“Permanent Vacation”
What Lies Below
Manehatten was a wonderful city to explore and served as a nice change of pace from Canterlot and Ponyville. The sheer amount of things to see and do in the city was mind boggling. And as much as I wished we could stay longer, the tour must continue to the next stop, Fillydelphia. And it was very much like its Earthen counterpart. Granted, there wasn’t as much to do, but it still was nice to explore its museums and see some unique pieces of Equestrian history, like the treaty between the original pony tribes. Acting on a whim while there, I didn’t bother trying to disguise myself to the public. This actually seemed to work in our favor, since the public got to see all of us partaking in what the city had to offer. Don’t know what I was so worried about back in Manehatten.
We only had two days to spend in Fillydelphia before being whisked off to Canterlot with the combined fans in Cloudsdale showing up due to it being so close. Now, I was looking forward to this. I knew some of what Canterlot offered, but it helps to have people who’ve lived there guide you around, so I called in the big guns of Luna, Spike, Vinyl, and Lyra to show Mac and I a good time. And what a fun time it was.
After that was a trip to the next closest town, Baltimare. I’ve never been to Baltimore before, so I had no idea what to expect from its Equestrian counterpart. The town reminded me of an old colonial village near the sea, yet sprawled into a metropolis the further inland you went. And this place was a prime spot for seafood and meat, what with a fair amount of the population being griffons due to Griffonstone being across the sea to the east. During our very short stay here, I tended to stick to the outer reaches of the city, taking in the wondrous lifestyle of living on the shore. Nice change of pace from the giant cities or middle of nowhere towns… Not that I have anything against them.
Finally, our last stop on our tour was in a town way out west called Los Pegasus. And it was this weird combination of Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Like if someone looked at the lifestyle, architecture, and culture of Los Angeles, and then threw in a mixing of casinos and an intense nightlife. And of course I had to partake in some gambling, though I don’t think I’ll be betting on the lottery anytime soon if my luck is any indication of the future. We held our most extravagant show to date on the last day of our tour. That same night, we had boarded our train back to Ponyville, which was expected to arrive the next morning.
I jump up with a start, drenched in a cold sweat and my heart pounding. I look around, confirming that I am still in my room in our train car, the moonlight casting a pale glow around the room, the only other sound over my heavy breathing being the clickety clack of the train wheels as they roll along. I place a hand to my chest and take a few long, deep breaths. It was only a dream, nothing more. It was just a messy and muffled blur on shouting and crying, but it apparently troubled me enough. God, where’s Luna when I need her? I need some time to think, and maybe a drink or two to help calm my nerves. I ease out of bed, careful not to step on Sonja’s sleeping form on the floor. I tread out of my room and shut the door behind me before trudging down the hall to our dining car. Entering, I head straight to the bar and pour me a simple shot of vodka. I take a swig of it, the warmth hitting the back of my throat being somewhat soothing.
“It isn’t even four yet. What’s got you up so early?”
I sigh and stare at the shot glass in my hand, idly swirling the clear liquid inside. “I don’t know really. I just had this weird dream that I can’t begin to describe, yet something about it bothers me.”
“...To be honest, I got the same dream as you.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Really?”
“Yeah. But I’m concerned about it, in the interest of honesty. Why wasn’t Luna there to stop whatever dream this was? It obviously caused us distress, or we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”
I down the rest of the shot, setting the glass down in the sink. “I’m not sure. Maybe she was busy with someone else? We’re grown men, so we should be able to handle bad dreams without the help of some otherworldly princess to stop it.”
“I know, I know. I’m just concerned about it. Like, why this dream? Why does it bother us so? I can’t help but feel like we missed something. Just… Get some rest, ok? I’ll spend some time trying to piece it together.”
I sigh. “Thanks, Agent. Let me know what you find out.” I shuffle back to my room and crawl back into the bed, though I fear sleep may be elusive…
A couple hours later…
I do my damnedest to rub the tiredness from my eyes, yet it is a futile effort.
“Rough night’s sleep?”
I glance up from my cup of coffee at Mac. “What gave it away?”
He looks away. “Call it a hunch.”
“You have a bad dream last night?” Spike asks.
Hmm… Best to keep them in the dark right now. Don’t need them to worry about something that isn’t their problem. I shrug my shoulders. “You could say that, but I can’t remember a thing about it.” I take a long swig of my coffee, hoping some caffeine will jolt me awake.
Speaking of dream… “Agent, you got anything?”
“Almost. I’m running it through a couple more filters, but should have an answer soon.”
