It was a warm morning in Ponyville, and once again the market square was alive with commerce even as the sun had just peaked over the hills. (Celestia had gotten up early that day.)
In her cottage, Poppy had been busy getting herself ready for another day of deliveries. Her scarf was pressed, her satchel packed, and her smile bright. Yes, she was more than ready to tackle today's delivery with gusto!
Now if only there was one.
Poppy lay on her couch, staring up at the ceiling in boredom, stopping only to look over at the phone on her desk every ten minutes. There hadn't been any word from Miss Wintergreen, all morning. No new deliveries. No new clients. Not even someone asking Poppy to help them rescue their cat from a tree again.
Nothing.
Poppy let out a sigh as she rolled over, picked up the remote, and turned on her flat-screen. After Moira's show had been canceled, due to the host going insane and keeping her audience captive, it was replaced with a new cooking show; Cooking Without Looking, hosted by local TV chef, Coco Pie.
A cheery tune played as the camera pulled out from the kitchen to show Coco Pie, a mint green earth pony with a fluffy mane and a cupcake for a cutie mark, wearing a chef's hat and smiling as broadly as Poppy had ever seen a pony smile.
"Hey everypony!" she sang. "Betcha' weren't expecting me to pop up in this story!- I mean, chapter, I mean show!" Poppy suddenly had a very strange feeling about this mare. But she couldn't put her hoof on it.
"Ahem, anyways, we have a very special episode for you all!" squeed Coco. "Today we are baking a cake, in celebration of NaPo!"
Poppy sat up. "Napo? What that heck is Napo?"
"You're probably asking yourself what Napo, actually means!"
Poppy waited for the answer.
"..........Alrighty, let's get to baking everyone!" Coco whipped out a large baking pan and began to prepare her cake.
Poppy wasn't sure what she thought of this mare, Coco Pie. She definitely seemed sweet, but....Poppy couldn't shake the feeling that Coco was looking right at her. Weird.
Suddenly the show was interrupted by the ringing of Poppy's desk phone. She practically leaped over her couch to answer it.
"Hello?" she asked eagerly, expecting it to be Miss Wintergreen, hopefully with today's delivery order.
But the voice on the other end was low, cold, and disguised to hide their identity. "Is this Poppy Blossom?" the voice asked.
"Um...Yes, but who are you? How did you get this number?"
"Not important." The voice said quickly. "But here's something that is: I hear your looking for the HappyTime Mafia."
At those words, Poppy's heart caught in her throat. "How do you-"
"Listen." The voice commanded. "I can help. But you have to do something first."
"What do you want? Who is this?"
"Go to the address in the envelope. Look for a place called The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino. Go in. Look for the one in the golden bear mask. Say you work for Deep Muzzle. You can figure out the rest from there."
"Wait! Who-"
But the line went dead.
Poppy hung up the phone, thoughts racing through her head. Who was that? How did they know she was looking for the HappyTime Mafia? And just what was she heading into?
Not wanting to take any unnecessary risks, Poppy decided to go ask the smartest (and possibly craziest) pony she knew.
Her friend, and local conspiracy theorist/ paranoia enthusiast: Burnt Pears.
To-Do List: Tell Pears about the mysterious phone call.
The Inconvenience Store
Poppy glanced at the gumball machine ("Wait. Are those anti-depressants in there this time?") before entering the Inconvenience Store.
The usual bright and cheery store music greeted her as she entered, but upon approaching the counter, Poppy saw no sign of Pears.
But she did notice a new candy machine in the back. "Huh. Well, I do like a pick-me-up every now and again." Poppy reached into her satchel, took a coin, and was about to put it into the slot, when an arm suddenly popped out of the side and grabbed hers.
Poppy let out a scream as another arm popped out of the side, and then a large hole opened up in the machine before a familiar face popped out of it.
Poppy blinked. "Pears!?"
"Shh!" Pears put a hoof to Poppy's mouth and began looking around as if searching for something. When she didn't find anything she pulled her arm back from her friend's muzzle. "I'm in disguise." Pear's whispered.
"I can see that, but why the heck are disguised as a candy machine!?" asked Poppy her eyes wide.
"It's the last thing they'll expect!" cried Pears. "My life is in danger!"
"Danger?' asked Poppy, concerned. "What's wrong?"
Pears looked back and forth again, before answering in a hushed tone. "The HappyTime Mafia!"
Poppy's heart sank. "You...you can't be serious."
"Poppy." Pears put her hoof on Poppy's shoulder. "Would I dress up as a candy machine if I wasn't serious?"
"......honestly? Yes, probably."
"Damn right. But this is serious!"
To-Do List: Find out what Pears knows about The HappyTime Mafia.
"What do you know about the HappyTime Mafia?" asked Poppy.
"Other then the fact they're an underground mob of cutthroats, killers and mobsters that also have a strange obsession with making children's toys and dressing in colorful bear costumes?" asked Pears.
"Um, yeah?"
"I know that they're supposed to be an all-Griffin mafia family, based out of Griffin Cape." Pears explained. "But they've opened up a new business in Equestria to drum up local customers: The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino."
Poppy's eyes went wide. "I knew it! That's where that guy on the phone told me to go!"
"Guy on the phone?"
Poppy explained to Pears about the mysterious phone call she had received, telling her to go to The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino. And what she should do.
"Hmmm..." thought Pears. "Well, ordinarily I'd recommend faking your death, burning your house down, and moving to Eurpoa to start a dairy farm under the new name Juan."
".....or?"
"Or take the lead. Head on down to this place, and see what you can dig up on the HappyTime Mafia." said Pears. "If it turns out good, then your one step closer to finding out what they're up to. If not, it's a public place and your a customer; they won't lay a claw on you."
"You're sure?" asked Poppy.
"Absolutely."
Poppy decided to give it a shot. What was the worst that could happen?
"So," said Pears moving behind her counter (Still disguised as a candy machine) "Did you want anything before you left?"
"Well...yeah. I guess it'll help to take my mind off this for a bit." said Poppy. "What do you have?"
"Got a set of +2 Armor of Limitless Boopability?" suggested Pears.
"Um...what does that do?"
"It basically makes it so you can be poked in the nose indefinitely."
"....What weirdo would want to do that to somepony?"
"You'd be surprised."
