Chasing Thieves

by Yukito

10 - The Final Countdown

“Aaaaaaaah, aaah-ahhh… Aaaaaahhhhhh, ah ah aaaaah…” Adagio Dazzle removed the red jewel from around her neck and threw it to the side with a huff. “Useless. We can’t use our magic to their fullest extents with weak jewels like these!”

Aria Blaze picked up the jewel and examined it. “Compared to the jewels we were born with, I don’t think we’ll ever find anything powerful enough.”

“All that we need is something that can harness our magic without breaking.”

Aria raised an eyebrow, before the jewel in her hand shattered into two pieces. “I can’t believe there are actually magical items in this world.”

“I can’t believe it’s not butter!” Sonata declared as she jumped into the room, a plate of buttered toast in her hands. “But it’s just as good! You want a piece?”

“We’re talking here, Sonata. About actual, important things.”

“What’s to talk about? Trixie will find a jewel strong enough someday. Until then we just wait and keep her and her friends under our watch.”

“The Alicorn Amulet was probably our best chance, but now that we’ve lost that, we’ve got to find some other way! I still say we should’ve killed one of her friends, to motivate her.”

“As much as I hate to admit it,” Adagio began with a sigh, “We need her. Playing that card too soon would have been too risky.”

“The FBI might find out about us, huh?” Sonata asked. “All because Aria couldn’t find a non-lethal way to deal with that agent.”

“Hey, don’t go acting like this is all my fault!” Aria shouted. “You were supposed to report the second Trixie made any kind of move! If we knew she was going to hit that building sooner, we could’ve stopped her!”

Sonata shrugged and stuffed an entire slice of toast into her mouth. “I wu buthy ‘n’ di’n’t nutith.”

“Swallow before you speak,” Adagio scolded with a glare.

Sonata swallowed her food and then said, “I was busy, and didn’t see her send the notice!”

“You were busy watching that dumb show again, weren’t you?” Aria asked.

“It was the season finale!”

“This is why I was opposed to you being the lookout! In fact, should we even be trusting her with that rifle?!”

“Are you saying that you’re a better shot?” Adagio asked.

Aria flinched and crossed her arms with a groan. “Okay, I’ll give her that one…”

“Just relax, Aria,” Adagio said, turning to her laptop as the screen flickered to life. “I’m in talks with a seller right now to get more supplies. These next jewels are valuable, so even if they’re not the ones, we can still make a lot of money.”

“What kinda supplies?” Aria asked.

“Supplies to carry out our own heists, so that we would no longer even need Trixie.” Adagio grinned as she moved her mouse and clicked. “Which means that, after Trixie delivers the goods to us…”

“… We’ll no longer need her?” Adagio nodded her head. “So then we can off her, right?”

“Even better.” Adagio turned to her friends and said, “We can sell her. Who wouldn’t pay well for the legendary Kaitou Moon?” Adagio turned back to her screen. “Say, in the sum of fifty million?”

“Sell her?” Sonata asked. “To who?”

Adagio shrugged as the screen flashed again. “A collector, a crazed fan, a bounty hunter, a foreign government… Whoever bids the most.”

---

The Canterlot Central Mall was home to many fine stores, visited by citizens from all over Canterlot and tourists alike. Today, though, it was closed, due to the Jet Set and Upper Crust's Jewel Emporium becoming the latest target of the notorious Kaitou Moon.

Sombra glanced at the displays to his sides as he walked through the entrance to the store, his bound appearance confusing and concerning the store's owners. "What are they doing here?" he asked Shining Armor.

Shining Armor looked up from his notepad and said, "They're supplying us with valuable information about the store's design, and about the night's targets, too."

"What do you hope to lear-" Sombra fell to the side, crashing face-first into one of the display cases with a loud yelp.

"B-Be careful!" Jet Set shouted as he rushed to his scattered jewels, collecting them into his hands. "These are all very expensive!"

"Apologies," Sombra mumbled as he was picked up to his feet. "I would offer you compensation but, as you can probably guess, I'm not exactly 'loaded'."

"He's an expert we've called in to help us with this case, but as he is still serving time due to an embezzlement scheme, we're taking precautions," Shining Armor explained to the couple. "The FBI will pay for any and all damages to your wares… as a result of Sombra's fall, that is. Your insurance will have to cover any damages from Kaitou Moon."

"Well, thankfully these aren't our unique wares," Upper Crust said. "How about you just keep our jewels safe and we'll call it even? Still, is this level of security needed for a simple conman?"

"It took us long enough to bring him in. We're not about to lose him." Shining Armor's phone rang and he excused himself to answer it outside of the store. "Hello? … So you're in position? Right. We've specifically told the police not to get involved tonight. I had to pull some strings but- What? A suspicious shadow on the roof? … Don't take the risk. I'll call in a chopper to corner them." Shining Armor clutched his chest. "I can't risk a civilian's life. Just be ready to lockdown the store on my mark."

Suddenly, the lights in the mall shut off. "It's starting," Sombra said. "We should escort the lovely couple to safety."

Shining Armor nodded his head. "You two leave, and don't mention any of this to anyone. We're trying to catch Kaitou Moon by surprise tonight."

"We understand. We'll be silent until we see this on the news tomorrow," Jet Set said, leading his wife through the dark mall.

Shining Armor waited until they were inside of the elevator to say, "Alright, places people! Tonight, we're letting Kaitou Moon do as she wants!"

---

Trixie smiled as she read the text on her phone. "Ten minutes? Thank you, Fuchsia," she said as she put her phone away and began to scale the side of the mall inside of her heavy suit that, on the outside, appeared to just be her regular heist attire. "That's all the time I'll need for this one."

---

Adagio Dazzle watched from afar as the phantom thief Kaitou Moon scaled the mall in the distance. "She's being awfully sneaky for somebody who isn't expecting the cops…"

"I've checked inside and there really aren't any people in there," Aria Blaze confirmed to Aria. "Even if a couple of cameras have blind spots, it'd be impossible to hide from all of them. Maybe her hacker just sucks."

"… Wait, why isn't her hacker disabling the security feed?"

"Huh? Uh…"

Adagio lowered her binoculars and narrowed her eyes. "Something's not right here. That last couple were also awfully late coming out of the mall."

"What last couple?" Aria asked. "There hasn't been anyone in there for over an hour now."

Adagio snapped to her partner, and then back to the mall in the distance. She climbed down from her vantage point and reached for the pistol strapped to her waist. "Let's go."

"I thought we were waiting for her to come to us."

"Plans have changed. She's up to something in there. That's why she's had her hacker send you a fake video feed."

"What?! This isn't real?!"

"Most likely it's a recording from a previous night. I don't know whether she's meeting with the FBI or what, but we can't let her out of our sights for even a moment."

Aria packed away her laptop and climbed to her feet. "Want me to tell Sonata?"

"No. Have her ready in case Trixie tries to flee outside."

"Got it. And when we find Trixie?"

"… Don't let her talk."

Comments

[Emperor]

Too late Dazzlings, Aria already failed to make sure Shining Armor was dead. Heck, I expect Sonata to be beaten down by Chrysalis who'll disguise herself as Sonata temporarily or something.

[Yubella]

Adagio shrugged as the screen flashed again. “A collector, a crazed fan, a bounty hunter, a foreign government… Whoever bids the most.”

You know I actually like the dazzlings but I think in this au I would have to kill two of them.