We Need A Hero

by Nerobot

Chapter 5

It was now evening at the Five Corners. The shops and market were beginning to slow down as fewer travelers walked the streets. However, this didn’t mean that the city itself was winding down. The bars and taverns of the city were full of lively patrons, ready to drink to their heart’s content. The city now teemed with an unsavoury crowd. The honest folk had gone to bed and now it was the dishonest folk’s time in the city. Twilight followed behind her companions. The alicorn's thoughts wandered as she remembered the events that transpired at the plaza.

"Slaves... I knew that the crystal empire used slaves but to think that all of Equestria used them. I dare not imagine slavery in current day Equestria. What if some of the ponies I knew were enslaved? The mere thought makes me want to vomit." Twilight looked around at the ponies that they were passing on the street. The eyes of the passerbys were void of all hope. Twilight's heart grew heavy seeing ponies in such suffering. Reading stories about Sombra and Discord was one thing but seeing it in person was a whole different story.

"Please missus, spare a bit so I can afford some supper." Twilight looked down, she heard the sound of jingling. A filly who was missing her hind legs was holding out a cup of coins. Judging by the sound, the young pony hadn't found much charity. Twilight searched her pockets, but unfortunately Cosmic and Gale no longer allowed her to hold onto bits. Twilight looked away, she couldn't bare to look into the young filly's eyes.

Ding.

Twilight's eyes opened, she glanced back at the young pony and saw that Gale Force had dumped a pair of bits into the dirty cup. "Gale," stammered Twilight. "That was really nice of you."

"Whatever," responded Gale.

"Hey, I was just complimenting you," growled Twilight.

"Like I give a damn."

"Every time I think she's a decent pony, she has to prove me wrong," thought Twilight.

“He should be around here somewhere,” said Cosmic Ray, interrupting the tension between Gale and Twilight. The stallion led the cloaked trio through the vacant streets of the city. The unicorn continued to turn his head from side to side, reading the tarnished signs of the buildings.

“So how does someone like you know of an informant in a shady place like this?” Gale Force asked. “I mean you are a fugitive and everything but you don’t seem like the kind of pony to keep criminal contacts.”

“If I recall I found you in a place like this not too long ago. Anyways, make sure you keep an eye on your pouches, this place doesn’t house decent folk.”

“That’s the place right?” asked Twilight as she pointed a hoof towards a lively tavern at the end of the street. Cosmic Ray looked down at the piece of paper floating in front of him.

“The Barnyard…” muttered Ray as he looked up at the sign sitting overhead the twin doored entrance. In heavy bronze letters sat the name of the establishment, ‘The Barnyard’. “Looks like you found it Twilight. Good eye,” said the unicorn as he rolled up the paper and trotted forward.

The three ponies trotted into the bustling building. From the outside, “The Barnyard” appeared to be your average tavern, but it was far from it. Twilight quickly averted her eyes.

“Oh gosh…” gasped Twilight.

“So you’re this kinda stallion huh?” Gale said with a wide smirk as she nudged Cosmic Ray. The three ponies stood in the middle of a brothel, Twilight caught glances of things that she wish she hadn’t for a brief moment.

“I uh, this place is different… than the last time I came here, I swear.” stuttered Cosmic Ray as he looked down to the floor and shuffled off to the side.“ Let’s just make sure this is the right place, there’s no need for us to be here if my contact isn’t here.”

“Hey there, can I help ya with something?” asked a sultry voice. The three cloaked ponies looked over and saw a young mare with large eyelashes and long blond hair. The pony’s coat was a luscious yellow, the fuzzy coat pressed out of the netting of the stockings on her hooves.

“Those cloaks look mighty heavy, should I take em for ya?”

“Oh, no! Um, that won’t be necessary. You see, me and my companions are here to meet someone. Not… enjoy the sights,” said Cosmic Ray.

“Oh you’re here for a special mare?”

“No, I’m not here for a mare.”

“Oh, you didn’t look like the kind of pony to swing that way.”

“Why does everypony think that I’m some kind of sexual deviant!?” shouted Cosmic Ray. “Look, I’m here to see ‘Monk’.” The mare’s eyes went wide before narrowing at the stallion.