"I'll pass. Anything else?"
"Some PEZ dispensers with the heads of famous Klugeican revolutionary, Poncho Villa?"
"I'm good on candy and paraphernalia of famous foreign revolutionaries."
"Fair enough." said Pears. "A box of souvenir snow-globes from the Mystery Vortex?"
"What's the Mystery Vortex?"
"Don't know. That's the mystery!"
"Pass."
"Potatoes in the likeness of religious saints?"
"How the heck did you get those?"
"I know a guy who works in the gardens of the Vatican. He also steals potatoes from random farms and carves them to look like religious saints."
"Anything else?"
"How about my last box of Mutant Animal Crackers?"
"Mutant Animal Crackers? Are the crackers mutated or are the animals the crackers are based on mutated?"
"...Yes."
"Um...pass."
"Life-size Marshmallow Sheep?"
"What the heck could I possibly need that for?"
"For disguising yourself as a marshmallow sheep to infiltrate a herd of other marshmallow sheep!"
"Yeah, no."
Pears was running out of options. "Well," she said reaching behind the counter. "I do have this Skeleton Key Decoder." she pulled out what looked like a large price check tool with a red light on the front of it, and set it on the counter. It was colored green and had a padded handle and trigger in the back. It was also emblazoned with the trademark logo of Pears-Tech on the side.
'What's a Skeleton Key Decoder?"asked Poppy.
"To put it simply, it's the best friend of every thief, spy and infiltrator in the world." Pears explained. "It can open any lock in existence, regardless of magic, technology or physics."
"Whoa! Seriously?"
"Very seriously." replied Pears. "Want it?"
Poppy thought how much time she could save with deliveries when she could simply open up any locked door she came across and place the delivery inside.
"Yeah, okay!" Poppy exclaimed reaching for her satchel. "How much?"
"Let's call it.....ten million bits."
Poppy chucked her purse back into her satchel. "Ten million!?" cried Poppy. "Are you serious, right now Pears?"
"It's the most advanced lock bypassing device in the universe!" argued Pears. "I checked!"
"Why would you charge me ten million bits!? What happened to the million bits I paid you for that sonic amplifier!?"
"I spent it all in order to build the Skeleton Key Decoder!"
Poppy sighed. "Fine, whatever. If I somehow come up with ten million bits, I'll call you."
Poppy then turned to leave the store. "I'll hold it for you till you get the money!" Pears called after her. "Good luck!"
Poppy returned to her cottage to find an envelope addressed to her, laying by her door. Opening it, it read:
1212 Clean Slate Drive, Manehatten.
This must've been the envelope the voice had described on the phone. And this, was the address he was talking about, to get to The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino.
With the address, locked in her mind, Poppy used her teleportation spell and vanished in a flash of orange light, and appeared on the sidewalks of Manehatten.
Manehatten, Downtown
Manehatten was a big, wide beautiful city filled with countless ponies making their way around town, and all of them were far too busy to stop and help Poppy find The Don's Casino. Luckily though, she didn't have to look far.
After finding 1212 Clean Slate Drive, a large purple building came into view. It looked more like a child's toy box then a building; huge novelty chimneys were spewing bubbles from the rooftops and a large array of colorful slides were visible through the windows. But most telling of all was the large teddy bear head with big eyes and a creepy smile displayed above the double door entrance.
Poppy remembered seeing that very same bear when it was controlling Moira's mind to make her keep her audience captive. She didn't like seeing it then, and she didn't like seeing it now.
But this was definitely the place; the headquarters of the HappyTime Mafia. It was time to find out what they were up to.
Taking a moment to compose herself, Poppy grabbed the door, swung it open and went inside.
The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino
The first thing she noticed was the music; a bouncy, jaunty, playful tune that reminded her of childhood. Not her childhood, but simply the concept, with how jubilant it seemed.
The second thing was that she had somehow stepped into a kidtacular amalgamation of a casino and a pizzeria arcade. The carpets were neon purple, with matching rich purple walls covered in posters promoting Eat pizza, and to Turn in yer chips before ya leave. And then there was the decor; the doors she had walked in through were housed in the mouth of a giant smiling clown with spinning, goofy eyes, and an elongated tongue for a walkway. Huge brightly colored statues of that same bear were displayed all over, housing various slot machines, that Poppy saw many laughing foals and fillies playing at. (One in particular seemed to be on a winning streak, as he had a bucket full of the arcade tokens that the casino gave out as currency). Along the wall was four more bears, arrayed as a singing animatronic barbershop quartet, that ponies were gathered around clapping and cheering as they sang.
And then the third thing, was that almost immediately upon entering, she was approached by what looked like a bipedal griffin in a pleated black suit and tie, wearing a large fiberglass pink bear head, that matched all the others Poppy had seen, except he wore a fedora.
"Welcome to The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino." he said in a thick, uninterested, mafia-esque drawl. "My name's Lovey Bear. Boy, do we have some fun and games for you today." He reached into his pocket and handed Poppy a fistful of tokens. "Here take this token amount of tokens as our way of saying 'welcome.' And 'go spend a lotta money'.
Poppy looked at the coins in her hoof. They were gold, and were printed with the image of that same bear on them. Across the top it said: One token legal. Across the bottom it said: In Don We Trust.
"Um...thanks." Poppy put the coins in her satchel, and turned back to Lovey Bear. "Do you mind if I ask you a bit about this place? It's my first time being here."
"Sure, sure." said Lovey Bear. "I got nothin' better to do, then talk to ignorant customers anyways."
"Um...okay." said Poppy a little offended.
To-Do List: Fine out more about The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino.
"So..."Poppy began. "Do you know you look a lot like that evil bear that brainwashed Moira Manners a few weeks ago. The one that was sent from the HappyTime Mafia?"
"You're lucky this mask doesn't have ear holes." warned Lovey. "Or I might've just heard that very suspicious and incriminating statement you just said, that you shouldn't go around asking about."
Poppy looked at Lovey. "So...you didn't hear me?'
"Hear what?"
"Right. Okay." said Poppy deciding to ignore that one. "Do you always give away free tokens to first time customers?"
"That's right, go on; have a little fun!" said Lovey candidly.
"Doesn't that seem like bad business sense?" asked Poppy.
