Season One | Episode One: Revival

It began with an explosion of fire on Main Street in the Crystal Empire.

Shining Armor was flung from the parade float he stood on and launched into a nearby bus stop, shattering the glass and the bench from the sheer force of the impact. Fragmentation from the blast was lodged in his right leg, and splinters of wood and glass burrowed into his left shoulder and right forearm, tearing a sizable amount of flesh. His ears rung, and he could barely hear the cries from bystanders on the sidewalk. He grimaced as he stood back up, trying to return to his senses; he had no time to be a victim, his wife had been standing right beside him on the float, and she was nowhere to be found on his side of the street.

"Cadence! Cadence!" Shining Armor cried out to his wife as he limped over to the destroyed float that was engulfed in flames; perhaps the explosion flung her in the other direction. "Cadence, where are you?!"

Shining Armor coughed as smoke filled his lungs, and he tripped onto the ground as something snagged his right leg, causing him to writhe in agony as his shredded right knee slammed onto the pavement. He used his left arm to raise his body up, and he cocked his neck to the side to look back at whatever had tripped him up; it was the mangled corpse of one of the dancers that stood on their float. Shining Armor crawled to the other side of the street, staying low so that the cloud of smoke above wouldn't collect in his lungs. His hands dug into the smoke-covered grass on the boulevard as he made his way across the street, ignoring his wounds and trying his best to power through.

"Cadence?!" Shining Armor gasped as he saw his wife tangled in a brush along the patch of grass next to the sidewalk, fragmentation in her arms and legs, but luckily nothing life-threatening. She was unconscious, knocked out cold by the devastating pressure wave. Alicorns were hardy, but they were by no means invincible. Shining Armor set his forehead on hers and wept as his hearing returned, and the screams became clearer all around him. "Cadence..."

****

At the hospital, Shining Armor insisted his wife and other victims go to surgery before him, as his injuries were not as severe as others. However, the doctors persisted, warning the prince that he ran the risk of infection if his open wounds were not tended to soon. With a sigh, he accepted their help; he needed to remain strong for his daughter in his wife's absence. It wouldn't be wise to let his heroic nature blind him to the harsh reality of the situation.

After his surgery, Shining Armor got up from his hospital bed and grabbed the pole with his iv bag dangling above and rolled it out of his room, ignoring the requests of the nurses to stay inside. He wanted to see his wife, he needed to. He needed to know what he was going to say to his daughter. What would she think? Would she be confused? Scared? Shining Armor couldn't bear to imagine her wide eyes filled with tears.

The prince knocked before entering his wife's room, and a nurse answered the door. "I'm sorry, your majesty, but your wife is in no shape to-."

"It's okay... you can let him in..." Cadence whispered in a gravelly and anguished voice. "Could you leave us alone and tend to other patients...?"

"Yes, your highness," The nurse nodded as she raced out the door.

"She's a sweetheart, that one..." Cadence grinned as she watched her nurse leave from her hospital bed. "I envy the next pony who gets her..."

"I'm sorry..." Tears began to stream down Shining Armor's face as he saw the braces and bandages on Cadence's arms and legs, and the stitches on her face and neck. How could he have let this happen? He was the Captain of the Equestrian Royal Guard, this should not have happened. He approached Cadence and held her bandaged, delicate hands. Even in this state, she still boasted the grace and beauty of an angel, smiling through the pain. "I'm sorry, I should've-."

"Please don't go blaming yourself, Shining Armor. We couldn't have known. I keep thinking myself to be unbreakable, unstoppable, but I'm still mortal in spirit and in the body," Cadence looked up at the ceiling as tears also began to form in her eyes. "That poor dancer behind us... he absorbed most of the explosion, he saved us both. But at what cost? I feel ashamed sitting here, delicate and fragile and confused like our daughter at home. I should offer my condolences to his family, to the victims, but I'm bound to this bed. Damn..."

"Leave that all to me, Cadenza," Shining Armor insisted as he wiped the tears away from his eyes, and a serious expression replaced his worried one. "Not only that, but I'll find the people who did this. I can promise you that. I'll have guards stay here and watch you and the others twenty-four-seven."

"What are you planning to do, Shining Armor? You are in no shape to handle whoever is looking to kill us. You can't just charge into battle blindly. Leave the investigating to the authorities." Cadence tried discouraging Shining Armor, but she knew she could not sway him once he made up his mind.

"We can't leave it to the authorities anymore. We need something else," Shining Armor began pacing in front of Cadence's hospital bed, using his free hand to comb through his blue locks. "We need something new..."

"What do you mean 'something dangerous'?" Cadence wondered; she had never seen her husband so enthusiastic before.

"I don't know, I don't know... something-, something..." Shining Armor sat down on the chair adjacent to his wife, brainstorming. He took a deep breath and looked around the room for inspiration, something that popped out at him. Then, to his left, he saw a stack of magazines, and on top of the pile sat a comic titled, 'The Power Ponies and The Return of The Maniac!'. And just like that, Shining Armor found his inspiration. "Cadence? This is crazy, but... I think I have an idea."

****

Weeks passed, and in his room, Shining Armor used his privileges as a prince to gather information from prison databases all across Equestria on his laptop. He managed to narrow down the most qualified candidates for his project to one location, the Canterlot Maximum Security Prison. There, Shining Armor found five individuals who he believed were perfect for the job. He hung up their prison files on a laundry line attached to his and Cadence's bed rail, and it ran all the way from there to above his desk beside the door. The coffee mug in his hand was never empty, always filled to the brim with the straight, black beverage. Bags formed under his eyes after the first week, and a beard began to fill his once clean-cut face once the second week was over. A knock at his door roused him from his daily grind as he stared on at his laptop, filled with the hundreds of new documents that piled up over the two week period. Shining Armor got up and opened the door to find his sister was standing just in front of him with a disappointed look on her face and Flurry Heart in her arms.

"You look awful, Shining Armor," Twilight said as she looked up and down at her brother. His tattered attire greatly differed from her clean and organized outfit; a red blouse and black pants with a red and purple polka-dotted scarf around her neck.

"Thanks," Shining Armor wore bandages over his right forearm and left shoulder, and his right leg was put in a brace. He wore a coffee-stained white tank top and ragged sweatpants, and he put mirror shades over his bloodshot eyes to conceal the purple patches under them. His face was dominated mostly by a gruff five o'clock shadow, and trying to hide his exasperation to the best of his ability, he glanced over at his daughter in her white little dress and waved to her with a big smile. "Hi, pumpkin! You enjoy seeing Auntie Twilight?"

"You smell really bad, daddy," Flurry Heart remarked as she plugged her nose.

Six-years-old. She was six-years-old and could already read Shining Armor as well as her mother. The thought terrified him greatly, but in a way, it also put him at ease. It was good to know he had somepony to look after him besides Twilight when Cadence was recuperating in the hospital. "Yeah, sweetheart, well... that's what happens when you live off of scones, coffee, and water for two weeks straight and don't shave."

"You haven't answered any of my calls in a week. I was beginning to worry about you," Twilight said as she let herself in, traversing the stacks of paper that layered the floor of Shining Armor's once spotless room with Flurry Heart still in her arms. "Cadence is a little worried too..."

"Are you here to discourage me...?" Shining Armor asked his sister as he gathered up some important papers and shoved them in one of the five files hung up on his clothesline. "You're not the first to try. Mother was here a few days ago..."

"Daddy...?" Flurry Heart rubbed her eyes; it was around eight o' clock at night. "I'm tired... can you tuck me in?"

"Daddy is very tired, sweetie. I'll have a maid tuck you in, okay?" Shining Armor kneeled down as Twilight placed her on the ground.

"Okay, daddy!" Flurry Heart prepared to race outside before she was stopped by her father as he grabbed the back of her dress.

"I love you, sweetie..." Shining Armor said as he gave her a big hug.

"I love you too, daddy," Flurry Heart giggled as she gave him a kiss on the cheek and immediately recoiled from the foul taste. "Daddy needs a bath really bad..."

"Yeah, I know," Shining Armor nodded as Flurry Heart closed the door behind her, then he turned to his sister and sighed. "I was worried she'd turn out like me, but... I'm glad to see she takes more after her mother."

"Me too," Twilight laughed as she sat down on a stool right next to Cadence's walk-in closet. "I didn't come here to stop you... I just want to know why you insist on doing this to yourself— the sleepless nights and the long, drawn-out days of perpetual work. What's it for? Making some fantasy heroes come to life?"

"It's more than that, sis..." Shining Armor said as he levitated a file over to another stack next to his bed using his magic. "Let me ask you a question. What if the Elements of Harmony fail? What if Tirek comes storming into town one day or Discord decides to go rogue again? What if the Crystal Heart shatters again?"

"My friends and I deal with the problem like we always do," Twilight answered. "We always find a way."

"But things are different now. It's not like it was six years ago, Twilight. Some of you have lives now, families to protect. I can't have you all get killed. You're just normal ponies with magic stones. We need a contingency plan," Shining Armor said as he sat down on his desk chair. "Equestria needs a reliable first line of defense."

"And this is your solution? Gather a bunch of super-powered criminals together and expect them to fight for Equestria like a soldier would?" Twilight rolled her eyes and groaned as she got up from her stool and examined the files hanging up on the clothesline. "How can you expect to trust these ponies-?"

"They're just down-trodden, Twilight. They're outcasts. It's not their fault they ended up in prison... they just got a bad slice of life is all." Shining Armor interrupted her as he got up from his chair and stretched his aching back. "They've only been treated like freaks— less than ponies. I think if we treat them like ponies, they might treat us like ponies too..."

"You can't possibly know that," Twilight said as she analyzed the file hanging up on her right, closest to the bed. The photo attached to it was a young stallion in his early twenties, with wild red hair, pale blue eyes, and a sleek silver coat of fur. "It says here that this one is, and I quote, 'possessed by a demon'?"

"That's Blaster, he demanded to be placed in solitary confinement out of fear of his own power..." Shining Armor explained as he took the file from her and hung it back up on the line. "He's just a kid. He needs help is all."

"And how do you expect to control somepony like this? Tell them words of encouragement?" Twilight said, doubtful that Shining Armor even had the slightest idea of what he was getting himself into.

"I didn't just spend two weeks here studying. I've been commissioning some building projects as well," Shining Armor reached into his pocket and grabbed a rolled up blueprint, then proceeded to unroll it and hand it to his sister to examine. "This is a military bunker on the outskirts of the Crystal Empire. I fitted it with five rooms, each catered to the needs of my new guests."

"A two foot thick, titanium-reinforced blast chamber? A laboratory with a pair of Tesla coils? Chainmail punching bags and a full array of workout gear? Oh my-... custom-made two and a half meter tall doors in every entranceway? Whose pocket is this coming from?" Twilight was flabbergasted by the sheer absurdity of the complex.

"The Minister of Defense. He's a firm believer in this project, Twilight. Many on my council are," Shining Armor stated as he opened his blinds and looked out the window, taking in the beauty of the city from afar. "The ponies here need something to believe in, and it's not me or Cadence anymore. They need something else, something new."

"These ponies have criminal records, Shining Armor... some have done very questionable crimes," Twilight grabbed another file and searched its contents. "It says here that this 'Blue Thistle' was an underground boxer that hospitalized more than two dozen stallions?"

"To support her thirteen-year-old brother, Twilight. She never killed," Shining Armor took the file and showed her an old picture hidden within a document of a young filly hugging a toddler. "These ponies are sympathetic, and I want to show them sympathy."

"Still... I can't expect them to open up to you right off the bat," Twilight added as she took the file and hung it back up. "You expect them to work well together instantly?"

"I'll work at it. I'll give them time and training and see what it yields. They're all alike, Twilight. They've all lost something, and I want to try and give it back to them," Shining Armor said as he took all the files off the line and placed it next to his laptop.

"I suppose I can see where you're coming from." Twilight sighed to herself and nodded slowly. "Okay, maybe just this once I'll trust you. But that doesn't mean I'm for this idea. I still think you're in over your head with this."

"Great, let's get-..." Shining Armor turned towards the door but was cut off before he could even take a step by Twilight, who grabbed his right shoulder forcefully.

"Oh, no, no, no... you're not going to a maximum security prison like this," Twilight shook her head at him, waving her finger back in forth in a disapproving manner. "They'll think you're an escaped convict and tackle you to the ground. You need to shave, shower, and above all else, you'll be going to bed! We can go tomorrow morning!"

"Oh, but-... okay," Shining Armor groaned as he trudged over to his bathroom to freshen up.

"I'll clean this room as well," Twilight whispered across the hall to her brother as he shaved the bristle off his face, trying not to rouse Flurry Heart from her slumber.

Twilight reminisced as she gathered paper off the ground and piled them into neat stacks next to her brother's desk, gathered up dirty dishes and mugs, and piled smelly clothes strewn about the ground into his laundry basket next to the closet. She thought of her many adventures with her friends, discovering new worlds and new ponies. She missed those days. She was twenty-four now, and her friends all had lives beyond working at the castle and managing Twilight's kingdom. It seemed that time whittled away at the adventure in her life, leaving only work on her plate to deal with. Maybe her brother was right, perhaps it was time to pass the torch of protector to other ponies. Although, if they offered the torch to these outcasts, would they accept it? Twilight was doubtful. If they have spent their whole lives being called freaks by other ponies not like them, why would they even bother protecting said ponies?

Twilight sighed as she looked under the five main folders on the desk to search for scrap paper to throw away. She snagged a piece of paper from underneath the stack with an odd symbol sketched on it. It was a sword driven through a runic design, with a sun and moon over the blade, as if safeguarded by the weapon. She had seen the ensign before in old textbooks in the Canterlot archives. It was a badge of honor that the most esteemed protectors of the monarchy wore in days of old, the sacred guardians of Celestia and Luna, and all of Equestria. It was the symbol of the Equestrian Knights.

Season One | Episode Two: Recruitment

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Shining Armor and Twilight stepped out of their taxi and approached the main gate of the massive prison. The concrete walls were ten meters high, and four watchtowers covered in barbed wire were put in place at each corner of the outer wall that protected an area of over a hundred hectares. Guards patrolling the outer wall were armed with assault rifles and heavy-duty tasers, and many of them also carried shock batons around their waists as well, along with tactical vests and other gear. It was Shining Armor's first visit to the prison, Twilight's as well; they weren't sure what to expect, but judging from the equipment on the guards, their prisoners were more than just deadly. Perhaps they'd be a little out of place with their fancy suits.

Shining Armor was stopped by two guards at the reinforced gate; entering by car was not allowed. The one on Shining Armor's left spoke up; he had his face buried in a clipboard. "Excuse me, sir. I'll need your ID, and I'll need hers as-."

"Hey, man, look up..." The other guard whispered to his co-worker to gain his attention; he didn't know who he was talking to. "This ain't an old granny lookin' to see her son."

"Oh! C-Captain Shining Armor! P-Princess Twilight!" The guard began to sweat as he saw them both raise a brow at him. "I'm sorry! You have an appointment here with the warden at, um... eight! Eight, right?!"

"Yes, sir. Sorry, We're a little late, we got caught up in Canterlot traffic is all," Shining Armor nodded as he impatiently tapped on the briefcase he held in his left hand. "You know how it is..."

"Oh yes, sir!" The guard forced a chuckle as he opened the main gate. The solid steel gate opened with a sharp creak as the guard pressed his ID card against the panel attached to the wall, scanning the card. "The warden is a patient guy, don't worry! He'll understand! Here, I'll take you inside!"

The courtyard was separated into three areas. The area where Shining Armor and Twilight were was a pathway shielded by and electric fence that led to the main complex, and on either side of this pathway were two large areas where stallions sat on one side and mares on the other. All of them looked as tough as nails; some had ear piercings and facial tattoos, others had strips taken off of their clothing and wrapped around their heads like bandanas. There were some park benches set up in the concrete field where they sat, a few trees on secluded patches of grass, but nothing very exciting; it was a prison after all. They weren't very loud, many simply stared at the two as the guard guided them down the path.

"I don't like this..." Twilight whispered to her brother nervously as she saw a mare lick her lips at the sight of her, and Twilight unfurled her right wing and hid behind it in disgust. "I knew wearing suits was a bad idea."

"It's not the suits, Twilight, relax," Shining Armor insisted as he limped after the guard with a cane in his right hand. "You can't show them cowardice, they like that kind of stuff— makes them feel empowered."

"Alright..." Twilight nodded as she looked forward at the approaching stairway to the main facility. "How long will this visitation take?"

"As long as it takes... I know what to expect from the candidates, it's just that I don't yet know how to handle it. I'll figure it out as I go, I can usually manage that." Shining Armor answered his sister as the doors to the prison opened.

While quite linear and lacking form on the outside, the inside of the prison was designed a lot like an old college; dark tiles on the floor, extensive wooden furniture in the halls for ponies who were waiting, and decorated ceilings with murals of angels and demons. Though, there was noticeable wear on the ceiling; perhaps it wasn't really in the budget to maintain art in a place of punishment. The guard stopped at a door down the long hallway on the right and turned to his guests, guiding them through said door.

"Come in, come in..." A husky voice with a slight drawl chuckled from the office. "I've been waitin' for ya."

The warden of the prison was a stout stallion with a grizzled gray beard and mustache upon his red snout, and he wore a ten gallon on his head and aviators over his eyes. He was treating himself to a BLT, and crumbs were caught in his beard and vest. He dusted himself off then stood up to shake hands with Shining Armor and Twilight.

"I'm Warden Chains. It's a pleasure to meet the Captain of The Royal Guard in the flesh," The warden shook Shining Armor's hand, then bowed to Twilight. His hat and glasses made it hard to tell whether he was being sincere or not. "And it is an absolute pleasure to meet you, Princess Twilight."

"Thank you," Twilight nodded slowly as she motioned to Shining Armor's briefcase. "We've come here to discuss a matter regarding five prisoners who are currently in the supermax wing of this facility."

Shining Armor opened up his briefcase and set it down on the table, then he handed the warden his five files containing all of his gathered information. "These are the five I wish to discuss."

"Hmm... Blue Thistle, Blaster, Gizmo, Shadow Dancer, and Fae," The warden nonchalantly scratched his beard as he chuckled to himself. "So what's the deal with these five? You lookin' to lengthen their prison sentence or somethin'?"

"Wait, you mean you didn't get our message last night?" Twilight wondered.

"Yeah, I-... wait, you weren't foolin'?! You actually want me to put em' on parole?" The warden gawked at the files on his desk. "Are ya kiddin' me?!"

"No, I am not trying to pull the wool over your eyes here, Warden Chains," Shining Armor said as he reached into his pocket and handed the warden five folded-up release forms. "These are all signed by the Judicial Minister himself."

"You can't be-... you know what these freaks can do, right? What they've done?" Warden Chains scoffed as he leaned back in his chair and handed the release forms back to Shining Armor.

"They're ponies, just like you and me, Warden," Shining Armor stated as he packed up his files back into his briefcase. "There are only here because the public is afraid of them."

"They're here because they've killed ponies, your majesty!" The warden growled as he got up from his chair. "You do know what Blaster can do, right?!"

"The public doesn't understand their abilities. They're misunderstood," Shining Armor snapped back at him as he tapped on his briefcase. "It isn't their fault they were given power and then thrown into this world head first. I'm sorry, sir, but it's already decided what becomes of them."

"I can't believe-..." The warden shook his head in disbelief, then pointed at the guard who was still waiting in the hallway. "You, guard. Take these two to meet their new pals... I've got some paperwork to do. Have another friend of yours take gate duty."

"Yes, sir," The guard nodded as he began down the hall. "Come, your majesty, I'll take you to them."

****

The prison became progressively darker and rough as they ventured into solitary confinement. As they went deeper, ceilings became lower and leaked profusely, lights were jury-rigged and some were broken and barred cell doors soon became thick steel doors with slats to serve food to the prisoners. Even more troubling, security was equipped with odd weapons powered by magic, some of which were heavy duty rifles and pistols. It was clear that whoever was behind those each was dangerous in their own right, and Twilight was beginning to have second thoughts about Shining Armor's plan. Living in these conditions certainly would take their toll. Although most of the five hadn't been in prison for too long, the solitude would have probably been quite unbearable. Surprisingly, this was not the end of the trek.

The guard used his ID card again on a huge vault door near the end of the solitary confinement area, and with a gust of steam it opened up, revealing a whole other section fitted with cells made of tinted glass anchored to a steel floor (which Shining Armor and Twilight assumed was both bulletproof and shatterproof). The glass seemed to have an odd blue sheen about it, and upon further inspection, Twilight could see that the glass seemed to be conducting magic in the form of a high energy barrier, enough energy to detain almost any entity. Each cell was like a small box that fit into the hole dug into the cavernous maze of a prison, and each prisoner within was fitted with a shock collar and white jumpsuit.

"Very high tech equipment..." Twilight said, somewhat impressed at the extensiveness of each cage.

"Yeah, well, we've got to have the best here. These are where we store the most powerful criminals in Equestria. Hell, we've even got a cage for Discord if he ever steps out of line," The guard said as he inspected each cell as he went by; the prisoners didn't seem to notice them.

"Odd... why aren't they paying any attention to us?" Twilight wondered as she watched the prisoners twiddle their thumbs to pass the time.

"Oh, yeah. This glass is soundproof, and they can't see us from in there, but we can see them," The guard answered as he continued down the winding maze. "Who do you want to see first?"

"Whoever is closer," Shining Armor requested.

"Alright. Then you'll be meeting Gizmo first, in that case. He's just over here," The guard pointed towards an approaching cell with a stallion inside.

As they got closer, they could make out what the stallion looked like more and more. He was in his late twenties, possibly early thirties, and he seemed to have the build of your stereotypical intellectual; glasses, lanky build, average stature. He had a black mane that was gelled back, and his light blue fur was well kept and sleek. His yellow eyes sparkled as he picked up the Rubix cube on his single bed, and he sat on the lone stool in the center of his cell, trying to solve the puzzle. Within seconds the stallion solved the puzzle, and as Twilight drew closer to his cell, she could see that his hands were robotic.

"Let me use my card real quick and you'll be able to speak with him," The guard pressed his ID card against yet another panel right next to Gizmo's cell. "Hey, Giz, you got visitors."

"Visitors? Last I checked the only visitor I got was my lawyer exactly three hundred twenty-two days, four hours, twelve minutes, and..." Gizmo lightly tapped on the side of his head. "Thirty-eight seconds ago... now thirty-nine... forty-."

"I think we get it, Giz," The guard scoffed as he stepped back to let Shining Armor speak. "Gizmo here robbed twenty Canterlot big-shots in a matter of minutes using only his laptop."

Gizmo leaned on the glass and tapped his thumbs together. "Are we forgetting the part where I gave-."

"The money to the ponies who had their paychecks taken by said big-shots?" Shining Armor finished Gizmo's sentence, to which the articulate stallion grinned in response.

"You see? This prince here has been doing his homework!" Gizmo's eye twitched suddenly. "Speaking of prince, how is your princess, Prince Shining Armor? I've heard of the attack— very shocking indeed!"

"She's fine, thank you for asking," Shining Armor tried his best to keep up with Gizmo, but his mouth and mind were going at a hundred miles a minute. "Do you know why I'm here, Gizmo?"

"Sadly that is a mystery to me, my well-dressed friend. It has been quite some time since I've worn a suit..." Gizmo's thoughts began to go on a tangent. "A, but I digress... what is your purpose here?"

"I'm here to tell you that maybe you'll get to wear a suit very soon..." Shining Armor answered him as he placed his release form on the glass. "I've also got a laboratory on the outskirts of the Crystal Empire waiting for you too."

"Hmm..." Gizmo tapped his hooves and read the form to himself, then sat back down on his bed. "Is this what the common folk call 'just a prank'?"

"No, it's not, I can assure you, Doctor. You'll be leaving this prison tonight, along with five others," Shining Armor grinned as he saw Gizmo raise a brow at him. "And don't worry about that matter at the old-folks home. I've already got that settled."