“Gosh, why didn’t you say something sooner. Follow me.” The three ponies gladly followed the dressed up mare, they were happy to leave the show-floor. The showpony led them down multiple hallways until they reached a heavy steel door. “All you need to do is knock,” said the blond mare before she left the heroes alone.

“Well this wasn’t so hard,” said Twilight with a sigh of relief. “Other than being scarred for life I think that went kind of well.”

“Wait, why does your informant have a room with a steel door in the back of a brothel. He’s not some kind of gangster right?” Gale asked.

“He has information on nearly every creature in Equestria, I bet if I asked him he would have something on you, Gale,” said Cosmic as he approached the steel door. “Anyways, having dirt on nearly every single living creature kind of makes you a target.” The stallion knocked on the door and stepped back. A metal slit in the door slid open as two beady black eyes stared out and looked down at the three ponies. A grunt was the only greeting they received from the figure behind the door.

“Would you please tell Monk that Cosmic Ray is here to see him.” Another grunt could be heard as the metal slit slammed shut. After a brief moment the slit opened once more.

“Never heard of him.” Cosmic Ray’s brows furrowed for a split second, but relaxed as an idea popped into his head. The stallion got up on his hind legs and whispered something through the metal slit. Once again the door closed, but this time the massive metal door slowly began to swing open.

“What did you tell him?” Twilight asked as she looked at Cosmic Ray curiously.

“Oh well, since I’m a fugitive and all, I usually go by a code name to try and cover my identity.”

“I guess this informant of yours doesn’t actually know all that much if he doesn’t know your real name then?” Gale asked with a hint of skepticism.

“You sure are inquisitive today Gale,” groaned Cosmic Ray as he pushed past the pegasus and stepped through the open doorway. Twilight followed after Cosmic Ray, Gale was soon to follow. The ponies trotted down a short hallway that led to the main room.

The room was surprisingly sophisticated, trophies and luxuries lined the walls. A moderately sized mahogany desk was tucked away in the corner, surrounded by towering cabinets brimming with disorganized papers. Slow classical music played from a phonograph as a lumbering minotaur stepped in front of the three bewildered guests.

“Boss’ over there waiting,” grunted the giant as he stepped back and stood off to the side.

Twilight caught sight of three mares similar to those on the showfloor, she was about to look away, but caught sight of a fourth figure sitting on the couch. This figure was a lot smaller, she had nearly missed it. A furry creature sat between the three mares, their hooves wrapped around the strange figure. Twilight focused her eyes in on the stranger, it looked like a weasel, but sat upright, with its own arms wrapped around the hooves of its companions. The weasel-like creature had thin slit-like eyes, with brown fur and a white underbelly. A tiny navy blue vest adorned its upper half, while a silver ring sat halfway on it’s tail. The weasel creature’s thin eyes turned towards Twilight.

“Don’t you know to call me by my real name?” groaned Cosmic Ray as he trotted past Twilight, towards the strange creature. It spoke with a slow, but smooth tone, designed to gain somepony’s trust.

“Cosmic… what brings you to town fella? I was starting to grow worried that I would never see you again,” chuckled the stallion’s contact.

“What the hell is that? A hairy turd?” asked Gale as she cocked her head.

“WHAT!? Hey, Cosmic, who are these bums?” The weasel creature yelled as he hopped up to his feet.

“Wow… I’ve never seen anything like you before. I didn’t know that weasels were sentient creatures in the past,” said Twilight as she trotted forward, notepad in hoof.

“What! I’m no weasel! I just look like one, bitch! I’m a freaking weasel-ite, it’s a completely different thing!” The weasel shook his tiny paws at the cloaked alicorn.

“Perhaps your species absence in the future is a good thing...” muttered Twilight as she scribbled in her notepad. She had already managed to draw a sketch of the unique being.

“Anyways, I go by the name ‘Monk’,” said the weasel-ite as it hopped off the couch and shooed the three play-mares away. “So what can I help you with today, ‘Cosmic Ray’,” said Monk as he rubbed his tiny paws in anticipation. The unicorn rolled his eyes before pushing Twilight forward.

“Actually I’m not the one who needs information on somepony.” Monk’s thin-slitted eyes looked over at the purple mare. “Who’s this clown?”

“We have something to show you, Monk,” said Cosmic Ray as he nodded at Gale.

