//------------------------------// // Twentyfirst Heist // Story: A New World, A New Stage // by tdnpony //------------------------------// Opening theme: Alice frowned as she mixed the liquids in the beaker she had, wincing again as the smell assaulted her nostrils. Fighting back the need to gag, she brought it to a nearby burner, and heated it till it was a certain temperature, before adding a few more ingredients, mixing again, and cooling it quickly, using Rascal’s Icy Wind. Note that the Weavile was wearing a clothes peg over his nose. “Is it ready yet?” Rascal asked. Giving a small sniff to it, Alice nodded. “Finally,” he sighed pulling off the clothes peg. “So...we gotta use that stuff, huh?” “No choice. With our current new opponent, if we don’t do something to stop him from identifying us, we’re sunk,” Alice sighed. “I’m just glad I still remembered the rough formula for it, since we don’t have access to all the normal ingredients...well…most of them anyway.” “Right. Let’s...just get this over with already,” Rascal sighed as Alice placed the liquid into a spray bottle, as the two walked out of the room, to where the rest of their team was, and a few squirts later, the sound of gagging could be heard. Night was approaching, and as such, the Fox gang was going over their plans one last time. “Alright, so we’re all clear on the plans, right?” Alice asked, coughing slightly from the last remaining bits of the smell. “Yeah, we got it,” Shade nodded, though she also coughed a little. “Yeah, we got more than one plan here. First plan is that you guys sneak in and cause a distraction. While that’s happening, I’ll go and drill a way in with this hand drill,” Rascal nodded, pulling out said hand drill. “So while you’ve all got them running around like Torchic without heads, I’ll be stealing the jewels from inside the vault.” “Right. But just in case…” Alice said as she looked towards Scep. “You got it, dudette. I’ll stand by and stop anyone who might figure us out,” he nodded. “And in the event it fails…” Shade nodded. “We’ll move to plan B,” Alice said, before frowning. “However, we also need to watch out for the real danger in our heist…” “Right, the Princesses, Mewtwo, and above all, Discord,” Rascal agreed, glad his role wasn’t one that required him to have to directly deal with any of them. “Right, so while we ARE aiming to steal the crown jewels, I’m more worried about us getting out of this, so if you see any signs that more than one of them...or Discord is in our way, signal everyone and get out of there,” Alice stated. “No need to tell us twice, dudette,” Scep chuckled. You’d have to be PRETTY crazy and dumb to keep fighting with THOSE odds, especially when they’ve got nothing to gain from it. “Right, so while you four worry about guarding around the vault, Alice and I will keep them on a wild goose chase,” Shade nodded. “Also, don’t forget, thanks to Toichi, we can use these now,” Alice added, as she handed out what looked like small bracelets with a single large jewel and a single smaller one next to it embedded into them, as well as several earpieces which had jewels in them as well. “They’re an improved versions of what we used in Manehattan. Touch the smaller jewel on the bracelet and talk into the larger jewel to communicate with the earpieces. Since this is still pretty new, the bracelets are set to communicate to all the earpieces. And don’t worry about any other sounds getting through. As long as you don’t touch the smaller jewel, this won’t transmit anything,” she explained. “Right,” the others nodded, before taking their respective items, though in Spinner and Charlotte’s case they got collars with Jewels. Jonathan sighed as he punched another training dummy. He’d been staying out of the castle for the most part after discussing plans with Seth and the others, partly cause he wanted to get a bit more training in, especially with the trick he had discovered, and more importantly, he just didn’t want to be near Ironside more than he needed to. He didn’t know, and frankly, he wasn’t sure if he WANTED to find out why, but the stallion seemed to view Pokemon and generally anything from Earth in the same regard as one would a pile of mud. “So...what are we gonna do about tonight?” Heat asked. “No offense to the guards here, but their captain...sucks.” “...not gonna argue there,” Jonathan sighed. “To be honest, I don’t know if we WILL be able to stop her this time. In the last cities, at least we had actual support. Right now, I get the feeling Ironside would sooner saw his hoof off than listen to me...Fox is going to have a field day with him.” “...yeah, that’s for sure,” the others simply nodded. Now all they could do was wait and do their best when the time came. Time went by quickly enough, and before long they were all gathered at the castle, with Seth carrying four containers full of their order from earlier. Following him was a Charizard, a Sylveon, and an Absol. “As you requested,” Seth smiled as he passed the order to Heat. “Thanks a bunch!” the Combusken smiled as he took the containers and passed them out among his team, who all proceeded to eat. “Oh yeah, one thing I LOVE about this planet is the food. Its five star everything here!” Jonathan smiled as he scarfed up his meal till the last piece. “Heh, I met someone who said the same thing today,” Seth chuckled as he opened his own food, homemade Apple Fritters from his lovely marefriend. It’s scent was beyond heavenly. “Ohhh, my little Apple has outdone herself this time~” True enough, when the smell wafted over to the other Pokemon, their mouths watered as well. “...could we...try some too?” Echo said hopefully, the smell all but making her drool. Seth pondered for a moment, the look on his face was like they’d asked him to saw off a leg... until he chuckled. “Sure!” he replied with a toothy grin as he used a claw to slice up two of the fritters into equal parts and offered them to his new friends. “Though I will warn you now, any apple dish you eat after this, and any you have eaten before will be forever ruined.” “Oh, now you’re just being silly,” Heat laughed. No way was something THAT good....or so he thought until they each took a bite… If there was ever heaven on Earth, at that moments, their taste buds just died and went there, and all they could do was stop in stunned silence. “Err….” Seth looked a bit worried. “DELICIOUS!!!” they all shouted. “Dang man, you are one lucky bastard to be in a relationship with someone who cooks so well!” Howl couldn’t help but say as he was too busy jumping up and down. “Apple Fritter is a special mare,” Seth smiled as he ate his food, savouring each and every bite. “Honestly, I’m the lucky one. I don’t know what I did or what God smiled on me to gift me with two wonderful ladies.” “Oh? Didn’t know you were such a