It didn't take long for Daniel to realize he was completely surrounded, and his only exit had been cut off. Vox had come out of every nook and cranny of the bar, guns pointed right at the Crow's head. As Daniel scanned the various weapons that were on display, he quietly laughed to himself.
Probably the entire Vox armory right here in this room.
His hand gripped his sword tightly, and he slowly withdrew it from its sheath. Surprisingly, none of the surrounding thugs fired a shot, even when he fully produced his weapon.
"Anyone care to go first?" he asked, searching for volunteers. They all remained silent, sneering at Daniel with malice. "No? Well alright then, I guess I'll lead."
Before anyone could react, the Zealot exploded into a flock of crows. Birds flew everywhere as the Vox immediately opened fire in response, shooting in all directions in their attempt to fell the creatures. Amongst the chaos, Daniel reformed behind one of the Vox, the man had a tattoo of a rose on the side of his neck. The Crow grabbed his neck at the rose's stem and shoved his blade through the man's thigh.
The thug shrieked in pain as his machine gun continued to fire, sending bullets across the room. Daniel used his position to crudely aim the Vox member's weapon, spraying rounds into several of his compatriots while simultaneously using him as a shield against incoming fire. When the magazine fully emptied, the Zealot swiftly removed his blade from the man's thigh and firmly drew it across his throat, releasing his grip and disappearing in a cloud of feathers once more.
The surviving Vox regrouped at the exit, determined to contain the Zealot and finish him off. They quickly reloaded before once again raising their weapons. The birds flew around the room, but did not advance toward the men.
"What the fuck are they doing?" one thug asked fearfully.
"Quiet! Stay focused." another warned.
Three men were crouching with their guns trained on the birds, as four men stood behind them doing the same. Suddenly, Daniel appeared once again in the middle of the room.
"There he is, fire!" one shouted as the rest let loose another series of shots. Daniel pointed a hand at them as a green phantom escaped his palm, flying for the closest Vox thug and hitting him square in the chest.
"Ah shit, he's been possessed!" one of them screamed, shoving the glowing green rebel away from the others. The glowing man pointed his weapon at them as they all lit him up with gunfire. He fell to the floor, coughing up blood, and the remaining men turned there attention back to the crows. They had all landed and were now staring at them with black eyes.
"W-w-where'd he go?"
"Anyone see him?"
The thugs looked all over the bar room, but there was no sign of the Zealot.
"You think he up and left, Frankie?" the one closest to the front asked. "Frankie?"
They all turned around to find the one named Frankie standing with a blank expression on his face. He fell to his knees, revealing the Crow standing right behind him. Daniel pulled his sword up out of the man's shoulder, flicking the excess blood from it before sheathing it. The others tried to point there guns in his direction, but it was too late. All at once the crows flew at the men, disorientating them enough for the Zealot to finish his work with little resistance. He picked up a bottle and broke it over one Vox's head, then swiftly jammed it into the eye of another.
The few remaining Vox did their best to fend off the birds with their dwindled numbers, but there were far too many. Calmly, Daniel walked over to the bar counter and put a hand on the table, banging it twice.
"Come on out, Seamus." he ordered over the screams of agony. The Irishman popped out from behind the counter, clutching a knife. He stabbed down onto the Crow's hand, but missed all of Daniel's digits and planted the knife harmlessly between his middle and ring fingers.
Daniel smiled under his mask. He grabbed the knife from the shocked barkeep and then pressed it hard against his neck.
"You need to work on your aim."
"Fuck off." Seamus shot back.
"In a moment." Daniel calmly replied. "First, I would like to know where Daisy Fitzroy is."
"Hell if I know, boyo." the Irishman smiled. "Ya think they tell me anythin'? She ain't in Columbia anymore."
The Zealot slammed him against the counter, pressing the blade harder against his neck. Blood began to leak down his shirt.
"Don't play dumb with me!" he hissed. "I know she isn't here now, but I also know the airship she's on needs to dock within the next four hours to refuel. The First Lady?"
Daniel's anger rose as he thought of Lady Comstock's murderer riding around in her own personal transport. As a result he unknowingly pressed the knife even harder, resulting in a yell from Seamus.
"I ain't tellin' ya shit!" the barkeep exclaimed.
"Oh no? Well then I suppose we could take a trip to the Order...."
