//------------------------------//
// Black Market Goods, Part 1 
// Story: Mare Do Well: Rebirth 
// by MagnetBolt 
//------------------------------//

It had been a long night, and a perfectly normal patrol, which was a wonderful change from what Mare Do Well had been dealing with. So far, she’d stopped a few muggings, one bar brawl that had spilled out into the street, and just sat and watched somepony tagging walls because she needed a break and vandalism wasn’t the kind of crime that deserved to be fought with a punch to the back of the head. The kid doing the street art had some real talent, too.
“No killer machines, no ponies with weird magic powers, no assassins trying to hunt me down…” Mare Do Well stretched. “This is practically like a vacation!”
“Maybe Seasaddle is finally done throwing strange stuff at you,” Bon-Bon suggested over the radio. “Even the weather isn’t too bad.”
It was just a drizzle, which for Seasaddle meant it was a night (almost) clear of the usual constant deluge.
“When you say that it makes me nervous,” Mare Do Well retorted. “You know whenever I get too comfortable something goes wrong. Has anything come up with reports from SMILE? Giant monster attacks coming this way, or more VIPs that I’m expected to foalsit?”
“Nothing that concerns us. The Saddle Arabian princess, the one with the name nopony can pronounce, she’ll be visiting Canterlot, but she’s not scheduled to even come to this side of the country. If you really want to get involved, we could head to Canterlot and ask if they need a few extra hooves.”
“No thanks,” Mare Do Well said. “I could use a week or two where I don’t end up with new scars.”
“If there’s nothing exciting going on, want to call it an early night?” Bon-Bon asked. “We’ll have the police scanner running in case something comes up where they could actually use some help.”
“That’s probably a good idea. I’m going to head back the long way through Union Square. It shouldn’t take more than an hour, and at least I’ll be able to say I patrolled the whole city, more or less.”
“Just be careful. There might not be anything big going on there right now, but you know Union Square is basically Jade Triangle central. The police just let the crime families run things as long as they keep it quiet. Some of them might try and take you out just to make a name for themselves.”
“I know. That’s why I want to take a pass through there,” Mare Do Well said. “A few black eyes might remind them not to think of me as a target.”
“Just remember if you get into trouble the police are going to be really late in coming to help,” Bon-Bon warned. Mare Do Well was already on the move, flitting from rooftop to ledge to windowsill, avoiding streetlights and anypony who felt like they were paying too much attention.
“That’s nothing new. I’ll let you know if anything comes up.”
Union Square was one of the bad parts of town, at least at night. During the day, it was a tourist trap, in a very literal sense. Exotic foods and goods were at every corner, and the architecture was overbuilt and crowded and disorienting. It wasn’t exactly dangerous to the average pony - most just ended up getting overcharged for some mass-produced junk that they were told was an Old Unicornian relic, and a few unlucky tourists got food poisoning when they ate at the wrong street stall, but the Families that ran Union Square did a reasonable job of keeping it friendly to outsiders. They knew where the bits came from, and even if they broke a few legs here and there to make sure ponies knew who was in charge, it was better than the alternative.
At night, though, Union Square could be one of the deadliest parts of the city. That was when the real thugs came out. The families of the Jade Triangle would deliberately brush up against each other, cause fights that never got reported, extort lost and innocent ponies with honey traps and fake bills at bars and restaurants.
When she’d first come to the city, Loop d’Loop had rented an apartment in Union Square. It was a great place to live for a pony who absolutely wasn’t afraid of some random horse with a knife and could smell a scam from the next block over. She still had fond memories.
She lingered at the edge of one of the major roads, the view to the street below choked with neon signs and decorated arches stretching from one side of the street to the other. Everything was bright colors and sounds and emotions, and it made her feel a little more alive. In fact, it was so distracting she almost missed seeing a dark shape conspicuously carrying a heavy-looking bag slip out of a penthouse right across the thoroughfare.
Mare Do Well watched them slink catlike through the shadows. She was too far away to get a real read on them or see their face, but to call it suspicious was putting it lightly. She calculated where the thief was like to go and moved, cutting her off less than a block away.
“Where do you think you’re going?” she rasped, using her spooky, intimidating voice when she appeared right in front of the cat burglar.
The thief stopped and stood up to her full height, over a head taller than Mare Do Well. She was wearing all black, and that included her feathers.
“Gwen?” Mare Do Well asked, a little surprised to see her, especially like this.
“I didn’t know I was so famous even ponies on the street would recognize me,” Gwen purred.
“We’re not on the street.”
“It’s just a saying,” Gwen shrugged. “I’d love to chat, but I’ve got places to be.”
“What do you have there?” Mare Do Well asked, pointing at the bag she was carrying.
“Nothing important,” Gwen said. “Look, how about you just forget about seeing me? I’ll owe you one, and I can be very appreciative.”
“I don’t think that’s going to work out,” Mare Do Well said. She reached for the bag. Gwen grabbed her hoof with a black-clawed talon and narrowed her gaze.
“That’s mine,” she said sharply.
“I really doubt that,” Mare Do Well said. She twisted her hoof, breaking Gwen’s grip. “You stole whatever that is. If you really want me to forget I saw you, how about you put that back where you found it?”
