“So, you want to know about magic?” Thudr5tep’s smooth, seductive tones said over Rarity’s internal speakers as she followed Candy’s van in her Streetdart. “Well, it’s not really my specialty, but I know a guy who knows enough. Hoi, chummers, it’s me, Thundr5tep and I’m coming to you live with another history lesson!”
Rarity smiled as she listened, following candy to the old warehouse that she had been working on for the Rookie. It was her big housewarming party, and the rest of the team had learned long ago to let Candy throw her parties.
Especially when they involved C4.
“Now this ain’t the kind of magic you see some street-magician perform, no, this is some serious hoof-waving. This is summoning Elementals, slinging spells, flying, turning ponies to goo, that kind of thing. Now, it didn’t start out that way, sure. Before the Awakening, only unicorns could use that kind of magic, and even then, most could only do that basic telekinesis that you see practically everywhere.
“But, like I was saying, back eighty years ago, the Awakening happened. Well what’s the Awakening, you ask? Well shut your fraggin’ hayhole and I’ll tell ya! Nopony really knows what happened, though the shamans and mages both have their own ideas, I’ll get to that later, but one day, out of the blue, magic began to flow through this world in quantities that had never been recorded before. Earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns alike became tiny magical bombs all through the country, causing forests to appear in the middle of cities, massive wind storms, and opening portals to other dimensions.
“It was a real fun time, I tell you what,” Thundr5tep laughed. “Now ponies aren’t the only ones that got a powerup, all kinds of things started wielding magic. Dragons, Timberwolves, Dogs, Cats, and more all began wielding the power of the cosmos. Not everyone did, though, which is why, most likely, you aren’t one of those spell slingers.”
Rarity shrugged. Not that magic would’ve helped her anyway. She preferred a more...technical world.
“Now, along with hoof-wavers, there are other magical beasts that walk the land, like Bug spirits and were-things, but that’s another story for another day. No, you, the average drek-head Runner, and probably more worried about the mages and shamans. Typically there are two major traditions for you to look out for—”
Rarity cut the sound, as both the van and her motorcycle pulled into a walled-in parking area next to the warehouse. Her Streetdart purred as it slid next to the van, shut off silently as the side of the van opened to reveal the team. As the ponies poured out of their vehicles, Candy slipped from the driver's seat and bounced happily toward the rolling garage door. “Ooh, I can't wait to show you!” she said with a face-splitting smile.
“So is this a lair...or…?” Twilight asked, staring up at the large warehouse.
“It's called a safehouse, Rookie,” Wingmare said, “and it was, but with you living here, the chances of someone finding it means it's not so safe anymore.”
“A safehouse? Like in that trid ‘The Bitalian Job?’” she asked.
“No, but at least you have good taste in movies,” Rarity said as she joined them.
“If a job went wrong, we’d come here,” Steel explained. “We’d let things blow over, let it cool down, and then come back, find a new place to live, and all that. This is, or was, a safe place that was ready for us to hide in if things went wrong.”
“In fact, I was going to stay here for a few weeks after the Harmony job,” Rarity said as Candy zipped around the building.
“Hush!” Candy said, suddenly, remote in her hoof.
This, of course, immediately got everypony's attention. Candy smiled, before she puffed out her chest and smiled. “Fillies, and nonexistent Gentlecolts, presenting the new Runner house!” With a click of the remote in her hoof, the rolling door began to rise, revealing the room behind.
The first thing they saw was a garage, built with the van in mind. Tool racks, jacks, a rack of tires, and a rather large airbrush set dominated the front of the room. Just beyond that was where the living space began.
A large section of floor space was dedicated to a shooting range, what looked like an eastern unicorn dojo, and an elemental shrine lodge covered in fetishes, totems, and a bonsai tree.
There was even a tank for Web’s pet tarantula.
Rarity and the other mares stared with wide eyes and gaping mouthed as they gawked at the renovated warehouse. None of them could really believe what they were seeing. “I...I...how?” Rarity muttered, before her eyes were drawn to the matrix datajack set up in the corner, beside a holotable and chairs.
“When did…” Steel began, before Candy smiled.