"Really?" Gizmo's face lit up as joy flooded his spirit. However, before he released it, another question popped into his mind. "Wait... why are you doing this?"

"I need your help, Gizmo. In fact, all of Equestria needs you and the rest of your team's help. I want you to be a part of a new task force," Shining Armor explained as he packed the release form back into his briefcase. "And if you're going to provide help, I need to do the same for you."

"Hmm... very well, your majesty. I'm interested as to where this experiment will take me," Gizmo eyes danced around the room as he thought to himself. "I have but one more question, your majesty!"

"And what would that be, Gizmo?" Shining Armor asked.

"Who is this goddess to the left of you?!" Gizmo pointed at Twilight in an almost accusatory matter, to which Twilight responded with a blush and a grimace. "Her hair is symmetrical and her face is pleasing to the eye!"

"That would be my sister, Doctor," Shining Armor replied as he crossed his arms.

"Then I believe this will complicate our future relationship!" Gizmo announced as he grabbed his Rubix cube and sat back down on his bed.

"See you soon, Gizmo..." Shining Armor chuckled as he saw how red Twilight's face had become.

"Alright, onto Shadow Dancer. She's gonna be on our left about three cells down," The guard told them as he deactivated the panel on Gizmo's cell and continued onwards. "And, um... try to not get sidetracked by her."

"Sidetracked? How?" Shining Armor asked the guard as he blushed.

"It's hard not to stare a little..." The guard mumbled as he stopped at her cell. "Oh geez..."

Sitting in the cell was perhaps the most stunningly beautiful mare Shining Armor had ever seen, beautiful enough to give Rarity a run for her money. Her large, half-closed green eyes were like sparkling emeralds, and her long blonde mane cascaded all the way down to her waist and contrasted her ebony fur in an aesthetically pleasing way. Her beauty was very natural too, as she did not have any makeup or fancy outfit to compliment her moderately curvy features, just a white jumpsuit like the rest of the inmates. Shining Armor kept his eyes on the prize, however, he had no time to gawk. Besides, imagining his wife hovering over him with anger in her eyes quickly snapped him out of his daze.

"Okay, Dancer, you've got some ponies here to see you," The guard tried to keep his cool as he placed his card on the attached panel's scanner.

"Hello, hello..." Her voice was a little higher than Shining Armor expected, around the same pitch as Twilight's, but she carried it with a little more of a seductive grace than his sister. "Say... you're a prince, aren't you? Prince Shining Armor, right? Oh, and that must be Princess Twilight Sparkle. I'd shake your hands, but as you can see, I'm a little tied up. So, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I'm here to tell you your jail sentence has been reduced to a few hours, Miss Dancer," Shining Armor reached into his pocket and showed it to the young pegasus.

"Wha-...?" Shadow Dancer's wings unfurled as she fell backward onto her bed and sighed. "I'm free...? You mean you've gotten rid of my life sentences? You know who I am, right?"

"You're the Wraith of Las Pegasus, I know. You've racked up hundreds of confirmed kills as a freelance hitpony. It took the EBI three years to find you. I guess being able to turn invisible comes in handy, doesn't it?" Shining Armor said confidently. "But you didn't kill mares or foals... professional. And furthermore, you only killed ponies convicted of rape, serial killers, or drug lords. A lot of folks in Las Pegasus appreciated your cleaning services, Miss Dancer."

"You know about all that...?" Shadow Dancer's eyes widened as she stood up, gazing at her file that Shining Armor put up against the glass; half of her face also became translucent as she read his notes."Do you know.... everything about me?"

"Interesting..." Twilight muttered to herself as she began taking notes.

"No, and if you don't want me to, that's fine," Shining Armor said as he put the file away. "I need your help, Shadow Dancer. You're going to be a part of my task force starting right now, and I can get you out of here, Dancer, you just have to follow my rules, okay?"

"Alright..." Shadow Dancer smiled and bit her lip. "I wanna kiss you so bad right now."

"Kiss the ring, Miss Dancer..." Shining Armor grinned as he showed her his ring. "I've got a six-year-old daughter too."

"Damn, I knew there were strings attached to you!" Shadow Dancer chuckled playfully as she leaned against the glass and sighed. "I don't know what to say..."

"Don't say anything. Just help me, and I'll help you," Shining Armor said as he nodded to the guard to deactivate the panel. "I'll see you soon."

"Yeah, see ya..." Shadow Dancer muttered under her breath as she sat back down on her bed.

"I'm surprised you've kept your cool," Twilight grinned as she looked over to her brother as they continued on their trek.

"Hardly..." Shining Armor shook his head and exhaled deeply. "I'm sweating buckets here."

Twilight was taken aback by Shining Armor's drive. Never before had he shown this kind of dedication. Yes, he was the Captain of The Royal Guard, but he still was just a pony. He had limits, and he often did find himself in over his head during his various endeavors. But things were different, he was different. Perhaps that bomb woke him up in a way, gave him something to think about. Maybe he needed that push to finally make the Equestrian Knights a reality. In a year of fear and doubt, perhaps he just had enough, and the bomb was the final nail in the coffin.

"Alright, you two. Blue Thistle is gonna be on our right after a few cells," The guard told them as he continued forward. "Then there'll be an elevator on the left after that. We'll take that back upstairs once we're done."

"I'm not sure what to expect with her..." Twilight was doubtful of Blue Thistle; she seemed to be a tough customer based on what she read in her file.

"She'll be alright, trust me. I think I can convince her," Shining Armor insisted as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Okay... here's Blue Thistle..." The guard's voice became a little cautious as he activated yet another panel on the cell. "She scares me..."

The mare that sat in her bed was an earthpony in her mid-twenties. And while Twilight and Shining Armor knew she was big, they never expected to feel so tiny in the presence of a mare that stood at more than two meters in height. Her jumpsuit was worn at the waist, as it was far too small for her giant body, and Shining Armor could see a set of abs on her silver stomach. Her indigo hair was shoulder length, and her sapphire eyes were somewhat hidden behind her mane. She was very built, though, not to the point that it made her appear disproportionate. She had to tear a hole near the collar of the jumpsuit to fit her chest as well, as they didn't make bust proportions of her size either. She arose from her bed in a huff, casting a shadow on the three midgets that stood before her.

"Who is this?" The giantess named Blue Thistle asked the guard, who turned away immediately as she locked eyes with him. "Who are you?"

"I'm Prince Shining Armor, and this is Princess Twilight Sparkle. We're here to set you free," Shining Armor assumed a more direct approach would be more appropriate to start with her, so he immediately showed Blue Thistle her release form.

"Free, hmm...?" Blue Thistle scoffed as she crossed her arms, causing her chest to squeeze up against her body. She had a slight Rukarian accent, one that Shining Armor assumed she would have, given where she came from. "Why is this?"

"I want you on my task force of five to help defend Equestria, Blue Star," Shining Armor dug deep, trying to pry at Blue Thistle's past.

"How do you know that name?!" Blue Thistle slammed her hand on the glass abruptly, shaking the ground beneath them.

"It was your name, wasn't it?" Shining Armor asked, to which the giant mare backed away and sighed as she sat down on the floor.

"Niet... the filly called Blue Star died with her country ten years ago," Blue Thistle looked down at the ground as she reminisced. "I just look like that mare..."

"No, she's alive alright," Shining Armor said as he grabbed the laptop in his briefcase and loaded up a video, showing it to Blue thistle. "Look, here."

Blue Thistle watched as a recording from a surveillance camera played, the one outside of the underground fight club she used to go to before she was incarcerated. It was a young filly walking out onto a street to fetch her lost balloon. A semi-truck was approaching fast, and the mother cried out to her as she jumped towards her child to shield her. But before it could impact them both, a giant figure stepped out of the shadows and stopped the oncoming truck with a single punch to its grill, crumpling the whole front end of the vehicle.

"And that was just a love-tap, wasn't it?" Shining Armor said as he put his computer back in his briefcase. "That filly named Blue Star isn't gone, she's just lost, and I want to help you find her."

"I have one request..." Blue Thistle grumbled as she stood back up.

"Your little brother can have anything he wants, Blue Thistle. I promise you," Shining Armor "You can visit him whenever you like at his foster home."

"Why do this? Why act like family when I barely know you?" Blue Thistle shook her head in disbelief as she pressed her head against the glass, imagining her little brother's smiling face.

"You may not know me, but I've known you for a while, Blue Thistle. I want to help you," Shining Armor said as he nodded to the guard. "I'll see you soon."

"Well... that went better than expected," Twilight exhaled deeply as she watched Blue Thistle sit back down on her bedside.

"I nearly shit myself when she stood up," Shining Armor quivered, chuckling a bit to cut through the fear as he followed the guard deeper into the prison. "Where to next?"

"Blaster. It's a cell away on the right— really close. It's the biggest one on account of it having a second room inside; a blast room." The guard informed them as they came to the young stallion's cell; he placed his card down on the scanner once again. "He's a little jittery, so don't startle him."

"H-hello...?" The young stallion with white fur and a red mane no less than twenty stuttered; he was crouched in a corner, furthest away from Shining Armor and Twilight, hiding his pale blue eyes from them. "Y-you're..."

"Yes, Blaster, I'm Prince Shining Armor and this is my sister, Princess Twilight Sparkle. We're here to inform you that you've been set free on parole..." Shining Armor displayed Blaster's release form. "We wish to have you on a team of five— a task force to help protect Equestria from any threat that arises in its future."

"N-no... I can't leave this place. I'll-... I'll hurt somepony. I can't-."

"I have a blast chamber set up at our base of operations, Blaster. You won't harm anypony. I've also been given a gadget I want you to wear..." Shining Armor reached into his pocket and pulled out a wristwatch. "This is an Arcane Cellular Discharge Detector or ACDD. Typically, this is used to measure the magical potential of a pony, but it can also be used to detect sudden spikes in magic power similar to your own. This will give you ample time to get to the blast chamber before you go off."

"Really-?" Blaster's eyes began to glow red, overflowing with demonic energy. "I'm sorry, I-! I have to do something quick!"

Blaster opened the blast door, then closed it behind him quickly, just in time before the demon within his body began to discharge its power. He screamed as he released his energy in a maelstrom of rage, and Twilight and Shining Armor could see the outer walls of the blast room begin to heat up to the point where they were almost glowing. He stepped outside slowly, then took a minute to regain his composure as he leaned up against the opened door of the blast chamber, which released a good amount of steam from the sheer heat.

"Sweet Celestia..." Twilight gawked as she saw that there was no damage to Blaster or his clothes from the discharge.

"This is why I can't be near anypony... every family I tried to be a part of was turned to ash just like that. I can't-..." Blaster shook his head and wept as he turned to Shining Armor. "I can't kill anypony else. I was meant to be here."

"But this isn't your fault, Blaster. You were born with this power, you didn't choose to have it," Shining Armor reinforced his own determination as he slammed his hand on the young stallion's cell, grimacing slightly as he stepped down hard on his injured leg. "You're getting out of here, and I'm going to help you whether you like it or not, dammit! I'm not going to let you rot in this cell for the rest of your life!"

"After all the lives I've ended... I deserve to be in here." Blaster said in a grave tone of voice as he bowed his head.

"No. You deserve a second chance, just like everypony else," Shining Armor reached into his pocket and grabbed something else to show him; a blueprint containing the plans for a device to help Blaster control his energy. "This is a containment suit Equestrian scientists are designing for you as we speak. It will allow you control the direction and intensity of your power."

"Is-... is this true...?" Blaster stuttered again as he viewed the plans for the mechanized suit of armor.

"It is, Blaster. All we need is a sample of your DNA and the Ministry of Science will have all they need to build it," Twilight chimed in, pitying the poor young stallion; he was so young and scared, she couldn't let him stay in prison either.

"Okay, I'll-... I'll try then..." Blaster gave him a half smile and a nod as he stood up. "Thank you..."

"You're welcome, Blaster. I look forward to having you on the team," Shining Armor smiled back at him as he gave a nod to the guard once again, who deactivated the panel.

"That's admirable— what you're doin' for him. He's a good kid. It's a shame that he was born with that thing inside him." The guard commended Shining Armor for his kindness as they went forth to the last member of the soon-to-be team. "Fae's chamber is just up ahead. It's the last one of them all, and it's got some fancy magic barriers around it, let me tell ya."

"I only skimmed Fae's file last night, do you mind filling me in?" Twilight asked the two stallions as she followed them further into the caverns.

"Fae is a sentient female organism of unknown origin that was found in Everfree Forest just a few months ago after she assaulted some hunters who disturbed the plant and animal life there. We don't know much about her, on account of her having amnesia, but she has an anatomy very similar to our own." Shining Armor explained as they drew closer to her cell. "She can fly, teleport, move objects using telekinesis, and can speak to and control plant and animal life. She is of this world, and her powers stem from magic, that much is all we know."

"She's also as pretty as Shadow Dancer..." The guard ahead smirked as he gestured to her cell that was steadily approaching. "There she is."

Shining Armor stared on in awe as they watched a beautiful mare hover above the ground like a fairy, gliding around and dancing about in a gentle, but somewhat wistful manner. She looked much like any other mare, aside from her more noticeable features. Her hair was a bright, translucent white, almost glowing, and her fur was pale green, like a stagnant pond. Two small reindeer horns sprouted from her forehead; not too in the way but certainly there. The most intriguing aspect of her was her eyes; a deep purple all around with white rings standing in for irises, and yellow dots standing in for regular pupils.

"Hey, Fae, you have visitors," The guard called out to the graceful mare as he activated her cell's panel with his card.

"Oh? Visitors? For me?!" Fae's long ears sprung up as she dropped to the ground and ran up to the edge of her cell. She brandished a lower, more mature voice, but she carried it with the thrill and excitement of a child. "Hello there! How are you two very well-dressed ponies?"

"We're good, thank you," Twilight smiled; it was good to find a kindhearted pony in such a place; one would think the atmosphere of solitude would rob one's kindness, but this didn't seem to be the case with this mare. "And how are you?"

"I'm a little lonely..." Fae frowned, ears drooping, completely open towards the two. "I miss my home and all its creatures."

"You miss Everfree, huh?" Twilight asked as she thought of Fluttershy. "I think you'd get along well with a friend of mine."

"Oh, I always simply adore meeting new ponies!" Fae giggled as she did a loopty loop within her cell.

"Sorry to interrupt, but may I continue...?" Shining Armor interjected, reminding Twilight why she was here with him. "I'd like to show you something, Fae."

"Oh? What's this?" Fae raised an eyebrow at the release paper in Shining Armor's hand. "I'm free to go? Truely?"

"Yes you are, but you've got to do something for me first, Fae. I want you on my task force with four other ponies in this prison," Shining Armor explained to the gentle mare. "I need your help to protect Equestria. Can you do that?"

"Absolutely," Fae nodded as she hovered in the air. "But... can you answer one request, please?"

"Anything, Fae..." Shining Armor said in a relaxing tone.

"I don't want any more hunting in Everfree Forest," Fae said sternly as she placed her hand on her hips. "Okay...?"

"I can have that arranged, Fae, don't worry," Shining Armor assured the odd mare as he watched her clap her hands together with joy.

"Oh, thank you, friend! I look forward to meeting the others!" Fae grinned as the guard deactivated her cell.

"So that's it..." Shining Armor gave a long sigh of exasperation as he hung his head. "For now at least."

"What now?" Twilight asked the guard.

"We'll have the inmates shipped out to that military base in the Crystal Empire tonight. They should arrive by morning," The guard answered her as he checked his wristwatch. "I'll be staying here with these guys until the moving crew shows up, so you two can go take the elevator back upstairs."

"Alright then," Shining Armor shook the guard's hand before leaving. "It was a pleasure-... I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name..."

"Worry Wart," The guard replied. "It's dumb, I know..."

"We've heard worse..." Twilight chuckled as she and Shining Armor made their way back. "I've heard much worse."

Season One | Episode Three: An Awkward Few First Steps

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Shining Armor awoke alone like he had for the past two weeks. Although he knew Cadence was fine, it still gave him an idea on what it would be like without her. It was if a chunk of his soul had been torn out and thrown into a well like his heart had been tossed into ice-cold water. He wanted to visit her multiple times to talk, but he was far too busy. He had work to do now, work that required his full attention. If he was going to keep her safe, if he was going to keep Equestria safe, he had to ignore his wants and focus on the needs of everypony else.

Shining Armor got out of his pajamas and into another suit, then he changed again, believing that a suit would be too ostentatious of him. If he wanted to make a little more common ground with his new team, he had to make sure he looked casual enough to be trusted by them. Granted, Gizmo was more of a stallion who wore suits, but he was the minority out of the bunch. Shining Armor put on a white dress shirt with the collar undone, rolled up the sleeves, then put on a pair of khaki pants. Admittedly, he found it far more comfortable wearing his casual clothes than a fancy suit.

"Daddy...?" Flurry Heart knocked as she peeked around his door; she was wearing a frilly pink dress.

"Yes, sweetheart?" Shining Armor crouched down to her height as he approached her. "What is it?"

"Are you gonna go see those ponies now?" Flurry Heart asked him as she rubbed the residue sleep from her eyes.

"Yes, pumpkin, Daddy's going to go and help our new friends get settled in their new home..." Shining Armor answered her as he stroked her cheek. "I'll be back in the evening."

"Can I come...?" Flurry Heart said with her largest, big, blue puppy-dog eyes.

"Sorry, sweetie, I can't. They need some time to adjust to their new home," Shining Armor shook his head slowly, trying to ease Flurry Heart; she could often be quite persistent.

"Okay..." Flurry Heart moped with a quivering lip as she hung her head.

"Hey, don't worry. Maybe you can visit next week when we've got them settled?" Shining Armor suggested.

"Really?!" Flurry Heart's eyes lit up, nearly melting Shining Armor's heart.

"Well, we have to see how this first week goes, alright?" Shining Armor gave Flurry Heart a warm hug before taking the stairs down to the main floor; Twilight was waiting for him. He turned back to his daughter one more time before she was out of view. "Love you! Be good while I'm gone and be in bed by eight. Aunt Rarity will come and visit while I'm gone."

"Yay!" Flurry Heart cheered as she ran back to her room down the hall.

"You're late," Twilight was leaning against his door at the bottom of the staircase, wearing a black suit, eyeing his outfit up and down. "What in the world are you wearing?"

"Casual attire. I don't think it's wise to dress fancy— it'll make us appear like we're better than them, and I don't want that, because we're not," Shining Armor said as he made his way down the stairs. "Would it be too much to ask you to use some of Cadence's clothes to change as well...?"

Twilight stared at him for a moment in disbelief, then sighed to herself as she ran upstairs. "Fine..."

****

The ride to the military outpost was smooth and very quiet; the single-lane road was void of any other traffic, and the surrounding countryside was pleasant. The rolling, emerald hills and steady streams that ran through the valleys seemed to blend with the partially cloudy skies, and the odd willow tree atop a hill gently swayed in the light breeze. It was quiet in the car on the way there as well; no music or conversation, just deep thought. Shining Armor was too busy thinking of Cadence, and Twilight could see this clearly. With a light tap on the console, she turned on the radio, hoping to cut through the silence. She leaned back in her seat and put her hands behind her head; it had been a while since she took a moment to unwind, and perhaps her more casual red blouse and blue jeans eased her into it better.

*'Maybe' by The Ink Spots plays*

"I love this song..." Shining Armor grinned as he turned the radio up a hair.

"Me too," Twilight laughed as she looked over at her brother, who tried mimicking the soprano voice of the lead singer— quite terribly, but with sincerity. "Oh, wow... you definitely didn't get mom's voice, did you?"

"Nope. You've got to listen to the sweet, sweet sound of dad's instead!" Shining Armor laughed as he continued singing, causing his sister to crack up.

At that moment Shining Armor realized how much he missed his sister— what time had deprived him of. As they grew older, the gap separating them only grew with them, and they almost forgot what it was like to be with each other again— how much they needed each other. Shining Armor gave his sister a light shove as she snickered at his sub-par vocal skills, and she snorted to herself as he turned down the music.

"Thanks, Twilight..." Shining Armor sighed as he released his tension and leaned back in his seat. "For sticking with me."

"I can't let you make any mistakes without me here to scold you," Twilight grinned as she peered out her window, gazing at the emerald countryside.

"Sorry, too..." Shining Armor frowned a little as he saw the barbed gates of the outpost approaching fast.

"For what?" Twilight wondered.

"You know, for not calling you back when you called me last week," Shining Armor reminded his sister as he slowed the car down. "I think I needed to hear your voice."

"Thanks, Shining Armor..." Twilight gave him a warm smile as the gates opened, leading them into the outpost hidden in the remote valley. "Looks like we're here."

As the road straightened out, Shining Armor and Twilight watched as helicopters and other military vehicles made their way from place to place from the air base to the left of them atop an overlooking hill, all the way down to the bunker sitting down within the valley. The troops were in the midst of moving their supplies from one base to another, and Twilight and Shining Armor saw many vacant parking spots filled to the brim with military supplies— all packed up in crates and ready to be shipped. They had prepared them the day before and were only shipping them out now that the convicts had arrived. It wouldn't make too much sense to leave the largest stockpile of ammunition in Equestria a few meters away from some of the most powerful and dangerous ponies on the planet, and to add to the sketchiness of the whole ordeal; to be honest, most of the military were quite livid about the whole idea of leaving the base to ponies as dangerous as them.

The facility itself was massive; landing pads on the other side of the building for helicopters, hangers for high-ranking members of the government to land their jets, and a specialized guard patrol who kept watch over the facility twenty-four-seven. Shining Armor pulled the car into an empty lot right next to the entryway of the massive facility— a set of high-tech titanium doors with facial recognition software and a slew of guards surrounding it. There were barely any windows, as protection was vital, and the complex had heavy reinforced concrete walls to protect from any attack from the north— the changelings were always a real threat, and the base was the first line of defence.

"Certainly impressive... I've never been here before," Twilight remarked as she stood in the shadow of the looming facility, walking over to the entrance with her brother.

"I've been here only once before," Shining Armor said, reminding himself of his wedding. "It has certainly grown over the years. Now it looks like we'll be setting up shop elsewhere."

"If this team of yours succeeds, that is..." Twilight added as she tied her hair back into a ponytail.

"It will work, Twilight, trust me," Shining Armor insisted as he approached one of the guards.

"Captain Shining Armor, a pleasure to make your acquaintance," The guard bowed in respect as he stepped aside and activated the console next to the entryway. "The door will give you a scan really quickly, sir."

"What's the recognition software for?" Twilight wondered.

"Protection from changeling shape shifting," Another guard chimed in next to her. "This system recognizes abnormalities in the facial structure of a pony— changelings can't match a pony's face perfectly."

A small opening in the concrete above the gate shot out two beams of light that shone down on Shining Armor and Twilight, illuminating them both. After a few seconds, the light dimmed, and a robotic voice confirmed their identities. "Confirmed: Princess Twilight Sparkle and Prince Shining Armor. Welcome."

A magnetic lock on the door turned and the gate opened up, revealing the inside of the facility— completely overhauled and refurbished. The lobby was the first floor, and three other levels were visible on either side of the pathway leading to the front desk of the complex. Everything was either made of glass or steel in the building, giving off a very futuristic look, and the lobby and hallways were void of any extra decoration, as the establishment was still under construction. Agents in two piece suits who were hand-picked by Shining Armor patrolled the halls of the complex, monitoring the new facility and tending to new computers linked to criminal databases provided by the Equestrian Bureau of Investigation. And as Twilight followed her brother through the lobby, she looked at some of the badges the agents wore on their chests; they had the same symbol she saw in Shining Armor's room the day before— The Equestrian Knights ensign.

As they approached the front desk, Twilight stared at the empty seat in front of her; no secretary. "Um... is there supposed-?"

