//------------------------------// // Parks and Reminiscence // Story: Stallion of Tomorrow // by Jade Dawn //------------------------------// A “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” Fanfiction Written by Jade Dawn “Well, good afternoon, listeners. I’m Open Mic, and welcome back to Manehattan News Now. All of Equestria is still reeling from the near tragedy that took place a day ago on the Bronclyn Bridge, when a series of explosions heavily damaged the structure and threatened the lives of dozens of pedestrians on the bridge. Luckily, the disaster was greatly mitigated by the arrival of none other than the super-powered vigilante Supermane, and with his help all of the ponies stranded on the bridge were able to make an escape to the waiting hooves of emergency services on either side, before he himself once again disappeared into the night. “Yet in spite of this stroke of fortune, as well as LexCorp Industries’ pledge the morning after to contribute to repairs and renovations, the incident has left lingering questions and a sense of unease. While there were thankfully no fatalities, the Bronclyn Bridge itself has partially collapsed and what remains has been left extremely damaged. The sudden loss of the bridge has put a strain on traffic going to and from Manehattan Island, with other bridges now experiencing severe congestion, while ferry and airship services are now reporting an exponential increase in customers and service to almost non-manageable levels. "More concerning still is the nature of the disaster itself. The Manehattan Police Department has confirmed that these explosions were not the result of a fluke or accident, feeding into already circulating fears of terrorist activity, and the Department has announced that it is launching an investigation into the matter. And while no groups or parties have claimed responsibility, all manner of possible suspects and culprits have been suggested, albeit many without basis. "Earlier today, Princess Twilight Sparkle made a public statement in Canterlot about the disaster, which MNN reporters were able to be present for. The next voices you hear will be that of Princess Sparkle and our reporters.” “My fellow Equestrians. As you all know by now, last night the city of Manehattan was struck by an unexpected act of armed aggression, threatening the lives of dozens of the city’s citizens. And while luckily the only losses were in physical infrastructure, the ordeal has greatly troubled us all. I cannot say who was behind this attack or what their motivations were; I wish I could. All I can do is reassure you that we are looking into the matter, and we hope to have whomever committed this act of terrorism brought to justice as soon as possible. Now, I understand that there’s been some hoof-pointing going around directed at some of our non-pony citizens; particularly our Griffon and Changeling immigrant populations. And I want to call this out specifically. Now is not the time to allow ourselves to succumb to fear and mistrust of each other. Equestria was founded on the values of friendship and cooperation. Don’t loose sight of that because of the fear that this disaster has brought upon us. We’re better than that. Be there for each other in this time and others like this. We lend helping hooves to one another–or talons or claws or hands–and we’ll get to the bottom of this and come out the other side that much faster. And that much better. This is…all I really had in mind to say at the moment. I’m open to questions, so…uh, please, one at a time, one at a time please…uh, you there, down in front there.” “Uh, yes Your Highness, Truthful Report from Manehattan News Now here. It’s widely understood by now that it was primarily Supermane who is responsible for the amount of rescued lives from both the Bronclyn Bridge and the LexCorp city tram disaster a few days ago…what is the Crown’s stance on Supermane’s activities? Is he approved by the government or is he operating on his own?” “Well, unfortunately Mr. Report, I’m afraid I can’t offer much in the way of what authority he answers to. He doesn’t work for the government, I can confirm that; he’s acting completely on his own free will. I will say this for him, though, I certainly can’t say that I disapprove of his actions. He’s saved over a hundred ponies’ lives between the bridge and the monorail, not to mention the countless others from past reported sightings, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t commend him for that. Other than that, though…I’m afraid we know about as much about him as everypony else as of now. But I assure you, the matter is being looked into. I have no intentions of putting him under arrest. But I do hope that we will have a better idea of who he is and what his motives truly are in the very near future.” “…he was just about to hit me again when there was this…this loud crash and a burst of wind. And then all of a sudden he’s in our apartment, all cloak and glowing red eyes, and he just grabbed up Clay by the scruff of his neck and hurled him out the window. Threw him right into the dumpster two floors down.” As Dawning listened to the young mare’s story, he heard the shudder that had been in her voice while she told of her abusive husband die down when she got to Supermane’s