a small story pertaining to Luna, who finds Howie not long after the removal of Nightmare Moon. She pulls the trigger three times, blah, blah, blah. He had helped her, so she's fine and dandy with it. Same story, different character and motivations. Exactly why I didn't do that.
Thought two, was that the Princesses allow/tolerate it, due to some "Rainbow Factory" style reason. Like "Howie's victims make dark, stormy and depressing rain clouds because all his victims are unreasonably angsty or something of the sort. I love the song, but sorry, don't like the story itself. Interesting concept, but... it's still a no for me. The main reason I decided against thought two.
Thought three, (and I was really stretching with this one) Howie IS one of the Princesses. I was drunk then too, get off my back.
After all that, I settled on this, and I am going to write it in a way that does not spoil, so do not take this as pure canon for the story. I will recomment or blog a better, lengthier version of this explanation: The reason this is all able to take place right in Canterlot, simply put, the Princesses don't bloody know. If they did, poor Basic Beats would be out of a Head of Security, I'm sure. I like to think that murders are pretty scarce in this world, yet once in a great while someone is. So I would say that any suicide assistance would be classified as a degree of murder, and a murder case would bring either life imprisonment or death. (I like death. I would have to go with death. Capital punishment is universally decent deterrent to commit that crime.) But back to the Princesses not knowing. Say Rarity does die. Of course when she disappears, the Princesses and all her friends will come running to the last place she was seen to try and find her, or find out what happened. But if no one knows about Howie and his exploits, how would they come to the conclusion that he, for lack of a better term, "took advantage of an emotionally distraught mare" and "Coerced her to play Russian Roulette?" In a disappearance case, it would certainly not be the first thing that pops into my head. Probably one of the last things, actually.
Also saying "Oh, well they're the Princesses! They would know if somepony was doing this/what pony did this." is not accurate in this sense. They are not omnipotent. Semi-omnipotent, sure. But do they know, and can they do, everything and anything?
images.sodahead.com/polls/000920611/aw_hell_naw_answer_2_xlarge.jpeg
See Barack knows his shit. I like to think the Princesses are like Q from Star Trek, but a little less omnipotent. They know a LOT, but certainly not everything.
2344410>>2349177 I have to talk about this one just briefly too.
No. Just... no. First off, a blank round still contains a primer and powder. Ow. Go ahead and set aflame some sulfur and charcoal and take you a big ol' whiff of it! Now imagine all that being hurled down your throat at 500 fps. Give me a bullet instead of that any day. Also, the paper or whatever wad holding the powder in place can still travel down a barrel at alarming speeds, making blanks nearly as deadly/dangerous as live ammunition.
I have thought about this. First off: I know one of the first rules of gun care is never dry fire. (I.E. let the hammer/firing pin fall when there's no chambered round.) Super bad for the pin. I replaced many a rifle pin in my childhood because I was fool. I now have shells with spring tensioned primers, made specifically for if I do need to dry fire. These would also do well if you placed 3 of these dry fire shells with 3 live rounds. Would certainly reduce wear on your hammer and pin. But using a dud? Nah. First off, it is explained early on in the story that although rare, robberies and life threatening fights DO occur in Equestria. On top of that, he's head of security. Would you keep effin DUDS in your only weapon when you work in a place you might actually have to use that weapon?
Also I would figure that unless this random club gets 13 masked, heavily armed gunponies rushing in there, he wouldn't really need to carry all that much ammo. He wears a vest and a hat. Where would he put spare rounds, let alone duds? In his vest? Sure could probably put in another full cylinder or two, but more than that and he might as well open-carry that revolver.
Good Celestia I ramble. Sorry about that, I just like responding to those who read my story. I like hearing their opinions and thoughts about it. I also like telling people their opinions and thoughts are wrong.
Nah, joking. Or am I? 
I just thought I'd let you know my thought processes regarding those little things. I hope all this makes a least SOME lick of sense to y'all. If not, tell me why. TTFN.
Edit: I think a great way to think about it would be to look at BronyWriter's Secret Life of Rarity. I loved his concept of the legal system in Equestria. First murder in years deserves a nearly immediate execution. And of course the responses of the Princesses are pretty close to what I would expect. A "Got dangit son, I am disappoint!" but mixed with a "We just gotta kill you, it's that law" and they would get all depressed and sad like all those downer weepy people in every single anti-depressant commercial.
2404691
I get you on the duds thing. I know they wouldn't be blanks (I've seen a demo of what they can do).
Howie has to dispose of the body somehow. If murders aren't common, then more 'advanced' techniques presumably wouldn't be known. Being in a city doesn't help at all. Off the top of my head, I can see only one way of Howie getting rid of her: Concealing the body and transporting it out in a carriage/wagon then disposing of it/hiding it. He could potentially head to the Everfree and try and leave her for a manticore, but I think that'd take a bit long and might arouse suspicion.
So far, only Howie and Hoity know she's dead. The bartender, poker players and any ponies who happen to be at the bar at the time know she was with Howie. Poker players know Howie, Rarity and Hoity were last seen together.
I reckon it'd only take a day or so (Pinkie would have squeezed a return date out of Rarity to plan a party) before the mane 5 get suspicious, contact Princess, yadda yadda, decide she's missing.
High profile pony goes missing, guards out looking, missing pony posters and I'm guessing rewards for info.
Hoity might be questioned for being a last known contact (he could break here).
Only one pony has to come forward and claim the reward for saying she was at the bar at the time.
If they find the body, easy to say gunshot wound as cause of death.
