Race 4: Rarity Investigates (again)!
Morgue, "Canterlot Daily Sun"
The dusky gray of Rarity's normally white coat bore mute testimony to the fact that the preservation spells on the old newspapers did nothing to dispel the dust. On one end of the table, there were a month's worth of newspapers, neatly stacked. A larger stack was on the other end. Rarity took the front section from the top of the larger stack with her telekinesis and spread it around her like the blocks of an igloo. She grumbled, "I wish I could have asked Twilight to help. This is more her cup of tea." As she skimmed the paper in the dingy light, she muttered, "Where is it? Where is it?"
The notepad on the table lay next to a quill and an inkpot. The notepad was open to a page with three questions: When was Blue Blood lost at sea? When did Blue Blood return? When did the Arrow make his first appearance? There was date written under the first one. For the last half hour, Rarity had been scouring through the archives, searching for the answers to the others. “But seriously, how can everypony be so stupid? How could I be so stupid?” said Rarity as she found the first article that speculated about the theory of the vigilante.
Rarity muttered to herself as she continued her search. "How is this even possible? That mask doesn't hide anything. Why is he even doing this?"
"Aha!" exclaimed Rarity. She carefully reassembled the paper and opened it to the article of interest. "So, this is when he first appeared. Is this what they really think about the Arrow? How can they be so wrong? How could I be so wrong? Why did he raid his own nightclub?"
Sometime later, Rarity located the final answer she sought. As she jotted down the information, she glanced up at the clock. "It's almost five. I'd better hurry; I don't want to spend the night with a bunch of dead newspapers."
As she hurriedly re-shelved the newspapers she said, "Blue Blood, what happened to you on that island? How could you become such a cold-blooded killer?"
Rarity trotted to her Canterlot boutique. That would give her a chance to freshen up, and it would help establish her alibi. She had told her friends that she had business with Sassy, and with this visit, Sassy could vouch for her.
She frowned as she made her way through the streets. She had let everyone believe that rescuing the butler had been their mission's objective. It was a convincing fiction, given the state Rainbow Dash had been in afterward. She didn't like misleading her friends, but her instincts screamed for her to keep things quiet for now.
"I really need to see Blue Blood in person." Rarity shivered at the thought. "The society page said that he normally likes to grab a quick snack at The Draught House; almost everyone in the city drops by as some point. First, I have to pay Sassy a visit."
Later:
After a couple of hours, Rarity had excused herself. The Draught House was a few blocks away. As she waded through the crowd in that famous cafeteria, she spotted her quarry. Blue Blood was sipping a cappuccino as his assistant, that orange pegasus, trailed behind with a drink of his own.
“I’m telling you Barry, this coffee is not only the best in Equestria, it's the best in all the worlds.”
"I wouldn't know, boss," replied Barry. "You unicorns are lucky you can walk and drink at the same time. My favorite coffee comes from good old Jitters; it's where I hang out with my friends. Everyone loves its coffee, even Ollie!"
Blue Blood groaned, annoyed.
“Not him again! What is he? Your coltfriend?”
Barry laughed. Blue Blood soon joined in. Barry said, "Seriously, they actually have a coffee in my honor, I mean, Flash's honor. It's quadruple-strength espresso."
"So, you don't drink it for its flavor; you drink it for your ego."
As the two continued, deep in conversation, Blue Blood came to a sudden stop -- against Rarity.
Her glass of iced tea exploded on the floor as she reached up with a forehoof to brush off the brown stain on her coat. "Hot!" she shrieked. "Hey! Watch it, Blue!"
Blue Blood shrugged and started to walk away. He stopped when he felt the weight of the glares from the other customers. He dropped some coins at Rarity's hooves. "Here. Buy yourself another drink and leave me alone. Let's go, Barry!"
Barry frowned at him. "Aren't you going to apologize?" he asked as he looked at Rarity sympathetically.
“You should learn something from your assistant, Blood; he knows what it means to be a gentlecolt,” scolded Rarity.
Blue Blood groaned again, and said mechanically, “Sorry for accidentally bumping into you. Can I go now?”
Rarity sighed. "I see you've changed after the Gala -- from the rude prince of Canterlot to Prince Charmless."