The door to the train car opens, and Lyra shuffles in. Compared to the way she looks right now, I must be wide awake. Her hair is a bedraggled mess, she’s got bags under her almost fully closed eyes, she’s stumbling, and to top it off, she’s still wearing the clothes she slept in, a loose fitting t-shirt that reaches down far enough to cover a generous portion of her lower body. I will admit, I raise an eyebrow at the sight of her. I’m curious what she’s got, if anything, underneath that shirt.
I glance at Spike and Mac, who do the same to me. I clear my throat. “So, uh… Morning, Lyra?”
She jumps a little, her eyes blinking open before settling on us sitting on the couch. “Oh, morning guys.”
“You uh... Want something to drink?” Mac asks.
She glances at the bar. “How long till we reach Ponyville?”
I stand up and walk over to the window. I open it up and lean out. In hindsight, probably a bad idea when you’re half tired. The rush of cold air blanketing my face instantly wakes me up. I stumble back inside, to the amusement of Spike and Mac. I blink my eyes a few times. “We’re coming up to it. I can see it on the horizon.”
Mac stands up and heads for the door. “Reckon we better start packing.”
I move to follow him, but stop at the door. “You two coming?”
Spike shakes his head. “Nope, already done. One of the perks of living with Twilight is that you learn to prepare.”
I shrug my shoulders. “Lyra, what about…” She’s already asleep on the couch. Eh, someone will wake her when we get there. Heading to my car, I smile and pet an energetic Sonja’s back. “Enjoy sleeping in girl?” She barks a few times. With a newfound spring in my step, I pack up my scattered mess of clothes that I didn’t bother stowing already and my guitar. With that done, I head back to the living car and lean on the bar counter, idly drumming my fingers.
“So, what’s your thoughts on the dream?”
“Nope, not saying anything till I have a definitive answer. Don’t want us getting our hopes up till we know all the facts.”
I sigh and look at Spike. “Going to enjoy being home?”
He holds out one hand. “I’m going to be home with all my stuff,” He holds out his other hand, “But Twilight’s probably got a backlog of experiments she wants to run that need my help.”
The train whistles, signaling our imminent arrival, and with it, back to our normal lives. There’s a slight lurch as the train begins slowing down, which is around the time that Mac walk back into the car. “Anypony gonna wake Lyra up?”
I motion towards her. “He who suggests it shall do it.”
He shrugs his shoulders as he walks over, gently grabbing her shoulder and shaking her. “Lyra, we’re here.”
With a snort, she jumps up, looking around before her eyes settle on the station sliding into view outside the window. “Oh… We’re here.” She looks down at herself. “I should change.” With that, she stumbles out of the car. The three of us look between each other and shrug our shoulders.
“Oh… You are not gonna like this…”
“What do you got? You got the dream fully pieced together?”
“Not quite, but it’s—”
The door to the train car is flung open, a wide eyed Derpy standing there. I notice Sonja’s ears go flat, the hair on her back going up. I tense up at the sight of both of them. Something is definitely wrong here. “Derpy, what’s going on?”
Her eyes settle on me. “Blake, they’re back!”
I glance at Spike and Mac, both looking at me with an eyebrow raised. I slowly lean forward, my one free hand sliding down towards my hip holster. “Who are they?” Please don’t say it, please don’t say it...
“Diamond Dogs!”
“Diamond Dogs.”
I whip out the Ambassador and quickly check to see it’s got a full clip. “Where?!”
“I’ll show you! Hurry up!”
I point at Mac. “Grab Lyra and get her somewhere safe.” I then point to Spike. “Spike, with me.” They both nod their heads, Mac running off towards the sleeping car while Spike rushes over to me. I grab him and toss him on my shoulder as I run out to the station and after Derpy’s already retreating form.
As we run, I notice a couple of ponies milling about, going about their daily lives like they’re not aware of the imminent danger. “Agent, give me what you know about that dream!”
“It looks like it was vision of events. As for what time period, I can’t say. All I can piece together was that it has something to do with Diamond Dogs.”
I swear under my breath. “Fuck! Prep yourself for a requisition order from the Elements then!”
“Already on it! What do you want?”
“Not sure till we see the size of their force. Just be ready to act!”
“I hope Twilight’s okay!”
“You and me both, Spike!”
As I run, I notice Derpy is leading us towards the town hall, more importantly, the square out back with the fountain and the bridge leading towards the rocky fields to the south and the Diamond Dog tunnels. Getting closer to it, I see a crowd has already formed. Derpy stops just at the edge of the crowd and points in. “In there.”
