Iota Force Issue #3: The Treachery of Images

by The Iguana Man

Chapter Six: The Complete Picture

“ARRRRRRRRGH!” Scootaloo screamed. Icy was thankful Pip's mother wasn't home, else she'd have probably called the police, an ambulance or both. “Come on, it's quarter to eleven, we're running out of time!”

She wasn't wrong. For over two hours, the six colts and fillies had tried to figure out what the five pictures, riddles and crimes could add up to, but had made absolutely no progress. Ideas and attempts had flown thick and fast at first, never really letting up, but nothing they suggested was even vaguely plausible – there were just too many possibilities with all those options. Essentially, they had too many clues – so many that it was impossible to sort through them and find the ones they needed. So, after half an hour, the ideas had slowed to a trickle.

Icy racked her brain, searching frantically for a way of thinking they hadn't thought of. “Maybe it's...” she paused, unsure whether what she was about to suggest was really sensible before desperation forced her mouth to move, “Maybe it's got something to do with what he was stealing, or was gonna steal, from each place? Like, he stole a trophy from Dash, money from Barnyard Bargains...” She trailed off as she thought about the other places.

“Yeah,” Archer continued for her, “but he said he didn't know what he'd take from Rarity or Dash before he went for ‘em. And he didn't take anything from Town Hall or here.”

Icy opened her mouth to apologize for the idea when what Archer said registered. “Wait a second, you're right. He didn't... he didn't even show up at Town Hall. And he said that he wasn't taking anything from here, right, Pip?” At Pip's nod, she continued. “Maybe that's got something to do with it. That this one and this one...” She pointed at the middle two points of the star before realizing, “wait, look, those two are the only ones with x's in them! Maybe that's a clue.”

“What, we were supposed to get that he wasn't gonna be there?” Scootaloo asked, raising an eyebrow. “Even if that wasn't a stupid clue to give, he did leave us a note at Town Hall, remember?”

“Well, then maybe it's a clue to this bit?” Icy suggested, undeterred. “Like it's something that isn't to do with those two.”

“Okay,” Scootaloo nodded as she narrowed her eyes at the photo, “so something to do with a dress, a barn and a rainbow, but not a bunch of papers or letters or a pentagon... and to do with Rarity's place, Dash's place and Bargains, but not Town hall or...” She groaned and put her hooves to her forehead. “That just makes it more messed up!”

“Now, hang on,” Dinky said, her voice soft and calming, “it narrows it down, let's just pretend those ones aren't there.”

“Yeah,” Pip smiled, putting his hooves up in front of his face to block the two pictures in question from his line of sight. “Maybe we can... just...” he trailed off, his jaw falling open.

After a good five seconds of silence, Archer piped up. “You got something, Pip?”

Pip's voice came out quiet and flat. “It's not a pentagram.”

“Eh?” Scootaloo said, looking at Pip like he'd just said something completely absurd. Which, to be fair, he had. “What do you mean it's not... it's a star with five points and lines in the middle, isn't it?”

“Yeah,” Pip hopped up, putting his hooves up on his desk and pulling down a couple of small scraps of paper, “but not if you take those two away.”

He put the pieces of paper over the photo, blocking the pictures with Xs in them, and backed away, silently prompting the others to make the connection.

It took a few seconds, but everyone eventually saw what he meant.

Without those two points on the star, it wasn't a pentagram.

It was an arrow.

An arrow pointing directly at Princess Twilight's castle.

Dinky summed up the general feeling in one syllable:

“Oh.”

---

“So,” Icy asked between heavy breaths as she ran, “what do you think he's stealing?”

“No idea.” Archer replied, with a slightly forced evenness. “Does it matter?”

Icy toyed with responding, but decided against it, preferring to turn back and continue with her running.