playboy, Mr. Crescent,” Jonathan jokingly jabbed, while his team snickered. “The whole ‘herd’ thing was Fritter’s idea,” Seth explained. “Apparently polygamy is encouraged here, and I’m still getting used to it really... but I care for both of them, and I’ll do anything to ensure their happiness.” “Aw, you’re so sweet~” Rika cooed and she nuzzled him and kissed his cheek. “You get extra huggles tonight for that.” Seth blushed, and then realised that he hadn’t introduced his team. “Oh, right. Everyone, this is Rika, Ignis and Selena,” he said, gesturing to the Sylveon, Charizard, and Absol respectively. “Hey,” Ignis said, offering a small salute while the Absol just gave a curt nod. Rika waved and smiled widely before resuming her nuzzles. “Its a pleasure to meet you. Likewise, this is my team. Heat, Howl, and Echo,” Jonathan smiled as he introduced them, while all three of this Pokemon waved. “Let’s all get along. We’ll be working together tonight after all.” Seth nodded, “I don’t see any reason why we wouldn’t... though for me, it’s a bit weird to be getting along with lawmen and ladies such as yourselves.” The Luxray offered a smile and a polite bow. “Also, please call me Seth.” “Likewise, call me Jonathan. I don’t care much for formalities anyway,” Jonathan laughed, polishing off the last of his meal. After that, his expression turned serious. “Alright, now first things first,” he started. “Let’s go over the plans again.” “First, we’ll have Ignis and Echo positioned on the roof. We don’t know what Fox’s point of entry will be, so it’s best to cover all bases. I want Selena outside and waiting, should Fox actually pull this off, she’s our best bet at a swift pursuit.” Seth looked to Rika and smiled. “And I want you to simply be you. Punish the naughty Fox should she misbehave.” “Why does that last statement fill me with so much dread?” Heat deadpanned. “Either way,” Jonathan sighed. “Likewise, I want Howl to patrol the corridors. Of all of us, he has the best chance of tracking them if they’re inside...assuming Fox hasn’t recreated the compound she used to mask her scent back on Earth. Also, Heat, you’re with me. We’re going to stand guard over the vault.” “Roger!” both Heat and Howl said as they both saluted. “Mask her scent?” Seth blinked in surprise, before sighing. “I just wonder if my new vision can see through her illusions?” At that, the Luxray’s eyes shone with a gold light as he looked at the four Pokemon in front of him. “I don’t know exactly how a Zoroarks illusions work, but I don’t think she can imitate a skeleton of whatever she’s disguised as.” “Yeah, Luxray eyes should be able to pierce the illusion...but…” Jonathan sighed. “Fox has more than just Zoroark illusions in her arsenal,” Howl groaned. “That thief is a magician, so even if you see her, you’ll never be able to tell what else she has in store…” “Great...” Seth groaned. Once everyone was in position, Seth and Jonathan were at the Vault, the Luxray had a few ideas on how Fox might steal the Jewels, but there was something he needed to confirm for himself. As Seth stood before the Vault, Ironside glowered. While his unit still had point on this mission, the Princess had allowed Seth and his group as backup... just in case. “Well?” Ironside said gruffly as the Luxray stared at the vault, his yellow eyes glowing. “Are you done yet?” “You really shouldn’t rush him. I mean, humans don’t normally have X-ray eyes, so he probably needs time to get them to work properly,” Jonathan sighed in annoyance. He just didn’t understand Ironside’s animosity with Pokemon in general. “And for that record, we’re supposed to be working together. Antagonizing each other isn’t going to help.” “For your records!” Ironside snapped. “We have protected these Jewels for generations. They have never once been stolen and the arrival of you Pokemon doesn’t make one saltlick of difference!” he stated. “On top of that, only Princess Celestia’s magic can open the vault. I’d like to see this thief TRY to get the crown jewels!” he laughed. “Oh, she’ll find a way,” Jonathan, sighed. “This isn’t the first fortified vault she’s cracked, and it probably won’t be the last. Trust me, I know.” “She’s also never dealt with magic... real magic before either,” Seth replied. “I wouldn’t be so sure. She’s been to several towns already, all of them had some form of magic security. She broke all of them,” Jonathan cautioned. “If you fillies are done gossiping, maybe the real law enforcement around here can actually get back to doing their jobs?” Ironside said curtly. Heat glared at the Unicorn, before whispering to Seth. “That guy...almost makes me want to LET Fox get in and steal the Jewels.” “Tell me about it,” Seth muttered as Ironside went on a tangent about not recognizing Jonathan’s authority. “Is this guy REALLY the captain of the royal guards?” Jonathan mentally groaned, resisting the urge to facepalm. Fortunately, he was spared from further annoyance when Seth suddenly bolted from the room, and deciding that following the Luxray was better than listening to Ironside’s monologue, ran after him. As this was happening, one of the guards blinked a little at the sudden action, but smirked all the same, and as ‘he’ was a short distance away from the other guards, all of whom were too focused on the vault, none of them saw ‘him’ take out a few small balls, and roll them on the ground. Once that was done, ‘he’ took out a small bottle. “Showtime,” ‘he’ whispered, before smashing the bottle on the ground, just as the balls burst, releasing a thick fog of smoke. Naturally there were several shouts of alarm, as the heist began. In the midst of the smoke and confusion, the guard’s form shimmered, revealing the form of a Zoroark, a sly smile on her face as she got to work. “She’s here!” Heat growled, while Jonathan nodded as they ran after Seth who had darted back into the hall, just in time to see Fox make her appearance, seemingly floating down somehow, her claw tipping her hat over her eyes like normal. The two of them tensed, ready to make a move when… “HOLD IT RIGHT THERE FOX!” Seth’s voice boomed throughout the hallway like a thunderclap, causing several nearby ponies to grab their ears, while Jonathan and Heat recoiled from the sudden noise. Fox was inwardly chuckling to herself as one of her illusions seemingly levitated down, while the real her was safely concealed within the shadows for now. However, her smile dropped when she saw Seth tap on his torc, and remembering what happened last time, she quickly pulled out a pair of earplugs and jammed them into her ears. Naturally, the booming voice still got through, but she managed to block most of it out, enough to avoid dropping any of her illusions, and making her illusion frown, talking for her as she removed her earplugs. “Arceus you are loud,” the illusion