Twilight had read stories of travelers for as long as she could remember. Some of the Daring Do books, for example, painted mental pictures of far off lands with cultures that baffled the pegasus adventurer. Other books had unicorns trotting a year in the horseshoes of an earth pony to see how they lived without the use of magic. There was even a book written by a Saddle Arabian horse who had spent three years in Equestria. One of the common themes in all of these was the shock of seeing how different these lands were while slowly becoming accustomed to them. Twilight had hoped that this would be the same for her. With each day that passed, she felt like she was growing more and more used to the ways of Thunder Valley. Perhaps soon, everything around here would seem as normal to her as things back in Equestria.
Seeing the castle doctor showed her just how far she had to go.
Dr. Plague stood there at the entrance to Twilight’s bedroom as Twilight felt her fur stand on end. The most normal thing about him was his top hat, which was black while looking like it had been cut up and stitched back together. Similar to the military, the doctor wore a mask that covered his entire face. Unlike the military, it was jet black and jutted outwards to form a beak with a metal tip at the end. Thick straps wrapped around the back of his head to keep it on. Twilight noticed on it were three breathing filters on each side on the lower portion of the beak. There were also two dirty looking copper tubes that connected his mask to two copper tanks that he wore like saddle bags. Twilight had no idea what color his eyes were due to the equally black lens built into the mask. Below that, Dr. Plague wore a black lab coat with the same gear shaped buttons running down the middle that she was used to by now. It was because his name had been written on it in blood red letters that Twilight was able to know the doctor’s name. On the other side of his coat was a single pin that was shaped like four gears stacked on top of each other, with the largest on top and the smallest at the bottom. Sort of like an inverted pyramid.
Equally startling was the nurse he had brought with him. On her head was a nurse’s cap which had the same symbol as the pin Dr. Plague wore. She wore a white gown that covered her entire form with big, puffy shoulders. Her face was also hidden by a similar mask, only what with a black tip at the end. Nor did it have any tubes connecting anything to her saddle bags which looked more like chests.
“I was called?” asked Dr. Plague in a breathy, almost gasping voice that took all of Twilight’s might not to cringe. It sounded so…unnatural.
“Yes,” said Twilight as she lifted a shaking hoof which she pointed to the bed. There, tucked under the covers, was Moon Chime. The maid’s eyes were still closed as her head rested on the pillow. Over to the side was the remains of her maid outfit, which both Twilight and the other maids had removed before putting her into bed. Finally, there was a chair near the bed which was where Twilight had been sitting before the doctors arrived. The purple princess had wanted to be there for Moon Chime in case something happened. So that if she woke up Twilight would have been able to reassure the maid that everything was fine and that she was safe.
“Very well,” wheezed Dr. Plague as he looked over at Moon Chime. “Come along Nurse Internal Bleeding.” Gulping at that name, Twilight watched as both the doctor and the nurse approached the slumbering figure. Once they were next to her, the nurse turned around so that her back was facing the bed with one of her saddle bags next to the doctor.
As the doctor began to open up the saddle bag there was another knock on her door. While Twilight wanted to keep an eye on Dr. Plague for…reasons, she did slowly turn around. Standing there at the doorway was Overkill as she took off her mask. From what Twilight could see her personal bodyguard looked a bit more tired and worn. However, it didn’t seem to be stemming from fatigue.
“Princess,” said Overkill with a quick salute. “Nearly all of the guards in the castle are out there combing the streets. The Clubbers reported in, saying that they went to check Arms Dealer’s home but found he wasn’t there. Big shock. They are now assisting the guards in checking the streets and they believe they will be able to start checking the surrounding area outside of the city within the hour. I have already informed General Steel Trap and, per his orders, detained the two dimwits who allowed that sack of gear grime to walk around the castle unescorted. The General wishes to have words with them himself.”
Twilight let out a sigh, glad she wasn’t the one who had to deal with them. “I see,” she said before turning back to look at Dr. Plague. The doctor had attached a magnifying glass to his mask and was now combing around the area’s where Moon Chime had been struck.
“How’s the little guy doing?” asked Overkill. Twilight turned to look at her personal guard again to see that she was still standing in the doorway, craning her head to look about the room. It was as if she expected him to be hiding in some dark corner of the room or something.
“Spike was a little shaken up,” said Twilight. “Me getting into fights isn’t something new, but it was the first time he had ever seen a pony attacking like that. Or talking like that. I’m just glad he wasn’t there to see what he was about to do to Moon Chime.”
“Then he’s a lucky one,” said Overkill in a grave tone as she looked down at her hooves. While her eyes weren’t looking at her, Twilight could see that she wasn’t really looking at her hooves. That her mind was far, far away perhaps in a different time.