With barely-contained rage, Blue Blood said, "I am truly sorry! How many times do I have to say that!" He levitated two tickets to her. "Here, as compensation for my behavior, you can have these VIP passes; they're good at any of my clubs. Good luck in finding any pony who can stand you!" With that, Blue Blood stormed off with Barry in tow.
Rarity trembled as she watched the two leave. Once they were gone, she shakily made her way out of the cafeteria. As she moved out of view of the patrons, her demeanor returned to normal. She smiled to herself; this had worked better than she had dreamed.
Sassy Saddles gawked as she looked up at the marquee for The Verdant, the first and the largest of Blue Blood's clubs. She then looked at the head of the line, a block away. She said, "Thank you for inviting me Rarity! I never thought you were the kind who goes to clubs."
"Well, darling, you've been working so hard these last few days that I thought you use a change of pace."
Sassy sighed. "At this rate, it'll be morning before we get in."
"Nonsense," replied Rarity. "I just have to call in a favor."
The VIP area was everything Sassy had hoped for. The room was on the second level, and it featured a transparent dance floor with an unobstructed view of the stage. As she drank in the atmosphere, she couldn't help but think how odd the situation was. The Rarity she knew would never go to a place like this; the Rarity she knew would have been more engaged with the discussions about the boutiques. There was something off about Rarity; was she hiding something?
A familiar stallion wearing a white dinner jacket broke her away from her musing. As he exited his private room, Blue Blood had pasted on his best "Prince Charming" smile before he turned to the crowd. “Hey Canterlot! Are you having a good time?” he asked with a magically amplified voice.
The crowd shrieked in approval. Blue Blood turned to the featured performer DJ PON-3. The DJ worked her magic with her decks, and the crowd shrieked even more loudly. The volume in the VIP section a little quieter than in the main area, but it was still too loud to carry on a conversation comfortably. Sassy gave a half smile; she had appreciated the gesture, but judging from the audience below, it took a much younger pony to truly enjoy the experience. Rarity was not moving with the music. She seemed to be watching for something, or someone. Sassy looked up with a start when a waiter set a glass next to her. Rarity smiled and highlighted a placard on their table; drinks were on the house.
Rarity sipped her drink as she tracked the white-suited figure moving in the sea of color below. It meandered toward the kitchen entrance. Rarity was about to excuse herself to follow him when a voice from behind surprised her.
"Good evening, ladies. Miss Rarity Belle, boss Blood offers his sincere apologies. If there's anything we can do to make your night more enjoyable, you need only to ask."
Rarity smiled at the kind stallion. "Thank you, Berry, is it?" The stallion nodded. Rarity continued, "You really show all of the compassion your boss doesn't."
Barry shrugged. "There's a lot more to him that he lets on. Anyhow, I hope you two are enjoying your night. Again, if there's anything you need, just let any of the staff know."
"Does that include your personal services, you fine gentlecolt?" Sassy blushed slightly at the question. The pegasus did have a boyish charm.
“I’m sorry. Boss Blood needs me for some private business, but if you need something before I go . . .”
“We’re fine, thank you,” said Sassy winking an eye at him.
“So, tell me again; how did you get the tickets, Rarity?”
"It's a long story, darling. Let's just say I got lucky." The white unicorn touched her glass to Sassy's. Rarity now had no doubt about Blue Blood's alter ego. She was especially grateful that she didn't need to watch him take another life to get her proof.
Streets of Canterlot:
In the shadows of a dank alley, the leader of the thugs who had visited Blue Blood scanned the street anxiously, desperately hoping for customers. He ducked between the dumpsters, trying to avoid what was politely called "garbage". He shuddered at the thought of the penalty for failing to make his quota. He groused, "Come on! Somepony must need a fix tonight."
A bit of movement in the shadows caught his attention. He stared intently. It was a pony in a black hoodie, nervously looking here and there, stopping every few paces. The thug hissed, "Psst! Over here buddy!"
“Want something?” asked the dealer as he slowly approached the pony.