deadpanned, before the smirk returned. “I see you could make it to the party, Johnny-boy. What surprise do you have in store for me this time I wonder,” the illusion giggled at the Lucario. “Oh, I’m not providing the ‘surprises’ this time Fox. That’ll be covered by the locals,” Jonathan shot back. “Awww....and I was hoping we could have a little fun,” Fox teased through her illusion. Chuckling inwardly, she always did enjoy the banter and the game of cat and mouse that would ensue. However... “OH, JUST GET A ROOM ALREADY,” came Seth’s booming voice, catching them off guard. Turning to the Luxray, they saw him put a paw to his mouth, obviously forgetting that his voice was still being augmented. Seth put a paw to his mouth, forgetting he still had the enchantment active, leaving the people in the room with ringing ears. After the ringing subsided, Alice felt herself blushing at the Luxray’s choice of words, but keeping her emotions in check, she willed her illusion to simply look amused. Regaining her composure, she said, “Aww….I had no idea you wanted little old me that way Johnny boy. Maybe next time I’ll catch you. I promise I’ll be gentle,” through the illusion...before she realized what she had just said and felt herself blush a bit more brightly. Jonathan for his part went bright red, before glaring at Seth. “I sooo wanna punch you right now. But fortunately for you, I’ll settle for something punching someone else instead. Heat?” “Sky Uppercut!” Heat shouted...only to have several balls thrown into his face, courtesy of Charlotte who was hiding in the shadows. The bombs exploded, and with a cold gust of wind, the Combusken fell back with Ice covering his face, the Combusken frantically trying to get the ice off when he came to his senses. “Ice bombs. Finally got them right,” Fox chuckled through her illusion, glad at the success of the gadget she and Toichi had been working to recreate. “Don’t worry, I made sure its harmless freezing.” Have Heat use a Fire move!” Seth called out, but after that, he seemed to hesitate for a moment. However, the moments hesitation was cut short when Ironside and several other guards charged towards her illusion, knocking Seth aside without a second thought. From where she was watching, Alice frowned, but ultimately ignored it, as she had anticipated that Ironside would likely try and charge at her, or rather, what he thought was her with all the intent of a missile, before they dogpiled her illusion. “Heh! And you thought this criminal could escape justice!” Ironside cheered, no doubt thinking he’d won. Fox felt like chuckling mockingly at the sight. Did he REALLY think he would be able to catch her THAT easily? With that, she created another illusion, only this time next to the pile. “I still am,” she said through her illusion that stood next to the pile, seemingly mocking them by simply being there. “Nice form by the way. 5/10” Seth moved much faster than the guards, leaping from one wall to the other as he pounced at Fox, but kept his sharp claws sheathed. he didn’t want to hurt her after all. At the same time, Ironside lunged as well. And unknown to the two of them (and partially due to Fox’s actions) so was Heat. “Its probably too late to say this, but…” the illusion started, just as the three of them pounced on her...and promptly did a hard and and painful headbutt with each other. “...you’re all gonna need an aspirin after this,” she finished as the illusion faded away. Jonathan’s eyes narrowed at what had just happened. Focusing on his Aura Sight, he noticed a form moving around the room. Switching back to normal, he saw that he couldn’t see it with his eyes. “There you are…” he grinned as he slowly approached, before pouncing on her. Fox tensed when she instincts flared up, turning just in time to see Jonathan lunging for her. Slightly cursing herself for forgetting about his Aura Sense, she relaxed as the Lucario plowed into her, the two of them rolling on the ground as a result, which also caused her to drop her other illusions, except her shiny illusion. The two of them came to a halt with him pinning her down, but in the split second that happened, she inhaled something that made an odd feeling in her stir, and before she realized what she had done, she had craned her neck up, and kissed him right on the lips. When her brain caught up with what she was doing, she found herself blushing, which didn’t help when she noticed Jonathan had a similar blush. Fortunately, her training also caught up, and she quickly focused again. Taking advantage of the situation, she pushed him off of her, sending him rolling away. Jonathan on his part was still trying to get his brain to reboot. After suddenly getting kissed on the lips by Fox of all people, he felt like his mind shut off for a second, but by the time he got to his senses again, she had already pushed him off. Forcing herself back into her Fox persona, Fox quickly put on her normal teasing expression. “I always did think you looked yummy, but I never thought you were THIS yummy,” she said teasingly, before throwing one of her web balls at his paw, promptly sticking it to the floor, the Lucario trying to get it off, while fighting down the blush on his face. It didn’t help either that she felt a bright blush on her own face, but like any other good Fox, she quickly pushed it down, reasserting her Poker face. Good thing too, cause at that moment, Seth pounced on her, having used Ironside as a springboard, and probably returning the favor from before. Seeing as she couldn’t dodge, she quickly relaxed her body again, and when the heavy Luxray came barelling down, she rolled back, grabbed his paws and used the momentum to throw him off. “Nice try, but not good enough, kitty,” she teased, before picking up her hat and dusting it off. “Spry little thing, aren’t you?” Seth smiled. “I can keep this up all night, what about you?” “Is that a date I hear? Alright, I can party all night if I have to. In fact, let’s get this party REALLY started!” she smiled, before throwing another smoke bomb at the ground, blanketing the room. Now that the stage was set, she went into action. “Game start,” she whispered into the jewel she had. And with that, she focused on the image of the Crown Jewels she had seen. When the smoke cleared, she had covered herself with her cape. “And now…” she smiled, before opening it, and revealing to her audience...all the Crown Jewels, suddenly in her arm. As expected, the sight stunned many of the guards into silence, as Fox inwardly smirked. Everything was going just as planned. The stunned silence was first broken by Ironside, who roared as he charged again, leveling his spear at her. “Don’t let that thing take the Jewels. Permission to use lethal force is approved!” “Now where have I heard that before?” Fox playfully chuckled, just