//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Fights and Flights // Story: R.E.P is Magic // by ToonLegion //------------------------------// Chapter 5: Fights and Flights Rolly was taken aback at what just happened. For what seemed like years, he’d known Mother Katsidy and the rest of the staff as strict, yet good-natured and caring ponies who wished to give these orphans a roof over their heads. And now, they were staring down a bunch of bandits like they were about to kick some flank in a kung-fu movie. “Am I still dreaming or...?” Rolly thought to himself before another pony shattered his stupor. “SMITE THE VILLAINS, YOU GUYS!” said pony had a cream-filled pastry as his cutie mark, to which Rolly could only assume this was Eclair. Rolly just facehoofed. “What is this, some kind of hoofball game?” Unfortunately for him, several other of the other orphans followed Eclair’s example and cheered on their caretakers. “Augh, I can’t think with all this screaming!” Glowstick grumbled. “We don’t have time for this, Padlock!” “You’re the unicorn here, make time for us!” Padlock said, unblinking as he sized up the clergyponies and cat. “Fine,” Glowstick grumbled as her horn glowed. This provoked Katsidy and the other clergy ponies to charge. However, by the time Glowstick finished casting her spell...The bandits vanished into thin air! “What in the name of Celestia?!” Brimstone exclaimed as she skidded to a halt. “Did they teleport?” “That was no teleport spell!” Katsidy said, her nose wrinkling. “I can still smell them!” “So you’re saying they--” Brim tried to say something, but something hit her on the head, knocking her out and making her collapse. “BRIMSTONE!” Katsidy and the others shouted. “They turned invisible!” Chaos erupted once again as the clergyponies tried to fight back, but without any bearing on their foes’ locations, they might as well be fighting blind. “I’ve had enough of this!” Clem stood up and ran for the kitchen. “CLEM WAIT!” Rolly tried to stop her, but he felt his body stop in midair, and get pulled back. “AUGH!” He was hoisted out of the cafeteria, and into the hallway, until he was dropped abruptly into another classroom...Right on his head. “OW!” Glowstick then faded into existence before him, looking quite cross. “I knew something like this would happen, and I suggested we be sneaky about it...BUT NO! My stupid brothers just had to go all gung-horse on this place and...ugh, I have such a headache now!” Rolly tried to escape, but Glowstick used her magic to slam the door leading into the room. ”EEP!” “Hmm, you look familiar now that I see you” Glowstick narrowed her eyes, then perked up with realization. “Ah of course, you were in that hologram with the star and the dragon, right? Where are they both now?” Glowstick asked sternly. “Uh, I…” Rolly tried to answer, but he couldn’t get the words out. “What’s the matter with me?! Vocal cords, work!” Glowstick growled angrily. “ANSWER ME OR I’LL MAKE YOU DISAPPEAR FOREVER!” Rolly gasped, but it wasn’t one of fear, it was realization. He looked at her and smiled as best he could despite the impending doom standing before him. “Heh, a-about that...I-If you get rid of me, wh-who’s going to take you t-to the s-star?” Glowstick’s eyes widened and her cheeks puffed in anger. It looked like she was going to scream, but she just inhaled and exhaled a couple times, trying to catch her composure. “Ok then. If that’s how you want to play…” She levitated Rolly gently onto her back. “Then we’re going on a little field trip.” “To...Where?” Rolly asked nervously. Suddenly, Glowstick vanished before him again, but it wasn’t complete invisibility, as he could see a white outline of his front hooves and Glowstick’s body before him. “Just a quick trip around the building. That star has to be upstairs somewhere, right?” Rolly found himself speechless again. “Horsefeathers! Oh boy...Well, at least she can’t fit into the secret passageway,” Rolly thought to himself. “I’ll just take you up there and if any of these places look familiar, just lemme know, ok?” Glowstick said in a surprisingly cheerful tone. “Oh, and don’t bother calling for help if you know what’s good for you.” Rolly whimpered. “Well it’s only a matter of time, then…Coin, where are you?” Glowstick silently exited the classroom, looking carefully around for any signs of