Noticing the thug, the pony in the hoodie nodded nervously, trembling. He fumbled under his jacket and withdrew a bag. The thug smiled as he saw the tremors; he recognized the withdrawal symptoms.
The thug took the bag in a forehoof and took a quick peek; there were enough bits for a healthy sale. He dropped the bag into a pocket and took a small bag of pills from another.
"Here you go, the best of the best."
The trembling pony pushed back the black hood, revealing a red cowl with gold ear cups. A single lightning bolt decorated each cup. Before the thug could even think, the strange pony embraced him with his forehooves, and in a blur, everything was gone. The thug blinked, trying to regain his bearings as things suddenly became much windier, and much fresher. The blur resolved into a figure in a blue cloak, levitating a bow and arrow. To its side was an orange pegasus dressed in a red bodysuit. Instinctively, the thug began to back away.
The pegasus yelled, "Stop!" The thug complied, confused. The pegasus continued. "Look down."
The thug obeyed and quickly looked back up, shivering. He was standing on a plank barely wide enough to accommodate his width. Below him, the dumpsters looked to be the size of a pillow mint.
The thug asked, "Wait; what?"
The Arrow asked calmly, "Where is your boss?"
The thug replied, "You don't seriously expect me to answer, do you?"
"That depends on whether you want to be the first earth pony to fly."
The thug started to take a step forward. The Arrow shot right in front of his hoof, forcing the thug back. The thug said, "If I tell you, he'll kill me."
"You'll die if you don't," answered the Arrow, coldly.
The Flash looked at the Arrow with concern. "Don't do it, Arrow! He's not worth it!"
The Arrow growled, "Stop telling me what to do!" He released the arrow. It struck directly under the thug and detonated. Reflexively, the thug jumped back. He screamed as gravity took hold.
From that height, a stallion would need four seconds to reach the ground in a freefall. In four seconds, the pony mind can work at an incredible pace when properly motivated. In four seconds, the thug decided he wasn't ready to meet his maker. In four seconds, the thug found himself at ground level, surprisingly intact. A red blur resolved itself into the Flash and the air cushion collapsed. The Arrow appeared beside him. The Arrow said, "That was your only warning. Where is he?"
"He's . . . Fourth Avenue, PRINCESS STREET! ABANDONED FACTORY!"
As the thug shakily rose to his hooves, the Arrow shot. The thug felt the projectile brush him just before it flew between his hind legs and parted his tail. The Arrow growled, "You have until dawn to abandon Canterlot!" With that, he melted into the darkness. The Flash gave the thug a goodbye nod and vanished.
There was only one place on Princess Street that fit the thug's description. It wasn't abandoned, but it had been under construction for over two years. The ground floor had been gutted, with structural members and utility lines exposed. The second floor, however, was fully finished. The largest room held the opulently-furnished office of the drug lord of Canterlot. There, he met with his subordinates. He swapped the proceeds from their sales with fresh drugs for distribution.
"Where are Grumpy and Smiley?" he asked. The others looked at each other and then back at the boss. "Let me guess. They didn't make their quota and they won't own up to it. I guess it's time to make an example of them."
Everypony chuckled at this. Suddenly, a salvo of two arrows zoomed into the room, pinning first the right shoulder of the boss' suit to the chair, and then the left. The subordinates stared in silence for a moment before the boss yelled, "He's here!"
The subordinates dove this way and that as arrow after arrow flew through the air and stuck to the floors and the walls. A final arrow struck the ceiling and erupted with a burst of magic. The other arrows detonated, flooding the room with blue smoke.
As the boss struggled to free himself using telekinesis, he heard the meaty thump of punches, the crash of breaking furniture, screams of agony, and the thud of falling bodies. He had almost worked the second arrow out when he screamed in pain.
The smoke dispelled, revealing that the boss now sported an arrow in each of his withers, pinning him to his chair. Before him, all the thugs in the room lay unconscious. The Arrow had his bow aimed directly between the boss' eyes.
“You have failed Equestria”
“Do you think they were the only ones in this building? HEY I AM IN DANGER! KILL HIM!”
The Arrow looked behind and shrugged. “And?”
The drug dealer looked around waiting for his henchponies, but no one answered his call. “What do you think you’re doing? WHERE ARE MY PONIES? KILL HIM OR . . .”