With a bang, followed by the sound of a box of files tumbling down close by, a familiar pegasus emerged from the front desk. "Hiya!"

The mare in question was around the same age as Twilight; gray fur, blonde hair done up in a slightly tangled bun, and yellow eyes with round glasses. She wore a suit like the rest of the employees, but it was a little more ruffled and was light blue covered in white polka dots. The glasses masked her trademark lazy eye, but Twilight still recognized her instantly.

"Derpy?" Twilight gawked as she saw the same badge on her chest and a nametag next to it that read 'secretary'.

"Hi, Twilight! I didn't know you were coming here!" Derpy smiled in her usual bubbly fashion as she adjusted her corrective glasses and picked up the files beneath her feet that she had dropped.

"Um, yeah, surprise. Hey, I need to talk to my brother for a second..." Twilight took her brother by the shoulder suddenly, turning him away from Derpy. "Why is she the secretary?"

"I thought she'd be a good choice; she gets along well with others, she's eager, and she has experience in the courier profession. And also..." Shining Armor looked back at Derpy, to which the infamously oblivious mare waved at him. "Nopony else would take the job."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Twilight said as she crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at her brother.

"Yes, I have one hundred percent confidence in Ditzy..." Shining turned around again to find Derpy tripping over her own hooves behind her desk. "Eighty-eight percent confidence. Besides, I think she'll be able to get along well with the team whenever I'm gone."

"Whatcha guys talkin' about?" Derpy asked as she got onto her hooves.

"Nothing, Ditzy. I was just talking about the newly redesigned interior is all," Shining Armor lied as he set his hand on Derpy's desk. "Care to take us to them, Ditzy?"

"Oh, yep! They're just a door away in the living complex! Here, follow me," Ditzy said as she tried to look professional and stood up straight, walking like a runway mare from Las Pegasus. "They're pretty cool guys! Especially that Blue Thistle! Wowee is she ever tall!" Derpy exited her desk all-encompassing desk through a back door and looped around to meet with the two siblings, then she guided them towards the set of steel doors down the long hallway behind her. "Fae is really nice, and she's been taking real good care of the plants here! Oh, and Gizmo is super-duper smart; like really smart! He solved my crossword in just ten seconds! Shadow Dancer's been listening to music non-stop all morning, and she's super pretty! I also really, really like Blaster! He likes muffins!"

"Eighty-eight percent, huh...?" Twilight muttered to herself as she listened to Derpy drone on.

Derpy placed her badge on a console next to the entrance, verifying her identity to the scanner and unlocking the door. "Check this place out!"

Shining Armor and Twilight entered the main living area in awe. And although it was of Shining Armor's design, seeing his dream become a reality was more than enough to gobsmack him. The massive chamber was divided into three levels with platforms; a lounge with a bar and a television dominated the ground floor, a workout room was on the smaller second floor, and five secluded rooms each catered to the members of the team stuck out of the sides of the main chamber on the walls like glass boxes, overlooking the lounge. In the center of the chamber was a large central computer with many monitors and wires running beneath the facility. It was the fastest in Equestria, and it was linked to the whole collective criminal database of Equestria.

"Um, hello, everypony," Shining Armor announced faintly to his new team, who were all seated on the arrangement of sofas around the television in secluded silence, save for Gizmo; he was halfway inside the computer, rewiring and rearranging the circuitry. As soon as Shining Armor spoke up, he had their attention and they stood up. "You've already met my sister and I before back at the prison..." Shining Armor didn't know what to expect; they all simply stared at him in an awkward manner. "How is your new home treating you all?"

"It is good, yes..." Blue Thistle grumbled as she turned towards the bar fridge. "But you have no food."

"No food?!" Shining Armor began to panic as he ran across to the fridge to check. "What? I thought I told that-!"

"No, you misunderstand," Blue Thistle cut him off as she stood up and pointed over to the bar sink— filled to the brim with dirty dishes. "I have eaten all of food."

"Oh..." Shining Armor gawked as he gazed into the empty fridge. "Alright then." He cleared his throat as he walked back to his sister at the center of the room. "My sister and I wish to do field work as soon as possible, but first, we all need to establish an understanding with one another." Shining Armor and Twilight sat down at sofa furthest from the bar attached to the wall. "Please, everypony, have a seat. We should probably introduce ourselves; you've only been let out into the lower floor just an hour ago after all. Let's begin by introducing ourselves and telling each other how we got here."

The whole team sat down with them, but at a safe distance from one another—around an arm's length. Shadow Dancer was wearing a white tank top with quite prominent cleavage and blue jeans, and she was the first to speak. "What is this? An AA meeting? Um... hey, I'm Shadow Dancer. I've killed bad stallions for money... and that's pretty much it."

"How... nice," Derpy said with a tinge of concern in her tone.

"I am Blue Thistle. I punched police officer assaulting zebra in face, then ended up in jail," The giant mare wearing a red baggy sweater and sweatpants chimed in as she took a carrot from the coffee table in front of her. "I like carrots."

"Also nice..." Derpy forced a smile.

"I am Doctor Gizmo," Gizmo, wearing his yellow plaid suit and red bowtie spoke up as he adjusted his glasses, tapping his foot on the floor incessantly. "I dislike most things accept my machines. I also have crippling OCD and ADHD."

"That much is obvious..." Shadow Dancer muttered under her breath as she watched his eye twitch involuntarily.

"I'm Fae! I think you're all very interesting, and I love plants and animals and rainbows!" Fae sang with a sparkle in her eye, wearing a frilly white dress. She suddenly hung her head in shame as she recalled her reason for imprisonment. "I beat up bad stallions who were hurting my forest, and I don't remember anything before my imprisonment. This makes me very sad..."

"I'm Blaster, and-... I don't want to talk about why I'm here," Blaster sighed as he held one of Derpy's blueberry muffins in his hands, causing her to blush slightly. "I'm glad to have a muffin after all those years of slop..."

"Alright, now that we're-..." Shining Armor trailed off as he looked over to Derpy who sat next to him on his left with her hand up, barely able to contain herself. "Did you want to introduce yourself, Ditzy-?"

"I'mDitzyDooandIlikemuffins!" Derpy blurted out loud as she grabbed a muffin out of the satchel she always kept close at hand. "I'm super, super exited to work with you guys!"

"Yay!" Fae clapped her hands together like a foal who had finished watching a puppet show.

"So... what now?" Shadow Dancer asked as she looked at each pony around her.

"Hmm... well, it's eleven now..." Twilight stared up at the clock just above the TV. "Perhaps we should get a taste of all your abilities in a basic training exercise then break for lunch?"

"A good idea, Twilight," Shining Armor nodded to his sister as he stood up along with the others; all except Blaster. "Everypony, let's go downstairs to the training room. Blaster, you can stay right here close to the blast chamber. Don't worry, you'll be able to train with us once your armor is complete tomorrow."

"Alright..." Blaster nodded slowly as he took a bite of his muffin.

As the others made their way downstairs through the main entrance, Ditzy tagged back and stayed in the empty lounge area with Blaster, watching him for a moment from a distance, unsure if she was welcome to stay or not. "Do you... want to share the rest of my muffins with me?"

"Um... I don't know... I think it'd be best for you to just go with them, Ditzy Doo..." Blaster shook his head as he ate the last of his muffin. "I just-... I'm trouble is all. All I do is cause trouble for everypony else."

"I-It's okay... I'm known for that too..." Ditzy squeaked cutely as she sat down with him and placed her satchel on the table. "And you can call me Derpy too— that's what my good friends call me."

"A-Alright, Derpy..." Blaster grinned as he ate muffins with his new friend.

Season One | Episode Four: Guns, Turrets, Psychics, and Fists

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The massive training room in the basement was a sealed chamber mostly made of white, impact-resistant panels and steel framing. A shatterproof window was also put in place for Shining Armor and Twilight to watch through in a separate, attached room, like a spectator's box in a theater. Each member of the team took turns in the training room, and guards supplied weapons if needed to each pony as they ran through the session. The tiles that made up the chamber would open up, releasing either training droids or other obstacles for the trainee. Shadow Dancer was the first to volunteer, and a guard laid out a selection of weapons on the table just on the other side of the viewing window.

"Take what you need, Dancer, but you are not allowed any extra ammo," Shining Armor said through the microphone attached to the panel of various buttons in front of him. "Hover drones will be released from the ceiling to test your effectiveness with firearms, and combative droids will be armed with paintball guns and programmed with martial arts training to test your firefight effectiveness."

"Trust me, pal... these hunks of metal won't get the chance to hit me. And aren't you afraid I'll damage these drones...? I mean, these are real bullets," Shadow Dancer remarked as she held up a .45 round between her fingertips and loaded it into a pistol magazine.

"Not in the slightest, Shadow Dancer, these droids have self-repair functions that I can activate whenever I so choose. You can fire away to your heart's content," Shining Armor said as the guard left the training room. "Based on your file you're one of the deadliest assassins in Equestria, so I'm sure you won't disappoint, correct?"

"There are better assassins out there..." Shadow Dancer added as she loaded two magazines into .45 caliber machine pistols and tucked them into her tactical belt with holsters on either side. She then grabbed an assortment of throwing knives. "I'm just one of the lucky ones who aren't dead yet." Her eyes became fixated the impressive DMR at the end of the gun table— all black and decked-out with an infrared scope and tactical laser mount. "Well, well... who's this sexy beast right here?"

"That's a prototype designated marksman rifle; the Fillydelphia manufacturers call it 'Legion'. I figured it would get your attention. It is not only accurate at extreme ranges, but it can switch fire modes and ammunition types with the flick of a button on the stock," Shining Armor grinned as he watched Shadow Dancer giggle and beam like a filly on Hearth's Warming Eve holding the rifle in her hands, taking in the majesty of the compact and deadly rifle.

"I think I'll name you... Roxy," Shadow Dancer smirked as she carved the name into the stock with one of her throwing knives.

"Shining Armor... are you sure you can trust her with that weapon?" Twilight whispered to her brother with a tinge of worry in her voice.

"She can handle it, I can assure you," Shining Armor insisted as he turned off the microphone. "I didn't show you any of the CCTV footage, did I?"

"What is a CCTV? Is it one of those weird moving pictures on those lightboxes?" Fae wondered, uneducated in the ways of regular ponies.

"It's used to record ponies within a building— mostly for surveillance and security," Gizmo answered her with his usual sharp and swift tone of voice. "Honestly, have you even been in an urban environment before?"

"Have you been out of your basement before?" Shadow Dancer snapped back a Gizmo through the mic. "Sorry, I've got better hearing than most ponies..."

"You..." Gizmo's face scrunched up in disgust and became red, causing Fae to burst out into hysteric laughter; not from the joke, mostly due to his odd grimace.

"Um... what is she doing?" Twilight raised an eyebrow at Shadow Dancer as she reached into her right pocket, grabbing her phone and letting the audio-jack poke out an inch from her jeans.

Shadow Dancer uncoiled the earbuds she kept in her left pocket and placed both in her ears, turning her head to Shining Armor. "I hope you don't mind. I, um-... I always listen to music before I-... you know. I can never focus without some music."

"Go ahead, Shadow Dancer, as long as you can complete this session as quickly and precise as possible," Shining Armor allowed her as he watched her movements intently, waiting to see what she'd do first. "Alright. The training sequence will begin in three seconds, Shadow Dancer. One..." Barricades arose from openings in the tiles. "Two..." Five pony-sized droids armed with paintball guns and six hovering, head-sized drones emerged from passageways created in the walls and ceilings, taking their positions either behind barriers or suspended in the air. "Three."

*'Arabella' by The Arctic Monkeys begins to play through Shadow Dancers earbuds*

Shadow Dancer leaped over her gun table, drawing her machine pistols as she fell into a dive-roll, landing with her back against the closest barrier to her. Within seconds, her body faded, going from translucent to completely invisible. The droids began to search the training room for Shadow Dancer; their programming was not meant for an opponent who could turn invisible, but they stood at the ready anyways, waiting for Shadow Dancer to reveal herself.

"Wah?" Twilight's eyes widened as she saw the closest droid to her have its head explode as Shadow Dancer appeared behind it and shoved her pistol into an opening between its head and neck. She vanished before the drones and the other droid even had a chance to perceive her.

Completely undetected, Shadow Dancer holstered her pistols and bounced off the side of a tall barrier with her leg and threw three throwing knives, each lodging itself into a target; one into the head of a droid, then the other two into the central processors of a pair of hover drones. She then fell into another dive-roll, drawing her pistols. Shadow Dancer Blasted apart the cheap, aluminum bodies of the droids with single, three-round bursts from her machine pistols, landing shots to their head, neck, and chest with one pull of the trigger.

"This accuracy is more than just military precision... who is this mare?" Shining Armor thought to himself as he saw Shadow Dancer appear back at the gun table with her DMR in hand.

Shadow Dancer's rifle round from her DMR penetrated through the heads of the three remaining droids as they ran towards her, downing them before they even had the chance to lift their guns. Shadow Dancer took a breath, jumped up, then fired at the wall to her right, causing the bullet to ricochet. The armor-piercing round whizzed through the air, then bore through two drones before the round lost momentum. Finally, the remaining drones had a chance to fire paintball rounds at their target. However, Shadow Dancer vanished once again as she strapped the rifle to her back, and the hail of rounds blistered the ground close to her hooves as she sprinted towards them. She drew her pistols again, then reappeared behind them, firing bursts into their sides as she jumped past them and back to the gun table with the acrobatic skill of a gymnast.

"Incredible," Twilight gawked at Shadow Dancer's work as the drones and droids began to repair themselves.

"Ah, damn... I've gotten out of shape. I can usually take those guys down way quicker than that. Sorry, Shining Armor," Shadow Dancer shook her head as a guard opened the door of the training room.

Shining Armor was quite the opposite of disappointed with Shadow Dancer's display of her skill, and his mouth was still slightly ajar after witnessing the ricochet kills. "It's, um-... you did-... wow."

"Thanks!" Shadow Dancer gave him a wink as she entered the viewing room, leaning up against the back wall beside Blue Thistle, who was munching on a carrot. "How'd I do, 'Tall, Dark, and Silent'?"

"Mmph," Blue Thistle gave her grunt and nod of approval as she crossed her arms uncomfortably; she wasn't too used to other ponies being this close to her.

"I suppose it is my turn then!" Gizmo announced as he paraded to the door on the left, proceeding into the training room.

"Remember to tie your shoelaces, sweetheart!" Shadow Dancer interrupted Shining Armor on the mic before he had the chance to speak.

"You vex me, female pegasus..." Gizmo grumbled as he entered the chamber.

"As I was saying," Shining Armor cleared his throat as he explained Gizmo's training. "You will have the same situation as Shadow Dancer, only this time, I'll have you face off against twice as many adversaries to test your speed and efficiency with your constructs, is that acceptable, Gizmo?"

"Yes, I do believe it is..." Gizmo said as he removed his glasses and tucked them into his coat pocket. "You may begin. I need no guns to complete this task. This will only take a few moments."

"Very well, Gizmo," Shining Armor nodded as he pressed a few buttons, resetting the training room and releasing more robots to fight the short stallion in his plaid suit. "Your training shall begin on the count of three. One... two... three."

Gizmo rolled up his sleeves and removed a detachable piece of tech embedded in each of his cybernetic forearms; strange cubes about the size of an average hand. He tossed them up into the air, and in a matter of seconds the magnets within the cubes were attracted to the steel frame of the training room, and they became latched onto the walls. The cubes then began to unfold and morph— grow into turrets around the size of a normal pony's torso.

"Very inventive," Twilight remarked as the turrets self-loaded their ammunition from a box in the back of their compact bodies.

The turret on his left locked onto the drones in the air, and the turret on the right locked onto the droids below. A hail of bullets escaped the barrels of the turrets, blasting the robots to pieces. Gizmo then grabbed a small metallic sphere in his pocket and tossed it at the ceiling, and it stuck as well. The sphere unfolded outwards like a blossom, then gave off a faint blue glow, and a powerful magnetic force bombarded the metal robots, pulling them into the magnetic singularity like a vacuum, crushing all of them into a tightly packed ball of aluminum pieces and wires.

"Voilà..." Gizmo said as the turrets were pulled back into his forearms and the sphere hovered back into his hand. He put is glasses back on as the heap of robotic scrap on the floor began to reconstruct itself for the next test. "Test completed."

"Very well done, Gizmo," Shining Armor said to the confident stallion as Gizmo re-entered the viewing room.

"Not bad for a basement-dweller," Shadow Dancer joked, breaking Gizmo's confidence and causing his face to redden once again.

"Yay! My turn!" Fae said as she jumped up, hovering in the air for a brief moment as she kept her arms up high.

"Alright, Fae, please be careful. I don't want to replace any part of the training room, okay?" Shining Armor tried to calm her, knowing full well the extent of her psionic power from the data collected by numerous scientists who visited Fae during her incarceration.

"Alrighty, sir!" Fae beamed as she saluted him, hovering over the others and making her way to the door on the left with the guard accompanying her. "What do I get to do?"

"You will be facing off against six turrets loaded with paintballs, and to get an understanding of each power you possess, I'll activate the turrets in pairs, letting you destroy them each in a different way. Do you want me to explain again?" Shining Armor asked; Fae was only paying half-attention.

"No, no, I understand, sir!" Fae insisted as the guard locked the door to the training room. "I'll do my best!"

"Hmm, a magic user. This should be interesting..." Twilight put her hand under her chin as she watched intently.

"Indeed..." Gizmo mimicked Twilight's posture as he shuffled to her side, causing her to retreat in revulsion to the other part of the viewing room.

"Smooth," Shadow Dancer whispered into Gizmo's ear before leaning back up against the wall; his eye then began twitching erratically.

"Alright, Fae. Your training will begin in three seconds," Shining Armor informed the bubbly mare that stood at the ready as his hand hovered over the red launch button. "Three... two... one... begin."

Two large turrets arose from openings in the floor, aiming right at Fae. She reacted immediately, an orb of purple energy sparkling between her horns. It took a moment to charge, but luckily it wasn't long enough for the turrets to begin firing. Two blasts of surging purple energy were launched from her horns, blowing both turrets to pieces with destructive power equivalent to a railgun. Two more turrets then emerged from the ground, but this time, Fae let them lock on. Her body faded until it became translucent, and paintball bullets whizzed through her as if she were made of air.

"Uh, what the hell?" Shadow Dancer stared on at the mystic mare with her eyes wide open. "What's she doing?"

"Her body has become ethereal! No regular unicorn can learn that kind of magic!" Twilight's wings unfurled in excitement as she watched Fae stand between the two turrets, causing them to fire at one another, destroying them.

"Wouldn't wanna get in a tussle with her..." Shadow Dancer whistled, impressed by Fae's range of abilities.

"Incredible!" Twilight's eyes widened as the last two turrets were ripped apart by Fae's telekinetic powers before they could even deploy— deconstructed down to the last bolt and hunk of metal. Twilight took notes on the pad she kept in her pocket. "Hmm... that telekinesis is too powerful to originate from her horn. Her brain perhaps?" She finished off her note and tucked it into her pocket swiftly, giving Shining Armor a nudge. "She's incredible..."

"I know," Shining Armor laughed lightly as he pressed down on the reconstruction button, repairing the obliterated turrets. "I'm glad she's on our side."

"I did my best, Shining Armor!" Fae giggled excitedly as she skipped into the viewing room. "How'd I do?"

"You did great, Fae," Shining Armor spoke to her the same way he would for his daughter.

"Ain't she a walking rainbow?" Shadow Dancer gave Blue Thistle a nudge for a reaction, but she shuffled silently to the side, trying her best to avoid conversation with the talkative mare. "Great... looks like I'll be talking to myself for the next couple weeks..."

"You're up, Blue Thistle-." Shining Armor was cut off as the two-meter mare passed him and entered the training room without a word. "Eh?"

"This will be quick, yes?" Blue Thistle said bluntly as she stood in front of the gun table with her arms crossed, waiting for the door to lock.

Shining Armor shook his head in a daze as Blue Thistle removed her baggy sweater and sweatpants, revealing her sports bra and yoga pants underneath. "Um, yeah, you'll be facing off against some heavy caliber anti-aircraft guns; the training exercise is on the highest danger setting, so be-."

"I will be careful, yes," Blue Thistle interrupted him again as she raised her fists in preparation.

"Holy fuck, she's got some big honkers!" Shadow Dancer remarked at Blue Thistle's prominent chest— large even for her body, which made them gigantic in any normal pony's eyes. "She makes my G's look like damn A's."

"Really? You fixate on meaningless sacks of flesh on either side of the female sternum?" Gizmo scoffed in disappointment at Shadow Dancer's asinine comments. "Your thoughts are so trivial."

"Your mother never had the talk with you, did she?" Shadow Dancer jested, causing Gizmo's face to scrunch up in frustration.

"Oh, hush you promiscuous harlot!" Gizmo snarled back at her as he left her alone on the one side of the room in a huff.

"I can already tell we're gonna be best friends, little guy!" Shadow Dancer chuckled at Gizmo as he grumbled to himself in a corner.

"Wait, Shining Armor, aren't the aircraft guns loaded with real shells?!" Twilight's eyes widened as she looked down at the screen on the panel in front of Shining Armor— a monitor displaying the selected ammunition of each turret."

"She has endured far worse, Twilight. Alright, Blue Thistle, your training will begin on the count of three," Shining Armor lifted waved his index finger over the start button. "One... two... three... begin."

Three massive, single-barrelled turrets made of durable steel unfolded out of large openings in the floor, and they locked onto their target with deadly accuracy in a matter of one second. Blue Thistle reacted swiftly and outstretched her hand, catching the first shell from the turret in the center and spinning around, tossing it back at the cannon with greater velocity. Everypony except Shining Armor had their mouths wide open in awe. Another cannon managed to land a direct hit on Blue Thistle's face, but amazingly she stood firm in her position like an unmovable mountain, wearing a determined mug.

"Zetix undergarments?" Twilight made an educated guess as to why Blue Thistle's clothing didn't vaporize from the blast.

"Correct," Shining Armor nodded.

Blue Thistle charged forward and rammed her fist into the barrel of a turret, causing it to explode violently as it fired again. The other turret on the right fired through the smoke and managed to land a direct hit on her stomach, but Blue Thistle shrugged it off as if it were just a pin-prick. She grabbed the barrel and tore the turret out of its rotating mechanism, crumpling it into a ball in her hands like a piece of paper.

"Oooo... she's really, really strong!" Fae marveled at the giantess' raw power as she tossed the scrunched up ball of steel aside.

Blue Thistle put her sweatpants on, then her sweater; though, she found it a little tricky to get the elastic the bottom cuff over her chest. She went back into the viewing room with a sigh as she looked back at the destruction she caused.

"Excellent job, Blue Thistle," Shining Armor gave her a grin and a nod of approval.

"Wowee! You were so cool!" Fae clapped her hands together playfully once again.

"Wow, Blue Thistle, that was incredible!" Twilight complimented the stoic giantess, who only seemed to half-acknowledge her words.

"Yes, yes," Blue Thistle nodded at Twilight and the others as she crossed her arms.

"Yeah, nice going, gorgeous," Shadow Dancer grinned charismatically at Blue Thistle with a genuine smile and laugh.

"Uh..." Blue Thistle's cheeks flushed red for a moment, then she pulled her hood up quickly; nopony had ever referred to her with such a word before, and she wasn't sure how to respond. "I am hungry. May we eat?"

"Sure, Blue Thistle, let's get going then," Shining Armor replied as he turned to the set of concrete stairs to ground level on his left. "I'm sure Blaster and Ditzy Doo would be famished by now."

As they made their way up the stairs, Blue Thistle's mind became flooded with odd thoughts, questions she had never asked herself. Were they not a team of soldiers? She was a soldier. Why did Shadow Dancer treat her as if she were some kind of companion? Before she had the chance to think more on the topic, a low-hanging pipe struck her on the head unexpectedly. She didn't feel it, it was simply just a shock.

