//------------------------------// // A Prize Even Better Than Rarity // Story: Mr. Smokes // by Deep //------------------------------// Fancypants was the father I always needed. Within a day of me joining his organization, he supplied me with a temporary home, clothes, and other living essentials. My new home was in the outskirts of Canterlot, near the house Hayseed and I had robbed. Hayseed was my roommate. At first, I was nervous about living with him, on account of him manipulating me during the robbery under Fancypants’ orders. However, within a few days, him and I clicked. We had many of the same interests, including buckball and Ogres and Oubliettes. He was a guy someone like me could sit around and talk with for hours about the randomest things. He reminded me of Princess Twilight in that way. They were as opposite as could be when it came to intelligence, but they were both approachable and were someone I could pal around with.  The house was middle-class, and though it was an obvious upgrade from the alleyway, it was merely a fraction of what I had in mind for my future. The best part about it was that there was no rent. Instead, Fancypants had said I would pay him back through my “contributions to his organizations.” As long as he stayed true to my two conditions, I was fine with whatever he needed me to do. That first night in the house, I gazed out the window and stared at the Royal Palace. It stood faraway on the other side of the city, high atop Canterlot Mountain. I swore to myself that night the next time I returned to the palace, it would be as a king.  My first few weeks in Fancypants’ gang were uneventful. For the most part, they consisted of him showing me his various organizations. Legally, he was the owner of thirty two businesses, all of which were based in Canterlot. Beyond that, he was the head of seven crime organizations. He talked a lot during the tours, explaining the names of his organizations and what they did, but to be honest, I didn’t care for any of it. The only thing I could focus on was his wealth, and not just his mansions, carriages, and other materials items. Everywhere he went, mares gushed over him and attempted to sway him using their looks. They were making moves on him. I felt like an idiot for making the first move on Rarity. If only I’d had a friend like Fancypants to show me how to get what I really wanted, instead of a princess who filled my head with naive delusions.  But the mares weren’t the only thing he had. Wherever we went, upper-class stallions bowed to him, and many even gave his subordinates money. “Respect is a trait that must be cultivated,” he said again and again.  After the fiftieth or so time he’d said that, I started noticing just how courteous he was. He was a gentleman in every way, and whenever he met with even the lowest of criminals, he’d treat them with the highest respect. One time, one of his men had come back from a failed robbery that’d cost the organization more money than most ponies made in a decade. Everyone in the room and I thought Fancypants was going to kill that pony, but instead, he pardoned him and said, “You can make this up to me in other ways.”  Perhaps that was why Fancypants was showing me around, so I could learn the proper etiquette needed to succeed. He was like Princess Twilight in that way, always wanting to do things in the proper way.  One day, while he was showing me the ins and outs of one of his organizations, a racketeering ring targeting local businesses, he asked me, “Mr. Smokes, why is it you want my success?” I froze. Is this some kind of a test? Since sincerity had won him over earlier, I went with the truth. “It’s Rarity. When she rejected me, and chose you instead, I learned the truth.” “And that is?” “That if you want mares like her, you have to be a winner, someone who rose to the top on their own.” Fancypants let out a laugh. “Is that what you think? Tell me, my boy, do you truly believe I rose to this level on my own?” “Based on your reaction, I’m guessing no. But I’m also betting that you were never anybody's assistant either.” Just saying that word--assistant--made me want to punch a wall. He let out another laugh. “On the contrary, I was an assistant for decades. My mentor, Fat Stacks, had me as his number-two until his death, after which I took over his organizations, per his wishes, of course.” “But when you were his assistant, things were different, right? You wouldn’t have gotten a girl like Rarity then, right?” “While I cannot answer that question with certainty, I will say that I met my partner, Fleur De Lis, during that time.” I hung my head, starting to question my decision to run away. “If I were to give you any advice, it would be to make yourself proud. Others, especially mares, will notice. It may surprise you to hear this, but I have been rejected by my fair share of mares as well.” Conflicted, all I could do was nod.  