“Wait, who the heck is this?” Monk asked as he looked over at the cloaked pegasus. “Your new marefriend or something? Gale scoffed at Monk’s claim.

“My name’s Gale Force but that’s not important. The pony we really wanted to show you is her.” The pegasus grabbed the edges of Twilight’s cloak and ripped it off in one smooth motion. The weasel-ite’s thin-slitted eyes widened as Twilight’s horn and wings were revealed to him.

“Holy hell do you know who this is?” Monk exclaimed as he pointed a tiny finger at Twilight.

“Wait, how could you possibly know who she is?” Gale asked, confused by Monk’s reaction.

“Everypony knows who she is! There is a bounty of 100,000 bits on her head! I thought it was just a joke! I can’t believe it, a real unicorn-pegasus hybrid!” Gale Force and Cosmic Ray paused and looked at one another. This was the first time they ever heard of Twilight’s bounty.

“Wait, wait, wait, what are you talking about?” asked Cosmic Ray as he trotted forward.

“What are you deaf, ya numbskull? I said we’re about to be rich! Do you know what 100,000 bits can buy you in this city?” giggled the weasel-ite as it hugged Twilight’s hoof. “I love you 100,000 bit pony,” he said with a sniff.

The weasel soon found himself pulled away from Twilight by some magical force. “Sorry, but I don’t think you’ll be collecting any reward today,” said Twilight as she continued to pull the weasel-ite away from her. Cosmic Ray stepped forward and cleared his throat.

“Sorry, but she’s a very important individual. We can’t allow her to be turned over for any sum of money, but just out of curiosity, who placed this bounty on her?”

“You just had to ruin the mood didn’t you. We could be rich but nooooo, you need her for something more important than making bits. What even is more important than making bits?!” Monk started ranting, but was interrupted as two green eyes appeared in front of his face. Gale Force picked the weasel-ite up by the back of his neck.

“Ahem, the ‘question’ we’re here about, Monk?” said Gale as she held the weasel-ite in front of her face. The pegasus suddenly found herself hoisted into the air and face to face with black beady eyes. Hot air snorted in her face as one of the minotaur bodyguards glared at her and slowly shook his head. Gale reluctantly set Monk down and the minotaur did the same with her.

“Anyways,” said monk as he dusted himself off. “Before I was so rudely interrupted, a certain rich individual who goes by the moniker ‘The Connoisseur’ placed the bounty on your friend here. He’s a diamond dog with a strange hobby for collecting rare creatures. I’ve done work with him before, he always pays very handsomely.” Twilight stepped forward and lowered her head so that she was face to face with Monk.

“What does this diamond dog look like?”

“Oh he’s a very classy individual, especially for a diamond dog. You couldn’t miss him if you tried! Always has the nicest suit on along with a black cane. He looks different from those other diamond dogs, he’s got this pure black fur with white patches on it. He’s also got these icy blue eyes, kinda like a wolf. Now that you mention it...he looks a lot like a wolf.

“Does he happen to speak some sort of foreign language?” asked Cosmic Ray.

“Yea, have you met him before?” asked Monk as he scratched the bottom of his chin.

“Sounds like the individual we sat next to at the auction,” said Twilight as she looked back at Cosmic Ray. The unicorn gave the purple mare a nod.

“Now we know to keep an eye out for him. Anyways, you should go ahead and ask him about those two ponies, hero.” Monk placed his paws on his sides and let out a sigh.

“Don’t tell me you’re still trying to overthrow Sombra…”

“Not exactly,” said Cosmic Ray. “We’re trying to overthrow both Discord and Sombra.”

“Now you’ve just lost it…”

“Perhaps, but we have an ace up our sleeve.”

“I suppose this is her, huh? Well she’s an extraordinary individual, that’s for sure, but I don’t know if she’s a kingslayer.”

“Just answer her question,” said Cosmic Ray as he shook his head.“ I need to use your bathroom,” said the stallion as he walked away.

“You’re going the wrong way,” said Gale as she pointed a hoof in a different direction.“ The showfloor is that way.” Cosmic Ray stuck his tongue out at the red headed mare before turning the corner.

“Now, how about that question money bag, or whatever your name is…” said Monk as he stepped in front of Twilight. “Of course the information won’t be free, but we can discuss price after my services.”

