//------------------------------//
// Chapter 28 - The Play Canceled 
// Story: Pandemic: Aftermath 
// by ASGeek2012 
//------------------------------//

"Traitors, every last one of you!"

Despite the fog surrounding her mind, Jenny flinched at the screech of Wildy's voice. Bright light played against her closed eyelids, her breathing heavy and rapid. Her body ached as if she had just run a marathon. She felt a touch to her shoulders and heard her aunt's worried voice. "Jenny, are you all right? Please, say something!"

"I'm okay," Jenny said in a weak and slightly raspy voice, though she felt anything but.

"Get her up," she heard a male voice bark.

"Back the fuck off," Eileen growled. "It's bad enough you -- get off me!"

Jenny felt her aunt wrenched away at the same time as her exclamation, forcing her to open her eyes.

She squinted as she gazed at the three crystal ponies which stood about twenty feet away, their bodies translucent and sparkling. She recognized the one with the black coat as Tonya; her coloration and that cutie mark were just too distinct to miss.

Tonya must have seen the recognition in her eyes, as she said, "Sorry we have to meet again under these circumstances."

Jenny's view was suddenly blocked by a pair of shoes. "Get up," the same voice from earlier ordered.

Jenny pushed herself to her hands and knees, and then to a kneeling position. She glanced to the side, and her eyes widened as she saw her aunt being handcuffed. She sought out Bev and saw two FBI agents flanking her, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, her own hands already restrained.

The man before her grabbed her arm and yanked. "I said get up!"

"Ow!" Jenny cried at the pain from her wrenched arm as she struggled to stand.

"Handel, stand down," said another of the agents. "Fuller doesn't want her hurt."

"And just what does Fuller want with her?" asked Jason.

Jenny yanked her arm from Handel's grip and backed away from him. He gave her a murderous look, and she swallowed hard in a bid not to tremble. She looked over to where Jason stood among the other ponies. Fire and Wildy already had restraints secured to their forelegs, and another agent approached Jason with the same while others kept their guns trained on the lot.

"That's not your concern," said the agent who had admonished Handel.

"Like hell it's not, and get away from me with those cuffs," said Jason. "In case you haven't noticed, I happen to be an agent too."

"Not since you decided to be a pony sympathizer."

"Then I demand to see the order that rescinded--"

"You're not getting this, Madsen," the agent said. "You're done. You're under arrest like everyone else." He turned to Tonya. "Is everything under control, Ms. Jarris?"

"We got this," Tonya said. "We have to let the magic we absorbed drain away, so you'll be able to read a book by us for a while, but we can still clamp down on any more attempts to use magic."

Jenny's eyes widened. Is that what had happened? She had felt as if the Narrative had been ripped away from her. It had not gone easily, and she could have sworn she had actually sensed anger from it. Yet it was just a pool of magical energy, wasn't it? It shouldn't have emotion any more than a unicorn's levitation spell would.

Despite only a day ago desiring that she be rid of this power, now she panicked that she would never be able to contact it again. Jenny tried to reach out to it, just to touch it and use its most passive ability, something that hopefully would not touch off Tonya or her cohorts. She closed her eyes to help block out everything else in order to concentrate.

Pain suddenly exploded across her cheek and jaw, her head snapping to the side from the impact. She fell hard to the floor, a warm and coppery taste in her mouth.

"Handel, I said stand down!" came a shout.

"You fucking asshole!" Eileen screamed.

"She was trying to use her magic," Handel said. "I'm not letting her fuck with my head again. Twice was two times too many!"

"How about letting me be the judge of whether she's a threat?" Tonya said in an icy voice. "And I intend to make a full report about what I just witnessed."

Jenny blinked in incomprehension. The blow had been so unexpected that she almost had trouble believing it had just happened. Only when she wiped the corner of her mouth and it came back streaked bright red did she understand. She looked up with horrified eyes at Handel, who still held his gun by the barrel, the grip turned outward.

"So that's what passes for FBI procedure now," Jason deadpanned as the restraints were applied to him. "Striking unarmed sixteen year old girls. Yeah, Tonya's not the only one making a report about this."

Jenny had not allowed herself to be scared until then. Now it took all her willpower not to roll up into ball and cry.

The tears came anyway, though she didn't dare make any noise for fear of it being interpreted the wrong way and having the other end of the gun used on her instead. They slid silently down her face as she forced herself to her hands and knees again, a few drops of blood falling from her mouth onto the floor. She felt something hard and jagged in her mouth and spit it out; he had hit her hard enough to chip one of her teeth.

"Get up," came the order again. Though the voice was lower, it was no less imperative or hostile.

Jenny scrambled to her feet, wiping first her eyes and then more of the blood that oozed from her split lip. She drew her arms forward and hunched her shoulders, trying to appear as small as possible. She cringed when she heard the other agent say, "Get the cuffs on her."

"She's no threat so long as we're still around," she heard Tonya say. "Why not give her a break?"

"We had this discussion before, Ms. Jarris."

"Can it, Danton," Tonya retorted. "This is so far from established procedure that it's only one step up from a major clusterfuck."

"That's what happens when you're dealing with magic."

"You mean it causes you to make up rules as you go along? News to me."

"Someone else put the cuffs on her," Handel grunted. "I don't want her trying to mess with my head while I'm doing it."

Jenny's gaze remained riveted on the gun pointed at her. She resisted the urge to call out for the Narrative. She could sense it again, and her heart raced as her eyes flicked over to Tonya for any sign that they had detected it.

Another agent came forward. Jenny remained limp as her wrists were pulled behind her and the cuffs secured around them. She winced slightly as her wrenched arm twitched and made the metal bite into her skin.

The one Tonya had addressed as Danton stepped forward. "All right. You have the right to remain silent. If you give up your--"

Handel turned his head towards the door and frowned. "What are you doing here, Heller?"

Jenny looked up. Anthony Heller had entered the room and was heading towards them. She wondered what the Narrative would be saying about him right now.

From what she could sense from it, the Narrative was desperate to tell her.





Anthony should have expected the hostile reception, though it still surprised him just the same as he entered the room, his badge in his hand in case no one recognized him. He knew Fuller's people would not take a liking to him, but he had not expected them to be so emboldened that they would abandon basic professional civility.