A red and gold streak of light moved into and out of the room. With each appearance, two more henchponies lay on the floor, bound and gagged. When the streak finally stopped, it resolved into an orange pegasus in a red body suit. He said, "Here are your reinforcements."
Three unicorn assassins appeared at the top of the stairs. After exchanging confused looks, they fired blasts of their magic at the Flash. They watched in anticipation as the blasts reached him, only to blink in amazement as he vanished in a streak of red. They didn't quite mimic Newton's cradle as the Flash struck one of them on the side of the head, knocking that thug's head onto the head of the thug in the center, whose head in turn struck the head of the thug at the end. The three collapsed, unconscious.
Two more hitponies appeared. The Arrow shattered the horn on one with a blunt tip. As the thug screamed in agony, his partner froze.
The Flash touched his friend's wither. "Wait. I've been wanting to try this one ever since I got here."
The Arrow nodded as he lowered his bow. The scarlet speedster began to shuffle around the carpet in circles, burning his path as the charged his body with static electricity. He then stopped and brought a forehoof to each thug's muzzle. There was a loud crackle as a small bolt of lightning leapt from each hoof. The thugs screamed in pain before collapsing.
The Arrow aimed a broadhead at the boss. The Flash cried out, "Don't kill him! He's helpless!"
The Arrow rolled his eyes. “Of course not, you moron! This big fish is the bait for the bigger fish.”
The Arrow shot out the window, activating the burglar alarm. He faded back into the shadows. The Flash waited patiently until the Royal Guard arrived. As they looked on at the pile of unconscious thugs and the boss pinned to the chair, the Flash gave the lead officer a packet of evidence.
Tapping his hind legs impatiently, he said, "This is more than enough evidence to put him away for life. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've gotta go!" With that, he disappeared in a red and gold streak.
The lead officer looked at his aide. "Who it Tartarus was that?"
The streak re-appeared. It resolved into an orange pegasus in a red body suit. "I'm the Flash; I'm the fastest pegasus alive!" Once more, he vanished in a red and gold streak.
Ponyville:
In the bright and airy breakfast nook in the Castle of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle and her de facto son read the morning paper with their breakfast. Her brow was knit in worry as she absently stirred her oatmeal.
Spike said, "That's interesting. It looks like Rainbow Dash has some serious competition."
Twilight snapped, "Don't even joke about that! She was so torn up, we thought she had given up!"
"Calm down, Twilight. It's here on the front page."
Twilight levitated the paper over and quickly skimmed the article in question. "Come on, Spike. This was a drug ring that they think the Arrow busted. They must have been on something serious to think anypony could move that fast. I bet that was just somepony with Trixie's talent, casting a giant illusion."
The two looked up when the chime from the service entrance rang. Twilight said, "I'll get it. A growing dragon needs a good breakfast." She opened the door to find a familiar yellow pegasus with an orange mane. "Spit Fire?"
The captain of the Wonderbolts nodded. "Can I come in? We need to talk."
"Of course. You can join us for breakfast."
Once Spit Fire had settled down with toast and tea, she said, "I'm worried about Rainbow Dash. I get that something bad happened on her last mission; everyone needs a break from time to time. But, she's now pushing herself like there's no tomorrow. She trains until she drops, literally. When I try to get her to slow down, she says she can't if she wants to be the fastest pony alive. She's going to kill herself if we can't get her to stop."
Spit Fire pulled a newspaper from under her wing and dropped it onto the table. "This morning, I saw this story. He's the one causing all the trouble, isn't he?"
Twilight sighed. "I'm afraid so. She ran into this Flash guy, and it all went downhill from there. But, I'm glad she recovered so quickly."
"This isn't a recovery! She's obsessed! You're her friend; you have to do something while you still have a chance.”
Twilight nodded. "I know. I will, but I'll need some help as well. Anyway, it should be simple; all we have to do is to show her that the Flash is a fraud."
"Whatever you have in mind, count me in."
The Princess of Friendship smiled, "I'm glad I can count on your support."
"She's a good kid, and a good friend. We can't let her throw everything away."