I set Spike on the ground, as a low growl escapes from Sonja. Some of the crowd steps aside, allowing me to walk into the circle that had formed. Two dogs, unarmed, stand there. I raise the Ambassador and switch between which one I’m targeting. “I thought I told you fuckers to leave the town alone.”
The one dog steps forward slightly, my aim snapping to him. “Human listen.” At least they got it through their thick skulls I’m a human.
I scoff. “Why should I? After what you did to the town last time, you’re lucky I didn’t put a bullet into your heads.” I fine tune my aim on the dog, now aiming towards his head. “What’s stopping me from killing you right here and now and letting this town get back to what qualifies as normal?”
The dog smirks. “Human won’t get ponies back.”
I tighten my grip on the Ambassador. “What’d you say?”
“We got ponies. Listen to dogs, get ponies. Don’t listen, ponies die.”
I’m calling his bluff. I chuckle. “You got no proof.” I quickly glance at the crowd I can see. Where are the Elements at? This seems like the sort of thing Twilight would be informed of. Wait a moment… Why’d Derpy come get me? Shouldn’t Rainbow have gotten me? After all, she’s the fastest.
“Agent… Can you tell me if the Elements are in the crowd somewhere?”
“Umm… I hate to break it to ya…”
The other dog smirks, reaching into a pouch on his side. My aim shifts to him. “Boss thought human say that.” I gulp. Please don’t let it be true. The dog tosses out a clump of straight blond hair, then a curly pink, then a curly purple. One by one, a clump of each of the Elements hair. Sonja sniffs the air, then whimpers slightly.
My breath catches in my throat. Okay, not to worry. Only the six most important ponies in the land have been captured by a force of unknown size and taken captive. I can still do this, though the odds may not be in my favor this time. But the dog doesn’t stop there. He tosses out another clump, this time a clump of amaranth hair, then another clump of gray mulberry and grey rose hair, and finally, a clump of cerise hair. No…
“Human want ponies—” The dog doesn’t get to finish speaking as the round from the Ambassador enters his head. Before that dog even hits the ground, I tackle the other dog to the ground and wrap my hands around his throat.
I bang his head against the ground. “Where are they?!” Again, I slam his head on the ground, along with putting some more pressure on his throat. “Tell me or I’ll fucking kill you right now!”
His breath comes out in short, ragged gasps. “Rock… Fields… Come… Alone.”
“Let him go now.”
“Too bad, I’m killing him.” I slowly put more pressure on his throat, watching as his eyes bulge and his body starts to spasm. “I want my face to be the last thing he sees in his pathetic, wretched life.”
“How will they know we got the message if no one reports back?”
I take a deep breath before releasing my hold on him, stepping back before he can retaliate. I grab the Ambassador from where I dropped it on the ground and slowly point it at him. “Get up.” The dog slowly gets up off the ground, rubbing his throat. “Tell your boss I’ll be there before the day ends. And I swear to God, if anything happens to them between now and then…” Without a word, the dog starts digging a hole under him at speeds that I didn’t think possible. Once he’s dug down enough and the hole gets backfilled with dirt, I slowly hostler the Ambassador. What am I gonna do? This is obviously a trap.
“Blake?” I glance at the owner of the hand currently resting on my shoulder. The mayor gently pats my shoulder. “What do we do now?”
I turn my gaze back to the clumps of hair on the ground. Slowly, the beginning of a plan starts forming. “We need everyone in town to get to city hall for a meeting.”
“Right away.”
I drown out the noise of the crowd as the mayor orders the town into action. I bend down and pick up a few of the hair clumps. Sonja walks over and sniff the clumps, whimpering as she paws at Scootaloo’s hair. I rub the back of her head. It’s one thing to bring full grown adults into this, but children are a different story.
“If you really plan on doing this, we’re gonna need a lot more firepower.”
“I think it’s time we went commando.”
I squeeze the clumps in my hand tighter, closing my eyes in an effort to fight the tears. Don’t worry girls, I’ll get you out. And so help me if they did something to you.
The back of the town hall served as a meeting hall, and is easily large enough to hold the entire population of the town. As word spreads around town, people slowly trickle in before going to a steady stream. Meanwhile, I’m at the podium on the stage carefully polishing my latest armaments, leaning each one on the sides of the podium.
“I don’t trust these dogs to not spy on us. Got any way to track them?”
“It just so happens I’ve been working on a variation of a tracking spell to search for any species or person in the general vicinity. Granted, it hasn’t been tested yet.”
“Test it now. Don’t want these bastards knowing the plan.”
“Blake? Everypony’s here.”