"I thought it would be obvious what I'm doing here," Anthony said in a calm voice, in contrast to the agent who jogged to catch up and walk alongside him. "I learned of this operation and thought I would lend a hand."

Danton frowned and stepped forward, looking at the agent alongside Anthony.

The agent sighed and said, "I tried to tell him we had this in the bag, but he insisted on coming inside."

"These people eluded us once," Anthony said. "I thought it would be safer to have as many agents as possible. From the scant number you have, I should have called for backup."

"We don't need any backup," Danton said. "You can clearly see we have everything under control."

Anthony stopped and scanned the others with his gaze. Wildy, Fire, Ted, and Jason had been restrained along with Jenny, Beverly, and Eileen. His eyes lingered on Jason for a moment, who gave a stoic gaze in return. Neither could tip their hand or hoof that they had coordinated this setup.

A setup, regretfully, that had failed as Anthony had feared it might. He had to fall back on his contingency. "Nevertheless, I'm one of the more senior agents in this area, and I've dealt with ponies and pony magic before. Even if I just come along for the ride, I'd feel better about sticking around."

Danton turned to one of the other agents. "Start reading them their rights." He stepped up to Anthony. "Are you sure this isn't a conflict of interest for you?"

"In what way?"

"Your partner is one of those under arrest for collusion with known fugitives."

"No one is above the law." Anthony looked at Jenny and saw her injury. He returned his cool gaze to Danton. "Absolutely no one."

"Are you insinuating something, Agent Heller?"

"You're suggesting there's something to insinuate, Agent Danton."

"Heller, stop playing games," said Danton. "What is it you want?"

"Same as I assume you do, to see justice done and to protect the public," Anthony said. "Once you're done reading them their rights, I'll accompany you to the Broomfield office to have them processed."

"We're not going to the Broomfield office."

"Oh? Where are we taking them, then?"

"Mr. Fuller has directed us to bring them to MIDROC."

Anthony feigned surprise. "Did he say why he made this unusual request?"

"At least two of the people here represent a serious magical threat," said Danton. "Mr. Fuller believes the facilities at MIDROC are more suited to dealing with them."

"Very well," said Anthony. "Far be it for me to question Mr. Fuller's orders. I believe the Broomfield office can do without me for a day or two. I would be glad to accompany you to MIDROC."

Anthony reasoned the only way he had any hope of getting fair treatment for these people was to constantly look over their shoulder. He had enough foresight to let his office know that he was investigating possible breaches of proper FBI procedure, and they should sound the alarm if he wasn't heard from in twenty four hours.

He knew that being in the FBI meant potentially risking his life; he had never expected it would be threatened by fellow agents.

"Your presence here is wholly unnecessary," Danton said, some exasperation creeping into his voice.

"Regardless, as a senior agent assigned in this jurisdiction, I reserve the right to oversee any operation held in said jurisdiction," Anthony explained.

"I would have to get Mr. Fuller's permission."

"This is permission that is not his to give or take away. It's a matter of established procedure."

"There are special circumstances here."

Anthony glanced at the injured Jenny. "Yes, I can see that. You can explain it to me on the way to MIDROC."

Danton let out a sigh through his nose and took out his cell phone. "I'll have to contact Mr. Fuller about this."

"Feel free to do whatever you please in that regard," said Anthony as he started past Danton. "Regardless of what he says, I'll be accompanying you."

Danton looked about to protest, but instead stepped away to make his phone call.

Anthony glanced at the wary sets of eyes on him from the agents and a few hopeful ones from the incarcerated. "Whose the senior agent in charge while Danton is occupied?"

A man stepped forward. "I am. Agent Will Handel."

Anthony nodded. "And just how did this girl get injured, Agent Handel?"

"Resisting arrest."

"You fucking liar," Eileen muttered with icy vitriol.

Handel turned towards her. "I read you your rights. You want to give up your right to remain silent? I can take down that little outburst if you want."

"You mean other than she's right?" Tonya murmured.

"Yeah, sure, pretend to be on our side now," Wildy growled. "Fucking traitor."

Anthony sensed tempers could flare given the chance. He wanted to see Handel called to task if he did hurt Jenny for no valid reason, but he couldn't risk this devolving into something that would cause more people to get hurt. From the lingering glow of the crystal ponies, he could guess that Jenny attempted to use her power and was stopped.

He glanced around again. Fuller could not have picked a more magic-phobic batch of agents for this operation, if he was reading their expressions correctly.

"Let's all calm down," Anthony said. "I do strongly advise you all to consider what you say very carefully. Best to wait until you have access to a lawyer."

Eileen looked about to protest, and Anthony tried to give her what he hoped would be interpreted as a meaningful look. She let out a ragged sigh, looked daggers at Handel, and remained silent.

Anthony glanced at Danton, who was still on the phone. Fuller had already managed to get an arrest warrant for Jason. He wondered now if Fuller would do the same to him. It would be a short-term gain only, as in the fullness of time, Anthony would be easily exonerated. Yet it meant giving up these people to Fuller's control. It all hinged on how secure Fuller felt about his plans. Confident, and he would have Anthony arrested on some trumped-up charge. Uneasy, and he'd leave Anthony alone, at least for now.

Something was definitely odd here. He understood that these agents were likely cronies of Fuller, and he had seen his fair share of agents either not up to snuff or on the take. Yet he had never seen such a failure to abide by basic procedure, certainly not among this many agents. That was not even considering the actions of the two who had pursued him earlier. He thought it best to remain silent about that for now.

Danton finally concluded his call and stepped over to him. "Mr. Fuller has approved you joining the operation for now."

"While, again, it's not for him to approve, I'm grateful for his blessing," said Anthony.

"He did want me to make one thing clear, however. I am still head of this operation. I will therefore be the one continuing to manage it."

"By all means."

"So you take your orders from me."

"No."

Danton gave him a surprised look. "Didn't you hear what I just said?"

"Every word," said Anthony. "While you are head of this operation, and we are technically of the same rank, I have seniority. If you wish me to do something, you request it of me. I'll do it if I feel it's in the best interests of all involved. At the moment, I'm content to simply observe."

Danton frowned but merely nodded. He turned away from Anthony. "Handel, call for the vans to pull up out front. We're ready to take these perps in."