"Okay, tell ya what." Lovey leaned in a bit. "Thirteen hours from now, when you're trying to pawn off that scarf of yours to pay off the vig, we can talk then about 'bad business sense."
"Never gonna happen." said Poppy plainly.
"Right. Keep tellin' yourself that."
Poppy moved on to her next question. "Is this place really mafia-free?" she asked raising an eyebrow.
"That's right, kiddies. one-hundred percent mafia-free, no mafia anywheres." replied Lovey.
"Then why is it called The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino?" asked Poppy curiously.
"Obviously, because the owner of this establishment is named as such." said Lovey, rolling his fake googly eyes.
This was definitely the place Poppy was looking for. And now that she was in, all she had to do was follow the voice's instructions. But where to start?
"I had another question, if you don't mind." said Poppy.
"Oh, goody." snapped Lovey.
Ignoring Lovey's rudeness, Poppy continued. "I'm looking for someone who works here; they wear a golden bear head. Do you know them?"
"Look sweetheart, I just greet the guests." said Lovey "You wanna know who works here? Talk to The Don; he's the one in charge."
"Where can I find The Don?" asked Poppy.
"He's got uh, shall we say business, in the back room." said Lovey suspiciously.
"What kind of business would that be?"
"The kind of business that gets italicized to signify it's importance, so's you know not to ask."
"Right. Got it." said Poppy. "Thanks for the help Lovey Bear."
"Have fun now!" said Lovey. "And remember; if you're not losing, we're not winning!"
To-Do List: Find the employee with the Golden Bear Head.
Poppy began her search by looking around the main lobby of the casino. There were many arcade games, ticket machines, and a crowd of ponies taking pictures of what appeared to be a cannoli in a large glass case with a plaque on the base of the podium.
Poppy edged through the crowd for a closer look. The sign read The Don's Original Ricotta Cannoli: The original Don made this original creamy ricotta cannoli with his own two paws in the year X957. The sugary microorganisms that gives The Don's modern cannolis their distinctive flavor are descended from the colony in this cannoli.
Poppy was very glad she had already eaten that morning, as she moved away to see the rest of the casino.
"Poppy? Is that you?" a familiar voice said. Poppy turned to see the smiling face of Penny Metronome, licensed psychotherapist, smiling warmly at her from one of the many booths for customers to eat in.
"Penny?" Poppy went over to her and smiled. "No way! What are you doing in Manehatten?"
Penny laughed. "I could ask you the same question!"
"It's uh....complicated."
"I bet." said Penny. "I heard all about how you beat that Charming Culture wacko." she motioned for Poppy to join her. With Poppy sitting comfortably, she continued. "And, I saw you on Equestrian Idol! I had no idea you knew how to play guitar!"
"Heh, that's a bit of a stretch." said Poppy. "I had help from my friends."
"Are you planning on going back for next season?" asked Penny. "You really hit it off with ratings I hear."
"Eh, probably not....or ever again." said Poppy, briefly reflecting on her time spent at WARP with everyone else, who were being held against their will. "But, I have to ask again; what are you doing in Manehatten, Penny?"
"I'm in town as a trial witness." said Penny. "I was called in thanks to numerous degrees in psychological studies! Plus, it helped that word got out about how I cured the whole brainwashing book outbreak."
Poppy had heard that Penny had gained quite a bit of fame after Charming and his evil book scheme was exposed. Apparently, everyone that had been affected by the book's curse, came to her for help, and she became quite the celebrity because of it. She was even featured on the cover of Psychology Monthly!
"I know! I bet you've gotten plenty of business!" Poppy laughed.
"Mostly a lot of interviews, but there has been quite a boom as of late!" said Penny. "Hopefully, once I've lent my expertise to the Manehatten justice system, they'll be even more interested! I may even open up a second office when I can afford it!"
"That sounds great, Penny!" said Poppy happily. "I'm so happy for you!"
"Thanks! I just stopped in here for a bite to eat before the trial this afternoon." said Penny. "Plus, I love the cute costumes they wear here; my waiter even had a golden one on, if you can believe it."
Poppy sat up. "Golden? As in a golden teddy bear head?" she asked quickly.
"Yep. He was very polite too."
"Where is he now?"
"He should be coming back any minute with my order. Why?"
"I um, need to talk to him. It's important."
"Fair enough. You can wait here till he comes back!" said Penny. "We can catch up some more, in the mean time!"
And so Poppy sat with Penny and they chatted happily about different things, like their plans for today, favorite parts of Manehatten, why they thought all the employees wore those masks, and more. This continued till the golden headed waiter finally came with Penny's order; a light salad with maple dressing and raspberry iced tea.
Before he left, Poppy stopped him. "Excuse me? Do you mind if I talk to you?"
"Not at all!" he said politely. "What can I help you with?"
Poppy leaned in and brought her voice to a whisper. "Um....Deep Muzzle sent me?"
The waiter looked at her for a minute. Then nodded. "Of course, ma'am let me show you!" he said, gesturing for her to follow him.
She said goodbye to Penny, then followed the waiter to a small clearing out side the bathrooms, with nopony (or Griffin) around. "Okay." the waiter said. "I don't have a lot of time, so let's get right to it." He reached into his lapel, and withdrew a police badge. More specifically, one for the Equestrian Bureau of Investigation (EBI).
Poppy's eyes widened. "You're an EBI agent??"
He nodded then quickly put the badge back in his pocket. "My name is Agent 14." he explained. "I was sent in here with my partner, Agent 15, to go deep undercover and investigate the criminal organization that runs this place; The HappyTime Mafia."
"Have you found anything?"
"Not yet." said 14. "Worse still...my partner? She's gone."
"Gone? What do you mean?"
"Missing. Since a week ago." said 14 shaking his head. "I've been worrying about her for days. I think her cover might've gotten blown and she's been take hostage. Or worse."
"I'm sorry." said Poppy. "But why bring me here? I'm just a delivery mare!"
14 shook his head. "You're the delivery mare that found the connection between the HappyTime Mafia and Moira Manners; those bears? This place is where they're making em."
"What are they making these bears for? What's their plan?"
"I don't know yet." said 14. "But you can find out!"
Poppy tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
14 pointed to a large metal door guarded by a burly looking guard in a pink bear mask. "That's where the HappTime Mafia hold their meetings. You need to get back there and join them."