I glance in the mayor’s direction and nod my head. Once she takes a seat, I sigh and tap the microphone in front of me. Getting some feedback, I start. “For those of you who don’t know, Diamond Dogs came back to Ponyville today.” Most of the crowd fidget in their seats, the events of last time probably still on their minds. “And this time, they came with a message. The Elements of Harmony and the Cutie Mark Crusaders have been taken,” I close my eyes and tighten my grip on the podium edges, “My daughter, Scootaloo, being among them.”
With the crowd being silent, I open my eyes and continue. “The price for their freedom and their lives? Me. They want me to come alone to the rock fields and give myself up. But that isn’t going to happen.” The crowd mummers amongst itself. “I’m going to go in, free them, and make these dogs suffer. Not just for this, but for the last time as well, when I should have taken care of them in the first place.” I sigh and hang my head. “But I can’t do it alone.”
“Right now, I have a plan to get them out safely. But it requires the help of a unicorn and a pegasus. It pains me to ask this, to even think about it, but I have no choice. Who among you is willing to stand with me and free those who can’t free themselves? To not only take revenge for last time, but to stand up and say no more? To show these dogs that we are not a town that will take this lying down? Not only the dogs, nay, the whole world, that you are someone not to be messed with?! That no matter what happens, you’ll stand strong in the face of adversity!”
I notice some of the crowd glancing amongst themselves, but no one makes a move to join me. Damn, really thought my rousing rallying cry would have made them a bit more pumped up to join. I sigh, almost ready to give up on them helping, when someone says, “I’ll help.”
My eyes go wide as I look out through the crowd. “Who said that?” A lone mare stands up near the back. I’d know that hat and cape anywhere. “Trixie?”
She walks out from her seat to stand in the center aisle, all eyes on her. “The one and only.”
I raise an eyebrow. “What’re you doing here?”
“Trixie… I just got back into Ponyville today for another performance when this happened.” She starts walking down the center aisle.
“Why help? You have no stake in this fight. You don’t even live here.”
“True, but I’d like to help the one who helped me. Call it returning the favor, if you will.”
I hold my hand out to her. She grabs it and I pull her up onto the stage. “Are you absolutely sure you want to do this? You’ll have to possibly take a life, and be in great danger.”
She smirks. “I’m no stranger to combat. You’d be surprised how many ponies wish to ambush me when traveling, but none are prepared for my powerful feats of magic.”
I smile and pull her into a hug. “Thank you. Thank you so very much.” I step back from the hug and put my hands on her shoulders. “What weapon do you want to use?” I motion to the weapons propped up.
She glances at them. “I’ll stick with my bow and arrows. I’m a pretty competent archer.”
“Noted. Now,” I turn back to the crowd, “I still need a pegasi to help out. Anyone?” This time, one very special gray pegasus flies up and out of her seat to land beside me. I glance at Derpy. “And this mare has decided to answer my call to arms.” For the first time today, the crowd actually responds. Not with cheering, but with cries of protest and insults.
“Do you want the Elements, Crusaders, and your daughter to die?!”
“You’re giving her a weapon?! She’s more likely to harm you!”
“That klutz?! She’ll get you all hurt, or worse!”
“She can’t even see straight! What makes you even think she can fight?!”
I turn to Derpy. She stands there, fists clenched and breathing deeply, the only indication that she’s being hurt by their words being the tears slowly falling from the corners of her eyes. But through it all, she doesn’t turn and run away or break down on the spot. No, she stands strong.
Enough of this. I turn back to the podium and scream. The crowd stops, all eyes on me. “You can all shut the fuck up! Look at these two mares right here?! These two, who are risking their lives for the sake of others, and you all want to insult, belittle, and complain about one of them?! Hell, Trixie isn’t even from Ponyville and yet she volunteered! And Derpy may act different and be klutzy at times, but so what?! I don’t see any of you risking your fucking necks!” I sweep my glare over the crowd, some ponies refusing to look at me. “These two are showing great bravery and strength just by standing up here! So I don’t care what you think, or what you say, because I will gladly stand with these two any day of the week over you assholes! Now get the fuck out of my sight and go back to living your selfish, worthless lives!” The crowd rushes out the doors, leaving just Trixie, Derpy, and I alone.
I take a few deep breaths, along with rubbing Sonja’s back, to calm my nerves before looking at Derpy. Without a word, she steps up and hugs me. “Do you really think we’re brave?”
“Of course. You two both stood up and offered to help, even though you didn’t. This is going to be dangerous, and that didn’t stop you.” I cup Derpy’s chin and lift her head so she’s looking into my eyes. “And even though they said hurtful things about you, you stood strong. You didn’t run, you didn’t cry, you stood taller. And that, my dear friend, speaks volumes.” I glance at Trixie. “The same goes for you, Trixie.”
