//------------------------------// // The Mare Who Laughs // Story: Edge of the Ponyverse // by TopWanted //------------------------------// Pony City. A hotbed of corruption and decay. Every day more ponies cry out in pain or terror as some new horror or atrocity takes place here. They called out for so long. Finally, it was a knight that answered. The Mysterious Mare Do-Well stood perched on a gargoyle balustrade atop the Pony City Bank. She gazed down at the street below in powerful concentration for the men she had been tipped off would arrive. Two hours previous, Mare Do-Well’s information and computers expert “Soothsayer” intercepted a communication about a possible armed assault on Stallion St. The Pony City Bank was the most likely location for it. Mare Do-Well felt a drop of rain hit the back of her head and adjusted her hat to keep the rain out of her lenses. After another few minutes she spoke into her earpiece. “Soothsayer,” she said. “Are you sure about the assault being tonight?” “Pretty sure,” Soothsayer replied on the other end. She had a slight twang to her accent. Not surprising since her family was originally from a western city around Appleoosa. Soothsayer sat where she always sat every night, behind a cadre of computer terminals and screens focused on her job as Mare Do-Well’s eyes and ears. “The communication was magical in nature so the message couldn’t have been tampered with. Unfortunately that also means ah couldn’t extrapolate the sender or the receiver of the message. We’re just lucky mah Dreamcatcher protocol, Dinky helped me make, intercepted it when it did.” “No names, Soothsayer,” Mare Do-Well said with a serious tone. “Relax, T,” Soothsayer replied. “It’s a five times encrypted channel. Don’t be so stressed. You’re doin’ fine.” Mare Do-Well scowled at how Soothsayer began to talk down to her. “I’d just like a little professionalism is all.” Soothsayer laughed over the channel. “There is nothing professional about what we do.” When Mare Do-Well didn’t reply to her joke Soothsayer sighed. “Ah know you didn’t want this. None of us did. You’re goin’ to do great though. Ah believe in you, y’know? Just don’t try to act too much like-” “Hold,” Mare Do-Well said quietly. Soothsayer went silent as she began to scan her cameras video feeds of the scene. “Do you see what I’m seeing?” “Yup,” Soothsayer replied. “Five bogies in an armored chariot.” Below them on the street, a big black vehicle pulled by a massive monster of a horse pulled up to the bank’s door and stopped. Four ponies clad in black armor and masks came out wielding the latest automatic weapon crossbows. Mare Do-Well thought they looked ridiculously oversized for the four that carried the weapons around their shoulders. One even fumbled with his and nearly let off a round before catching himself. These were not pros, at least everypony but the chariot puller. If anything they were newbies trying to make a name or get into an organization. But they were carrying too much heavy ordinance for that. Something felt wrong here. “Do you see a visible tag on them somewhere that ah can run?” Mare Do-Well didn’t have to wait long as one pony lifted his mask to speak to the others. Something about really being sure they want to do this. Another quickly pulled the fumbler’s mask down with a curse but it was enough for Mare Do-Well to catch a peek at the tattoo on his neck. She knew that half and half symbol of a pony’s head anywhere. “No need to run it, Soothsayer. They’re Two-Mane’s thugs, at least one of them is.” “Two Mane?” Soothsayer asked. “Since when has she got so much firepower? And why give it to these losers?” “I don’t know but something’s not right,” she grumbled. “Keep a look out for any suspicious call-ins around the city. I think this might be a diversion.” “Still gonna kick their flanks, right?” Soothsayer smiled. Mare Do-Well smiled as well. “You know me so well.” One of the ponies in armor began to pick at the lock to the bank door as the others helped untie the big stallion. Mare Do –Well didn’t like his eyes. The big one felt off, like he was under some kind of spell or influence. His gaze was just… wrong. She wasn’t paying enough attention when she heard the door click beneath her and a pony shout quietly, “Jackpot!” She cursed herself for losing focus and ran to the edge of the building. Mare Do-Well tossed a smoke grenade down before her so her landing could be covered. The bomb hit one of the ponies in the head knocking him out instantly sand dispersing the vision covering gas. Four more to go. She landed without a sound as the ponies around her began to cough and sputter. She sneaked up on one and delivered a sweep to the legs followed by a quick jab to the back of his head that brought him crashing to the ground jaw first. Out like a light. Three more. Mare Do-Well spun around to find another masked pony aiming his crossbow at her. He let loose a series of arrows, all of which missed as Mare Do-Well ducked and lunged forward. She caught the shooter