stragglers. Rolly could hear the sounds of the fighting in the distance. All he could do was hold on, not out of desperation but out of fear. Rolly knew unicorns could use devastating magic...And he wasn’t going to let himself be hit by any of it. “I’m such a coward,” Rolly thought. “Now I won’t be able to help Coin or find my own family…” “Hey, easy kid, this isn’t some kind of joy ride,” Glowstick whispered in response to Rolly clutching her. “I know you’re a valuable hostage, I ain’t gonna hurt you as long as you help me. Then I’ll be out of your hair and you can get on with your life.” “Yeah, easy for you to say,” Rolly chastised Glowstick from the back of his mind. “Well, I’m not gonna make this easy for you...I hope this works!”  Rolly sat up cautiously...Then lunged for Glowstick’s neck, squeezing it as hard as he could. “GACKPTH!” Glowstick coughed as she levitated Rolly with her magic and pulled her off his back, bringing the poor pony before her angry face. “Are you trying to cause trouble here, you little brat?!” “This HAS to get somepony’s attention!” Rolly thought to himself, feeling both scared yet proud at the same time. “If you don’t behave yourself, I’m going to--” *SMASH* A glass container shattered at Glowstick’s feet, releasing a cloud of something on the two ponies. Glowstick and Rolly coughed as a powdery substance enveloped them both. As Rolly was cleaning off his face however, he got a taste of it. “G-Garlic?” “ROLLY, GET BACK!” A familiar voice called out as a large figure leapt over him and tackled Glowstick, making her (and Rolly) visible again. “OOOF! YOU?!” Glowstick shouted as she levitated Father Bell off her and tossed him down a hallway. Father Bell immediately got to his hooves, and got his game face on as well. “Ya think you could abduct one of my charges and drain his blood, you filthy vampony?” Glowstick’s expression twisted from one of anger to one of confusion. “Vampony?! Whatever the hay gave you that idea?!” “Hmm? Uh...oh. My mistake, just remembering something from …N-Nevermind! Regardless…” Father Bell produced a pair of batons from his sleeves. “It’s time I gave ye a lesson in respect!” Glowstick snarled and fired at Bell, as the elder clergycolt ran and dodged the shots. Bell tried to swing at her, but Glowstick ducked his blows and used a levitation spell to keep him at a distance. “Rolly, ye’d best get out of here, before it gets too dangerous...Rolly?” Father Bell looked around and saw Rolly galloping away. “Oh, good on ye then!” Bell broke free from the restraint and rushed Glowstick, who barely dodge most of his swings and got hit a few times as well when he found an opening. Glowstick responded by blasting at him a few times but he managed to block or deflect the magic with his batons. Eventually he ducked under one blast, slide and kicked at her sending her flying down the hall. Glowstick recovered from it, panting heavily and now angry. “Had enough lass! I can do this all night.” Bell grinned batons at the ready. But his opponent growled back in response. “I’M GOING TO FLATTEN YOU!” Glowstick concentrated until she ripped a door straight off its hinges and tossed it at Father Bell whose eyes widen in surprise. “Oh mercy me.” ==== Earlier, Coin had joined forces with Father Bell to find the Locket Bandits and hopefully save the orphanage’s residents from them. But as they skulked their way through the building, Father Belle caught wind of Glowstick blowing her cover, and separated from Coin to confront her...With a bottle of garlic powder. “G-Garlic?” Coin asked with a whisper. Bell quickly silenced him and went to confront Glowstick. Coin could only watch from around the corner as the fight scene erupted, and saw Rolly book it down another hallway as well. “H-Hey! Wait up!” Coin called out, but not loud enough for Rolly to hear as he fled. “Oy vey…” Coin then grabbed onto the walls and crawled after Rolly, only able to catch up to him as he reached the entrance to the hidden passage. “Huh?!” Rolly jumped and turned as he heard the scratching noise, but sighed with relief when he saw Coin. “There you are! Where were you?” “I was with Father Bell, are you hurt?” Coin answered as he dropped down to Rolly’s side. “I’m more scared than scarred,” Rolly said between breaths. “That Glowstick chick is somepony else…” “So I heard,” Coin replied. “What are