The bulky unicorn mare leaped out the window, shattering the glass and raining sharp shards down on the slush-filled alley below. She landed heavily and stumbled, then limped down the alley and around the corner, leaving a trail of blood. Behind her, the squealing of a whistle came, and another unicorn, wearing a long coat and carrying a billy club skidded around the bend, sprinting down the alley.
“You can’t run forever, Smart Shot! That window did you no favors! Give up now and I won’t have to use force!” the officer yelled.
“Hah! You give up first and I won’t make you use force!” Smart Shot yelled back. She kept running, her limp only slightly slowing her down. She crashed through boxes and barrels, slamming into the few ponies that made the alley their home, pushing them into the path of the officer chasing her.
Officer Clever Plot lit up his horn, preparing a stun spell, but the ponies and objects she kept tossing in his way made him hold his fire. He didn’t want to hit any innocents with the spell. Being called into the boss’s office to explain why a pony was left stunned for an hour in the cold street was not a conversation he wanted to have again.
He finally got a clear shot, and blasted a beam down the alley, but Smart Shot tossed a nearby crate into the path and it shattered from the blast, giving Smart Shot time to disappear around a corner. Cursing the mare’s ability to continually elude him, he galloped after, checking around the corner to be sure she wasn’t waiting for him before rounding the bend. A single beam blasted back down the alley, and he thanked Celestia for his common sense, then rounded the bend, horn ready and prepared to duel! But nopony was there.
“No, no no no! Where did she go? She can’t have disappeared so quickly. She doesn’t know any teleportation spells!” Clever Plot checked the cobbles for hoofprints and blood. The sheer amount of red staining the street meant she had hit something vital. The red trail meant she should be easy to follow on a snowy night like this, she would leave a vibrant trail behind her with every step.
He found the trail of blood, and was alarmed to see it was much thicker than he had expected: This much blood meant Smart Shot was dying. His observation was interrupted, however, when he heard the sound of shattering glass and a mare’s scream. A scream that didn’t sound like Smart Shot.
Clever Plot sprinted toward the sound and stopped short when he found Smart Shot inside a toy shop holding a mare at knife-point. Smart Shot’s rear hoof was covered in blood, red liquid flowing out of her with every beat of her heart.
“You’ve hit an artery, Smart.”
“Clever observation, smarty pants. You’re a real detective.” She smiled, her face gaunt and sweaty. He could see her muscles twitching involuntarily.
“If you let the mare go and surrender, we can get you fixed up. That needs attention, now!”
“Nah. You’re gonna lock me up, and that would be so boring. So I killed a few ponies! That’s what gives me a bum rap? Rotting in a cell sounds like ass. I got plans and I can’t be arsed to wait for years to get out on possible good behavior, so I’m gonna at least finish somepony off and have a gas while you kill me.” Her horn began to glow brighter, and she shook the mare she was holding, pulling her further back into the small shop.
“Smart, please. You wouldn’t have taken a hostage if you were intent on dying. What would get you to let the mare go?” Clever took a step closer toward the broken window, trying to find a clear shot. His horn was already lit, but if she saw it flash that would be it. He only had one opportunity. She was gearing up for a spell, so he had to be ready.
Smart Shot shuffled backward, the blood from her slashed leg dripped on the floor of the shop, a thick red stain pooling beneath the two mares. The mare in her grip struggled slightly, testing the limits of Smart’s strength, but Smart Shot was much larger, and easily subdued her attempts. She brought the knife closer to the mare’s eyeball, but said nothing. She was grinning a forced grin at Clever Plot, waiting for his attack.
Clever Plot watched and waited. His opportunity would come soon. She was dying. The blood pouring out of her leg was a thick flow which meant she had minutes, at best. He didn’t know why she was holding onto the mare, though. She was a murderer, so why hold onto a pony while she bled out? Something wasn’t right.