“Right, we have two ponies we would like you to locate for us,” said Twilight. “Celestia and Luna, they are two unicorn-pegasi hybrids, or alicorns, like me. They are both much larger than the average pony, Celestia being the largest. She has a white coat with a long flowing, multi-chromatic mane. Luna is more or less her polar opposite. She has a dark coat with a flowing blue mane.” The weasel-ite’s brows furrowed as he tapped his foot on the floor. Suddenly he looked up as if he had realized something.

“Hey, do these ponies happen to raise the sun and the moon?” Twilight’s eyes lit up as she broke into a huge grin.

“Yes, they do! So you have heard of them!” Twilight exclaimed excitedly as she moved closer to Monk.

“And...do they happen to look like this?” Monk asked as he pulled out a small piece of paper with a simplistic drawing of two ponies on it. However, it was unmistakable to Twilight.

“That’s them! So they are somewhere. I am-” she began but was cut off as Monk began to chortle with laughter and thump his tail on the floor.

“Too bad they aren’t even real! AHAHAHAHA!” The weasel-ite's laughter was torture to Twilight's ears. Monk wiped a tear of mirth from his eye as he handed a book to Twilight. Twilight wiped the dust off the book and saw that it was a children’s book. The same picture she was shown earlier adorned the cover. “This Celestia and Luna of yours are two characters from a filly’s book. Just a silly little book written by ponies to entertain their foals. I hope you don’t plan on defeating Discord and Sombra by reading them some dumb story.”

“T-that’s not….how can that be?” Twilight stammered as she stared at the book. The book clearly described the Celestia and Luna she knew, yet they supposedly didn’t even exist in this time. Gale Force brushed passed Twilight and grabbed the book. The pegasus flipped through several pages before turning her gaze to Twilight.

“These ponies of yours we’ve been chasing...was all just one big damn lie?!” Gale Force seethed. “I KNEW we shouldn’t have listened to you and I KNEW I should have followed my hunch about these fabricated fucking ‘alicorns’ of yours.”

“You know what Gale? I’m really sick and tired of you always belittling me for every little thing I say or do!” Twilight exploded on Gale. “It seems to me that you really have no faith in me at all. You haven't had a bit of trust in me since I arrived here up till now! Did you think the spell would just summon me and that I would fly through the portal and blow Discord and Sombra away? Well I’m sorry to tell you but I’m just as lost here as you and Cosmic Ray are! You know what? At least I had a plan! You’re just looking for somepony to do all your work for you. I’ll also have you know that Celestia and Luna are real ponies because I am her faithful student!”

The pegasus stared intensely at Twilight who was now breathing heavily after her rant. Gale Force trotted slowly up to Twilight and jabbed a hoof into her chest.

“Listen here, princess, don’t talk to me like you know a DAMN thing about me. You think I’m looking for somepony to do my work for me? I’ve spent half my life living in Discord’s shadow and I’ve spent the other half fighting against him. Did you think I was born with only one wing? Or that maybe I made these marks on my hooves? These are the scars that I’ve earned from fighting for what I believe for. All the friends and family that I’ve lost fighting this war, and the millions of others that have perished to Sombra and Discord’s war machines all died paving the way for you to save Equestria. And let me just add, Princess Sparkle, you are doing a fan-fucking-tastic job. So Twilight, can you look me in the eyes...and tell me truthfully that you have given your entire being to this cause?

"Awkward..." mumbled Monk as he glanced back and forth between the two ponies. "Anyways, I'm still going to collect payment for that info."

The two ponies continued to stare each other down until there came a strange noise from outside the hallway. It was a whining noise that sounded like the bending of metal. The steel door budged and groaned as if it was holding back a massive amount of pressure on the otherside. Gale Force turned towards Twilight with the current exchange already put in the back of her mind.

“Twilight, we’re going to have to finish this later.”

The steel-bolted door shot through the small corridor colliding against the stone walls leaving dents and raising a large cloud of dust. One of Monk’s minotaur guards slid across the floor, his eyes swirled around in his skull. Multiple heavy hoofsteps could be heard as whomever were responsible for knocking down the door trotted across the iron steel door as if it were an entrance carpet. A figure could be seen emerging through the dark cloud, a black iron hoof emerged from behind the cloud and stomped down onto the thin carpet of the room. A long slender horn emerged from behind the cloud next, it too was encased in the same type of steel.

