//------------------------------// // Chapter 13 - Target Practice // Story: Beneath the Mask // by TheDrunkenJinjo //------------------------------// “A chariot will be here within the hour.” Twilight announced. As soon as Twilight said those words, every jaw in the room hit the floor simultaneously. A stunned silence fell over the library as they all tried to process what exactly had just been said. Twilight even reread the letter just to make sure her eyes were not deceiving her. Unfortunately, there it was in the Princess’s immaculate hoofwriting, complete with signature and royal seal. “WHAT?!?!” Everyone in the room besides Twilight shouted in unison. “EEEEEEEPPP!!!” An alarmed squeal came from the couch as Fluttershy was startled out of her slumber. Everyone looked to where Fluttershy had been to see nothing but empty space and a bit of kicked-up dust. Confused, they all scanned the room for her, but came up short until they heard the distinct sound of chattering teeth from behind the couch. The group peered over the couch to find the timid pegasus curled into a ball, trembling with her hooves on her head. “Fluttershy, what in tarnation are ya doin’ back there? This ain’t a time to be foolin’ around!” Applejack berated. Fluttershy slowly opened one of her clenched eyes and looked up at her friend. “...I-Is it s-s-safe...?” She asked fearfully. Applejack sighed and rolled her eyes. “It wasn't ever dangerous to begin with! Now get out from behind there. We got a serious situation on our hooves.” She said, returning to the other side of the sofa. Fluttershy shortly followed after to find all of her friends, with the exception of Rainbow Dash, gathered around with anxious looks. “Situation? W-What kind of situation?” She said hesitantly. “Braxton has been summoned to Canterlot Castle by Princess Celestia, along with the six of us.” Twilight said, holding up the letter with her magic. Fluttershy scanned the letter and had a similar reaction to it as the others. “W-What?!” She exclaimed quietly, “B-But so soon? You just told the Princess about him less than an hour ago!” She stated. “It seems to me that your Princess isn’t one to wait around.” Braxton said idly, still holding the ice pack to his left eye. Fluttershy looked over to him for the first time since she woke up and, when she saw the bruises on his face, instantly gasped in horror. “Oh my! Are you alright?!” Fluttershy asked frantically. Without waiting for an answer, she took Braxton’s head in her hoofs and examined every inch. “Oh dear, you have a huge bruise and a black eye! I don’t see any knots or swelling on your head, though, so you probably don’t have a concussion. I can’t really tell without my medical supplies, though. Oh, if only I had thought to bring them! How could you be so careless, Fluttershy?!” She berated herself as she continued to fawn over Braxton. Braxton grabbed her hooves gently and pulled them off of his head. “Fluttershy, I’m fine. I don’t have a concussion, just a few bruises. And don’t beat yourself up so much. You couldn’t have known I’d get into it with Rainbow Dash.” Braxton said as he put the ice pack back over his eye. Fluttershy gasped again. “That’s right! Where is Rainbow Dash? I have to examine her, too!” She said, looking around the room for her friend. “Relax, Fluttershy, Dash is fine. I already took care of her injuries with my magic. She’s upstairs in the bathroom now washing up.” Twilight explained reassuringly. Fluttershy visibly calmed down at her friends words and fluttered back onto the couch. She muttered quietly, “O-Oh, okay then.” and sheepishly smiled as she slipped out of caretaker mode and back into her usual self. ‘Man, that’s the most I’ve heard her talk all day!’ Braxton thought, amazed by the drastic personality change. “Anyway, back to the matter at hoof,” Twilight said, “As the letter stated a chariot will be here shortly.” She turned to Braxton. “We have to get you prepared for an audience with the Princess!” Twilight said with enthusiasm. Braxton scratched his chin with his free hand. “Hmm, you know, I’ve done a lot of stuff, but I’ve never met royalty before. And I definitely never expected to meet your ruler so soon. What’s the big rush?” He asked. “Well, it says here that the Princess read over my notes and that she, as well as Princess Luna, are very enthused to welcome you personally. They also wish to talk with you face to face and learn even more about your world and your people.” Twilight summarized the letter. Rarity coughed in an overly dramatic fashion to catch the human’s attention. “So, Braxton, I seem to recall you saying something about leaving town, hmm? Foolishly striking it out on your own without any resources, if I’m correct? Traversing the harsh landscape without a clue as to how you’ll survive, if I’m right? Well, I do