//------------------------------// // The Count's Confession // Story: Equestria Ninja Girls: Ice Sprint. // by Red Tagg //------------------------------// Outside a hotel, a brown-skinned teenage girl with brown hair in a ponytail, wearing a pink turtle neck, jeans, brown boots and a jewel nose stud, stood with her guards when a state-of-the-art car pulled up, the one she would be driving to her sister. The door opened, and out stepped a stout woman with blond hair, wearing mechanic coveralls underneath a winter jacket. "Car's all set, love," she said in a cockney accent. "I mean, Your Highness." "Thank you. And please, call me Vera," The girl, Vera, introduced herself. Princess Vera looked confused, "Forgive me, but you are not the valet to bring my car?" "Ah yes, well, the valet became, uh, indisposed," the woman answered. "I'm the stand-in." "Given this sudden blizzard, I suppose that would be plausible," Vera replied, uncertain. "Princess, this is an unwise decision," one of the guards warned. "Driving alone out in the open will make you an irresistible target." "I am well aware of the risk," Vera said. "But I must be there for my sister. Grandmother's already there, but Saundra still needs support, so it is a risk that will take!" "Love that determination, mate," the woman thumbed up. "And you gents needn't worry. Get a load of this storm." She motioned to the blizzard. "Anyone who'd try to pinch or snuff the princess in this weather would have to be mad!" Vera smiled at the reassurance before she got into the car and drove off into the storm. The woman watched her leave with a warm smile before she backfisted the two guards, knocking them out. Then, her smile turned into an evil smirk. "And we're mad enough to try!" She grinned, revealing herself as the VILE operative, The Mechanic. After taking down the Ice fortresses, the ninjas took refuge in the school with Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna’s permission. The Rock N Beats went home to rest. The Turtles, Allies, Rainbooms, and CMC sat in the music room. Buffy was on her phone speaking to Gabby, as they still hadn’t found them after they fell off the fortresses. “Okay, thank goodness you and Casey are okay.” Buffy hung up and turned to the others. “Gabby and Casey are okay. They’re with two people called Zack and Ivy.” “I’m right here,” Zach said, clearly not understanding. “She’s not talking about you. She’s talking about these two redheads they know,” Buffy clarified. “Zach and Ivy, from Carmen Sandiego’s crew?” Sunset recalled. “Carmen Sandiego, that lady thief you told us about?” Caitlyn asked, remembering hearing about her friends’ adventure with her. “Yep, her,” Twilight confirmed. “So Casey and Gabby are alright,” April said in relief. “But what about Rainbow?” Scootaloo asked, worrying about her idol. “Yes, it’s concerning that Rainbow ran across the country to deliver a heart,” Vice-Principal Luna pointed out. “She did!?” Everyone turned to see Rainbow's parents, Bow Hothoof and Windy Whistles, standing there. “Bow Hothoof and Windy Whistles?” Fluttershy said when she saw them. “What're you doing here?” Raph asked. “Rainbow never arrived home when she was supposed to and never got back to us. We got a call from someone telling us to come here to find out about Rainbow,” Windy explained. “So, where is Rainbow? What's going on?” The group explained how they were assigned to shut down the Ice Fortresses, causing the snow, and how Rainbow delivered a heart to a little girl on the other side of the country. “Okay, so any word on Rainbow Dash?” Bow Hothoof asked with concern. “Sorry, but nothing from her yet? She could be at the hospital for all we know,” Leo answered. “Oh, she's at that hospital, alright.” The gang looked to see Twilight's laptop on by itself, showing an image of a white hat. Then, who would appear on the screen, but Player. "Hey guys, been a while.” “Player, what are you doing here?” Donnie asked. “I'm here to update you on Rainbow's current status.” “Hold on. Who's the little boy on the laptop?” Principal Celestia asked, confused by the situation. “Guys, this is Player. Brilliant hacker and Cyber intelligence for Carmen Sandiego and our ally,” Leo introduced. He then turned to Player and introduced those Player hadn't seen before. “Nice to meet you all.” “So, what's going on with Rainbow?” Windy asked with concern. Player explained the reason for the Ice Fortress and the Princess and the attempts on the lives of the Royal Family of Reinkani. “So Rainbow was delivering a heart to a Princess?” Rarity asked. “And her relative