you doing here?” “Hiding, what else?” Rolly undid the entrance to the secret passage. “And then what?” Rolly was about to get inside when he stopped midway, and pulled himself back out. “I...I was thinking of running off with the star.” Coin looked at Rolly, perplexed. “Why?” “Because I’m a filthy little coward, that’s why!” Rolly whined. “You had no idea what I went through, Glowstick threatened to hurt me if I didn’t take her to the star…And I could only imagine how the others felt when I got kidnapped.” “Rolly…” Coin tried to come up with something to reassure him, but he just shook his head and said, “You’re right. That star is what they’re after. We need to find a new hiding spot for it or at the very least, get it out of the building.” “Y-Yeah...B-But where will we hide it?” Rolly stammered. “We’ll figure it out once we get up there, now let’s go! Before the bandits catch us!” Rolly looked at Coin for a second, then nodded. “All right, come on.” They worked their way up through the secret passageway up to Casa de Barrel. However when they got there. “It’s gotta be around here somewhere...Huh? Is this it?” Rolly gasped and rushed ahead. He recognized the voice, and its owner was standing amidst the now-decimated pillow pile. “You...You’re one of the bandits!” “Why yes, yes I am!” Dragonfly said, standing there confidently while holding the blanket-wrapped star. He looked white as a sheet, however. “I knew I couldn’t trust Glowstick to find it, she is way too--” “Hold on a sec!” Rolly interrupted. “Why...Why are you white?” “...Why am I not white?” Dragonfly replied, his confidence faltering a bit. “Is...Is that flour?” Coin pointed out. Indeed, Dragonfly was covered in the stuff. Dragonfly gritted his teeth and grumbled. “Ok, fine! One of the fillies--a redhead, I think--jumped us with a bag of flour and negated Glowstick’s invisibility spell. I knew that talent of hers was useless!” Coin and Rolly’s cheeks puffed up, and they soon burst out laughing. “Y-You look like a ghost!” they stammered as they cackled. “Yeah, well...Like a ghost, I can fly!” Dragonfly declared as he took to the air. “And I’m not going to stand here and be mocked by a couple of brats!” Rolly was still laughing his flank off, but Coin snapped out just enough to notice Dragonfly was making a getaway. “H-Hey!” Coin quickly grabbed a pillow and lobbed it at Dragonfly as hard as he could. It didn’t knock him out of the air but it did slow him down slightly. “Knock it off!” Dragonfly complained as he made a break for the window. “Now I can...Uh…” Dragonfly tried to fit through the broken pane with the star in tow, but the combined mass of the star and himself, he was too big to fit through! “Darnit! I’m trapped!” This made Coin and Rolly break out into laughter again. “OH SHUT UP!” “I...Can’t...help it...Hahaha...You guys are terrible…” Rolly gasped through his laughter. “Ok, fine then!” Dragonfly started to undo the blanket wrappings on the star. “If this thing really is a wishing star, then I can just wish for my escape!” “Uh…?” Rolly perked up at that, and now it was his turn to freak out. “Don’t do it, you moron! That star is too dangerous to handle!” “It’s a risk I’m actually willing to take, unlike you scaredy-cats!” Dragonfly chuckled. “Now... I wish...For this window to be gone!” He stared at the star with delight as a bright flash emitted from it. Suddenly, the star itself began to change its shape. It shifted into something resembling a hammer...In fact, it was turning into a hammer! A very large one, with a star marking on the head. “Whoa…” Dragonfly tried to grasp the hammer, but flinched back as the hammer moved on its own, and swung to shatter the window Rolly worked so hard to make. “YOU JERK!” Rolly cried out. “IT TOOK ME MONTHS TO BUILD THAT!” “Oh well, you snooze, you lose,” Dragonfly said with a smug tone on his face. “I wonder what else I can do with this hammer…” He reached for it as it hung in midair for a moment, but then it started to shrink and shift back to its star state. The glow from the star vanished, and it was left a pale gray as it fell to the ground with a dull *THUNK.