“That’s not going to work for me,” Gwen said. She glanced to the side like she’d heard something, and Mare Do Well couldn’t resist the impulse to follow her gaze. Gwen took that moment of distraction to dive off the edge of the building, diving down towards Union Square’s main street.
“Hey!” Mare Do Well shouted, buzzing after her.
Gwen looked back in surprise, apparently not expecting an aerial pursuit. She redoubled her efforts, flying between lines strung with flags and banners, around a moving neon sign, and under and around an archway, close enough to the crowd below to almost touch them.
Mare Do Well kept at her, her smaller frame making it easier for her to slip through the same obstacles. Despite that, the griffon was amazing at precision flight, slipping through small gaps with machine-like precision.
Gwen made a mistake with a twist towards an alleyway. She made a decision too late and hesitated, and that gave Mare Do Well the time to catch up and crash into her, both of them falling to the shadowed alleyway floor, rolling across the pavement until they came to a halt with Mare Do Well on top of her.
“You’re pretty good,” Gwen admitted.
“I shouldn’t be surprised,” Mare Do Well said, using her weight to hold Gwen down. “You were slippery at the charity dinner, too.”
Gwen raised an eyebrow. “The charity dinner?” She shifted, rolling with her powerful wings and getting on top of Mare Do Well, their bodies pressed together, both of them breathing heavily. “Wait a minute. You’re the pony that was impersonating Jasmine, aren’t you? You almost did a good job, but I know her very personally.”
“I didn’t think Jasmine was involved with anyone like that,” Mare Do Well said.
“It’s not like that. She’s just… like a sister to me,” Gwen said. “I guess I should play nice since you were helping her out.” She let some of the pressure off her razor-sharp talons. “I could have taken you out if I really wanted to.”
“So could I,” Mare Do Well said.
“Mm.” Gwen purred and smiled. “You did have some nice moves, even when you were pretending to be Jasmine Jewel. What was it you said? You were taking self-defense classes?”
“You’re the one who managed to get herself free and tried to run,” Mare Do Well said. “I get the feeling you’re used to dangerous situations.”
“I’m very dangerous myself,” Gwen whispered.
“So what, you decided to find a little more danger?” Mare Do Well nodded to the bag, lying on the ground next to them. “You realize one of the Families has to own that penthouse, right? Whatever you think that’s worth, they’re not going to let you get away with it. It’s not even going to be easy giving it back without somepony getting hurt.”
“I need the bits,” Gwen said. “I’m on a time limit.”
“If you’re in some kind of trouble, maybe I can help,” Mare Do Well offered.
Gwen smirked. “You’re just saying that because I’m a pretty face.”
“That’s not the only reason. You tried to save my life back when that crazy guy was going on about synths and conspiracies. At least until you ditched me.”
“In my defense, I thought a bomb was about to go off.”
“My point is, whatever trouble you’re in? That’s just going to cause more of it. For your own sake, let’s go put it back, and I’ll take you to a little hole in the wall that serves some decent griffon food. My treat.”
“Are you asking me out on a date?” Gwen asked, deeply amused.
“Only if you’re willing to put that thing back so I know you won’t have a whole gang of ponies coming at you with long knives.”
“That’s not going to happen,” Gwen said. “I didn’t take it for my sake. I’ll risk the knives.”
“They’re over here!”
Gwen and Mare Do Well looked to the side. Ponies crowded at the edge of the alleyway, framed by the light of the neon-covered street behind them. All of them had the lightly-scarred hard-edged look that came from a life of proving how strong they were by finding inventive ways to start fights.
“Looks like I’m getting too popular,” Gwen said, letting Mare Do Well go and stepping back to let her stand.
“I warned you,” Mare Do Well muttered. “Let’s get out of here.”
Gwen grabbed up the heavy bag and they bolted towards the other end of the alleyway. Halfway there, more ponies stepped out of the shadows.
“I think we’re surrounded,” Gwen said. “I guess you were right about them being a little upset. I didn’t think they’d organize this quickly.”
Mare Do Well glanced around, then kicked a door open, pulling Gwen with her. “This way!” She shouted. They ran into a kitchen, steam and spice filling the air. Chefs turned to look at them, confused, and started to shout. Mare Do Well glanced back at the thugs starting to get in the door, grabbed a frying pan full of what smelled like the hottest curry in Seasaddle, and flung it at the approaching crowd. The lead ponies screamed and grabbed at their eyes.
“Oh, that can’t feel good,” Gwen said.
“Go out the front!” Mare Do Well snapped, pushing her. “How many alarms did you set off?!”
“I didn’t think I set any off!” Gwen yelled. They ran out of the kitchen, surprising a waitress and making her drop the plates she was holding.
Everypony in the dining room stared at them, and they didn’t even get halfway across the room before the thugs behind them shoved their way into the dining room and shouted after them. A table of rough-looking ponies sprang up from their table and ran in front of the door.
“You picked the wrong restaurant,” Gwen said, coming to a halt.