suppose your plans have changed now that the Princesses have summoned you to Canterlot, yes?” She said with a flip of her mane. The triumphant air Rarity gave off was almost palpable as she stood there with a puffed out chest and a haughty smirk. Braxton gave a snort of amused disbelief at the unicorn’s superior attitude. Not about to let her get a leg up on him, he said, “Darn, I hate to burst your bubble, Rarity, but unfortunately, I do still plan on leaving.” Braxton spoke in a faux regretful tone that was almost as thick as hers had been. Braxton inwardly chuckled as he watched Rarity visibly deflate and knit her brow in irritation. She opened her mouth to berate the human on his stubbornness, until Braxton held up a finger to silence her upcoming tirade. “But!” Braxton exclaimed with a grin, “I guess I’ll have to stick around at least long enough to meet your rulers. After all, it would be terribly rude of me to deny a royal summons, yeah? And besides, I promised a certain little filly that I wouldn’t move on without saying goodbye first.” He said, remembering his obligation towards Sweetie Belle. Rarity stood dumbfounded for a moment before clearing her throat and turning her nose up in a snobbish manner. “Y-Yes, well, I suppose that will have to do...for now, at least. But don’t you dare think for one instant that I have given up on talking you out of this foolish endeavor!” She said with rock-solid determination. Braxton rolled his one visible eye. “Believe me, Rarity, the thought never even crossed my mind.” He deadpanned. However, there was some truth to his words. Braxton could tell that the unicorn was not one to quit once she set her mind to something, and he held no delusions that she would stop trying to convince him to stay. Twilight cleared her throat to return the group’s attention to her. “If you two are finished, Braxton, I need to very quickly brief you on proper etiquette when in the company of the Princesses.” She said with professionalism. “Alright then, Twilight. Brief away.” Braxton said, leaning back. Twilight cleared her throat again and said, “Okay, first off, when you meet the Princesses for the first time, you must remember to bow--” “Hey, Twilight, what’s this funny-looking doohickey?” The unicorn was interrupted by a bubbly voice from across the room. The group by the couch turned around to see Pinkie Pie, sat on her haunches, inspecting a silver metallic object with a thoughtful expression. “Is it some kinda new science-y gadget? Ooh, ooh, I know! It’s a new type of party favor, right?!” Pinkie’s face broke into a wide grin. “How does it work, huh?! Looks like there’s a hole here at the front! Do you blow into it like a noisemaker?” She sucked in a comically large amount of air, wrapped her lips around the barrel of the object, and exhaled as forcefully as she could. As Pinkie pulled her mouth off the weapon and peeked into the hole, hoof hovering dangerously close to the trigger, Braxton’s eyes widened with pure terror as the implications of what she was doing registered in his mind. “Pinkie! What the HELL do you think you’re doing?!!” Braxton shouted at the top of his lungs. Pinkie Pie shrieked in surprise and dropped Braxton’s gun, which hit the floor with a clatter. Braxton tossed his ice pack to the side and vaulted over the couch as he rushed to pick up the revolver. “W-What?! What did I do wrong?” Pinkie asked as Braxton wiped the barrel clean of spittle. When he was finished, he looked down at the pink pony with the sternest glare he could muster. “Pinkie, I want you listen very carefully. This is very important. Don’t ever, ever look down the barrel of a loaded gun! And especially never put your mouth on it!” Braxton warned. “A...gun? You mean that doohickey? Why, what’s wrong with it?” Pinkie pointed to the weapon in his hand. Braxton breathed a sigh through his nose. “Er, yeah. This ‘doohickey’ is not a toy. It’s extremely dangerous and--” “Hey, cool! That looks just like those alien blasters I see in comic books!” Spike said excitedly as he and the others made their way over from the couch. “Is that one yours?! Hah, I bet you use that thing to destroy space invaders and interstellar threats that come down to wreak havoc on the world! At least, that’s what the heroes always do in the comics. You gotta let me check it out!” Spike reached for the weapon but was denied when Braxton lifted it beyond his reach. “No, Spike. Like I said, this isn’t a toy or something out of a comic book. It’s very real and capable of doing some serious damage,” Braxton said. “What, that li’l ol’ thing? It’s barely bigger than my hoof! How much damage can that thing really do?” Applejack said skeptically. Braxton frowned at the farmer’s naivety. “Trust me, AJ, this little thing packs a huge punch. It’s basically a miniature cannon,” He explained. “Ooh, like