in the chest and brought up a knee to finish the job. Another one out. Now the smoke was receding and two more ponies were left staring at her. The last neglected his heavy killing machine in favor of a classic tackle. Mare Do-Well simply stepped to the side as the pony rushed by her. He stopped before he could hit the wall behind though. “You seriously thought I’d run into a wall and knock myself out?” he asked with a smirk. “No,” Mare Do-Well replied. “But he just might.” In a brief flash of light Mare Do-Well teleported away and the giant stallion roared as he came crashing through where she used to be and straight toward the last armored pony. “Aw, buck,” he muttered. Mare Do-Well winced a little from behind the chariot as the large horse collided with the other and slammed him into the wall. Mare Do-Well turned from the unconscious bodies and held her hoof to her earpiece. “Soothsayer, that was too easy. This is definitely a diversion. Tell me you have something.” Soothsayer didn’t reply. “Soothsayer. Soothsayer! Apple Bloom!” Mare Do-Well heard a loud roar as she spun around to see the big guy had gotten back up from his head trauma. Now he held the armored chariot in his hooves over her. Sloppy, she thought to herself. Mare Do-Well did a slide underneath the stallion to come up behind him as he launched the chariot. As she slid under she planted a small concussive bomb onto his chest. When she came back up from the slide she pressed a button on her utility belt and the stallion was rocketed forward to land on his face again inside a mail box. To Mare Do-Well’s surprise though, the monster got back up. He turned on her in a rage and she finally got a good look at those eyes she didn’t like. They were swollen and red but most of importantly they had the distinct traces of a Mesmer. Damn it, not her, she thought. The stallion tore itself from the mailbox and charged at her in a rage. If he was being controlled by who she thought, then this guy wouldn’t stop until one of them was dead. She had to finish this quick. As the stallion rushed toward her Mare Do-Well planted herself firmly on the ground. If she didn’t pull this off perfectly then it was going to hurt. A lot. As the stallion lunged forward to grab her, Mare Do-Well jumped in the air and somersaulted over his head. She stuck a second concussive bomb on the monster’s forehead as she flew by and landed back on two legs behind him. The pony finally seemed to learn from his mistakes and stopped before he could run into the wall again. He turned back to him with venom in his eyes and charged again. Mare Do-Well once again pressed a button on her belt and the bomb on the beast’s forehead exploded sending a shockwave through its system. The pony screamed in pain but when it ended it began to sway haphazardly. The mesmer effects around its eyes beginning to disappear. It took a few steps forward and reached out for Mare Do-Well with a groan but she stood perfectly still. With a slight blow of breath from her mouth she sent the beast toppling over with a crash. Now that that was over with, there were more important matters. “T,” came a voice from her earpiece. Mare Do-Well stiffened in surprise. “Soothsayer, are you alright? You didn’t respond,” she asked with a panicked breath. “Ah’m fine,” Soothsayer said with a shaky voice. “But… you need to get over to the PCPD now! My sister she’s…” Soothsayer didn’t have to finish her statement as Mare Do-Well was already hurtling through the air. She traveled with a combination of teleportation magic and enhanced strength form the suit for long distance jumps. Mare Do-Well slipped as she almost didn’t quite make a jump and had to scoop herself back up onto the roof of the building. “Damn,” she muttered. “Still not quite used to it.” However this wasn’t the time for such thoughts. Commisioner AJ was in danger. One of the most virtuous and honest ponies Mare Do-Well had ever known was constantly targeted by criminals and psychopaths, however the Pony City Police Department was a literal fortress. Probably capable of holding off an invading army. There was no way somepony could have gotten in and subdued or captured her. Then again, there were some pretty clever villains out there. Not to mention some of them had histories at the PCPD. “Two-Mane,” Mare Do-Well muttered angrily. She was only two blocks from the precinct when Soothsayer came back online. “Mare Do-Well, it looks like she has her up on the roof. A couple of the cops that were on patrol have returned and set up a perimeter around the precinct but they’re confused since most of the ponies inside won’t respond.” Mare Do-Well reached the scene described and saw for herself the situation. Two ponies stood on the roof of the red brick well-built PCPD, one with a cannon pointed at her head. Below many officers in blue scattered floodlights around to illuminate the area above. All the curtains were pulled down around the windows obscuring the view of the inside. “It looks like it’s a standoff