“While I appreciate that, we should get to work on freeing these ponies.”
Derpy steps back and wipes her eyes. “Of course. What’s the plan?”
I point to Derpy. “First off, I need an aerial recon of those rock fields. Size and placement of their forces, weaponry, location of hostages, vantage points, and anything else you spot. Stay high and use the clouds for cover. Once you get enough intel, get back here as soon as possible.”
She salutes. “You can count on me.” She then heads out the doors, taking flight even before they shut behind her.
“And what shall I be doing while we wait?”
I turn to Trixie, motioning to the hay bales with targets painted on that I had the mayor set up at the very back of the stage for us to practice our aim on. “Show me what you can do with that bow of yours.”
She flips her hair with her hand. “As you wish. Prepare to be amazed!” She holds a hand out as her horn glows, her bow instantly appearing in it. This isn’t any standard issue recurve bow, not by a longshot. The entire thing looks to be designed in a night sky pattern, with the upper and lower limb tips forming into a five pointed star, the same one on her cutie mark. In her other hand, a quiver appears. Again, it has the night sky motif, but I notice that the pattern of stars on it matches her cutie mark. Taking a second look at the bow, I notice a couple of constellations traceable in the stars. “Like it?”
I blink my eyes a couple of times. “Truly, it’s a work of art.”
She smirks. “Any normal old bow wouldn’t do for a mare such as I. This handcrafted, elegant weapon was a gift from a fan when I had first started performing, and it’s been with me ever since. I call it the Nocturnal Wayfarer.”
I glance at the quiver as she slings it across her back. “Alright, show me what you can do.”
She turns her back to me. With one hand, she reaches back and grabs three arrows, nocking them. She draws the bowstring back and takes aim, keeping the bow held sideways. I notice the arrows glint blue before she releases. Straight and true, they land perfect bullseyes. She glances over her shoulder. “Have you seen anypony else do better than I?”
“Hot damn.”
“I think we just found ourselves the pony version of Hawkeye.”
I slowly clap my hands and nod my head. “No, I can’t say that I have.”
“But Trixie—” My glare stops her. She’s slipping back into the third person again far too many times for my liking. “I assume you wanted a unicorn for magical purposes?”
I smirk. “Yes. How good’s your teleportation and shield creation spells?”
While Trixie practiced her spellwork, I practiced my aim on the haybales. I’m finishing off a clip when I hear the doors open. Glancing over my shoulder, I see Derpy walking in. “What are we up against, Derpy?”
Trixie, having took a short break a while ago to examine my weapons, carefully sets the sniper rifle down on the podium. “Yes, how many Dogs are going to be witness to their downfall at the hands of me?”
She glances between us. “Guys, we got a lot of trouble in those fields.”
I sigh. “I figured as much. Alright, lay it on us.”
A short time later…
After running through the plan, adjusting it after Derpy’s intel, suiting up, and me giving Derpy a crash course in firearm operation (And the assurance from Agent that she’d have that weird ability to have ammo appear whenever), we leave city hall to be meet with a flurry of activity from the townsfolk, swiftly erecting barricades and the like around the town hall. The mayor, Spike, and Mac stand outside the door. I raise an eyebrow. “What’s this now?”
Spike steps forward. “Blake, we’re helping too, even if you don’t want us to.”
The mayor nods her head. “That’s right. We may not be going into battle like you three, but we still want to do our part. Like you said, this is our town, and we need to fight for all its citizens. We’re stronger than these dogs know. And if that means preparing the city for a lockdown, then so be it.”
“Looks like your little speech worked.”
“Or maybe the fact that I belittled them and called them cowards, in a roundabout sense.”
I nod my head. “Thank you, and good work so far.” I point to Spike. “Spike, you’re on lookout for now. Find a high point and keep watch towards the rock fields. Once the girls are safely in town with us, get a message to Celestia and Luna. Have them mobilize the guard and get down here pronto to help defend.”
“On it.” He scampers off to find his vantage point.
“Mac, mayor, keep doing what you’re doing. We need to be ready for the retaliation attack they likely have planned.” Mac whistles and motions towards the town hall, those that heard him break off from their work to head inside with both of them.
Sonja whimpers and nuzzles up against my leg. I bend down and rub her head. “Hey, it’s alright. I’ll be back later and we can go for a nice walk then. Go protect Spike for me while I’m gone, okay?” She licks my face before running off.
I turn to Trixie and Derpy. “Ready to do this?”
Derpy rolls her neck and hefts the assault rifle she chose up so it’s resting over her shoulder. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Hah! Trixie was ready the day she was born!”