So Fuller was uneasy. Anthony often noted it was the uneasy criminals who made the most mistakes. He could only hope for that here.





Matthew remained silent for a long moment after having concluded his conversation with Danton. The quiet was broken when Kelsey stepped into the room. "Sir, I've dispatched a team to recover the agents who went after Heller and secure their car before the police get there."

"Do we have enough agents under my direct command to cover it?" Matthew asked.

"Unfortunately, no, we're spread too thin," Kelsey said. "I had to call on agents from Castle Rock to handle it."

Matthew considered and nodded. "That should be fine. They were heavily involved in pony relocation work and worked closely with this office. So long as those agents use the gunman story as cover for their actions, they should be free to return to MIDROC."

"Unless Agent Heller presses a case against them, sir."

"He would need witnesses and evidence for that." Matthew folded his hands in his lap. "Does he have either?"

"With regards to witnesses, only the ponies present," said Kelsey. "No hard evidence beyond that."

"We need to be absolutely sure, Kelsey," said Fuller. "If even a single human witnessed what happened or could identify those men, we need to find them and secure their silence."

"The agents in the Denver operation had thoroughly canvased the area a few days before," said Kelsey. "No humans were in the area."

"Were there any tall buildings nearby?"

"Tall buildings, sir?"

"I'm more concerned that a human took pictures or video of the scene," said Fuller.

"That's unlikely, sir," said Kelsey. "All the buildings in the area were occupied by ponies. It's likely why that pegasus led Heller there, so he could rely on his friends to stop the car."

Matthew laced his fingers together. "Have the records of the agents who pursued Heller sent to me at once. They're idiots for letting the ponies waylay them like that."

"Yes, sir." Kelsey started to turn away, then faced his superior again. "Permission to speak freely?"

Matthew nodded once.

"Perhaps by going after Heller, you overplayed your hand," said Kelsey.

"In what way?"

"You wanted to leave Heller out of the picture, but now he's in it anyway, since you decided not to have him arrested."

"We still accomplished something," said Matthew. "Had Heller gotten there first, it would be a media circus by now. As it is, we still have this under wraps. It simply means I may need to accelerate my plans once my acquisitions are transferred here. It was all about the best way to maintain the initiative."

"And how are you going to handle Heller's presence here, sir?" Kelsey asked.

"I'm still his superior," said Matthew. "He'll have to take his marching orders from me. And at least while he's here, I can keep an eye on him."

"Yes, sir."

"Is there anything else?"

"Just one," said Kelsey. "We received a report that Sam Kelton has entered the pony sector. He's likely looking for his sister."

"It shouldn't be a problem," Matthew said.

"Sir, the ponies in the area know him and might tell him where his sister is."

"There's little he can do even if he knows," said Matthew. "Our agents have the area around the building secured. They will be able to keep him away until the acquisitions are away."

Kelsey nodded and said nothing.

Matthew leaned back in his seat. "You obviously have something else on your mind. What is it?"

"I'm concerned about how many loose ends there appear to be," Kelsey said. "If there's even one credible witness or tangible evidence, we'll have a hard time keeping a lid on this for very long."

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "You're the one who told me that there were no human witnesses."

"To the extent of our knowledge, yes. There's always the chance that we missed something. We obviously didn't anticipate Heller's direct involvement."

Matthew sighed and drummed his fingers on the hand-rest of his chair.

"I'd also like to point out what Agent Danton told you about Ms. Jarris," Kelsey continued. "In my view, sir, her continued loyalty to you is now in question."

"Let's not worry about Ms. Jarris for the moment."

"But do you even need her anymore? You've already requested additional crystal ponies from the FCPA to be transferred to MIDROC in time for the acquisitions to arrive. Perhaps you should reconsider--"

"All right, enough."

Kelsey fell silent and regarded his superior with a neutral expression.

"I will decide on who I keep on staff," said Matthew. "And that includes Ms. Jarris for now. I'm sure I can convince her that all this was necessary. I'll even agree with her assessment that Agent Handel acted out of line. I fully intend to put him on leave until this blows over."

"I suspect it was a side-effect of the conditioning you used on those agents to ensure they would carry out your plans," said Kelsey. "After all, much of Ryan's power is based around fear."

"Handel is simply weak-willed, and I cannot have weak-willed people working for me." Matthew gave Kelsey a meaningful look. "That includes people at this facility. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir," said Kelsey in a stiff voice.





Sam took a different entrance into the pony sector than the one he had used for the pony mart. He needed one that went further in before it petered out to nothing. He had considered going down I-25 to Greenwood Village and getting into it from there, but he felt that would take him too much out of his way.

He didn't even expect to get this far. The only reason he could offer for why he wanted to enter the pony sector was "visiting a friend." The military police accepted it without question. That had him worried, and he constantly glanced at his rear view mirror for someone following him.

As he got further in, he saw more ponies by the side of the road. He had at best another mile before he had no more road, so he started pulling over and asking them if they knew his sister or where she might be. The first two times he came up empty. Finally, on the third try, he came across two earth ponies, a stallion and a mare, and a pegasus stallion hovering nearby.

Sam glanced ahead and could already see the end of the road. He sighed and got out of the car. The mare gave him a curious look and called the attention of the others before saying, "Can we help you?"

"I really hope you can," said Sam in a heavy voice. "I'm looking for my sister, Beverly Kelton."

The pegasus' pupils shrank slightly, and the two earth ponies exchanged a nervous glance.

"You do know her!" Sam said.

"Uh, maybe," the earth stallion murmured.

"Take my advice, never play poker, you'd be horrible at it. I'm Sam, her brother."

"I did think he looked familiar," said the mare, though her voice was tentative.

"Can you please tell me where she is?" Sam pleaded.

"Um, I don't think that would be a good idea right now," said the pegasus.

"Why the hell not?" Sam demanded.

The earth stallion considered, then turned towards the mare and said in a low voice. "Should we tell him?"

"We might as well, for all the good it will do," said the mare before turning to Sam. "We think the FBI has come for her. There's been a lot going on in Greenwood Village this morning."

Sam's eyes widened. "That's where Bev is?"

"Again, maybe," said the earth stallion.

Sam wanted to kick himself. Had he taken I-25, he might have been able to get to her more easily. "Look, I have to see her. I need to know if she's okay."

