War In The Dark
*** Coming into Place ***
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"I have what you're looking for." Cloudchaser pushed the files over to Minuette, her other hoof taking motor control on the wheel.
The convertible raced along the highway as the billowing winds blew against the two ponies. Minuette received the file and opened it. "Impressive, with this kind of capability it's no wonder you got promoted so quickly." She browsed through the files containing information pertaining to several mafia big-shots, including Hooven Stone and Quarat Quartz.
Luna's moon hung high above the skies as thin clouds tumbled past the stars that spread out all over the tranquil night.
"You've been all over the police force. You've seen your share of crime and drama." The pegasus said, slowing down the vehicle. She turned into a street.
"You're right, but I'm not the bragging type." Minuette scanned the photographs taken the mafia characters, taken via security cameras. She took notice of a particular old stallion that she remembered seeing after the bank heist incident. Minuette squinted at the photos and floated them to Cloudchaser.
"Who's this guy on the right?" She tapped on the photograph.
"Oh, his name is Quarat Quartz, renowned gem cutter. He owns a chain called the Coruscadia. He had affiliations with the Northern Manehatten Mafia, but do not participate in their businesses. Honest guy, really. Too bad he has lung cancer, at its last stage too, which explains the vocal aid he carries with him."
"Intriguing. You've done more work than the chief's ever gonna do in a month." Minuette quipped, licking the side of her mouth.
"Where would you like to eat tonight?" Cloudchaser asked, turning the car down a corner.
"I'm on a diet. I reckon hardworking ponies like yourself will stay in during lunch to work, you look the type anyways. You should go carry on your business, call me if you've found anything." Minuette put down the files on her lap and rested a hoof on the door.
"You don't have a marefriend, or coltfriend for that matter. And you're not looking for a partner. You do know that a lot of your colleagues think that you're the reclusive-gay kind." Cloudchaser sneakily gave a leering glance at the unicorn, who was engrossed with the files again. "Are you?"
Minuette seemed to not catch anything she said then, she jabbed Cloudchaser on her forehoof. "That's right, hows the situation with the financial company?"
Cloudchaser cleared her throat. She really is quite clueless, Cloud thought to herself. "Everything's fine, they run a legitimate business and there's nothing suspicious on their side."
"Then why did that lass decide to hit them?" Minuette asked no one in particular, burying herself in the files. "Oh, what did you ask me just now?" She turned to the pegasus, who was occupied with staying on the road.
Before she could answer, Minuette cut her off snappily. "Never mind that, could you just drop me off by my car? That'll be nice. And remember, call me if anything crops up."
Cloudchaser blew out a long gasp of breath and nodded.
---
Amethyst stopped her vehicle a distance away from the building, waiting, pondering. The time to take action still waits, for she wasn't sure if the mare will come. No, Amethyst was confident she would.
The lights in the building still shone, meaning that there will be guards stationed for night duty. The intersection ahead was barren; no cars, no ponies. It felt like a ghost city. The traffic lights flickered green, yellow, then red.
Amethyst rubbed her mane, coughing a little. If anything does hitch off, she has a plan, also the product of her insight. She felt her coat pockets and hovered out a bottle of pills - Abraxane. Seemingly, those pills will make anypony's heart sink. Not literally, anyways.
Amethyst heard a rumbling and turned to look at the intersection; a car had just pulled up in front of the building. This will go seamlessly, Amethyst chuckled and shook her head. She locked her eyes onto the blue unicorn as she cantered up the steps.
"You're reporting to CEIB, who's this? Oh, you're looking for the chief? Hold on..." The officer behind the counter said. "Chief Lyra, third line!"
Lyra trotted over and floated up the telephone, puzzled at who could be calling so late in the night. "Hello?"
"You've got somepony named Minuette who's here to check the crime scene." The security guard on duty explained, trying to pull the lid off a chocolate powder tin. She had the telephone floating beside her ear. "Our superior instructed us to call in for these kinds of situations." She spoke in her monotone voice, still attempting to brew herself some hot chocolate.
"Don't care about her, she's not in charge of this case anyway. If she comes again, please inform me." Lyra said, her expression turning sour as soon as she heard that Minuette was trying to be funny again. She hung up and trotted off. "I'm not that easy to go picking on, hmpf." Lyra grunted and stormed off.
Minuette laid both her hooves on the marble desk, watching the guard as she messed about the flask. She was waiting for her approval, which was obviously not the case.
"Your chief says that you're not in charge of this case, if you're unsatisfied, please call her to clarify." The guard spoke dryly, flipping the lid of the flask. She closed it upon realizing that she already added the hot water. "I'm gonna lock up, you should go already." The guard said, cantering up towards the main entrance.