Not for the first time, Twilight wondered what Overkill’s past had been like. The mare rarely talked about her life before joining the military, preferring to talk about her exploits more than anything else about her. Twilight knew what her favorite brand of grenade was, but not her favorite color or favorite friend. She had no idea what her foalhood friends were like or if she even had any. Maybe she never had any of that. Perhaps she had grown up on a military base, with explosions and gunfire as her lullabies. It would certainly explain a lot. Or maybe…maybe it was something far darker, seeing that she tried to avoid talking about it.
“Anyways,” Twilight said suddenly, her voice sounding very awkward at the moment. “Spike’s helping me find out if any other mare was attacked, starting with the maids. He’s with the head maid right now, making sure all of them are safe. He’ll be busy for awhile.”
“Well…I guess that’s some good news,” replied Overkill as she slowly lifted her head. “Probably the only good news any of us are going to get from this.”
Twilight frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked.
“Just that we’ve done this song and drunken dance with Arms Dealer before,” replied Overkill with a sigh and a shrug. “From what I’ve heard, he’s been caught in the act doing this at least four times. Maybe more. Each time he’s been caught he runs and hides until things blow over. It’s just what happens.”
Twilight’s frown deepened while her eyes narrowed. “Well that’s not what’s going to happen this time!” she stated.
Overkill seemed to bristle at that. “There’s nothing anypony can do,” she spat, causing Twilight to look at her with shock. “Like I said, we believe he at least has ties to the Copper Heads. They have safe houses all over the city for their members to hide in with enough supplies to last him a year or two. I know because I actually helped raid one of them when I was a wet behind the tuff newbie. He’s probably underneath somepony’s home, snoozing away in some comfy bed as we waste our time looking for him on the streets. Then all he has to do is wait long enough and things will blow over for him.”
Twilight felt her jaw fall open. “There…There has to be some way to find him!”
“Not likely,” responded Overkill. “We don’t have any real idea who all the members of the Copper Heads are; only the ones we’ve caught in the act. Not a single one we have arrested has talked about other active members. Heck, with how large they are I’m not sure even they know who all their members are. The only way I think we’ll be able to find Arms Dealer is if we go into everypony’s home and tear it apart looking for him. But I’m pretty sure you’re not willing to do that.”
Still frowning, Twilight shook her head. Yes, tearing apart everypony’s home just to find this one stallion was something that Overkill would think to do. While that would get her what she wanted, there were laws of this land that Twilight had been studying. One of them forbade the law from unwarranted searches and arrests. In order for the law to search any building they would need some sort of proof that he was in that particular building. And though she was the princess in charge of this country, she was not keen to break the law. Not just because her principles dictated that she should always follow the rules to the best of her ability, but also because of the previous princess. If Twilight allowed this, it might open the doors for the Clubbers and the military to search homes whenever it suited them. Then she would be no less of a tyrant than Princess Alabaster.
As she looked away from Overkill, Twilight began to think more about the current situation. While she wanted Arms Dealer found so he could be brought to justice, there was no way she could keep the Clubbers and the military looking for just him indefinitely. There were probably other crimes being committed right this second, other cases that the Clubbers were putting on hold right now. Sooner or later they would have to go back to their normal duties, lest all order in Automahollow be placed into jeopardy. There was no way she could allow that despite how much she wanted Arms Dealer brought in. Yet at the same time she could not allow Arms Dealer to continue to trot free. No, this would not blow over if she could help it. Moon Chime, as well as all of the other mares this monster had assaulted, deserved justice.
“Princess,” came a wheezing voice off to Twilight’s side, causing her to yelp while jumping in the air. Opening her wings, she began to flap them in order to keep herself from falling to the ground. Looking downward, she saw the slightly amused face of Overkill on one side while Dr. Plague looked up.
“Sorry,” said Twilight, her face burning as she landed. She coughed into her hoof in an effort to regain some composure before looking imploringly at the doctor. “How is she?”
“The maid will live,” replied the doctor. “A few bruises and a minor shock. No sign of a concussion or other serious trauma. No sign that she was raped.”
Twilight let out a sigh of relief. While she was less than impressed with the doctor’s bedside manner, she was too relieved to find that Moon Chime had been spared a life scarring event. “Thank you,” she said. “I, ah, hope you feel better.” As soon as she said that, she heard Overkill snort into her hoof while the doctor tilted his head to the side.
“I am merely a bit tired,” Dr. Plague said as the nurse walked next to him, he words coming out faint. “It is late in the day. Something like this is nothing to a medical professional such as myself. But thank you for your concern.” With that said, both the doctor and nurse bowed to Twilight before walking out.