Poppy's throat went dry. "J-Join them!? Are you insane, why would I want to join these maniacs??" she whispered in outrage.
"To get close to them!" said 14. "You can find out everything they're doing from the inside, and put a stop to it." He leaned in a bit. "Plus, if you're mafioso, then you can help me look for my partner. We find her, then we can take this whole thing down together."
Poppy thought for a moment. Was she really willing to join a powerful crime outfit, just to take them down? The HappyTime Mafia were the ones who brainwashed Moira, and they were clearly making these bears for an evil purpose. They had to be stopped. And if this was the only way she had to stop them, then so be it. Plus, at least she would have the help of two elite undercover EBI agents.
"Okay." Poppy agreed. "What do I have to do?"
"Just head over to that guard." 14 pointed to the burly guard by the door. "Then tell him the password to let him know your a recruit. The HappyTime Mafia is starting to recruit ponies as of this week, so he'll believe you."
"What's the password?"
"I'm here for grandma's funeral."
"That's....dark."
"They are mafia."
"Good point."
14 looked to see that no one was listening in. "I have to get back to work now." he said in a regular tone. "If you need me, just ask for Nibbles. Thats, um...that's the code-name they gave me." he sounded embarrassed to say it.
"Thanks." said Poppy. "I'll see you soon Age-oops! I mean, um...Nibbles."
Nibbles nodded, then headed back to work, leaving Poppy to think about how to approach this. She was going to join the HappyTime Mafia just so she could take them down from the inside. She just hoped she wouldn't have to do anything...unsavory.
With that thought in the back of her mind, Poppy strolled over to the other side of the casino and approached the guard at the door.
"Hold it." he snorted. "HappyTime Mafia only. Not that there's any mafia here, of course."
This might've been easier than she thought. "I'm here for grandma's funeral." said Poppy trying to look and sound like a mafioso.
The guard nodded, and opened the door behind him. "You may enter." he said simply.
Poppy nodded, took a deep breath, then walked inside, the metal door closing shut behind her.
The HappyTime Mafia's Secret Headquarters
Poppy found herself in a very comfortable looking and luxurious lounge, with rich carpets and furniture, paintings and a large desk in the back that Poppy guessed belong to The Don. Because he was looking right at her, from his chair.
"And who might you be?" a mafioso in a red bear mask asked. "This area ain't for tourists."
He wasn't alone. The room was filled with HappyTime Mafia, all looking at her through the eye-holes of their bear masks.
But Poppy was calm and knew what she had to do. "I'm here to join the HappyTime Mafia." said Poppy.
The room erupted into laughter, apparently finding this to very funny for a pony like Poppy to ask to join their numbers.
That was until, The Don himself, a large rotund griffin in a rich purple suit, orange bowtie and wearing a brown bear mask with a cigar in the mouth, got up from his desk and raised a feathered hand for silence. At once the room was quiet.
The Don then made his way over to Poppy and looked down at her. "I know who you are." he had a deep voice accompanied by a slight throaty mumble that somehow made him seem more menacing and respectable.
"You do?" asked Poppy nervously.
"Indeed." said The Don. "You're that delivery mare from Ponyville. The one who got that Culture freak put away."
"Um...yes?"
The Don bowed his head. "You have my thanks for that; Mr. Culture was a threat to our organization as well as our various business practices."
"Oh! Y-You're welcome then!" said Poppy with a nervous smile.
The Don nodded. "You said you wish to join our family, did you not?" asked The Don.
Poppy nodded. "Yes, sir."
"You've proven yourself to be extremely capable; you even managed to get the secret password to let you into this room. I like that kind of capability." said The Don courteously. "The HappyTime Mafia could use a mare like you, I'm thinkin'."
Poppy pretended to look hopeful. "Really?" she asked eagerly.
The Don nodded. "But first, there's two matters that need, shall we say, taken care of."
Just then the metal door behind Poppy opened up and a mafioso ran inside, out of breath. "Don! The original ricotta cannoli! It's been stolen!" he cried. The room broke out into various swears and angry grunts from the rest of the mafia.
"Ahem. There are three matters that need taken care of." said The Don "Do them, and I will personally welcome you into our ranks. Whattaya say?"
"Okay." said Poppy respectfully. "What do you need me to do?"
"I need someone leaned on, someone whacked and I want you to find the bastard who stole the original ricotta cannoli and bring it back." said The Don.
"Um...I don't know the firs two things mean."
"I need you to spy on someone for me, and I need you to assassinate someone."
Poppy's heart sank. "A-Assainate? You mean....kill?"
"Precisely. Can you do it?" asked The Don.
Poppy had no choice but to go along with it for now. She'd figure out the details later. "Uh, S-Sure, yeah! No problem!"
"Good." said The Don. "For the leaning, there is a shopkeeper in Ponyville who we've been watching for several weeks now. She refuses to stock our wonderful products and various toy merchandise."
"It's unforgivable!" cried one of the Mafiosos. "Do you have any idea how hard I worked on that stitching!?"
"Indeed." said The Don with a nod. "You're a delivery mare? Deliver a crate of our special I Heart You Bears and make sure she displays them in her store." He motioned to a large crate to the side of the fireplace, marked with the logo of The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino. "You will be payed of course."
"Um...okay, who am I delivering them to?" asked Poppy.
"The Inconvenience Store." said The Don
Poppy's heart jumped into her throat as she gasped. Luckily no one in the room noticed. "Um...Okay, I can do that!" she said quickly.
"As for the whacking, we have Intel that there is a witness in town, testifying against one of our brothers-in-arms who is being unjustly accused of various heinous and completely false criminal acts. I want this witness silenced before she takes the stand this afternoon." said The Don.
"Don't say it, don't say it, don't say it..." Poppy repeated in her head.
"Her name is Penny Metronome, licensed psychotherapist."
Poppy's heart would've hit the floor if it sank any lower. She gulped as sweat beaded on her forehead. "Okay, can do!" she blurted out. She was starting to panic. What had she gotten herself into!?
No, she had to stay calm. Had to think her way out of this. She took a deep breath and said. "I'll get it done." she said as menacingly as she could muster.
The Don nodded. "I look forward to hearing of your progress. Now go."