as she noticed Jonathan get free. Easily side stepping Ironside’s blind charge, she jumped to another ledge. “Well, catch me if you can, pit bull,” she taunted before dropping the jewels into the sack she had pulled out, and promptly kicked off from the walls and wall jumping to get away from the corridor, the sounds of heavy hoof steps following her as she led them into the castle. “That’s my cue,” Rascal grinned, from where he was hiding. Under the vault. Earlier when the heist had started, he had started tunneling into the ground with the hand drill, and when he got to thicker parts, like the rocky foundation, a quick Rock Smash weakened it enough for him to continue drilling. He listened as the sound of hoof steps could be heard, waiting for them to subside. When it did, he started drilling upward, and right into the vault. However, just as he started to break into the vault, the drill was hit with a strong electric current, shocking the Weavile silly. “Gah! What was that…” he groaned as he pulled the drill back into the ground. Shaking off the tingly feeling, he decided to try again. Up above, Scep’s eyes narrowed as he saw the Luxray, the Lucario cop, and the Combusken had still not left the room. At first he didn’t make a move, but when the Luxray actually managed to attack from outside the vault, he knew it was time to make a move. But contrary to what many thought, he was no idiot...at least as far as fighting went. He knew that he’d be in trouble if he tried taking on all three of them at once, especially with that Combusken still there. So with that in mind, he moved quickly, and before they could react, he struck the Combusken from behind, knocking him out. However, at this point the Luxray had let out another discharge, shocking the drill again. And this time, Rascal got the message. This way wasn’t going to work. “Plan B! Plan B!” he said in pain as he retreated. Back in the fight, Scep grunted when he heard that through the jewels they were using to communicate, while in front of him, the Lucario ran over to the Combusken who had been shocked by the attack. “Sorry, but you’re gonna be joining him soon. Nothing personal, dude,” he said, gaining their attention. Shade slinked through the castle corridors, looking for her quarry. Knowing Jonathan, he’d have probably sent Howl to scour the corridors looking for them. While the Mightyena wasn’t a problem by himself, if he were to run into Fox at an...inopportune time, that would make things all the more difficult for them. So naturally, it was her job to make sure he didn’t get in the way, especially since this was hardly the first time she’d done it. Her musing was cut short when Rascal’s voice was heard through the gemstone in her ear. “Well that complicates things,” she sighed, as Plan A had ended up a bust. Nothing too new there. Fortunately, it was at this point that she picked up a familiar scent. “Bingo,” she chuckled, as she homed in on her target. Howl was busy sniffing around, trying to see if he could pick up anything really. So far it was going zilch. “Looking for someone?” came a familiar sultry voice, as he turned to see one of the Fox gang idly watching him from one of the ledges. “Liepard!” he growled. “Since you’re here, obviously that means Fox is somewhere in the castle too. So where is she?” “She’s…” Shade started, pausing for a moment. “Around,” she finished, causing Howl to nearly fall over. “But she doesn’t have time to play with you,” she chuckled. “I on the other hand…” Howl tensed as Shade jumped down. He already knew what was coming next, seeing as this wasn’t the first time she had singled him out. Taking the initiative, he immediately lunged forward, catching her just as she landed. As the two rolled on the ground, Shade quickly kicked him off, before the two of them prepared to fight. “The rest is up to you, Alice,” she thought. “I’ll steer him out of here so you’ve got a clean shot.” And with that, the fight began. While the battles in the vault room and the hallway were going on, Fox was running around the hallways, leading Ironside and the guards on a wild goose chase as they were chasing after her with the intent of a bloodhound. “Is this all you’ve got? Honestly, I think I might just fall asleep with how BORING you lot are,” she taunted. However, just as she said that, the gemstone hidden in her ear glowed, and Rascal’s voice rang out. “Plan B! Plan B!” it said, causing her to frown slightly, before brightening up again. “Oh well, at least this will be FUN,” she chuckled to herself. Ironside smirked as Fox entered a corridor, “I have you now little street rat,” as two Unicorns at the far end sealed the room off with a spell. “Nowhere left to run, vermin,” he sneered. “And they make people like you honor guards? Wow, I’ve met Grimer who were more courteous,” Fox taunted as she headed straight for the sealed door, but just before she hit, the room was filled with smoke courtesy of a few more smoke bombs. “Relax, she can’t go anywhere,” Ironside said to his troops. “Spread out and surround it, formation Delta!” The troops nodded and they took point, placing themselves around the cloud of smoke. Unicorns had their shield-spells ready, while the Earth Ponies had their weapons pointed at the cloud. However, this was what Fox wanted. “Can you say...friendly fire?” she chuckled under her breath, as from the cloud, a few Shadow Balls shot out in several directions, narrowly missing some of the guards. Several rookie guards fired some spells back, only to hit their companions on the opposite side, knocking them over. While this was happening, Fox cloaked herself in another illusion, and easily made her way out of the smoke cloud, just as Ironside surrounded it with a shield spell. “Try and get out of that!” he goaded. “My shield is as strong as Shining Armor’s, I could contain an Alicorn if I wanted to.” “Good thing I’m not an Alicorn then,” Fox chuckled as she stood behind him, before quickly rolling away. As expected, he turned around and fired. What she hadn’t actually expected was for the blast to be strong enough to reduce the section of wall to dust. “Scary...but convenient,” Fox mentally sweat dropped as Ironside roared, “ACCURSED MONSTER!” “You DO realize that we’re considered equals to Ponies now, right?” Fox casually said, quickly shaking off her momentary trepidation as he leaned against the new hole/escape route. “Thanks for the escape route by the way. Toodles,” she laughed before exiting the corridor. Ironside facehooved and chased with his remaining guards, this thief would not escape him! Echo sighed as she perched on the Charizard, Ignis’ shoulder. Craning her ears, she listened intently for any signs of the signal...though there certainly was some commotion going on inside. “Sounds like we’re missing out on all the fun little