Minuette followed her, but not before sneaking the packet of milk powder into her pockets. The telephone rang again, and the guard turned her tail to pick it up. "Sorry, please see yourself out."
Minuette trotted towards the door, but she did not open it. Instead, she pulled the handles with her magic and focused her magical energy. It took a few milliseconds too long, but she managed to obscure herself with the cloaking spell. Minuette disappeared from view and quietly snuck towards the outer corridor.
"Hello? Hello?" The guardsmare glanced over to the doors, only to see them swinging shut. That detective must've gone. She thought to herself and pressed the phone to her ear. Strange, nopony was on the other side. Somepony must have called the wrong number.
Minuette appeared again as her magic diffused. "Hello? Hello?" Minuette swiftly hung up. That was the first time she'd ever tried something like this, but it worked! Minuette tried not to grin like a madpony as she trotted down the hallway, her thoughts still on the phone trick.
"What the flying feathery fiddlesticks?" The guard stepped back, her eyes darting over between her hot chocolate making ingredients. There was something missing, the vital piece of the puzzle to this delicious steamy chocolate. "Where the clopping Luna's crap is my milk powder?" She glanced about, still befuddled by her disappearing ingredients.
---
Minuette's horn flickered dimly under the blanket of darkness that surrounded the hallway. She placed her hooves carefully, stepping towards the financial department block. Minuette peered through the glass door, it was locked, of course.
Minuette went over to the number pad security lock, staring at the buttons intently.
Amethyst was observing from her car, from a small monitor she had brought along for this purpose. She had the entire level covered with security cameras. She saw Minuette staring at the keypad lock, and facehoofed immediately.
"Damn it, I forgot to tell her the password." Amethyst muttered to herself as she kept her irises fixated on the unicorn. She was probably more nervous than the detective herself.
Meanwhile, Minuette tore apart the packet of milk powder and gently blew it over the buttons. After the dust had settled, only a few buttons had the powder stuck to it, indicating that it had been used recently.
"How many combinations?" Minuette asked herself and counted the possible sequences in her head. "I always hated this, choosing four from ten... I should've brought my calculator." Minuette mumbled to herself, jabbing away at the buttons.
"Argh, nine three five one girl... you can do it..." Amethyst leaned on her hoof, muttering to herself over and over again, as if Minuette could hear her if she tried hard enough.
Beepbeepbeepbeep, beepbeepbeepbeep...
The beeping rang throughout the corridor, making every second past more tense than the last. Minuette was furiously jabbing away at the keypad, beads of sweat trickling down her mane. She stuck out her tongue and continued her assault on the buttons.
Click!
Minuette's ear perked up as her eyes trained onto the lock status, it was green. The door snapped open invitingly, it was surprisingly satisfying.
She stepped into the pitch-dark offices, blinking to adjust her night vision better. Minuette trotted past the desks and tables, shining her horn around the room. She trotted into the next section, gazing deeper into the rooms. Minuette was just going to turn her head when she paused, her eyes trailed onto the grates above.
She shone her light on it, specifically the corners. Sure enough, there was a missing bolt. Minuette shifted her sights towards the other corners; the bolts were tightly fastened and there was no reason that one bolt was suspiciously missing. Unless...
"She's leading me on her trail..." Minuette floated out the bolt she had received earlier and examined it. It looks like a good fit. Even if it wasn't a fit, she'll check it out anyway.
Minuette quickly unscrewed the plates and clambered into the vents above. Once her torso was halfway up, Minuette shot a glance down both sides of the vent. It was clean. Clean and dusty at the same time. She closed her eyes and mentally mapped the layout of the level. There was something wrong about the department on the other side of the floor, surely there must be something there.
With that, Minuette pushed herself up and crawled down the cold metallic vents. She turned the only corner, then another, and another. After what seemed like forever, Minuette reached the other department. She knew because there were voices coming from below.
In the department below, there were a group of ponies sitting around a square table. It seemed as though they were playing cards. Minuette shone the light down the corner, and she was shocked to see several tools lying over a grate. There were wires and all sorts of equipment including a branded chisel and some sort of fuse.
Minuette creeped over to the cover and peered down into the room below. It was the same vault that Amethyst had discovered the day before, but Minuette didn't know that. She tugged at the wire to reveal a small camera at the end.
Minuette shone her light at the camera and peered into it. Unbeknownst to her however, Amethyst could see her clearly.
"Hmm, pretty face." Amethyst smiled as Minuette made funny faces at the camera. She shook her head and pulled out a the detonator from her pocket. It was the same detonator from the day before. The only thing different was that it was wired up to something. Poor Minuette, Amethyst thought to herself, chuckling. The detective have no idea what was about to happen.
Amethyst pushed the only button on the detonator.