“I’ve been saving up!” she sang.
“For how long?” Rarity asked. “This must’ve cost thousands!”
“It’s been a few years,” the pink mare replied with a smile.
“Um…” Twilight began. “I’m staying here?”
“Yupperooni!” Candy replied. “I had a guest room put upstairs for ponies we were protecting, but you can have it since this isn’t a safe house anymore!”
“You guys keep saying that, but why does me living here change the fact that it’s a safehouse?”
“Because activity draws attention,” Web said, hovering over the tank to let her tarantula crawl into it. “A web is invisible as long as the spider does not draw attention to it. If the spider stays on a thread long enough, the fly will see him, and the web will be revealed.”
Twilight nodded, slowly. “I...see.”
“That’s alright, though,” Rarity said, eyeing the holotable. “After all, it would have been a tremendous waste of Candy’s time if this were a simple safehouse.”
“Is that a cybernetics workbench?” Steel asked, pointing to a small table covered in tools, with mechanical arms hovering over it like a mantis’ legs.
“It is!” Candy said, smiling.
“Is...is this actual rice straw on this makiwara?” Wingmare asked.
“And real wood!” Candy replied. “Only the best for you, Wingy!”
“I can’t believe you did this, Candy,” Rarity said. “This is...I almost wish that I lived here.”
“I just wanted to make everypony happy!” she replied. “Think of it as an early birthday present!”
“Happy Birthday, indeed,” the decker agreed.
“Is this place built on a leyline?” Twilight asked suddenly.
“Dragon vein,” Web muttered.
Twilight shot her a look.
“It is!” Candy said, bouncing over to the Rookie. “Web picked that out years ago.”
Twilight nodded. “I see.”
Suddenly, Candy grabbed the mare by the hoof. “Come on, let me show you your room!”
Twilight had just enough time to open her mouth, before Candy suddenly yanked her toward the stairs in the back of the warehouse.
Candy leaped up the stairs, taking them two at a time in her excitement as Twilight followed behind her, her curiosity thoroughly peaked. Waking up to the thin door, Candy produced a ring of keys, flipped through them at a dizzying speed, and finally unlocked the door.
The room was dark, with a bed covered in soft, but cheap, purple sheets, that was a far cry from the silk sheets she had back in Harmony Inc. The walls were covered in empty bookcases, while a few fetishes similar to the ones downstairs were scattered throughout.
“Sorry about the bookshelves,” Candy said. “It’s easier to buy totems from the talismonger than books about forbidden knowledge, mana, and other things I don’t really get.”
“No, no. It’s fine, I understand,” she said, putting on a smile.
“I did get a bunch of stuff for a lodge for you though!” Candy said, pointing to the corner, where some chalk, candles, small bones, and other magical materials waited for her. “Webby helped picked some out, but she said your hermasthic or something, so she didn’t know what more to do.”
“Hermetic,” Twilight corrected.
“Sure!”
“Well,” she said, before sighing. “Thank you. Really. It’s...I never realized how much I’d miss having a place to my own.”
Candy smiled. “I know what that’s like.”
Twilight nodded, before she turned back to the pink mare. “Um...what’s the best way to ask questions?”
Candy smiled, before yelling out the door. “Gem! Rooky’s got questions!”
“Well, being her down!” Rarity answered.
Twilight blinked, and sighed, this time from frustration. “I wanted to keep this quiet…” she whispered to herself before following down after the pink mare.
“What is it, dear?” Rarity asked as she caught sight of the descending mage.
“Well,” Twilight began, “um...since now I know this Running thing is going to be a long-term commitment thing, I thought maybe it would be a good idea if I found out more about the team.”
Rarity raised an eyebrow as the other mares gathered around her. “I thought you knew everything already?” Rarity asked.
Twilight shook her head. “Spikarunz knew everything. He just told me your names. I never got to see your files.”
Rarity nodded, before turning to the others. “Icebreakers?”
Steel, Wingmare, and Miss Web all immediately sighed, while Candy grinned and nodded at a supersonic speed.
“Icebreakers it is,” Rarity said, before grinning. “And it’ll give me a chance to try out the holotable!"