buddy,” Ignis chuckled. “Can’t really be helped. We’re out here on intercepting duty. Our job is to wait incase she gets out, so we can catch her by surprise,” Echo shrugged. Ignis turned, this was the first time he’d heard the little bat speak. “...You’re a girl?” “So I am. What of it?” Echo blinked, not sure where that came from. Ignis shrugged, causing the little bat to flutter her wings to stay perched. “Nothing really, just had Noivern trouble in the past... Sorry, I meant no disrespect little lady.” “None taken. Not much I can do if another Noivern or Noibat caused you trouble,” Echo shrugged, knowing that there were always those types in every species. Ignis looked down at the Palace, “I wonder why Seth hasn’t sent a signal yet...?” “Come to think of it...I haven’t heard anything from Jonathan. You don’t think…” at this they both looked at each other. “Time to step in?” “Time to step in,” Ignis confirmed as he took off from the roof and glided down to the ground. “Let’s hope things haven’t gone to hell yet...” “Knowing Fox...it probably already has...one way or another…” Echo groaned. “Goddammit,” Ignis muttered as they flew down the hall, and soon entered the Vault...just in time to see a Sceptile standing over Seth’s unconscious form, Jonathan and Heat not far away, as both were out cold too. “You... BURN!!” Ignis roared as he fired a Flamethrower at the grass lizard. “Huh?” Scep got up from drawing a mustache and glasses on Seth, before ducking underneath the flames. “SWEET ARCEUS!” He got back up and shook his fist. “Watch it next time, JERK!” “FIRE BLAST!” Ignis roared again, the fire star leaving no room to avoid in the narrow hallway. “WINDOW!” Scep jumped out the broken window. He sighed. “Thank the engineers for windows. I’ll never break one again…..” He smashed the one next to him. “Okay, after that….maybe.” Ignis snorted and placed Echo down, “Look after these two okay? I have a lizard to barbeque!” he said before he flew after the Sceptile. “Er...yeah, you do that,” Echo sweatdropped. Judging from the sounds she was hearing, this was probably the safest spot for her anyway. With that in mind, she turned towards the unconscious Pokemon...and bit back a laugh at the ridiculous scribbles all over their faces. After letting out a few chuckles, she went to work wiping it off, seeing as they probably would like it better if they didn’t wake up with said scribbles. However, she probably should have been paying more attention, as just as she finished cleaning up the scribbles, she suddenly felt herself get snatched up, and then blackness. Charlotte sighed as she finished wrapping up the Noibat in webbing. She didn’t like doing that, but it was for the sake of the heist, and in the end, she had decided that she would always side with her trainer first. Back with Fox, she was playing one of her favorite games: Make the police chase you to stupid lengths. “Geez, are you even trying? I’ve seen Slugma move faster than you guys,” Fox taunted as she led them around the castle. This was going to be easier than she thought if THIS was all she had to deal with. If this was the standards for guards even in Canterlot, then no wonder crime rates were so bad. Though on the other hand, considering they’re the guards to Princesses who can literally move celestial bodies...maybe they never bothered training properly? Speaking of which, she couldn’t help but wonder where the Princesses were. She DID announce her heist, so it seemed strange that after all this she hadn’t seen hide nor hair of even one of them. Then again, remembering what that bat pony had talked about before... And further thoughts were cut short when she heard a chirpy voice say, “They are kinda slow,” from right behind her. Fox blinked, and turned around, but only saw an empty corridor. “So... watcha doooing?” the voice said again, a small pink head emerging from her mane. Two bright blue eyes stared at her and a small smile crossed the Sylveon’s face. “...I’m not sure if I should wonder how you got in there without me noticing, or squee at how positively adorable you are,” Fox commented as she continued to run, not really concerned at the ponies chasing after her with the single mindedness of a guided missile. “I dunno, a friend taught me to do it... I don’t understand all the technical stuff though... something about walls...” She blinked and then hugged the Zoroark. “Ah, so fluffy~ Sethy is fluffy, but you’re fluffier!!” “Why thank you, I quite like the fluff too. One of the things I like about being turned into a Zoroark,” Fox chuckled as they conversed despite the chase. “Oh, so you’re a human?” the Sylveon, Rika, asked. “Ah, that’s right, silly me... I’m supposed to stop you from being naughty…” a smile crossed the Sylveon’s face as her ribbons wrapped tighter. “Unless you want to be naughty?” Fox mentally gulped. She did NOT like the look on that Sylveon’s face. However, spying an incoming pillar, she had an idea. “With that look, I almost feel tempted. But I think I’ll keep being naughty. Bye!” Fox said, before turning a corner...in such a way that Rika’s face met said pillar, throwing the Sylveon off. “The face? AGAIN!?” Rika groaned as she clutched her head. She staggered up and fired a wild Moonblast, which missed Fox by mere inches, singing her fur and blasting Ironside right in the face… The stallion stumbled back, knocking his own guards over like bowling pins. From his perspective, it looked like Fox had fired the blast. “Thanks for the assist!” Fox quickly said with a laugh as she ran down the hall. “Okay, I think I’ve riled them up enough. So now...time to go to the finale,” she thought. With that in mind, she took a turn, heading straight back to the vault. When she got back to the vault, she was met with the sight of an unconscious Seth, Jonathan and Heat, and judging by the small web cocoon, Charlotte had made short work of Echo too. Normally she would have felt a little bad, but ultimately forced herself to keep going, but this time, she felt like someone had stabbed her in the chest, especially when she saw Jonathan unconscious, no doubt after a fight with Scep if the slight bruises were any indication. However, the approaching sound of hoofsteps reminded her just how far she’d gone, and she wasn’t about to let all the planning and the chase go to waste. She was about to put up an illusion of a broken window...when she noticed that two of them already were broken. “...Scep…” she sighed in annoyance, before cloaking herself, and going into a good position to strike. This was the last stretch...and unfortunately, one that hinged completely on Ironside acting how she’d predict...and her gamble that they HAD to have had some kind of spare key for the Vault in the event the Princesses weren’t around...or maybe someone got stuck inside. It wasn’t long before the