I grin. “Then it’s time we give a dog a bone, as they say.”
I walk alone towards the rock fields, following the directions Derpy gave me. Like before, green fields give way to rock fields, though the dull color of the ground may soon be painted a far brighter color after I’m done here. Two dogs emerge from behind a large rock, both pointing spears in my direction. I slowly raise my hands up, prompting the dogs to cautiously step forward.
“Human surrender?” I nod my head. “Then follow dog.” One dog takes the lead, and I fall in step behind him, while I hear the other dog move into position behind me. I can’t see it, but I assume the spear is pointing dangerously close to my back. I keep my arms raised as we walk through the fields some more. They must be pretty confident, or stupid, to not search me. Not like they’d be able to find the slim, rectangular device strapped to my inner thigh. That little thing is packing everything I could gather from the elements, but at the cost of me spending all their energy and forgoing capacity for sheer firepower.
Off in the distance, I spot a massive gathering of dogs. As we near, the lead dog howls, prompting every other dog to howl and drown out all other noise. Once they quiet down, the lead dog steps off to the side. Taking that as my que, I step out into the open. My eyes are drawn to the girls directly across from me, all sitting in a circle with their arms and legs tied up. They stay quiet, most likely due to them being threatened. My eyes start scanning for potential cover points (Pretty decent amount of large rocks, though interspaced that I’d have to run across open field), hostile locations and weapons (Based on what I can see, it looks like they’re doing a pincer movement to make it so I’d have to run backwards, and most of them are carrying bows and arrows), and my real target.
As if on cue, a group of dogs stand aside to allow Rover, now missing his right leg, to hobble out using what looks like a rock cane. A few of the dogs stay close to him though, just for good measure. I chuckle. It’s still a good distance between us, so I have to raise my voice just so they can hear me. “Hey there old buddy. How’s that leg treating ya?” I gasp. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”
He snarls. “Human learn its place soon.”
I slowly lower my hands and set them at my side, causing most of the dogs to raise their weapons. “Yeah, fine. Let’s get this over with, the girls walk away, and you take me for whatever you want to do.”
Rover steps back towards his dogs. “Human come with me, Ponies go free.”
I shake my head. “Allow me to make a counter offer.”
“Human come now or--!”
I shrug my shoulders. “Fine, miss out on the ability to get thousands upon thousands of gems per minute.” I catch a couple of the dogs slowly lower their weapons and glance amongst themselves. Perfect, the bone has been thrown.
Rover eyes me. “Human find gems?”
“In fact, yes. Using this,” I motion to the square-ish device with multiple dials and three lenses attached to a metal track sitting on my shoulder, “I can track and harvest gems anywhere in the known world, as long as I am still living and breathing.”
The dogs eye Rover, waiting for his order. One of his guards leans in close and whispers something to him. Rover nods his head. “Human show us, then ponies free!”
I grab the device and slide it off its track so it rests in my hand. “Observe!” I bring the device close to my face, making a show of looking into one of the lenses. I then start walking around, catching the dogs quickly raising their weapons. “Hey! You want these gems, I gotta find them! Kill me and you get nothing!”
“Lower weapons!” The dogs obey Rover’s order, yet I still see them tensed up. I wander around a bit more, swiftly glancing up at times to watch as a cloud slowly drifts over the dogs. Once it stops moving, I slowly make my way over to the girls, still making a show fiddling with the device. “Human stay away from ponies!”
I glance at Rover. “You want your gems or not?! I’m reading a massive deposit right in the center of them!”
“Fine! Guard human!”
I glance over my shoulder at the two dogs that brought me here again flank me. With a shrug of my shoulders, I keep moving. Now that I stand beside them, I look at Rover. “This thing is pretty big, so I would like for the ponies to lie down on the ground. Is this okay?” Rover nods, so I turn my attention back to the girls. “You heard me, on the ground.”
Once they’re down, I glance around at all the faces watching me. I adjust my grip on the device so I holding the top of it while I raise my other hand up and hold up three fingers. I countdown, putting a finger down for each second. Reaching one, I exhale and release my grip on the device. “You fellas wanna meet my girlfriend?” I close my hand into a fist.
And all hell breaks loose.
I spin around, my Baby Maker submachine gun digistructing in my hand and putting down the two dogs closest to me. I spin back around just as the device hits the ground, unfolding into a Sabre turret with two rocket pods on its top and generating a shield. The turret takes aim at the nearest dogs and starts unloading a barrage of bullets and rockets. I grab another turret that spawned on my shoulder and toss it beside me. “Sentry gun primed!”