above,” she muttered into her earpiece. “But I’m concerned about the ponies inside.” Soothsayer let out a small sigh. “Understood. There’s an entranceway from below if you back track a block. Head north in the sewers.” “You sure you’re okay with this?” Mare Do-Well asked. “Mah sister is tough,” Soothsayer replied with a weak chuckle. “She can take care of herself for a few minutes. Go save those police officers.” Mare Do-Well wasted no time in doing so. She ducked into the sewer a block over and waded through the filth for a couple hundred feet until she spotted the ladder and hatch that Soothsayer had mentioned. “Let’s find out if I was right about who else is involved in this,” she said to herself. Mare Do-Well slowly opened the hatch above to peek out. The surrounding was dark but that made no point to her night vision lenses. She had apparently arrived in the boiler room below the PCPD. A quick scan of the room did not show any signs of danger. “Soothsayer, are you back?” “Yeah,” she replied in a worried tone. “You were cut off down there for a minute so Ah couldn’t warn you but they’ve opened the curtains. There’s a full view of what’s waitin’ for you inside.” “And?” “Nothing. Absolutely nothing. All the police officers and ponies are just standing perfectly still and doin’ nothing. There’s no visible sign of hostiles.” This was just what Mare Do-Well had feared. “This might be more dangerous than we thought,” she growled. “You’re thinkin’ mind control?” asked Soothsayer. “But Two-Mane doesn’t have that capability.” “Not her,” Mare Do-Well muttered. “Somepony else. I need to stick to the shadows. Can you give me approximate locations?” “Sure.” She could hear Soothsayer tap furiously at her keyboard. “Ah can’t get into the PCPD cameras but extrapolatin’ from the view of the ponies from outside Ah think Ah can get you through the halls.” “That’s good enough,” Mare Do-Well replied as she opened the door to the boiler room and peeked out. Luckily enough there were no ponies in the hallway she came out to. But just to be safe she dashed over to a potted plant down the hall and hid. The room beyond was a filing room with rows of tall black file cabinets and two ponies standing around, their backs facing her. They took up both her pathways. “Damn.” “Think you can get by silently?” asked Soothsayer. “Possibly. But I’ll need to be quick if they notice,” she replied. “Don’t want them alerting the others.” “Just be careful. They are still cops.” “I know,” Mare Do-Well muttered. Truth be told she didn’t really like the cops. Cops could be bought, blackmailed, broken. Really the only cop worth anything in this city was Commissioner AJ. She had earned Mare Do-Well’s respect a long time ago and she just hoped that she earned the same respect from her. Mare Do-Well jumped silently above the police officers onto the tops of the file cabinets. Her suit made no sound and she was trained to not leave a sound from her hooffalls. She tiptoed with the greatest skill across the room and then jumped down just out of sight. She looked back to check that she wasn’t spotted but then noticed that a cabinet had opened on the row of files she had walked across. It opened very slowly, heading directly for the back of one ponies head. In a burst of speed you would not associate with the Mare, she dashed behind the cop and stopped the cabinet before it could touch him and alert him. However that didn’t stop him from realizing there was somepony behind him. He turned his head and opened his mouth to scream and attack. Mare Do-Well acted fast and brought a hoof up in a grab to the mouth then spun another hoof around the cop’s neck and placed him in a chokehold. There was a little struggle with some mumbling sounds but the officer went down quickly, unconscious. Mare Do-Well let out a sigh of relief before heading back to the door. Then she heard the sound of hoofsteps rushing at her. She dodged to the side as the second cop in the room ran past her. She stuck out a hoof to intercept him and the cop fell face first. However, while he should have smashed his nose with a loud bang, Mare Do-Well expertly caught him in his forward descent and continued his momentum flipping him over and driving him into the ground by his neck. Her cape muffled any extraneous noise as she choked this one unconscious as well. Damn, she thought, that was close. Mare Do-Well slowly opened the door to check the next room. Just as Soothsayer said it was the main floor of the PCPD. Desks lined the grand hall and ponies stood motionless all over the place. She was not going to be able to sneak through this many. She would need a different angle. “So glad you could make it, Mare Do-Well,” came a harsh female voice from the speakers. Mare Do-Well tensed. The voice laughed. “Don’t worry, I don’t see you yet. But I know you’re there. I know you so well. We were partners after all.” Two-Mane. Once a promising official in the Pony City Government, she was an ex-racer that decided to go into politics. However, she had