Poppy did as she was told. She picked up the crate with her magic, then vanished in a flash of orange light, reappearing back in Ponyville.
To-Do List: Go to Pears for help!
Poppy practically ran into the Inconvenience Store in a huff, the crate bouncing in the air beside her.
"Pears!" she yelled. "I need your help!"
Pears was busy rearranging what looked like a display for a popular Saddle Arabian breakfast cereal (Still disguised as a candy machine) when she looked up to see Poppy, out of breath. "Poppy? What's wrong?" she asked, concerned.
How could Poppy tell Pears everything that had just happened? That she was now working to join the very organization that had actually been spying on her and that she had to convince her to sell toys made by the HappyTime Mafia, as part of some convoluted scheme to take them down?
Apparently, over Sludgees.
Poppy sat in her chair with her Sludgee in her hooves as she tried her best to avoid Pear's razor sharp gaze. she had told Pears everything, from meeting Agent 14 to meeting The Don, to being tasked with delivering toys to Pear's store and killing off her friend Penny.
Poppy had expected Pears to go off the deep end. But instead she just got her a Sludgee from the Sludgee maker, took a seat behind her counter and thought to herself, her expression calm.
Then suddenly she jumped up and chucked the chair across the room. "Bastards!" she swore. "Just like the HappyTime Mafia to pull a stunt like this. I knew they were after me, I didn't know they'd go so far as to use you, Poppy."
Poppy looked up. "Um...I don't actually think they're-"
"Well I ain't going down that easy!" Pears shouted. "I'll die before I let them kill me! Wait."
"Pears! What do I do here? I need help, remember?" asked Poppy desperate for guidance.
"Right, sorry." said Pears. She thought for a moment. "Okay, here's what you do: First....ugh." Pears looked pained to say what she was trying to say. "I'll....let you deliver the toys, BUT only because you're my friend, and It'll lead to the destruction of those mask-wearing, thug-toting lunatics!" cried Pears.
"Really!? That's....unbelievably nice of you, Pears." said Poppy with a smile.
"Yes, yes it is." said Pears. "Next, I'll get in contact with Penny. Let her know the situation, and help her temporarily fake her death. Just until The HappyTime Mafia are taken care of."
"You...you can do that?" asked Poppy, amazed.
"Yep. Give me an hour, and I'll make it happen." said Pears with a smile. "But, remember; I'm only doing this to get rid of those guys, so I don't have to keep wearing this disguise." she tugged at her collar. "It's really heavy."
"Thank you, Pears." said Poppy, feeling immensely relieved.
"Don't mention it." said Pears. She suddenly got very close to Poppy's face. "No, seriously. Don't mention it; they could be listening in!"
With one hour to kill before Pears would've taken care of everything, Poppy decided to go back to The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino, to keep up the appearance of a future mafioso, as well as to talk to Agent 14. He may have found something out about The HappyTime Mafia's plans.
The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino
There was a distinctly different tone in the air as Poppy returned to the casino. Lovey Bear, who had been so rude to her before, now nodded respectfully as she walked through the front door. Passing employees, wished her luck and told her to be careful while doing her jobs for The Don. It seemed as if word had spread that Poppy was trying to join The HappyTime Mafia, and this had earned her the respect of it's ranks.
As she passed the Apple-blackjack table, she was stopped by the dealer; a mafioso in a green bear head. "Hey, can I talk to you a minute?" she asked.
Poppy stopped. "Um....sure?"
The green bear let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, good!" she said. She gestured for Poppy to have a seat. As Poppy sat down, the bear leaned in bringing her voice down to a whisper. "Listen, I heard about what you're doing for the boss; Really glad to have you!" she said. "Do you think you could help a fellow sister-in-arms with a problem she's been having?" she asked hopefully.
"Um, okay." said Poppy. "What's the problem?"
The bear pointed a feathered hand to the slots. "That guy!" she whispered.
Poppy followed her gesture to a very smarmy looking black stallion with a greasy black pompadour, blue open-collared shirt and wearing two gold chains around his neck. His cutie mark of two blackjack cards were visible even from where Poppy was sitting. He seemed to be busy annoying a group of mares with a huge, show-offy smile.
The fact that he reminded Poppy of Charming Culture didn't help towards her opinion of him. "Who is he?" asked Poppy.
"His name is Steakcharmer." said the dealer. "Every day he comes over and plays Apple-Blackjack; y'know it's like blackjack except the cards have different apples instead of numbers?"
"Right, everyone knows that." said Poppy with a nod.
"Well, that guy,"again she pointed at Steakcharmer, "Always wins; he cheats! It's bad for business! It's getting to a point people won't even play because he keeps playing against them and winning!"
"What do you want me to do about it?" asked Poppy, confused. She only hoped she wouldn't be asked to kill anyone again.
"I want you to play against him." she whispered. "I'll rig the game so he loses, and then maybe he'll cash out and let the other customers play for once! What do you say, you in?"
"But I don't even know how to play!" cried Poppy. "I don't gamble!"
"Don't worry about it; just place a bet, I'll deal you the best cards and him the worst." said the dealer. "You literally cannot lose!"
Poppy thought for a moment. She was indeed planning to take down the HappyTime Mafia, but that didn't mean she couldn't help catch a cheater so others could could have fun at the casino. Plus, she did have an hour to kill and it would help her look good with the other members.
"Okay, let's do it!" said Poppy
"Great!" cried the dealer. "He'll be over in a minute to play. Just act like a regular customer; you aren't wearing a bear mask so he won't know you're one of us, anyways."
Poppy did as she was told. Sure enough, exactly one minute later, Steakcharmer strolled over, laid a massive bag of what looked like tokens down on the table and sat down next to Poppy. "Well, well." his voice was as sleazy as the rest of him. "Since you're sitting at this table, I'll just assume you're here to play cards?"
Poppy narrowed her eyes at him. "In there a problem with that?" she asked.
"Not a one." he smiled. "Unless you don't like losing, of course."
"Is that right?" she said raising an eyebrow. "And who might you be?"
He stuck out his hoof to Poppy. She didn't shake it. "Steackcharmer's the name." he sneered. "And let's just say, I didn't rack up ten million tokens by being lucky."
"So...you're cheating?" asked Poppy.
"Hey, c'mon now!" he cried, putting his hoof down. "Steakcharmer's no cheat; he's just that good! How bout I prove it to ya?"