Fear became present in Seamus' eyes at the Crow's words. "No, I can't go there!"
"Then tell me where the ship will be, or else we go there now!" Daniel instructed.
"Okay okay! She'll be refuelin' at Finkton Docks, Pier 8, I swear to God!"
Daniel smirked. "Very good." He dropped the knife onto the floor and released Seamus. The Irishman turned around with a look of relief on his face, which was gone the second Daniel drew his sword.
"What are ya doin'?"
"Causing me trouble gets you a death sentence. Telling me what I wanted to know means I make it quick." the Zealot replied casually. The barkeep went wide eyed.
"What!? Ya can't just kill me like a dog. I'm not even armed!" he pleaded.
"Never stopped me before." Daniel retorted, examining his blade.
"Oh dear God, please. I got a family!"
The crow grabbed him by the hair and slammed his head down on the counter, bringing his blade to rest on the Irishman's neck.
"Please don't. Oh Lord, have mercy. I got kids man."
Daniel brought the blade up, keeping it in line with Seamus' neck. Once the sword reached the maximum height of its journey, the Zealot took one last look at the begging barkeep before bringing the sword down hard.
"Oh God no!"
Seamus stood there for a moment with his eyes closed, unsure of what had happened. After a moment of silence, he opened his eyes and looked up to see the Crow, standing there with the blade mere centimeters from his neck. Both men shared the same look of surprise. Daniel was breathing heavily, he looked at the sword, then followed it up to the hand that had failed to bring it home.
"Wha.....?" Seamus stammered. After a lengthy pause the Zealot threw him away from the counter and toward the door.
"G-get out of here, now!" he shouted. The Irishman didn't argue and quickly ran out of the bar, stumbling over a few of the bodies that were strewn about.
For a moment, Daniel simply stood silently. He eventually looked at the mirror that was located behind the counter. Removing his hood, the Crow looked at his face. He looked over every detail, wrinkle, freckle, every imperfection. The Zealot looked into the eyes of a man he no longer recognized. He could think of no reason why he had spared that man's life. No amount of begging had ever discouraged the Zealot from following through with an execution. It didn't matter who the person was, or why they were there. He knew the motion, the precision, the follow through. Every aspect of killing another was completely natural to him, so why did he choke?
Then he thought about it. He thought about the pony from the Everfree, Trixie. Up until now, he hadn't thought back to why he had saved her life. He had every reason not to, but still he chose her over the Boy. He had given Jenkins some hollow excuses, excuses he was sure the Handyman had seen right through, yet he himself didn't know why he had done it.
Daniel sat down on one of the stools that lined the counter, setting his hood next to him and picking up a half empty bottle that was nearby. The Crow read the label; some generic brand vodka. He put his lips to the mouth and tipped the bottle back, downing what remained inside. Daniel had never liked the taste of alcohol, which was why he never really indulged. Thomas had always said it was an acquired taste, but every time the Zealot tried it, it never got better.
Dad's probably turning in his grave right now. He thought.
The bar door swung open and Daniel could hear footsteps as they approached. A woman sat down next to the Zealot, setting her rifle down next to her; a woman he knew well.
"Daniel Miller, as I live and breath." she said coyly, picking up a bottle as well.
"Cynthia." the Crow replied with a nod. He avoided eye contact, but could feel her eyes on him through the mirror.
"What brings you to this part of town?" the soldier inquired.
"I could ask you the same question." he quickly retorted. Cynthia stared at him a moment before replying.
"I was on my way to sentry duty when I saw you flying by, and decided to follow and give you some backup when I realized where you were going." she looked around the room. Crows were picking at the bodies of the scattered dead. "Though it seems like you did alright on your own."
"I can handle myself."
"Oh, no doubt about that. Word's spread like wildfire about what you did for the city. You really travel through time and space, and all that other sci-fi bullshit?" she laughed.
Daniel remained silent. Somehow, he had come to like Cynthia. She was an expert marksman, and was unbeatable with a sniper rifle, but he could always sense some inner conflict in her about working in Comstock's regime. The Crow was always careful about what he said around her.
Even so, it seemed as though everyone in Columbia had heard about his little adventure, so there wasn't really any harm in talking about it now.
He spoke up. "Yes, Columbia needed a new world, so I went out and found her one. Not even a dying world can keep me from serving the Prophet."