Clever Plot’s suspicions were proven correct when Smart Shot’s horn flared. She crowed as whatever spell she was preparing started going off, and Clever Plot knew he had to make his move now: He took aim at the exposed part of her torso, and fired!
The beam struck her, spinning her to the side and throwing her backward. The mare Smart Shot was holding fell away from her, the knife narrowly missing her eye and sliding across a tiny portion of her eyebrow. Whatever spell Smart Shot had been preparing went off, and a great flash of light came from her horn. There was a bang, and a fizzle, then it went away.
Clever Plot blinked rapidly, trying to clear the afterimages, and when he could see again he clambered quickly over the broken glass to the frightened mare.
“Are you all right, miss?”
She was shaken, but coherent. “Yes…yes, I’m fine. Just a… just a small cut.” She dabbed at her forehead with a shaking hoof, then turned to look at her attacker.
Smart Shot lay in a pool of her own blood. The puddle was widening as they watched, but the blood no longer pumped swiftly out of her wound. She had died during the fight. Her chest no longer rose and fell, and her head flopped at an uncomfortable angle, her eyes staring out into nothing.
The mare gasped and covered her mouth with a hoof. “Is she…?”
“She is. My stun spell was too much for her with that injury.” He cursed and kicked a nearby shelf. “Damn fool killed herself just to avoid prison time!” He turned away and spoke into a small seashell. “I need a team down at the toy store on twentieth… Yeah, the one with the train sets. I have taken down Smart Shot but a civilian got involved. No casualties.”
He put the shell away and turned to the mare he was with. “Miss, I’ll need you to stay here until we can get your statement on this whole mess, but I assure you we’ll have you out of here as soon as we can. What’s your name?”
She stared at the body for a moment longer, then turned to him. “Um… Velvet. Twilight Velvet.”
“Miss Velvet, come. Let’s step outside until the forensics team arrives.”
She stared wide-eyed at Clever Plot, not really looking at him, but through him. “Oh, yes,” she said, but didn’t move.
Clever Plot sighed and rubbed his face. She was in shock. Not uncommon, but not something he enjoyed dealing with. He looked around the toy store and found a stuffed toy laying on the ground. He picked up it, checked it for bloodstains or anything else, and pushed it into her hooves. She clutched it tight, and allowed herself to be led outside. She shivered, and he covered her with his coat as they waited in the dark.
When the other officers arrived, Twilight Velvet and Clever Plot were quickly examined, then left alone for a while. Twilight was given a blanket instead of Clever’s coat, and they were questioned repeatedly. Clever Plot explained what happened, and Twilight Velvet gave her version of the story. They sampled the blood, examined the body, and when they were done, began packing up.
One of the forensics team came up to Clever Plot where he stood with Twilight Velvet, pacing back and forth as he waited. “Clever, I have one question before we leave.”
“Shoot.”
“You said Smart Shot was casting a spell when you hit her. Can you tell me what the spell did?”
“All it did was make a big flash of light. I think she was trying to blind me and escape.”
“But you said it took time to cast. Those spells are simple and nearly instantaneous.”
“Yeah, but maybe she was waiting for the right moment.”
The investigator shook his head and looked back at the spot where Smart Shot’s body had lain. “Alright. Something about it stinks, but that will do. Are you going to take Miss Velvet home?”
Twilight Velvet nodded vigorously, still clutching the doll she had been given. “Yes, please! My husband must be so worried about me!”
“Alright.” Clever Plot patted her hoof gently. “I will see you to your home, miss Velvet. See you at the station, Stain.”
“Have a good night, Clever,” Stain said, and left.
Clever Plot walked through the streets of Canterlot with Twilight Velvet, following her directions to her home. When they arrived, a dark blue stallion threw open the door and ran out to meet her, hugging her tight. Clever Plot explained what had happened, and bid them goodnight. As he stepped down the stairs away from the house he heard her say, “It was frightening, but they let me bring home a friend for little Twilight.” Clever Plot shook his head and smiled. Glad to see a mother get home safe.