Poppy glanced over at the dealer, who gave the subtlest of nods. "Fine." said Poppy. "What's your wager?"
Steakcharmer laughed as he patted the bag on the table. "Baby, (Poppy glared at him even more with that one) I'm so confident I'll win, that I'm bettin' it all! Ten million tokens, up front."
Poppy's eyes widened. "Are you insane?" she cried. "I can't match that!" Poppy only had the handful of tokens the Lovey had given her.
Steakcharmed only sneered. "Tell ya what, doll (Poppy's opinion of him dropped fifteen more percent) I'm feelin' so confident, I'll give you ten million to one odds! Just bet one token and you can win the whole pot!"
"Well, those are some incredibly good odds." said Poppy.
"No they ain't!" laughed Steakcharmer. "Cause I never lose! Hahahaha!"
Poppy was very much looking forward to making this jerk eat his words. "Heh. Alright." Poppy reached into her satchel and set a token down on the table. "I'll bet one token."
The dealer nodded then handed out the cards.
Apple-blackjack was like normal blackjack. But instead of numbers there was apples of various kinds on each card. The goal was to get a higher number of cards with the most apples on them, up to twenty-one without going over. And then making sure that you had apple-blackjack but the dealer didn't.
And as Poppy could see, she already had apple-blackjack with the first two cards. But she waited for Steackcharmer, who was looking at his terrible cards with some worry.
"Uh...I'll stay." he said sweating suddenly. The dealer flipped her card, and of course it wasn't apple-blackjack. "Poppy wins." she said, trying not to sound eager.
"What!?" Steackcharmer jumped up from his seat. "I-I....I lost?"
"Sorry." said Poppy, feeling a little bad. "I guess luck is still a factor, at times."
Steakcharmer proceeded to swear angrily, throw a chair or two, and threaten the dealer before he was finally tackled by two guards and dragged out of the casino, kicking and screaming like a child, till his toupee flew off and landed in the nearby trashcan. He had also dropped an item of considerable intrigue: The original ricotta cannoli! Steakcharmer had been the one who had stolen it!
Poppy looked around and it seemed no one had noticed. She got up, went over and pocketed it into her satchel (she wrapped it in a paper towel first, trying to ignore the fact that it was hard as bone, and smelled like death) then headed back to her seat before anyone had even seen her.
"Well." said Poppy turning back to the table. "That happened."
"Yep." said the dealer. "Thanks for your help, though!" she then handed Poppy the large bag of ten million tokens. "I believe these are yours, my friend!"
"Oh! Huh. Yeah, I guess they are." Said Poppy taking the bag and putting it into her satchel. "Hmmm...I wonder... would Pears take these as payment?"
She turned and looked at the clock. It had been about an hour anyways. She might as well head back to Pears and see if Penny was in the clear yet.
The Inconvenience Store
Poppy appeared within the lobby of the Inconvenience Store in a flash of orange light. "Pears?"
Pears was standing behind her counter, no longer dressed as a candy machine, and appeared to be adjusting a new set of security cameras over the register. "Poppy!" she said with a smile. "Glad you made it! Wanted to let you know that everything's been taken care of."
"It has?" asked Poppy excitedly. "Penny is safe?"
"Yep. I arranged to have the headlines say she's gone missing. The Don will think you offed her, and once him and his merry band are done with, Penny is suddenly found, having never been missing at all."
"How in the world did you arrange this?" asked Poppy.
"The news stations owe me one." said Pears. "Let's leave it at that."
"Fair enough." said Poppy. "Oh, and I have the payment for that Skeleton Key Decoder!" Poppy pulled out the bag from her satchel and dropped it onto the counter.
"Is that right?" Pears asked her eyes wide. "She opened the bag, then gave Poppy a look. "Um...these aren't bits."
"Well....no, but there are ten million of them!" said Poppy. "Plus you could maybe sell them off as gold or something?"
Pears put a hoof to her chin in thought. "Hmmm...well, I guess the prizes at The Don's Playland and Casino are pretty amazing." Finally she sighed. "Yeah, alright. I'll take it." she said with a shrug.
She took the bag, then set it behind the counter. She then withdrew the Skeleton Key Decoder and handed it to Poppy.
"Thanks Pears!" said Poppy, looking over her new purchase."How does it work?"
"Pretty simple, actually." said Pears. "Just point it at any lock or locked door, and pull the trigger. Then it opens."
"Huh. That is simple."
"See?"
Poppy put the decoder into her satchel, then turned back to Pears. "Thanks for all your help, Pears."
"No problem, Poppy." said Pears. "Now, I believe you have a mafia family to join and then destroy! Hop to it!"
With that, Poppy waved goodbye to Pears, and teleported herself back to the casino, having achieved all her jobs for The Don, and now ready to take her place amongst the ranks of the HappyTime Mafia.
If only so she could find out what they're planning and stop them from causing any more trouble.
To-Do List: Report your success to The Don and (Temporarily) Join the HappyTime Mafia.
The Don's Mafia-Free Playland and Casino
Arriving back at the casino, Poppy was surprised to be suddenly grabbed by two guards and escorted to the backroom, where The Don and the rest of the HappyTime Mafia (Including Agent 14) were waiting.
"Did you, uh, leave the gun and take the cannoli?" asked The Don.
"....huh?" asked Poppy, completely lost.
"I meant do you have the original ricotta cannoli?" The Don explained. "My apologies; I've always had a love of the classics."
Poppy reached into her satchel and gave The Don the cannoli she had retrieved from Steackcharmer.
The Don brought it up to examine it. "That is indeed the original ricotta cannoli." He handed it gingerly to a nearby mafioso, who bowed as he took it.
"And," said The Don turning back to Poppy, "I have heard that a one Penny Metronome has mysteriously gone missing. Good work."
Poppy nodded, secretly jumping for joy on the inside that Pear's plan had worked.
"And, I also had one of my boys swing by Ponyville. The Inconvenience store appears to selling some new fun-looking teddy bear toys, as well."
Poppy nodded again.
"Poppy Blossom." announced The Don loud enough for everyone to hear. "You have done what we have asked of you: Acts of intelligence, malevolence and subservience. As of this moment, we welcome you into the ranks of the Contento Nostra."