guards entered, the room, before helping the fallen Pokemon up...and cutting open the cocoon Echo was in, as Fox had plucked her down before getting into position. “Stop chasing her,” Seth groaned as he woke up, while Ironside scowled at them... again. At least that was until he saw the broken window. “They broke the windows... and a wall...” he groaned. “The last one was kinda your fault,” Fox thought in amusement, but frowned at Seth’s words. She had heard that he had apparently graduated school at the age of 11, so he was considered an academic prodigy. Now it looked like he might have seen through her trick...literally most likely. True enough… “She’s baiting you,” Seth said. “She doesn’t have the Jewels, she never did. They’re still inside the Vault.” Fox frowned as he confirmed her suspicions. Looks like the Skitty was out of the bag. However, she held her ground, as for once, the scowl on Ironside’s face was a welcomed sight. It was obvious to her from the start that he saw the Pokemon with disdain, something she found annoying. But now...now she was hoping that same disdain would cause him to play right into her hands again. “Come on, come on,” she mentally muttered. “He’s right! For the love of Arceus, listen for once!” Heat added, no doubt due to the look on Ironside’s face. “Nonsense! We all saw it! She had the jewels!” The stallion shouted. “Tauros’ eye,” Fox grinned. One that only became wider as Ironside walked over to the Vault and pulled out a crystal, one that held a powerful, magical glow. “This is crystallized magic from Princess Celestia, an emergency key if you will,” he said as he pressed it against the door as the runes lit up and the door slid open. “You idiot-” Seth moved to stop him, but it was obvious his injuries were having none of that. “I’ll prove I’m right!” Ironside yelled as the door opened, and revealed the Jewels sitting there. Ironside blinked and shook his head. “No.. impossible...” Jonathan for his part finally felt himself reach the limit of his patients. This whole time, Ironside had been treating them like they were practically dirt, even when they had ideas that made sense if you just think about it, but he seemed to want nothing to do with even common sense if it came from a Pokemon. And now he had practically handed the jewels to Fox, who was no doubt still in the room. “You fool! You just played into her hands!” he shouted as he tried to run to the vault, but nearly fell over as his body was still sore from the beating it took. “And such a gentleman too, opening the door for a lady~” Fox chuckled, before another smoke bomb rolled into the vault, covering it with smoke. “Dammit! Echo, use Gust!” Jonathan barked, and Echo did just that, seeing as she hadn’t actually received much damage at all, parting the smoke a little and revealing Fox standing with the Crown Jewels behind her. “Ladies and gentlemen, I welcome you all to our grand finale,” Fox chuckled. “I will NOT be beaten by some low bred criminal!!!” Ironside roared, before lunging at her like a rabid dog. Fox heard and saw him, and suppressed another sigh. There was no way Jonathan had NOT mentioned Fox’s 5 century long record, yet he was STILL treating her like some common crook. It seemed to her that this pony was deluding himself into thinking she was just any other criminal, and in his current state of mind after she’s clearly proven that deluded view wrong, she just plain couldn't take him seriously anymore, and with a simple duck, he sailed right over her, and smashed right into the stands holding the Crown Jewels, launching them into the air. As the jewels fell to the ground, the air was suddenly enveloped in a tingly feeling, as one look at the only Electric-type in the room confirmed that this was Lightning Terrain, before the Jewels suddenly paused in mid-flight, simply hovering there as the magnetic field generated by Seth’s Lightning Terrain held them in place. “Heh... floatyyy~” Seth half-dazed giggle could be heard before he fell to the floor. Fox however quickly took it in stride, maintaining a seemingly unconcerned look. turning towards Jonathan, she blew him one last kiss, something she did many times, before her cape envelop her like a large black tornado, before said tornado enveloped the falling crown jewels, before it twisted, and flew right out of the vault and out one of the broken windows, pulling the bits of broken glass with it. And by the time anyone could get their bearings, Fox had already left the building...and left the windows repaired somehow. Fox landed perfectly outside, the real Crown Jewels safely in her hands. Immediately taking off running, she was soon joined by Rascal who had ditched the hand drill. “You got them?” he asked. “See for yourself,” she chuckled as she showed him the jewels. “Looks like mission complete to me,” came Shade’s voice as she ran up next to them. The Liepard looked fine for the most part, though she did have a few bite marks and few bits of singed fur, testaments to her fight with Howl. “Now all we need is to find Scep,” came the voices of the Spinarak Twins as they crawled out from under Fox’s cape, having jumped in shortly before the escape. “Speaking of which, where IS Scep anyway?” Fox mused...before an explosion was heard. “...found him....” The battle between Scep and Ignis raged on, the mighty dragon firing a boosted Fire Blast, but suddenly two blurs sped in the way, before intercepting the attack, the two blurs being revealed to be Shade and Rascal, both using Protect to block it, but even then, they were barely able to fend off the attack. It didn’t help either that both looked a little frazzled, like they had been in a fight before this. “How the hell are you still alive?” Rascal gasped. The Fire Blast exploded and the smoke gave the three the opportunity to escape. Scep gave the Charizard one last look. “Yeah... fuck this,” he bolted along with his partners, leaving Ignis to roar in the distance. “Have fun dear?” Shade giggled as they ran. “I SO WON THIS FIGHT!” Scep yelled back at Ignis. “Don’t mess with the PLA!” “Dude,” Rascal pointed out. “Your ass is on fire...” “FUCK!” Scep turned to blow out his tail….again. “I’ll get that overgrown lizard.” He activated his Leaf Blade. Another roar from Ignis told Rascal and Shade that it was time to go. “Just forget it and run, you ain’t got much tail left!” the Weavile yelled. Scep growled and recalled his attack. He glanced at his teammates and then at Ignis’ direction. He roared in frustration. “NEXT TIME! YOU HEAR ME?!! NEXT TIME!” He shook his fist and took off. Fox continued to run, as Rascal and Shade had went to fetch Scep first. All in all, she felt pretty good about tonight, though she still had a hard time believing that the Princesses had practically let her take the Crown Jewels. However, just as she