Interviews With Equestrians

by Jmaster49


Subject 18: Taking Manehattan

A week had passed, it was time to go.

The train ride to Manehattan was a bit longer than the others. But I knew that going in. Neon and I were already up to date on the differences of the city. Of course, research and physical experience were two different things. But that keen bat-like nose of his and those eyes would assist me greatly.

“We’ll meet up with Babs at her place. That’s where we’ll be stationed.”

He finished his bottle of tomato juice, “Mm. And what will be our first move?”

“Wait until nightfall,” I explained as I read through my notes, “once then, we’ll start scouting for any suspicious individuals.”

“And by we, you mean me,” Neon corrected me with a nudge, “If someone’s foolish enough to dig up your old schoolyard name, then they’re no better than the children down there at the school.”

That dark blue stallion was right. If somepony was trying to use a name I made up for laughs, then what did that make them? Scum. Or something lower than that. Who knows?

My bat friend stuck his head out of the window. “There it is, mate. Your home city,” he pointed to the vast metropolitan zone of skyscrapers and harbors. “Can’t wait to see how much has changed. If anythin’.”

“Pshaw, it’s just another city. Big, loud, obnoxious. Probably no different than Trottingham.”

“Well you’re half right,” he leaned back in his seat, “Queen’s land is rather congested these days. But with lots of rain, it’s hard to get out and have any fun. Still, my family’s factory is still up and runnin’. Our technology revolves around sound and airwaves so it lets us fight our enemies in the dark.”

I clapped my hooves, “So that’s why the Thundergun exists.”

“Essentially. Though the schematics for the Thundergun were originally meant for Pegasi to move clouds around faster. Heh! Turns out it’s much better at blasting away ponies ya dislike, lad.”

I looked into my coat at the lever-action air blaster. “And my weapon...it’s a smaller version, yeah?”

“Now ya gettin’ it, lad. There’s a whole sea of things we can accomplish if ya take time to look,” he yawned, “thing we’re arriving soon? I’m completely knackered.”

I checked my watch. It would be about another ten minutes before we finally arrived. Once there, we exited the station. The dirt roads beneath our hooves were exchanged for rough and tumble pavement and asphalt roads. Metallic and manufactured scents rose through the air and filled my snout. This...this was home.

Neon was just as into it. He turned around multiple times in order to get a good look at everything. “Ahh...what a place to be. A city with no rain and actual space to move around in. I’m positively floored. How could you leave such a place, chap?”

I sighed with a tip of my hat as we walked, “When you grow up here...you start to notice the bad side of things. It’s not docile like Ponyville, Canterlot, or even Trottingham. Kids that grow up here have to harden themselves and become stronger lest they fall through the cracks.”

“Ah, well that doesn’t sound very dandy. But even so, you gotta admit the shoppes ‘ere are much cooler. Like over there!” He put one hoof around my neck and pointed ahead with his mechanical one, “a fruit stand? A clothing store? A comic store? Absolutely maddening!”

I raised an eyebrow. I thought Trottingham had advanced at least a little bit since I had last been there. “You mean you don’t have these sorts of shops back home?”

“Not at all, mate. It’s a very...retro sort of place. Nothing but historic items and the occasional pie stand,” he said with an annoyed scoff. “Freaking bellends won’t budge. I love me home, but they can be so purist at times.”

“Well then, here’s hoping you’re not affected by culture shock. Where we’re going, you can even get your mane done.”

The dark blue stallion screeched at a frequency nopony else could hear due to his excitement. “That sounds completely radical, friend. You must take me there.”

By the magic of luck or supreme editing skills, it turned out we had already arrived. A small, modern-looking barber shop with a bright red and yellow sign.

‘Babs Do’s’

“Pretty simple for a name, eh?” he commented.

“I like it,” I replied as I stepped inside. My hooves met the simplistic black and white tile with a harsh chill compared to the rugged sidewalk. “Rolls off the tongue pretty well.”

Neon was distracted by the swirling cylinder of red, white, and blue for a moment before he followed me in. “Oh right...me nanny used to take care of that for me...didn’t like it one bit.”

“Heheh.” I could only imagine the horrors that befell his foal mane. Now I could see why he kept his red locks in a short cut that only went halfway down his neck.

Now that we were in the shop, we could see ponies working with a few customers on their hair. But I noticed Babs wasn’t around.

Not until she walked out a few moments later from a different section that focused on washing manes. “Alrighty, now take a look at dis,” she gave the mare a mirror and removed the towel. Her mane was now a neatly curled bed of pink and yellow, “how ya like it?”

“Yes!” she shouted, “This is the exact look I wanted for jury duty. My dad’s gonna lose it when he sees how good I look.”

“Business casual, ya know? I’m an expert,” she stated proudly as the mare handed her a bag of bits. “Woah, dis is a lot.”

“Keep it! When my dad loses that case, I’m gonna inherit everything from my grandma anyways.”