"You can't even get near her right now," said the mare. She glanced at the others. "Um, that is, unless we use, uh--"

The pegasus spun around and waved his fore-hooves frantically. "Shh! We can't tell him about that!"

"Why not?"

"This is the good brother, okay, but that other asshole of a brother is still out there!" The pegasus turned around. "Um, no offense."

"Why would I be offended?" Sam asked. "My brother is an asshole. But if there is a way I can see Bev, I want that chance."

"It may be too late," said the pegasus. "Before my patrol's wingleader decided it was too dangerous to stay in the air until the feds cleared out, they saw that the FBI had already closed in on the building. She may be in custody by now."

"You don't know that," the mare said.

"Look, I was as amazed with Jenny's power as the next pony, but I'm sure even she has limits. And they had crystal ponies with them!"

"I have no fucking clue what you're talking about, and frankly I don't care," said Sam. "If there's even a chance that there may be time, I want to take it."

The pegasus sighed. "I think this is a fool's errand, but, all right." He turned to the mare. "Can you show him, please? I want to give others a heads-up that Sam is here."

The mare nodded and stepped forward before turning to Sam. "You're going to have to agree to keep what I show you a secret. If Bev didn't think the world of you, we wouldn't be doing this."

"I don't really care about your secrets, I ..." Sam trailed off. "Did you say Bev thinks the world of me?"

The mare smiled "Yes."

"But I always criticized her for wanting to become a pony."

"But you at least were nicer to her than a lot of people have been, and you didn't just give up on her."

Sam believed they might change their tune if they knew some of the things he had thought about Bev. "All right, let's go."





As much as Connie felt that time was of the essence, she crept along the streets. Normally this would be to avoid running over any ponies, but now she was far more worried about discovery by the FBI. She had purposely used one of the city-owned cars rather than her own in hopes she would be harder to identify. It was with no small measure of relief when she found Sheriff Dave, standing on a corner with several of his deputies, and a unicorn mare with a creamy light brown coat and dark green wavy mane who looked familiar.

Dave saw her approaching and waved, pointing to a spot at the curb to park. Connie pulled over and got out of the car. "Any word?"

"We've been having trouble getting a closer look," said Dave. "Feds have cordoned off an area such that no one can get a good look at the entrance of the building."

Connie frowned. "Then Agent Madsen was right, they are looking to minimize witnesses. What about the pegasi?"

"They've been able to get glimpses, but after what we heard happened to Heller on his way here, they're too nervous about having the FBI folks pop 'em one."

Connie's eyes widened. "You really think they would shoot at the ponies?"

"They've already shot at one of their own," Dave explained. "Some agents tried to chase Heller down, and shots were fired."

Connie covered her eyes with her hand for a moment. "Is he all right?"

"A bunch of ponies lent him a hoof and stopped the other agents' car." Dave gestured with a fore-hoof towards the unicorn mare. "Sandy here saw the whole thing."

Connie turned to the mare. "Yes, I do know you. You're Sandy Beach, the artist."

Sandy smiled and blushed. "I'm honored you remember me, Mayor Morgan."

"Please, just call me Connie. You said you saw what happened?"

"Yes, I did." Sandy's horn glowed, and she levitated a cell phone out of her saddlebags. "I even recorded the whole thing on video."

Connie's heart leapt. "How much of it did you get?"

"Quite a bit, I think," said Sandy as she levitated the phone into Connie's hands. "Earlier, a pegasus had flown into our building asking for help. We didn't understand at first what was going on, but once he said it would help Jenny and Bev, it didn't matter, he got whatever help we could give him."

"Seems a bunch of earth ponies got a good puddle of mud started and teamed up with some unicorns to trick the car into plowing right through it," said Dave with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"By the time I got there, they had all the unicorns they needed," Sandy said. "But then somepony remembered I had a phone with a camera and suggested I record the whole thing from a safe distance away."

Connie had started looking at the video as Sandy spoke. Already, it was clear one of the agents in the car had his window open and a gun in his hand trained on Heller's car. She watched as the agents' car plunged into the puddle.

Despite having been around ponies and having one as a daughter, she was utterly astonished at the sheer amount of coordination that the ponies had pulled off in such a short period of time. Perhaps many considered their herd mentality to be just so much brainwashing, but it could be damn effective at times.

Connie was about to say something when she saw the agents get out of the car, and the camera abruptly zoomed in, getting a good shot of one of their faces. The agent looked directly at the camera, frowned, and appeared to shout something before the camera abruptly pulled away and the video ended.

"Sandy, that last part, did the agent see you?" Connie asked.

Sandy scraped a fore-hoof on the ground. "I'm not sure, which is why I came to Dave. As much as I was glad to help, I'm a little scared right now."

"I sent word to wake up Moon Racer and Midnight Star," said Dave. "Maybe Midnight's not a deputy, but I can use all the firepower I can muster right now."

"I'll contact police chief Hanner," Connie said. "By now I'm hoping he's figured out that the report of the gunman is a red herring. I can have Sandy taken into protective custody."

"Thank you, Mayor -- I mean Connie," Sandy gushed. She smiled. "And I have to thank you for something else."

"Oh? What's that?"

"If you hadn't convinced me not just to stay in Greenwood Village but also keep using the same things that I did as a human, I would never have had that phone to record the video in the first place."

Connie slowly smiled.

"It had an impact on some of my friends," Sandy continued. "Some of them thought it was odd of me to want human devices, but now they want to go back to using things like this, too."

Connie was about to express her thanks, but she glanced back down at the cell phone. "Sheriff Dave, surely there has to be someone in the area who can witness the FBI taking the others out of the building? I doubt they could evacuate the whole area."

"Only ponies live in that neighborhood, and most likely they're hunkering down until it blows over," said Dave. "Especially if the FBI is being as aggressive as I've heard."

Connie supposed the herd instinct had its downsides as well.

"And what little the pegasi could see, it was clear they were arranging the vans so that their view was blocked anyway."

"And there's no way we can get closer to that building from a better vantage point?"

Dave looked uncertain, exchanging a look with his deputies. "Ah, well ... there might be, but, uh ..."

"Do any of the secret tunnels lead into the area?"

Dave gave her a shocked look.

Connie responded with a wry grin. "Yes, I know all about the tunnels you use to help Partials and others get in and out without being seen."