* Coin growled and looked up at Dragonfly. “You happy now?! You got your wish, now get out!” “Not without that star!” Dragonfly made to reach down and grab the star again. “GRRRR! BACK OFF!” Coin roared, his rage building. “Or what, you’re gonna burn me? Ha, good luck doing that without starting a--” *FWOOSH* “FIRE!” Dragonfly reeled back in horror as Coin shot a baseball-sized purple fireball at him! “Whoa, never saw that color before!” “You...You took away that star’s wish...A wish Rolly and I were gonna make someday…” Coin clenched his fists as hard as he could. “You destroyed our dream, and now...I’m gonna destroy you!!” Rolly, despondent, perked up and said, “Coin, enough, it’s not worth it…” Coin wasn’t listening though. He growled, snarled, suddenly doubling over as he held his head. “Coin?” Rolly said in concern before noticing he had two bulges appeared on his back. His newly made jacket straining to contain them but ultimately failed as the bulges ripped two small holes ironically where the wing design were embroiled and popped like massive zits. A pair of black and brown wings unfurled from Coin’s back as the young dragon let out loud roar. “Uh…!” Rolly was speechless for the third time tonight. And for once, so was Dragonfly. “So...You still want that star, tough guy?!” Coin bellowed, his voice sounding layer with a much deeper tone as he looked up at Dragonfly with an evil smile on his face. “I-I-It’s fine! You can have it! It’s dead anyways right?!” Dragonfly stammered. “Yeah, it’s dead all right...Just like YOU’RE about to be!” Coin sprang from the air and took flight, his eyes glowing red. Dragonfly could only scream in terror and take flight as well, zipping out the window and across the rooftops of Hoofington. “LEAVE ME ALONE, YOU FREAK!” “No one commits a crime in my presence and gets away with it!” Coin declared while spewing forth more purple fireballs. Dragonfly ducked and dodged as best he could, but try as he might, Coin-with-wings was surprisingly agile for a baby dragon. He flew about the town in a panicked state, trying desperately not to get burned. This didn’t matter much to Rolly though. He just walked up to the now-dim star and put his hoof on it, before mourning over it like it was a dead pet. “All I ever wished for...Was for a family that loved me.” ==== The cafeteria was complete mess. Padlock and Katsidy stood in the middle of knocked-out Bandits and Clergy, while the children huddled in the kitchen waiting for the victory who would ultimately decide their fate. Padlock’s body was all scratched up, and Katsidy’s fur coat was marred with dirt and bruises. The two combatants stared each other down with incredible intensity, panting profusely. Their gaze was only broken when they heard a roar outside. “...What in tarnation was that?” Padlock muttered.” “Hmmm, good question,” Katsidy nonchalantly responded. “I think a better question to ask is...What will you do now, bandit? Your little raid has failed.” Padlock growled. “Don’t give me that, you mangy cat. It doesn’t matter what happens as long as we got the star.” “Is that so? Do you even know where it is?” “One of those kids has it, and as we speak, my brother Dragonfly is interrogatin’ them!” Padlock boasted. Unfortunately, Dragonfly’s screams outside made Padlock quickly lose face. Katsidy grinned at this development. “And I’m sure he’s doing a smashing job of it.” “Grrr...Looks like I have to bail him out again,” Padlock said, reaching for something under his cloak. “But who’s going to bail you out, big guy?” Katsidy hissed and readied herself, but she suddenly cringed and held her right front leg in pain. “Augh…” “Oh good, you’re one less bullet I have to waste on,” Padlock said, as he took out a revolver attached to his front leg by a metal band. It had a complex mechanism that connecting the gun and the band together, to which Katsidy could only assume it was what he used to fire it. “I’ll be back.” Padlock folded the gun attachment up so he could walk, and did so, albeit a bit slower due to his injuries. “...Father Bell, where are you?” Katsidy pleaded. “O Luna, if thou art watching, please protect us…” === Unfortunately for Katsidy, her prayer would go unanswered, as Glowstick’s door-throwing assault managed to KO the poor priest. Glowstick was fuming by the time it was all over, but once she was sure that Father Bell was out, she started to calm down. “About time, you old fart,” Glowstick chided as she went to regroup with the other bandits. Of course, she had to find them first, which was no problem for her. Glowstick