“Ok,” said Twilight slowly as the door closed. She then let out a sigh as she grew serious again. “Overkill, you’re right, I’m not willing to destroy innocent ponies’ homes just to find this one stallion. But there has to be something else we can do. There has to be some piece of information we can use. Please think.”
Overkill rolled her eyes. “Look, I’m not an Information Specialist nor am I a Clubber so you won’t be able to get a lot of information about them from me. All I can tell you are rumors, but none of it is really all that helpful. You’ll just have to accept that-”
“I won’t!” Twilight nearly shouted, shoving her face close to Overkill’s so their noses were touching. Her eyes narrowed as she looked into her guard’s shocked expression. “Now, what can you tell me?”
With a deadpan expression, Overkill pushed Twilight back. “Fine then. I’ve heard a few ponies at the pubs claim their leader is a stallion named Just Dandy.” Overkill frowned, no doubt seeing the excitement on Twilight’s face. “But like I said, it’s just a rumor. Stories told over a few rounds of hard cider or glish. If it were true then the Clubbers would be all over him.”
“Still, its something,” said Twilight as her horn began to glow. With a flash the purple princess was wrapped in a cloak with its hood up. There was then another flash as Twilight suddenly had on her goggles and breathing mask.
“Ok, stop right-” began Overkill. However, she never got the chance to finish as Twilight teleported out of the room.
-x-
As the golden sun shined brightly outside, Muggy scanned his bar with hidden satisfaction. It wasn’t because it was a nice bar, nothing could be farther from the truth. The tables, which had been part of many fights in the past, were only held together by both spit and tape. At any moment they could collapse in a heap for no reason at all. The chairs and pillows were in a similar state as well as being stained by who knew what. He had no patience anymore for taking the time to replace or clean them. It was just something Muggy didn’t want to do. What patches of wood were still intact had multiple words carved into them by his patrons. Due to its location being near the river, nothing Muggy did could keep out the penetrating foul odor of dozens of dead animals baking in the daylight out of his bar.
Yet despite there being nicer bars only a few blocks away, the place was packed! This was mainly due to the location; despite being located in a vile locale it was situated right in-between the lowlife district and the working class. About a third of his patrons had gotten off of work at the factory, trying to drown the frustrations of their horrible jobs with cheap hard cider. The rest were the scum of Thunder Valley, thieves and the like who paid top grit for their drinks. Muggy didn’t care where the grits came from or what they did to get them. All he cared about was that they came here to order up some glish; a black, sticky substance that was made from the local berries and highly concentrated sugar.
It was an interesting thing about the world. No matter how hard life got ponies would seek out a cheap bar like his.
Muggy’s ears twitched as he heard the steel door being pulled open. Quickly he raised a foreleg just in time to shield his face from the incoming light while also holding his breath. His patrons were not so lucky. Many screamed for the door to be shut before they were blinded. Those who did not had their masks off, coughing loudly in response. Whoever had opened the door quickly shut it, the sound of the door slamming echoing the room.
As Muggy lowered his foreleg, he saw somepony new before him. Dressed in a hooded robe that shaded their face, it was quite difficult to make out the newcomer’s face. The only features he could see were the goggles and breathing mask under the hood.
“What can I get ya?” said Muggy. As he spoke, he noticed a few thestrals in the back drinking slower with their eyes glued to the back of the hooded figure. One had even pulled out a dagger as if expecting trouble.
“I’m looking for somepony,” said the figure in a mare’s voice.
Muggy frowned. “This ain’t no lost and found nor information booth,” said Muggy firmly. He paused for a moment before gesturing with his wing to the crowd, a grin appearing on his face as he did this. “Now, if you’re looking for deadbeat husband then go right ahead and look. Bet this crowd could use a good laugh!” A chorus of chuckles erupted from the crowd.
“I’m not sure of his name,” said the mare, her tone very serious. “The pony I’m looking for is the leader of the Copper Heads. I believe he goes by the name Just Dandy.” Like that, all good humor in the bar died down. A few of the ponies around her slowly backed away while those who didn’t were clearly not paying attention to the room.
“Now…Now you look here,” began Muggy as his eyes darted to the back of the bar. The same group with the one who had pulled out the dagger were now whispering to each other. Thankfully they were not pulling any more daggers out. The last thing he wanted was a fight were somepony might get killed. The Clubbers might close him down! “I don’t know who you are or what you think you’ll accomplish. Don’t rightfully care either. Get out and don’t bring your sorry flank back in here ever again!”