The five children were running at full speed through the darkened streets of the town, hoping to get to the crystal castle either before Magic Eye got there or, at least, before he left. The problem was that all the time Icy had recently spent puzzling over riddles and reading comic books hadn't exactly prepared her body for this kind of physical exertion. She wasn't horrifically unfit, of course, but compared to Archer, Lance and Scootaloo, none of whom showed any signs of real fatigue or difficulty, she felt a little inadequate. Even Dinky seemed to be handling it very well, tiny though she was. Scootlaoo was even carrying her scooter, folded up, on her back – she said that while she could ride it for a while, even with her strained wings, she wanted to save that for the inevitable chase and capture – and she didn't seem to find it a problem.

Fortunately, they were nearing the castle by the time her fatigue became too noticeable.

“How do we get in?” Dinky asked, panting ever so slightly but not stopping.

“Would he have opened the door?” Icy asked in reply.

“Nope.” Archer said, looking over the castle rapidly. “Balcony door's open.” Looking up, Icy could just see the top of the open door over the lip of the balcony.

“How'd he get up there?” Scootaloo asked.

“How do we get up there?” Icy replied, skidding to a halt in front of the front door of the castle.

“We don't.” Archer said simply.

Icy was about to ask what she meant when Lance came up to the door and, without even slowing down, drew his sword, swiped it in between the double doors, cut through the lock, and barrelled into the foyer.

“Er...” Icy said eloquently.

“No worries.” Archer told her, thought there was a hint of something else on the edge of her voice. “She.. Twilight's a princess. She can buy a new door.”

“I guess she... oh, Archer!” Icy asked, placing a hoof on Archer's chest to stop her as she remembered something she'd thought of on the run over. Archer whipped her head around and hopped back a little, startled at being suddenly stopped. “Do you think you could hide in one of those trees? In case he gets away from us and out of the castle?”

“Snipe him, you mean? Yeah… yeah, I think I can manage that.” Archer answered, with what almost looked like relief on her face. She turned away from the castle and scampered over towards one of the trees.

Icy smiled, happy to have given a good suggestion. She turned around, expecting to have to catch up to the others, but instead found them all still in the front hallway, looking to Dinky and her magic.

The little unicorn's horn stopped glowing. “He didn't come this way.” She said, looking around the place.

Oh, right, her chronomen... chron... her see-the-past-kinda thingy.

“So how do we know where he went?” Scootaloo asked, a little annoyed.

It took Icy only a moment to think.

“The stairs!” She said, striking a hoof on the ground in realization. “He'd need to take the stairs down, so let's check there!”

“And if he didn't take the stairs?” Scootaloo asked, though she was already moving in the direction Icy pointed.

“Then we know he's upstairs.” Dinky answered for her.

They reached the stairs quickly and Dinky lit her horn again, concentrating.

“He went that way!” she said, pointing down a corridor. “Follow me!”

She lead them down a few corridors, down another flight of stairs into the basement and finally to a big, thick, imposing set of doors.

“I think he's in here.” Dinky whispered. “Let's get him.”

Lance and Scootaloo burst through the doors, pointing their sword and ramming stick respectively. Icy and Dinky leapt in behind them, horn and wings aglow.

The room was clearly a laboratory of some kind, and a very well-appointed one, too. Rows of machines lined every wall, covered in inscrutable controls and blinking lights. Above them were a line of cupboards with glass fronts, showing an array of scientific equipment none of the young ponies in the room could comprehend – probably not even the suited colt in front of a table at the centre of the room. He was bowing deeply with his hooves glowing. In front of him sat a massive diamond, refracted light shining out of it in every direction, despite the relatively low lighting in the room.

“Good evening!” Magic Eye said, rising from his bow and picking the diamond up in his hoof, the glow from his hoof refracted oddly through it. His suit was now green, his mask and tie purple and his coat orange. “I see you have solved my final problem. I am deeply impressed.”

Icy looked up at Magic Eye, her attention previously having been fixed on the impossibly shiny diamond. “What is that?” She asked.