my party cannon?! You said that doohickey was loaded, right? What’s it loaded with, huh?! Candy? Balloon animals? Hot sauce?! Oh, I know! Candy balloon animals covered in hot sauce!! Mmm-mmm!” Pinkie spoke rapidly and punctuated her spiel with an over-exaggerated licking of her lips. The rest just stared blankly at Pinkie after she had finished talking. “...What?” She asked with a shrug. Braxton shook his head and, realizing he would get nowhere by trying to explain to them, decided that a demonstration was in order. He looked around for something invaluable that he could use for target practice, and spotted an apple sitting on a nearby table. “Hey, do you all see that apple?” Braxton asked, pointing to the fruit. The ponies and dragon drew their attention to where he was pointing, looked back at him, and nodded. “Keep an eye on it. Don’t blink or you’ll miss it,” He said as he took aim with his revolver. “Er, miss what, dear?” Asked a confused Rarity. “You’ll see. Oh, and cover your ears, too,” Braxton said as he cocked the hammer back. “Umm...why?” Twilight asked. “Just do it. All of you,” Braxton ordered. They exchanged confused glances with each other before one by one doing as the human directed. Seeing that they all had their hooves, and in Spike’s case claws, secured over their ears, Braxton leveled the gun at the apple, steadied it, and fired. *BOOM!* The shot from the revolver was almost deafening to the ponies, even with their ears covered, but that was nothing compared to what happened a split second later. ‘Blasted to smithereens’ was the only phrase to describe the apple’s condition after the imperceptibly fast projectile connected with it. Chunks of apple flew everywhere, hitting the floor, walls, and even ceiling. Yet the projectile didn’t stop, or even slow down for that matter. It continued on it’s path until it hit the wall beyond the now destroyed apple, and only came to a complete halt when it had buried itself about an inch into the hard wood. And the only recognizable thing left of the former fruit on the table was a yellowish mush and a bit of apple skin. Braxton looked over to the ponies to see them staring at the wreckage with pupils shrunken to pinpricks and jaws hanging open loosely. Knowing that he had made his point, Braxton lowered the weapon and heaved a sigh. “Pinkie Pie, I don’t want to scare you, but if this thing had gone off while you were looking at it,” Braxton nodded his head to the obliterated apple, “That would’ve been your head,” He said. Pinkie kept her eyes glued to the wreckage and she visibly shuddered at the thought. Suddenly, they all heard a gust of wind from the staircase and whipped their heads around to see Rainbow Dash standing at the bottom. She was soaking wet from head to hoof and looking around the library frantically. “What the heck was that?! I heard some loud explosion and...I...” Dash trailed off when she got a look at the remains of the apple splattered across the room. Her gaze drifted from that and past all of her friends before coming to a stop on the human. She lowered her eyes to the still smoking gun in his hand. Then back to the wreckage. Then back to the gun. Her eyes went back and forth like this before her brain finally put two and two together. “YOU!” Dash roared, her face becoming a mask of rage. She rocketed towards the human at high speed and almost made impact before a sharp pull on her tail halted her mid-flight. “What the--!” She exclaimed. Dash saw that her tail was covered in a purple aura that was all too familiar to her. Sure enough, Twilight’s horn was aglow with the same aura as she used her magic to hold back the brash pegasus. “Rainbow Dash, what are you doing?! And why are you all wet?!” Twilight asked angrily. “I was just using your shower when all of a sudden ‘BOOM’! I hear an explosion coming from downstairs! I sped down here to find this crazy mess and this thing standing right in the middle of it!” Dash pointed to the apple-splattered walls and Braxton respectively. “And I’m willing to bet my wings that you’re the cause of whatever’s going on down here!” She spat accusingly at the human. “Impressive, Dash. You put that together all by yourself?” He sarcastically asked, causing Dash to grit her teeth in irritation. “W...W-What is that t-thing?” The timid voice of Fluttershy asked fearfully. She was staring at the gun with wide, scared eyes, an expression that the rest of the ponies soon began to mimic. Braxton blew the remaining smoke from the gun barrel and said, “I told you all that this is not a toy. This isn’t some made-up tool from a story. It’s a very real and highly dangerous weapon that’s not to be taken lightly. It was designed to seriously injure and, in some cases, even kill.” Braxton spoke in a shockingly grave voice. At the mention of the last word, a collective shiver went up the ponies spines. “D-Did you s-say..." Twilight swallowed hard before uttering the final word, "K-Kill...?” she asked, backing away from Braxton. The human simply nodded. “I knew it!