Neon and I blinked in unison as we looked at each other. The customer left with a giddy smile. That’s when the brown mare noticed us. “Yooo, ya made it!” she washed her hooves and trotted over to us. “How ya doin’, bud? And who’s ya friend?”

“Quite fine, and yourself? This is…”

He took a bow, “Neon Isotope, at your service, my lady. Allow me to say what a fine establishment you have here.”

“Woah…” Babs was intrigued. Her eyes drifted towards his bat-like wings a few times, not to mention his mechanical limb. I could tell she wanted to know more about him, but she saved it for the time being. “Nice to meetcha too. I’m still workin’ so if ya’ll could come back at like 6-ish? That’d be great.”

“That’s quite fine, we intended on taking a tour so I could see what it was like for ol’ Paley here as he grew up, anyhow.”

Babs giggled, but I shuddered at the thought of revealing all of what made me who I am today. Or maybe it could be a nice learning experience. Yeah, I don’t know.

“Heh. Come back here at six and then I’ll take ya to my place. I live near Aunt and Uncle O in Hooflyn. Pretty nice place.”

Ah, Hooflyn. One of the multiple districts of this fine city. I wonder if Saddle Island had gotten any better since I left. But Neon simply had to say something unexpected.

“Your aunt and uncle? Pray tell, where are your pa--”

I shoved him into a nearby plant. “Whoops! Sorry, bud. My entire side slipped.”

Luckily, Babs didn’t hear him properly. She instead laughed once more, “Hah! Ya’ll are funny. I gotta get back to work. So don’t mess up muh shop.”

I ushered the bat pony out of the salon. “Listen, I know you’re trying to be friendly and all, but try to avoid bringing up her parents. It’s not pleasant for her.”

Neon nodded, “Ah, sorry about that mate. I thought she’d be willing to speak of it. So. Shall we take a tour around your home, then?”

Dammit. The last thing I wanted was to recount every inch of where I grew up. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that, though.

Sadly, it was a rather mundane tour to be quite honest. I showed him the various parks, buildings, and piers where boats were docked. Compared to Trottingham, Manehattan was a technical marvel ahead in almost every way. Neon was pleased by this, his fanged grin was thrown at just about everything I showed off. Madison Mare Garden in particular had him beside himself with excitement.

It was...nostalgic, but not very entertaining to me. I wasn’t much of a tour guide, and only felt a minimal shred of desire to return to this place. Though...I did have to admit, the movie theater had me invested.

“Hold on, mate. You mean to tell me that ya’ll are able to watch full films in giant rooms?”

“That’s right,” I said as we stopped in front of the theater. “Normally, I would say we should catch a flick, but we’re short on time. Babs is going to meet us within the hour,” I looked up at Neon.

“Hm…” As it would appear, he was looking at the sun. Oh yeah. I remember that bat ponies become more aggressive at night depending on what their sleep schedule was. For the sake of his job, Neon conformed to a normal one--in other words, he was diurnal. Even still, I wondered just how the night would affect him. “Sun’s setting soon. Think we have enough time to visit your old place?”

Another detail I noticed is that Neon rarely took flight during the day. Probably to avoid scaring others with his bat wings? “Um...now isn’t a good time.”

“C’mon, bruv. If it’s close by, we may as well have a gander, yeah?”

He was persistent. I hated that. It might have been a good idea, but we weren’t here to waste time. We were on a mission to expose the hidden problems of this city. “If we happen to pass by it...then sure.”

Neon put his good hoof on my shoulder. “Bruv...if there’s something wrong, don’t be afraid to tell me. I’ve got a lotta problems too, ya know. And when the time’s right...I’ll tell ya all about ‘em.”

I gave a nod of respect. He wasn’t trying to annoy me, and I knew that. I was starting to warm up to the guy, even if I wasn’t familiar with his methods. It was nice.

So we both kept wandering around the city until 6 o’clock came. Like gentlecolts, we made sure to arrive on time for Babs as soon as she got off of work.

“Whew. Tough day, but pretty fun,” she came out with a fur coat on, “ya both ready?”

We nodded, and Babs led us through her city, this time for a slightly more direct route towards the residential area. She actually showed us where she used to live, in a secluded apartment complex near a shady set of alleys.

“This is where you used to live?” Neon asked.

Babs replied as she continued down the sidewalk, “Yeah, muh parents didn’t have much. So I kinda forced my way through the crowds in school.”

I decided to speak next, “And...what did that do for you?”

“Landed me in some trouble a few times, but ain’t nopony messin’ with me now.”

While I didn’t entirely agree with that notion, I was in no position to criticize since I too, grew up with strife and had to also break through the mold in order to get anywhere. Babs was lucky to have other family members to watch out for her, though--her aunt and uncle.

It would be awhile before we arrived at a more suburban area near the edge of the city. Babs had quite the house located on a hill. A simplistic two-story abode with a nice garden separated from the sidewalk. Interesting.