<><><|><><>
“...and I said ‘Oatmeal? Are you crazy?’ before I blew up the warehouse, showering everypony with oats, before all of a sudden, the security teams rushed, covered in cotton candy, and began shooting everything!” Candy explained to the ponies around her, including the fascinated and horrified Twilight Sparkle.
“Candy…” Rarity muttered for the tenth time as she sat on one of the chairs around the holotable.
“And I thought that’s a horrible thing to do at a birthday party, so I had all my babies shoot back! I didn't have Rocky and Balboa at the time, I had Siegfried and Roy, so I didn't have the firepower or armor to stand up to a full security team, so they weren't going to make it, but I was going to give him that birthday cake, or so help me, Celestia!”
“Candy.”
“So, knowing I was outgunned, I began to pack all my C4 into the wall next to me, before I rushed further down the hall. They killed Siegfried and Roy, and followed me down before they detonated the C4, blowing out the wall, and giving me my escape route.”
“Candy!” Rarity cried.
“Yeah?”
“Specialty! We need your specialty, not your life story.”
“She does this every time,” Web said.
“I don't know why ya thought this time’d be different,” Steel muttered, her hat covering her face as she stared at the ceiling.
Wingmare snored.
“And that's how I became a Runner!” Candy said, finishing up. “I’m the rigger, and demolitions expert, and the getaway driver.”
Twilight nodded, mouth agape, and eyes wide with terror.
Rarity sighed. “Anyway, I’m the Decker and the face. I have a natural talent for talking to ponies, so I’m generally the one in charge of negotiating with our Ringos, as well as making sure doors are unlocked for us.”
“She’s also the unofficial leader of the group,” Steel said.
“I told you not to call me that, Darling,” Rarity said.
Web nodded. “She keeps her head when we don’t.”
“I’m not the leader,” Rarity said.
“But you’re so good at it!” Candy chirped.
Rarity glared. “Wingmare, your turn.”
The rainbow-maned pegasus snored again before Steel elbowed her in the ribs. “Huh? What? Oh, right!” she said, before hovering in front of everyone there with her chest puffed out. “So I’m Wingmare, and I’m an Adept. That means I use magic to—”
“I’m familiar with Adepts,” Twilight said.
Wingmare blinked. “You are?”
“I’m familiar with most forms of magic, including internal manifestation for increased attributes,” Twilight said.
“Yeah, but the way I say it makes it sound cooler, Egghead.”
Steel chuckled, before she and pegasus shared a hoof-bump.
“I’m also the head of our infiltration. If we need our trenchcoats on, I’m the mare to call.”
“Trenchcoats?” Twilight repeated, wondering how that was relevant.
“It means being quiet,” Rarity explained. “If someone’s Running with their trenchcoat on it means they’re not looking to shoot. They want to be as quiet as possible. On the other hoof, you have your pink mohawks, which is a very nice way of saying there’s no such thing as subtlety.”
“Huh,” Twilight said. “I suppose that makes sense. That and the mohawk does have some very nice imagery to it, I’ll admit.”
“So glad ya approve,” Steel said before standing. “I’m Steel. I’ll let ya guess why. I’m the mare with all the guns and all the chrome. Need somepony shot, I can do that, need ‘em cut, I can do that too. I guess that makes me a street sam, but I was never crazy ‘bout the title.”
“I’m...not familiar with street sam,” the mage admitted.
“It’s short for street samurai,” Steel said. “Don’t know why they picked samurai though. It probably has something to do with all the idiots out there carryin’ katanas around. Don’t know why they’re so crazy about ‘em. They ain’t even that good a sword.”
“They’re so cool, though…” Wingmare whined.
“That leaves me, I suppose,” Web said from beneath her hood. She did not stand like the others, she merely stared deep into Twilight’s eyes while her own remained in Shadow. “I’m Miss Web, you may call me Web, since everypony else does. She,” she said, pointing to the tarantula in the tank, “is Angel II. You may pet her if you want. I am a magician of the shamanistic tradition and healer of the group. Do you know anything about the ancestor spirits?”
Twilight frowned. “I’ve heard of them. I can name three or so. I know they act as totemic guides, but I don’t know much else.”