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, “I knew you were up to no good! You show up here, bring that thing with you, and just wait until we have our backs turned to wipe us out! See girls? It tried to win you guys over, but I told you it couldn’t be trusted.” She said with eyes narrowed at the human. “Oh, come off it, Dash! Use your head for a second! I’ve had this gun since you all met me in the forest. If I had wanted to hurt you, any of you, don’t you think I’ve had plenty of opportunities?” Braxton addressed them all now. “Hell, this is the weapon I used to save Sweetie Belle from that monster in there! If I had wanted to see her hurt, why would I have jumped in at all?” He defended. “Wait a moment, Braxton.” Rarity spoke up, “You used that to defeat the manticore? Hmm, that would explain the explosions we heard coming from the Everfree earlier today.” She recalled. The room fell silent as the ponies contemplated what Braxton said. They realized that he was right. If what he said was true and he had the weapon the whole time, then he had every chance in the world to use it against them. “Did you kill it?” Fluttershy asked in a surprisingly strong voice. “What?” Braxton said, looking down at her. “The manticore. Did you kill it?” Fluttershy repeated with a hard stare. Braxton was almost startled by usually timid pegasus’s straightforwardness, as well as the sudden surge of intensity that her gaze held. Braxton shook his head. “No. I didn’t kill it, just shot it in the leg. It limped off back into the forest after that, so I didn’t have to take it any further.” He said truthfully. Fluttershy continued to stare up at him unblinkingly. As she looked into his eyes, the stare seemed to grow even more intense, to the point where it began to feel to Braxton as though she were almost staring past his eyes and into his soul. Braxton was just about to avert his eyes to escape her powerful gaze, when suddenly Fluttershy’s eyes softened and her mouth curled into a small smile. She nodded once, as if to confirm something with herself, and finally lowered her eyes from Braxton’s. The moment she did, Braxton released a breath he didn’t even realize he was holding. “Ah got a question for ya, Braxton.” Applejack said, gaining his attention, “Ya said that weapon you've got can kill, right?” Braxton nodded. “...Ya’ll ever have to do that to somepony?” She asked quietly. All eyes were once again on Braxton as everyone in the room awaited his answer. Braxton clenched his jaw at Applejack’s question. “Look,” He responded after moment, “I’m not going to sugarcoat things with you. I’ve done a lot of things and have been to a lot of places. Some not as nice as others. And I’ve gotten into a couple of situations where I’ve had to use this.” Braxton held up his gun for emphasis. “In those situations, I have hurt some people. Pretty badly, in some cases. But I’ve never killed before. Taking someone’s life is just...not a line I’m willing to cross.” Braxton said solemnly. The ponies looked at each other with concerned expressions, none of them really sure what to think. “Braxton, we’ll be right back. Girls, huddle,” Twilight announced. The other five mares nodded and followed Twilight to the other side of the room, well out of earshot of Braxton. *************** “So what do you all think?” Twilight whispered. “Isn’t it obvious?! We take that thing away from him before he can hurt anypony! And maybe convince the Princess to lock him in the dungeon for good measure!” Rainbow suggested. “I think that may be going too far, Rainbow Dash. While I agree that the weapon is dangerous, Braxton is not. He has shown us no ill will thus far,” Rarity said. “Rarity’s right,” Applejack agreed, “If he really wanted to, Brax could’ve used that thing a long time ago. Plus, what he said about never killing anypony wasn’t no lie.” “Yeah, but that means so was the part about him hurting somepony before! I still say we take it!” Rainbow protested. “What do you think, Pinkie?” Twilight asked. “Well, Braxie did stop me from accidentally ‘sploding my fluffy-wuffy head like he did that apple, so I trust him for that! But Dashie’s got a point, too! I think that we should probably tell the Princess about this and see what she thinks!” Pinkie Pie said, delivering some uncharacteristically sound advice. “What about you, Fluttershy?” Asked Twilight. “O-Oh! Well, um, I think that we can trust Braxton. H-He didn’t kill the manticore, even when he had the chance, s-so--eep!” Fluttershy cut herself off with a squeak when Rainbow Dash flew into her face “How can you know that, Fluttershy?!” Rainbow