The mare stared at him for a moment, not saying a word. Again, Muggy’s eyes shot back to the group to see them slowly getting up. He could now feel sweat rolling down his neck as their gaze was focused in his direction. If this mare didn’t leave right away then he might get-
“Alright,” said the mare, sounding slightly crestfallen. “But please, if you are able to contact him or any other leader of the Copper Heads, please let tell them that Princess Twilight Sparkle wishes to talk to them.” With that said, Muggy watched the mare walk towards the exit with the door opening all by itself.
-x-
As the door closed behind her, Twilight let out a grown of frustration. This had been her fifth bar since she had teleported from the castle, each one looking worse than the one previous as she made her way away from the castle. Not a single one had been able to tell her anything…which she supposed was to be expected. If finding the head of a criminal organization were that easy then the Clubbers would have found him ages ago.
Sighing to herself, Twilight began to trot down the empty streets near the vile river. Now that it was light out she could see that it looked like green slime with swirls of black mixed in as it slugged its way down to wherever. Mixed in with it were various trash like boxes, fruit peels, steel barrels, and…were those bones? Twilight shivered, not wanted to think about it as she kept her eyes on the walkway before her. Soot seemed to cover the street like freshly covered snow. Every so often Twilight spotted piles of the stuff, with tiny hoofprints beginning to fade around them as she passed by deserted looking building after deserted looking building.
As she turned a corner, Twilight could feel her mistakes weighing heavily on her. She had been blinded by her sense of justice, her desire to set things right that she had left the castle without a plan. She didn’t even have a map of the city or any idea where all the bars or other hangouts criminals like this Just Dandy might be at. She was just wandering around, looking for any open place that looked seedy enough. A little difficult since everything looked seedy from her Equestrian perspective.
Continuing to walk, Twilight’s thoughts shifted towards a new plan. She could try to offer up a reward for information that lead to Arms Dealer’s capture. Maybe the promise of a bag full of grits would get a few ponies to speak. She could talk to the Clubbers and get them to put up wanted posters in every bar or wherever she could. But the problem with that was that the grits would most likely come out of the government’s account. With how tight the budget was she couldn’t offer much. It might not be enough. She also supposed she could refine her current plan. Twilight could go back to the castle, get a map of the area and get information on where the Copper Heads like to hang out. Maybe if she focused on these areas she might have more luck.
Or she could become a target. That’s what she expected somepony like Count Raven to say if she went back right now. He would say that her place was to remain behind a desk, not getting caught up in some quest to bring justice. She could almost hear him going on about all the dangers she would face by doing something like this. Sure she had managed to take on one member of the Copper Heads, but would she get the same results if she took on a group? What would happen to her there? She would no doubt suffer a horrible fate.
Twilight knew that all this was true, but she wasn’t the type of mare to just sit by and do nothing. Maybe that meant she was a bad princess or didn’t deserve to be one. If that was the case then fine! As long as she at least got this piece of filth off the streets and showed Automahollow that you couldn’t escape justice then she was fine with it. Twilight had to do what she felt was right.
“Hey you,” came a voice that snapped Twilight out of her thought. Looking around her, she found herself on another deserted street. Soot was falling down like snow now, coating the windows of all the leaning three story building around her. Turning her head to where she had heard the voice, Twilight spotted a grey mare in an alleyway. The mare had on a gown with a black blouse while the skirt was pin striped black and white. On her head sat a hat, leaning off to the side with a long feather on it.
Once the mare saw she had Twilight’s attention, she beckoned Twilight to follow her as she backed up into the alley. For a moment, Twilight questioned if she should follow this mare. For all she knew this could be a trap of some kind. Yet, this was the first pony she had seen on the streets at this hour. The first time somepony had tried to reach out to her. Maybe it would be worth it. Still, as Twilight walked to where she had seen the mare slip off to, she readied her horn in case she needed to fight.
The alleyway was long and narrow, but thankfully lacking any trash, making it easy for Twilight to move through it. When she got to the other side, Twilight found herself in a boxed in area with only the other mare in sight. The brick and steel building surrounded them, making it impossible for a normal thestral to break through them. To make it feel even more enclosed, there were several boxes stacked up sloppily over to the side. Each of the crates were as large as a pony, some even bigger. For a terrifying second, Twilight imagined thestrals were in those boxes.
“So,” said the mare in a sultry tone. “What’s a mare like you doing out here at this time of day?”
Twilight tilted her head. “How did you know I was a mare?” she asked. Nothing about her attire, as far as she knew at least, could have given away that she was a mare.