“Do you know about Papa Spider?” Web asked.
“No,” she answered squirming slightly, “and I’m not sure I want to.”
“Just know he likes it when things walk into his web. To be out there, without a plan is to be vulnerable. Neither of us want that.”
Twilight nodded. “I...see.”
“Web does most of the legwork for our Runs,” Rarity said.
“Because none of you are paranoid enough to do it right,” Web muttered.
“So as well as being the magic, and the healer, she also helps plan most of the Runs we take,” Rarity continued. “Don’t worry about her attitude, dear, she’s just shy.”
Twilight’s face was impassive, and she nodded with a forced smile to hide her abject terror. “Okay, got it.”
Rarity nodded. “So now it’s your turn, Darling. What can you do?”
“Me?” Twilight asked, surprised by being asked for information after all this time. “Oh, right. Um. I’m Twilight Sparkl—”
“Rookie,” Wingmare corrected.
Twilight glared at her. “I’m a third grade initiated mage,” she said.
Web blinked, and refocused, and Wingmare likewise went quiet.
“I’ve been training since I was a filly, and as a result I am very powerful, and I know several spells, which only makes me more dangerous. I can hide my aura, shape spells to my desire, and I can quicken spells to make them permanent. I also have a vast knowledge on the ins and outs of Harmony Inc. and its competitors, and have in-depth knowledge about security, economics, and personal defense.”
“Not bad, Rookie, not bad,” Steel said.
“Not bad? How many magicians do you know that are actually initiated to begin with?”
Web smirked. “They find their ways.”
“Regardless, dear. It’s good to know these things, so thank you for sharing,” Rarity said, getting everypony’s attention. “Right now, however, we need to talk about employment. Because, as it so happens, I know I am running low on funds. I haven’t sold enough fake SINs to make the difference yet.”
Twilight winced.
“So, the question is what are we going to do?”
“Your fixer hasn’t found a new job for us yet?” Steel asked.
“No, she hasn’t,” Rarity confirmed. “She’s looking for something, but we’ve gotten very little.”
“Um…” Twilight began.
“Well, my own contact doesn’t have anything either,” Wingmare said.
“And I don’t want your contact to find nothin’ either,” Steel said.
“Hey, come on now.”
“That last time he set up a Run for us, we were stranded on the top of a skyscraper for three hours! We had to rappel down the building, get back to the street, and then had to wait another hour for Candy’s van to show up, all the while holding a glowing canister of radioactive goop that was going to be poured into the sprawls’ water supply!”
“Um…” Twilight began again.
“We never proved it was radioactive,” Wingmare pointed out.
“My street-doc had me eatin’ Potassium Iodide tablets for three months!”
“That’s...abnormally long for radiation exposure,” Twilight said.
“Yeah...well,” Steel said. “My Street-doc’s better at the cybernetics than actual medicine, but that ain’t the point!”
“No, and I might have a solution,” Twilight said.
Everypony in the team looked at her.
“What do you mean, Rookie?” Wingmare asked.
“So, what with losing my bank account, I decided I’d ask Spikarunz if he could point me in the right direction of some work. He said that he’d look for something since I’m...since I was an employee. He said that he knows the manager for the Ponyville Pounders—”
“The Hoofball team?” Steel asked.
Twilight nodded. “Yes, they might have a job for us.”
“A run for the Pounders?” Steel said. “Well, it’s been a while since I’ve seen Ponyville. I might be up for that.”
“Did they say how much they’d pay?” Wingmare asked.
“No,” Twilight said, shaking her head, “but I trust Mr. Spikarunz. He knows a good deal when he hears one.”
The team turned to Rarity.
She, in turn took a look around, before sighing. “We just, just, had this conversation. I am not your leader.”
“No, but what’s your opinion?” Steel asked with a smirk.
Rarity sighed. “We might as well hear their Ringo out. Find out how much it’s paying.”
“There, was that so hard to say?” Steel asked.
Rarity shook her head.
<><><|><><>
Their Ringo was famous, unfortunately for him.