demanded. “For all you know that thing could be lying to you! To all of us!” Fluttershy looked out the corner of her eye to where Braxton was making small talk with Spike. Her mouth formed a small smile and she looked back at Dash with unusual confidence in her eyes. “I just know, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said. Rainbow arched her eyebrows in surprise at her friend’s sureness about her opinion. Twilight closed her eyes as she thought deeply about the right course of action. She weighed her friends’ opinions with her own, coupled with her first-hoof experience about what the weapon was capable of. Twilight’s mind worked like a machine as she considered the possible scenarios and their consequences, as well as what she knew about Braxton, and how far she could trust him. Finally reaching a satisfactory conclusion, she opened her eyes and walked back over to Braxton and Spike, with her friends following close behind. *************** Braxton finished chatting with Spike and noticed the six mares returning from their discussion. He stood there silently as they took their place in front of him, eagerly awaiting the verdict. Twilight cleared her throat and said, “Okay, Braxton. After giving it some thought, we’ve decided to confiscate your weapon for the time being and report to Princess Celestia in order to get her opinion on the matter,” Braxton rolled his eyes. “Yeah, can’t say I didn’t see that one coming,” He said dejectedly. Twilight’s face softened. “It’s not that we don’t trust you, Braxton. You’ve already proven to us that you’re not at all dangerous, or a threat. But that weapon clearly is. Far too dangerous for anypony to have without the Princess knowing about it. I hope you understand,” Twilight said remorsefully. Braxton clicked open the revolver’s cylinder, unloaded the last three bullets, and put them in his pocket. “Yeah, I get it, Twilight. Do what you have to do,” Braxton said monotonously. He flipped the gun and handed it to Twilight stock first. Twilight magicked it out of his hand and into a nearby saddlebag, which she then rested on her back. “Thanks for your cooperation, Braxton. You made this a lot easier for us,” Twilight said with a smile. Braxton just nodded. Suddenly, a knock echoed from the library door. Twilight opened it to find a white pegasus stallion dressed in royal golden armor on the other side. “Twilight Sparkle?” The guard staunchly asked. “Yes? What is it?” Twilight replied. The stallion pointed to his right with a hoof. “Your chariot to Canterlot has arrived, madam.” He said. Twilight peeked her head out the door to see a pristine white chariot parked right beside the building. Another pegasus guard was at one set of reins, and there was another set beside him for his partner. “Oh! Thank you very much, guard. We’ll be right out!” Twilight announced. The guard nodded stiffly and returned to the chariot to set the reins back onto himself. “Come on, everypony! Our ride is here!” Twilight called from the doorway. The group filed out of the door one by one, but Twilight stopped Spike at the door. “Spike, I want you to stay here. Keep an eye on the library while we’re gone.” Spike gave a salute and walked back inside the library, closing the door behind him. As Braxton walked by the pegasi guards he couldn’t help but notice that they weren’t giving him odd looks like the townsponies had. They simply threw a casual glance his way, before returning to their rigid, eyes-forward stance. “Hey, you two.” Braxton said to them, “How come you’re not looking at me funny like every other pony I’ve seen today?” He questioned. “The Princess informed us before we departed that we would be carrying an, uh...unusual passenger. And I’d say that you fit that bill pretty freakin’ well.” The one on the left commented. ‘Can’t argue with that, I guess.’ Braxton thought, shrugging. He climbed aboard the chariot next to Twilight and asked, “So, where is this Canterlot place anyway?” Twilight pointed at a nearby mountain, and Braxton’s jaw dropped as he beheld the giant castle city on the side of it. “There it is! In all it’s glory.” Twilight proclaimed. Braxton swallowed hard. “Okay, first of all, wouldn't have been my first choice of real estate. Secondly, how are we going to get up there in this carriage? And thirdly, I’m just a teeny, tiny bit afraid of--” “Prepare for takeoff!” One of the guards loudly announced. There was a hard shake as the carriage lifted off the ground, thanks to a few mighty flaps of the pegasus guards wings, and Braxton dared to look over the edge. His heart skipped a beat when he saw that the carriage was already well above the treehouse library. And still climbing. That day, many confused citizens of Ponyville looked to the skies as a shrill, girlish scream could be heard fading away towards Canterlot Mountain.