//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Egghead and the City // Story: Ponyville Noire // by FacadeArt //------------------------------// Chapter 2 Egghead and the City There it was, the ponyville library. It seemed innocent enough from the outside but I had busted an illegal apple cider operation from a library before. A normal guy could ask how crime found its way into places like this sanctuary of literature. But that’s how it was. Criminals spread everywhere like cockroaches and now matter how many you squashed there was always more to replace them. I knocked on the door while I scanned the front yard for any signs of suspicious activity. Nothing caught my eye. It didn’t mean the place was off the hook, far from it. It meant that these guys were professionals which meant more trouble for me. “Coming” It wasn’t a voice of a dame like I had been told. It was a male voice. Usually when a guy opens a door to a gals apartment, who was supposed to be alone, somepony has been whacked...or is about to be whacked. There was something fishy going on in this library. Who knows? Twilight was probably running an operation here with Rarity and she had sent me here to get killed. They had probably heard of Hawkshaw, the private eye from Manehattan, and decided to take care of the problem before I could sniff them out. I had to stay calm. Keep my distance from the door. Not give this guy a chance to jump me. The door opened and I could see the fella behind the voice. The guy was short, scaly head and gullible eyes, not to mention he was a dragon. Ok so he wasn’t on the tall side but my experiences with Shorty the Colt had taught me that even a small guy could pack a punch. “I assume this is Miss Sparkle’s place.” “Yep this is the place!” “I have some questions for her. Is she here at the moment?” “Sure, shes inside, studying some magic thing. But I really don’t know what its about.” Oh I bet she was inside but the real question was: was she still among the living? This guy was obviously hiding something. I had seen it before, a guy goes to whack some dame and is caught red handed on the door. He plays it cool, lures the witness inside and puts him out of his misery. “Why don’t you get her on the door pal?” “Well I’m not sure, I shouldn’t bother her when she’s studying something.” Just as I suspected. He wanted me to step inside. Miss Sparkle’s lifeless body lay no doubt behind him as yet another victim of this merciless world. I was about to get this bozo when I heard the soft voice of a mare. “Spike who is it?” A purple coated gal walked on the door. Her hair was cut straight and she had the eyes of deep thought. She seemed like the kind of gal who poured poison to the drinks of unsuspecting stallions. Not your everyday braud but an intelligent thinker who always had “the perfect plan” for the next move. So Miss Sparkle was still alive and kicking. She took a glance at me and gasped. It was the kind of look that told you something unexpected had happened. She had not expected me. I wasn’t a part of “the perfect plan”. “..Are you...are you an detective?” She asked in disbelief. I knew it. She was shocked to see me, a private detective standing on her doorstep sniffing around for the scum that she was no doubt hiding. I had to be careful. These kinds of criminals got desperate when “the perfect plan” failed. “Thats right doll. Its over, you better come clean with me” “Yes you are! An actual detective!” Not the reaction i was expecting. She seemed to be happy to see me. Maybe there was some room in “the perfect plan” for me after all. “Hey Mr.Detective tell me about...”The city”.” She said attempting to imitate...my voice? The city? She wanted to know about the city? “The city? What is there to say about the city? The city is full of crime. You look at your office and what do you see? A pile of cases, a pile of broken souls. You promise all those cases justice and you try to be a stallion of your word. But crime never sleeps, new cases pop out of nowhere. Its a lost fight before it begins. All you can do is sit in your home drinking cheap coffee knowing that your job will never be done. You think of quitting, but its not going to happen. You’ll just have to continue only getting part of the way through. You can never leave that life...why? I’ll never know...” Miss Sparkle squeed in excitement. I don’t know what happened. When she told me to tell her about “the city” I just couldn’t restrain myself. “You’re just like in my books! This is so exciting! Can I have an interview with you Mr.Detective?” I don’t know what it was but she didn’t seem so intimidating anymore. “Please, call me Hawkshaw. And I do have some questions for you.” “Uuu are you going to interrogate me? Did you a bring a bright lamp to make me nervous?” What the hay was going on here? Why was she so excited that she was about to be interrogated? This wasn’t good. The funny thing was that I DID bring a bright lamp to make her nervous. Were things actually going according to her plan all along? “Lets not waste any time! Come in and make me “spill the beans”.” She giggled and gestured me to follow her. I trotted after her like I was being pulled on a leash. I shouldn’t have probably done that, but I always did have a thing for the smart types. Looking around I could see that at least the place looked like a library. The shelves on the walls were littered with books. It was a sad sight. The writers had poured their lives on the pages of these books only to have them laying around, forgotten, in some dusty old library. I wouldn't be surprised if the books turned out to be hollow inside and filled with bottles of illegal apple cider though.�� Walking in I kept my eye on the dragon. It wasn't unusual for one of the criminals to keep the gumshoe busy while the other made sure their dirty secrets stayed hidden. "Would you like some tea? Or perhaps coffee?" The lavender mare suddenly asked. It was the oldest trick in the book. Lure the guy in and make the nosy detective drink some good old poison and be done with him. Simple and efficient. I wasn't born yesterday though. "How about we all just stay here, in this room and have a nice little chat Miss Sparkle?" I said when we sat down around a table. "Umm...okay?" She said giving me a questioning look. I set up the bright light and then I began...