"Hey, you okay?" Shadow Dancer stopped as she saw Blue Thistle almost tumble back.

"I am fine, yes," Blue Thistle shooed her hand away and fastened her hood, leaving Shadow dancer behind on the stairs; she was becoming frustrated. "I don't feel it anyways."

Season One | Episode Five: Lunch

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It took an hour for the staff to round up more food for the team that first lunch at headquarters. Twilight had to leave for an urgent meeting in Canterlot, sadly, and Derpy scurried about the base, searching for rations in the deepest part of the facility. They set up at the long island at the bar, as they didn't actually have a dining room table yet. Blue Thistle didn't seem to complain when she was served non-perishable bread and a hearty stew. Knowing where she came from, Shining Armor assumed she was just used to quick food like that. Gizmo didn't have too many complaints regarding the quality, however, he did nitpick in regards to the asymmetrical and poorly sorted nature of the ration packaging.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shadow Dancer asked with a flummoxed expression as she watched Gizmo use a measuring tape he kept in his pocket to adjust the distance between his plate and his utensils.

"I'm... making sure... this is correct for eating..." Gizmo almost seemed to sweat as he carefully adjusted his fork and knife. "I have to be cautious. One wrong move could-."

Shadow Dancer bumped the table slightly as she rested her right leg over her knee, and Gizmo's face went pale at his fork moved slightly to the right. "Oops."

"Mmmmpphhh!" Gizmo's lips were puckered together as he spat out air, giving off a noise similar to a deflating balloon.

"Mister Shining Armor," Fae spoke up as Gizmo, her neighbor on the bar island, began to make all kinds of awful noises beside her. "I believe Mister Gizmo is having what I think you ponies call 'the seizures'."

"Um, he'll be fine..." Shining Armor shrugged his shoulders as Gizmo stuttered and sputtered to himself, ignoring his sandwich on the table. "I think."

"The food is good, Commander," Blue Thistle grunted with her hood up as she leaned forward to shorten the distance between her head and her food.

"Hey, Blue Thistle, you don't have to call me 'Commander', right?" Shining Armor suggested as he swallowed a spoonful of his packaged rice with green curry.

"Niet, you are my commander, yes? Then I call you by title," Blue Thistle said in her usual headstrong and blunt fashion of speaking.

"Well, everypony else can call me by my name, okay?" Shining Armor stated, to which the others all nodded, save for Gizmo who was still speechless.

"Uh, Shining Armor...?" Blaster piped up as he feasted on his tray of sushi.

"Yes, Blaster?" Shining Armor raised an eyebrow as he turned to the small stallion in front of him.

"When will our first real-deal mission be?" Blaster wondered.

"In no more than three days, I assure you," Shining Armor answered him as he finished off his meal and placed his dishes in the sink.

"Seems a bit too long, don't you think?" Shadow Dancer chimed in as she took a bite of her jury-rigged, foul-smelling sandwich.

"Oh, Sweet Celestia!" Gizmo grimaced; the putrid odor from Shadow Dancer's food was enough to snap him out of his daze. "What is that horrid excuse for food in your hands?!"

"Canned oyster sandwich with mayo— my favorite. Luckily the rations have some good cuisine in em'!" Shadow Dancer grinned as she took a bite of her sad excuse for a meal.

"Ooo! It smells like the toadstools in Everfree!" Fae laughed as the scent of Shadow Dancer's dish wafted over to her.

"Uggh! Put that meal away at once!" Gizmo heaved as he looked at the brownish-white filling between the two pieces of non-perishable bread.

"I agree with skinny gadget-stallion," Blue Thistle interjected as she handed her dishes to Shining Armor.

"Oh, c'mon!" Shadow Dancer threw her arms up in the air as if she had given up, then she grabbed the glass of water closest to her to wash the smell away.

"Oh, shit! Shadow Dancer! Wait!" Shining Armor realized his mistake as Shadow Dancer's hand grasped the glass, but by then it was too late.

"I-..." Shadow Dancer trailed off as she felt the cold of the water inside her glass.

Gizmo snorted to himself as he watched Shadow Dancer whimper. "What's wrong, Shadow Dancer? Too cold for-?"

"Shut up!" Shadow Dancer screamed at Gizmo as she began to have an episode.

Tears began to collect in Shadow Dancer's eyes as visions flashed before her eyes— visions of her drowning and choking in a tank full of water. She began to shiver as she backed away from the island, covering her mouth as she let out soft, anguished cries from her lips. Her tears streamed down her face profusely, and his breath became cold and withered. She was in shock.

"I'm sorry, I-... I have to go!" Shadow Dancer ran to the bathroom, tears still falling from her face as she sobbed to herself.

"What was that?!" Derpy asked Shining Armor, who bowed his head in disappointment.

"Damn it, I knew... I shouldn't have given her that glass..." Shining Armor sighed as he shook his head. "Shadow Dancer has a severe phobia to cold water— it triggers... bitter memories of her past. Though, it isn't my place to tell you why this is."

"Will she be alright?" Fae wondered as she turned to the mare's bathroom on the other side of the room.

"Yeah, but I think somepony should go in there and help her out— just to make sure she's okay." Shining Armor suggested to the mares as he poured out Shadow Dancer's water and placed the glass in the sink.

Derpy was the first to speak up, "I think I'll-."

Derpy was cut off at Blue Thistle marched over to the bathroom in a lumbering fashion. "I shall go."

"U-um..." Derpy muttered to herself nervously as she leaned over to Shining Armor. "Are you sure we should let her... you know?"

"It's fine, Ditzy. It's best we let the members of this team sort out their problems with one another in these next few days," Shining Armor insisted as he let Blue Thistle go by herself.

Admittedly, Blue Thistle didn't hate Shadow Dancer. She was just out of her element was all. Blue Thistle had grown so used to speechless stallions during the revolution, linear objectives, and goals. She knew her duty then, but now she wasn't sure what exactly her true motives were. Regardless, she did feel some duty towards her new teammates. Even though she knew little about them, even though they were nothing like her, she still felt responsibility for them. Besides, Shadow Dancer, though Blue Thistle didn't want to acknowledge it before, still showed her genuine kindness towards her.

As quiet as a two-meter tall mare could, Blue Thistle snuck into the bathroom. Though, Shadow Dancer's enhanced sense of hearing nullified Blue Thistle's stealth abilities. And, to be fair, tip-toeing was not one of Blue Thistle's fortes. Blue Thistle immediately heard sobbing from the furthest bathroom stall. "Who's there?"

"Um... it is me," Blue Thistle replied as she quietly trotted towards Shadow Dancer's stall.

"Wow, I guess they're really sending their best then, huh?" Shadow Dancer said in frustration, not really meaning what she said. "Shit... I'm-... I'm sorry, Blue. I didn't-."

"It's fine," Blue Thistle nodded as she stood outside Shadow Dancer's stall. "I am not best with words." Blue Thistle paused as she tried to soften her fairly harsh voice. "What is... wrong?"

"I'm just-... I wish I could tell you, but-... I barely know you," Shadow Dancer whimpered as she leaned her head against the side of her stall.

Blue Thistle opened the stall next to Shadow Dancer's and sat down on the toilet seat. "My name is Blue Star." Blue stall recollected her faded memories— like dusty boxes filled with old toys in an attic. "When I was fourteen, the rebel alliance of Rukaria inducted me into their army to fight off the brutality of The Red Tsars of my homeland and to defend my family. At age fifteen, a kind scientist named Coil came to me, he tells me; 'Blue Star, you will be saint of revolution'. I didn't really know what that meant at time." Blue Thistle crossed her arms uncomfortably as she continued. "When I awoke moments after procedure, I became what I am now. I became soldier, and I did my duty for home country. In the end, the rebellion won with my help. But... there was something else we didn't know. Whilst I was home, atom bombs detonated across Rukaria. Tsar's had contingency plan in case they lose. They nuked themselves so nopony would win. My little brother was the only one who survived in my family, and we wandered Rukaria for days before we found boat to go to Equestria. That is how I came to this country..."

"I'm sorry... for what happened to Rukaria," Shadow Dancer said quietly through the wall as she heard a small sob from Blue Thistle's stall.

"It is... fine," Blue Thistle sighed as she tried to hold back her own sorrow; she didn't want to appear weak in front of her comrade. "Now we are not strangers."

"My name is Test Subject C-65," Shadow Dancer closed her eyes as she remembered her first days. "I was born in a glass jar along with my other seventy-seven brothers and sisters. I don't have a mother or a father. And if I did, I don't think they'd be too keen on having seventy-seven kids." Shadow Dancer laughed lightly through the pain. "I escaped the testing facility shortly after Apollo Biotech terminated the project. They killed most of my family. I'm not sure how many even made it out alive. They were trying to cover it up. And to be honest, I don't think anypony in Equestria should know what went on in the Badlands twenty years ago."

"I am sorry for your loss," Blue Thistle empathized with her as she got off her seat and exited the stall.

"I didn't like any of my siblings anyways..." Shadow Dancer began to sob again as Blue Thistle stood outside her door, watching as it opened to reveal the now vulnerable mare standing on the other side.

Blue Thistle gave her a moment to take a few deep breaths before they left. "Alright, Shadow Dancer, let's-." Shadow Dancer said nothing as she embraced Blue Thistle tightly, rendering the giant mare speechless. "I..."

"Thanks..." Shadow Dancer wept as she rested her head on Blue Thistle. "You wanna know what the worst part about this all is...?"

"What?" Blue Thistle asked.

"Whoever used the toilet before me in there didn't flush," Shadow Dancer chuckled, tears still running down her face.

****

Shining Armor poured himself a short glass of brandy from the bar stash beneath the island, taking a moment to smell its strong aroma before taking a sip. As he did so, he couldn't help but notice Fae curiously eyeing his beverage like a hawk, piecing together what it was. Without a word he poured another glass, then left four others empty for later. He slid the full glass down the table to Fae, and she peered into the container in awe, admiring the dark and rich brown liquid within.

"What is this elixir, Mister Shining Armor?" Fae inquired as she raised it up to get a better angle on the glass.

"That's brandy, Fae. It's after-dinner alcohol," Shining Armor let out a long relaxed sigh as he savored another sip. "Go ahead, try some. You might like it."

Fae squinted as she kept observing the beverage in her grasp, making sure it was safe for consumption. "Hmm... okay..."

"Make sure you take your-." Fae took a large swig of the dark brandy, downing half of it in one go and leaving it in her mouth and causing Shining Armor's eyes to almost pop out of his skull in dismay. "No, Fae! You were supposed to drink it slower than that!"

"Bah!" Fae gasped as the brandy ran down her throat like molten lava, and she waved her hands in the air frantically as if she were drowning.

"Oh dear! She must be allergic to whatever is in the brandy!" Derpy began hyperventilating as she reached into her pocket and brought out her phone. "I'll call the nurse!"

"Oh shit, what do we do?!" Blaster began to panic as Fae coughed and held her hands over her throat.

"I'll give her some water!" Shining Armor hastily poured a glass of water and hurried it over to Fae, who downed it all immediately. "Fae, can you sp-...? Oh, you-..."

A wide grin stretched across Fae's face as she giggled maniacally. "Oh, wow, you should've seen the look on all your faces! Heeheehee! I was all, 'Blargh!' and you all screamed, 'Ah!'."

"Fae! I actually thought you were dying! What the hell?!" Shining Armor shouted in an outrage as he threw his fist up in the air frantically.

"Oh, be happy, Mister Shining Armor! You all looked so sad!" Fae frowned as she crossed her arms in a huffy fashion.

"Yeah, well now we're in a panic!" Blaster shouted as he heard the watch on his wrist beep, indicating he was about to release the energy pent up in his body. "Shit! Speaking of panic!"

"Go to the blast room!" Shining Armor pointed over the hatch adjacent to the central computer. "C'mon, Fae! You scared him so much you made him explode!"

"Heh, heh... that sounds weird!" Fae laughed as the shockwave from the blast shook the building.

Blaster stumbled out of the chamber, steam billowing out of his mouth and eyes as he leaned up against the opened hatch. "Fuck that hurts..."

"Blaster! Are you okay?!" Derpy raced over to Blaster, helping him back on his hooves.

"Yeah... I'm alright," Blaster nodded as he fastened his watch. "This thing's a lifesaver... literally."

"What the hell is going on here?!" Shadow Dancer called out to her teammates, who were all strewn about the room with crazed hair and eyes as if they had just seen a murder.

"Shadow Dancer! You're okay!" Fae shouted with joy as she gave the blonde mare a warm hug. "Wowee! A lot of stuff happened while you were gone! Shining Armor gave me this brandy-thing, then I faked dying and everypony was screaming, then Blaster exploded!"

"Nailed it..." Blaster groaned sarcastically as he took a load off on the couch.

"Wow... um..." Shadow Dancer only began processing all that Fae said once the hyperactive mare finished speaking. "Shit. Guess things go to crap when Blue and I ain't around, huh?"

"Da," Blue Thistle nodded as she sat back down on her barstool. "Can I have drink?"

"Me too," Shadow Dancer said as she sat down beside Blue Thistle comfortably.

"Huh, guess they hashed it out..." Shining Armor said to Derpy as they both walked over to the bar. "Coming right up, guys."

"Hmm, I guess they did!" Derpy grinned as she sat back down at her seat. "Maybe ponies should trust your judgment more often!"

"I just get lucky..." Shining Armor thought to himself as he chuckled under his breath.

"Hey, Mister Shining Armor...? Miss Ditzy...?" Fae whimpered with a puppy-dog face.

"Yes?" They both replied.

"Can I have some more brandy?" Fae asked in her sweetest and most polite tone of voice.

"No!"

Season One | Episode Six: Test Run

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Blaster skipped breakfast when his suit finally arrived at headquarters, and its hype was not in the least bit exaggerated; everypony gathered around the fancy piece of technology with wide eyes. It sat near the central computer, standing firm in its place. The silver suit of metal armor was gleaming; so polished, in fact, that one could see their own reflection looking into the chest piece. The helmet was streamlined and aerodynamic— almost space age in design. It had a wide tinted red visor around the face, and various dials and breathing apparatuses near the back of the head. On the palms of each gauntlet were small openings that contained some sort of odd circular mechanism with a red piece of glass at the center. These mechanisms were also installed on either side of the armor near the ribcage, and also on the bottom of the hooves.

"Alright, Blaster, here it is! Allow me to introduce to you the Aeshma Armor Mark One!" Shining Armor proclaimed proudly as he welcomed Blaster to inspect his new tech.

"Whoa!" Blaster was like a foal on Hearth's Warming Eve. "What are these things for?"

"Those are the focusing lens of the armor— they magnify the potency and precision of your power, allowing you to fire blasts of your internal energy at a range," Gizmo explained, even though he had just laid eyes on the machine.

"Um... yeah..." Shining Armor scratched his head awkwardly.

"Why are these thingies on the hooves of the suit?" Blaster wondered as he lifted up the leg to see beneath them; he was surprised by how light the whole contraption weighed— around fifty pounds.

"Those are to add power to your kicks!" Shining Armor frantically answered Blaster before Gizmo could get the chance. "And... the scientists back in Canterlot are curious if you can use your abilities to fly as well."

"Fly?!" Blaster became so hyped that he almost did a back flip right then and there.

"But we probably need to run some tests before we can get you up in the air for real..." Derpy interjected, gently popping Blaster's bubble.

"What is power source?" Blue Thistle inquired as Shining Armor popped off the helmet and inspected the internals.

"This baby runs entirely on Blaster power!" Shining Armor answered him as he rested his arm on the shoulder of the suit. "Just goes to show you what Equestrian scientists can do with just a tiny sample of DNA."

"Uh, Shining Armor... will this stop my episodes too...?" Blaster's voice became softer, taking on an ashamed tone.

"Don't worry, Blaster, you'll be okay. The armor is heat and shock resistant, and it absorbs energy from your outbursts and stores it in the battery pack in the back of the suit," Shining Armor reassured him as he removed the helmet and pressed a button on the neck, opening the suit up like a flower in bloom. "Step inside, Blaster— try out the motor functions."

Blaster began shaking with excitement as he placed his hooves in first, and the suit began to morph and reshape itself to fit Blaster's body. Plates of metal interlocked, the chest piece fastened itself with a gust of steam, and Shining Armor placed the helmet on him, pressing a button on the side to activate the HUD built into the visor.

"Damn... that's fuckin' cool," Shadow Dancer grinned as gusts of steam continue to be expelled from the armor.

"Golly!" Fae beamed excitedly as she clapped her hands together once again.

"Alright, so, that visor not only has a heads-up display of your energy levels and vitals, but it also has a built-in targeting system with night and thermal vision," Shining Armor explained as he fiddled with more dials on the side of the helmet. "Try moving. The suit will have automatically connected with your nervous system by now. You should take it slow. You'll need to get a lot of practice with this suit if you're going to work in the field."

Blaster looked down as his armored hand as he raised it to his face, clenching his fist tightly to get the feel of the suit. It didn't feel as clunky as he expected it to be. In fact, the armor felt so natural that it practically felt like an extra layer of skin to Blaster. He raised his hoof slowly, looking down at the gears in the suit shifting and turning with his body rapidly. Blaster shook out his whole body, giving the suit the final adjustments it needed before testing.

"Alright, looking good! How about we take this outside, huh?" Shining Armor proposed as he then felt a vibration in his pocket; somepony was calling him. "Ah damn, sorry fellas. I got to take this call. It's Twilight. She probably wants to know what she missed while she was gone." Shining Armor moseyed over to the bar and sat down on a barstool near the edge of the island, placing his elbows on the table as he answered Twilight's call. To his surprise, however, he did not hear the usual chipper voice of his sister. She was panting heavily as if she had just run a mile. "Twilight?! Twilight, what's wrong?!"

"Shining Armor! I need your help! I'm held up in the parliament building in Canterlot!" Twilight hyperventilated. "Some armed ponies just walked into the building! I think they're trying to find Celestia and Luna!"

"Okay, okay. Just sit tight, Twilight. I'm sure they can handle the issue." Shining Armor insisted as he assessed the situation, getting up off his seat.

"You don't understand! These aren't just any thugs! They're dressed up in military uniforms! They've got some kind of giant mechanical suit with them too! The guards can't put a dent in this thing with their weapons! And my magic didn't work against it either!" Twilight panicked as an explosion and multiple gunshots rang out in the background. "They're killing foreign ambassadors! Oh my word, they're rounding up hostages! I have to go! I can't keep you on the line or they'll hear me! Please send help!"

"Twilight! Twilight, wait! Sweet Celestia! Fuck!" Shining Armor cursed as Twilight hung up the phone on him.

"What is it?!" Derpy asked her employer, who was quite obviously in distress.

"My sister is being held up in the parliament building with other Equestrian politicians!" Shining Armor began to breathe heavily as he imagined the worst. "They've got some kind of unstoppable mecha with them that's trashing the place! Twilight couldn't even damage it!"

"Holy shit," Shadow Dancer shook her head as she tried to wrap her head around the sudden and precise attack. "We've got to do something. If an alicorn can't put a scratch on that thing then they are sure as hell fucked if we don't step in."

"We can't! We don't have the experience as a team yet!" Shining Armor shouted at her, caught up in the heat of the moment. "Blaster has zero training with his armor!"

"Then I'll sit this one out. I'd only be getting in the way," Blaster insisted as he hopped out of his armor.

"Alright! Err, fine! We've got to get gear for you guys!" Shining Armor turned to Derpy swiftly. "Ditzy, I need you to go fetch the Wraith Suit and Shadow Dancer's other weapons and bring them to the hanger!"

"Yes, sir!" Derpy nodded as she ran downstairs in a panic. "What about Blue Thistle? Should I get her-?"

"Niet, I shall wear tracksuit," Blue Thistle interrupted her as she cracked her knuckles. "It has been long time since I have fought robots. They will not harm me."

"What about you, Fae?" Derpy asked the frivolous mare as she daydreamed about something else. "Fae?"

"Oh, sorry! I don't need anything special! Maybe just a jumpsuit or something..." Fae said quickly as she snapped out of her confusion.

"I have weapons of my own," Gizmo added as he rolled up his sleeves to reveal more pieces of tech on his cyborg limbs

"Okay then! I'll get a pilot to give you all a lift!" Shining Armor said as he pressed a button underneath the bar table, sounding an alarm. "Suit up and get to the hanger, everypony! I've got to call my wife..."

****

Fae waved flirtatiously to each stallion as she walked down the hallway leading into the hanger, taking full advantage of the visual appeal of her attire. The bubbly mare wore a red and white, female pilot's skin-tight flight suit, and she only zipped up the suit halfway up her chest to accent her more prominent features. Stallions tended to trip over others as she walked by, and she giggled maniacally as they did so.

"You can be so cruel, you know that?" Shadow Dancer grinned as she caught up to Fae.

"Heeheehee... I know," Fae laughed as she and Shadow Dancer both caught attention from the opposite sex. "It's fun."

Shadow Dancer wore her so-called "Wraith Suit", and it had very interesting look indeed; designed especially for her. The moderately-armored suit was black, typical of all armors geared towards stealth, and it had a whole truck-load of bells and whistles on it. She had an extensive utility belt and sash to carry her various ammo types and guns, a tactical visor that covered her face that she could activate with the click of a button on her gauntlets, and built-in stealth systems created to turn invisible in sync with Shadow Dancer. The protective plates on her legs, arms, and chest were made of reinforced aluminum with Kevlar sheeting and a coat of graphine on top, giving both bullet resistance and a sleek, polished ebony look.

"Fancy armor," Blue Thistle complimented Shadow Dancer's get up as she joined them on their brisk march to the hanger from an adjacent hallway.

Blue Thistle didn't wear her track suit like she bluntly stated before. Instead, she wore an outfit more suited for battle. She sported a red tank top with blue jeans and an unzipped brown bomber jacket on top of it all. Of course, she picked the ones in her locker that were both bullet and explosive proof. She wasn't too keen on having her clothes fly off in the midst of a fight.

"Thanks, Pretty Eyes, I see you switched up your outfit too..." Shadow Dancer replied to her, inspecting her outfit. "What made you decide to put somethin' like this on?"

"Tracksuit wasn't bulletproof. I don't like holes in clothes," Blue Thistle blushed as she zipped up her jacket. "Also, do not call me by odd names during mission, yes?"

"Whatever you say, Legs," Shadow Dancer snorted as Blue Star shot her an evil glare. "What? You said during the mission, not after..."

"You are all imbeciles..." Gizmo shook his head in disappointment as he joined their conversation. "Why am I on this team?"

Gizmo wore a brown trench coat with rolled up sleeves and a white dress shirt underneath, and he wore tan jeans to match them both. He also brandished a utility belt with his odd, futuristic, pistol-like sidearm holstered on the left and other strange gadgets hidden within the various pouches.

"Because you saw these three fine asses and you just couldn't say no..." Shadow Dancer grinned as she gave Gizmo a wink and spanked her own rear, to which he replied with an exasperated sigh.

"Look, ahead." Blue Thistle pointed over to the massive military-green transverse rotor helicopter ahead that had its payload doors open. "Our plane, yes?"

"You are correct..." A female voice replied as the figures of a mare and a stallion came into view exiting from the payload ramp. "Now get the hell in, we haven't got much time!"

Out of the cockpit emerged none other than the two legendary Wonderbolt pilots, Spitfire and Soarin. They all immediately recognized them both. Well, except Blue Thistle. She didn't tend to concern herself too much with the air force during her time as a soldier.

"Oh, shit! You're Spitfire and Soarin!" Shadow Dancer beamed as she shook their hands inside the copter. "What are you two doing here? Shouldn't you have left this grunt work to the noobs?"

"This job pays twice as much as my old job!" Soarin said as he sat down in the cockpit and placed his pilot's helmet on his head, activating the wide visor to cover his face. "Why the hell would I give it to one of those rookies?"