“I do hope that this is the right place,” said a heavily modulated voice.

A mare encased in heavy steel armor from horn to hoof emerged from out of the thick cloud, she wore a black armor that covered every inch of her body. A helmet of sleek ebony with netted steel strands running across its eye sockets sat atop the pony’s head, hiding her identity and changing her voice. A long train of tattered dark grey fabric trailed behind the pony, hiding her flank and hind legs. Her chest was encased in similar metallic components. Slim and tight, they held closely against her chest and underside, multilayered with some sort of symbolic writing running across their edges.

Gale quickly threw a brown linen cloak over Twilight, trying to conceal the alicorn’s unique nature from the intruders. Twilight quickly wrapped herself in the brown material and sidestepped herself behind Gale.

“Do you recognize them?” whispered Twilight. Gale glanced back at Twilight and held a hoof up to her own mouth, trying to conceal her conversation from the strange armored mare.

“That armor belongs to Sombra’s elite. They must be from the Crystal Empire,” whispered Gale, not taking her eyes off of the first pony who had emerged. Monk was frozen in shock, he glanced around the room looking for some sort of aide. A second minotaur guard charged towards the unwelcome guests, his thick arms raised overhead, ready to smash the armored mare.

“Squish her like a bug!” exclaimed Monk when he caught sight of the minotaur hurling towards the armored pony. Just as the enraged bodyguard was upon the dark steeled invader an enormous figure emerged from under the very floor, sending the minotaur reeling. The individual had emerged from the very earth itself, creating a gaping hole right next to the mysterious armored unicorn. The clashing of metal and cries of steam pressure could be heard as the creature stood on its four legs. Twilight couldn’t believe it, this too was an armored pony, but he was unlike anypony she had ever seen. He was larger than Big Macintosh, heck he was nearly as large as Celestia. Twilight watched as steam gushed out of the joints of the large stallion's leg armor. She caught sight of steel rods and encasings as the metal grinded against one another as the suit winded down.

The large earth pony's armor was made up of material similar to that of the mare's but was by far thicker and heavier. His front hooves were encased in heavy sheets of black metal, with spades similar to that of shovels covering his front hooves. The heavy stallion looked up at the Minotaur whom he had propelled upwards. The bodyguard's horns were impaled into the stone ceiling, the Minotaur was in the middle of trying to free himself.

"Should I take care of him, mistress?" said the hulking armored juggernaut as he looked over at the unicorn, whom he dwarfed in size. The stallion's voice was modulated by the armor as well, but it was easy to tell that he had a heavy tone that matched his physique quite well.

“No need,” said the mare as she trotted forward. A third armored figure whom had been hiding in the settling dust cloud followed after the unicorn. He was a pegasus who wore armor similar to both the unicorn and earth pony. Unlike the earth pony and unicorn, his armor was caught in between a sleek but stout design. Monk was now fearing for his life, he turned to Gale and Twilight, the small creature’s eyes carried a cry for help. Gale averted her gaze, but not Twilight, she stepped forward. A light yellow hoof quickly grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back.

“I don’t think so Twilight,” whispered Gale as she glared at the cloaked alicorn. “You clearly have a few loose screws, I don’t care how strong you are, we shouldn't fight them unless we have to.”

“Are you the informant?” said the unicorn as she stopped and looked down at monk. Twilight now noticed that her physique was different from other ponies. She had a shape that reminded her of Celestia, Luna, and Cadance, a shape similar to that of Fleur De Lee. “Well, are you?” she asked again, but Monk was still petrified. “Perhaps you didn’t understand me?”

The slim mare grabbed her helmet with her hooves as she began to remove the steel equipment, locks and latches began to spring open, allowing her to remove the piece of armor. A ball of messy colors rolled down from atop the mare’s head. She quickly shook her head from side to side, giving her mane a more organized shape. Two slender icy blue eyes opened up and glared down at Monk. The unicorn had a green mane with streaks of navy blue running through it. She was beautiful, her grey coat glistened in the dimly lit office. Monk, Gale, and Twilight were all taken aback by the unicorn’s stunning appearance.

“I’ll ask one more time,” she said with a flirtatious tone. Her voice without the helmet was completely different. Monk was no longer fearful, he now wished to please the mare.