was thinking that, there was a brilliant light that came from the palace grounds. Fox’s eyes widened when she saw the light. That was the light of a Mega Evolution. “What does that light mean?” Spinner asked her. “That we should run a lot faster,” Fox replied. Though she had to admit, she was having the time of her life right now. She almost laughed when her remaining team, along with a rather singed Scep caught up with them. “What happened to you?” she asked the Sceptile. “Decide to work on your tan?” “I was fighting a damn fire lizard!” Scep snapped, he glared back at the distance. “NEXT TIME! I’LL BRING YOU DOWN!” “You first!” A voice said from not far behind him as a Mega Absol was hot on their heels. Scep growled and fired Bullet Seed. The Mega Absol easily leapt over it, before she fired a Hyper Beam at them. “Hit the deck!” Fox shouted as they all dove for cover, the Hyper Beam impacting behind them, sending them tumbling away with the resulting explosion. Groaning as she got to her feet, Fox idly commented. “I don’t suppose I can get you to leave us alone, can I?” The shake she got was all the reply she needed. “Fine then. Time for our new secret weapon, she said, a small grin on her face as she looked at Scep, who blinked...before grinning as well. he was waiting for this. Fox reached into the fur around her neck, and pulled something out. Tossing one of the two items at Scep, he immediately grabbed and equipped the armband to his right arm, a gemstone that was light green with a dark green and orange helix inside was attached to it. Sceptilite. Likewise, Fox placed the other item, a fox shaped domino mask on her face, revealing that embedded in the forehead of the mask was a Keystone. When the Mega Absol, Selena, saw that, her eyes widened in shock and horror. “Time to take it to the next level! Sceptile, Mega Evolve!” Fox called out as she touched the Keystone. The two stones resonated, and Scep started to change. When the light subsided, he stood tall as a Mega Sceptile now. “Aw yeah!” Scep grinned, before aiming his tail at Selena. Incidentally, it was the portion that had been singed...which promptly was fired like a missile at her. She didn’t have time to dodge, before she was hit, sending her tumbling back. “Don’t draw this out! Hyper Beam!” Fox ordered. “You got it, dudette!” Scep grinned as he fired the attack, hitting the still dazed Mega Absol. When the smoke cleared, her Mega Evolution wore off and she collapsed. “Now let’s get out of here!” Rascal said as they ran for it, Scep turning back to normal. “This...was an utter fiasco,” Jonathan sighed. After Fox escaped, he had tried to find Howl...only to find him knocked out in one of the hallways, the claw marks all over him giving him a pretty good idea who was responsible. “Sending Howl out into the halls was a bad idea. Fox knew I’d try to use him to track her, so she sent Liepard to take him out of the equation,” he sighed. It probably wasn’t an exaggeration to say that this had been the biggest loss to Fox yet, and the sad thing is, after how the ‘guards’ performed, he honestly couldn’t see how it would have been possible for Fox to NOT succeed. With that in mind, he walked down the hall, meeting up with Seth before they both went to the throne rooms, rehearsed apologies prepared already. At least, that was the plan, until the sound of angry voices erupted from the throne room. “It was those blasted Pokemon!” Ironside defended himself, with the Council behind him, none too pleased about being woken up to this particular turn of events. “If those creatures hadn’t gotten in the way, then the thief would be behind bars where she belongs!” Outside the door, Jonathan just shook his head in disgust. Ironside didn’t want them to help to begin with, and kept on disregarding them, and now he wanted to pin the blame on them? This was getting annoying. With that in mind, he was about to walk into the room, when another voice spoke up. “Really now?” Luna deadpanned, unamused. “We would have thought that with assistance, even you would not be able to, how do you say... ah, screw it up!” This made Jonathan stop. He was happy that the Princesses were objective, and for some reason, he felt he and Seth should wait a bit. “This is quite the mess,” Celestia sighed. “And I would like to know exactly how the Vault was opened in the first place? Given that only I can open it.” “Well uh,” Ironside sweated as he looked to the Council for help, but they decided that the ceiling offered an interesting view. THAT sounded like a good time, so both he and Seth decided to enter now, Seth clearing his throat as he walked in, earning quite a few glares and a few mischievous smiles. Well, time to go to work. “So,” Seth started. “Would you like to hear our report Princess?” “We certainly would,” Luna said as she suppressed the wicked grin that threatened to appear on her face. “Alright. At 22 hundred hours, Fox entered the vault room. Her exact method of entry is unknown, as she used an illusion to appear as though she entered through a window. Upon her appearance, Captain Ironside appeared to dogpile her, but I believe what he dogpiled was an illusion, as she appeared right next to him. Following a few provocations, ending with Fox seemingly having taken the Crown Jewels from out of the vault, Captain Ironside proceeded to take ALL the guards in the room with him in a mad chase after Fox, falling right into her hands, as the Crown Jewels we saw proved to have been only illusions, as Seth can confirm, due to seeing into the vault,” Jonathan reported. “Indeed,” Seth nodded. An attempt was made to tunnel in from under the Vault, but I managed to thwart that, only we were then attacked by one of Fox’s assistants. And since the helpful ‘Guard’ here was trying to apprehend a ghost, Officer Trace and I were unfortunately overcome, due to our opponent being a highly skilled fighter from the PLA. What occurred after that is a bit of a blur to me I’m afraid.” “PLA?” Luna echoed. “Perhaps I shall have a talk with Sev about this.” “The chase the Guards here gave caused quite a bit of collateral damage, as well as greatly hindering the process. Phantom Fox was able to steal the real Jewels when Captain Ironside opened the Vault himself.” “The Captain opened it?” Celestia turned her magenta eyes towards the now panicking stallion. “Captain Ironside, can you explain?” “Well, I uh...” “The Council gave him permission to access the Vault,” one of the nobles stated. “In the event of a worst case scenario, the Jewels were to be taken to an undisclosed location for safe keeping.” “I did not ask that,” Celestia replied. “I want to know how he opened the Vault.” “With some sort of key,” Seth said. “All he did was press it up against the door.” “He also said it was apparently some kind of crystallized magic. Your