I stayed quiet throughout the rest of the tours. I saw more wealth, and what could only be described as Fancypants’ harem, but none of it had any effect on me anymore. All I could think about were Fancypants’ words. Make yourself proud. What had he meant by that? The way he’d said it, it was almost as if he was implying that my current path wouldn’t make me proud. Was he crazy? How could mansions and harems not make someone proud? But as much as I wanted to deny his words, there was no getting around the fact that wealth and mares weren’t having the same effect on me. The thought that I’d run away for nothing made me shudder. It meant that I’d worried my friends half to death for nothing. I’d made Twilight, the best friend anypony could ever have, cry, and for what? To learn that I was being an idiot yet again? To realize that my friends and what I already had were better than anything all the money in the world could give me?  The confusion lasted until my tenth night working for Fancypants, when Hayseed and I were ordered to rob another house. The security and alarms for all of Canterlot were made by a company owned by Fancypants, so all he had to do was tell us how to disable the system, and the rest was easy. Despite my dilemma, I couldn’t deny that Fancypants’ cleverness and ambition made me grin. He was already so rich that it was maddening, and yet he never stopped doing whatever was necessary for him to climb to new heights. I respected that. No, I admired /i] that. He was already on top of the world, but that wasn’t enough for him, which was just the way it should be.  Due to the threat of my flame breath, the robbery was a piece of cake, and when we were done, Hayseed and I hid the money in a police station, which was one of the hundreds of drop-off points Fancypants had for his criminals throughout the city. The deal was that a quarter of our loot would go to Fancypants, a quarter would go to the police, and the rest would be divided among Hayseed and I. Every criminal working for Fancypants was required to pay him tribute every time they committed a crime, as well as pay off the police for him. It was an ingenious system, and I was jealous that I had never thought of something like that myself.  After dropping off the loot, Hayseed and I headed toward Fancypants’ mansion. The streets were quiet during this time of night, and the only way I could even see my partner was because of the faint moonlight. Despite the darkness, I could see that more missing posters for me were covering the buildings of the surrounding blocks. There was a reward for finding me now too, and it was more than how much I’d earned from my latest crime. I stared at the moon, since it reminded me of Princess Twilight, given that she was now the pony who raised it. I wondered what she was doing at the moment. Was she consumed with trying to find me? Or had a part of her moved on? As silly as it sounded, I began wishing that I became a pony whose special power it was to erase memories. With this power, I’d go to Princess Twilight, give her one last hug and goodbye, and erase all the memories she had about me.  But that was only a fantasy, one no amount of money could make true.  “Hayseed, why did you become a criminal?”  “The same reason as everypony else, I’m guessin’.” He was as cheery as ever, a trait that made me envious. “I mean, just look at that loot we dropped off. Who wouldn’t want that?” I hung my head, remembering Fancypants’ advice from earlier. Despite the successful crime, the money we’d gotten didn’t make me proud. In fact, the more I thought about it, the money made me mad. If I wanted, I could’ve returned home to Princess Twilight and made more from claiming the prize for finding myself, as stupid as it sounded. As the Princess’ royal ambassador, I’d live a life of wealth and luxury that’d make Fancypants jealous. Living in the Royal Palace, I had a home bigger than Fancypants’. I had more servants than him. More carriages than him. The only thing he had over me were Rarity and the rest of his mares. But so what? I had Gabby, a girl so awesome that I had a blast every second I’d spend with her. And if Gabby didn’t want me back, then I had the rest of my life to get mares. As the royal ambassador, who knew what romantic adventures I could have? Perhaps one day I’d have a fling with the queen of another kingdom? Or a relationship with the princess of some far away land?  My possibilities were endless if I returned home, and yet, for some reason I just couldn’t figure out, I didn’t. I began to growl at my own stupidity. Why wasn’t I returning home?  “Why did you join?” Hayseed said. I sighed. “I don’t know anymore.”  When Hayseed and I returned to Fancypants, he greeted us as courteously as usual, and Fleur De Lis gave me a glare as she always did. “I am quite proud of you two,” he said. “In fact, I believe you are ready for the next step.”  Hayseed reacted with glee, while I gave no reaction at all.  