Iron Mare and Spider-Mare team up against the scheming Vulture
After losing his job at Bluecorp, Avian Tombs takes a job from an unknown benefactor to kill the assassin Ghost. Iron Mare and Spider-Mare arrive in time to thwart his plans, but have a difficult time staying out of each others way as they try to keep Ghost alive.
“You’re fired Mr. Tombs,” Blueblood told the older stallion standing on the other side of his desk.
Avian Tombs, a stallion with a green coat and darker green mane, stood in shocked silence for a moment as Blueblood stared back at him. “But sir, I’m making progress the flight suit prototype is almost ready. I just-”
“What am I going to do with your flight suit when Hammer tech already has a better designed one on the market?” Blueblood interrupted, glaring at Avian. “It’s taken you six months just to start working on the prototype. Now I find out we’re too late. Our competition, if they can be called that, have beaten us to the punch and I find myself short one hundred thousand bits with no results.”
“Sir I-” Avian tried to interject only to be cut off again.
“You’re too timid Mr. Tombs. Look around you,” Blueblood said gesturing to the office they stood in, several expensive looking decorations, an extravagant furniture set and a mini bar. Awards and photos of Blueblood with important political figures lined the walls. “I didn’t achieve this by wasting my time on a stallion who’s too hesitant to even try to win a race,” Blueblood said, looking at Tombs with disappointment.
Tombs glared at the floor, unable to meet his boss’ eyes. “I didn’t realize I was competing with anypony,” He replied, an edge to his voice.
Blueblood rolled his eyes. “We are always competing. Well you aren’t anymore. You’re fired. Clear out your desk and leave the building or I’ll have security do it for you. You have an hour. Good day,” Blueblood said, shooing Avian towards the door as he picked up the phone and dialed a number.
Avian left the office quietly, figuring it would be better to just give in than try to fight the owner of the building he was in. After all few went up against Blueblood and won. The only company bigger than his was Dash Industries and they were being run by Iron Mare. What chance do I have against him? Avian thought to himself as he walked away from Blueblood’s office.
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Avian pushed open the door to his apartment, nearly dropping the box of belongings he’d been keeping at work until now. Avian sighed as he spotted several envelopes on the his door mat as he walked in. Over due bills, most likely, he thought to himself, kicking his door shut and walking past the and walking to his living room where he set the box down on the sofa and clicked on the lamp.
Avian nearly jumped out of his skin as he spotted the silhouette of a pony standing in his kitchen. “Who… Who are you?” he asked, his voice shaking. “L-leave now or I’ll call the police,” he demanded, swallowing the lump that had formed in his throat.
“There won’t be any need for that,” the pony, a mare from the sound of her voice, replied. “I’m told you lost your job today. You have my sympathies,” she continued, her tone flat.
Avian glared at the mare. “H-how do you know about th-that?” he asked, wondering if the intruder was armed and if it was safe to make a break for the phone on the coffee table a few feet away.
“I have sources. My ears in Bluecorp also mentioned you’ve been working on a flight suit, much like the one Hammer started producing,” the mare said.
Avian glared at the mare. “It’s not the same!” he shouted, forgetting for a moment he could be in danger. “They use thrust and lift like a plane. My design works off of an electronic muscle system, mimicking a bird,” he explained, reigning in his temper.
The mare tilted her head. “I see. It’s a shame you couldn’t finish your work. I could have used something like that,” she said. Avian was unsettled by the mare’s words, unsure why she would be interested in something that was already on the market. “I don’t suppose you were able to hold onto your designs?” the mare asked.
Avian’s eyes narrowed. “I… I have them,” he said, his curiosity getting the better of him. “Why do you want my design?” he asked, suspicious of the mare’s intentions.
“Not just the designs. I want the flight suit… and you,” she explained.
Avian was baffled. “What do you want with me?” he asked, fearful of her intentions for him.
“I have a job that needs to be done. If you help me, then I’ll help you get back at Blueblood for turning his back on you,” she told him.
Avian was definitely listening now. “What kind of job?” he asked.
“An agent of mine was captured and I need him disposed of,” she said flatly, not even trying to be subtle.
Avian gulped. “You… want me to kill somepony?” he asked, hoping this was all some cruel joke. It wouldn’t be the first time a co-worker targeted him.
The mare laughed, a cold, emotionless laugh. “It’s only a matter of time until someone does it. He’s made a lot of enemies and I can think of plenty of potential employers who’d be interested to see him gone. Most probably just want a shot at his fortune,” the mare clarified. Avian was still conflicted and it showed. “Work with me and I’ll make it worth your while. Someone should benefit from all of this. Why not you?” the mare questioned, as though they were discussing buying a lottery ticket.
Avian considered his options. Even if he did refuse, this mare might kill him anyway. If she got him the resources to make his flight suit first, then he might be able to get away. “Your sure no one will care about him?” he asked, having no desire for blood thirsty family members to start hunting him down.
The mare laughed again, sending a chill down Avian’s spine. “Trust me Mr. Tombs. His enemies are just waiting for him to die. Circling him like vultures.”
Scootaloo sat on top of a building in her Spider-Mare costume, her feet dangling over the edge, watching cars weave through traffic below. The bottom of her mask was pulled up over her mouth so she could eat the peanut butter and jelly sandwich her Aunt Cup Cake had made her for lunch. Scootaloo had missed lunch at school earlier that day when the convenience store down the street got held up, which also got her after school detention for missing half an hour for lunch.
The young mare was grateful to get a few minutes in the late evening to actually eat, but she knew she'd be swinging through the streets in just a few minutes.