"Take a seat and buckle up, everypony! We've gotta get there quickly!" Spitfire ordered them as they all buckled in, driving the helicopter out of the hanger and activating the rotors, lifting the vehicle high into the air and racing towards their destination with the help of its jet engines in the back. "Soarin, give em' the low-down!"

"Alright, guys, word from Canterlot authorities tells us that these terrorists are elite; spec ops training, high-tech weaponry, the whole nine yards. We'll be air-dropping you guys down there. It'll be too dangerous to land." Soarin informed them as he handed Shadow Dancer a touch screen tablet displaying the layout of the parliament building. "They got Princess Twilight and the rest of em' held up in the meeting room on the third floor. And they've got the military pinned-down with that mech of theirs and a squad of soldiers in suits of armor. That big guy is a bullet sponge— has an energy shield that reflects magic too."

"Leave robot and soldiers outside to me," Blue Thistle volunteered with a faint eagerness to her tone. "I shall crush them."

"Alright then. I'll need the rest of you to each clear a floor," Soarin ordered them as he grabbed the tablet and placed it back in a pouch in his door. "And make sure to keep the damn building relatively untouched, please! We don't want Shining Armor to be signing an ass-load of reports, now do we?"

"I'll take the first floor. And I'll make sure they won't escape either," Gizmo spoke up.

"I'll take the second floor! This'll be fun!" Fae giggled as she envisioned the battle ahead.

"I'll take the top floor and secure the hostages while you guys distract the others," Shadow Dancer said, knowing she'd be suited best for indirect combat.

"Okay, so here's the crazy part, fellas," Soarin explained as he directed their attention to the ceiling of the helicopter. "See, a parachute is too risky— they could see you coming. So, I think some of you will have to carry one another. Can we do that?"

"I can just jump off, pilot," Blue Thistle grumbled. "I will feel nothing."

"Looks like I'll be carrying you then, huh, Giz?" Shadow Dancer winked at Gizmo as she gave him a nudge with her elbow, and he crossed his arms immediately in disapproval.

"Oh no, no you won't!" Gizmo scoffed with a stiff upper lip.

"C'mon, Giz... I really don't think traveling with Blue and Fae is a great idea, do you?" Shadow Dancer whispered to Gizmo, who admittedly was evaluating those scenarios— both didn't seem too promising.

"Okay..." Gizmo groaned in a monotone and blank tone of voice.

****

Twilight struggled against her binds as she sat with her back against both Luna and Celestia; they had all been fitted with magic-cancelling watches that anchored themselves right down to the bone and drained their energy away, crippling them. Those watches had been handed out the day before as a promotional item at their hotel. Regardless, Twilight still struggled against her restraints, hoping to slide a hand through the chains around her wrists. Tables and chairs were pushed back to the walls, and the remaining ambassadors who were still alive were also rounded up into bundles wrapped together by chains and gathered around Twilight and the other two princesses.

"What are you doing?" One of the griffon ambassadors whispered to Twilight.

"Trying to get out of this-."

"Don't bother, Princess Twilight, you can't break through those chains without your magic; they're reinforced steel," One of the hooded members of the terrorist group said as he scoffed at Twilight's pitiful attempt at escaping.

"Why hold us hostage, fiends? Why not kill us while we are vulnerable?" Luna asked the thug.

"You aren't in the position to be asking questions, Princess Luna..." The terrorist sneered as he cocked his assault rifle, aiming it at the head of the griffon ambassador next to Twilight and firing it off into his skull.

"You monsters!" A bloodied Celestia growled at them as they all grinned with delight. "You shall be executed for this heinous crime against Equestria!"

"Oh, I'm very scared, your highness. And how do you plan on doing that from where you're sitting? You're-." The guard tapped on his earpiece as the pilot of the mecha outside radioed in. He approached the window overlooking the battle-scarred Main Street and peered through the crack in the curtains. "What is it Omega?"

"Chi, I see a copter in the distance! It's military, but it's too far away for my short-range targeting systems to get a lock on it! What should I do?"

"Shining Armor..." Twilight muttered to the others, confident that that was the backup she called for.

"It's most likely a scouting helicopter, Omega, nothing to worry about. They're just trying to pull their pants back up after we blindsided em', that's all," The terrorist apparently named 'Chi' replied.

"Alright, then I'll just-. Wait! Three hostiles just hopped out of the chopper! Repeat, three hostiles just hopped out of the chopper!" The mecha driver watched as Shadow Dancer carried Gizmo and dropped him off at an alleyway nearby, then went invisible and flew around the parliament building, entering the third floor through an open window. Fae then looped around the other way and crashed through the glass on the second floor. "I don't like the looks of this, Chi... we've got reinforcements! I saw this weird mare with antlers enter into the second floor, but I lost visual on the two other hostiles!"

"Stand your ground, Omega, we can take care of em'," Chi replied on the com system.

Blue Thistle looked down at Main Street overhead, broken and bruised beyond belief. That mecha had demolished most buildings around the parliament building and drove out local police quickly. All that stood against it was a squadron of tanks aiming at the automation, but they knew that even with their high-tech weaponry they would not be able to crack the mecha's energy shield.

"What are you waiting for, Blue Thistle?!" Soarin shouted out to her as the wind blew through the vehicle.

"A clear shot," Blue Thistle backed up, readying her jump. "My fall will smash street apart, and I don't want to touch parliament building."

"I'm sorry, what?!" Spitfire turned back as she realized what Blue Thistle was implying. Would her fall be that devastating?

Blue Thistle closed her eyes and hopped out of the helicopter from one two hundred meters up in the air, putting her fists straight out in front of her as she dive-bombed towards Main Street. The cool wind blew her hair back, and as she fell, a wave of dark nostalgia swept over her; this first mission bared a striking resemblance to some of her own experiences during the revolution on Rukaria. The mecha watched Blue Thistle plummet to the ground at incredible speed, and she only kept accelerating as time flew by.

"Oh shit! I think there's a missile heading our way! Wait, it's gonna drop on Main Street!" The mecha driver used the external camera on the robot to track the object tumbling down. "Holy shit, Chi! This fourth bogie ain't a missile, it's a mare!"

"Holy fuck..." Chi gawked as he saw Blue Thistle barrel towards the ground. "Leave the crazy bitch! She'll just go splat!"

"Blue Star..." A voice echoed in her mind as the pavement drew closer, a voice Blue Thistle often tried to forget; he was rousing her. "Blue Star!"

Blue Thistle opened her eyes just in the nick of time as she impacted the ground, causing a shockwave never witnessed in Canterlot ever before. The force of the impact was so immense that Blue Thistle created a ten-meter wide crater in Main Street, uprooting a section of the street and rupturing the pipelines that ran beneath it. A pillar of dust was launched into the air like a nuclear blast, forming a mushroom cloud that peaked at five meters.

"Holy hell..." Spitfire shook her head as she watched from the cockpit, in awe at the raw power of the impact. "She's their big gun, I suppose."

"That impact... what was it?" Celestia asked Twilight as she felt the remnants of the shockwave ripple throughout the city.

"That must've been Blue Thistle..." Twilight shook her head in amazement. "What power..."

"That's a big dent in the paycheck of Canterlot..." Shadow Dancer remarked at the destruction as she began to sneak her way through the mazelike top floor. "Still, nice spectacle."

"No fucking way..." Chi gawked as he spoke into his communicator, watching as Blue Thistle emerged from the crater in Main Street completely unscathed. "K-kill that giant bitch!"

"You heard Chi!" Omega announced to the armored soldiers beside him as he primed his gauntlet missiles and shoulder-mounted machine guns to fire. "Waste her!"

The mecha and its accompanying squad fired all of their weapons at Blue Thistle; lasers, rockets, fifty caliber rounds. They all seemed to either bounce off of her or explode right in her face with no effect at all. Then, the mecha fired one of its largest missiles at her, staggering her just a bit, but catching a few of his allies in the radius of the blast. Regardless, Blue Thistle kept on walking towards them even after they stopped firing.

"What the hell is she...?" Omega was shivering in his seat, waiting for what the giant mare would do next.

"You have made me angry, little stallions..." Blue Thistle said with almost a snarl to her speech. "Now it is my turn!" Blue Thistle charged forward at the mecha, pulling back her fist for a devastating strike. "Rraarrghh!"

Blue Thistle landed a punch right on the waist of the mecha, shattering the shield around the robot like a house of cards and knocking it over onto the ground with one blow. Blue Thistle stretched out her neck as she landed back on the ground, nonchalantly waiting for the terrorists' next move.

"Let us play then, yes?" Blue Thistle grinned as she turned to the armored stallions surrounding her. "Yes..."

Season One | Episode Seven: Rescue

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The first floor was mostly an open tourist area with various memorabilia and other Equestrian historical items. A wide and opulent marble staircase decorated with a red blue silk rug led to the elevator on a higher level, and at the entrance was the secretary's desk. Gizmo had no trouble whatsoever, and he made quick work of the thirty terrorists who guarded the area. He sat in a lobby chair, nonchalantly eating a banana as five of his turrets fired electrically charged rounds into the terrorists, immobilizing them. However, a terrorist with an Uzi did manage to sneak past his blockade, but he was dealt with quickly as Gizmo shot him with his pistol that fired potent blasts of electricity.

"Honestly... are you ponies even trying?" Gizmo sighed as his turrets folded back up and flew back into the empty slots in his cybernetic limbs. He activated his communicator as he walked up the massive grand staircase. "Fae, I'm done here. How are your floor's inhabitants faring?"

"They're pretty tough! But I'm beating them up really badly!" Fae giggled as she pushed a terrorist through a cubicle with her telekinesis. "Also, I'm really hungry! Can we get something to eat after we're done pretty-please?"

"Fae, this is not the time!" Shining Armor snapped back at her through her communicator. "And what did I say about damaging the building?!"

"Sorry, Shiny!" Fae frowned as she knocked a terrorist out with a psionic blast from her antlers "I won't do it again!"

The second floor was mostly an office space for governmental workers; bland gray cubicles mostly dominated the area, and tattered documents and other papers littered the ground. Fae skipped about the narrow hallways between the cubicles, looking for enemies to toss around. A terrorist roared as he charged at Fae with a tomahawk and a revolver, but she just laughed to herself as she grabbed him with invisible hands and tossed him into a group of his comrades with tremendous force. A terrorist popped out of a cubicle with a revved minigun and fired it at Fae, laughing maniacally as he tried to get a lock on her. She hovered about, avoiding the gunfire, then she placed a psychic barrier around her body, rendering her impervious to their attacks. She charged up more psionic energy in her antlers and let loose an omnidirectional wave that flattened everypony in the immediate vicinity.

"All done-... oh, wait, nevermind," Fae corrected herself as she saw terrorists armed with rocket launchers exiting the elevator at the end of the room. "This might take a bit."

****

"Shadow Dancer, you there?" Shining Armor said through the assassin's com system attached to her visor. "How's it going in there?"

"Good. I'm making my way through the third floor. So far I haven't run into anypony too nasty," Shadow Dancer replied as she found cover behind a corner leading into the meeting room. "I think they're all held up in the meeting room..." Shadow Dancer went fully invisible and peered around the corner. "Yeah, they're there. They've killed at least two foreign ambassadors."

"Shit... you still have to go non-lethal. We need these guys alive if we're going to get answers out of them," Shining Armor ordered her.

"No shit, Sherlock," Shadow Dancer scoffed as she reached into an ammo pouch in her utility belt for taser rounds. "I'm switching to volt rounds."

"Alright, but please be careful; don't let anything happen to my sister or the other two princesses," Shining Armor said in a worrisome manner. "I'm shutting the com system off on my end. Good luck."

Shadow Dancer activated her visor and a sheet of jet black glass formed over her face. The visor toggled through its various modes until it activated its X-ray function. Shadow Dancer then stood still as she heard somepony approaching fast from her right down the hallway; it was a terrorist armed with an assault rifle. She let him pass; it would have been foolish to take him out during his patrol as the others would have become suspicious with his prolonged absence. And, if her guess was correct, that terrorist on patrol would ask the leader of the group to bring more reinforcements to the lower floors, making her job far easier. She peered through the wall with her visor, watching skeletons sit silently in the next room. There were seven armed terrorists, eight if you counted the guard who had just arrived. The commander sat in the center of the room guarding the hostages. Shadow Dancer leaned forward and listened to his conversation with the one panicked patroller who had just passed a few moments prior.

"Chi, that green chick and the cyborg guy are tearing up our reinforcements downstairs! What the fuck are we gonna do?!"

"I'll tell you what we do. Once they clear the lower floors we bag the rest of the ambassadors, toss the royals out the window, then set fire to this shit heap!" Chi answered him with frustration. "Get back down there and stall em'! I'll lay down some incendiary charges and wait for your command. Once you're the last stallion, you give me the signal and we'll burn this place to the ground."

"Understood, sir," The terrorist nodded as he ran towards the corner Shadow Dancer hid behind; this was her chance to provide a little extra time for her comrades.

As he passed Shadow Dancer she uncloaked quickly, wrapped her right arm around his neck, then covered his mouth with her left hand, allowing an anesthetic gas to flow through a tube in the forearm of her suit to a nozzle in her palm, knocking the terrorist out cold without a sound. She dragged his unconscious body and placed it behind a sizeable potted plant next to a support pillar, propping it up so that the eucalyptus plant could cover his upper half. She ducked behind her corner cover again as she heard movement on the other side of the wall; the commander was placing incendiary charges around the third floor, and if she didn't act now he'd surely find the corpse.

"Fuck me... guess I go in guns blazing..." Shadow Dancer cursed as she popped her earbuds in and cocked her machine pistols. She then reached into her pocket and tossed a flashbang into the meeting room. "Boom."

*"It's Just Forever" by Cage The Elephant begins to play through Shadow Dancer's earbuds*

"Ah! Fuck! Flashbang!" The commander was stunned first, just as she hoped. "We've got a ghost in here, fellas! Find em'!"

"Oh, you ain't findin' me..." Shadow Dancer sneered as she rolled a smoke grenade into the meeting room; she had to be quick or the commander would surely set off the incendiary charge he placed on the other side of the room.

Shadow Dancer ran inside the smoke-filled area with her thermal vision on, and she reacted as soon as a terrorist ran at her through the smoke. He swung at her with the stock of his gun, hoping to surprise Shadow Dancer, but she saw it coming from a mile away. She ducked, then drove her elbow into his clavicle as she stood back up, shattering his collarbone. Then, she gave him a swift chop to his neck to stun him, then finished him off with a taser round to the chest, electrocuting him until he fell to the ground in a heap. The next terrorist fired blindly at Shadow Dancer's silhouette with his revolver, but she skilfully dodged his point blank gunfire with casual ease, quickly closing the distance on her dazed attacker. She spun in the air and delivered a devastating kick to the stallion's jaw, flattening him instantly.

"What's going on?" Luna wondered as she frantically looked for some figure within the smoke, but she only saw the flash of guns and enraged screams.

Another terrorist sprang at her with a bayoneted assault rifle, firing at her chest. But Shadow Dancer ducked just in time, cloaking just as she did a dive roll to the side. She grabbed two of her twelve throwing knives and slid under the stallion's legs, plunging them into his thighs and bringing him to his knees. She turned around and drove another two knives into his shoulders, and he quickly dropped his rifle as he groaned in agony. He was rendered unconscious instantly as Shadow Dancer smashed the palms of her hands against his temples. The fourth terrorist with a submachine gun was dispatched quickly as Shadow Dancer gave him a palm-heel to the bridge of his snout and fired a taser round into his stomach. A fifth terrorist swung at Shadow Dancer with twin machetes, flailing wildly like an enraged berserker. He swung low, then high, but every swing was evaded. Shadow Dancer then got inside his guard as she slid past him and sunk two throwing knives into his back, then finished him off with an elbow to the head.

The sixth terrorist was armed with a grenade launcher. Shadow Dancer attacked him swiftly and without hesitation; firing off an explosive weapon in such a contained area would seriously damage the building and endanger the hostages, and Shadow Dancer was determined the prevent that. She knocked the weapon out of his hands with a firm kick to the back of his right hand, and she followed up with a jab to the throat with a kick to the jaw; he crumpled as soon as she landed her hoof on his jaw. As the smoke dissipated, Shadow Dancer turned to the commander, who had just recovered from the effects of the flashbang. He grunted angrily as he pulled out the charge detonator in his pocket, and he drew his pistol before Shadow Dancer had the chance to react. He had her frozen in place, and they stood still with the immobilized Twilight, Celestia, and Luna between them.

"Don't move, sweetheart. I've got my finger on this detonator— I hit this and we all go up in flames," The commander said as Shadow Dancer put her hands up at her head level, then proceeded to grab the hidden blade on a compartment attached to her neck. "But you won't get the chance, pumpki-!"

Shadow Dancer tossed the blade into the barrel of the gun, causing it to backfire and explode in his hand, shredding the flesh to pieces. She then moved in for the knockout strike, and spun in a circle, launching a spinning back kick that slammed into his forehead with expert precision, causing him to drop the detonator. However, the commander was hardier than expected, and he regained his wits quickly. Though, she did not get the chance to retaliate, because as soon as he got back on his hooves, Shadow Dancer pinned him against the wall with her elbow against his throat, preventing him from reaching the detonator on the ground.

"Don't try it, you-!" Shadow Dancer gasped as the commander bit down on his tooth, releasing the cyanide inside his hollow tooth.

"Made you... look..." The commander wheezed with a wicked sneer as his eyes rolled back into his head; he was dead in seconds.

"Damn..." Twilight muttered as the commander's corpse dropped to the floor.

"Fuck! Shit!" Shadow Dancer cursed her own stupidity as she deactivated her visor. "Shining Armor, Twilight and the other two princesses are okay but the leader cracked open a cyanide tooth. He's dead."

"Dammit," Shadow Dancer could hear Shining Armor slam on something in an outrage. "He was our only easy way at finding out who orchestrated this."

"So what now...?" Shadow Dancer asked as she removed the princesses' restraints.

"Wait until Blue Thistle handles the armored squadron outside, then we'll get an extraction team there pronto to get you guys home," Shining Armor answered.

"Well, I think you should call in that chopper..." Shadow Dancer said as she peered out the window, watching Blue Thistle tear through the armored stallions. "Cause I think Blue Thistle just yawned a couple times. She's kinda just takin' her sweet time at this point."

Outside the parliament building, Blue Star was annihilating her attackers— if one could even call them 'attackers'. Blue Star tore off the helmet of one stallion's armor, then proceeded to knock him out with a light flick to the forehead. She then grabbed the hoof of another stallion, tossing him into a nearby boutique and caving-in the entire building. Blue Thistle then grabbed the rocket launcher from another stallion, broke it in half with her bare hands like a toothpick, then shattered his entire armor to pieces with a single jab to the chest.

The mecha then sprang into action, loading its fist back for a powerful right hook to Blue Thistle's face. However, the attack did not yield the desired effect whatsoever. Instead, the mech's whole arm exploded as it made contact with Blue Thistle's face; it was as if the machine had tried punching a mountain. Blue Thistle just stood in one spot, not even moving an inch nor flinching as the mecha tried for another punch to her chest; again, nothing. It's left arm shattered into a thousand pieces from the sheer force.

"You are sad machine..." Blue Thistle scoffed as she drove her fist into the mecha's power core, crushing it in her grasp. "Red Tsars make much better robots than this piece of wet tissue paper."

Another member of the armored squad ran at Blue Thistle with a combat knife, malice in his eyes. He stabbed at her chest, but it only managed to cut a wide hole through the top portion of her tank top, almost exposing her left breast.

"You cut hole in clothes!" Blue Thistle growled as she covered her chest, smoke billowing out of her ears. In a rage, she grabbed the sides of the stallion's armor, tore it right off his body, then fell the poor fool with a light smack across the face. "Why do stallions not know manners in this country?!" She sighed as she tore open the mecha's cockpit, revealing the driver inside. "Now... where were we?"

"Fuck you, bitch-!" The terrorist tried biting down on a cyanide pill, but Blue Thistle shoved her hand in his mouth and tore out the fake tooth before he could even blink. "Rraagghh!" The stallion screamed as he cocked back his fist, striking Blue Thistle right on the snout. Though, all that did was fracture his whole hand. "Arrggh! You stupid fuckin' bimbo!"

"Says stallion who failed at moving me single inch with robot punches, then uses regular punch and breaks hand on my face," Blue Thistle shook her head in disappointment as she dragged the flailing stallion of the mecha and tossed his tooth aside. "You make me sad watching you squirm. It is time to give up now."

"Wow... that was kind of boring," Shadow Dancer groaned as she watched Blue Thistle sit on the heap that once was the mecha and hold her captive stallion in place by gripping his hair. Shadow Dancer tilted her head at just the right angle, snickering as she peered into the hole in the buxom mare's tank top. "On the bright side... that's some good under-boob."

"I can hear you, Shadow Dancer..." Shining Armor grumbled through her communicator. "Can you stop ogling her?"

"F-fuck, I'm not gay! I just am acknowledging the obvious fact that she has great tits!" Shadow Dancer's face turned beet red as she tried to explain herself. "Shit, that does sound super gay..."

"Shadow Dancer I wasn't questioning your sexual orientation for Celestia's sake. Can you please just check on Twilight and the others?" Shining Armor asked her as he let out a sigh of exasperation.

"How you doin', fellas?" Shadow Dancer looked back at the remaining hostages who were all just regaining their composure.

"I'm okay..." Twilight shook her head as she closed her eyes, reluctant to look at the two corpses on the ground. "But they killed two ambassadors... shit."

"Okay, so on a scale of one to ten, I'd give your sister like a solid eight in terms of how well she is physically. But as for mentally... I'd give her something around a four..." Shadow Dancer answered Shining Armor.

"Yeah, well, she doesn't see ponies' heads explode on a regular basis, Shadow Dancer!" Shining Armor screamed at the top of his lungs in a fit of rage. "Everypony, get back to base... I think we all need a break. Let the authorities sort out the rest."

"Will do, Shining Armor," Shadow Dancer nodded as she deactivated her communicator, turning to Celestia and Luna. "I'll let the police handle the rest, your highness-... es? Shit, I'm sorry I wasn't fast enough to save those two..."

"Nonsense, you performed admirably. The other twelve ambassadors would've surely been dead if you and your team hadn't stepped in," Celestia reassured her.

"Tell me, what organization do you represent, Vanishing One?" Luna wondered.

"Uh..." Shadow Dancer forgot the name, but she turned to her right side, showcasing the silver ensign on her shoulder.

"The Equestrian Knights...?" Luna's eyes widened as she marveled at the iconic symbol, one that she thought she would never see again. "Perhaps the stars have aligned on this day... they have returned."

Season One | Episode Eight: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

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Shadow Dancer laid flat on the couch with chewing gum in her mouth, blowing bubbles absent-mindedly as she half-listened to Shining Armor's lecture about the events that had transpired the day before.

"Listen, guys, you can't just go around leveling city blocks left and right, okay?" Shining Armor sighed with frustration in his voice as Blaster put up his hand. "Yes, Blaster?"

"Uh, why am I in this little meeting? I wasn't a part of the mission..." Blaster shrugged his shoulders in confusion as he looked at the others gathered around the coffee table.

"You're here so that the others can be your example of what not to do whilst on duty in Equestria," Shining Armor answered him as he stood in front of the television.

"That logic is somewhat questionable, Shining Armor..." Gizmo spoke up, clearing his throat as he began to refute Shining Armor's statement. "Based on the nature of Blaster's abilities, don't you think he would use his power in a more responsible way than others would due to its volatility?"

"Gizmo, he hasn't had any training with his armor yet," Shining Armor shot him a counterpoint as he crossed his arms impatiently. "How do you propose we utilize Blaster's unarmored, bunker-levelling abilities in an urban area?"