entrance. Beside him, Lucky was listening just as closely, writing down notes. Fluttershy, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash couldn’t keep away looks of quiet sympathy. Quicksnap was off in back, gripping his camera in one talon and throwing occasional glances up at the sky. They were in the midst of Manehattan’s Central Park; a vast expanse of grassy fields and hills, trees, lakes, and streams intercut with winding paths and rest areas dotted about, all coming together to form a welcome naturalistic respite from the concrete jungle that was the rest of the city. Plenty of ponies besides themselves were out here, either reclining on benches or out on picnic blankets, or frolicking around the park. They’d found their current interviewee on one of the side paths, under a canopy of trees that provided a nice amount of cool shade, the leaves up above rustling in an occasional breeze. “What happened after that?” Lucky asked the mare. “W-well, he told me to call the police, so I did that, of course. And he…he stayed with me until they came. To make sure I wasn’t alone or that Clay wouldn’t try to come back, even if I don’t think he could have after that. But he didn’t leave until the police finally came, and…it was strange, I was so scared but I felt so safe around him all at once. Like…I knew he wasn’t there to hurt me. He was there to help." “And…after that?” Dawning inquired. The mare shrugged. “Turned to look when they knocked on the door, and when I looked back he was gone. Just a breeze in the curtains.” She paused. “Things started looking up after that. Finally was able to get a divorce, found a place at a mare’s shelter for a little while…if he hadn’t come in, I don’t know where I’d be. I…I’m sorry, I know that’s probably not what you’re looking for, but…” “Oh no no, darling,” Rarity said reassuringly. “Nothing to be sorry for.” Lucky nodded in agreement. “We appreciate you sharing your story with us, we really do.” “Well…thank you,” the mare replied. “I’m just sorry I couldn’t give you more. Good luck on finding him, though. And, um…if you do, tell him I said thank you.” “We’ll remember to do that,” Dawning told her. The young mare smiled, turning away and trotting off down the path. Dawning watched her go. You’re welcome. Just glad I could help. I couldn’t just stand by. Dawning wished he could actually say as much out loud to the young mare. But he could at least take comfort in knowing that her life had turned around after he’d rescued her from her husband. He still remembered that night vividly; hearing her terror and pain and his own anger deep within. He sometimes thought that in hindsight, maybe throwing Clay out the window into the dumpster hadn’t necessarily been the best call, but…well, he couldn’t deny it to himself. He’d been absolutely furious at what he’d seen. Not furious enough to go so far as to take the stallion’s life, but enough to give him a good scare and as much of a walloping as he could afford with a more fragile creature than he. Dawning turned around to see that the group had started to trot down the path at a slow pace, and he jogged a few steps up to rejoin them. He caught up just as they stepped out from under the tree canopy and back into one of the open grassy expanses of the park. Dawning took a moment to relish the warmth of the sun against his fur, the sounds of the breeze blowing through the grass, and the contented noises of the ponies in the park, their heartbeats, their breathing. Through the glowing, ethereal world that his sight and hearing created for him, a dozen little moments came and passed through him. A small group of foals playing a ball game in a field. A little griffon child perking up with a smile as a colt offered him a place in a game of tag. An elderly mare on a bench, smiling as she read through a small leather-bound book in her lap. A young stallion, trembling and smiling nervously as he opened a little box to the mare of his dreams, letting the diamond ring inside glint in the sunlight, and breaking into tears of joy as she threw her forelegs around him and embraced him. He never spent more than a moment on each–to avoid eavesdropping–but instead let each come by and tell its brief story before vanishing again, forming a kind of mosaic of the lives of the park-goers in his mind. The extra things he saw through his senses, the glowing of body heat and magic, the rhythmic pulsing of lungs and hearts, heightened it all into an experience that he would have struggled to truly convey in its fullest to anypony who asked him to describe it. For a few moments he let himself bask in this little sensory world of his own, letting the sounds and colors soothe his nerves and offer momentary distraction from his concerns. At least, until he heard Lucky sigh. “This isn’t working,” she said discontentedly. “We’ve been trying this pony-on-the-street angle for three days now and we’re no closer to finding Supermane than when we started.” “Yeah, you’d think it’d be a bit easier now that he’s out in the open,” Quicksnap added. “Maybe we’re just not looking in the right places,” Fluttershy suggested. “Fluttershy, I was asking everypony I could get to if they knew anything before the whole world saw him,” Lucky replied. “I figured that maybe now he’s out in the