wanted to kill not only the child but her family so he could take the crown?” Principal Celestia asked as well. “And VILE was helping him?” Sunset inquired. “And Rainbow got injured trying to get the heart from them and to the Princess?” Hothoof asked, worrying about his daughter. “That about covers it. Donnie, I’m sending you coordinates to upload into your portal device.” “Thanks Player.” Donnie began to put in the coordinates to his portal device. “Hold on, how come you didn't use it to take the heart directly to her? It would've saved Rainbow so much trouble!” Raph pointed out. “Because the snowstorm was blocking the signal.” Pinkie then turned to the fourth wall with a smug look. “Plus, there wouldn't be a plot.” Vera sped through the snow on her way to the hospital where her sister was. Then, as she began coasting down a hill, she stepped on the brake but didn't slow down. "What?" Vera pumped the pedal multiple times, but the car still didn't slow down or even stop. "What is happening?" She tried the parking brake lever but discovered it didn't work either. "Why can I not stop?!" Suddenly, the screen on her dashboard flickered on, revealing the Mechanic and her fellow operative, The Driver. Both appeared to be in another car that pulled up behind Vera. "I may have tinkered with your car a bit," the Mechanic answered smugly. "Count Bisp sends his regards," the Driver added. Then she floored the gas and rammed into Vera's car, pushing it faster down the hill. Vera saw the road split in two directions at the bottom of the hill, going left and right, but straight ahead was a massive rock wall. Panicked, she tried to steer away but discovered that her steering wheel wouldn't budge. The princess screamed as she was about to be smashed against the wall. Then the scene went black. Rainbow Dash groaned as she woke up. She looked to see she was in a hospital bed, wearing a hospital gown. She had a bandage wrapped around her adamant, a plaster on the side of her head and cheek, and bandages around her feet and ankles. She remembered delivering the heart to the doctors before passing out. “Ah, the delivery girl’s awake.” Rainbow saw Count Dushta Bisp standing at the foot of the bed, smirking at her. “Count Bisp.” “That, little girl, is King Dushta Bisp to you, peasant,” Bisp revealed, much to Rainbow’s surprise. “King?” “Yes,” Bisp revealed. “Princess Saundra Shaah died on the operating table. Queen Unna Shaah died from “heartbreak" over the death of her youngest granddaughter. And her eldest granddaughter, Crown Princess Vera Shaah, has died while driving up here in the slippery snow to see her beloved little sister. Their cousin is now dead, and soon, their Aunt and Uncle will be. “So you’re not King just yet,” Rainbow pointed out. “Oh, I will be in a few more minutes when I get confirmation about their deaths.” “So all this. VILE, Tonta, the Ice Fortresses? It was all a plot to murder your aunt and both cousins twice removed?” Rainbow didn’t know how cousin relations went. “First off, it’s cousin once removed,” Bisp corrected her. “But yes. Soon, I will be the only one left, leaving me the right to rule. And before you point out to the camera, I've had VILE remotely turn them off.” “Won’t people still be suspicious about the circumstances of their deaths?” Rainbow pointed out. “So maybe some would be. But it won’t matter. They'll never prove it. I'm untouchable.” “We'll see about that!” Rainbow tries to get up but grunts as she feels the pain from her injuries. “Now, now, little girl, you'll pull your stitches. Besides, who are you mad at? She died on the table.” “Even so, it must pain you that you owe favours to VILE and Tonta for nothing,” Rainbow pointed out. "How did you even get VILE to agree to help you? Carmen said they were supposed to be invisible to the world. “I have a distant relative in VILE's ranks. And as for owing them favours, I'm not at all upset. They still helped with getting rid of Queen Unna and Princess Vera. As for the Ice Fortresses, we couldn’t have known those were unnecessary.” “So why are you telling me all this?” Rainbow asked. “You’re going to die soon anyway, so I might as well tell you,” Bisp revealed as he removed the sword from his cane. But just then, the TV behind Bisp turned on itself, showing footage of their conversation. “I don't think I need to say anything myself now. People have already seen this and now know your true colours.” Bisp was angry, but then he got a message on his phone. And he was then delighted. “It doesn't matter. The Princess's aunt and uncle are dead; I’m the king now. I