“Oh, little things dear,” giggled the mare in a way that made the fur on Twilight’s neck stand on end. “First of all, you’re a bit shorter than stallions and your hoofprints in the soot are equally smaller. Not to mention you walk like a mare. You learn these things when you’re a tail raiser.”
Taken aback by this, Twilight found herself unable to speak as the mare sauntered closer to her. Twilight kept her eyes locked on the other mare until she heard a gasp behind her. Turning her head back to alleyway, the purple mare saw a filly no older than five years old staring at them with goggles so large they took up half her face. Twilight only had time to make note of her brown fur before the filly ran back the way she came, kicking black soot into the air as she moved.
“Now then,” said the mare, getting Twilight’s attention again. Twilight turned her head to find that this mare was now so close that their masks were almost touching. Through her goggles Twilight could see the mare’s eyes were half lidded as if trying to give Twilight bedroom eyes. “Are you out here trying to make some grits? You must be to be up at this hour.” The mare then raised her hoof to gentle place under Twilight’s chin. “Now you could try tail raising all on your own, but that might be a little dangerous for you. So many bad stallions and mares out there who could do who knows what. Even then the grits wouldn’t be enough. Or you could come work for Lady Gray. She’s looking to expand in this area and could use a mare like you. Trust me, she takes good care of her mares. As long as you follow her rules that is.”
Alarm bells began to ring in Twilight’s head as she realized what was going on here. This wasn’t a trap but some sort of recruitment. She had no idea who this ‘Lady Gray’ was, but given the fact that this mare thought Twilight was a tail raiser and what she was offering gave Twilight a pretty good idea. Quickly the alicorn took several steps back.
“Oh,” said the mare as she set down her hoof. “Are you rejecting this nice little offer? Now that just won’t do. Please think about this carefully. I can assure you that Lady Gray will soon have her hoof in this area. Then only mares who work for her will be allowed to tail raise…without consequence.”
“Oie, is that so,” came a new voice, startling both mares. As they looked around for the source, a flutter of bat wings could be heard overhead. They looked up and Twilight saw six thestrals, mares and stallions alike, descending downwards. Some landed on the crates while others landed on the ground. While they all wore different styles of clothing, Twilight couldn’t miss the fact that they were all wearing bowler hats similar to the one that Arms Dealer had worn. The only difference being that none of them had the machine on them like he did. Once they landed, they turned their heads so that they were all looking at the two mares.
The mare who had brought Twilight here looked around with her wings raised. Twilight could tell by her stance that she was considering flying away, but both of them knew better. If she did try to fly away and the newcomers attacked, there was no way she could avoid them all. They were simply too spread out within this confined space to find an opening. A noise that was like a mixture of a growl and a whimper escaped the mare’s throat as she then bolted past Twilight towards the alleyway exit.
She didn’t get far, halting as two figures stepped from that path. One was a stallion. Or at least Twilight believed it was a stallion. His muzzle was in the shape of a stallion’s but he was smaller, maybe an inch or two smaller than Twilight. His coat was a dark brown while his mane was several shades lighter while appearing messy underneath his bowler hat. He wore a simple, black patched up vest along with both his goggles as well as his mask. While he looked unalarming to Twilight, the other mare looked at him as if he were Sombra come back to life. Beside the stallion was the filly from before.
“There she is,” said the filly as she pointed to Twilight. “She’s the one who was lookin’ for ya.”
The stallion tilted his head. “So she is,” he said in a voice that was light and friendly before straightening his head. He then looked at the filly, pulling two golden grits from a pocket in his vest. “You did a good job little one. Now, take these and run straight home. I know you have an early shift in the evening so best you not be staying up so late.”
The filly quickly said her thanks as she took the grits with her mouth. Managing a grin she ran off as the stallion chuckled. “Well now. Seeing as the little one is off, how about you do the same,” he said as his gaze locked onto the tail raiser. The mare said nothing, dashing for the exit so fast that she tripped on her dress and landed in front of the stallion. Said stallion made no move to help her up, just watching as she scrambled to her hooves with her dress covered in soot. Panting madly, the mare raced off into the daylight leaving Twilight alone with the stallion and the others.
“Thank you for the help,” said Twilight in a slightly nervous tone as she looked around. All of the ponies there were remaining quiet, their attention focused on the events before them. As far as she could tell, none of them had any weapons on them. However, it would be stupid to let her guard down. Who knew what they were carrying under their clothing.
“Think nothing of it lovely,” replied the stallion as he walked towards the crates, putting some distance between them. When he reached them he slowly spun appear to face Twilight. “Very rude of a mare to be doing something like that in this here neighborhood. Now, allow me to introduce myself. The name is Dandy. Just Dandy my lovely. And I hear you’ve been looking for me.”