open maybe somepony would’ve figured something out or would be more willing to talk…but I guess I was wrong on that front.” “What about the police?” Rainbow offered. “Or like, city hall or something?” “That’s a possibility…but after the bridge bombing they’re probably going to be focusing most of their energies into finding out who set that up, though. I mean…ordinarily I could probably push my way to a few interviews, but I kinda don’t want to try that right now.” She gave a little snort. “Heck, I’m almost half-tempted to go poking into that myself…” “If I may offer a suggestion, Ms. Lead,” Rarity said. “Sometimes when I’m faced with a rather daunting project, and if I’m not on a short deadline, I find it helps tremendously to take a step back from it, just for a little while. Very often afterwards I come back to things with a fresher set of eyes.” “So…what? You’re suggesting that we take a pause?” “Something like that. A temporary reprieve, more or less.” Lucky thought on that. “Hmm…yeah, I suppose we could swing it by Whiteout. Heaven knows we’re not getting anywhere fast with the Supermane story. The Planet’s not gonna sell papers with a void in the news like that.” “Great,” Quicksnap said. “All we need is a story to cover.” “Hey, I saw that there’s a buckball game coming up at the stadium,” Rainbow said. “Maybe we could check that out? Entertainment and a story for you guys to write about.” “Nah,” Lucky replied. “The Planet’s got a set of sports writers that could cover that, if they’re not planning to already.” “Aw,” Rainbow mumbled disappointedly. “It was a good idea, though,” Dawning assured her. “Heck, I’d have loved to go. Used to love playing buckball as a colt.” Rainbow stopped in her tracks. “Whoa, wait. Seriously? You’re a buckball guy?” “Um…y-yeah, sort of…” Dawning stammered, looking suddenly a bit embarrassed somehow. “I mean, I haven’t played it since I was young, but–“ “Dude, that’s awesome!” Rainbow squealed excitedly. “Another pony of culture!” “Well, for a given value of ‘culture’…” Rarity murmured under her breath. “I didn’t think anypony besides the Apple family really played buckball until a few years or so ago,” Fluttershy said. “O-oh yeah, it was a little thing some of the farming communities across the country had going on,” Dawning replied. “It’s been, uh…kinda neat to see the old game get popular, actually…” “Yeah, I’ll bet,” Quicksnap added. “Oh, what position did you used to play?” “Uh, kicker–“ “Were you good at it?” Rainbow asked. Dawning didn’t answer right away. “Um…” His hind legs slamming into the ball and sending it shooting right through the basket in a horizontal blur. Woven Light yelping and ducking as wooden splinters rained down from the almost perfectly circular hole it had made on impact, letting it slip from her magical aura to fall down to the field. Flax staring in stunned silence between Dawning, the basket, and the now-mulched bush where the punctured ball lay, and finally gasping out “Holy buck!”. “…pretty good, I think.” Lucky chuckled a little. “W-what?” “Oh, come on, Dawning,” she said with a little smile. “We all know that when you say something you do is ‘pretty good’ that just usually means you’re ‘really good’ at it. Trust me, I know what your work looks like. You’re a habitual self-underseller.” He shrugged. “Doesn’t mean you know how good I used to play buckball…” “Well of course I don’t, not personally,” Lucky replied. “Heck, I didn’t even know about it up until just now. You never tell me anything about when you were a kid.” “She…kinda has a point, Dawning,” Quicksnap agreed. “Wait…seriously?” Rainbow asked as she raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been working together for like, what, a couple months now? And you haven’t told her anything about what it was like growing up?” Dawning shrugged. “It, uh, just never really came up. What, you, uh…you want me to ramble about it?” “Oh, no,” said Fluttershy. “Um, that is to say, not if you don’t feel comfortable with it, I mean…” “But we wouldn’t mind getting to know you a bit better,” Rarity said gently. “You are a companion in our quest here, after all.” Dawning looked around at his companions, suppressing an urge to squirm and shuffle in his nervousness. Their looks were completely innocent and friendly, but he felt like their eyes were boring holes through him. Faust, is this what ponies feel like when I see through them? Maybe…maybe it’d be alright, just telling them a little. Just gotta make sure not to leave any hints or room for guessing about– “Soooo…’Smallville’.” Rainbow prompted. “Guessing with a name like that it’s not the biggest place in Equestria?” Darn it, Dawning, just talk. It’ll be less suspicious than if you don’t. “N-no, not really. It’s…average size, I guess. Sure didn’t feel that way growing up, though.” “A lot bigger when you’re small, right?” said Lucky. Relax. Try to focus on the good memories, avoid…avoid the other ones. But relax. Dawning finally allowed himself to smile a little. “…yeah, yeah it was.” He walked over to a nearby bench alongside the bath and sat down, making himself comfortable in an effort to disarm his stresses. “When I was a little colt, it felt like the whole world to me. I mean, I knew it wasn’t, but…” “It was everything you knew,” Fluttershy finished. “Yeah.” He looked around at the expanse of green nature surrounding them. “I kind of like places like this, where it’s less urbanized. Reminds a little me of home, I guess. I mean, different in some ways, obviously. We didn’t have too many hills or anything; it was mostly flat. The tallest things for a good couple miles around were the trees and the forests. We had some pines and redwoods growing nearby.” “It sounds lovely,” Fluttershy said. “What about your folks?” Quicksnap asked. “What were they like?” “Them? Oh, they were great. Dad’s name is Cornstalk, Mom’s is Amber Grain. They own a farm on the outskirts of town.” He smirked a little. “Guess you could say I was literally raised in a barn.” “Oh, I think I know a mare who’d like you,” Rainbow said with a little grin of her own. Rarity rolled her eyes. “You were saying, darling?” “Uh, yeah, Mom and Dad’s farm. Wasn’t the biggest in town, but it was there. Heck, most years Mom and Dad could bring the whole harvest in by themselves with maybe a couple volunteers. And of course when I got old enough I pitched in, too.” He sighed and smiled a little. “Lot of good memories from that old place…a couple odd happy accidents…” He found himself remembering the one year when he’d discovered how fast he could really move, and he’d tried to do a small section of the corn harvest at super-speed just to show Dad that he could. It had ended up turning into an object lesson; he was durable and could take those speeds, but a lot of things in the world weren’t and couldn’t. “You have any playmates?” Lucky asked. “Mm-hmm,” Dawning nodded. “Kids around there were generally pretty good most of the time. Or well-raised, however you want to call it. Had a couple close friends that I’d hang out with most often. One was a colt named Flax. He was always a pretty fun guy to hang around. I remember helping with his student body President campaign back in high school.” “Did he win?” Quicksnap asked. “Yup; in a landslide. And then, uh…the other close friend I had was a filly named Woven Light. Her family owned the farm neighboring ours, and she was one of the few unicorns in a town of mostly earth ponies. Grew up wanting to go to Celestia’s school, but last I heard she’d started waiting at one of our restaurants and being on call for harvest volunteer. I remember, she…sometimes she’d tell me about how it felt being a bit different from anypony else. Not in a bad way or one that she was shunned for, just…she was born a bit different from most of the rest of us, and she’d tell me it sometimes got lonely for her.” “Doesn’t sound like she was all that lonely to me,” Rarity smiled. “Certainly not if she had a nice colt like you to confide in.” A faint tinge of red appeared on Dawning’s tan cheeks. “Well, I…I tried to be there when she needed it. Just what friends do, I always thought. And I think…I think in a way I could kind of understand how it felt.” “How so?” Rainbow asked. A small jolt of fear went through Dawning. Uh oh. That was a mistake. Um… “I…I don’t know, just…felt like I got where she was coming from, is all.” “So empathy,” Fluttershy said. “I guess, yeah.” “What about your folks?” Lucky inquired. “You get along with them?” “Are you kidding?” Dawning replied. “I loved them, I…” Dawning trailed off. A hundred memories had suddenly flooded into his brain. Many good, but many painful as well. And recent. Dawning suddenly had a desire to not want to talk anymore. Never mind keeping his secret; now he just wanted to avoid going back to that turning point in his life… But everypony was expecting an answer from him, and he couldn’t deny them now. “…they were great. They taught me everything I know. Everything I believe in. I…really can’t think of many moments where I didn’t feel like they were there for me, or that I could go to them and talk honestly about a problem I had. I could, and…” He finally looked back up at his companions. “…I love them. And they loved me. And…it all worked. I’m sorry, I know that sounds kind of sappy, but…” “Oh no no,” Fluttershy said reassuringly. “It doesn’t sound sappy at all, really.” “It sounds genuine,” Lucky told him. “Like…from-the-heart kind of stuff.” Dawning smiled a little, feeling somewhat relieved. “Well…I mean it, really…” “I’ll bet they were proud of you when you set out,” Rarity said. Another pang shot through Dawning, and he fought to not let it show. “Yeah, they…they were,” he told them. “Sad I was leaving Smallville, but…I think I always wanted to be a writer more than I did a farmer, and…they were at least understanding of that.” “Well, that’s good,” Rarity nodded. “Do you still talk?” “Mm-hmm. We still write back and forth when we can…” But you still threw them away, a part of him told himself. “…um, then after that I kind of freelanced for a while. Wrote for a few papers and outlets across the country, built up a resume, and…well, one thing lead to another and somehow I ended up here working for the Planet.” He perked himself up enough to direct a little smile at Lucky. “With some help, of course.” “Oh, I remember now,” Fluttershy said, turning to Lucky. “You helped him get settled in, right?” Lucky chuckled and nodded. “Yup. Figured somepony had to be there for the newbie.” She came around to deliver a friendly pat on the shoulder to Dawning. “I mean, c’mon, I know potential when I see it. Snappy, punchy prose style, honest-to-Faust the fastest typist I’ve ever known…this guy here belonged at the Planet and I wasn’t gonna let it lose him.” Dawning’s cheeks flushed by a bit and his ears folded down a little. “W-well…” “Oh, don’t look so embarrassed; you know it’s true.” “I, uh…” Dawning stammered. “…w-well wait a minute, uh…how did we get on talking about my life story here?” “Uh…” Quicksnap thought for a second. “We were trying to figure out what we can cover while breaking from Supermane for a bit, Rainbow Dash brought up buckball and so did you and it kinda spiraled from there.” “Oh, uh, yeah…so we did." Dawning got up off the bench and stood to his hooves. "We should, uh, probably get to looking for something we can run by the Chief.” “Indeed,” Rarity agreed as the group began to head down the path again. “Of course, in a city like this, an event of importance shouldn’t be too hard to find…ooh! Ooh! Hold on a mo!” Before anypony knew what she was doing, Rarity had broke away and bolted to a large, roofed noticeboard off to one side of the path. Pasted across its surface was a large map of the park, and flanking that on both sides were various flyers and posters for events around the city. Rarity’s head bobbed up and down as she scanned across the board, and she did a little hop of excitement as she seemed to find something. As quickly as she’d went she turned and came rushing back to the group. “Ooh, I think I’ve found the perfect thing!” She chirped. “A chance to relax and a solid social event to write about!” Lucky raised an eyebrow. “Uh, okay…what are you–“ “Now now, hold on,” Rarity said, raising a hoof. “Don’t want to get anypony too excited on the off-chance I can’t get us in…and oh! I’ve got arrangements to make, maybe a few favors to call in…listen, I’ll meet you back at the hotel later and hopefully all will go well!” And with that, Rarity turned purple tail and darted off back down the path, leaving the other five staring in mild confusion. “Is, uh…is she always like that when she gets excited?” Quicksnap asked. “Only when it involves something really fancy,” Rainbow replied. Lucky nodded. “Kinda guessed. What do you suppose she’s roping us into?” Dawning Hope, meanwhile, allowed himself a quiet sigh of relief, now feeling grateful for the distraction from both himself and the hunt for Supermane. Whatever Rarity had in mind, at least it could provide a much-needed relief for a little while. He just hoped it wasn’t too much to ask that things went more smoothly from here. “Yes, of course I want gold trim on the decor as well, it’s in the company logo,” Lex said into the phone receiver, spinning his chair to look out his expansive office windows. “…well obviously it’s going to look opulent, I want this all to look nice…after all, what is LexCorp but comfort and convenience for the masses?” He was currently on call with LexCorp’s public relations department, making plans for a public charity ball to be held later next week. The company and Lex himself were no stranger to hosting these; the proceeds for this one would go to funding the repair of the Bronclyn Bridge as he had promised yesterday. On a more business-tactics level, though, it was to help further restore the company’s image after the tram incident. Stepping in to take care of the bridge had been a big first step, and this would help to reinforce things. Luckily, it was already working. Lex had been hearing less and less talk of the LexCorp tram incident over the past forty-eight hours, which was absolutely fine by him. And comparatively speaking, as many details as there were to go over, it at least provided a small break from concern over other matters. “Now then, about the desserts…we’re going to need cake, obviously, so perhaps something like…forty, as a starting number? Yes, I think–” Lex stopped as his attention was caught by a blinking light on the desk intercom. A small rectangular screen denoted the new caller as Dr. Vale. “Hold on, I’ll get back to you on this,” Lex said, not waiting for a reply as he replaced the phone receiver and reached over to tap the intercom. “Vale. Progress on the weapon retrofits.” “Uh, we’re almost finished with that, sir,” Vale’s stammering voice crackle back from the speakers. “The main components have functioned just fine during testing and should operate at one-hundred percent capacity in, um…in the field.” Lex nodded to himself. “And the self-destruct mechanisms?” “Y-yes, vaporization charges have been installed in almost all of them. Just putting in the last few adjustments on everything–“ “Good. Make sure it’s done by later today; I want to have things ready for when my contacts arrive for their briefing.” “Right, right…s-sir, I have to ask, are you sure they’re going to fall for this–“ “Dr. Vale,” Lex growled. “Do you really think that I would have put you to work making this come to fruition if I didn’t think it had even a chance of working?” “U-um…no sir.” Lex smirked. “I didn’t think so. Now then, anything else you have to report?” “O-oh yes, actually…I, uh, took the liberty of examining some astronomical reports, and I think I may have found some more potential information about Krypton.” Lex raised an eyebrow in interest. “Really? Do tell.” “I, um, I have some data I can show you…if you wouldn’t mind me sending it up to your computer–“ “Send it.” He pushed a small button on the desk, and a translucent rectangular screen slid up from a slot in the middle with a mechanical whirr, lighting up in a desktop display once it had fully emerged. After it had finished, a notification for a file delivery appeared in the upper right corner. “Alright, I just sent it up to you…can you see it?” “Yes, I just got it,” Lex said. He tapped the notification with a hoof, and it expanded into several documents of astronomical data; star charts, spectrum analysis, and various other displays and graphs. “Okay, so…I cross-referenced the data we took from the Kryptonian ship with Equestrian astronomy reports, and, well…it seems that there was a star system detected a few years ago in the approximate vicinity to that given in the ship’s star charts…can you see it?” “Yes, indeed I can,” Lex said as he examined the data. On one part of the screen was a comparison of two star charts; one from the Royal Equestrian Astronomical Society, the other pulled from the Kryptonian ship’s computers. And indeed, when put next to each other, the system Vale pointed out occupied a very similar position to that Krypton’s sun apparently did. “Now, um, h-here’s where it gets interesting. They first detected a planet roughly the size and mass of Krypton via transitory dimming, and, um, apparently had enough data to roughly calculate it’s orbital time…” “Yes?” “Well, uh, about two years or so ago they looked back at the system to observe it again, and, um…it didn’t show.” Both of Lex’s eyebrows went up. Now this was interesting, at least if he thought it was going the way he thought it was. “Oh really, now?” “Yes, sir. I checked about every report I could get access to. They went back and checked and re-checked all their data as thoroughly as they could, and they were still certain they’d predicted its orbit as accurately as possible. They, uh, didn’t find anything except possible bits of particulate matter, thought they may have been Trojan asteroids. So, um, either there’s something else they haven’t accounted for, or–“ “It’s not there anymore,” Lex finished. His eyes wandered up from the screen to stare into empty space, while he became immersed in mulling this new information over. Perhaps it had been an intellectual failing on his part, but in all his years of owning that strange crystalline spacecraft, he hadn’t ever really devoted much thought into why it had come down from the stars to Ponykind’s pale blue dot in space. But as he thought of the size of the ship now, and especially the passenger compartment within–assuming, of course, that Supermane’s species had a growth rate comparable to that of an Equestrian pony–it made a kind of sense now that he really looked at it. “…Mr. Lexicon?” Lex blinked. “Erm, yes, Dr. Vale. Thank you for sharing this with me. In the meantime, you and your teams keep at your work.” “Uh, yes s–“ The intercom was clicked off before Vale could finish. Lex silently rose from his chair, trotting over to the windows and staring out and Manehattan beyond, so close to the class that his reflection seemed to form a giant, ghostly apparition of himself over the cityscape while he thought. If all this was true…then it meant that there was a good chance that Supermane was totally alone here. Maybe there were others like him around, or maybe–with any luck–he was truly the last of his race. Totally alone in the vast spaces of the universe. It made Lex smile a little. A lovely thought. Manehattan didn’t have any sort of definable “slum” area as most would call such a thing. It did, however, have a few scattered areas of particular seediness that some ponies preferred to avoid, and where others would gladly flock to go about their particular breed of business; darkened back alleys, a few older and more dilapidated buildings and blocks, the odd sewer tunnel, abandoned warehouses, things of that general nature. That in mind, it wouldn’t have been particularly eyebrow-raising for anypony traversing a certain back alley near the waterfront to notice a pair of stallions making their way down to some destination and purpose known only to them. One was a light-gray pegasus with a black mane, marked across his flanks with a white swirl amidst a cloud. As he walked beside his companion, his head turned this way and that, as though playing the part of lookout for the both of them. The other was a taller stallion of yellow-brown fur and a light-brown mane and tail, with a face that some would describe as bearing a certain rugged handsomeness to it, his flanks marked by a dagger. He kept his head up and his eyes forward as he walked, leaving his companion to watch out for potential threats as they went. Under normal circumstances, Bronze Corsair would have never considered coming to Manehattan or approaching Equestria’s eastern coast at any close distance, save for perhaps up in Trottingham, where the crime rate was higher and smugglers from abroad more easily welcomed. He much preferred the more wild and far less urbanized seas surrounding the Colto Maltese archipelago in the Celestial Sea. He had a solid niche carved out there, as both a mercenary for hire and a successful pirate captain in his own right. He had respect, he had wealth, he had connections, he had every pleasure a stallion could have at his hoof tips. It was a good life. Good enough. But in the months since the coronation of Twilight Sparkle as ruler of mainland Equestria, things had begun to change for the worse. One of her biggest changes since taking the throne had been the appointment of Tempest Shadow as Captain of the Royal Guard, and the former Storm Army commander had wasted no time in beginning to make some changes to how they operated. The worst was still to come, but already the patrols in the Celestial Seas had gotten bolder, more eager to hunt down pirates and smugglers. And whereas the underworld had taken root and flourished around Colto Maltese, once overlooked by the mainland in favor of more immediate pressing matters, there were now whispers and fears that soon the powers that be would more actively seek them out. And while Bronze would never admit it out loud to anyone–he was much too proud for that–he himself had begun to feel that existential dread creeping into him. If the end for the little dark world he lived in was truly coming, then that meant being prepared to take measures he wouldn’t ordinarily consider, even at his boldest and most brazen. So when word had come to him that a certain party in Manehattan was in need of his and his crew’s particular set of skills, and willing to pay them very handsomely, well…it would be wise to at least know what was being put on the table. Bronze just hoped that this would be worth his trouble. He didn’t much like Manehattan at all. Never mind the distance from his usual territories or its proximity to the government that would very likely put a warrant on his head soon, if not already. The whole environment was just uncomfortably alien to him. Too artificial, too compact, too…stuffy. Distaste and risks aside, he and his second-in-command White Wind had made it into the city without any trouble so far, and soon enough they found themselves finally arriving at their destination; an out-of-use warehouse, one of many along the city’s southern river, and the one designated by the anonymous request for a meeting. Stepping through one of the backdoors–the one they’d been told would be unlocked just for them–the two found themselves navigating through a maze of tall, thick floor-to-ceiling shelves, all empty. It didn’t take them too long to come to a cleared out area in the middle of the structure’s interior, the only part of it lit by harsh yellow lighting from the ceiling. Standing in the light was a tall, tough looking white pegasus mare with a dark yellow mane and tail, both short, dressed in a business suit and black sunglasses that hid her eyes. Two stallions, looking equally tough and similarly dressed, stood on each side of her. Surrounding the three were an assortment of large boxes; not wooden crates, but heavy-duty looking things of metal and plastic. “Bronze Corsair?” The mare asked as the two entered. Her companions were silent, only tilting their heads to look at the newcomers behind shaded eyes. Bronze regarded the mare. It was obvious that she was the leader amongst these three, or at least a spokespony for their group. Or whomever they worked for. His instincts told him to be cautious, wary. He and White were still in risky territory and not yet aware of just what–or who–they were dealing with. Still, it would probably serve them best at the moment to be diplomatic and not let their concerns show, and Bronze could easily manage that. It helped that this one didn’t look too bad as far as middle-pony negotiators went. So he put on his best charming smile and replied, “The one and only, ma’am. And I have the pleasure of addressing, ah–“ “My name is not important, and my employer wishes to remain anonymous at this time,” The mare said curtly. Bronze frowned. While he wouldn’t mind admitting to himself that he rather liked her assertiveness, he didn’t much care for being left in the dark so early on. “Mm, well, that might be a little bit of a problem for us here. Y’see, I kind of like knowing who’s asking me to do a job for them before I go trotting myself or my boys into anything. Just a, ah…basic informational requirement, you might call it.” There was no visible facial reaction from the mare. She just continued to look back at him through her sunglasses, stoicism remaining firm. “Then perhaps you might be able to forgive our anonymity after we present our offer to you.” Bronze scoffed. “You lot must think you’re pretty important if you think you can play with me like this.” He paused to flash a little patronizing smirk. “But alright. Just for now I’ll play along. Now, what could a bunch of secretive mainlanders want with a pony like me?” The mare held out a hoof to one side, and one of her stallion cohorts silently gave her a manilla folder. She opened it up and turned it towards the two, revealing pictures of a large, luxurious-looking airship, clearly a cruise liner of some kind. White Wind let out a low whistle. “Now there’s a pretty looking floater.” “The SS Constitution,” The mare said. “A newly-christened luxury airliner, top-of-the-line of her class. Her maiden voyage is going to be a cruise around the city’s coastlines next evening after tomorrow–” “And you want us to hijack