As the turret unfolds, Trixie teleports into its protective shield and starts unleashing a barrage of arrows at the dogs. “Prepare to taste death at the hands of Trixie!” Derpy stands up on her cloud, unleashing a rain of bullets from the Veruc onto the unsuspecting dogs below, always staying on the move so the dogs can’t get a bead on her.
With only thirty seconds before the turrets need to cooldown, I get to work on freeing the girls. I start with the closest one, Applejack. I cut through her bindings with my knife. “Get everyone free!” She nods her head and we quickly free everyone else. I start firing at any dog that’s visible, tossing the gun towards them once the clip is empty as another gun digistructs in my hands.
“Now what do we do?!” Pinkie says.
“We’re getting you out of here, that’s what! Trixie, ten seconds!”
Trixie slings her bow over her shoulder. “Gather round me, for I shall protect you!”
I jerk my shoulders towards her, then toss my last Baby Maker out. “Go! She’ll protect you!” The girls scramble around her, and just in time too as the turrets start to digistruct themselves down. Trixie’s horn glows, creating a pale magenta shield that’s large enough to enclose all of us. She winces as arrows start pinging off the shield.
Derpy lands just outside the shield, and Trixie creates an opening just small enough to let her in. She jerks her thumb behind her. “We should get out of here! Like, now!”
I look over my shoulder at the girls. “You’re right, you should.” I hold my hand out, the next weapon to digistruct in my hands being the Conference Call. “Trixie, Derpy, get everyone back to town.” I cock the shotgun once.
“What about you?!”
I turn to Twilight, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I’ll cover your retreat, and then be along shortly.”
“Do you see how many dogs are out there?! You won’t make it!” Rainbow points at the dogs, some slowly advancing towards us.
I smirk. “Never tell me the odds. Trixie, let me out.”
“But—”
I glare at her. “That’s an order.” She locks my eyes, and then nods her head. I sweep my gaze over everyone present. I smile, even though I know it’s hollow. “Relax. I’ll be right behind you all.”
“This is a bloody suicide mission!”
“Then don’t let it turn into one.”
“There’s no talking you out of this, is there?”
“I hate it as much as you do, bud, but it needs done.”
I turn my back to everyone, not wanting to meet their gaze anymore. I exhale and raise the shotgun. “Do it.”
Trixie creates an opening for me, and I rush out firing wildly at the dogs as the bullets bounce and ricochet off of whatever they hit. An arrow embeds itself into my shoulder, and I howl with pain and stagger back. Looking up, I see the girls already retreating back towards the safety of town. With a snarl, I reorient myself and keep up my barrage of bullets as I run towards the nearest rock for cover. As I near it, another arrow lodges itself into my left ankle, causing me to stumble and fall on the ground. I bite my lip and fight back the tears as I drag myself behind the rock.
I lean out and fire off a few more rounds. I glance back to where I last saw the girls and see nothing. I smile. Trixie and Derpy are doing exactly as I’d planned. I knew they’d make me proud. I scream out and bang my hand against the rock as a sharp pain rips through my right leg. Through teary eyes, I grab the shaft of the arrow lodged in my right thigh and snap it off. The places where I got hit are already soaked in warm blood, and by the feel of things, likely to keep bleeding at this pace.
I glance to my left as a clear gem lands beside me. “What now? Have they run out of arrows and resorted to using gems?”
The gem pulses red before fading back to clear. “Judging by how they’re still shooting arrows, I don’t think so.”
“Then what the hell is—” The gem pulses again, only this time it fades back to clear faster before pulsing again... Repeatedly. The barest idea of what this gem is crosses my mind. “Oh holy fuck!”
“Get down, get down!”
I scramble away from the gem, starting to dive just as it explodes. What feels like millions of hot shards shred the back of my body as I go flying through the air, landing facedown with a sickening crunch. I slowly push myself, fighting through the pain and dull ringing in my ears. I look behind me to see a crater and a good portion of the rock blown apart. My senses start to come back to me, and I’m in immeasurable pain. Pretty sure that landing broke a couple of ribs. I scream as an arrow impales itself into my hand.
With my free hand, I throw down another sentry in front of me, and lazily toss the other one over my shoulder. I try moving my impaled hand, but it won’t budge. I snap off the shaft of the arrow, and while biting my lip, slowly pull my hand free of the arrow. With a cry, I pull it free and look at the newfound hole in my hand. I run it through a quick series of movements and decide that I still have full use of it, even though it sends a wave of pain through me each time.
“We should go now! The girls are back in town!”
“No.”