a history of anger issues and mental illness. When a mob hit attempt went sour and ended up bleaching a side of her mane and crippling her left wing she lost it. As an official she supported the vigilantism of the Mare Do-Well, but as Two-Mane the crime boss she wants nothing more than to see her dead. “There’s so much I want to talk to you about. All these dreams I’ve been having. Other you’s. Other me’s. It’s been making me feel so… inconsequential. Please get up here. I really want to talk about it.” The speakers cut off after that. “That mare is buckin’ nuts,” Soothsayer muttered over the earpiece. “Channel is still open, Soothsayer,” Mare Do-Well whispered. Soothsayer didn’t reply which Mare Do-Well took as a sign of embarrassment. “So what’s the best way through here?” “You’re going to need to go high,” Soothsayer replied. “The support beams above should be able to hide your presence long enough to get across.” Mare Do-Well grunted an affirmative and jumped high into the supports. Sure enough, nopony was looking above as they all stood around lifelessly. Their eyes were all like that muscle pony’s from earlier. This was definitely not Two-Mane’s work. But even if it was who she thought it was, something didn’t feel right about it all. There was something else she was missing. She prowled across the metal supports, a slight breeze from the vents hitting her. When she was about a few hooves away from the end of the room she felt her hoofing slip and she fell forward, barely catching herself. Suddenly the distance to the ground seemed so much greater as a wave of vertigo hit her. “Everything okay?” “Fine,” she whispered as she straightened up again. “Just… fine.” She silently jumped down from the supports and slipped into the stair case. Nopony was in here so she wasted no time being stealthy as she dashed up the stairs to the roof. She came face to face with the door and another wave of nausea hit her. Damn, why was she so nervous? It’s not like she hadn’t faced situations like this before. Still, she needed to be careful. She knew for a fact that it wasn’t just Two-Mane and Commissioner AJ behind those doors. She took a deep breath and opened them with a loud creak. The roof was filled with light making it easy to see everything around her. Two- Mane stood with her back to her and a large cannon pointed at the commissioner who did not move, her eyes the same as the others. When Two-Mane heard her approach she turned. She had a cyan blue coat and half of her mane had a rainbow pattern while the other was white and burnt. Her left wing was also scorched, showing off some bone as well giving it a skeletal look. She had a long red scar down her left eye. “You got here earlier than I expected!” she shouted with a smirk. “Why are you doing this, Dash?” Mare Do-Well asked sternly. “You’ve never been one to act so brazenly.” “DON’T! Don’t CALL me that!!” She shouted back, her expression instantly turning to one of rage. “You don’t get to call me that name! Ever! Because of you, I had it taken from me!” She pointed at Mare Do-Well with a sneer. “I wasn’t responsible for that hit, Rainbow,” Mare Do-Well responded trying to calm her down. But this just made her angrier. Two-Mane grabbed the end of the cannon and pointed it at her. “Take another step and I fire,” she growled. “Even the great Mare Do-Well won’t be able to dodge a blast from this distance.” Mare Do-Well stopped in her track. “Where is she?” Mare Do-Well asked. Two-Mane grinned evilly in response. “I know she’s helping you, Rainbow. Where is she?” Suddenly there was a crawling sensation coming from her feet. Mare Do-Well looked down in surprise as she saw hundreds of spiders beginning to wrap their webs around her hooves and binding her. Mare Do-Well jumped to get out but they had already succeeded in binding her front hooves. She dodged back and landed awkwardly nearly dislocating a shoulder. The spiders moved forward but Mare Do-Well kicked at her utility belt with her back leg and dislodged a gas canister. The canister exploded at the spiders and drove them off toward the wall. Mare Do-Well righted herself and cut the bonds on her hooves to watch the spiders congregate against the wall. She heard a deep sultry laugh. Then hundreds of chameleons dispersed from the wall, dissolving their camouflage to reveal a beautiful yellow Pegasus in a sleek green dress made of leaves and fronds. Her hair was a light pink that flowed around her shoulders like water, but her eyes were the thing Mare Do-Well was most scared of. “Poison Shy.” Once known before as Fluttershy, an animal rights activist and acclaimed biologist. She disappeared for years having taken a trip into the amazon to try and save an endangered species. While there she was captured by the secret lab of a powerful corporation and experimented on. She escaped the lab and slaughtered every pony there with her new abilities they had granted her. Her eyes were now a glowing yellow and they could mesmerize any creature they came into