"You know, we could always just ask Blaster how he feels about the whole situation instead of making wild assumptions about him..." Shadow Dancer bluntly interjected the two bickering stallions after he popped a cherry-flavored bubble. She then turned to Blaster, to which he awkwardly began to shake his head and stutter.

"W-well... I thought that was pretty cool, right? Nopony died at as a result of our actions, so... yeah." Blaster shrugged his shoulders once again as he motioned over to the TV, grabbing the remote to turn it on. "I mean, the news hasn't stopped yammering on about the "mysterious rescuers" today. Look."

Everypony directed their attention to the television, hearing the dramatic tune of the local news station play out as the wavy CGI of the intro faded out into the actual news segment. Two mares sat at the table. The one on the left had a poufy mane that was half blue on one side and magenta on the other, sapphire blue eyes, a cream complexion, and a blue two piece suit. The other mare on the right had a mane of brilliant cyan and white streaks, and a mint complexion. She also wore a red two-piece suit that seemed to act against the other mare's outfit. Both organized the papers on their desk diligently before they looked up at the audience with determination— the same kind of expression one would often see any other cliché anchor use.

"Good morning Equestria and welcome to Canterlot News, my name is Sweetie Drops..." The mare on the left stated with a serious tone of voice.

"And I'm Lyra Heartstrings." The mare to the right added as a red bar appeared on the bottom of the screen with the caption, 'The Parliament Attacks'.

"Today we are going to be covering the story that unfolded yesterday in Canterlot, a story that many ponies in Equestria will be talking about for a very long time to come," Sweetie Drops said as she clasped her hands together anxiously. "As you know from our coverage yesterday during the brutal carnage that unfolded at the parliament building, Princess Celestia, Luna, and Twilight Sparkle were all safely escorted out of the building by special forces after the violence was quelled. However, two ambassadors lie dead after the incident, and many Equestrians are asking questions regarding the attacks."

"The one question that is on everypony's mind today is, 'who rescued our princesses'? Well, this may be an easier question to answer than we originally thought." Lyra cleared her throat as a blurred picture of Blue Thistle facing off against the mecha was shown onscreen, displaying a brutal bout. Blue Thistle's grunted to herself as she analyzed the photos. "The image you are seeing now is one of four unknown ponies who brought down the terrorists, and this mare, according to reports, effortlessly destroyed the mechanized monster that kept the military at bay during the attacks using only her bare hands. Many captured the fight from afar as it unfolded, one of which was a Canterlot celebrity, Trenderhoof. Our city correspondent Maud Pie is with him right now. Go ahead, Ms. Pie..."

The news segment cut to a live interview in the streets of Canterlot with Trenderhoof. Maud Pie held up her microphone to a hipster pony's mouth with uninterested, blank expression on her face. "Thanks, Mrs. Heartstrings. What happened, Mr. Trenderhoof...?"

"Oh, where to begin? Well, I was up on my balcony snapping some photos of the attacks, and out of nowhere, I see this military helicopter fly by, dropping four ponies down to the street! The one that I managed to capture on my camera was this huge mare who hit like a freight train..." Trenderhoof explained eagerly as he recollected his memories. "I mean, whenever she landed a blow on that machine I felt the shockwave from my apartment. It was like she had bombs strapped to her hands or something!"

"Do you think they were on our side, Mr. Trenderhoof?" Maud Pie asked.

"Well, it's hard to tell right now, but I think they totally are. I mean, why else would they beat up those terrorists and leave Celestia and the others alone? I think they're working for the government— they must be." Trenderhoof answered her as she pulled the microphone away slowly.

"There you have it, Canterlot. Back to you, Sweetie Drops," Maud Pie mumbled as the segment cut away to the newsroom.

"Thank you, Ms. Pie..." Sweetie Drops nodded as she cleared her throat. "The Equestrian Minister of Defence is still being quiet about the situation, but the ponies of Equestria hope to receive answers within the next few days."

Shining Armor shook his head slowly as he turned the television off "It was too soon, dammit. This was too sudden. We caused a huge stir."

"But at least they didn't brand us as the villains, right?" Blaster chimed in, trying to incorporate his optimism into the mix.

"True, but they didn't call us heroes either..." Gizmo countered Blaster with his pessimism as he rested his leg on one knee, adjusting his glasses.

"A good point, but we still caused a sizeable amount of property damage," Shining Armor gestured to Blue Thistle with a head-bob, implying the direction of his statement. "You caused the most out of all of them, Blue Thistle."

"I did what was necessary," Blue Thistle defended herself as she sat in her recliner. "I was given no parachute— the impact was going to happen no matter what, you know this. The fight stayed on Main Street at least."

"I agree with Blue," Shadow Dancer aided Blue Thistle's stance on the topic. "We kept the fight on Main Street, and damages were nothing compared to what they could've been."

"Aw... I'm out of tea," Fae stuck her bottom lip out like a whimpering puppy as she stared down into her empty mug, barely paying any attention to the conversation at hand as she sat still beside Blaster and Gizmo on the couch facing away from the bar.

"I'll get you some more, Fae," Derpy assured her as she grabbed Fae's glass and ran over to the kettle on the stove.

"Regardless, we still can't control the Minister of Defence's wishes... she's a little skeptical," Shining Armor sighed as he placed his hands in his pocket. "She's commissioned a third supervisor to watch over the operation as his personal informant."

"Who's the guy?" Shadow Dancer wondered.

"I'm not sure yet," Shining Armor replied as he fiddled with his blazer. "But whoever he or she is, they're bound to have ample experience, I can assure you that. He'll be arriving shortly. My best guess is in an hour or so."

"So..." Blaster got out of his chair, whistling in a painfully obvious fashion that was intended to make himself stand out a little more. "What should we do in the meantime...?"

"Yes, Blaster, we'll test out your armor." Shining Armor chuckled lightly as he saw Blaster do a victorious fist-pump.

"Woo-!" Blaster was cut off by the loud electronic buzz being emitted by his watch. He ran to the blast chamber "Oh shit, give me a sec..."

"Watch your language!" Derpy shouted at him as he opened the chamber door.

"So..." Shadow Dancer twiddled her thumbs as the edge of the couch as her eyes turned to Blue Thistle, who was absent-mindedly fiddling with her replacement top, which was a size too small in the bust region. "Do you want to grab a drink? I don't know if I'd be interested in watching the light show, I'm still beat from yesterday. How about you?"

"I do not tire..." Blue Thistle replied in her usual unexcited voice. "But... I do get bored."

"So... yes?"

"Da..." Blue Thistle nodded slowly.

As Blaster and the others reorganized themselves and exited the facility, Blue Thistle, and Shadow Dancer sat alone at the bar in silence. Shadow Dancer was unsure how to talk to Blue Thistle. She seemed so cold and distant; it was hard to get her to come out of her shell. But there were moments where Shadow Dancer saw glints of light in her eyes, brief moments of happiness. She wanted to reach out to her because she knew how it felt to feel alone or worthless. She knew pain and suffering. To add to the tension between the two, Shadow Dancer felt a strong attraction to Blue Thistle; she hated that part of their dilemma the most.

"So... what will you have?" Shadow Dancer asked as she looped around the island, reaching under it to grab alcohol.

"Gin..." Blue Thistle grunted as she rested her elbows on the table. "Straight."

"Odd... I was expecting vodka," Shadow Dancer joke as she grabbed a short glass and poured the clear alcohol inside, handing it over to the giant mare; the glass looked tiny in her large yet slender hands. "There you go."

"Thanks..."Blue Thistle nodded as she took a sip, barely fazed by the strength of the beverage.

"You're a drinker then...?" Shadow Dancer laughed lightly as Blue Thistle handed Shadow Dancer her glass to fill it back up again.

"Da..." Blue Thistle grumbled as she drank her second glass in less than two seconds. She looked down at Shadow Dancer's beverage; an amber liquid sat within her glass. "What are you having?"

"Cognac..." Shadow Dancer exhaled deeply after she took a long sip from her glass. "Ah... my favorite."

"Huh," Blue Thistle said as she reached across the island to pour herself a glass of cognac. She prepared to down the whole glass like a shot, but Shadow Dancer stopped her before she had the chance, placing a finger around the edge of her glass. "What?"

"You can't just down it like water, silly. You gotta savor it," Shadow Dancer instructed the impatient mare as she placed a finger under her glass and applied a tiny amount of pressure so that a small amount of liquid could enter her mouth. "How is it?"

Blue Thistle closed her eyes and took a moment to let the alcohol sit in her mouth before she swallowed; it was a combination of many flavors. She tasted dark honey, coffee, dates, cinnamon; heavy spices and sweets that flowed smoothly down her throat, causing an overpowering warmth to wash over her as she swallowed. She sighed, surprised that she actually enjoyed the taste of alcohol for once. It was a new feeling for her.

"How was it...?" Shadow Dancer wondered, though, based on Blue Thistle's expression she already knew the answer.

"Good..." Blue Thistle grinned sheepishly as she tapped on her glass.

"I'm glad you like it," Shadow Dancer beamed as she looped around the table again, sitting down next to Blue Thistle. "You know... you have a great smile. You should do it more often."

Blue Thistle blushed and covered her mouth as she processed Shadow Dancer's words, trying to adjust her facial expression to her grave norm. Shadow Dancer laughed lightly as she took a sip from her glass, closing her eyes as she took a moment to let her taste buds run wild.

"I'm just teasing you, Blue..." Shadow Dancer smiled as she finished off her glass of cognac. Her eyes hovered over to the large knife next to the cutting board that was left out on the table; this gave her an idea. "Hey... so since we're drinking... maybe we could play a little game?"

"Does it have anything to do with drinking?" Blue Thistle turned to Shadow Dancer as her expression returned to its neutral state.

"Nah, but it's challenging to play after a few drinks or so," Shadow Dancer grabbed the knife and held it above her left hand that laid flat on the table. "Ever play Five-Finger Fillet?"

"Niet, what is it?" Blue Thistle asked, genuinely curious.

"Well, all you have to do is this..." Shadow Dancer demonstrated, stabbing just a few millimeters in between each of her fingers in order; from the thumb to index finger— all the way back to her thumb once again as she worked backward and forwards over and over. "If you slice your finger, you... uh, you don't really win anything. But you do look super cool if you speed it up!" Shadow Dancer's face turned hot-blooded and determined as she sped up her pace, skillfully stabbing in between each digit without hesitation. As she reached a point where she could not go any faster, she stopped and put the knife back down, gesturing to Blue Thistle to pick it up. "Your turn."

Blue Thistle began sluggishly, taking care with every stab. Then she worked her way up to a leisurely pace. However, she soon slipped up as she let her confidence get the best of her. The blade shattered into bits as it struck her skin, launching bits and pieces of stainless steel across the island. Shadow Dancer snorted softly, then she broke into hysteric giggles as she rested her forehead on the table. At first, Blue Thistle was a little confused, but then she too found it hard not to chuckle along with her; Shadow Dancer's giggles were highly contagious.

Shadow Dancer calmed down as she saw Blue Thistle stroke her purple hair, causing the left side of her mane to be pushed back behind her ear, revealing all of Blue Thistle's face. Even without makeup, she was positively stunning— a natural beauty that even Shadow Dancer found hard to match. Her long eyelashes, her smooth face, they all seemed to blend together perfectly. Her sapphire eyes stood out the most about her, and they contrasted her gray complexion in such a mystifying and hypnotic way. Her smile nearly caused Shadow Dancer to melt inside, and her face flushed red. Her infatuation soon twisted into frustration, however, as she came to grips with what was happening.

"Fuck..." Shadow Dancer thought as she scowled and clenched her fists tightly, bowing her head and letting her hair conceal her expression. "This is just synthetic... I don't like mares."

"Are you okay?" Blue Thistle stopped laughing when she saw the obvious change in Shadow Dancer's demeanor.

"I'm fine... I'm just tired is all," Shadow Dancer got up off her seat. "I'm gonna hit the hay I think."

"Okay..." Blue Thistle said worrisomely as she watched Shadow Dancer wander up the stairs to her room without another word.

****

"Alright, Blaster. On three I'll release the drones into the air; you have to shoot them down, okay?" Shining Armor relayed the plan once again to the armored Blaster as he placed his index finger on the console nearby that was attached to a crate full of hovering drones.

They had set up target practice in a small, sunny clearing behind the facility, surrounded by willow trees and large rocks that poked out of the ground, ones large enough to cast shadows over the flat terrain of the area. Fae, Derpy, and Gizmo sat on the sidelines against the back wall of the base, watching their comrade as he tested his armor's efficiency.

"Okay..." Blaster took a few deep breaths as he fastened his helmet on his head, waiting for it to fully lock-in. "I'm ready!"

"You can do it, Blaster!" Derpy cheered her friend on as his armor began to clank and emit gusts of steam as he moved forward.

Shining Armor released the swarm of six drones from the crate with the push of a button, and they whizzed about in the air, trying to confuse Blaster. He narrowed his vision, activating his visor's built-in targeting systems. He locked onto one drone, then raised his right arm, opening his hand wide to let his energy pour into it. The red laser blast emitted a loud 'bamf' as it escaped the palm of his hand, incinerating the steel-reinforced drone into a molten liquid. What was odd about the beams of heat is the fact that there seemed to be no radiation that burned any other object besides the target; this was the armor using Blaster's abilities to control how the heat energy of attacks would behave.

"Whoa!" Blaster gasped as he looked at his steaming palm and back at the puddle of lava on the ground. "This is amazing!"

"His energy output is astounding..." Gizmo thought as he watched Blaster's suit absorb more and more of his energy as adrenaline put his powers into overdrive. "I wonder if he has a limit..."

"Go Blaster!" Fae clapped excitedly.

Blaster locked onto three targets at once, blasting them away with beams of energy from his hands and his visor, liquefying three other drones. He then honed in on another drone, searing it into a puddle as he kicked in its direction, releasing a laser from his hoof. Then, he directed his attention to a drone flying much higher than the others. With a single bound, he propelled himself into the air with a burst of energy, scorching a small patch of ground beneath his hooves as he rocketed towards his foe. With an enormous amount of energy, he shot upwards out of his visor, releasing a pillar of energy three meters in diameter; that attack didn't reduce the last drone to lava, it practically wiped it from existence.

"It was completely disintegrated!" Derpy gawked as Blaster landed on the ground with a thud.

"Total ," Gizmo said to himself confidently as he nodded.

"Blasty, that was so cool!" Fae practically screamed as she ran over to praise Blaster.

"Good job, Blaster... maybe we'll test sustained flight tomorrow." Shining Armor placed a hand on Blaster's shoulder as he exited his armor. "But I think that might be a tad trickier."

"Really?! Wow, that'd be awesome! I think I almost actually had it for a second there!" Blaster grinned as he closed the armor with the push of a button.

"Well, don't get too ahead of yourself. You don't have a computer to help you with flight so you'll have to learn on your own. " Shining Armor brought Blaster back to reality; he was reluctant to let him get an inflated head after such a successful test.

In the distance, they all heard a slow clap and the sound of hoofsteps on grass. A new, very pronounced and elegant voice spoke up. His proper Canterlot accent was dripping with narcissism. "Oh how very marvelous indeed. What an astonishing display of such raw unhinged power. You are truly one of a kind, Blaster..."

"Thanks... and who are you?" Blaster scratched his head as he turned to face the extensively dress stallion who was approaching them.

The stallion had long blonde hair, a spotless white complexion, and cobalt blue eyes. He was impossibly charming, and he had an air about him that exuded wit and grace. His suit was all white with a single red rose in his breast pocket, and he wore a gold wrist watch adorned with diamonds and brown leather shoes that could probably feed a homeless pony for a decade. It was not difficult for anypony who saw him to assume he was in the category of royalty.

"Oh, so she sent you, huh...?" Shining Armor scoffed, clearly disgusted by the presence of the stallion in front of him.

"Oh be nice, Shining Armor... I'm simply doing my job," The noble stallion smirked as he shot Shining Armor a smug grin. "I am Prince Blueblood... I shall be your other 'supervisor'."

Season One | Episode Nine: A Total Dic-... Dictator

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It didn't take long for the whole team to hate Blueblood. He was shrewd, stubborn, and an extreme narcissist— more so than Gizmo, which even impressed him. Sure, Gizmo may have been a hard one to get along with, but Blueblood was impossible to relate to or even understand. It was as if he lived in some sort of an alternate reality where he was an omnipotent entity, an all-knowing deity. Thankfully, Shining Armor was there to pop his bubble whenever he got too much of an inflated head.

"Is there any champagne?" Blueblood asked Shadow Dancer, who was about to pour a drink for him at the bar.

"No, there's only brandy, vodka, gin, and cognac..." Shadow Dancer groaned; only knowing him for a half hour made her want to rip her hair out.

"Cognac? Ugghh... what a bourgeois drink," Blueblood shivered in disgust, to which Shadow Dancer's eye twitched slightly. "Have you any civilized beverages?"

"You get what you get, Blueblood," Shining Armor said bluntly as he marched over to the bar and poured him a glass of gin.

"Why the hostility, chum? I merely asked for a drink..." Blueblood laughed lightly under his breath as Shining Armor set his drink down on the coffee table in front of him.

"In worst way possible..." Shining Armor muttered to himself as he sat down on the couch adjacent to Blueblood with the others gathered around him. "Why did the Minister send you?"

"Oh, you know moi, it could've been for a number of reasons; devilish good looks, charisma, gravitas... you get the idea," Blueblood smirked as he sniffed his glass. "Uggh, repulsive. I'm not drinking this caustic garbage."

"I will..." Shining Armor sighed as he downed the whole drink in one go. "Anyways, you were getting to the real answer to my question, right?"

"Ah, yes. Well you see, the Minister has taken a liking to me recently; I've gotten on his good side. His wishes are for me to inform him of the goings-on at this establishment to make sure you are all following protocol." Blueblood explained in his usual flippant manner. "If I see an issue, I report it. If I report it, the members of this team will face consequences."

"So they still don't trust us then, right?" Shadow Dancer shook her head in disappointment as she drank straight vodka from a shot glass. "Makes sense I guess..."

"Of course it does, you're all dangerous criminals with abilities that could pose a serious threat to national security. If this team is to succeed it needs order, an order only achievable through the watchful eyes of moi." Blueblood hummed to himself, enjoying the sound of his own voice.

"This sounds like Red Tsar secret police," Blue Thistle scoffed at the cunning stallion as she crossed her arms, leaning up against the wall behind Shadow Dancer.

"Oh, I almost forgot you were here, Blue Star! How is your brother?" Blueblood said in an overly cheery tone of voice.

"My name is Blue Thistle, and my brother is fine," Blue Thistle grumbled as she leaned up against the refrigerator, watching as Shadow Dancer grabbed some ice from the tray and placed it in three glasses; one for herself, one for Blue Thistle, and one for Blaster, who had to refuel a little after the training exercise. Blue Thistle's eyes wandered towards Shadow Dancer's ample rear as she bent over to grab the ice, though, she quickly looked forward as Shadow Dancer got back up. "Uh, you are good at bartending, yes?"

"Well, I'm no professional; any idiot can pick up a drink and pour it into a glass, I just do it more often than others," Shadow Dancer let out a somewhat cold chuckle as she remembered all the times she passed out drunk in her apartment. "I guess that tells you a bit about my character, huh?"

"No, no, it's fine. I get it. My comrades during the war would drink a bit too," Blue Thistle reassured Shadow Dancer. "It can be a release for some ponies."

"Have you ever gotten drunk?" Shadow Dancer wondered as she handed Blue Thistle her gin.

"Niet, never once," Blue Thistle shook her head as she drank her gin. "It takes many drinks to get me off-balance."

"I'd assume so since, well, you know..." Shadow Dancer gestured to all of the giant mare next to her then gasped, believing she had phrased her sentence in an offensive way. "I mean, you're not large in that way, you're just-."

"It is fine, Shadow Dancer..." Blue Thistle laughed as she saw Shadow Dancer's face flush red. "Looks like I made you blush, eh? Is the score now even?"

"Ah, yeah. You got me..." Shadow Dancer turned away suddenly, handing Blaster his drink as an excuse to breathe a little. "Fuck, why am I flirting with her? Why the fuck do I always do this? Why can't I just like a stallion for once?"

"Shadow Dancer, are you okay...?" Blaster could see Shadow Dancer's face twitching violently as she placed his drink out on the coffee table in front of him.

"Fine! Perfectly fine!" Shadow Dancer sang in an eccentric fashion as she waltzed back over to the bar, determined to keep a friendly, platonic conversation with Blue Thistle. "So, how you doin', Blue?"

"Um... okay?" Blue Thistle raised an eyebrow at Shadow Dancer as an uncomfortable grin stretched across the awkward mare's face.

"You look like you have to pee, Dancer!" Fae giggled as she watched them interact from the end of the bar island.

"Oh yes, you must be Fae, correct? I recognized you from that child-like demeanor of yours." Blueblood bowed politely to Fae, greeting her in a sort of passive-aggressive manner. "I look forward to working with you." Blueblood exhaled deeply before walking back to the entrance of the building, dusting off his clothes and rubbing hand sanitizer into his palms. "I best be tending to that dreadful secretary of yours, Shining Armor. She's certainly a klutz, isn't she?"

"Yeah..." Shining Armor turned to Blaster, placing a hand on his shoulder to calm him down before he said anything rash to Blueblood. "You go do that."

"Wow... what an asshole." Shadow Dancer scoffed as she glared at Blueblood, who vanished behind the entryway of the living quarters.

"I certainly wanna give that guy a kick in the junk," Blaster grumbled, hearing Blueblood berate Derpy from afar.

"Should I be mad he called me a child?" Fae asked Shining Armor.

"No, he treats everypony like they're a child." Shining Armor sighed as he leaned back on the couch. "Say... where's Gizmo?"

"Right here," Gizmo replied from under the central computer, fiddling with more wires and mechanisms. "I couldn't bear to hear that insufferable aristocrat drone on for any longer about his presence at various diplomatic meetings."

"If you did that I'd probably kill you by now." Shadow Dancer stated as she sat down at the bar table with her head against the counter. "No hard feelings."

"I'd kill me too," Gizmo said with a screwdriver in his mouth. "I can tolerate boasting, but bragging about diplomatic affairs is beyond stupid. Any mouthpiece can spew exposition about peace and kindness; it takes a real laureate to actually change hearts and minds. Hearing him just made me want to vomit."

This was one of Gizmo's often overlooked traits; his ability to read and understand other ponies instantaneously. Perhaps when he was speaking to the wrong individuals, his rants would not have gone over well, but with the team, this brighter side of Gizmo blossomed. When he aimed his criticisms at the right ponies, it made for great entertainment.

"Couldn't have said it better myself, Gizmo," Shining Armor laughed as he got off the couch, reaching into his pocket to grab his vibrating phone; it was Cadence. "Crap gotta take this... hey, honey." He walked off, leaning up against the pillar that supported the long staircase near the center. "Yeah, I'm fine, Blueblood buggered off a few moments ago, so... I'm just recuperating."

"So, what are you doing down there, Giz?" Shadow Dancer asked as she peeked under the opened panel in the side of the central computer that Gizmo was working in.

"I'm retooling the AI systems— they're incredibly bare-bones. I figured this would be a project to work on as an excuse to avoid conversation." Gizmo pronounced the last two words with extra power as he stared right at Shadow Dancer, implying to her to cease the discussion.

"Oh, um, sorry..." Shadow Dancer did a frantic half-skip back to the lounge area as soon as the memo sunk in, and she sat beside Fae, who was spinning in her seat giggling. "It is not hard to entertain you, huh?"

"Nope!" Fae beamed as she swiveled on her stool around and around. "I love spinny things!"

In a huff, Derpy trudged over to Blaster, sitting down beside him with a stack of files in her hands. "Who thought it was a good idea to give Blueblood power? Who?!"

"What's that...?" Blaster cocked his head from side to side as he took a closer look at the stack of documents filled to the brim with papers.