The room applauded and cheered as Poppy pretended to be quite honored and smiled warmly.
The Don himself also nodded in respect. "Now there is a small ritual ceremony where you will get your gun, suit and of course your own bear mask to wear proudly as a member of our ranks." said The Don. "But first, as a sign of respect, I will remove my mask. Which is good, because I can barely talk through this thing."
Poppy's eyes went wide as she watched The Don reach up with his feathered hand and removed his bear mask.
Almost immediately, Poppy's jaw hit the floor.
Underneath the mask, which Poppy had this whole time been expecting to be the old face of grizzled Griffin mobster was, in fact, the cute face of a very beautiful brown colored earth pony mare!
"Whew!" she said in a cheery voice. "That's better! Get's really super sweaty in there, you know what I mean?"
Poppy was completely at a loss for words. She simply stared at the mare, agape, her brain trying to process what she was seeing.
The mare only chuckled. "Yeah, guess you weren't expecting this huh?" she asked. She reached up and fluffed her sleek black mane with her feathered arm.
But Poppy wasn't the only one who was surprised. Agent 14, who had been standing perfectly vigil as the ceremony went on was now staring at the mare/ Don as Poppy was. "N-No....15?" he sputtered.
The mare turned and looked at 14 with alarm. "Wait..I know that voice...14? Is that you!?" she cried.
Agent 14 took off his mask, revealing his handsome earth pony face. "I-I....I don't believe this! You're The Don!?" he yelled angrily. "I thought they took you! I thought you were dead!"
Poppy then chimed in. "Wait...she's your partner?" she asked, still completely stunned.
15 then looked at Poppy with fury. "Oh! So this was all part of your guy's little plan was it!?" she yelled. "Grab them!"
At once Poppy was seized by the arms by two mafioso, as was 14, though he managed to fight off several of them before he was finally caught from behind with a knife to his throat."How long...How long have you been a traitor?!" he demanded.
"Traitor?" 15 asked. "What because I betrayed the EBI to become the new Don after the former's death last year, specifically for the wealth and power the position provided, as well as so I could work with the instigators of the mass hypnotism conspiracy trying to take over the world for my own benefit, that makes me a traitor?"
Poppy blinked. "I think that may actually be the literal definition of traitor." she said casually.
"Quiet, you!" 15 snapped. "I liked you, Poppy; you would've been a great mafioso." she said shaking her head. "Tell you what; you can still join us if you swear loyalty to me and stop working with this loser." she gestured to 14 who snarled angrily in response. "Deal?"
"Not a chance." said Poppy glaring at 15. "I came here to stop your evil plans and take you guys down. And I still intend to do that!"
15 shook her head sadly, as she pulled out a teddy bear and held it up to Poppy's face. "That's a real shame." Green energy zapped into Poppy's eyes and at once she felt like her mind had been wiped of all thought. It was pure bliss; like she was floating...dreaming...
"Sleep."
And Poppy did.
Poppy awoke a short while later, on a hard linoleum floor. "Ugh..." her head was pounding as she struggled to get to her feet. When she finally did, she found that she was no longer in the seedy back room of The Don's casino, but a large factory that appeared to be making those evil hypnobears!
She watched as thousands were put together, and put onto conveyor belts by huge robotic arms. This was clearly the place that 14 had mentioned; where all the bears were being made. But what were they really for?
"Ah. You're awake." A familair voice said. Poppy turned to see Agent 15, smiling evilly at her with the bear still in her grasp. In her other hand she clutched a silver pistol, aimed right at Poppy. "Good. Cause you got work to do!"
"Work? No, it's time you start telling me what all this is about!" Poppy demanded. "What are all this bears for? What are you and the HappyTime Mafia planning? Who's really behind this hypnotism conspiracy!?"
15 shrugged. "I supposed since I can just hypnotize you again anyways, it doesn't matter what I tell you." she said with a sneer. "The bears are part of a large scale plan to brainwash the entire world by introducing hypnotic teddy bear toys to be sold all over the world in a matter of days. We have em all here, ready to ship out!" she said gesturing to the huge supply of bears in the factory.
"As for that last one?" 15 continued. "I have no idea. I just get paid to run the mafia and not ask questions."
"Fine. But why betray your partner?" asked Poppy. "Why switch sides?"
"Uh, for the money and power, duh!" snapped 15. "Weren't you listening before?"
"You betrayed the EBI and your partner for money?" asked Poppy disgusted.
"And the power. You get a lot of that as The Don!"
"....You're insane."
"Hey!" snapped 15. "Only my therapist can call me that!" She held the bear a loft and another beam of green energy shot out at Poppy.
But she was ready this time. Poppy back-flipped to dodge the beam and ducked behind a crate of bears. She heard a gunshot as part of the crate was blown off, spilling the bears all over the floor.
Seeing them, Poppy got an idea and grabbed one, putting it into her satchel. Another gunshot, and Poppy raced to duck behind another crate, where she saw agent 14 tied up and hanging over a large vat of molten metal. Poppy called up to him, but he was knocked out.
Another gunshot and the crate blew apart. she raced through the factory and ducked into a corner, as 15 began searching for her. She just had to get the drop on her; get close enough to use the hypnobear.
Then she saw the controls for a crane carrying a load of crates overhead. She could use that to drop the crates as a distraction! Upon inspection though, the controls were locked within a large metal cage around the control box.
But this was no problem as Poppy simply withdrew the Skeleton Key Decoder she had bought from Pears, aimed it at the cage then pulled the trigger. A green light washed over the cage from the decoder, and a little unlocked lock icon appeared on the device's screen, signifying it had done it's job.
Sure enough, the cage opened easily, and Poppy pressed the button marked 'drop.'
The crates hit the floor right behind 15, who jumped half a foot in the air, dropping the gun and bear in the process. "What the hell was that!?" she cried, turning around. She saw that a pile of crates had somehow come undone from the hanging crane above.
When she turned back around, she gasped as she was now looking directly into the eyes of Poppy's hypnobear.
"What!? H-How did you-"
"Quiet, please."
Green energy shot out from the bear's eyes into 15's and at once, she fell silent, her eyes glazing over as her arms slumped to her sides. It had worked! Poppy had hypnotized her!
She decided to test it out. "Ahem. Can you hear me?" asked Poppy.