contact with. She could make them do anything. Just like those scientists she forced to kill each other. Poison Shy gave a sultry smile as her eyes glowed at Mare Do-Well. The villain had long since given up on trying to mesmerize the Mare since her lenses prevented the effects. That didn’t mean she didn’t still find it fun. “Why are you two working together?” Mare Do-Well asked. Poison Shy walked over to Dash and laughed. “Rainbow and I are quite similar in a way,” she said. “We’re both pegasi that have been horribly betrayed by the ponies of the world. However while I find solace in my animal friends, poor Dash is here with nothing to console her. We wanted to lend a helping hoof.” “We?” Mare Do-Well raised an eyebrow. Then her eyes shot open in realization and she spun around but was too late. A cloud of gas shot into her face from a hoof and she staggered back. She coughed a bit as she looked up at a frightful sight. “Scarecrone.” Scarecrone stood tall above her. A burlap mask over her tortured face. A single white horn protruded from the mask and small waves of knotty twisted violet mane came out from beneath it. The pony wore a black tattered shirt that reached to her flank. Several plastic tubes came up from large needles attached to her forehooves and into a tank on her back. Her eyes were bloodshot and crazy behind her mask. “What’s wrong, Mare Do-Well?” she asked in a voice that once was beautiful. “Can’t take the pressure?” Once known as Rarity Belle, a beautiful premier designer and fledgling chemist. She began to experiment with new off-the-wall designs and eventually ended up creating a line of dresses so avant garde that the fashion world designated them “fear inducing.” However, they were a hit. Rarity became obsessed with finding the key factor that made her designs so scary. Eventually she began to experiment in drugs as well, placing chemicals into the dyes of her clothes and selling them. The police and Mare Do-Well stopped her after the fifth pony death. Later she broke out of her incarceration and took on the moniker Scarecrone, determined to someday find out the meaning behind fear even if she had to kill ponies to do it. She wasn’t like the other two. Scarecrone was a maniac. “You’re working with Scarecrone?” Mare Do-Well asked Two-Mane as she tried to regain her balance. Everything around her began to look like a monster as Two-Mane’s face twisted into a vision of horror. “It’s not permanent, believe me,” Two-Mane muttered. Scarecrone walked past the writhing Mare Do-Well over to the villains. “Oh please, darling. I do hope you consider me a friend after all this is over.” She eyed Poison Shy with interest. “And I’d simply love to take you into my basement and… show you a few designs.” Poison Shy rolled her eyes. “No thanks.” “You sent the magic communication tonight,” Mare Do-Well struggled to say to Scarecrone. “Guilty as charged,” Scarecrone cackled. Mare Do-Well struggled to herb hooves and stood firm in front of the three. “Why?” she asked through gritted teeth. “Why are you all doing this?” “Revenge,” Two-Mane growled. “Money,” Poison Shy sighed. “Experimentation,” Scarecrone giggled. “I thought it’d be fun to get the gang back together. For old time’s sake.” Mare Do-Well froze. That voice. No. It couldn’t be. She was dead. Mare Do-Well could feel her teeth begin to loosen she grit them so hard. She turned to face the new voice. “Bet you weren’t expecting me, but you know how I just love a good party.” The pink mare let out a horrible laugh that seemed to shake the heavens themselves. What was once poofy pink hair now lay in dead curls around her features, died green at the tips. A purple and pink striped suit covered her body with a rubber chicken sticking out of her pocket. Two long cuts were across her mouth giving her the appearance of always smiling. But that didn’t stop her from smiling anyway. A smile Mare Do-Well knew too well. “You are dead!!” she shouted angrily, still trying to keep her balance. The pink mare sauntered forward, causing Mare Do-Well to take a step back out of fear. She frowned as she inspected the Mare. “Y’know I was sure that you would switch it up a little bit. But no, classic Mare Do-Well suit.” The horrifying smile returned as she giggled. “How’s it feel to be in the big shoes, eh?” Mare Do-Well roared and came at her with a right hook but the pink mare dodged it and responded by taking out her rubber chicken and swinging it at Mare Do-Well’s head. It collided with a hard thwack and Mare Do-Well went down hard. A trail of blood seeping from beneath the mask. “Hmm, that was a little easy.” The pink mare checked her chicken and unzipped it to find a large brick inside. “Oops, must have left the gag chicken back home.” She let out another hideous laugh. Two-Mane rushed over to the two and glared at her. “You better not have killed her. She’s mine!” Two-Mane grabbed one of her hooves. The pink mare smiled. “Trust me, girl. If you knew what I knew you wouldn’t care in the least for that thing