“Not a fan of spicy food?” Mare Do Well asked. “You take the ones in front of the door. Get out if you can. I’ll watch your back.”
“That’s very self-sacrificing of you,” Gwen quipped.
Before Mare Do Well could come up with a good comeback, the thugs charged. She kicked an empty chair into the nearest one, then ran straight for it, jumping from the seat of the chair to snap-kick him in the forehead. He dropped like a rock, right into the hooves of the pony behind him.
“I should have known tonight was going too easily,” Mare Do Well muttered. She ducked, dodging a thrown kitchen knife.
She turned to a table full of tourists who just looked frozen and terrified. One of them snapped a picture. Mare Do Well grabbed the tablecloth and pulled, yanking it right off the table. Somehow, the plates stayed in place. The tourists politely clapped.
Mare Do Well tossed the cloth over the approaching thugs and looked back at Gwen. Two of the ponies blocking the way to the door were already down, and she was struggling for control of a knife with a third.
“You doing okay?” Mare Do Well asked.
“This really isn’t my kind of thing!” Gwen grunted.
“Try doing it for a living!” Mare Do Well jumped on top of a table to dodge a wild swing from one of the ponies struggling to get out of the tablecloth. “This was a pretty quiet night until you got involved!”
“Next time I steal a dragon egg, I’ll make sure to fit it into your schedule!” Gwen shouted. She elbowed the pony she was fighting, twisting the knife out of his hooves and throwing him into the door, shattering the glass and putting him out into the street.
“A dragon egg?!” Mare Do Well shouted, backing up to the edge of the table she was standing on, silverware falling to the floor.
“Don’t worry, it’s not kidnapping, it’s collateral!” Gwen said. The last pony between her and freedom screamed and fell back when his face collided with her talons. “I can cash it in for more bits than you could carry!”
“It’s trouble is what it is!” Mare Do Well shouted.
Gwen edged through the broken glass of the front door, carefully stepping around the shards. The heavy bag got caught on a protruding shard and she cursed, tugging at it. The cloth tore a little, something gleaming and glowing from within. She paused and tried to free it without tearing it worse.
“Watch out!” Mare Do Well shouted.
Gwen didn’t react in time. The pony she’d kicked into the street ran into her, his whole weight slamming into her side. She made a sound like an angry, injured eagle, kicking him away and falling to one knee, pulling a blade from her side and letting it clatter to the ground.
“Great,” Gwen growled. She yanked the bag free.
“Are you okay?” Mare Do Well asked. She ducked through the door, looked around, and jumped up to grab a handle, riding it down to the ground and taking a steel security shutter with her, blocking off the whole front of the restaurant.
“It’s not as bad as it looked,” Gwen claimed. She got to her feet. “It might be a good idea for me to avoid Union Square for a while.”
“No kidding,” Mare Do Well said. “That way.” she pointed, leading the griffon into a quiet cul-de-sac and holding up a hoof for quiet. A few thugs ran past, not spotting them.
Mare Do Well took a deep breath. “Okay. We should be safe. If we go one street over we’re outside of their territory. There’s a subway entrance around there, too, so we can get off the street.
“Good idea,” Gwen said. “Thanks for the help.” She hefted the bag and took a step, wobbling and trying to steady herself. “I’ll give you a cut of the profits after I take care of some personal business.”
“Hold on,” Mare Do Well ordered. “We need to talk about--”
Gwen collapsed, holding her side and panting. “Actually, I think I might be hurt worse than I thought,” she said, her voice tight and high with pain.
“Let me look,” Mare Do Well said.
“No!” Gwen backed up, forcing herself to move. “Just back off!”
“Don’t be stupid. You got stabbed,” Mare Do Well said. “I know some basic first-aid. I can get you to a doctor, at least--”
“No doctors,” Gwen snapped. “They can’t help.”
“Okay, this is some kind of weird griffon thing, and I’m going to ignore you--” Mare Do Well dodged a weak attempt to claw her and pried Gwen’s talon away from her wound. “--and try to stop the… bleeding.”
Mare Do Well had seen plenty of ponies get hurt. She’d seen more of what a pony’s insides looked like than she liked. She had no idea what she was looking at now. Right under her fur, there were translucent sheets of plastic shot through with gold filigree. Dimly visible through them were wires and metallic struts and blinking lights.
Gwen looked away, going limp like her strength had left her the second she couldn’t use it to protect her secret.
“You’re a synth,” Mare Do Well said. “You’re-- how is that even possible? I’ve seen synthetic ponies! They look like a forklift and a unicorn had a kid, not like… a normal person.”
“I can’t go to a regular doctor,” Gwen muttered. “They can’t help.”
“So where am I supposed to take you? A mechanic?”
“There’s a professor at Seaside University,” Gwen panted. “She can help. Professor Valley. She’s the only one. You can’t tell anyone about her. About me. I can’t let this hurt her.”
“Fine,” Mare Do Well said.
“Promise it!” Gwen demanded. “You don’t tell anyone!”
“I won’t tell anyone,” Mare Do Well said. She offered Gwen her shoulder, and the griffon leaned into her, letting her help. “Even if they’d be a lot of help moving your fat butt.”