cast a spell that revealed her brothers’ locations, by way of magical thread-like energies that flowed from her to her targets. She followed the first thread until she ran into Padlock, whom was panting and limping a bit. “...Padlock?!” “That cat did a number on me…” Padlock groaned. “But I’ll be fine.” “You sure?” “I ain’t got time for some first aid, your brother needs help!” Padlock sternly groaned. “Oh, right, let’s go,” Glowstick nodded in agreement as she and Padlock made their way to the entrance of the orphanage. Once outside, Padlock turned his gaze up to the skies, and saw two figures: Dragonfly, and a small baby dragon with wings. This sight alarmed both of them, but Glowstick moreso. “What...is that the dragon?!” “S’gotta be,” Padlock said, readying his revolver. “But that pest isn’t gonna be bothering us anymore.” Padlock took careful aim, and waited for just the right moment before pulling the trigger. A loud bang erupted through the burg as the bullet found its mark, and Coin spiraled out of the air as a result. Where he landed, Padlock didn’t know, but at this point he didn’t care so long as his brother was safe. Once Dragonfly realized that tiny flaming doom wasn’t chasing after him any more, he laughed with glee and shouted “WHOO-HOO! I’M ALIVE!” from one of the rooftops. Sadly, this didn’t please either Glowstick (who facehoofed) or Padlock, who just growled. “Dragonfly, get yer flank down here! We gotta skedaddle!” “Huh? Oh right, coming boss!” Dragonfly perked up to rejoin the two. In the distance, they could hear the trotting of hooves and sirens beginning to blare. But by the time the police arrived on the scene, the Locket Bandit siblings were long gone. There was just one problem though...Once Padlock and the others were back at the hideout, he asked Dragonfly, “Did you get the star?” “Yes!...Then a bunch of stuff happened and then I lost it. Sorry!” Dragonfly said nervously. Padlock scowled fiercely. He had half a mind to put a bullet through Dragonfly too, but Glowstick eyed him and shook her head. Padlock’s rage was stymied...At least for now. “Whatever...we'd discuss what to do later. Let’s lick our wounds, regroup with anypony whose left and turn in.” === While most ponies at this hour would be asleep (all the racket from earlier notwithstanding), there were a select few who were wide awake, burning the midnight oil so to speak. One such unicorn was doing just that, in an inconspicuous home just a few blocks away from the Ponies for Mercy orphanage. Sitting in her home at the corner of Durabell and Hamhung, the pony was hard at work in her kitchen, not cooking a midnight snack but cooking up something marvelous. Something wonderful. “Turn the temp down to 101...Add the dry ice...Aha, there we go!” She smiled as she let the potion she was working on simmer for a bit, until a conveniently-placed egg timer rang. The pony then carefully levitated the flask with her magic over to several small phials, which she filled with the still bubbling liquid. When all was said and done, she took a taste of the concoction. Her body shivered as she exhaled, unleashing an icy mist from her mouth. This made her smile. “Eureka, I think I got it right this time!” The pony squeed in excitement. She reached for her notepad and started taking notes. “Recipe this time was 2 grams of purified dry ice and peppermint...Still feels a bit cold running down belly, have to make sure stomach doesn’t freeze over…” Unfortunately, the pony's train of thought came to an abrupt halt when she heard a loud *CRASH* come from upstairs. “The hay was that?! A meteor?” The pony asked herself...Then realized if it really was a meteor, her house would be gone by now. “Then again…” She thought of the possibility of a smaller meteor, but shook her head. “No time for random theories!” The pony quickly shut off all the burners and the like before rushing upstairs. It didn’t take long for her to find the source of the impact, as she heard a loud groan of pain coming from her bathroom of all places. Cautiously, she stepped inside and found what appeared to be a brown and black baby dragon sitting in her now-damaged tub. “Uh…” She wasn’t sure how to react at first. One would normally chide the dragon for destroying her property, but once she saw the wings and the fact it had a huge bleeding hole in one of them, she