The flash of blue lights and a short blare from a siren alerted her to the police car pulling up to the side of the street below. “Can’t catch a break,” Scootaloo muttered, finishing her sandwich as she dropped off of the roof, shooting a strand of webs at the bottom of a balcony as she fell. She pulled her mask back over her face as she came down to street level. “Evening officers,” Scootaloo greeted, still chewing up the last bite of her meal, as the officers stepped out of the car, a brown Pegasus mare and an orange unicorn stallion.
The stallion looked up in surprise, reaching for his gun. “Don't bother,” the mare said, walking underneath Scootaloo towards the door. “We're just here about a noise violation. Not really your shtick,” the mare informed, showing she was more experienced than her fidgety partner.
“Fair enough,” Scootaloo replied, jumping from her web to the side of the building, clinging to the brick by her feet and fingertips. “Well if ya need a wall crawler, I'll be around,” she said shooting a web across the street to another building.
“Actually,” the police mare started, catching Scootaloo's attention. She glanced at her partner, who shook his head adamantly. “I know I shouldn't say anything… but there's supposed to be a prisoner transport coming in from Canterlot. Someone really high profile. Seems like it might attract the attention of someone dangerous,” the mare stated, leaving the request hanging in the air.
Scootaloo nodded. “I'll keep an eye out. In the meantime, keep up the good work,” she said as she pushed herself off the wall and swung down the street.
“Check on the Brooklyn Bridge!” the mare shouted as Scootaloo reached the top of her swing. Scootaloo gave the mare a thumbs up as she flipped through the air, launching another web at a higher building and swinging around the corner.
Scootaloo groaned as she swung through the buildings. “I swear, if I took one day off and this city would fall apart,” she muttered to herself.
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Rainbow Dash looked out of the car window as the driver traversed the Brooklyn Bridge, watching the sun set on the distant horizon. Officially she was coming to Manehattan to check on the security systems at a secure S.H.I.E.L.D. facility. She'd only agreed to be a consultant after finding out Ghost was getting moved there, via “secure” government communication channels.
“How close are we?” Rainbow asked her driver, still staring out the window. S.H.I.E.L.D. had provided the driver and the car, no doubt to try and stop Rainbow from bringing her armor. She'd already forgotten the agent’s name, not that it mattered. They never sent the same agent to deal with Rainbow.
“We should be arriving in the next half hour if traffic doesn't get backed up,” the unicorn stallion, stated, his constant glances in the rearview mirror not going unnoticed.
“So not close at all,” Rainbow replied, knowing how bad traffic could be in the city. “Don’t suppose the car can just fly over all the traffic?” she asked, sarcastically.
“No ma’am,” the driver replied, keeping his tone bland. The emotionless façade always annoyed Rainbow, giving her the feeling she was unappreciated by the agents she'd talked to. Granted, she had only met a few agents.
Rainbow's train of thought was derailed as the dulled sounds of applause and cheer rang out from further down the bridge. “What's all that for? Thought nopony knew I was coming to town,” Rainbow said with a smirk.
“They don't know you're here. Manehattan has its own celebrity hero,” the stallion grumbled in the front seat.
Rainbow leaned forward in the car, trying to see through the windshield. A blur of red and blue passed overhead and Rainbow scowled as she switched to the rear passenger window. She spotted Spider-Mare as the masked hero landed on one of the bridge’s support cables and took a seat.
“What's she doing here?” Rainbow said through gritted teeth. Rainbow didn't have anything personal against Spider-Mare, but her competitive streak tended to get the better of her.
“We’re pretty sure she lives here,” the driver snarked.
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Careful. Don't wanna waste your monthly emotion allowance,” Rainbow said as she sat back in her seat, feigning disinterest in the wall crawler above.
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Avian walked down the footpath on the side of the bridge, paying no attention to whatever celebration was taking place further down the bridge, making sure the long-coat he wore didn't blow open. He was busy keeping a lookout for the vehicle his new employer had told him his target was in.
He’d had plenty of time after finishing the flight suit to plan his attack on the armored truck that should be passing by any minute. Avian scanned the traffic coming into the city, smiling as he spotted the large black vehicle he'd been waiting for.
As the vehicle crawled through traffic, Avian began to get nervous. Committing to what he intended to do was harder when he was seconds away from being a murder. “Don't think about it. Just move and be done with it,” Avian told himself, repeating the mantra he'd come up with in the last week.
Traffic started to pick up and the truck moved towards Avian faster. He glanced at it as it passed him. Avian took a deep breath as he pulled a small metallic disk from his coat and threw it at the car. The truck skidded to a stop as the device sparked to life frying the electrical system in the truck.
“Don't think about it. Just move and be done with it,” Avian repeated as he walked over to the truck.
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Ghost was the first one in the back of the truck to recover, tackling one of the other four ponies against the wall and stomping on the head of another who'd fallen when the truck stopped. The third tried to grab his side arm, stopped by the knife Ghost stabbed into his hand.
“Freeze!” the fourth shouted, succeeding in leveling his weapon on the assassin. Ghost smiled, not concerned with only one guard. Ghost’s foot came up in a flash, disarming the stallion. Ghost rushed his final opponent, throwing the chain of his handcuffs around the guard's neck and not letting go until he heard a satisfying snap.
With no opposition left Ghost relieved one of the guards of his keys and removed his cuffs. He grabbed one of the dead guard's gun and put most of the clip into the lock on the door at the back of the vehicle. The door swung open easily enough and Ghost peered out, knowing some assassin had been sent for him. He didn't have any friends to break him out and his enemies would seize any opportunity to have him killed.
Ghost couldn't spot anyone out of place, mostly because everyone around was vacating the area or already gone, the stragglers clambering over cars to escape the conflict. Ghost hopped out of the back if the car and smiled.
The sound wings was followed swiftly by a green blur to the assassin's left and before he could move he found his feet leaving the ground, a tight pressure on his right shoulder releasing him and sending him over the side of the bridge.