Magic Eye smiled. “The Horstensia Diamond. Discovered fours years ago in the ice below where the Crystal Empire once stood and, indeed, stands again. Possessing of mystical properties affecting the refraction and amplification of light that, though they have little practical application, are still being investigated by scientists. Currently being researched by Princess Twilight Sparkle who, as I understand it, has made some incredible progress in understanding and even replicating its effects. And, it must be said,” He held the diamond up to his eye, looking at his opponents through it, “an extremely beautiful jewel that would look absolutely marvellous in my private collection.”

He held up a hoof, forestalling any objections, verbal or physical, before continuing. “But alas, it shall not be. You have once again caught me and, thus, you have won our game three-to-two. Congratulations.” He bowed his head in respect.

There was a pause before Dinky asked: “So... does that mean you'll come quietly?”

Magic Eye raised his head quickly again, a smirk on his face and a glint in his eye. “Oh, good lord, no!”

Dinky's ears flattened. “I guess it was a silly question.”

“I wouldn't say that.” Magic Eye's tone was gentle, but he started to back up towards the far wall of the laboratory, suggesting he was more nervous that he let on. “I think it was a reasonable suggestion. After all, you're probably wondering how I intend to get past you.”

“Nah,” Scootaloo replied as she and Lance advanced on the retreating colt, “I think you're smart enough to know when you've been beat.”

Magic Eye started to chuckle before his haunch bumped against one of the machines on the wall, halting his withdrawal. He looked behind him at the machine, then back to them.

“Oh, I wouldn't say that. You should know by now, my dear, that there's always a way out.”

His hoof disappeared up his sleeve for a moment, though he wasn't trying to hide it. Lance drew his sword and swung it like a bat.

“Smoke bombs won't help you now.” Scootaloo told him, translating the sword swing.

“Oh, nothing of the sort, don't worry.” Magic Eye said, pulling what looked like a small flashlight out from his sleeve. “But there are a couple of things you may not have thought of. Firstly, this machine!” He swung a hoof out to his side, flipping a number of switches on the front of it. The machine suddenly whirred to life, emitting a low hum and a succession of beeps. “Which I would suggest you deal with before going after me, unless you want things to get... noisy.”

Scootaloo reared up to pounce forward, but before she could, Icy asked, “What's the second thing?

“Well,” Magic Eye grinned, “I did say the diamond had little practical application. Not none.”

He quickly placed the flashlight against the diamond and turned it on. The flashlight, though small, was powerful on its own, and when it shone through the diamond...

FLASH!

Icy covered her eyes, as did everyone else, but not faster than the speed of light and, thus, not fast enough to stop themselves being briefly blinded. Icy kept her eyes closed for a second afterwards, waiting for the remnants of the flash to fade from the blackness. She tensed her body, ready to grab at Magic Eye if she felt him running past her, and listened.

Over the noise of the machine, she heard his hoofsteps. But they weren't going past her. Rather, they sounded like they were going above her.

She opened her eyes, blinking heavily, just quick enough to see Magic Eye gallop through the open door on the ceiling. She remembered the glow from his horseshoes, suggesting some sort of wall-walking or gravity-switching device.

Well, at least we know how he got up and in.

Icy was about to give chase when she remembered the machine he had switched on. She had no idea what it did, but she didn't want to take a chance with it. She took a step towards it, but a hoof on her chest from Dinky stopped her.

“Go after him!” She said, shouting a little to be heard clearly over the hum. “I think I can handle this.”

Icy was about to ask how when a glow came over Dinky's horn and the machine. The hum lowered substantially in tone and the beeping slowed down immensely. Nodding with a smile, Icy turned and ran towards the stairs, catching up with Lance and Scootaloo, who were already in pursuit.

They hurried up the stairs and saw Magic Eye trotting along the ceiling down the corridor. He stopped and turned back to them. His eyes swept over the three and his ears perked up, listening for the noise of the machine, muted through the floor but still noticeably slower.