Somewhere in the vent, the grates sparked brilliantly, showering smoke into the vault room below. The ponies turned as soon the sparking began, the burnt smell of metal filled the air. One of the ponies, clearly the leader of the bunch, threw down his cards and cantered up the utility stairs.
Minuette coughed as smoke erupted in her face, and quickly crawled backwards the way she came. The door burst open, and the stallion looked up at the grate to see the fuse still burning away. The smoke had shrouded the entire room.
When he climbed to remove the plating, Minuette was long gone. He did manage to find the camera, which he quickly ran out to warn the others of a potential intrusion. He sent his friends out into the hallway to search while he picked up a transceiver, "Maya, over!"
Down in the carpark, Maya was taking a nap in the back seat of a SUV. She lazily dragged her transceiver and put the whole device in her mouth. "Copy..." The two ponies in the front seat shrugged.
"Intrusion detected! I repeat-"
"Got it." Maya sprung awake and so did the front passengers. "There's an intrusion, right?" She slumped back onto the seat, exhausted and close to dozing off again. "There's an intrusion..." She spoke to the two ponies. They were staring at her dead in the eye, as though waiting for some sort of inspirational speech from the mare. Maya gaped between the two ponies with a tired expression.
She forced her eyelids open and hissed, "There's an intrusion!" They two ponies are still staring at her. Maya took a deep breath and jerked one of them, "Intrusion, go!" She hopped off her seat and shut the door behind her. The two ponies, including one that was leaning against a concrete pillar followed her.
Maya dropped her transceiver as the others ran towards the carpark exit, they hesitated when they saw the mare stumbling to pick up the device. "For the love of - just go! I'll enter from the other exit." She waved off and scooped up the transceiver, now galloping towards the other direction.
Minuette cantered down the hallway but slid to a stop when she heard the door from the other department clicking open. She flailed her hooves about and turned an immediate corner just as several ponies wielding pistols entered the main hallway.
Hooven sat on the back seat while his chauffeur drove him down the freeway, everything was going accordingly. The blue diamond will stay locked up until the next deal. Hopefully, he could sell it for a much lucrative price, given the number of ponies that have died just to get their hooves on the gem.
Just this moment, his cellphone started to ring.
"Hello?"
"Boss, there's something going on in the company." A voice on the other side disclosed.
Hooven furrowed his brows. That could mean anything. The diamond could have been stolen. "Is the diamond still there?" He asked with a worried expression.
"Yes, but somepony installed a camera in the vents, they could be in the building right now."
Hooven paused, his mind was racing. The diamond must not fall into another pony's hooves! He quickly gave an order, "Stalker, Take the case, meet me in the car park within fifteen minutes. Protect the diamond at all costs!"
"Got it." Stalker nodded.
The group of ponies rushed down the hallway, their pistols drawn. They were determined to flush out the intruder and secure the diamond. As they disappeared down the end of the corridor, Minuette painfully pushed the hose reel cabinet open.
She hissed out a breath and plucked herself free from the small cabinet. Minuette had to squeeze herself between the hose and metal walls, which was not a pleasant experience. She stepped out of the cabinet, tripping on the main hose.
As Minuette fell onto the cold floor, the coiled hose plummeted on top of her. "Ow, never squeezing myself in tight spaces again, holy Celestia..." She muttered, pushing herself from the ground and untangling herself from the coil. Minuette peeked around the corner of the wall, making sure that no one had seen her or heard her.
She chose the hallway leading to the delivery department and began to trot down it cautiously, looking over her head every now and then.
Ring! Ring!
"Holy wholesome holy balls!" Minuette sibilated, throwing up her coat and frantically digging for her cellphone. What a horrible time to be calling! Minuette rounded a corner and backed herself against the wall. She quickly hung up; this was simply not the time to be answering a call!
The door swung open with a slam, as Hooven's ponies returned to the source of the noise with pistols aiming down the hallway. They evidently heard the loud ringing of the phone, and had turned around to check.
Minuette galloped the other direction, making her way to the emergency exit. There were two emergency passages in the building, one on every side of the level. When the ponies entered the corridor from the emergency exit, Minuette plunged into the other exit and down the stairs.
Minuette tried to keep calm, but her rapid clopping down the stairs eventually got the attention of Hooven's squad. They gave chase down the same stairway.
Minuette ran down the stairs, every hard step pulsating through her hooves painfully. She stopped for a second upon hearing hoofsteps coming from the top. Minuette was certain that they were hot on her hooves. She had to throw them off.
She jumped down the flight of stairs, skipping about five steps. Minuette purposely tried to stomp as hard as she could; to simulate a sound of somepony stopping abruptly. Minuette swung the access door wide open with a loud bang and held it there. With that, she continued down the stairs, trying to reduce her noise level and not just slamming her hooves randomly.