"Paperwork. I'm sorting each agent's file into alphabetical order, color-coding them, then putting into a filing cabinet. He wants this done tonight!" Derpy removed her glasses and set her head on the stack of files. "I thought this would be fun..."

"You know you're the secretary, right?" Gizmo said from inside the computer.

"I know I am! It sounded much easier on the job description..." Derpy poked out her lower lip as she whimpered on top of the mountain of paper. "He told me he'd fire me if I didn't get it done..."

"Don't worry, I'll help you. I won't let that snot-nosed brat make everypony around him miserable." Blaster offered, a spark of determination in his eyes.

"What the hell? I'll help you out." Shadow Dancer volunteered as she sat down on the adjacent couch.

"I shall as well," Blue Thistle added as she sat beside Shadow Dancer. "But... I don't know how."

"All for one and one for all then, musketeers?" Gizmo said sarcastically as he soldered two wires together, insisting that he stay in his place and tend to the computer.

"What is a file? Is it some kind of bug?" Fae inquired as she plopped down on the loveseat next to Blaster.

"You could call them that I suppose..." Derpy groaned as she handed a stack of papers to each pony. "Place them in piles according to the first letter of the last name, then we'll organize each pile so they're in order as well."

"What? Cadence, run that by me again..." Shining Armor had a hard time processing her sentence.

"They've released me, Shining Armor. If you can't come home, I want to visit you tonight. I haven't seen you in weeks, and your daughter needs to see her father once in a while," Cadence repeated herself with motherly firmness in her voice. "I'll only visit for the afternoon, then I'll go right back home with Flurry Heart after that."

"No, I-... you've got stitches, honey. I can't just-." Images of the explosion flashed before Shining Armor's eyes; he couldn't let something like that happen again.

"I will be fine, sweetheart, trust me." Cadence insisted.

"But what if there's another attack? I can't put you at risk, especially not when Flurry Heart is with you..." Shining Armor shook his head in frustration as the visions of his injured wife kept working their way back into his skull. "If you are, I'm going to have the most elite guards accompanying you to the facility, nothing less. Is that okay?"

"It's fine, honey. I'm not foolish enough to go anywhere without them." Cadence assured her husband. "Your team is as kind and cooperative as you say they are, right?"

"Yeah, I-..." Shining Armor trailed off as he turned to Shadow Dancer and the others laughing together as they sorted through the piles of paper. "Yes, yes they are."

"Then I look forward to my visit," Cadence said confidently in her calm and soothing voice, a voice that always melted Shining Armor's worries. Regardless, he still retained much skepticism in regards to her plan. "And... dear?"

"Yes?" Shining Armor unintentionally mumbled.

"Please don't tell the driver to take us home instead..." Cadence pleaded with her husband; she knew him too well to trust his 'yes'. "I know you're scared, and I think about what happened every day since... but you can't live in fear, not in times like this. I want your daughter to see you— now more than ever. Promise me you won't tell the driver to turn around?"

"I promise..." Shining Armor muttered reluctantly, swallowing his doubts. He smiled as he heard his daughter's sweet voice in the background— a whimsical and innocent little squeak that could slay any dark thought he may harbor. "Is she with you?"

"Yes, would you like to speak to her?" Cadence laughed along with her daughter, who was snickering in the background.

"Yes..." Shining Armor sighed with relief as he heard his daughter's soft breathing as she took the phone.

"Hi, daddy..." Flurry Heart peeped.

"Hi, little mouse..." Shining Armor's grin grew wide as he continued. "How are you?"

"I'm really excited to see you, daddy!" Flurry Heart said with a sort of hum to her voice.

"I am too, sweetheart," Shining Armor chuckled as he waved to Shadow Dancer, who was overjoyed hearing his conversation with his daughter. "You'll love everypony here too, they're really nice."

"That's good. Do I get to meet the big mare who punched that bad robot?!" Flurry Heart became positively ecstatic as she envisioned herself with the team.

"Yes, you will, sweetie," Shining Armor stepped out of the shadows and walked back over to the lounge area, letting the whole team hear his discussion. "You get to meet all of them."

"Yay!" Flurry Heart cheered as she prepared to hang up the phone. "See you later, daddy! I love you!"

"I love you too, sweetie..." Shining Armor hung up, placing the phone in his pocket as he let out a long sigh and sat down on a barstool. "Well, my wife and daughter are coming to visit..."

"What? Really? That's awesome!" Blaster grinned as he tossed a paper into a nearby stack on the coffee table. "When?"

"This afternoon— probably around one or two o' clock." Shining Armor answered him as he overheard Blueblood in the lobby barking at the employees with one of his trademark pseudo-intellectual rants. "Somepony has to keep Blueblood busy while they're here."

"I think he's already doing that on his own..." Shadow Dancer rolled his eyes as she overheard his rant as well. "What a dick."

"Hey, that's a little uncall-...." Shining Armor cut himself off before he went any further with that sentence, realizing who he was about to defend. "Yeah, he's a dick."

Season One | Episode Ten: To Find A Raven

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Flurry Heart was shaking with anticipation, running past her mother as she entered to visit with her father's new team in the lounge area. She bounced about the couches and tables, frantically introducing herself to each group member.

"Hi, I'm Flurry Heart! Hi, I'm Flurry Heart! Hi, I'm Flurry Heart! Hi, I'm Flurry Heart!" She ricocheted from pony to pony, hopping like a rabbit on a spring morning. Although, she stopped dead in her tracks as she saw Blue Thistle. "Oooo...." Flurry Heart was positively ecstatic as she ran over to see the giantess, awe-struck by her sheer size. She sat next to Blue Thistle by the bar fridge, climbing her like a tree.

"Young lady, that's not how we introduce ourselves!" Cadence scolded the young filly, to which she obeyed without question and jumped down onto the floor.

"Sorry, mommy..." Flurry Heart tapped her fingers together in embarrassment as she stood before Blue Thistle and the others, giving them all a polite curtsey and a bow like an upper-class lady would. "Hello, everypony. My name is Flurry Heart. It's a pleasure to meet you." Truth be told, she didn't seem very enthusiastic with her greeting.

"Oh, aren't you the cutest thing?!" Fae giggled as she picked Flurry Heart up and nuzzled her snout against hers. "My name is Fae!"

"He, he, he!" Flurry Heart beamed as Fae hovered in the air for a moment, spinning rapidly. "Wee!"

"I'm certain you all know who I am, but just in case, my name is Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. I rule the Crystal Empire with my husband, Shining Armor. It's a pleasure to meet you all. I've heard good things about everypony, and I thank you for assisting my fellow princesses." Cadence bowed to the team as she sat near the central computer, practically glowing with graceful brilliance and beauty. "What a lovely establishment you have built, dear."

Cadence was certainly a Princess of Love alright; her smile lit up the entire room, her slender yet shapely figure was shown off well in her long sequin, cyan dress, and her long, predominantly pink hair was combed and had a natural sheen to it. She walked with the poise of Celestia and Luna, yet somehow she managed to make her strides her own, unique to her own personality. One could tell right away that she had a very adventurous nature, a spark in her eye, one that Shining Armor was drawn to from the very first moment he met her. As everypony acknowledged her greeting, she sat down on the couch next to Blaster, attentively examining the stacks of papers on the coffee table.

"Wow, the Princess of the Crystal Empire is sitting next to me..." Blasters brow was almost sweaty.

"You know, I'm technically the Prince, right?" Shining Armor mentioned, hungry for a little recognition.

"Yeah, well, you aren't as pretty as her," Shadow Dancer joked, to which Shining Armor scrunched up his face at her.

"Oh my, you flatter me..." Cadence gave an embarrassed laugh as Shining Armor handed her a glass of white wine. "You are Shadow Dancer, correct?"

"Yep, the one and only..." Shadow Dancer grinned as she rested her hoof on one knee as she laid back on the couch across from Cadence. "How did a mare like you end up with a guy like Shiny Pants over here?"

"Oh, it's a long story. We grew up together— I used to take care of Twilight when she was much younger, and Shining Armor here would often admire me in the background." Cadence poked fun at Shining Armor as he poured himself a drink.

"Hey, the admiring was mutual," Shining Armor interjected. "Eventually we became closer once I became Captain of the Guard and she became royalty..."

"One thing led to another, and here we are— we've going strong for seven years," Cadence said as he took a small sip from her wine glass.

"Can you pick me up?" Flurry Heart jumped up and down with her arms outstretched, begging Blue Thistle, who still stood beside the fridge in a stoic manner.

"Um... I'm not-..." Blue Thistle looked up at Cadence for assurance, and she nodded enthusiastically. "Okay..." Blue Thistle grabbed Flurry Heart under the shoulders and lifted her high into the air, pretending she was a plane of some sort, soaring through the sky.

"Huh... my father used to do that with me," Derpy said warmly to Blaster as she saw the wide grin on Flurry Heart's face.

"Wee!" Flurry Heart roared as Blue Thistle made propeller noises with her lips, running around the living area with a smile on her face.

"She has a strong maternal side to her..." Cadence smiled as she watched her daughter shriek and giggle with delight.

"You look as if you are in deep thought. Is something troubling you, your majesty?" Gizmo spoke up, noticing her odd expression.

"Oh, nothing, I'm merely daydreaming. You must be... Gizmo, correct?" Cadence guessed.

"Correct," Gizmo pointed to her wings in a very blunt manner. "May I inquire how you acquired those appendages?"

"Oh, my wings?" Cadence raised a brow at him as she unfurled her right wing. "These were gifted to me to me by my Celestia."

"Celestia you say? Interesting..." Gizmo mumbled to himself as he brought out a notepad from the inside pocket of his blazer, writing at an incredible pace.

"Are you intending to study alicorns?" Cadence inquired.

"Something like that..." Gizmo muttered, still scribbling.

"Forgive him, he's a bit of a quack," Shadow Dancer sighed, watching as Gizmo got up and paced around the central computer in deep thought.

"No, it's fine. I've dealt with ponies like him before..." Cadence assured her, thinking back to her experiences with a young Twilight. She then got up off the couch and shuffled over to Shining Armor. "Where's the washroom...?"

"Just over there," Shining Armor replied as he pointed to the sliding door behind the staircase. "Use the furthest stall , please?" As Cadence scurried over to the washroom, Shadow Dancer followed, giving Shining Armor a long, awkward glance as she entered. "What are you-?"

"I'm just going to the washroom, geez." Shadow Dancer said, almost blurting her words out as she closed the sliding door.

"What's that all about?" Shining Armor shrugged his shoulders as he sat down in Cadence's spot on the couch, smiling as his daughter hugged his leg tightly as soon as his rear touched the seat. "Hey, pumpkin. How's it going?"

"Blue Thistle is really nice and really, really tall!" Flurry Heart whispered to her father as she waved to Blue Thistle, who stood in front of the bar, waving back hesitantly with a half smile on her face. "Where's mommy?"

"She went to the bathroom, sweetie, she'll be out soon. In the meantime, let's help Ditzy with her paperwork, okay?" Shining Armor answered her, handing her a file. "Here, I need you to sort out this document in alphabetical order. Can you do that for me?"

"Aye, aye, Captain!" Flurry Heart put on a serious face as she saluted her father, grabbing the file and hopping up onto the loveseat.

Shadow Dancer carefully made her way to the furthest stall in the washroom, entering the stall right beside it, trying her best to make it appear as if she genuinely wished to go to the bathroom. As she sat down on the toilet, she heard Cadence shuffle a bit; this made Shadow Dancer a little uneasy. She began tapping her hoof against the floor tiles, trying to distract herself from the awkward situation. A hundred questions of what to ask her echoed in Shadow Dancer's mind, jumbling up into an unorganized mess of frustration and doubt.

"Shadow Dancer? Is that you?" Cadence piped up, recognizing the hooves in the stall next to her.

"Uh, yeah... I had to go as well I guess..." Shadow Dancer let out an almost desperate laugh as she worked up the nerve to ask her a burning question. "Hey, Cadence...? You're the Princess of Love, right? That's what they call you?"

"Yes, why?" Cadence raised an eyebrow at the strangeness of her question.

"Well... can you 'fix' who a pony likes and dislikes? And by that I mean, can you change the chemistry of a pony? Their preferences?" Shadow Dancer wondered, twiddling her thumbs neurotically.

"I'm not sure who told you that, but I can't do something like that," Cadence replied. "Why would you wish to do such a thing?"

"Well, I've been having... feelings lately, those kind..." Shadow Dancer kept fighting with herself to just go ahead and tell Cadence what she's been feeling. "I've had my eyes on somepony... and that somepony just so happens to... well, not be a stallion...?"

"I see... and is there an issue with this?" Cadence pondered.

"No, no, no... I have no problem with other mares doing... you know..." Shadow Dancer panicked, trying to defend herself. "It's just-... I'm not that mare..."

"I think you aren't being true to yourself, Shadow Dancer. I can hear it in your voice," Cadence deduced. "Why do you resist who you are?"

"I don't, I-..." Shadow Dancer fell silent as she stared down at the ground. "I'm a mare... I'm supposed to like stallions..." Tears began to pool in her eyes. "I've tried to... do stuff with stallions again and again— to fix me. I just-... fuck."

Admittedly, Cadence took a peek at Shadow Dancer's file during her two weeks in the hospital, reading over her bio and background. Evidently, Shadow Dancer was an oddity. Out of the seventy-seven clones, Shadow Dancer was the only female— the result of an error in the chromosomal organization process during cloning. She was meant to be male. Cadence postured that perhaps this was why she felt so conflicted with her own emotions, that perhaps she thought what she felt was synthetic.

"Shadow Dancer, you mustn't fret about something like that. If you keep denying what you feel, you'll just tear yourself apart. If you like mares, you like mares. I can't change that and neither can you," Cadence thought back to the lounge; she had noticed Shadow Dancer giving Blue Thistle brief but longing glances. "And I don't mean to pry, but... is the mare you're interested in Blue Thistle by chance?"

"Yeah..." Shadow Dancer said shamefully as she exited her stall along with Cadence, and they both washed their hands at the large 'sink' tray with six nozzles that stretched from the exit to Cadence's stall; both toilets had automatically flushed as they closed their stall door. "I don't know what to do. I mean... we're supposed to be professional, right?"

"When the situation demands it, yes. But... it wasn't professional between Shining Armor and I when we were dating; at that time he was still Captain of the Guard and I was still a princess." Cadence replied, trying her best to reassure the confused mare. "We still rule together, though, he's a bit more occupied with other commitments nowadays."

"I know it's none of my business, but... I can sometimes see a lot of fear in his eyes— Shining Armor's. The attempt on your life really tore him up I think..." Shadow Dancer said calmly as she grabbed a handful of paper towel from the dispenser on the wall.

"I know, he's been through this before, but... not like this. He'll get over it eventually, but in the meantime, we all just have to cope with his worrisome self," Cadence stopped Shadow Dancer just before she grabbed the door handle. "Hey, remember what I said." Cadence gave Shadow Dancer a wink and a grin. "You can have a little fun on the side, right?"

"Yeah... I get ya," Shadow Dancer laughed as she exited, wiping off the remaining moisture on her hands on her blue jeans.

She felt a hand grab her shoulder as she closed the door behind her; it was Blueblood. "Ah, Shadow Dancer! Just the mare I was looking for! Could I speak to you in private for a moment?"

"Um... sure...?" Shadow Dancer replied, a little uncomfortable.

****

"Do it again, Gizmo, do it again!" Flurry Heart clapped as she excitedly pointed towards the nearest object on the bar table; a glass of apple juice that Blue Thistle had just filled.

"Alright..." Gizmo grumbled from the recliner right of the television as he cocked back his fist, aiming at the glass. With a thrust of his mechanical arm, his hand rapidly extended from his wrist like a tendril and grabbed the glass. His hand retracted, popping back into place, and he handed the drink to Flurry Heart. "Here you go..."

"That's so cool!" Flurry Heart beamed as she drank her glass full of the sweet, amber liquid.

"How did you manage to implement such advanced machinery in your body?" Cadence asked, scratching her head at Gizmo's cybernetic limbs.

"Most of my augments were self-implanted. I used nanobots to do most of the minuscule work— restructuring my flesh and blood to cooperate with my tech. Then I amputated my organic appendages and replaced them." Gizmo replied as his right hand spun in his wrist like a propeller.

"That sounds... painful..." Derpy cringed as she gripped her shoulder, imagining what life would be like without her precious appendages.

"Hardly," Gizmo sighed as his hand locked back into place. "It's like my father always used to say to me, 'There's nothing a little morphine can't fix'."

"And yet you were arrested for corporate theft and tax evasion?" Shining Armor chuckled as he took a sip of his white wine. "Say, where's Shadow Dancer...?"

"I'm not sure... she exited the washroom just a few minutes before me. Perhaps she decided to take a walk?" Cadence postured.

"Yeah, maybe..." Shining Armor muttered to himself, looking over towards the entryway of the living area; it wasn't like her to just wander off.

"Well... I'm done," Derpy groaned loudly as she slumped over on the couch, staring blankly at the organized stacks of files on the coffee table. "I think I'll fall into a coma now."

****

Shadow Dancer was escorted into a separate room on the second floor, a briefing room for agents. The room was simplistic, decorated with various stock artwork one would find at a typical, cheap furniture store, and the large round table in the center had eight black chairs all around it. Shadow Dancer sat down on the chair closest to the entrance, and Blueblood sat down right across from her, grabbing a touch tablet out of the inside pocket of his jacket and setting it on the table. He tapped a few buttons, then presented an image to Shadow Dancer. It was some pony in an extensive black combat suit, a unicorn to be sure. Though, the low quality of the image and the dark background made it hard to discern the pony's gender. The long cape and hood shrouding the figure also made it tricky, as no fur or other distinct features could be made out, save for the pony's glowing white eyes.

"What am I looking at right now?" Shadow Dancer wondered, puzzled by the image.

"You are looking at a local legend of Manehattan, Shadow Dancer, a ghost story that's been going around for the past six months. They call this pony The Raven, and this is the only picture we have of whoever this pony is." Blueblood leaned back in his chair as he continued. "This unidentified pony appeared in Manehattan suddenly, taking out street thugs and drug dealers. But lately this pony has gotten bold, and he's knocked out various crime lords all across the city. The streets of Manehattan are abuzz with talk of this vigilante, and various organizations have put a bounty on this pony's head; innocent ponies are getting caught in the crossfire."

"Sounds heavy... why tell me?" Shadow Dancer asked, still examining the picture.

"Because you know the inner-workings of the criminal underworld, Miss Dancer. You may have been stationed in Las Pegasus for a time, but your former employers have ties to Manehattan." Blueblood answered her as he placed the tablet back in his pocket. "The crime world doesn't know you're on this team yet, and I'd like to keep it that way for this mission. I want you to do some digging— find out what you can about this pony, then apprehend him using any means necessary. I wish to recruit this vigilante into our ranks."

"This seems awful shady... what's your angle, Blueblood?" Shadow Dancer raised an eyebrow at him; he didn't seem like a very trustworthy pony.

"Please, call me Vladimir. And there's no angle, I can assure you, Miss Dancer." Blueblood stood up, putting his hand out for a shake. "Does this task sound acceptable?"

Shadow Dancer took a moment to think. She knew she had the best chance at finding the vigilante given her extensive espionage capabilities, and she had nothing better to do. But admittedly, she felt a little torn. She wanted to spend a little more time with her team, especially Blue Thistle. But she couldn't stand idly by and let innocents get gunned down over a wild goose-chase. If the pony in question was as good as Blueblood thought, she'd have to step in.

Shadow Dancer shook Blueblood's hand somewhat hesitantly. "When do I start?"

"Today if you wish," Blueblood replied as he stood at the door. "I can have you flown in this afternoon."

"Alright... you got yourself a spy, Vlad," Shadow Dancer nodded as she got out of her chair. "You better not be pulling the wool over my eyes with this one."

Season One | Episode Eleven: Bright Lights, Dark City (In The Raven's Nest: Part One)

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Blue Thistle peered through the cockpit window of the military helicopter with Shadow Dancer beside her; they both simply stared on in awe at the grandeur of Manehattan. There were buildings as tall as Cadence's castle in the Crystal Empire —skyscrapers that nearly touched the clouds— and each one was made of spotless glass, shining in the evening sun. Below the skyline were ocean side resorts, financial buildings, stock exchanges, everything that made Manehattan the center of business in the world. And to the left of all of this grand scale architecture were droves of primarily concrete, three story apartments as far as the eye could see; this was where the common folk just trying to make a living dwelled. They seemed like two separate worlds so close together, yet so far from each other; the common ponies fed the financial district, then the financial district spat on them. That had been a way of life in Manehattan since its founding.

"I've heard stories of Manehattan before, how it is cradle of all business and prosperity in Equestria. Are these tales true?" Blue Thistle asked Shadow Dancer.

"Somewhat. Maybe not prosperity, but it certainly is a haven for business, that much I can assure you. What business? Well, any kind you want; banking, drugs, alcohol..." Shadow Dancer's expression shifted as she gave a long sigh, showing tinges of disgust and regret. "Everything I learned to hate."

Blue Thistle joined Shadow Dancer on her mission after Cadence had pushed her to do so. She wasn't opposed to the idea, Manehattan was a dangerous place, but she felt a little in the way, lost in the towering jungle of glass. It was clear the sight of Manehattan was stirring up some black memories in Shadow Dancer, and Blue Thistle quickly changed the subject.

"What is plan?" Blue Thistle asked. Shadow Dancer as they both sat back down in the loading bay of the aircraft.

"Well, first we'll have to hit up local police— see what they know about The Raven. Perhaps they can point us in the right direction. This guy is working his way up the ladder, beating up and apprehending more dangerous criminals every day. Everypony wants a piece of The Raven." Shadow Dancer explained to Blue Thistle. "Once we find out everything the police know, we hit the streets, get answers in a rougher manner."

"Rougher? How so?" Blue Thistle raised an eyebrow.

"You don't think I agreed to bring you with me because you're just a pretty face, right? You got the stature for a shake-down, Blue. You could probably make any stallion shit himself if you stood in front of em'. " Shadow Dancer laughed lightly at the thought.

"I am scary?" Blue Thistle stared down at her hooves, inspecting herself.

"No, no, no! You are scary to me! Don't worry. You-, err... I think you look fine." Shadow Dancer blushed as she corrected herself; she didn't want Blue Thistle to feel like the elephant in the room.

"Oh... thank you," Blue Thistle nodded slowly, somewhat affected by Shadow Dancer's nervousness. "You look fine too."

There was a brief awkward silence as they both stared at each other, posturing what the other was thinking about; both of their heads were on fire. They both sighed, breaking the silence, and the helicopter landed on the titanic aircraft carrier that sat just on the southern edge of the city. They stepped out onto the flat deck of the massive ship, watching as jets would come and go, and as the helicopter took off once again to head back home, a familiar voice called out to them from the other side of the carrier deck. Shadow Dancer's eyes narrowed for a moment as her vision adjusted to the intense sunlight reflecting off the water, however, her eyes soon widened as she realized just who she was looking at.

"Hey, fellas! Over here!" Rainbow Dash waved to both of them as she ran across the deck, her long multi-coloured hair and bomber jacket blown about by the jet that had just taken off moments before.

"Holy shit! Air Marshal Rainbow Dash..." Shadow Dancer's jaw hung open as Rainbow Dash shook her hand without a word. "It's-, it's an honor, ma'am."

"Ah, don't call me ma'am, call me Dash," Rainbow Dash insisted as she turned to Blue Thistle, stunned by her height; she had heard about the giant in The Equestrian Knights, but she didn't expect her to be two heads taller than her. "Damn, you looked shorter from over there. You must be Blue Thistle. It's great to finally meet you." Rainbow Dash looked over to Shadow Dancer. "I've heard some crazy stories from a Rukarian pal of mine that you wouldn't believe!"

"Is that so?" Shadow Dancer smirked as she glanced over at Blue Thistle.

"Yes, yes..." Blue Thistle went quiet.