“Ah. Yes, of course.” He said, pulling his mouth into a straight line. “Should have probably remembered you have a chronomancer on your side before I set the diversion. Oh well, you've still yet to catch me.” The moment he said that, he bolted off down the corridor and darted around a corner.

The three were ready, however, and gave chase. As she ran, Scootaloo leapt, swung the scooter off her back and beneath her, the base flicking out as she did. She landed on it, buzzing her wings and shooting off in front of the her two companions, much faster than Magic Eye was fleeing.

It would have been very impressive had she not forgotten one thing: crystal floors do not have the greatest amount of traction. So when she tried to turn the corner, she found herself sliding further than she thought and impacting the wall with a heavy thump.

Icy grimaced as she ran past the dazed filly. It really hadn't been Scootaloo's week.

Icy flicked her wings open and gathered her energy as she ran. As she began to catch up to Magic Eye, she flapped them hard, trying to freeze him.

Unfortunately, the cold wind telegraphed the attack and Magic Eye leapt forward, the blast impacting the ceiling below him.

Of course, this did mean he landed on ice, making him slip up and slide forward on his side, his hooves tangled up for moment. However, while this didn't do anything good for his dignity (in as much as a colt in a bright green suit had any), neither did it slow him down. If anything, it gave him more of a lead.

Lance and Icy galloped around the corner into the foyer, where Magic Eye was just hopping down from the wall next to the front door. Tipping his hat to the two, he pushed the door open and ran through.

Only to impact with a soft “ooph” into the chest of a very large policepony who had been waiting outside.

As Icy and Lance rushed to catch up, Magic Eye looked up, seeing the pony he'd run into and his partner, an only-slightly-less massive uniformed stallion.

“Ah! Well, that's a problem.”

“Well, well, well,” the larger policepony, whose badge identified him as 'Inspector Iron Hound' said in a thick Trottingham accent, looking down the colt, “if it isn't young Mr Magic Eye.”

“No, no,” the colt laughed awkwardly, “you must have me mistaken for someone else!”

“No mistake, sir, got your picture up in every police station in the country, we do, ain't that right?” His partner, 'Officer Silent Steel' according to his name badge, nodded as he produced a set of hoofcuffs and slapped one on to Magic Eye's right front hoof and the other onto his own.

“You, my son, are nicked!” Iron Hound smiled as he looked up to see Lance, Icy and a slightly dazed Scootaloo trotting up to them. “And if it isn’t Iota Force.” He gave them a gentle smile. “Chief told us you might be involved. Good to see ya again.”

Scootaloo put a hoof to her head and looked up at the two policeponies. “What are you doing here? How'd you know...?”

“Silent alarm.” Hound interrupted her. “Got set off the moment this little felon touched the diamond, called us here.”

“Okay, I guess that makes...” Icy looked to the sides of the policeponies, expecting to see Archer there with her usual easy smile on her face. But she wasn't. Icy resisted the urge to look to the side to see if she was still in her sniping position. That was weird. She should have no reason not to reveal herself now unless something was up. “...Sense.” She finished, though she was beginning to doubt that.

She stopped and thought about the situation, noticing things she might not have picked up on a moment ago. Two policeponies alone being sent to stop the theft of a priceless diamond? Weird, but not impossible, there might me more coming or in wait. Said ponies knowing both Magic Eye and Iota Force and seeming unsurprised? Again, possible, the initial picture announcing his presence was both distinctive and public. But now that she thought of it, she hadn’t seen these two policeponies before, despite them saying that they had met. Normally that wouldn’t be too weird - her memory wasn’t always the best. But, again, why hadn’t Archer come out? Even if she was waiting until Magic Eye was totally apprehended, she should have come out by now.

She was taken out of her thoughts by Lance, who pointed back into the castle.

“Yeah, that's a good point!” Scootaloo said.

There was a moment of silence before Iron Hound asked: “What's a good point?”

“Why isn't Princess Twilight awake? Shouldn't the silent alarm have gone to her as well?” Scootaloo translated.