had second thoughts. “Oh Celestia, are you ok?” “M...Medic…” the dragon pleaded as it tried to get up. “No, please don’t move, you’re injured!” The reached into her medicine cabinet and began treating the dragon’s wound. “Good thing you crashed in here, saves me time getting the first aid.” “Where...Am I?” The dragon grunted. “Am I dead…?” “N-No, you’re gonna be fine, all you have is a pierced wing…” She disinfected and bandaged the wing, to which the dragon responded by growling in pain, before asking. “Wait, wings? How did you get these? Baby dragons normally don’t have wings! At least, I don’t think?” “No talky...Head hurty,” the dragon rubbed his head in pain. “I’ve got some pills here for that,” The pony stated as she grabbed some children’s aspirin and gave a pill to the dragon (as well as some water to wash it down). “Come on, let’s get you to a more comfy setting.” === Coin was completely out for most of the night. The last thing he remembered was some pony he didn’t recognize tending to his injuries and tucking him in...Was it a friend, or foe? He tried to think about it as he slept, but a myriad of voices disrupted his thoughts. The voices of the children from the orphanage crying out for help...Rolly’s anguished pleas...The mysterious voice from earlier shouting about stars… “Stop...Stop...ENOUGH ALREADY! SHUT UP! I NEED TO SLEEP!” Coin shouted out, and as if on cue, the voices went silent. He was all alone in his dream world. “...Maybe that wasn’t a good idea.” Then, a light. “Huh?” Coin headed towards it, but it quickly approached him and and filled his vision with whiteness. It wasn’t blinding, but at the same time...It wasn’t exactly comforting. “What’s going--” Suddenly, a blue pony with purple fairy wings and a mane appeared from his line of vision, and cheerfully greeted him with a hearty “Hello!” This didn’t have a very positive effect, as Coin woke up screaming in terror. Thankfully, he woke up in a perfectly normal, if small, bed in a basket. A dull pain snapped Coin back to reality, as his now folded up wing was still recovering from that shot he took last night. “Ugh...The crazy train just doesn’t stop, does it?” “Oh, you’re awake!” The pony from last night returned. She had blonde hair, an orange body, and for some reason, wore a red cloak as well. She also carried a bowl of what Coin suspected to be oatmeal with her magic. “How’re you feeling?” “Sore...And worried, what the hay happened to me last night?” “I was hoping you could tell me,” She handed the bowl off to him. “Do you have a name, little guy?” “Er...Yeah, I guess so, it’s Coin. Who’re you?” “Eleanor Gallop, up and coming medic, chemist and merchant!” she replied with a smile. “Please call me E.G though or Eeg if you prefer.: “Oh well...thank you E.G.” Coin stated then looked over her household, noticing plenty of lab equipment all around as well “Wow you weren't kidding about the chemist thing.” E.G chuckled “ What can I say, it's my passion. I’d tell you more, but I'm a bit more interested in your tale iight now. Mind sharing...if that's alright with you.” “Uh, right.” Coin started on his oatmeal, which tasted strongly of apples and cinnamon. “Mm! This is delicious! In any case...You’d better pull up a chair, this is gonna take a while.” And took a while it did. E.G reacted as anyone would when listening to such a shocking story, but when all was said and done… “Wow, I had no idea that sort of thing went on last night,” E.G solemnly commented. “At least you’re all right, right?” “Yeah…” Coin sighed. “I dunno about Rolly though, he sounded pretty devastated about that star.” “Well why don’t we take you back over and see what’s going on? I don’t have anything else planned at the...Mo...Ment?” E.G’s gaze drifted out the window for just a moment, and she peeked outside. The city was thick with a morning fog, making it hard to see. “I could have sworn I saw something out there…” “Is there?” Coin asked as he gobbled up his oatmeal. “...Not anymore. How strange.” E.G shrugged and went back to tend to Coin’s needs. What E.G didn’t know, however, was that somepony was watching her. Not a bandit, not a police or clergy pony...It was a pale white pony in a black cloak, completely covering their face and body. They silently watched E.G’s house for a moment before disappearing into the fog from whence they came. (T.B.C)