“What do you mean, no?! We need to get out of here, seek medical help! You’re already losing far too much blood!”
“Then the line is drawn here. I will not back down from this point and put the town in danger. I’ve failed these girls twice now. I will not fail them again.”
“God dammit! Just stay alive then!”
I cough up some blood while struggling to stand up. “You fuckers want to play that game?!” I give the mental command for my grenades, feeling the cold steel land in my hand. “Eat this!” I toss it towards the dogs. It hovers in midair slightly before giving a slight pop and flying towards the nearest dog, leaving a small trail of fire behind it. I toss the other three grenades towards different groups of dogs, wanting to get as much coverage as possible, before pulling out the ultimate weapon in crowd control, Nukem.
The first grenade has reached a dog at this point, where it promptly touches the dog and drops to the ground, disappearing in a little burst of fire. Large pillars of flame shoot up from the ground in a large radius around where the grenade landed, roasting any dog unfortunate enough to be caught. To those that survive each grenade, I fire a rocket from the Nukem at them, the immense explosion radius catching a lot of the dogs in it. It’s at this point that I hear a horn. The dogs start turning tail and running, some even digging right into the ground to escape. I tap the back of the closest turret, both of them digistructing down. I limp forward, watching as the dogs retreat to safety.
An arrow lodges itself into my chest, and I fall to my hands and knees with one hand clutched around the offending arrow. I look up to see Rover with his back propped up on a rock and holding a bow. I slowly push myself up so I’m on my knees, and send the command for the last weapon in my inventory, the Elephant Gun. With one hand and fighting to focus through the dizziness, I point it in the general direction of Rover and pull the trigger. His body jerks once as a splatter of blood coats the rock behind him before going limp. The gun clatters to the ground as I let it drop from my hand. Shaking, I slowly raise my hand and flip Rovers corpse the finger.
I can’t keep it up. I fall backwards and hit the ground, writhing in pain from the damage still caused to my back, before staring up at the sky as everything sways. I cough up some more blood as my breath comes out short and ragged. But through it all, I smile. There’s a whimper and something lays down beside me on my right. I glance over at Sonja. “Hey girl. Come to see me off?” I slowly raise my hand and place it on her back, making small circles as I rub. Up above, I spot a group of royal guards flying overhead towards the retreating dogs.
“I found him, over here!”
Through my haze, I can still make out the eight worried faces around me. “You shouldn’t be here. It’s safer back in town.”
“Blake…” Rarity, in an action mimicked by everyone else, struggles to hold back tears.
“No tears now, just doing my job.” I cough up some blood and glance down at myself. “Sadly, I don’t think I’ll be coming back to town with you.”
“Don’t you talk like that! We’ll get you medical attention and then—”
I frown. “Face the facts, Twilight. I’ve already lost far too much blood for me to survive.”
“But there’s gotta be something, anything, we can do!”
I smile. “How about you all just listen then?” At their silence, I continue. “When I first came here, I had nothing and no one. But you all accepted me so easily and readily, gave me a new life and purpose to fulfill. Each and every one of you has been a blessing to me, and I cannot say thank you enough.” I pause to draw some more breath. “I know in my heart that I could never repay you, but it won’t stop me from trying.” Everything becomes hazier. “Oh, not much longer now.”
“Dad!” Scootaloo kneels down beside my head, taking my limp hand and grasping it as tear flow freely down her face.
I turn to her and smile. “Hey, Scoots, you finally called me dad.”
She squeezes my hand, but it barely registers in my mind. “Of course I’m gonna call you dad! You gave me a home and family when nopony else would! You treat me like a dad should! And you care about me like a dad should! And I’m not losing you now because of some stupid… Fucking dogs!”
I fight back the tears in my eyes now. “Scoots, the joy on your face each and every day, the excitement in your voice when retelling your crusading stories, the serene smile on your face as you sleep… It brings peace to me knowing I’m giving you all that. But I sadly won’t be around to see all that anymore.”
“Don’t you talk like that! Please stay alive! Please!”
I frown. “Please don’t make this any harder than it is, Scoots. Know that I will always be proud of you, no matter what you do in life. Keep strong, and one day you too will fly and soar above the heads of everyone else.” I turn my head towards Rainbow, wanting to take care of one last thing. “In the presence of everyone here, I hereby appoint Rainbow Dash as legal guardian and protector of Scootaloo. Make me proud, Rainbow.”
“You… I won’t fail you.”
I smile. “I know you won’t.” I look up towards the open sky again and chuckle. “It really is funny what they say. It’s hard to say goodbye… When you know that it’s over.” I go limp as darkness surrounds me, for what is to be, the last time.