on the ground.” “I want to experiment on her a little more,” cackled Scarecrone who grabbed a fallen hoof. “I’ve always wanted to know the secrets of this suit.” “What about you, Shy?” asked the pink mare with a smile. “You want a leg or maybe the gizzard?” Poison Shy looked away in disgust. “I’m a vegetarian, Pinkster. Let’s just get this farce over with.” The pink mare grinned evilly. “I totally agree.” Mare Do-Well was still pretty dazed. The blow to the head had cleared away a lot of the effects of Scarecrone’s fear gas but now she could feel herself slipping in and out of consciousness. There was no doubt in her mind that she had a concussion or maybe a broken skull. She watched with heavy lidded eyes as the villains pulled her up. She kept blacking out as she noticed them tying ropes around her hooves and then hoisting her up on something. When she was finally able to regain her senses she was strapped to the barrel of the cannon. The pink mare stood front and center to the villains to greet her. “Pinkster,” she hissed through gritted teeth. “Why are you alive? I saw you! I saw you fall!” The Pinkster, Pony City premier princess of Crime. Identity unknown. A homicidal psychopath with the insane drive to kill any in her path. The rest of the villains here were criminals and murderers. This one was a true monster. The monster that took away Mare Do-Well’s happiness, twice over. “Yeah,” the Pinkster laughed as she began to pace before the cannon. “I’ve survived harsher stuff y’know?” “But she fell with you,” Mare Do-Well said weakly. “She… she wouldn’t just let you-” “Mare…… Are you…. Ah can’t….” The voice of Soothsayer tried to get through her earpiece but something was scrambling it. Mare Do-Well turned her head slightly at the sound which tipped off the Pinkster. She leaned in close with a big smile and whispered in her ear. “Is that the Commissioner’s little sister?” Mare Do-Well’s eyes shot open in shock. She knew. She knew about Apple Bloom. “Ask her how the wheelchair’s treating her. Or better yet, let me talk to her myself.” Mare Do-Well let out a scream of agony as the Pinkster pulled out a pair of rusty pliers and tore the side of her mask off, tearing away some bits of fur skin as well. She then shoved the pliers into her ear with a hard jab and pulled out a destroyed earpiece. “Oops. Oh, well.” Mare Do-Well felt blood all over her face as she looked out. The cannon had been pulled to point out at the city, specifically down at the police below. “Why?” Mare Do-Well moaned mournfully. “Why are you alive? Why are you doing this?” The Pinkster rubbed her chin in pretend thought. “Daddy never bought me enough toys as a filly? Time space warp? Something to do with aliens? Who knows and who cares.” She let out a little laugh as she began to aim the cannon. “When it all comes down to it. This is the role I play and this is the role you play. Now if you don’t mind I promised Rainbow she’d get to fire you into that crowd.” Mare Do-Well had to act quickly. She couldn’t reach her belt but that didn’t matter. The villains had left her the only weapon she needed, her horn. Surprisingly enough, most bad guys seemed to forget about the horn since she wore the hat, go figure. With a little magic she successfully pulled out a small canister and brought it to her hoof. Two-Mane was the first to notice it. “Somepony stop-” But she was cut off as Mare Do-Well depressed the canister and it let loose sonic screech. All the villains grabbed their ears in pain. Using the distraction, she expertly slipped out of her restraints and back flipped over the cannon. She proceeded to deliver a two legged kick into the stomach of the closest bad guy, which happened to be Poison Shy. With a loud “OOF!” she went down hard. Mare Do-Well could see the commissioner slowly begin to shake her head in confusion as she was released from the mesmer’s control. Two-Mane shouted at her, enraged as she pulled out a small crossbow she had stuffed behind a set of piping. She shot out a volley of magic arrows at Mare Do-Well who managed to dodge most of them. However one last caught her in the leg. The suit stayed strong and didn’t let it penetrate but she could still feel the impact break a bone. Mare Do-Well let out a cry of pain before grabbing a bola from her belt and hurling it at the one-winged Pegasus. Two-Mane couldn’t turn to run in time and her legs were caught causing her to come crashing to the ground. Mare Do-Well still had to move though. She blinked away just in time as the last two villains, Scarecrone and the Pinkster, jumped down at her with weapons. Scarecrone with her patented hoof needles and Pinkster with a giant cartoon mallet. Pinkster hit the ground as she disappeared sending a shockwave through the roof and causing several fracture lines to appear. “Tut tut, Mistress Mare,” the Pinkster clucked. “You wouldn’t want the building coming down would you? Not on all those poor pony’s heads.” The two began to prowl the roof looking for her as Mare Do-Well reappeared