can pardon myself,” Bisp boasted. “But now killing you is pointless. So consider yourself lucky. It is better to let you live with the guilt.” Bisp turned to leave the room, but Rainbow stopped him. “I just want to say one last thing.” “And what is it? That I may have won for now, but you'll be back? Or any other cliché speech?” “No, I just wanted to say... Got ya!” Rainbow pulls the curtain next to her, revealing the young girl in the hospital bed, Princess Saundra Shaah, and her grandmother, Unna Shaah. Carmen and Shadowsan were with them, along with two bodyguards. The Queen and Princess both had scowls on their faces. “I believe you know Princess Saundra and Queen Unna.” “No, impossible! You're both meant to be dead!” Bisp was frightened and confused. “We managed to protect both the Princess and Queen from you and VILE,” Shadowsan explained. “And those messages you got about Queen Unna, Princess Vera and the other Royal family members’ deaths, all fake, courtesy of a good friend. Just then, Yod Nyaa appeared at the door, still alive and well. “She's right. My cousin and parents are still alive and well despite your best efforts.” Carmen held the phone, which replayed everything Bisp had said. The Queen looked at him with feelings of anger, disappointment, and betrayal. “Dushta, I knew you were ambitious and treacherous. But never could I have imagined that you would pull such an act so evil!” “My Queen, Auntie!” Bisp tried to plea, but it was in vain. “Count Dushta Bisp, as Queen of Reinkani, I hereby accuse you of high treason against the crown and thus revoke your diplomatic status. Also, as a result, I banish you from our country!” Bisp was very angry at what had happened. Everything he had planned had fallen apart, so he drew his cane sword in a last-ditch effort for revenge. “NO!” Bisp rushes towards the queen and princess, but Rainbow grabs an IV bag stand and uses it to whack the sword out of Bisp’s hand. Carmen, Yod, and Shadowsan restrained him before handing him to the security guards. “Get this ex-royal jerk out of here,” Rainbow ordered, which the guards didn’t need to be asked twice. “Enjoy this victory for now because it won’t last.” The guards restrained the former Count out of the room. Yod leaned down, grabbed the sword, and put it back in the cane. "Are you two alright?" Rainbow asked the Queen and Princess. “Yes, we both are,” Queen Unna said on behalf of herself and her granddaughter. “Thank you, all of you, for saving us,” Princess Saundra said, thanking the four who had saved them. “You are welcome, your majesties,” Shadowsan said as he bowed respectfully. “But, Vera,” Queen Unna said, worrying about her eldest granddaughter, but Carmen reassured her. “Don’t worry, Your Majesty; my crew has protected your granddaughter and will be here soon.” “And as for my parents back home, they are all right as well,” Yod revealed. “Thank goodness,” Queen Unna said in relief. The princess then turned to Rainbow. “But how did you know Dushta would confess?” “Well, when I heard you were alive and in recovery, I knew Bisp would try on your life again. I also figured the only way to bust Count Heartless was to trick him into confessing. So I had the doctors pretend that the operation was a failure and that Saundra died on the operating table, knowing he wouldn't be able to resist gloating about it, like how Daring Do baited the evil Barron of… “… the evil Barron of Manerhorn into blabbing his crimes to the authorities.” The gang were shocked when Princess Saundra finished what Rainbow was saying. “I like Darin Do as well.” “Awesome.” "And now he's lost diplomatic immunity," Carmen pointed out. Rainbow then felt pain in her side as she lost her balance. Luckily, Yod was quick enough to catch her. “I got you.” Yod helped Rainbow to her bed and lay her down. “Thanks.” “You’re welcome. I never got to introduce myself properly.” Yod took off the mask around his mouth and his goggles. It revealed a young man, around a year older than Rainbow, with brown skin and brown eyes, with a scar on his left eyebrow. “I am Yod Nyaa, Grandson of Queen Unna and future Guardian of Reinkani. Rainbow was in awe when she saw Yod’s face, as she was instantly smitten. "Nice to meet you; I'm Dainbow Rash, uh, I mean Rainbow Crash, no, no, I'm Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash." Rainbow could have been more composed around the young warrior. "Nice to officially meet you, too." The others couldn't help but be amused by Rainbow's failure blabbing. Even the Queen was amused and slightly delighted that her grandson had an admirer.