The group of ponies clambered down the stairs, only to see the access door swing close. Somepony had obviously ran through there. They quickly raced through in hot pursuit.
Minuette pushed herself into the lobby of the fifth floor, confident that she had shaken off her company. She sneakily peeked past the wall and down the hallway. It was empty and dark, just like all the other corridors.
Ring! Ring!
Minuette slid over the corner and backed herself against the wall. She fumbled for the cellphone, trying to refrain herself from swearing. "Hello!?" She drew a sharp breath and twitched restlessly.
"Why did you hang up?" A monotone voice, almost bored, sounded through the line.
"Who is this?" Minuette asked, peering down the hallway.
"It's me, detective Minuette." Amethyst said, still lying on her seat, her eyes half closed in weariness.
Realization struck Minuette like a hammer to the head as she trotted down the corridor casually. "Ah... Do you have any idea how much trouble that bolt have costed me? I almost died! This game... it's very entertaining, isn't it?" Minuette proceeded to push the elevator button.
"Don't bother taking the lift, go for a little trot." Amethyst chuckled. She was enjoying herself, moreover, she could see the detective right now.
Minuette glanced around, puzzled, eyes looking for a hidden camera somewhere in her sights. She squinted at one of the small alcove near the ceiling, and sure enough, there was a small camera propped up with a tiny tripod.
"You can stop looking, somepony's coming up."
Minuette gaped at the elevator controls; it has stopped on the first floor. The ponies might be coming up right now. It was a risk, but Amethyst could be right. She'll be no use to Amethyst if she was killed, so why should she be lying?
Minuette floated up a trash bin and braced herself, taking her position behind the wall. Amethyst's voice cackled through again, "There are three ponies with three guns." She sighed. "What do you have? A bin?" Her voiced sounded almost comical.
Minuette wasn't convinced. She stood her ground, her metallic weapon hovering beside her. "I abhor ponies who try to deceive me."
"Me too."
"Fine, I'll play along." Minuette gently dropped the bin and shuffled down the corridor. "Now what?"
"Go down through the other emergency exit." Amethyst requested.
Minuette quietly shut the access door behind her, treading carefully. "Do I go down?" She asked, forcing her words between her teeth.
"Yes. What time is it?" Amethyst continued.
Minuette stared at her cellphone for a moment before answering, "Ten twenty-nine, do you not have a phone or watch?" She hissed.
"I do, in fact." Amethyst whispered. "What floor are you on?"
"Fifth floor."
"Ah, how many floors can you make within a minute?" Amethyst asked intently.
Minuette furrowed her brows and swiped her tail impatiently, "What are you trying to do?"
"Nothin', I just wanted to inform you that there's an emergency access door that closes automatically at ten thirty sharp." Amethyst glanced at the display on the dashboard. "You've got thirty seconds - no, twenty eight..."
Minuette froze for a split second before scrambling down the flight of stairs wildly.
"Twenty seven... twenty six..."
Minuette hopped down the stairs. She must make it, that's her only way out and she can't afford to get caught. Minuette slipped and lost her balance but managed to keep herself on all four hooves. Ignoring that, she continued her climb down the endless stairs.
---
Minuette was sweating and panting for air, but she made it. By how much she doesn't know, but she knew that the creamed-coloured security door was right in front of her. Minuette caught her breath and placed her phone against her ear.
"Ten... nine... eight..." Amethyst was still counting.
"Hey, there's an alarm system!" Minuette's eyes darted around the lock and alarm. There was a handle extending across the width of the door, it was attached to the system.
Amethyst didn't tell her how to open it, and maintained her countdown, "Six... five... four..." Minuette wasn't going to ask any more questions. She slammed her hooves onto the handle and attempted to push it open, but she was rewarded with a shrill alarm that reverberated throughout the shaft. It was loud and sharp and unpleasant to her ears.
Minuette tried pushing the door to no avail, it won't budge. Defeated once more, she took a step back and sighed in utter frustration. The alarm continued to blare incessantly; everypony will be cramming themselves into the shaft now.
Minuette looked back up the last flight of stairs, her sight caught on another camera peeking past the septic pipe in the corner of the wall. Revelation hit her again, this time, like a punch to the gut.
Minuette stomped in annoyance at the thought of being tricked again. She understood everything now, everything that happened the day before. As much as she wanted to commend the cunning unicorn, she was struck down by her own naivety.
"You used me to lure the guards away!" Minuette said in spite, "You little sh-"
Amethyst smiled to herself, for her plan worked. For the most part, she knew that Minuette had a way of extricating herself from the situation. "You should stop swearing and focus on finding a way out." She quipped, hanging up.
The next part of the plan can now commence.