His name was Hard Ball, and he had been an old linebacker for the Pounders until a pretty nasty tackle blew his leg out. These days, he walked well enough with the use of his cybernetic replacement, but since chrome and magic alike were both frowned upon in the National Hoofball League, he was forced to take a back seat into security for the team.
And Rarity just could not care.
Her father had been the one that cared for Hoofball in the family, and the most Rarity had ever cared for growing up was the team colors of Manehatten, which had been an issue since they lived in Vanhoover.
Still, as she walked in, she quite literally turned on the charm, and smiled as she spoke face to face with her Ringo.
“Well hello, Miss. I understand you’re here to fix a little problem of ours,” Hard Ball said, looking her up and down with a smile as the nearly-unidentifiable pheromones went to work.
“Well, Mr. Ringo, I just so happen to be in the business of fixing problems."
“That’s the best news I’ve heard all day,” Hard Ball said, before motioning to his desk. “Come sit down.”
She obeyed, taking the seat opposite him to face the window behind him. The view wasn’t bad for a nobody in security, a wall-sized window that glanced down at downtown Ponyville, one of the many cities that was almost swallowed whole by the Canterlot Sprawl’s incredible, decrepit reach.
“Tell me, you ever heard of Go Long?” Hard Ball asked.
“The saying or—?”
“He’s a pony.”
“Then no, can’t say I have.”
“Fantastic player. He’s an earth pony that covers ground like a pegasus. Real talent. He’s coming out of college pretty soon here, and we have an opportunity to help him reach a decision as to who he’s going to play for.”
“And you want us to help him with that?” Rarity asked.
“Not so much as make sure we’re the only ones talking to him,” Hard Ball explained. “There’s something of an expo going on, and while we have the home-turf advantage of being able to host it, we can’t approach him during the time of the expo, everypony else has to first, then we have our shot.
“But, the rules don’t explicitly say anything about hiring a team to keep everypony else away,” Hard Ball said with a smirk.
“So you want us to play bodyguard?” Rarity asked. “That can be managed.”
“I hope so, because for everyone in your team, there’s bound to be another group of Runners trying to make sure he doesn’t sign with us. Sports is a fairly cutthroat business after all.”
Rarity nodded. “I’m sure,” she said dryly.
“I’m serious,” Hard Ball said. “I know we don’t have the power of the corps you normally work for, but even the CEOs root for a team.”
“If you want to convince me that you’re serious, Darling, then you better have serious pay,” Rarity said.
“4k, per member of the team, per day,” Hard Ball said. “Plus another thousand for every Non-Pounder scout you manage to take out and confirm.”
Four thousand nubits per day was a very serious price.
Keeping her cool, Rarity said. “Make it 5 thousand per day, and fifteen hundred per scout, and we have a deal.”
Hard Ball waited a moment, leaving a very long and pregnant pause in the air. “I can do 5k a day. I can’t increase the price for the scouts though. 1k, take it or leave it.”
Rarity nodded, pleased to see he was willing to negotiate.
Those who weren’t were typically hiding something.
“Sounds like we have a deal, Mr. Ringo.”
“Done,” he said, sliding a datachip across his desk. “This has the location and times of the expo. We’d prefer if Go Long didn’t know you were there, but if you must, you must.”
Rarity nodded. “Just let us handle the rest,” she said before she stood.
He nodded, as Rarity began to step out. “Um...before you go, want to get dinner?”
Rarity smiled, before turning off her pheromones. “Maybe a night when I’m not about to risk my life. Besides, I’m sure your wife would have a few words.”
Hard Ball blinked, and shook his head. “I...I…”
With that, Rarity left, leaving Hard Ball alone to work his way out of the haze her subtle scent that left him in. Once she was in the hallway, it didn’t take much to find the small crowd of ponies that were her team all clumped together and waiting on her.
“Well, what are we looking at?” Steel asked.
“I got us 5k a day each watching some college kid they’re looking to bring on,” Rarity said.
“Five thousand a day?” Wingmare said with a low whistle. “Now that’s a payday. Good pick, Rookie.”
Twilight smiled. “I’m just happy we have an honest job.”
“Not quite, Darling,” Rarity said with a smile. “But don’t worry, I’m going to make sure we walk away from this as comfortable as we can be.”