“Dunno.” Hound said simply. “Should have, you're right. Maybe she just forgot to set it up to alert her. I mean, we all know what she can be like sometimes.”

Icy nodded. She couldn't really argue with that, given some of the things she'd heard about the Princess from Spike. Though she probably couldn't be blamed, considering how much she had to...

Wait a second.

“Okay, but what about Spike?” She asked – she was getting more and more suspicious of these two, but there hadn't been anything yet to prove there was something wrong. “Princess Twilight might have forgotten, but I know Spike wouldn't.”

Inspector Hound gave a patronizing smile. “Listen, Miss, I know that Spike is a wonderful pony, but even he can make mistakes.”

Ah hah, there we go!

Magic Eye winced as the word “Pony” left Iron Hound's mouth. Icy's eyes narrowed and she could see to her side Scootaloo's do the same. She assumed Lance's did too, but it was hard to tell through the mask.

“Give me your badge numbers, “officers”.” Icy asked, pouring every ounce of sarcasm into the final word as possible. Which wasn't much, admittedly, but would probably do the trick.

The two stallions looked at each other. Magic Eye rolled the shoulder of his cuffed hoof. Lance's hoof tightened around his sheathed sword. Scootaloo buzzed her wings. Icy gathered her energy. She might have been mistaken, but Icy could have sworn she heard a bowstring tautening. The silent policepony reached into his inner jacket pocket.

Then, everything happened at once.

Silent Steel pulled a knife from his pocket, but an arrow knocked it from his hoof and a wave of cold froze it to the ground. Magic Eye glanced at the arrow and the ice, darted off, the handcuffs popping open easily, and dashed around the corner to avoid any further ranged attacks. Scootaloo leapt onto her scooter to give chase, but was tackled to the ground by Iron Hound. Lance jerked his head in Magic Eye's direction, silently commanding Icy to give chase before he drew his sword and leapt into the fray.

And Icy, with far quicker thinking than she'd have expected of herself, did so, sprinting off around the corner in pursuit of Magic Eye, catching the tail end of what Iron Hound said.

“Sorry, Little Miz Speedy, but boss said to stop you specifica- OOPH!”

Icy did her best to ignore that last sound and where Scootaloo must have hit to produce quite that pitch. Instead, she focused herself on the chase.

Unfortunately, though she had no trouble locating the colt in the green and purple suit, she soon found herself having difficulty keeping up with him. Though the suit and his demeanour had seemed to indicate that he was more of a cerebral opponent than a physical one, it was becoming rapidly evident that he kept himself in very good shape, something Icy couldn't say for herself. Thus, while she was having to put her all into her running to keep him in sight, he seemed to be having no trouble. He wasn't exactly going at a light jog, but it certainly didn't look like he was putting all his effort into it. And yet he was, slowly but steadily, increasing his lead on her.

As the chase lead out of town and through Whitetail Wood, Icy was beginning to falter, the fatigue in her legs just edging out the determination in her mind. Come on, think! She silently demanded of herself. There's got to be a way to catch up to him or stop him! He's too far away to freeze, and even if I did, he'd probably just jump it again and slide on the ice to go even... faster...

Her eyes widened and she went into action immediately, hoping to put her new plan into action before she realized what a bad idea it probably was. She gathered her energy and sent a wave of cold over the ground, creating a thin sheet of ice for about fifteen feet in front of her. Putting on one final burst of sprinting speed, she leapt onto the ice and started sliding across it, far faster than she'd been running ten seconds ago and faster than Magic Eye to boot.

Of course, as she was going so fast, she was quickly coming to the end of the ice sheet and she had barely enough time to gather and flap again to extend it. But barely enough time was still enough time, and she slid on, managing two more extensions before she slid off the ice.

As she skidded onto the dirt, she felt a slight pain on her rump, but she didn't pay it much mind. It took a moment for her to stop and another moment to pick herself up and resume the chase, but even with those two moments of stillness, she was still far closer to her quarry than she had been.