"How the heck do you know?! I mean, yeah, I've been wanting to tell you about it, but--"

"Agent Madsen was kind enough to drop me a text about it once you used them to help him into the pony sector."

Dave tipped his hat back with a fore-hoof and grunted. "Shoulda known he couldn't keep quiet about that. Maybe Wildy was right about not letting him in on it."

"He had me promise to continue keeping it a secret for now," Connie said. "After this is over, we'll talk about it. Anyway, I have an idea. My phone has a camera. If we can get close enough to witness them being taken out of the building, we can record it."

"For what purpose, ma'am?"

"To make it harder for Fuller to sweep them under the rug. We can take that video and the one Sandy took and use them as leverage. I've already got the press in the know that something is up today. We may even be able to pass it to Heller's Broomfield office."

Dave frowned. "That's a might risky. You sure you don't want me or one of my deputies doing it?"

"I feel it will make more of an impact if it became known that a city mayor took one of the videos," said Connie. "Maybe that's tooting my own horn a bit much, but--"

"No, that makes sense!" Sandy said. "Especially since you're becoming known for the work you've been doing for this city. And this is definitely something you're trying to do to benefit both humans and ponies."

"All right," Dave said. "I think I know one we can use. It's gonna be a bit tricky, but if it means putting an end to this madness, I'm willing to do it."

Connie gave the phone back to Sandy. "Keep this safe. I'll get the police here ASAP. Meanwhile, do you have someplace nearby you can hide?"

"Yes, my sister lives just up the block from here."

Dave turned towards his deputies, a stocky earth pony stallion and a pegasus mare. "You two, escort her and wait with her 'til the cops arrive. Me and Mayor Morgan will go and get a look see at the FBI's operation."

Connie took out her cell phone. "Let's get going. I can contact chief Hanner along the way."

Connie knew this was a huge risk. If her husband knew she was doing this, he'd try to change her mind. She just had to hope that they would have the element of surprise on their side.





Ryan paced back and forth in his room at MIDROC. Despite the place being larger and having more amenities than the safe house, he still felt like a prisoner. FBI agents stood outside his room, along with a crystal pony who would alert them at the slightest sign of any magic use.

The room had no windows, as it was located on the basement level. It brought back far more memories that he cared to recall. It had been this same place where Fuller had Ryan demonstrate his powers, where he had Ryan help "train" agents to remain absolutely loyal to Fuller by playing on their fears, amplifying them, and making them think Fuller was their salvation.

Ryan shuddered. Not being able to see the daylight also reminded him too much of his night pony days. At first, it had been a lark. Being able to step into dreams and understand them to a depth that humans could never attain gave him a sense of freedom he had rarely enjoyed in his life. While he sometimes tweaked a dream here and there, he never intentionally hurt anyone. He had just wanted to understand, to know, to feel in control.

Then a pony more powerful than him invaded his own dreams. That was when Midnight Terror made the dream realm a living hell. Midnight had claimed he was simply punishing Ryan for his misdeeds, but being a petty crook and occasional drug dealer was not something worth punishing to this extent, a life of crime that he was trying to escape in the first place.

Ryan clenched his hands into fists at the memory. He had gone back to feeling powerless. Even when Luna had rescued and consoled him, he felt like the Princess had subjected him to a bait and switch. Almost to the moment he had recovered from the trauma of Midnight Terror and started dreamwalking again, he ran into his second nightmare in the form of a pony named Sha'am Maut.

That wizened old bitch of a Dreamwarden thought she had the right to tell him what he could do, that he even had to swear Oaths to someone he never agreed to have lord over him. That she had several orders of magnitude more power than Midnight ever had made matters worse; he had lost track of how many times he had "died" at her hooves before he said the damn Oaths to her satisfaction.

It had not been long after that he had decided to rehumanize rather than be subjected to any more humiliation.

Ryan spun around when the door to his room opened. He narrowed his eyes as Matthew stepped inside.

"Good to see you again, Ryan," said Matthew, extending a hand.

Ryan almost didn't take it, as too many old resentments had been stirred up in his mind. He realized that his own well being likely hinged on remaining civil, thus he shook the offered hand, if only briefly. "I wish I could sincerely say the same in return," he said in a neutral voice.

"Circumstances are admittedly not ideal at the moment."

"That's an understatement if I ever heard one." Ryan sighed. "Fine. When are your acquisitions going to arrive?"

Matthew smiled. "Good, I'm glad you want to get right down to business."

"The sooner I help you, the sooner I can get the hell out of here," Ryan said. "I am going to get to leave at some point, right?"

"Once the acquisitions are secure and I'm assured that Princess Twilight will be unable to interfere, I intend to get the matter of your arrest warrant cleared up. We may have to establish a new identity for you."

"I was never keen on the name 'Ryan' anyway. So when are these 'acquisitions' going to arrive?"

"By mid to late this afternoon," Matthew explained. "My operatives are in the process of securing them now."

Ryan nodded. "Those minions I helped you train working out then?"

"For the most part, yes."

"What about Handel?"

"He'll need to be reminded how to properly restrain himself in a tense situation."

Ryan snorted. "In other words, he flaked out. I warned you he had a few screws loose. You were better off to leave him out of this."

"I felt he had learned enough about my plans that it was more prudent to keep him in my private circle," said Matthew. "Nothing I had not anticipated might happen beforehand."

Ryan wanted to laugh. Matthew had a knack for explaining away even the worst problems as somehow part of his plans all along. He wondered if the man ever heard of the phrase "Xanatos Gambit," for sometimes it seemed Matthew was the living embodiment of it.

"You mentioned Twilight," said Ryan. "She still here?"

"Yes, but hopefully not for long," said Matthew.

Ryan frowned. "You're taking a big risk moving those people here before she's gone. If she gets even a small whiff of their magic, she could be on you like a ton of bricks. Believe me, I've seen what an angry alicorn can do. You don't want that on your hands."

"Not every Equestrian princess is as impulsive as Luna. And there will be zero risk so long as we keep crystal pony guards on the incarcerated."

Ryan felt Matthew was not being as cautious as he usually was. That had to mean he was starting to feel the pressure. Ryan could only surmise that more people were becoming cognizant of Fuller's plans outside his little circle.

And he expected Ryan to pull his fat from the fire. That meant Ryan could be in the driver's seat if he played his cards right.

"I'll work with you on one condition," said Ryan.

Matthew raised an eyebrow slightly but simply nodded for him to continue.

"I want to be kept safe from the Dreamwardens. That means you can never let Luna near me where she can identify me."

"I can't control where she goes, especially considering she can teleport."

"Yes, you can. She can't teleport to someplace she can't get a visual representation of. It's an inherent limitation of teleportation magic."

"She had never been at Village Center, yet she--" Matthew began.

"Stop playing games with me," Ryan snapped. "She got all the visual reference she needed from Google street view. You're smart enough to know that."

Matthew stepped closer to Ryan. "Yes, I am, but there's almost no place in the United States that has not been photographed by them."

"Yes, there is," said Ryan. "I've already been thinking about this. Once I'm done with your latest project, I want to be resettled in Nevada, near Area 51."

Matthew's eyebrows rose. "Are you quite serious?"

"Very serious. I'll even be willing to work for the US military, so long as they treat me like an employee and not a test subject. Maybe reports of recovered alien spacecraft are just so much invented bullshit, but you can be sure as hell the military is doing some sort of top secret research out there. Imagine what they could do with powerful mind magic?"

Matthew looked thoughtful.

Ryan smirked. "Yeah, I can see the wheels turning in your head now. You can't tell me you don't have aspirations for bigger and better things than a regional FBI director. Once you have that and control over human magic, I can see the military going to you hat in hand wanting to find a way to weaponize it."

"Even if that were to come to pass, there's no way I could promise you that outcome," said Matthew.

"No, but I'll settle for you making the effort," said Ryan. "You've got three days to give me some proof that you've at least sent out some feelers."

Matthew frowned. "I can't have you idle for that long."

"I won't be. Soon as you give the word, I'll start working them over. But after three days are up, I'm done unless you give me that proof."

"And what will suffice as proof?" Matthew asked.

"I get contacted personally by someone in the military," said Ryan.

"That's a hell of a tall order."

"No, it's not. Remember, I'm the one who primed a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to agree to your idea of letting regional FBI directors have military units at their disposal."

"And you don't believe the effects of that 'priming' may have been dulled?"

Ryan narrowed his gaze. "I know my own power and how it works. So do you. You're just trying to be in complete control of this situation. News flash: you're not. Deal with it."

Matthew stiffened and started to turn away. "I'll see what I can do."

Ryan grabbed Matthew's shoulder and forced him to turn back around. "No, I don't want the usual Fuller-speak from you. What you just said translates to 'I'll ignore the problem and hope it goes away.' I want a definite statement from you."

Matthew had allowed himself to be turned, but now he yanked his shoulder away. "Very well. I will make every effort to get you what you want. If I'm successful, expect a call within three days."

Ryan let out a slow breath through his nose. He knew he had no way to hold Matthew to the commitment, but the way Matthew presented himself to others was important to him. Ryan knew now that Matthew would at least make the effort, even if a token one. He had no alternative but to accept it. "For your sake, I hope you're successful."

"I had hoped you would feel more gratitude towards me," said Matthew. "After all, I helped you escape from the law."

Ryan didn't voice what he was thinking, that Matthew likely was more worried what Ryan might say were he apprehended. His passive senses told him Matthew was rattled. His plans were likely not going as well as he would have liked. Absolutely no one, not even someone as good as donning a persona as Matthew, could completely hide their feelings from him.

"Let's just say I decided it was time to look after my own interests," Ryan said in a low voice.





Connie's heart raced as she crawled along the passage, shivering at both the cold air and her anxiety. She had never thought herself claustrophobic, having managed to brave a one-hour MRI of her neck and upper back once after an auto accident. But at least in that case she could see either end of the tunnel. This one went on and on, though she was sure the time they had spent inside it was magnified in her mind.

Dave, being an earth pony himself, has no issue, and he was kind enough to keep talking to Connie to distract her. "These here tunnels were dug by a bunch of earth ponies who used to be construction workers back in New York before they retired and settled here," Dave said, the light on his helmet illuminating the way ahead of them. "They used to work on that big underground water tunnel project."

"I've heard of that one," said Connie.

"Caused them a bunch of health problems, but that all went away after ETS. Their human skills became earth pony powers. Hell, they make other earth ponies like me just stare in awe at how fast and accurate they can dig. We nickname 'em 'The Diggers'."

Connie managed a smile. "I wonder if Equestria might be interested in them."

Dave chuckled. "Naw, they got their own earth ponies like that. One of 'em is some mare named Maud Pie, if those Diggers are to be believed. Said they'd like to meet her someday. Okay, almost there. Hang back a moment."

Connie stopped crawling and let Dave go on ahead. She had to take a deep breath to calm herself as just the short distance he crawled forward left her almost completely in the dark. The tunnel suddenly angled up, and his light revealed wood. He hooked a fore-hoof into a loop of string that ran through a small hole in the wood and pulled.

"Now we be patient," said Dave.

Less than a minute later -- though it felt like longer to Connie -- there was a creak, and the wooden panel hinged open, pushed by a tan-furred hoof.

"Okay, let's go," Dave called out.

Connie followed him, her anxiety easing at the sight of light ahead. "Sheriff Dave!" Connie heard a mare's voice exclaim in surprise. "What are you doing in the tunnels?"

Connie followed him out, her eyes immediately falling on a tan-furred and yellow-maned earth pony mare, whose cyan eyes widened at the sight of her. "Mayor Morgan??"

Connie's nose was immediately enticed by the smell of freshly baked bread and sweet pastries. Indeed, the earth mare had a danish as a cutie mark. It made Connie wish she had had something more than coffee that morning.

Dave brought a hoof to his muzzle. "Shh! Don't go announcing it too loud."

"Does this have something to do with what's going on across the street?" the mare asked.

"Yes." Dave looked at Connie and gestured to the mare. "This here is Pastry Delight."

The mare smiled. "Passie to my friends, and Mayor Morgan is definitely a friend."

Connie smiled faintly. "Thank you."

"Passie, do you have a clear view of the front of the apartment building the FBI are raiding?"

"Well, yes, but some agents came in earlier and forced me to close up shop until they were gone." Passie frowned. "And just after I finished a whole big batch of muffins! Now it'll all go stale."