"Yes, ma'am." replied 15 instantly, in a robotic tone.
"Good." said Poppy. "What is your real name? I know it's not 15."
"Mary Mareman. Agent 15 is my EBI code-name."
"Well, I knew that last part." said Poppy rubbing the back of her head.
"Okay." said Mary.
Poppy looked back at 14, still hanging over the vat of molten metal. "What is Agent 14's real name?" she asked Mary.
"Stripe Dorton." replied Mary. "He and I were elite EBI operatives, till I betrayed him."
Poppy thought for a moment. "What's the real reason you betrayed Stripe and the EBI?"
"I wanted to protect them." said Mary. "The one behind all this has big plans; plans that threaten the entire world at large. I thought If I was in charge of the HappyTim Mafia, then at least Stripe and The EBI wouldn't have to worry about them."
"Protect?" asked Poppy, surprised. "If you were trying to protect Stripe, why is he hanging over a vat of molten metal!?"
"Chuckles, my lieutenant, brainwashed me to kill Stripe." said Mary.
Poppy's eyes went wide. "W-What? Your own lieutenant, used a bear on you?" asked Poppy. "Why?"
"I don't know." said Mary. "He's the one who reports back to them; the one behind all of this. Perhaps, they ordered him to do it as part of their own plans."
Unbelievable. So Mary was as much a pawn as the entire HappyTime Mafia. They were just doing the dirty work of the real mastermind behind all of this. That was why they sent the bear to Moira; as part of the mastermind's plans! But what were they planning? And most of all, who was this mastermind? All questions, Poppy didn't have answers to. Not yet, anyways.
Turning back to Mary, Poppy addressed her once more. "Mary?"
"Yes, Ma'am." said Mary.
"Go over and bring Stripe down to safety."
"Yes, ma'am." she did as she was told, and went over and fiddled with the controls. Stripe was moved over away from the vat, and lowered onto the floor, where Mary untied him and set him down safely.
Poppy breathed a sigh of relief now that Stripe was no longer in danger. But now there was the matter of taking care of this place. She had to destroy all these hypnobears! But how?
"Mary? Where is this factory located?" asked Poppy.
"Several hundred stories beneath the casino." replied Mary.
"Is there a way to destroy it?" asked Poppy. "The factory, I mean."
Mary pointed to a large switch marked with caution striped over on the far wall. "That is an emergency self-destruct switch. It was put here upon construction, in case the factory was ever discovered, and we had to cover our tracks."
"Self-destruct?" said Poppy alarmed. "Won't that destroy the casino too?"
"The system was only meant to demolish the factory and everything in by setting off heavy explosive charges in the walls." said Mary. "Only the factory will be destroyed. The surface will only feel a little rumble."
"Sounds good then!" said Poppy. "Okay: Mary, I want you to grab Stripe and make your way back to the casino. But only, after I hit that switch. After that, we all leave together, okay?"
"Yes, ma'am." said Mary.
"Oh, and one last thing: take off that Griffin suit and leave it to burn. Frankly, I've seen enough of The Don to last me a lifetime." said Poppy.
Mary obeyed, opening the mechanical chest of the suit and stepping out. She wore a red neckerchief with white spots and a white blouse. Her cutie mark appeared to be simply an image of the world with a bandage on it. Poppy would work out the meaning of that later.
Mary put Stripe on her back, and waited.
Poppy took a breath then approached the switch. "Gonna be a ton of stuffing to clean up after this." She then flipped the switch down with a heavy clunk.
Alarms pierced through the air as the ground and walls began to shake and crumble. Huge pipes and machinery fell from their moorings as steam billowed from cracked walls. "Okay, let's go!"
Mary ran for the emergency exit with Stripe on her back, as Poppy followed suit. Explosions were happening all around, as they raced through the dimly lit tunnel, galloping as fast as their hooves could could take them. The ground shook and cracked apart, as rubble and debris began to fall from the caving ceiling.
At last, Mary reached a ladder that lead up to the surface and began to climb. Poppy followed as well, racing up the ladder as fast as possible. She didn't have time to teleport herself, Mary and Stripe to safety, as the room was already coming down around them. She just had to keep moving!
Up the ladder they went till finally Mary opened a hatch above and climbed out of it. Poppy, then reached it herself and climbed out, landing on her back on soft carpet, out of breath and sweating.
The ground shook lightly for a minute, as Poppy kicked the hatch closed, which slammed and locked with a loud clang.
There was more rumbling, some more light shaking, then...silence.
Poppy wiped the sweat from her brow as she stood up only to see she was back in the backroom of the casino, with several guns now trained on her by the HappyTime Mafia.
But Poppy was too tired to care. "Nope." she said as she whipped out her hypnobear and zapped them all, causing them to drop their guns and stand with their arms at their sides. "Okay, so you're all going to turn yourselves in, tell the police everything about the bears, and disband the HappyTime Mafia forever. Sound good?"
"Yes, ma'am." The room replied.
"Glad you think so."
After being called, the police arrived and immediately took all members of the HappyTime Mafia into custody, including Mary, who was now exposed as The Don. she was charged with numerous counts of racketeering, loansharking, extortion, and betrayal to the EBI and misuse of government resources. She was then handed over to the EBI for interrogation, then promptly sentenced to several years in prison.
Agent 14, now known as Stripe Dorton, woke up and explained everything to the police about his operation and how Poppy helped him fulfill it. Both Poppy and Agent 14 were acknowledged by The EBI as heroes, and awarded medals for their bravery. Poppy was featured on the evening news as the mare who took down the HappyTime Mafia and exposed them to the world.
Indeed it seemed that the HappyTime Mafia was finished for good.
However...
Chuckles watched the scene from behind a dumpster a good six blocks from the casino which had been blocked off by the police. It's a good thing he had made his escape when he used that bear on that idiot, Mary. Everything went exactly as the boss had said it would.
Laughing to himself, he removed his mask and threw it into the dumpster, revealing his read coat and slicked back blonde mane. He then pressed a small button on his earpiece. "This is Chuckles." he said officially."The factory has been destroyed. Repeat: The factory has been destroyed."
"Excellent work, Chuckles." said the voice on the other end. "Proceed with phase two."
"Roger that." Chuckles then left the alleyway, eager to get started.