And so the chase recommenced with new vigour on Icy's part. She pursued Magic Eye with her new method and, though she only had a couple more extended slides, she quickly found herself getting the hang of the movement, managing five extensions by her third try.

Of course, Magic Eye was not passive either, and quickly began altering his trajectory, putting in twists and meanders to make her faster straight-line movement less advantageous. Nevertheless, he could only make so many twist and turns in any given amount of time and, using her quick slide, she was closing the gap fast.

Eventually, when she was no more than ten meters from him, they two came to the edge of the forest and Magic Eye stopped, turning around. Icy slid off her latest ice slide and slowed her own pace. The fatigue, now in both her legs and her wings, began to make itself known. However, she did her best not to let that fact show as she came up, wondering why her opponent had stopped.

Now that she looked, it probably had something to do with the huge chasm that he was now standing at the lip of. Ghastly Gorge, Icy presumed – she hadn't been there herself, but hadn't heard especially pleasant things about it. Still, it had proved an obstacle to Magic Eye so, at that moment, she was pretty thankful for it.

“End of the line, pal!” Icy said, doing her best to hide the wince after she said it, once she realized how clichéd the line was.

Not that Magic Eye seemed to mind. “I wouldn't say that.” He said, panting quite a bit himself. “I'd say it's closer to a change of line. That's how it tends to work – changing from a chase to a deception to a delay to another chase. All different methods towards the same goal – escape.”

Icy nodded, taking a few seconds to catch her breath before responding. “You didn't really think that pretend-cop thing would work, did you?”

“Truthfully? Yes, I did rather.” Magic Eye gave a guilty smile. “I get caught due to a “silent alarm”, get taken away by the police and by the time you realized anything was wrong, me and my accomplices would be free and clear. Although, thinking back on the matter, even if your hidden Archer hadn't given the game away... whose idea was that, anyway?”

Icy did her best to hide her surprise at him guessing what first made her suspicious and put her face into as neutral a position as she could. “Does it matter?”

“Ah, yours, then? Well, it was a very wise decision and I see no reason for humility in the matter. But anyway, as I was saying, it wouldn't have worked anyway. I think I rather underestimated your observational skills and even if I hadn't, I somehow doubt Miss Scootaloo would let me out of her sight until I was in a jail cell and she could mock me to her heart's content. Possibly including some sort of victory dance, but I'm not quite certain.”

Icy couldn't contain a slight giggle at the image.

Magic Eye looked up, as if considering something. “I suppose I could always claim that I intended it to be seen through and that my instruction to disable the little speedster first was my main plan rather than a contingency, but no – mea culpa, mea culpa!”

Icy frowned in confusion. “You what?”

Magic Eye smiled, and Icy got the impression he was trying not to look patronizing, but failing a little. “It's ancient pegasopolian. It means my fault. I messed up – I did not anticipate either your intelligence or your skill with your abilities.” His smile became a lot more genuine. “Not that I am attempting to downplay the impressiveness of those facts – those ice slides were a brilliant strategem.”

Icy blushed a little at the complement in spite of herself.

“However, I fear I was still to blame for my own failure. As such, I must face the consequences. Goodbye!” As he said the final word, Magic Eye dropped down over the side of the cliff, instantly going out of sight.

Icy didn't think, she just leapt forward, not even registering the pain or fatigue in her legs or wings. She dived over the side and saw Magic Eye falling just below her, his hoof reaching out to the cliffside and his eyes widening as he saw her.

She flapped her wings upwards, propelling herself down faster than he was falling until she caught up to him. She wrapped her hooves around him and spread her wings, her muscles screaming from both the effort of moving them and the sudden wind resistance. However, she kept them extended, bringing the two of them into a glide. After a few moments, the two skidded along the ground at the bottom of the gorge, their speed now not enough to cause too much damage, but still enough to hurt.