behind a large generator that hid her from view. Her leg hurt like hell but she couldn’t think about that now. After a minute, Scarecrone ran back to the commissioner and grabbed her in a choke hold, her needles to her throat. “That’s enough playing, Mare Do-Well!” she shouted to the roof. “Come out now or the commissioner gets it!” The Pinkster nodded her agreement also rolling back her mallet. “Plus I might just break down this roof and then we all just topple over.” “You really do have a few screws loose, don’t you?” Scarecrone asked with a smirk. The Pinkster laughed. “Says the diva in the rags.” “I’m a trendsetter not a follower.” With the distraction of their conversation, Mare Do-Well jumped down from above and delivered a flying kick to the back of Scarecrone’s head. The unicorn went down hard and dropped AJ who was finally seeming to come out of it. Mare Do-Well approached her. “Are you alright?” Commissioner AJ nodded. “Fine. I’ll be fine. I- LOOK OUT!” Mare Do-Well wasted no time in jumping away with the commissioner as Pinkster’s mallet came down and turned bannister gargoyle to rubble. The cops below began to shout as the rocks fell. “Not bad. Not bad,” the Pinkster mused as she reared back her mallet again. “I swear if I didn’t know what I knew about you I’d think you were for real.” “What?” AJ asked in confusion. “Musings of a lunatic,” Mare Do-Well muttered. “I’m going to fix that.” She lunged forward and brought up a collapsible baton that intercepted the Pinkster’s next attack. “Oh yes! Fix me, oh mighty warrior. I’m waiting in r-r-r-rapt anticipation,” she rolled. Mare Do-Well gave the Pinkster’s legs a sweep and pushed the mad mare back. She landed on her flank by the bannister, Mare Do-Well batting away her mallet. The Pinkster looked up at her with an evil smile. “So what now, little pony?” Mare Do-Well roared and thrusted her elbow down onto the Pinkster’s neck and pushed. She watched as the pony tried to wiggle out of it by crawling up the bannister behind her but it was to no avail. Everypony gasped below as they saw the Mare Do-Well choking the Pinkster up above. Even through her gasping breaths the Pinkster somehow laughed. “Did I… strike a chord… with something?” “Why?” Mare Do-Well shouted, tears beginning to mix with the blood in her mask. “What kind of god would take her and let something like you live!? Why are you alive?!” “Not yet, hero,” the Pinkster choked out. “The story… isn’t there… yet.” “Stop!” came a voice from behind her. Mare Do-Well didn’t need to look around to realize who it was though. Standing behind her, with the crossbow Two-Mane had just used pointed at her, was Commissioner AJ. “Don’t go any further, Mare Do-Well.” “You of all ponies, AJ,” Mare Do-Well screamed. “After everything this monster has done to you. To your family. Killing your grandmother. Crippling Apple Bloom. All the pain and torture she’s brought this city and you don’t want this?” “Ah never said Ah don’t want this!” AJ shouted with determination. A quiet pause passed between the two. “Ah know what she did to me and mine. But Ah won’t let her do this to you.” Mare Do-Well turned her attention back to the Pinkster who was beginning to turn blue in the face as she did not let up her choke hold. She grit her teeth as she began to push a little harder but let go when she heard a crossbow cock behind her. Mare Do-Well looked up at the sky and let out a long scream that pierced the night air. When she was done she let go of the Pinkster completely who took in a huge breath. Mare Do-Well fell back on her flank as she began to breathe heavily. Before they could both get up police ponies began to swarm the roof and hoof cuff the villains, including Pinkster. AJ dropped the crossbow and walked over to Mare Do-Well to put a hoof on her shoulder. “What’s wrong with you? You’ve been acting weird since the-” She was interrupted. Mare Do-Well threw the comforting hoof off and ran for the edge of the roof and jumped. Police followed and saw her disappear mid fall and reappear on another rooftop. She repeated this until she was out of sight. “Should we give chase?” a pony asked thee commissioner. “Why?” AJ replied. “You’d never catch her.” Pinkster watched her leave as well and began to chuckle. Which turned into a chortle. Which turned into maniacal laughter. Mare Do-Well could hear it from twelve blocks away. When she had finally gone far enough to not hear it anymore she stopped and dropped to her knees. The rain finally began to fall and Mare Do-Well turned her head up to see it. A bolt of lightning crossed the sky followed by a howling boom. Mare Do-Well matched it tone for tone. She spent the rest of that night, screaming into the sky, trying to fight the storm. ---<^^>--- Two hours later Mare Do-Well finally made it back to her sanctum, a large cavern hidden underneath the Pony City Library. She couldn’t even bring herself to replace her wet clothes as she sat before a cadre of computer banks. Local news blared on the screens reporting