Howie prime suspect. Guessing because of the peacefulness, guns aren't common in city areas, and may be limited to security. If so, it may be that Howie's employer pays for his weapon/ammunition and would keep records of it. There'd be one missing bullet.
Howie doesn't seem like a murderer, so I'll go out on a limb and say that he may be a bit overwhelmed and be likely to forget things about covering his tracks. Same applies to Hoity.
It can be traced back to them. Of course, a lot of info here relies on things that you ultimately have power over and have not revealed, but still, it's something.
2404936 Hmm now hiding a body WOULD be a bit hard to do. Here's my thoughts on that: Obviously, they're in a club, so no big bottles of hydrofluoric acid or lye just lying around to dissolve her Walter White style.. And when the bar has patrons there would be the SMALL problem of sneaking a body past them. But, as is stated in the story, he's done this before. Quite a few times. So assuming this is true, we can only assume that he has a way of disposing of the body.
Now I think in any case, even though Howie isn't... normal, shall we say, he would have the tact to not cut her up into tiny pieces. Plus that would make a huge mess and would take all night. Nor do I think he would just roll her up in a carpet and chuck her to the garbage collector. But in my mind, he has ways of distracting authorities. We can think of any of his security staff, the bartender, the DJ, servers, even Basic Beats himself. Anyone of them he could have played with as well. Or gotten them out of a jam and really owe him, much like Hoity. Either he could be awarded with short term silence or little white lies from these employees while he disposes of her. Just a little extra time can make a world of difference. Not only will it give you more time to look over the disposal of evidence, but you're not in as much of a fearful rush to dispose of it. Think of it kind of like any murder suspense movie. You know there was a murder. You know the murderer got away and there is no body. He got rid of him/her somehow, but it's left as a big mystery. Get used to that idea, because I'm not describing how Howie would go about it. Plus I couldn't, because it may/may not be a spoiler for the next chapters. There are many ways to get rid of a body. Choose any of those, and you're set.
Also, these poker players are meant to be seen as... "unscrupulous." Much like a drug dealer who wouldn't give up the name of his supplier, these guys wouldn't give up Howie. He lets them gamble and drink and smoke in their own little VIP spot in the basement. Who knows, maybe he lets them smoke some pony ganja down there? These are lowlifes. Bottom of the rung kind of ponies, who even though answer to the highest bidder in terms of information, they remain loyal to that highest bidder.
And more info pertaining to the firearm will be given in coming chapters.
Now I do see two things that could be a problem for Howie in disposing of a body in this situation. First, the pony chauffeur who dropped Rarity off. He would actually be the first to be interviewed since he was seen driving off from the fashion show with Rarity in tow. Second is indeed Hoity Toity. Yeah he could snap. But there's always that possibility for everyone in real life and pony land. There's always blackmail, or actual threats that can be used to make sure he stays quiet. Death can be quite the motivator to zip your lip. And a ruined reputation.
This wasn't mentioned, but I will bring it up anyway. Twilight mentioned the bar to Rarity. Recommended it to her is more like it. But is this a epileptic-seizure-inducing, ecstasy-fueled rave club, or a somewhat more posh club, not quite for the elite, but much nicer than those aforementioned drug-crazy clubs. You can decide on that, but remember: Rarity didn't like the place when she walked in, you can probably assume Twilight would think Rarity wouldn't go to such a place. Her being Rarity and all that jazz.
In conclusion: In any investigation one would go to the last place she was reported to be seen. To me I think that would be the fashion show. It's where her friends KNEW she was last, so they go and get info from there. That can take awhile, trying to get hold of many fashion critics, producers, directors, dressers, servers, anypony that could have info. There they find out the producer got her a limo to take from the show. They go and question the driver, he says after hearing her crying throughout the ride he drops her off at this night club. There they question the owner, and any who worked there that night. At this point, you can readily assume Howie has had at LEAST four to six hours to dispose of that body. This includes the moments after her death, through the time the bar remains open, and the brief time after it closes up until she is reported missing by her friends, who of course may not be expecting her until later that evening. In that case you could guess he would actually have a full DAY to remove the body.
Once again, this is all speculation, most of which could be added as canon but 99% of which will not be told in the story. This comment in no way shape or form gives spoilers as to the fate of Rarity after she pulls the trigger the last time.
2404936
You forget in that world ponies have MAGIC. Almost certainly all testimony would be gathered under lie detection spell. It should be quite basic level spell.
Avenue 1:
They would ask a lot of ponies who'd seen Rarity last - at the show. "Do you have any clue what happened to Rarity after she left the show? Do you have any clue where she went?"
Hoity-Toity should be one of top. The driver could be easily located too.
Avenue 2:
The club was quite packed. There would be ones who noticed her. They would be willing to make a grab for the royal bounty. She WAS standing out like a sore thumb in that place.
Then the investigation would ask the club employers. So, they ask the security guy. He will NOT get away with excuses about "many customers" and "poor memory".
Avenue 3:
Also, I think the binding between the Elements is strong enough that they should be able to locate her body. How many ponies in Canterlot carry this caliber guns?
Oh, and the poker players: They are pissed with Hoity. They've seen Rarity. They are penniless. The heck they wouldn't tell on him for a bounty.
Celestia doesn't have to be omniscent, she needs just halfway competent forensics officers.
2405544 Well you've started down a path I can't follow, since anyway I respond could have a billion spoilers. I guess if you all want to discuss it, have at it. But I am dropping out of it now
THIS got on EQD?
It's alright, but it's not excellent. I'll explain when I write up your review.