Icy panted as the dust around them settled. Everything ached, she wasn't sure she was able to move her legs or wings and she was covered in dust and dirt.

But in spite of that, lying beneath her, pinned and looking up at her in amazement, was Magic Eye.

“Well,” he said, sounding genuinely astonished, “I didn't anticipate that, either.”

“Guess I'm...” Icy stopped mid-sentence, taking a few seconds to breathe before continuing. “Guess I'm full of surprises.”

“Most ponies are,” the trapped colt said, his expression not losing its newfound respect, “that's what makes these games so engaging. But you? Perhaps more than most.”

Icy barely noticed what he said as she drew in breath for more speech. “Okay, now, give me the diamond.”

“The diamond?” Magic Eye asked, sounding almost offended. “I don't have the diamond. I left it back at the castle.” He wiggled around his hooves beneath her to pat his pockets. “I used it for the flash then dropped it. I wouldn't take it with me while I escaped.”

Icy scrunched her eyes shut for moment, her position pinning the colt preventing her from facehoofing. “Why not?”

“Because you won!” Magic Eye now sounded completely offended. “You beat me fair and square, as the saying goes, and I see absolutely no reason to be a sore loser about it.”

Icy opened her eyes again and looked at him levelly. “Only enough to try to kill yourself over it.”

“Kill myself? Hardly! I'd have hoped you'd have a bit more faith in my intellect than that.” Magic Eye rolled his eyes and wiggled his hooves around beneath her again. After a few moments, he pulled one of his hooves out and held it in front of her face to remind her of the soft glow of his horseshoes, which Icy had stopped noticing about a third of the way through the chase, once fatigue had given her tunnel vision.

“Wall-walking horseshoes, remember. I was just going to grab hold of the wall and hide in a cliff-side cave until you left. Would have seemed to have just disappeared, had you not been so quick and determined to catch me... no pun intended.”

Icy thought for a moment, forcing the image past the cloud of fatigue around her brain and into her mind's eye. “Well, what if...?” She paused for a moment to breathe. “What if I'd glided down to look and saw you.”

Magic Eye's mouth pulled to the side as he considered the idea. “Then I daresay I would have thought of something. But I doubt you would have – even in daylight, it would be hard to see deep into one of those caves, and at night? Well, it seems a touch unlikely.” He leaned his head to the side, looking past Icy's head. “For example, that cave right there would have been quite inscrutable, don't you think?” He asked, pointing behind her.

Icy realized what he was doing a fraction of a second too late and had already starting turning her head in the direction he was pointing when it occurred to her.

Oh, son of a...

She turned her head back, but not fast enough – his other hoof shot up from beneath her and connected with her chin, stunning her and bursting the smoke bomb held in it. Due to the suddenly hard-to-breathe and opaque air, plus her confusion and exhaustion, she could barely do anything as she felt the colt slide out from under her and start trotting rapidly away. She tried to get up to follow him, but at that point her legs had decided that they had had quite enough torture for one night, thank you very much, and she just flopped onto the ground like a very small walrus.

“My apologies once again!” Magic Eye shouted down from above her as, through the smoke, she heard the sounds of his hoofsteps trotting up the cliff face. “You must think me terribly unimaginative, but I fear my liberty is a higher priority than your respect for my ingenuity. Farewell, Icy Flight, until next we meet!”

“Can't wait.” Icy grumbled to herself. Once the smoke cleared, there was no sign of Magic Eye.

Icy groaned and reached a hoof to her badge, her muscles screaming with every inch her leg travelled.

“Guys?” She panted. “He got away again. Everything okay back there?”

“Yeah, pretty much.” Scootaloo's voice came back over the badge, sounding far less annoyed than Icy had expected she would. “ Goons are all tied up, diamond's still here, machine was nothing to be worried about. You okay?”

“Yeah.” Icy paused for a moment before amending. “Well, kinda, um... I don't want to be a pain but... could someone come collect me? Not sure I can really walk back right now.”