the apprehension of the villains and the fact that no lives were lost. No stations mentioned the return of the Pinkster seemingly from the dead. Though why should they? There was no death certificate. No body found. That is to say, neither body found. Mare Do-Well rose from her seat and walked across the dark cavern floor over to a set of four display cases. One was empty and usually held her own suit. Another held a slightly modified version of her suit with a hood instead of a hat and dark blue cape. The other two were much different. Both being black with a blue “M” on one and a red “M” on the other. Mare Do-Well placed a hoof against the glass of the display with a blue “M” and sighed mournfully. She brought her own cape up to her cheek and rubbed it against herself fondly. “T?” came a voice from her computer banks. Mare Do-Well turned back to the computers and pressed a button letting a symbol appear on screen of crystal ball. “I’m here, Soothsayer,” she replied without emotion. “Ah see you’re just as torn up about this as Ah am,” Soothsayer replied with a scorned voice. “…you did the right thing y’know?” Mare Do-Well didn’t reply to that. “I’ve been thinking about it recently. About… her.” They were both silent for a minute. “Do you think… she would approve of the choices I’ve made?” “You can’t live your life thinkin’ like that,” Soothsayer responded. “You’re your own pony.” Mare Do-Well nodded even though Soothsayer couldn’t see it. “You did a good job. She’d be proud.” “I hope so,” Mare Do-Well whispered. “Mare Do-Well out.” The display disappeared and in its place was silence. A silence Mare Do-Well welcomed whole heartedly. The night was finally over. She turned and began to remove her hat when a sonic boom rocked the floor. Mare Do-Well was sent flying as she landed on her back. When she righted herself and took up a defensive stance, she was surprised to see something in the middle of the cavern. In the middle of the floor, vibrating tremendously fast was a pony in a white bodysuit with purple stripes. However, what surprised Mare Do-Well more was that this pony had the same face and mane as a pony she knew very well. “Pinkster!!” The new mare turned to see Mare Do-Well fire a volley of magical blasts at her. To Mare Do-Well’s amazement the pony that looked just like Pinkster dodged the blast with incredible speed. Almost inpony speed. Within a blink she had traversed the length of the cavern and come face to face with Mare Do-Well. The Mare brought a hoof to her belt but was surprised to find it missing. The pink pony flaunted the belt in front of her with a smirk. “Are we done?” she asked. “Not even close,” Mare Do-Well hissed. “Computer! Protocol 14! Lightning! Balloon! Diamond!” The computer’s voice responded. “Protocol 14 enabled. Weapons systems online.” New cannons and long range weapons emerged from all over the cavern aimed directly at the pink mare’s head. “This is going to hurt you a lot more than me,” Mare Do-Well smirked as the weapons fired. Then nothing. Mare Do-Well seemed to blink and the weapons around the room were gone. The pink mare in the white suit dashed back to her in a trail of lightning as she dumped the last of the deactivated weapons onto the floor. Her expression was now incredibly serious. “That’s enough, Twilight!” Mare Do-Well took a step back in shock. “How do you know that name?” “I know a lot about you,” the pink mare replied. “And I need your help.” Mare Do-Well scrutinized her carefully. “You’re not the Pinkster, are you?” “I’m guessing that’s this world’s version of me?” replied the mare. “My name is Filli-Second. You have to listen to me when I say this.” Mare Do-Well did not get out of her defensive stance but did indicate for her to continue. “I come from another reality where a great evil has been unleashed. One that may threaten all realities. I need your skill and smarts.” She held out a hoof. “Will you join me?” Mare Do-Well frowned but couldn’t find any indication that she was lying. Either this pony truly believed her own ludicrous words or… She looked around at the amount of damage this Filli-Second had been able to do to the cavern in under thirty seconds. Plus her method of arrival was very peculiar. She took one last look toward the empty display case and sighed inwardly. What would you do, she thought. “Can I get my belt back?” Mare Do-Well asked with a hint of indignation. Filli-Second tossed it over. “Thanks.” “So you’ll come with me?” Filli-Second asked with a smile. “Depends,” Mare Do-Well muttered as she reattached the belt. “Where are we going?” Filli-Second grinned. “Everywhere.” Mare Do-Well frowned again but nodded. This wasn’t the weirdest thing to ever happen to her. She took Filli-Second’s hoof and the mare pulled her in closer. “Hold tight. This may get a little vibratey.” “What the hay is vibra-” Mare Do-Well never finished her thought as once again the room exploded and the two were gone. The cavern stood dead silent and still, an empty display case sitting in wait.