The sun had begun to set. It would be nighttime very soon. I looked at Neon who seemed more content to perch upside-down from a nearby lamppost. “I’ll remain out here. Keep watch over things.”

“Alright, well if ya wanna come inside, I’m right here,” Babs offered before she led me into her home. The inside wasn’t much different from other homes I had been in. Though, Babs’ home was a tad more on the luxurious side due to the culture of Manehattan. Her living room was filled with a shelf of video games, a large TV, a wide angle U-shaped red couch, and multiple lamps. Her kitchen was twice the size of mine. She had a table in the middle of it to sit and eat, a separate fridge and freezer, various appliances including an electric can opener. What?! They had those?! “Here we are. Mi casa is...whateva they say.”

“...What a wonderful abode you have here. Did your Aunt and Uncle assist in--”

“Nah,” she removed her coat and tossed it on a rack near the door. “Worked hard and paid for dis place muhself, bro. But I got a rule.”

“Oh?”

“If ya come in my place afta a long day of work, ya showa,” she pushed me towards the guest bathroom, “just like to keep the place clean. Plus, ya mane could be covered in stuff ya didn’t know existed.”

That was rather forward. I didn’t expect to be offered a chance to bathe in her home. But I wouldn’t deny her. As a guest, it would be rude to not accept her rules. “Alright. I’ll go. What about you?”

“I’mma head upstays and get clean muhself. Gotta keep dis mane conditioned and set a good example for my customas,” she made her way up the stairs to the second floor, “when we done, we’ll discuss our next move. Right?”

“Right.”

The bathroom was exceptional as well. Beautiful black and blue tiles all over the place and the tub was separate from the shower. Lord above, this bathroom was massive. If this was for guests, I couldn’t imagine what it was like in her own master bath.

In any case, I got cleaned up. My vest and hat waited for me outside. Once I was done, I felt like a new stallion. The sheer amount of quality conditioner she had available left me shocked. I didn’t think it was possible for the roughest filly around to grow up and care for her appearance so much.

Once I got out, I saw Babs relaxed on her couch in a bathrobe. “Ah...das betta. Now, once nightfall really hits, you gon’ start to see more activity.”

“Right, our targets...do you know where they’ll attack first?”

“I got myself a hunch. I’ve actually heard some rumas about suspicious activity near my old place. If we can bust ‘em fast, then that’ll be best for my business.”

I gave it some thought. Is it possible that we could find who has taken it upon themselves to make use of my old alias for the sake of dragging me through the mud? “Listen, Babs. There’s something else I’m here for…”

“Oh? What’s dat about?” she responded, still looking at her TV.

“...Someone out there is throwing the Blood Viper name around. I have to find out who it is and put a stop to it.”

She stopped and looked at me, “...wha? That’s...crazy, yo. Heh, they’d gotta be stupid to use such a cheesy name like dat.”

I had to agree. The moniker was rather annoying to listen to. But for now, what mattered was catching these fools. “Yeah...so when do we head out?”

“At about nine,” she explained and pointed at the clock, “things heat up lots by then.”

Made sense to me. So we waited, and talked some more. It was nice to get a better learning experience from someone who had never left this city. She told me about the conditions of Kings and The Flanx. Both were doing relatively well. Hooflyn was the only problem here.

By the time the clock struck nine exactly, we heard a knock at the door. Babs went to answer it, and it turned out to be my friend Neon. But something was different about him.

“Alright, mates. We betta get a move on. I heard some suspicious activity just northwest of ‘ere. About 20 clicks. I’ll take off and start scouting ahead. Quit foolin’ ‘round and let’s go.” And he launched himself into the sky, wings aloft and flapped faster than the eye could follow. It was fully dark outside. Yup, Neon had changed somewhat. I could still tell it was him, but he acted a bit more...strict.

“Wow, dat friend of yours really knows what to do, eh?” Babs commented while she changed out of her bathrobe, and into a leather jacket. “But I wonda how he got that fake leg.”

“Let’s just say, he’s been through a lot…heh,” I put my vest back on, and retrieved my hat. It was time to go hunting.

We worked our way down the streets. Things were quiet. Too quiet. At Babs’ direction, we headed towards the slums by her old apartment building. We got a closer look at the area. It was unkempt and the alleys were full of trash. Graffiti stained the walls of various buildings, and we heard various noises including loud music, arguing, and crying foals. I thought the neighborhood of Harness was bad, but this? This was not very good. I knew ponies were tired after working so hard, but wow. Did nopony care enough to clean up?

“Picking up various frequencies,” Neon said from above us, “If there’s any mention of that name, I’ll know who we’re aimin’ for. Stay quiet,” and he flew even higher to perch atop one of the buildings.

“Was he always dis serious?” Babs said from behind as she followed me.

“Only at night. His bat-ish instincts take over and he becomes a different guy. During the day, he’s more prone to let loose.”

“Sweet. This’ll be easy, then…”