//------------------------------// // Scene 13 // Story: Erebus: Episode 1: Surprise! Surprise! Surprise! // by Honey Mead //------------------------------// Rarity peeked around the corner of the alley at the two ponies fighting. She had been galloping toward the castle when they'd fallen from the sky. The sight of the white pegasus hitting the side of the building had caused her to skid to a halt in shock. Before she could move to assist the injured pegasus, the black-clad pony made his marginally softer landing nearby. She started moving immediately, intent on helping the poor ponies in anyway she could. As she neared, the second pony stood and began moving toward the pegasus. Her gallop slowed as the scene began to unfold, something was off. When she saw the flash of silver as the mare swung at the other pony, Rarity stopped completely and ducked into the nearest alley when the violence exploded in full, her heart pounding in her chest. From her hiding place away, Rarity watched the battle in perverse fascination. She’d read about this ‘Erebus’ character in the newspapers. A vigilante taking justice into his own hooves, fighting the criminals on their own turf. Depending on the paper she read, the stories ranged from calling him worse than the criminals, to praising him as an alicorn who chose to fight rather than lead. As a matter of principle, she had stayed up on the subject, but allowed her opinions to be swayed by her current company whenever the issue came up. She liked to believe that she was reserving judgment until she got real evidence of his effectiveness, or lack thereof. The truth of the matter was that the newspapers never managed to get a good picture of the stallion. Without being able to see the pony, how could she ever make any kind of definitive statement about him? That excuse was now one she could use no longer. His fashion sense left something to be desired. To her mind, form and function were equally important, and to sacrifice one for the other was just not acceptable. The cape was dashing in its own way, though far too busy with the way it tried to imitate pegasus wings. He got a few points for having the sense to not go with a solid color, though blacks and grey barely qualified that distinction. Leaving his horn exposed was an interesting choice, but didn’t make up for the color of his belt. B minus. All of that passed through her mind in less than a second. Her attention pulled back to the scene at large. He was fighting somepony. A pegasus mare by the look of it. Her pure white coat gleamed in the street light and her golden mane was let loose, hanging about her face as though it were weighted down, refusing to rise over her shoulders even as she spun and dodged her opponent. Rarity was rooted in place watching the action unfold before her. Not because of the fight so much as for the skill with which it was conducted. She had seen a number of street fights in past years, and it was not a street fight. Erebus fought with measured skill, not wasting movement in exaggerated or flashy attacks, every strike was aimed to take down his opponent as quickly as possible. The mare, on the other hoof, just moved. Calling it fighting would be a terrible misnomer. She struck out at the stallion when she could, but more than anything, she just managed to not be where his hooves were, as though it were the simplest thing in the world. Something about the mare drew Rarity out of hiding, making her step out of the alley. Staying in the shadows as much as possible, she snuck forward, careful not to make a sound. Erebus took a hit to the chin and toppled backward, not unlike a felled tree. The white mare was on him in a flash, pressing her knife to his throat. Before she could think, Rarity sprinted to help. “I’m gonna make you smile! Smile! Smile!” Rarity stopped mid-stride, eyes falling on the mares flank as the words hit her ears. “P—Pinkie Pie?” The pegasus froze, slowly turning her head to look at Rarity. The smile splitting the white face was one that Rarity would never be able to forget. “Oh! Hiya, Rarity!” The pegasus waved with the knife. “I can’t talk right now, I’m kinda b—!” The right hook made a solid connection with Surprise’s chin. Her jaw twisted to the side, almost as if it were made of rubber, her head and neck following a split second later while the rest of her fell forward onto the caped stallion. With a grunt, Erebus shoved the unconscious mare off of him. Working his way to his hooves, he went straight to work, binding the pegasus, making double sure that she wouldn’t be able to escape. Rarity watched, dumbfounded. She didn’t find her voice until Surprise was hogtied with her wings bound to her sides. “What... how...” She stopped, taking a deep, calming breath before trying again. “Excuse me, Mister Erebus?” He looked up from his work. His piercing, ice-blue eyes bore into her for a moment before he turned back to the unconscious mare. “Thank you,” he said grudgingly, “for your help.” “Yes,” she said. “Would you like to explain exactly why you were hoof fighting with...” Rarity stopped. She’d responded to the name, she knew who she was, her cutie mark was almost identical except all three balloons were purple instead of yellow and blue, and her voice was too perfect of a match. Yet none of that could be right! Pinkie was an earth pony! Earth ponies don’t just grow wings! And she’s white with a blonde mane, instead of pink on pink! “...with whoever this is,” she finished lamely. “She tried to murder a pony,” Erebus said plainly and drew a small syringe from his belt. His horn grew a bit brighter, an aura expanding around the back of the mare’s knee. With care and practiced precision he brought the syringe to her leg and jabbed it in. Rarity gasped in shock, placing a hoof to her chest. “What do you think you are doing?!” “Taking a blood sample,” he said simply, blood beginning to fill the tube. “You can’t just take a pony’s blood!” He looked up at the protesting mare, glaring at her through his mask. “Are you going to stop me?” “I...” Rarity faltered, remembering the scene she had stumbled onto. Surely he wouldn’t hurt her if she tried to stop him... right? “Then do me a favor and shut up.” Rarity fumed at the stallion, her hesitation fleeing in the face of indignation. Stomping a hoof, she said, “How dare you, you... ruffian!” Erebus responded with little more than a grunt as he pulled the full syringe out and returned it to his belt. “You will not ignore me!” He ignored her, wrapping a hoof around Surprise. “Where do you think you are going? You put her down this instant!” Erebus didn’t even look back at her, raising his free hoof toward the nearest roof, a black cable shooting out of his fetlock. Before Rarity could protest further, he shot off the ground and into the night sky.