"Are they watching the shop?"

"I don't know. Once I saw how mean they were being to everypony, I decided to stay in my office in the back until it blew over." She scraped a hoof on the floor. "I know they're probably after Bev and Jenny, and I wish I could help, but I'm just a baker."

"Don't fret about it too much, Passie, not everypony can be of help in every situation," said Dave. "All right, let me go on ahead. I'll signal if the coast is clear."

As Dave headed towards the stairs that led up from the basement, Passie turned to Connie. "What's this all about, Mayor Morgan? Is there anything I can do to help?"

Connie's stomach rumbled. "Maybe just one of those muffins to tide me over."

Passie beamed. "Of course! And it's on the house."

Normally Connie would beg off such free treats from residents, but she was too anxious to refuse. All her thoughts were on pulling off something that likely could get her killed if things went wrong.





Matthew frowned as he left Ryan's room. He had not wanted to admit that the man had been right; Matthew did indeed prefer to be in complete control of a situation, and he didn't need Ryan's recalcitrance complicating an already delicate situation. He could tolerate only so many more deviations from his initial plans.

He headed towards the elevator, which had just reached his floor. Before he could step up to it, the doors opened and Kelsey came racing out. "Sir, there's been an unfortunate development."

"What is it?" Matthew said in a terse voice.

"The two agents who pursued Heller contacted me prior to the recovery team arriving. One claimed that someone might have recorded him with a phone camera."

Matthew glared at Kelsey. "You assured me that there were no humans in the area!"

"Yes, sir, but--"

"I had given specific instructions that every aspect of this operation was to be hidden from human eyes," Matthew continued. "I would have thought they would understand that meant any attempt to intercept Heller as well."

"Sir, it wasn't a human who recorded them."

Matthew was silent for a moment. "Did I hear you right, Kelsey?"

"Yes, sir," Kelsey said in a crisp voice. "Apparently a unicorn mare at the scene had a cell phone. The agent is sure she was recording him, as she immediately ran off the moment the agent saw her."

Matthew let out a slow breath. "Apparently I underestimated Mrs. Morgan's ability to get ponies to adopt human conventions and infrastructure. Either that, or she specifically set up that unicorn to record the incident."

"Mayor Morgan? You believe her to be involved now?"

"Or more likely, she was involved from the start. The fact that Heller was seen driving from the general direction of Greenwood Village city hall should have been my first clue."

"Perhaps it should have, sir."

Matthew gave Kelsey an evaluating look before he said, "In either case, her involvement needs to stop now. I need two things from you ASAP."

"Yes, sir?"

"First, I want that unicorn identified and found. Confiscate that phone of hers. Threaten her with arrest if she refuses to turn it over, and certainly arrest her if she still refuses."

"Yes, sir," said Kelsey in a slightly stiff voice.

Matthew paused again to look Kelsey over. "Second, I want Mayor Morgan arrested. Find some reason that will stick. Her association with Ted Miller could mean she was privy to the presence of the Partial in her city. That would mean she willfully ignored an FBI bulletin."

"I'll do the best I can, sir. Like I said earlier, your agents are spread very thin right now."

"Augment them with the two who pursued Heller once they finish giving their statements to the Castle Rock office. Pull others from where you can."

"Of course, sir."

After a pause, Matthew said in a lower voice, "I've known you long enough to see when something is bothering you. Are you still concerned about the success of this operation?"

"I am, sir," said Kelsey.

"We'll pull through. We've faced a few more obstacles than anticipated, but we have contingencies. I just need people like you to do their job as well as they always have."

"As I said, I'll do my best, sir."

Matthew turned more fully towards him. "Please see that you do. At this point, we need everyone to pull their weight. Don't waver now."

"I won't, sir."

Matthew managed a small smile. "Now, let's get back to work and get this operation in the bag."

"Of course, sir," said Kelsey.





Dave popped his head around the frame of the door at the top of the stairs. "Ma'am, you can come on up, but keep your head down so you're not seen over the counter."

Connie nodded and hastily swallowed the last bite of her muffin. She climbed the stairs, hunching over to what she thought was the typical height of a counter in a store like this. Dave gestured with his hoof for her to crouch even lower, and she saw why when she emerged: one part of the counter had been remodeled to pony-height.

She headed for the taller counter and hid behind it. She could faintly hear voices outside. Dave carefully peeked around the side and over the pony-height counter. "I turned the lights out, so we shouldn't be seen," he whispered.

Connie nodded and took out her cell phone. It didn't have as much of a battery charge as she would have preferred, and recording video was a rather large drain on it. She started shutting down apps in a bid to extend the battery life.

"We're going to have only one shot at this, ma'am," Dave said. "Better get ready."

Connie took a deep breath and turned around. She peeked her head around the edge of the counter and held out her cell phone's camera. She tapped the record icon and forced her breathing to remain slow and steady so her hands would not shake. She zoomed in, and when this appeared to jittery, she braced the phone against the side of the counter,

"I see them," Dave said in an urgent whisper. "They're coming out."

Connie's heart skipped a beat when her view was suddenly blocked by the chest of someone in the foreground. Even knowing the agent appeared close only because she was zoomed, she felt a brief spike of panic. If someone was intentionally looking their way, she would have only a split second to pull herself behind the counter to avoid being seen.

She instead gripped the phone tighter and remained still, and the man stepped out of view. At once she saw a knot of agents emerge from the building. They glanced around, fellow agents in the area nodding to them, and they nodded in return. Only then did Connie get a glimpse of the ones they had in custody.

Her heart ached as she saw them being led away from the building in restraints. As soon as she saw Jenny, she moved the phone slightly to better capture her. As if on cue, while she was visible between two agents walking alongside, Jenny turned her head towards the camera.

Connie's eyes widened. Was that dried blood on her face?

She let the camera follow Jenny as best as it could before she was taken into one of the vans. Now she saw Anthony Heller trailing the others, stopping as if to examine everything with a critical eye. He exchanged words with another agent, who frowned before making a quick gesture towards one of the vans. Anthony nodded to him and stepped inside the one Jenny was taken into.

Connie heard the thunk of doors being closed. The vans flipped on their flashing lights and started to pull away from the scene just as she heard the low battery chime. She quickly stopped recording and pulled behind the counter, letting out the breath she did not realize she had been holding as a ragged sigh.