magic to be precise. I assumed he had gotten it from you,” Jonathan simply said. “My... magic?” Celestia’s mane suddenly shifted from its gentle pastel colors to a raging inferno. The heat could be felt throughout the entire room as she turned her glowering glare to the Council. “YOU WILL EXPLAIN. IN FULL DETAIL. NOW!!!” “We.. ah...” The designate speaker was far too terrified to speak. he’d committed the worst atrocity possible, betraying the trust of Princess Celestia. “It was them,” he said pointing at the rest of the Council. “I’m sorry Princess, I didn’t want to do it, but the others insisted it was for the greater good.” “Traitor!” one of them spat, only to realize what he’d said. “Oh buck!” “And the plot thickens. Man do I wish I had popcorn right now,” Jonathan mentally chuckled. He was NOT liking this council’s attitude, and it was always fun to see their types get knocked off their high horses. “YOU STOLE MY MAGIC!?” This was one of the greatest insults to any magic user, and for these privileged-born fools to steal the magic of Celestia herself? To her great credit though, the mare slowly calmed down, her blazing mane turning to a sweet, pastel pink. She would go to her happy-place later... but as for now? “The theft of the Jewels is of little consequence now,” Celestia said, her voice was straining to remain calm and Seth saw that her heart was still racing. “Captain Grissom, if you would?” “With pleasure,” The Thestral grinned, his fangs glinting in the light. “To all members of the Council. You will be placed under arrest for treason against Her Majesty, Princess Celestia and Her Majesty, Princess Luna. You will be stripped of your titles and nobility and incarcerated until such time that a formal trial can be arranged.” “You can’t do this!” one shouted. “It’s an abuse of your power-” Jonathan leveled a deadpan and incredulous stare at the choice of words. If anyone was abusing power, it was them from what he could see. Fortunately Princess Luna saved him the trouble of saying anything. “POWER YOU STOLE FROM MY SISTER! IF IT WERE THE DAYS OF OLD, I WOULD SEE YOU ALL HANG!!” her voice exploded. “Ironside!” Celestia said, her nerves under control... for the most part. “You are my Captain of the Guard, the one to succeed Former Captain Shining Armor... He would be most displeased to see this turn of events...” Those words cut deeper than any blade. Iron respected Shining Armor more that anything. And now... he would never receive that respect in return. “You have shown both incompetence, and disrespect to fellow officers, one of which actually had a plan to prevent the theft of the jewels, that might have worked... had you taken the time to listen to him! Effective immediately, you are demoted to the rank of Private, and will be re-deployed for border patrol.” “The border!?” Ironside cried. “But.. I will not see my family for months! Please Your Majesty, have leniency!” Okay, now Jonathan felt conflicted. On one hand he definitely thought a serving humble pie was much needed, but... not THIS much. Looking at things objectively, he had to give credit to Ironside for the...zeal he showed in doing his job...though his attitude STILL needed work. He was about to say something, but Seth beat him to it. “I request that Officer Ironside remain here in Canterlot!” he said. “I know how it feels to lose family, and to fight for what you truly believe is right. Officer Ironside is misguided, and that has caused his ability as a Guard to suffer. Therefore, I request that Private Ironside be drafted into the Pokemon Corps, as a liaison between Pokemon and Equus-born citizens.” THAT sounded like a pretty good idea. Ironside learns his lesson AND some humility, while they get to keep a dedicated officer. “I support Officer Crescent’s request. Despite his...shortcomings, Private Ironside HAS shown dedication that is...rare amongst many officers...at least back on Earth. It would be a waste of good help,” Jonathan nodded. Celestia closed her eyes for a moment, before a small smile crossed her face. “Well Ironside, it would appear that you have made an impression, though whether it is a positive one or not remains to be seen. You have abused my trust, the trust I grant all my little ponies.” Celestia crossed the room and climbed to her throne. “I am not infallible, and tonight proves that more than anything... What has transpired here is my fault, for giving you power you could not use wisely.” Ironside shook his head, “No Princess! It’s not your fault. Please don’t blame yourself for my failings!” Celestia nodded her head, “You have been granted a lifeline Ironside, but it is your decision to take it.” Ironside looked at Seth and Jonathan, the two Pokemon that despite everything, offered him a chance to prove himself and keep his family. “I’ll do it Your Majesty. And I thank Lord Seth and Lord Jonathan for their unparalleled generosity.” “Okay, now you're just being a ham,” Seth laughed. “But in all seriousness, next time someone tries to help or gives you advice, listen to them first. Its incredible what kind of trouble could have been avoided if people had listened to each other,” Jonathan sighed. “...I, I will strive to be a better stallion. One worthy of being called a Solar Guard!” He saluted the two Pokemon, who returned his gesture. Celestia nodded and smiled, though that smile vanished when she looked back to the Council. “My verdict on you still stands... unless Seth has other opinions.” Seth shook his head. “I got nothing, do what you will Princess.” Several members gulped as Celestia looked back to them. “Well, then my decision stands. Your valuables will be passed onto next of kin and your land and titles revoked. Your families will not pay for this disgrace, the blames lies with you and you alone. A new Council will be appointed in the next few weeks, by way of public vote, rather than based on suggestions by nobility. Captain Grissom, please escort these ponies to their cells!” “With pleasure, Your Majesty,” he grinned. “We will not stand for this!” one shouted and turned to run, only to face a Luxray and Lucario. Both brandishing their badges. “Yeah... I don’t think so,” Seth said. “And if you’ve got any further complaints at this point, I think our friends would be willing to have a word with you,” Jonathan smirked, as their respective Pokemon teams walked into the room. “Feeling like trying your luck?” “...We surrender,” one mare said. Jonathan sighed again as he felt the warm water flow over him. After everything that happened, a shower felt like something he’d very much need. However, despite what happened, one thing wouldn’t leave his mind. Touching his lips where Fox had kissed him, for some reason he just couldn’t get the feeling it had elicited off his mind...and that worried him greatly for some reason. Ending theme: