//------------------------------// // Chapter 6: City of the Pegasi // Story: Bounty Hunters // by Jasper77W //------------------------------// Everypony stared at Twilight in disbelief. "Is this a gang, or a freakin terrorist threat?" Octavia asked. "I don't know. So far they seem to have everything." Rainbow said. "And that damn stealth copter. Think they have more than everything." "This all seems odd." Shining Armor frowned. "Somehow they knew what block we rented for the apartment, and they had adequate preparation. That was a lot of explosives. And then before that, they knew where you two lived, straight after I made contact with the two of you. They seem to have someone in the royal guards." "This just keeps getting better." Octavia rubbed her forehead. A traitor in the royal guards- this is gonna give her headaches trying to figure out who it might be, out of the entire army. "Anyway, where is Celestia going to be this Friday?" Rainbow asked. "We need to triple the defenses." "Probably won't be a good idea." Shining Armor said. "We might have a traitor in the royal guards, remember?" "So... We'll have to protect Celestia ourselves." Octavia said. The room went silent. "Yes. And it isn't going to be easy." Twilight said. "The princesses, along with the wonderbolts, are going to visit a primary school in Cloudsdale." "Shuck. What are we going to do now? We have to stop whoever is behind this before Friday! Damn... All those little fillies might get hurt or die if we make a wrong move! Friday... Today's Tuesday... Three days." Shining Armor exclaimed. There was nothing he could think of that would help the situation. "First off, we need to inform the princess. Is the visit of any significant importance?" Octavia asked. "No, not really. But if we want to protect her that way we'll have to keep her indoors forever. I don't think that'll end well with our traitor in the royal guards and all." Twilight said. "Damn. But we need to notify her now." Octavia said. "Well... There's no way to send a letter... Suppose we could meet up with her, but that'll lead the organization straight to her." Shining Armor said. As much as he wanted to return to Canterlot and be with Cadence again, it would probably be too dangerous. And even if he didn't the organization probably will find out through other means anyway, the best any pony could do was to delay, and delay. Wait a second... "That's it! I could call Cadence, she should be able to tell Princess Celestia." Shining Armor said. "Great, you do that. I'll call up Magnum and Iris." Octavia said, flicking out her phone in one smooth motion. "In the mean time..." Rainbow said, a serious yet annoyed expression on her face; "We remain bored and do nothing." * Rainbow's wing, with the (strong) assistance of magic, has healed just enough so that she could fly- with great pain, of course. It had been a whole day already, and they had two left to prepare. "Ah! Mother bucker-" She yelled when she first thought it had completely healed. "The pegasi in Cloudsdale should specialize in this type of treatment. You should probably head over there if you want a fast and full recovery." the doctor explained, handing Rainbow an injury and healing assessment. "Give this to them and they should know what to do with you." Rainbow sighed. "Thanks anyway." she walked out, followed by Octavia. Ah, sunshine. Thank goodness for no rain. Twilight and Shining Armor had already left. Twilight seemed quite tense around Rainbow, and she noticed. Maybe being a killer now had something to do with it- and she dearly hoped what she was doing wouldn't cast the wrong image in Twilight's head. Magnum and Iris were supposed to meet up with them at Cloudsdale, where they'll all set up preparations for the princesses' arrival. Four high priority targets- Celestia, Luna, Cadence and Ally. This is going to be a nightmare- at least they could enjoy the sunshine right now. The black car gleamed in the sun, and Rainbow smiled at the sight. "Who polished it?" she asked happily, although she already knew Octavia did it while she was asleep. She looked back at Octavia, who had her hat lowered, concealing her eyes. "You alright? Is it the nightmare?" "Probably more than that. But something related to it." Octavia said. Rainbow didn't ask any further, sensing from Octavia's tone that she doesn't want to talk about it. She probably knew why, anyway. Ordinary ponies don't just decide to become assassins over night, after all. Her included. * Cloudsdale was different from how Rainbow Dash remembered it when they arrived. She stretched her muscles, for they had been still throughout the airplane ride. Everything was made of clouds, the ground, the buildings, the streets- everything. Somepony had invented a spell that would allow clouds to become solid- so ordinary none-pegasi ponies could walk and stand on them. The entire city of Cloudsdale was enchanted with the spell- it was a smart move- more tourists means more money. The clouds seemed to have been recently polished, which reminded Rainbow of the black car, and how they had to leave it behind. That kinda sucked. No rockets then. A veil anchor was cast on the city to the ground, keeping it from moving with the wind. The anchor was in a different dimension, but the two hooks on either side were in the actual dimension, so the anchor still worked and saved space. It was one of the most dangerous builds ponies have ever undertaken- almost thirty percent of workers died during its construction. But now it was monumental, something to be remembered. Without it, Cloudsdale would be drifting away from Equestria and no pony would have the power to stop it. Various spells and enchantments were applied to the buildings- instead of using lights, they had magic to compensate. Some households had lights, but many have turned to eco-friendly magical lights installed by unicorns after the solid clouds spell was applied to Cloudsdale. "Boy, I missed you soooo much~~~" Rainbow tackled the ground, snuggling up against the soft sun-baked cloud. "Let's gooo..." Octavia pulled her away and started dragging her to the nearest hotel. Before they could go in, Rainbow heard a familiar voice shout her name. "Rainbow! Rainbow Dash! Is that you? I can't believe you're back!" the purple maned pegasus waved, her excited orange body bouncing around. "No. Way." Rainbow rubbed her eyes. No way that could be Scootaloo. Not only has she gotten her cutie mark, she also looked like some kind of world class athlete. The wings were powerful, fully feathered and looked ready to go. Rainbow could see muscles under the young skin. "Scoots?" "YES! It is you!" Scootaloo yelled excitedly, ignoring the other ponies casting her annoyed glances. "Wow. Been going to the gym or something?" Rainbow asked. Seeing Scootaloo was odd. But it felt so much like more home again. It felt warm, and dry. The exact opposite of Manehatten. She felt like crying, and also felt like a little kid in candy land. She held both of those feelings in, for the sake of character. To her, Cloudsdale will always be the most awesome place- ever. "Nah. Just lots of practice." Scootaloo blushed. "Speaking of which- what happened to your wing?" "Oh, I got shot by a helicopter." Rainbow said casually and proudly. "Damn... That must've hurt. So what do you do in Manehatten?" "Uh..." Rainbow rolled her eyes, searching for an answer. Good thing Scoots wasn't reading the newspapers. Octavia rung Rainbow's number, keeping her phone in her pocket. Rainbow's phone buzzed, giving her a temporary chance to avoid the question. "Hello?" she said, not realizing it was Octavia. Octavia tapped her phone twice. Rainbow turned around, received the reassuring nod, then went on pretending: "Oh, yeah... I was about to... Now? Right, right... Ok... Bye." She said, then hung up. Octavia sighed. "Sorry Scoots, talk to you later. Got, ah, an emergency we need to attend to." Rainbow said. "Real nice meeting you here." she waved a goodbye, and quickly headed into the hotel with Octavia. "Who was that?" Octavia asked, fascinated. The pegasus seemed friendly enough. "I... Have no idea how to explain it." Rainbow said, booking a room. "You mean like basically everything else?" Octavia asked as they entered the elevator. "Uh, yeah. Basically." Rainbow replied, pressing the button for the twenty fifth floor. "Why do you always book the top floor?" Octavia asked. "Don't you like the view?" "Well, of course I do." Octavia said, followed by an acknowledging *ding* from the elevator. The doors slid open, and the pair entered a long carpeted hallway stretching across the building. Doors lined the walls, numbers clearly written in bronze. "2507...." Rainbow looked around. "Here it is." she said, sliding a card into the door. An indicator light turned green and beeped, and the lock clicked. "I'm going outside for a drink. I really miss the old bar here." she dumped her luggage in the room. "Coming?" "Nah. I'll stay inside and check for explosives." Octavia said, more sensibly placing her bags down. "Oh. You do that then." Rainbow said, a little disappointed. Alone in a bar. This should be fun. She left, closing the door behind her. Octavia walked up to the window- it was a full length one, stretching along the room and reaching from the ground to the ceiling, treating Octavia to the full view of Cloudsdale. It was an impressive sight, bright sunlight reflecting off of the clouds. It hurt her eyes a little bit, also because there was so much detail. She could see basically everything from here. First off, she started checking around the apartment. Thank Celestia for no explosives. She went to her bag, bringing out a tablet device. It had suction caps on its back, and Octavia attached it to the window. Everything on the tablet was custom made, prepared for the situation ahead. She pressed a button, and the screen turned on. A camera on the back of the tablet came to life, buzzing as it adjusted to the view outside. With a few taps on the screen, Octavia marked the locations of several main landmarks- the stadium, the primary school, and the path the royals will be going on through their tour. She plugged a charger into the tablet, and began making other preparations. She attached rappels to the window framing- they would need a quick way out if there was an emergency. Waiting for the elevator wasn't one of the preferable options. All they need to do is smash the window and the rope will start unwinding. The apartment will become the base of operations, and she had to make sure everything was accounted for and running smoothly. * Rainbow was ordering her drink when Scootaloo appeared again. "Hello. Good to catch you again." Scootaloo said, taking the stool next to Rainbow by the bar table. "You have seriously grown." Rainbow eyed her up and down. "Hehe, thanks." Scootaloo smiled. "You seem to be in bad shape though. Manehatten not that enjoyable?" "No." Rainbow admitted. "How's everything with you?" "Well, I'm fine. My cutie mark is fine." she grinned cheekily. "Ponyville is alright. Everyone misses you- you being gone, and all." "Well, I miss them a mighty bunch too." Rainbow said. "You finally learned how to fly?" Scootaloo nodded. "Wing power?" Rainbow asked. "Thirteen." Scootaloo said proudly. "Hmmm. Not bad, not bad. Three point five below me. Well, last time I tested was years ago." Rainbow was impressed. "Thanks." she said to the bartender as he slid a green drink across the table. "We got a lot of new facilities in Cloudsdale since you left." Scootaloo said. Rainbow eyed her drink, giving these 'new facilities' a thought. She picked up the glass and drained it in one gulp, ignoring the sudden drunkenness that started settling in. Slamming the glass down, she got up. "Show me." she said. * Octavia screwed the last bolt till it could go no further, and wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead. All set for the big event. The royals weren't due to arrive till tomorrow, so there'd be a whole day to kill. Probably survey the area, then. Buying the tickets to Cloudsdale took a while, but the royals have already been informed- the team arriving one day earlier or later didn't matter too much. Almost didn't matter at all- just as long as they were here before the royals arrive. She left the apartment, triple checking that the door was locked behind her. It was warm outside, but she kept her coat and hat on anyway. Walking through the streets of Cloudsdale again and again, she tried to remember the layout. If there were to be a chase, this would be useful. She stopped when she saw a familiar figure walking the streets with a small group of other ponies. Lyra Heartstrings was here in Cloudsdale too. Afraid she might recognize her, Octavia quickly took an alternate path. She let out a calm breath when Lyra went past without noticing her. She had cut almost all the ties to her past, and she wasn't sure why. Why couldn't she just keep her other friends and work against the dark side of Equestria at the same time? Maybe she didn't want her friends in the business, maybe she didn't want to see them bleed in her arms again, with her not being able to do anything about it. She tried thinking about something else. Why would the organization want royalty dead? The obvious reason would be domination. But without a powerful overlord like Celestia, how could they accomplish something like that? Celestia's visit here hasn't been announced yet, just so the fillies at the primary would be surprised to see the princess striding into class. Only Twilight knew, probably because the princess told her herself. Right now they probably found out anyway- so why Twilight? Octavia rubbed her head. Twilight was the element of magic in the six Elements of Harmony, one of the most powerful. Taking her down would mean the elements would be unable to function. But why would they want to prevent the elements from functioning? Obviously they would have something vulnerable to the elements... But what it might be was beyond Octavia. The elements were often used against powerful enemies like Nightmare Moon and Discord- so thinking along those lines, this could spell disaster. While thinking about all this, Octavia wondered why she didn't become a detective instead. Assassinating royalty would be like cutting the head off a creature- the rest won't have any commands and will become prone to panic, making Equestria an easy target for domination- or annihilation, but she couldn't figure out why they would do that. So she went for domination. From the supplies the organization had, they probably were a lot more than just a really really rich gang. Information seemed to come easy to them, and they had technology on a different level- hence the stealth copter. They probably were hiding a whole lot more. Whatever they were hiding however, Octavia reckoned it would all be revealed on Friday. She headed for the primary school. She'll probably want to set some stuff up there, since they'll have to evacuate everypony once they spot the assassin. It pained her that they were putting little fillies at risk, but as Twilight said, if they're going to protect Princess Celestia by keeping her in, then they probably won't get a chance to take down this dangerous organization. Plus eventually somepony will work their way through the royal defenses. On her way to the school, she could feel a pair of piercing eyes staring into her back. At first she thought she was just being paranoid, but just to make sure she turned into a quieter street. She could definitely hear the hoofsteps behind her- they sounded controlled, unnatural. Probably somepony following her. It occurred to her that the organization probably had spies spread out in Cloudsdale already, and she cursed herself for not being more careful. She increased her pace. The hoofsteps behind her matched her speed. She started jogging now, the white clouds of Cloudsdale soft under her hooves. The sun shone brightly from above, meaning the light could cover Octavia if she chooses to strike; acting as a constant flash-bang without the bang. But she couldn't risk getting more attention- there's one possible spy here, there might be others around as well. She started running, and she could hear the hoofsteps behind her follow. She remembered this street from when she was wandering around. The alleyway should be just around the corner... She found it, a two-meter gap between two buildings, away from prying eyes. She'll take down whoever was following her there. She made the corner, seeing a stallion reach behind his back and pull out a knife out of the corner of her eye. The alleyway was barricaded by a tall cloud wall- too tall to jump over. But that wasn't a mistake- Octavia purposely turned into this one. She ran towards the wall, the stallion behind her charging at full speed. Timing her steps, Octavia brought her right back hoof up and onto the cloud wall, pushing off and stretching her body out. Now that her body was parallel to the ground, she reached out and her front hooves caught the stallion's chin. Her momentum kept her going, and by kicking off the wall she flipped up into the air. Now upside down with her hooves still under the stallion's chin, she flipped over him and landed behind him. She brought her hooves down as she landed lightly on the ground, and slammed the back of the stallion's head in the clouds. Despite being soft, the clouds that made the roads and buildings had to be a lot harder to withstand extra force. That made the stallion's head crack loudly, and quite satisfyingly to Octavia. Taking the knife from his hoof and throwing his body over the wall, she casually walked back out onto the streets again.