Cynthia raised an eyebrow. "Wow."
"A bit much to take in?" he guessed. She shrugged.
"Nah, not really. I've been stationed up on Monument Island more than a few times. I'd be lying if I said I haven't seen some crazy shit, but I guess eventually you just learn to accept that there are some things around here that aren't worth the headache." She downed her fist bottle and grabbed another one. "Most stuff would just confuse the hell out of me if you tried explaining them to me anyway. I'm just a soldier after all, and sometimes it's a blessing to have the blissful ignorance that comes with that."
Daniel nodded and grabbed another drink as well. Surprisingly to him, it really was starting to taste better.
"It's funny though. You always seemed like the kind of person who would want to know everything that's going on." he admitted.
"Nope. If I have some sort of impact on the outcome, then hell yeah I wanna know everything there is to learn, especially if it means saving some lives." she looked at him through the mirror, and his eyes met hers. "But most of the time, I know it's out of my hands. I'd rather not know about certain things at all, than simply knowing about them and realizing that there's nothing I can do to help."
His eyes sank back down to his bottle, so she quickly changed the subject.
"So what's it like down in this new world?" the sniper asked. "Meet any of the local tail?"
The Zealot shivered. "Literally." he muttered.
The trooper gave him a confused glance, but shrugged it off. "Learn anything interesting?"
"No!" he snapped, losing patience with her constant questions.
"You looked like you were thinking hard when I came in. Something on your mind, Dan?" she asked, a hint of concern in her voice.
"Nothing I want to talk about." he replied. This part of there conversation always came eventually. Although she seemed to be showing less restraint this time around, probably because she truly sensed that he was troubled.
"You know, I get that Zealots are supposed to be these hardened assholes, but I also know that you aren't a complete asshole. Maybe if you talked a bit....."
"Don't." he cut her off, knowing full well where she was taking all of this. Cynthia looked at him, as if debating with herself on whether she should pursue the matter or not. However, the decision was made for her when her pocket watch started ringing.
The sniper pulled it out and looked at the time.
"Shit, I gotta go. If I'm not on post in thirty minutes, Harris is gonna chew me out good." she finished her drink and grabbed her weapon, turning and putting a hand on Daniel's shoulder. "I still want to finish this talk."
The Crow nodded, and she reluctantly left the bar, leaving him with his thoughts once again. Naturally, his mind wandered back onto the subject of why he now seemed to hold some reservations about carrying out his duties as a Crow. Looking in the mirror, he once again saw the blue pony from the surface. She stood at the doorway with a look of surprise on her face, the same look she had given him after he saved her life.
Why in God's name did I have to do that? Why couldn't I have just let her die?
The unicorn started walking closer to the counter, growing larger both in the mirror and in his thoughts. He had barely spoken with her during their time together. The trip to Ponyville and the journey through the Everfree hadn't exactly been a bonding experience, especially for Daniel. He never grew attached to anyone, and he was certain that the pony was no exception. What was it about her that had caused him to make such a stupid decision?
"D-d-daniel, is that you?"
"Gah!" The Zealot shouted and jumped out of his seat, facing Trixie with an expression of shock on his exposed face. He now realized that she wasn't just some hallucination brought on by deep thought, she was actually in the room with him. The look of surprise wasn't a past memory, but her reaction to seeing him without his mask on. Quickly, he grabbed the hood and pulled it over his face, adjusting it so he could see properly through the eye holes.
"Trixie? What the hell are you doing here? How the hell did you get here!?" he demanded. Trixie didn't answer, still recovering from the surprise of seeing Daniel's actual face. He didn't look anything like what she'd imagined, meaning he looked completely normal for a cold blooded, black hooded, slave driving, murdering, sociopath.
The unicorn quickly collected herself. "Daniel, I need you to listen to this." she pleaded, holding up a Voxophone. Daniel studied it curiously.
"Where did you get that?" he questioned, growing more confused by the second second.
"Don't worry about that right now. Just press play!" she instructed, tossing the device to the Zealot.
He grabbed it out of the air and looked it over. The thing looked brand new, like it had never been used before. Sure enough however, there was a thick coil of the tape on one side, ready to play back the echoes of the past. Daniel looked at Trixie a final time before pressing a button and hearing the soft crackling of the Voxophone as it started spinning.