Our next assignment--the “next step,” as Fancypants had called it--was dealing sugarcubes throughout the city. At first, I didn’t know why this was even a business, since I assumed sugarcubes were nothing more than treats. Well, that and what Applejack would always call everyone. I wonder how Applejack is doing…  We met with our buyer--a unicorn stallion--in an alleyway. The deal was set up by Fancypants, and he’d said that I was chosen because this particular customer was dangerous, yet very lucrative. He didn’t trust anyone else other than me to handle the customer, since they’d probably end up using unnecessary force, or worse. My flame breath was more than enough threat to scare most ponies without actually hurting them, and if violence became necessary, I was ready to use it and my claws without hurting the customer any more than I needed to. Despite feeling proud that Fancypants trusted me to restrain myself, I couldn’t help but think that this made me weak. If I ever found my life at risk, would I be able to do what was necessary to save myself? I didn’t want to think about the question, because a part of me already knew the answer. The buyer was… interesting, to say the least. He kept on shaking, which at first I assumed was because of the cold, but as I stared at him, I realized that he was actually twitching. Not only that, his face was all sorts of messed up. It was covered with all sorts of sores and scarrings, and he began to pick at the wounds, making them grow in size. His cheeks were sunken in and his face was hollowed out, as if he hadn’t eaten in weeks. And his teeth… they were black, and his gums were even blacker. “Gimme the stuff. Before the bugs eat me,” he said.  As he continued picking at his face, clawing more skin off, I clenched my fists, ready to restrain him at a moment’s notice.  Hayseed was in charge of holding the product. He handed it to the buyer, who grabbed it forcefully. Inside the bag Hayseed had given were a handful of sugarcubes, but when the buyer ate them, I could tell that he wasn’t eating sweets. Within moments, he began to twitch even more, and he collapsed to the ground and let out a euphoric moan.  The euphoria lasted only a few minutes for him, after which he quickly returned to his senses. Sober, he charged at me. He was scrawny enough that even I was able to push him aside, but that only angered him further. He powered up his horn and used his magic to grab hold of me by my wings. At first the pull was unnoticeable, but within moments, it became unbearable and I growled in pain.  Hayseed charged after the buyer, but that only caused the unicorn to pull at my wings even harder. “More! Give me more! Or I’ll rip them out!” the buyer yelled. Shaking with worry, Hayseed turned to me, as if he was waiting for me to make the next move. I wanted to use my flame breath on the buyer, but I knew if I did, then I wouldn’t be able to control it like I usually did. The pain was too much and would cause me to light the unicorn’s entire body on fire. And so I stopped myself, even as the pain made me yell into the uncaring night. No matter what, I couldn’t hurt someone that much, even if it meant hurting myself.  But as I felt the first of my connective tissue began to tear, my mind began to drift to when my former friends and I had fought Chrysalis and her comrades. We had been so close to beating them on our own, until Chrysalis grabbed hold of me in the same way I was trapped now. Threatening to rip out my wings, she forced us to quit, and it was only because of all the friends we had made throughout our various adventures that we won. It was only by luck that everyone had arrived just in time. A minute too late, and my weakness would’ve cost me everything. It would’ve cost Princess Twilight everything. I couldn’t be weak. Not anymore.  My adrenaline kicked in. Acting on pure instinct, I opened my mouth and blew a jet of fire onto his face. The flames spread over his entire body, causing him to scream at the top of his lungs in agony. As his spell over me ended, he fell to the ground and rolled around in an attempt to get rid of the fire, but the flames stayed glued to his body. Sinking flames. I had heard about them once from Ember. According to her, when a dragon grew old enough and sensed that they were in danger, their body produced fire that stuck to its victim. Not only that, but the flames sank deep into the victim’s body through the pores in the skin, burning them from the inside. This power was only available to certain dragons, though. Only those whose souls were dark enough. A dragon’s equivalent to dark magic, in a way.  I stared at the buyer, frozen in terror as the flames sank beneath his skin and disappeared into his body. As his insides burned and then melted, his screams grew louder and more blood-curdling. The noise caused ponies from all throughout the block to run outside their homes, and many began to sprint in my direction.  “We gots to leave!” Hayseed screamed, grabbing my arm. He pulled me with him as he fled the area, but I made sure to keep my gaze on the buyer. I knew there was no way to save him, and so the only thing left I could do was watch. As the first civilians reached him, his screams ended. He lay motionless. Dead. The screams that came next were from the ponies who had rushed in to help him.  Hayseed dragged me several blocks away to an empty street. As we both caught our breath, the buyer’s last moments of life replayed in my mind on loop. I had done something unthinkable… and yet, a part of me felt proud. No, all of me felt proud. I had proven that I could do it, that I could protect myself on my own if need be. Instead of using restraint and pretending that it made me moral, I did what was necessary to save myself, and there was nothing for me to be ashamed about. I did what I should’ve done to Chrysalis, what I should’ve done to Sombra, Tirek and all the other villains who had attacked Equestria over the years. Instead of relying on Princess Twilight and her friends, instead of being dead weight all that time, this was what I should’ve done.  I let out a moan even more euphoric than one the buyer had. There was no other feeling like this, proving myself--and the whole world--wrong. Perhaps this was what Fancypants was talking about, with making myself proud? Knowing that I pushed myself to a new height was like a drug. No, it was better than a drug. I grabbed Hayseed’s bag of sugarcubes from him.  “What are you--” But before he could finish speaking, I took some of the product. I waited a minute for the effects to kick in, but they never did. It was because I was already on a more potent drug. This feeling was better than the thought of all the mansions and harems in Equestria. Perhaps this was why I had been fixated on Rarity for so long? Because she was a challenge that I wanted to overcome. A goal I wanted to attain so I could prove myself and others wrong. Gabby would’ve been too easy, since she already had a crush on me. Just like being Princess Twilight’s royal assistant would’ve been too easy, no matter the perks.   But what came next? What challenge did I want to overcome just to prove that I could do it? I glanced at the bag of sugarcubes, and everything began to make sense.  I led Hayseed back to Fancypants’ mansion. Standing tall, I wasted no time before blurting out to Fancypants, “The buyer is dead.” As I explained what had happened, Fancypants’ classy demeanor began to deteriorate. He glared, but with more disappointment than rage. Fleur De Lis had the same look of disgust as ever.  “I thought I made it clear not to harm the customer. Restraint was why I chose you, Mr. Smokes,” he said. “Not barbarity.”  I bowed. “I am sorry it ended up this way, but this was necessary.” “Necessary?” Fancypants practically yelled.  “Yes, because it showed me how potent these sugarcubes are. If I may, I believe we should get every pony in Canterlot hooked on them.” Hayseed’s jaw dropped. As Fancypants was taken aback, Fleur De Lis whispered something into his ear, but I couldn’t hear what.  “We shall do no such thing,” Fancypants said. “As you saw, this drug is incredibly potent. There is no need to stick our heads out any more than is necessary. One mistake of that magnitude, and it is the end of all of us, as well as the entire criminal infrastructure.” I stood back up, looking Fancypants straight in the eye. “That’s too bad. I thought a pony of your character would want to rise even higher.” There was no mistaking the look in Fancypants’ eyes now. It was rage. “One more word and I will cut off your tongue and have it mailed to your beloved princess. Leave, at once.”  With a smirk, I bowed, an act which only made Fancypants shake with anger. As I turned around, I nudged Hayseed to follow me. I was halfway to the exit of the mansion when Fancypants spoke again. “No, if you disobey me, I won’t hurt you.” I stopped walking, fists clenched. “I will kill Princess Twilight. Send her head to you in a box. Do not underestimate my influence, Mr. Smokes.” Without saying a word, I began to walk again and exited the mansion alongside Hayseed. As chilling as the threat was, I had no reason to be scared. I knew that the real reason he was threatening Princess Twilight and not me was because I was too powerful to attack now. Without my restraint, my flame breath was more than enough to do away with whatever muscleheads he could send after me. And if he ever decided to overstep his limits and so much as touch Princess Twilight… he’d wish that I roasted him from the inside.  “Hayseed, do you know how to get more sugarcubes?” I said as we entered the street.  “It’ll be hard with Fancypants lookin’ over us, but I can get them. What are you plannin’?” “Tell me, do you think I could bring this city to its knees?” “I reckon not. Not even Fancypants would think of doing something like that.” With a grin, I shifted my gaze to the Royal Palace in the distance ahead. “Just the answer I wanted to hear.”