Dave drew himself back as well. "I reckon they didn't spot us. Did you get everything?"

"I did," Connie said. "More than I expected."

"How so?"

"Jenny looked injured. Like someone had struck her across the face."

Dave frowned. "Ma'am, these folks better get what's coming to them. They're a disgrace to law enforcement everywhere."

Connie wanted to claim that they had no evidence of any outright abuse by these agents, that it could have been something as innocent as a fall that caused her injury. Yet with as bad as things seemed to have become, she was not holding out any hope of that possibility.

"Hang on," Dave said. "What's going on now?"

Connie turned to see him looking not at the front of the building, but off to the side. Connie ducked down and peeked over the pony counter to see two agents confronting a middle-aged and obviously agitated man.

"I think that may be Bev's brother Sam," Connie said.

"He's a damn fool for coming down here," Dave said. "And whatever pony let him in the secret tunnels to get this close is an even bigger fool."

One of the agents pressed a hand into Sam's chest and pushed him back while the other stood off to the side for a moment, his hand to his ear-piece. After a few moments, he nodded, said something, and rejoined the other agent. They both held the man at bay until the vans had all left the area. Sam appeared to exchange one last set of angry words with the agents before heading off.

"Let's get out of here as soon as the other agents are away," Connie said. "We can find Sam later."

Dave nodded and peered over the pony counter, "If I may ask, what's our next move?"

Connie clutched the cell phone to her bosom. "Let's get away from here first before we discuss anything further."





Kelsey returned to his office and sat behind his desk as he had done so many times that they seemed countless. Always, it was to fulfill an order from his superior, a man he had admired ever since they had met soon after the ETS crisis was waning. Matthew had been one of the few to fully realize what was really at stake in the struggle over the world's future. Kelsey had been happy to be personally interviewed by Matthew for this position and had been overjoyed to serve him in whatever capacity was needed.

A call came in as soon as he sat down. "Matthew Fuller's office, Kelsey speaking."

"Kelsey, this Agent Randall from the Denver operation. We need Mr. Fuller's call on something."

"Mr. Fuller is very busy at the moment," Kelsey intoned. "What is it?"

"A man claiming to be Ms. Kelton's brother just showed up."

"I had received intelligence he had crossed into the pony sector only a short while ago. He should not have been able to reach your perimeter that quickly."

"I know, which is why I'm calling. We're keeping him clear of the scene, but I'm thinking we should detain him for questioning to find out how he got so close to the operation without being spotted."

Kelsey almost sighed. Another unexpected complication. They kept piling up. "Stand by."

Kelsey put the call on hold and turned to his computer. He brought up the application that allowed him to dispatch agents anywhere they were needed within the Midwest Recovery Zone from any office in its jurisdiction. He had memorized the offices that had agents Matthew had "trained" to be loyal only to him.

The memory of that interview sprang into his head. He had come to Fuller's office already concerned about what unrestrained pony magic could do to law and order. Fuller's words on the subject had captivated him. Here was a man in a position of power who understood the same concerns he had. The same fears.

The same fears.

Kelsey took a deep breath. Supposedly, Ryan had not formally come into the employ of Matthew until a week after Kelsey had joined Matthew's team. Kelsey had been sure he had joined of his own volition and not because some mind magic had compelled him.

He stared at the application again. Another memory came to him, one of Matthew training him how to use it and instructing him on the "special offices" where Matthew's loyalists resided, where any improper procedure could be covered up, where "persons of interest" could be quietly routed to MIDROC with no paper or electronic trail.

Kelsey had seen the need for it all. He recalled the quote Matthew had cited during the interview: When the people fear the government, you have tyranny; when the government fears the people, you have freedom. Matthew had convinced him that the government was becoming a tyranny, puppeted by Equestria to further their interests through the spread of pony magic. Technology could counter it only at a great and bloody cost, and human magic was the only real solution. Yet that could not happen were Equestria to control that as well.

Success, however, had all hinged on two things: planning and resolve.

Matthew certainly had the resolve. He could shrug off the short term ethical implications of his decisions, and Kelsey could shield himself from similar introspection by claiming he was following the orders of his better, a person with far more experience and wisdom than he would ever have.

Matthew also had the planning, at least until now. How he had managed to shield Ryan's identity from the world had been brilliant. He knew exactly how to pick talent, how to train them, how to ensure loyalty to his cause.

Then came his hiring of Tonya Jarris.

At first, Kelsey had not questioned it. Sure, she was someone upon whom Ryan's powers would never work. She would just siphon the magic away the moment she sensed it directed at her. Matthew had managed to get other people into important roles and keep their loyalty long after Ryan had been released from MIDROC, relying on his personal magnetism and gift for inspiring words.

Perhaps he had relied on that too much.

Even now, Matthew refused to let her go, despite the clear indications that her loyalty was in question. When Matthew had called for more crystal ponies to be transferred to MIDROC earlier that morning, Kelsey had held out some hope that Matthew was coming around. But, no, Matthew saw a powerful talent, and a man like him had to have such power under his control.

It was all about control.

Kelsey frowned. That control was slipping away, and Matthew refused to acknowledge it. He thought he could sweep his adversaries aside, or continue to operate right under their noses.

Heller would not stop. Matthew knew this. What he failed to realize was that Twilight would not stop, either. Luna would not stop. The Dreamwardens would not stop. Sooner or later, Matthew's plans would cave in on themselves. He had too many pieces in play scattered on a board that was becoming bigger every day.

He glanced at the flashing light reminding him of the call on hold. He didn't want to give in. He still believed Matthew had the right idea, but he had failed in the implementation and didn't know when to cut his losses. Maybe someone else had to cut them for him.

He picked up the phone. "Mr. Fuller says negative on detaining him unless he becomes violent or actually breaks the law. We have enough on our plate as it is."

"Roger that," said the agent before hanging up.

Kelsey proceeded to carry out Matthew's orders. First he sent a text to one of the two agents being debriefed at the Castle Rock office. He apprised them of Matthew's orders, but rather than ordering them to engage, he put them on standby. He then formally dispatched the order to identify and find the unicorn mare, and then another for the task of obtaining an arrest warrant for Constance Morgan.

He chose Heller's Broomfield office for both orders.