her for you, right?” Bronze interjected. “Come on, lady, don’t think I don’t know where you’re going with this.” The mare paused for a moment. There was a slight pursing of her lips. “In a word, yes. After your acquisition of the vessel, we want you to bring her out to these coordinates and hold her there for our retrieval.” She pointed at a map in the folder, at a spot well out to sea from the city. “You may help yourselves to whatever valuables you wish to take, but we want the ship itself.” Bronze took the folder from her hooves and looked over the contents. The Constitution was certainly a big ship, and given how high-class she was he could only imagine what the haul would be like. That was certainly enticing…perhaps a bit too much so. He looked back up at the mare. “So let’s reiterate; you want us to slip aboard a large-scale luxury liner flying right on the coast of one of the country’s major cities and expect us to slip her out from under everypony’s noses?” “Are you not sure you can handle it?” Oof. Going for his confidence and ego. Nice try, he thought. “Lady, listen. My crew and I are good at what we do, and I mean damn good…but I’m not stupid. Now taking a hold of the ship isn’t going to be a problem. That’s going to be holding off whoever tries to come after us when we, y’know…swipe something as big as that from a major port.” “We have some extra precautions that my employer will provide you with to make sure you get the job done.” She stepped over to one of the crates. “Open it up.” Bronze raised an eyebrow. Extra precautions? Where was she going with this? Nevertheless, he nodded to White Wind and the two stepped up to the crate, unlatching the metal clasps holding it closed and lifting the heavy lid up. Bronze and White both went stock still at what they saw inside. Resting in the foam-padded interior of the crate was a gun. A very large, heavy-looking gun, so big that it came with its own harness to help the operator hold it up. In fact, calling it a gun was probably an understatement. This was more like a personal cannon. The rounds they saw packed inside along with it were big as well; they looked like some kind of armor-piercing ammunition. Bronze Corsair was no stranger to the concept of a gun. They were a lot more common in the criminal rings outside Equestria than they were within it, and he’d used more than his fair share of them in battle. But even though he’d only seen this one for all of a few seconds so far, he instantly realized that he was looking at easily the most powerful personal gun he’d ever seen in his life. “Holy spit,” White Wind whispered. He reached a hoof into the case and gingerly ran it across the barrel of the thing. “This is…what a beauty.” He looked up to the mare. “Uh…m-mind if I give her a try?” “Only if you want to blow apart this building and the next two down,” The mare said flatly. “Is…sweet Faust, is this really as powerful as…?” A silent glance from the mare answered in place of words. White looked back down at the gun. “Holy spit…” “We have several more just like this one that we’re willing to loan to you. Some even more powerful. Do the job well enough and we may even let you keep a few, provided you don’t tell anypony where you got them from.” “Where we…” Bronze started. The sight of the huge weapon had sent his brain into a scramble as he tried to think. This was too much. “No. No no no no. First hijacking a ship so close to civilization and now offering us weapons to pull it off with?” He shoved the folder back into the mare’s hooves. “What are you setting us up for here? Who the buck are you working for?” The mare remained undeterred. “Somepony who can easily erase all of your financial and resource concerns in one fell swoop, Mr. Corsair. Trust me, we are very aware of your current situation. And we are more than willing to provide you with enough wealth to ensure that you and your operations can stay active for far longer than they could without us. Name what you want in return, and it will be given to you. All we need from you…” She reopened the folder and turned it back to him. “…is your expertise. If you’re truly as ‘damn good’ as you say you are, then help us. And we will reward you handsomely for it. It’s as simple as that.” Bronze’s eyes flitted back down to the image of the Constitution. He felt torn in two. Every sensible part of his mind was screaming at him that something was wrong, that he was being played, that he was being left in the dark, to walk away and back out while he still could. And yet…he also knew that he could conceivably pull this off. It would be difficult, most likely one of the tougher heists he and his crew would undertake, if only for being able to get the ship out of range of Manehattan before the authorities caught on. But he knew his crew and he knew himself. It was entirely possible for them to do it. And he also knew that if this mare and her oh-so-vague “employer” were going to stick to their word, then he could use every bit of cash that he could get his hooves on. He didn’t plan on being hunted down by the Equestrian navy and hauled off to prison anytime soon, and at this point he was willing to take any chance he could to ensure his survival. Even, perhaps, a gamble as risky as this. “…fine. Let’s talk business, shall we?”