“Well hello there…” he said as he fixed the fur atop his head.” How can I help you?”

“I am looking for a certain unicorn. My sources have led me to understand that you are the person one goes to if he or she wishes to find somepony.”

“We’re all looking for somepony babe.” Monk said, lowering the pitch in his voice to make it as seductive as possible. The mysterious, armored unicorn ignored Monk’s advances and continued.

“The unicorn we are looking for is called Cosmic Ray. He has a blue mane with a light blue coat and he is well armored.” The weasel-ite’s ears perked up at the familiar name. Gale Force and Twilight shared a panicked glance with each other. Monk rubbed his paws together and shot a toothy grin at his latest client.

“Cosmic Ray you say? That name does ring a bell. However I am having trouble remembering just where I had heard it before...perhaps you would like to offer me something that might remind me?” Monk said with unveiled greed dripping from every word he spoke. A certain foul-mouthed pegasus shot him a look that would kill most ordinary creatures.

“Yes, of course you will be handsomely rewarded for your help in resolving this matter. What greater reward is there than to have the greatest king in all of Equestria in your debt?” The mare responded.

“Why are you looking for this unicorn?” Twilight interrupted, trying to dig for information. The cold blue eyes of the mare slowly turned their gaze to Twilight. A small smirk came across the slender mare’s face.

“My… you’re a cute one. What’s a pony like you doing in a place like this, hm?” said the unicorn as her armored hoof reached for Twilight’s hood. Twilight took a step backwards and tightened her grip on the cloak. The intimidating stranger raised an eyebrow when Twilight took a step back. “Why do you wish to know, what business we have with Cosmic Ray?”

“I’m just curious…” said Twilight.

“I see. Well, if you must know, Cosmic Ray is wanted for crimes against the empire,” said the mare. A modulated voice interrupted the two mares. It was the armored pegasus, he trotted up behind the armored mare and titled his head.

“S.S. please, we shouldn’t be wasting time. For all we know Cosmic Ray could be making a grand escape this very moment.” The pegasus’ voice was calm and collected, due to the modulation from the helmet he nearly sounded like a robot. The mare’s cold eyes fixated on the armored pegasus behind her.

“I suppose you are right Thunder. I don’t know why, but this pony piqued my curiosity,” she said as she shot Twilight one more glance before turning her attention back towards Monk. “Forgive my wandering mind, informant. So do you happen to have information regarding to Cosmic’s whereabouts? We shall see to it that you are paid handsomely,” she slowly dragged her ebony armored hoof underneath the weasel-ite’s chin. Monk shuddered at first, but tensed up when he noticed the serrated spikes on the sides of her hoof.

“W-well, who could ignore such a handsome reward.”

"Shit! This furball might sell us out, but if I try to stop him now I will look suspicious." thought Gale. Her eyes now jumped around the room looking for some sort of option. Twilight held her breath when she heard Monk’s words.

“This isn’t good. That greedy little weasel is going to sell us out at any moment. Perhaps Gale and I should strike first, before they have a chance to realize that Cosmic Ray is right around the corner from them.”

The weasel-ite looked like he had finally reached some decision in his head. The moment he opened his mouth, Twilight looked back and gave Gale a nod before illuminating her horn with magic. Gale, realizing that they were left with no other options, responded with a nod of her own as she silently unfolded her metal wing underneath her cloak.

“You see, you gorgeous mare… Cosmic Ray is-”

“Hey Monk!” shouted Cosmic Ray. The sound of hooves could be heard coming down the hallway. “You really should clean your bathrooms around here more often. Oh hey, what happened to your door?” he said as he stepped in front of the doorway.

Six pairs of astonished eyes quickly turned towards the unsuspecting unicorn. Cosmic Ray’s eyes went wide in disbelief. The stallion quickly drew and opened a book from his satchel.

“Solar Shadow,” he growled, his eyes burning with incomprehensible hatred towards the armored mare. The mare slowly turned to fully face Cosmic Ray. The upper corners of her lips curled into a small grin.

“I’ve been looking for you, Cosmic Ray.”

Comments

[sakuralovelight]

hope to read a new chapter soon

[sakuralovelight]

sorry for bugging you but do you know when the next chapter will be out

[The REAL Mister Pkmn]

I want to know what happens next!