"Alright, enough dawdling here, I'll take you-..." Rainbow Dash stopped as she saw Blue Thistle look past her, narrowing her gaze towards the naval base on the other side of the aircraft carrier. "Down there..." Rainbow Dash trailed off as Blue Thistle stepped past her, gesturing over to Shadow Dancer to come closer. "Hey... what are you guys doing?"

"I do not take stairs, Air Marshal,he," Blue Thistle grabbed Shadow Dancer and leapt high into the air, high enough to take them all the way to the other side of the carrier and right smack dab in the middle of the stretch of road between the carrier and the naval base, creating cracks in the pavement where she landed.

"Blue, what the hell?! I wanted to talk more with her! You could've taken the stairs like a normal pony!" Shadow Dancer screamed at Blue Thistle as she put her down. "I think you rocked the aircraft carrier with that jump of yours!"

"Are you fucking-?! C'mon! There's a huge dent in the deck now!" Rainbow Dash bellowed down at the two mares from the edge of the deck. "Who's paying for this?!"

"Put it on Shining Armor's tab!" Blue Thistle shouted back to Rainbow Dash.

"You're gonna give him a heart attack with this one. You know that, right?" Shadow Dancer sighed as she dusted her blue jeans and red tank top off, reaching into her pocket and putting on her round sunglasses. She then fastened her brown leather jacket, checking the time on her watch. "Six-thirty... I think the Manehattan Police Headquarters are about a two-hour walk from here."

"No problem." Blue Thistle shook off her black sweater and gray sweatpants before grabbing Shadow Dancer once again. "Hold-."

Ah, ah, ah!" Shadow Dancer interrupted her and broke free of her grasp before she could jump once again. "We walk like normal ponies! I don't want Shining Armor to pay any more bills!"

"Fine," Blue Thistle stuck out her lower lip as she crossed her arms. "It would have saved time."

****

At ground level, Manehattan was pandemonium. Ponies were constantly shouting at each other about irrelevant topics, arguing about politics or work. It wasn't the most organized in terms of conversation and debate, however, each pony knew where to walk in the street, how fast to walk, and each pony knew every crack and bump in the sidewalk like it was their own backyard. Cars were perpetually in a traffic jam; which begged the question, why were their cars in such a crowded metropolis? The line of ponies along the sidewalk bent their path as Blue Thistle came by, glancing at her for a moment as they all passed her. She bowed her head, trying to appear shorter. Unfortunately, doing this made her seem like some sort of lumbering monster.

Shadow Dancer placed a hand on her shoulder, noticing the long glares ponies would take at Blue Thistle. "Hey, Blue, you okay?"

"I am fine," Blue Thistle nodded hesitantly as she glanced back at Shadow Dancer. "Let's keep going. Headquarters is not far."

The two found themselves at an intersection; police headquarters was on the right side of the street, they were on the left. Using the blinker on the base of a traffic light, they waited for traffic to come to a halt. As it did, they strolled across the crosswalk, minding a mother with her baby carriage as they power walked by. Blue Thistle looked behind her, giving the infant inside a wave and a smile, to which the baby responded with a giggle and a wide, toothless grin. They passed through the next crosswalk after another brief waiting period, and they arrived at the police station right on time; it took no more than two hours.

Police headquarters had a very simplistic, stone exterior; white marble columns supported the structure, and between these columns were tinted windows, some with blinds over them. The entrance was primarily made of glass, and there were extensive security measures put inside the entryway for ponies looking to gain access. A guard came by, using a wand to check for any large metal objects on a pony. Shadow Dancer was check first, and she was clean. But when Blue Thistle was checked, she nearly broke the meter on the wand.

"Ma'am put your hands in the-." The guard was about to draw his gun, but Shadow Dancer handed him a slip of paper signed by Blueblood himself. He read it with frantic eyes, and his expression calmed as he finished the letter. "Oh... damn, sorry, you two. The whole station's been a little antsy since the Canterlot attack. Follow me, I'll take you to see Commissioner August. The Commissioner's been waiting for you both." The guard escorted them through the ground floor, dodging grunts going about their paperwork and reports as they made their way to the elevator, which was guarded by two other guards. The entrance guard presented his ID to the others. "These two are with me."

The two guards nodded, and the three stepped into the empty elevator, to which their guard pressed the top button on the long row of eight. With a mechanical grunt, the elevator sped rapidly to the top floor, stopping with yet another huff as it came to its destination. The guard stepped out into a hallway, motioning to his left as he turned around, directing them to the right.

"Door at the end of the hallway. Make sure to knock." The guard informed them as they stepped off the elevator, and he entered once more as they exited, the door closing behind him.

"Pretty nice," Shadow Dancer remarked at the modern feel of the floor as they marched down the corridor; the hallway was decorated with abstract paintings and tall, cubical vases filled with various perennial plants. "Didn't think the force would have the patience for art."

"Hmm," Blue Thistle grunted as she took a moment to inspect a cubist painting of some kind of flower, but scoffed as she continued onwards; she was one of the ponies that didn't have the patience for art. "Bah..."

At the end of the hall, Shadow Dancer and Blue Thistle were met with a windowed door that read, 'COMM'R. JUNIPER AUGUST' on the glass. Shadow Dancer knocked three times, and she didn't wait long for a response. "Come on in." It was a mare's voice, indifferent and not very low pitched, and it had a subtle tinge of grit in it as well.

They stepped inside, greeted to a mare no older than thirty seated behind her desk in a leather chair. She was dressed somewhat casually, sporting a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a black tie. As she got out of her chair, Shadow Dancer saw her blue dress pants, ones that matched her officer's coat that was slung around the back of her chair. Her chartreuse fur went well with her long auburn mane, which was done up in a neat ponytail. Her blue eyes were tired, worn like her thick glasses, and her expression was somewhat concerned as if she was always in a state of alarm. It made sense; terrorism was on the rise in Equestria and ponies were getting paranoid. She just seemed exasperated, worn out from all the stress and tension in her city.

"Nice to meet you two, I'm Commissioner August. I heard what you two did in Canterlot— just wanna say how appreciative I am of your actions. You saved the lives of our boys in blue, and I'm grateful." Commissioner August thanked them as she sat back down in her chair, gesturing to the two seats in from of her. "Now... down to the brass tacks. Blueblood called me personally— said you're lookin' for The Raven. That correct?"

"It is, ma'am," Shadow Dancer nodded to her as she sat down with Blue Thistle. "We wanted to get some Intel on this guy— see what the police know so far."

"Well, this guy's a ghost, I can tell ya that much. It's hard to get a clear description of em'. My boys on the street tell some pretty tall tales of The Raven. He saved two of mine who were trying to nab a perp in the Lower East Side just a few weeks ago. When they cornered the robber in an alley, he pulled out a gun. Before he pulled the trigger, however, The Raven stepped out of the shadows— disarmed em' and broke the guy's jaw." Commissioner August recalled the story as she sat back in her chair. "That's the most recent encounter my boys have had with The Raven. Other than that, there hasn't been much interaction. We usually get an anonymous call for somepony once in a while— tells us to check out a random joint for some beat-up dirtbags. We'll find an upwards of ten or more tied-up criminals at a time. It's nuts what this guy can do."

"So this pony is no amateur... he's trained," Shadow Dancer scratched her chin as she thought it over. "Getting to him will not be easy."

"So you wanna bring her in, huh?" Commissioner August asked.

"Yeah, we do. She's caused a big stir in the criminal underworld lately, and innocent ponies are getting caught right in the middle of it." Shadow Dancer stated as she leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and clasping her hands together.

"I feel ya. As much as I appreciate the help from The Raven, she's brewed a world of trouble for Manehattan; ponies are talkin' nowadays. She's become a legend." Commissioner August nodded slowly as she stood back up, pointing towards the map hanging up on her wall; it was a map of Manehattan. "I've got my boys on patrol keepin' an eye out for em'. Her stomping grounds are the Upper West Side, but I've heard reports of her in Kings as well, even Hooflyn. This guy's all over the place. If you wanna find The Raven, get to the Upper West Side. There's crime there all the time."

"Thank you, Commissioner,run," Shadow Dancer said as she got back on her hooves and shook Commissioner August's hand one last time. "We'll be hitting the streets tonight to see what we find."

"Sounds good," Commissioner August nodded as she watched the sun set from her window. "Be careful, you two. Manehattan isn't as friendly at night. You best be keepin' one eye open all the time when you're out there. The Raven certainly does."

"Dually noted, Commissioner. Thank you for your time." Shadow Dancer thanked her one last time as she opened the door, Blue Thistle following right behind.

"Yeah," Commissioner August grunted as she glanced over at the map again, narrowing her vision on the Upper West Side. "Yeah..."

Shadow Dancer power walked down the hallway, drive in her pace and demeanor. Blue Thistle spoke up, curious as to why Shadow Dancer was so on edge. "What's wrong? Did it go well or not?"

"Yes and no..." Shadow Dancer stopped in the hall, lowering her voice so that none but Blue Thistle could hear her. "Did you notice the way the Commissioner would jump from 'he' to 'she' or 'her' to 'him' in her sentences when referring to The Raven?"

"Yes... I did..." Blue Thistle nodded, realizing what Shadow Dancer was implying. "Are you suggesting-?"

"That The Raven is a mare? I think so," Shadow Dancer replied as she continued down the hall. "That may not help our case, but it proves to me that the Commissioner isn't telling us all she knows..."

****

Sometime later, Commissioner August stood on the roof of police headquarters, taking in the early autumn air. With a sigh, she reached into her dress pocket and lit a cigarette, puffing clouds of smoke into the brisk air. The lights of Manehattan drew inwards, illuminating the financial district and darkening the residential district. Hot air rose from the manholes on the streets, making small clouds as it nipped at the chilly winds of the night. As she took in another whiff of smoke, she turned, hearing a rustling from behind. She looked up slowly, making out the silhouette of Manehattan's dark knight crouching on top of an air conditioning unit a few meters away. Her white eyes and the black beak of her mask was the only definitive shapes that stuck out in the shadows.

"You came..." Commissioner August exhaled another large puff of smoke, tossing her cigarette into the alleyway below.

"I always do." The figure in the shadows said in her usual, low, but gentle tone; she had a prominent proper Canterlot accent. "You want to talk about those two members of the Equestrian Knights that visited you this evening, don't you?"

"Yes and no..." Commissioner August. "They're here to hunt you down, right? Blueblood's orders..."

"I know." The Raven nodded. "And I can handle them. You need to worry about yourself tonight. The Kage Mob is mobilizing, and I've yet to find out where they're hiding."

"These aren't regular ponies you can just beat up," Commissioner August interjected, strongly opposed to the headstrong nature of The Raven. "They're the ponies who took out that whole terrorist group in Canterlot." Commissioner August growled under her breath in frustration. "I don't know why the hell I'm helping you. You're a vigilante, I should arrest you right now."

"Then go ahead. I won't stop you," The Raven said bluntly, hopping off the AC unit. "I trust you, June. You're the only officer on the street who understands the situation out there. You do what you think is right."

"You're a piece of work, you know that?" Commissioner August shook her head, letting out an exhausted sigh. "Why do all this? You're just one mare."

"So are you, Commissioner, and ponies still put their faith in you," The Raven said softly as she stared up at the moon high in the sky. "I am a mere messenger, Commissioner, and I must make my message clear to the ponies of Manehattan, and any who spawn chaos in this city. Criminals need something to fear."

"Yeah, well, you be careful, alright?" Commissioner August said as she looked down into the alleyway. "Don't be thinking this legend you created is invincible just because you got a bulletproof suit-..." As August turned around, she trailed off; The Raven was gone. "Nice talking with you too..."

Season One | Episode Twelve: The Coffin (In The Raven's Nest: Part Two)

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The Upper West Side of Manehattan was quite extreme; the occasional hooker, drugee, or a gang member wearing his colors would be standing on the sidewalk, waiting for some kind of action, relief from the vandalized concrete prison around them. The Upper west Side was the most crime infested part of Manehattan, and a gunshot or two could be heard every night there. But that was normalcy in the Upper West Side, a pony died every night or so, that was life. That's why the Upper West Side went by another, more appropriate name, Coffin.

Blue Thistle had around three granola bars in her large mitts, one of which she had half-eaten. She insisted she was hungry, and stopped at corner store during their investigation. It was eight by the time they got into the thick of Coffin, and the world was dark and little quiet. Blue Thistle followed Shadow Dancer closely; she wasn't sure where she planned on going, but the deeper they went into Coffin, the sketchier it got. Windows in the very heart of Coffin were barred shut, sidewalks were worn or cracked. In fact, the only thing in Inner Coffin that was remotely well kept was the street lights— kept stable for the odd passerby driving through Coffin (though, who knows why they'd be doing such a thing). Coffin sort of gave Blue Thistle a rude awakening— reminded her of the slums in Rukaria before the uprising. Ponies went about their existences in fear, fear of death and the powers that be, fear of losing one's family or reality in a mere moment.

Shadow Dancer looked back and saw Blue Thistle hang her head for a moment as she put her hood up. "Blue, are you alright...?"

"Da..." Blue Thistle nodded once, pulling up her hood and putting on a brave face. "I'm okay."

"You know, you don't have to hide that kind of stuff from me, Blue. We aren't strangers anymore, remember?" Shadow Dancer smiled to keep Blue Thistle's spirits up.

"Ah, yes... sorry," Blue Thistle sighed as she shook her head. "This place... it reminds me of ghetto in Rukaria, before rebellion."

"I wasn't around then— still was in a tank full of chemicals. But I did hear what happened there from a Rukarian pal of mine when I worked in Las Pegasus. I can't imagine what you went through there, Blue." Shadow Dancer sympathized with her slightly uncomfortable comrade, who twiddled her thumbs and glanced from side to side, trying her best to occupy her mind with thoughts not related to those awful times in her homeland. "Sorry... if I'm overstepping a boundary."

"No, no... it's fine. You show concern, and I'm grateful," Blue Thistle pasted together a crude smile on her face, one layered with fear and regret. "I don't know what it would be like either— being a somepony like you who was created in a lab. You must feel..."

"Lonely..." They both said together, snorting a bit at the corniness of the situation.

"That was cliché, yes...?" Blue Thistle asked; her smile was genuine this time.

"Sort of. The whole, 'telling each other your story and finishing each other's sentence in sync as if you understand one another'. I've seen it a few times in the odd romantic comedy," Shadow Dancer said as she began counting the cracks on the sidewalk. "But... I suppose clichés are clichés for a reason. They might have some truth behind em'."

"I suppose..." Blue Thistle said as she took a bite of her granola bar. "Where are we headed to?"

"A club down the street. There are some ponies there who can give us some answers about our mystery mare," Shadow Dancer turned to Blue Thistle, giving her a wink. "The Kage Mob."

"Kage? What do you know of them?" Blue Thistle wondered as she finished off the snack in her hand, opening the next one.

"I know their inner workings— how they get their shit done. Back when I was a hitpony in Las Pegasus, I killed some of the meanest in the bunch. I'm not proud of it, but... my experience will help." In the distance Shadow Dancer saw a neon red sign, 'CLUB AKA'. "That's the place."

The neon sign adorned the entrance to a very large and expensive looking night club, around three stories. It appeared as if the wealth of Coffin flooded in through Club Aka— a congealing of criminal finances into one block. The exterior of the club was a little cleaner and painted jet black to make the other red neon decorations displaying dragons and snakes stand out. Two very large and rough-looking stallions guarded the entrance. Though, they were both an inch or two shorter than Blue Thistle; somepony as tall as her was rare. One carried a clipboard, checking off ponies on the list one by one as they lined up outside. Shadow Dancer could tell the other one was armed; a pistol was poking out of his pocket.

"Alright, we gotta think of something to tell em', something that'll get us in," Shadow Dancer whispered to Blue Thistle as they both got in line, moving up every three seconds or so. "Any suggestions?"

"Why not pretend to make deal with Kage?" Blue Thistle postured. "Tell them we are gun runners, yes?"

"Yeah, I think that could work, you've got the look of a gun runner," Shadow Dancer nodded.

"Wait, what is that supposed to mean?" Blue Thistle crossed her arms in an offended manner.

"You know... uh, in secret agent movies there's always that Rukarian smuggler or bad guy or some shit? Listen, you're tall and you've got a hot accent. That's basically all you need," Shadow Dancer explained as they inched ever closer to the entrance.

"Yeah, I'm starting to think you should have made plan." Blue Thistle said frantically as she tried to revise their idea.

"Let's just go with it. If it doesn't work we can always sneak around through the back," Shadow Dancer insisted as they stepped to the front, coming face to face with the two guards.

"Name?" The guard with the clipboard asked.

"Penumbra Midnight... and this is my associate, Indigo Mist," Shadow Dancer introduced herself and Blue Thistle to the guard in the most polite way possible. "We've come to... do business with the Kage? Are there any here?"

"What business?" The guard wondered.

"We're here to supply you with supplies... if you get my meaning..." Shadow Dancer hinted to the guard; he didn't appear very bright. "That's why we aren't on the list..."

"Uh... let me check with my buddy for a sec..." The guard turned around and spoke into his walkie-talkie. "Hey, I got some mares tellin' me their our suppliers for the week. You know anything about this?"

"Uh, uh... yeah! Yes, I know about this! They're our girls!" The stallion on the other end seemed out of breath, almost panicked.

"Hey, pal, you okay...?" The guard whispered into his device.

"What? Yeah, I'm-... I'm fine! Fine! I'm good! Just let em' in and the big boys upstairs'll seal the deal!" His voiced became slurred together and rushed.

"Um... okay," The guard shut off his walkie-talkie and stepped aside to usher them inside. "Go on ahead, girls."

"That worked?!" Blue Thistle whispered to Shadow Dancer.

"Yeah... too well," Shadow Dancer grew suspicious. "Convincing ponies of a lie like that takes a long time. That was too easy."

"Do you think somepony is expecting us?" Blue Thistle wondered.

"Yeah... though I'm not sure who," Shadow Dancer replied in a low and serious tone of voice.

"Okay... okay... I was quiet and I said everything you wanted me to say! Can you let me down? Please?" A security guard pled for his life as he dangled off the edge of the roof of Club Aka, held up over the alleyway by just his right leg. "Please?"

"Very well..." The Raven said as she lifted the guard up with one arm, tossing him back onto the roof. Then, without a word, she slammed her elbow into his neck, knocking him out cold.

Club Aka was pristine, and the whole establishment was very modern. The two primary colors of the interior were red and black, much like the exterior, and there were various large paintings of abstract art that dominated the walls. The main area of the club was semicircular and had two levels— built as an entertainment area that was constructed around the thrust stage in the center. On stage was a zebra singer; an older stallion. He had a gravely yet smooth voice, and he sang a slow and rhythmic blues song along with his band of three others.

*Zebra band sings 'St. James Infirmary Blues' by Louis Armstrong*

It was dark, as expected of most nightclubs, and tables were gathered all around the stage chalked full of pale-furred stallions with dark hair— common traits of those in the Kage Mob. Accompanying them were their mare entourage, who all sported short-cut dresses and copious amounts of makeup. Shadow Dancer was eyed up by the odd stallion as they walked by, but Blue Thistle was met with shocked expressions and whispering. As they sat down at a table on the far side of the club, Blue Thistle ducked her head, wary of the stares she was getting.

"Hey, Blue... you're fine. Who gives a shit about what they think of you, right?" Shadow Dancer tried to get Blue Thistle out of her shell, but she didn't seem to budge. "Let's just focus on the task at hand, okay? Eyes up, see if you can spot a Kage with silver hair."

"Why?" Blue Thistle asked.

"That's one of the big bosses in Manehattan, Tamashī Kage. He's responsible for drug trafficking and arms dealing throughout the entire city. The guy's untouchable— gotten out of shit countless times. Nopony's ever been able to nail him outright." Shadow Dancer explained as her eyes danced about, on the lookout.

"I see him." Blue Thistle gestured up to the balcony overlooking the stage on the other side; a stallion in a white suit stood at the edge, watching the singer with a cold look on his face.

"Okay, that's our guy," Shadow Dancer said as she got out of her seat along with Blue Thistle. "Follow me, I'm gonna plant a bug on me and record our conversation with him. Hopefully I can get him to talk about The Raven, and moreover, hopefully, he'll willingly fess up to some other crimes as well."

"Do you wish to initiate a fight?" Blue Thistle wondered as she followed her partner upstairs.

"Perhaps... if I make a scene our mystery mare will most likely appear." Shadow Dancer replied as they came to a door guarded by another two stallions with assault rifles. "Hello, boys..."

"VIP access only, get lost," The guard on the left grunted.

"Hey, hey... I was here to do business with Tamashī Kage? I'm the gun runner?" Shadow Dancer reminded them.

"You don't look like a gun runner..." Said the guard on the left.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Do you want me to go home and change into my gun runner outfit?!" Shadow Dancer bellowed sarcastically as she threw her arms up in an outrage; a long, awkward silence followed. "So... you gonna let me in now?" Without another word, the guard on the left opened the door and guided them inside. "Thank you."

Blue Thistle trailed behind Shadow Dancer as they made their way towards the balcony on the second floor, approaching the fairly short stallion who was enjoying the entertainment by himself. He turned to Shadow Dancer as she made her steps audible, and he grinned excitedly, motioning towards the booth behind him. "Please sit."

"You are Tamashī Kage, right?" Shadow Dancer inquired as she sat down at the table.

"I am the one you seek, Ganran'nā," Tamashī proclaimed; he had an odd accent, one typical of those in the Kage family. "Tell me... why have you come here on such short notice?"

"We heard you were buying, so we came knockin'. You know how business is..." Shadow Dancer said as she leaned back in the cushioned booth.

"Indeed I do," Tamashī nodded slowly as he took a sip from his whiskey-filled glass on the table. "Now... let us get down to business."

"Hang on a sec. I just want to check for something..." Shadow Dancer took a look around the area, feigning concern.

"Oh? What is worrying you?" Tamashī asked.

"Nothing, nothing... I'm just a little paranoid— what with this mare in a mask jumping around taking down some of my high profile customers." Shadow Dancer began to pry. "I just wanna make sure this deal is safe, you know?"

"I understand well. The Raven has been nothing but an issue for my organization. But do not worry, my security is the best in the business," Tamashī reassured her as he took another sip.

"The Raven has been an issue for you? The Kage family?" Shadow Dancer questioned him.

"Although it brings me great shame to say it, yes. The Raven stopped one of my gun shipments last week— apprehended four of my best crew members. If I saw that blasted mare I'd have her shot dead on the spot-!" Tamashī froze as he saw the glass window above him shatter into a million pieces.

Shadow Dancer and Blue Thistle dove to the side, avoiding the black mass that fell through the window and onto the table with great force. As they got back on their hooves, the black mass became clearer. The mare in front of them was tall, only about four inches shorter than Blue Thistle , and she wore a highly advanced, black combat suit, complete with a ballistic face mask that took on the likeness of a black raven. Her cape and hood shrouded most of her upper body, and it was very hard to make out any other distinct features besides her empty white eyes. She rose up over an injured Tamashī with glass in his arm, who began pleading for his life the very second he bared witness to the hooded figure before him.

"Raven!" Shadow Dancer shouted to the hooded mare as she stepped off the table and chased after Tamashī, who fled the scene in a panic, jumping off the balcony into the audience below.

The Raven unfurled her cape like a set of wings, gliding down to the lower level. The band stopped playing, screaming began quickly, and within a couple of seconds, the whole club evacuated, leaving the guards to deal with the issue. Security entered the room through the back doors, eight of them, with submachine guns and assault rifles close at hand. Shadow Dancer jumped off the balcony as well, falling into a dive roll just before she hit the ground as a means to soften her landing. She found cover behind a support pillar near the entrance, and she grabbed the revolver sitting snug in the inside pocket of her leather jacket, loading it with ammunition from her jean pocket.

Blue Thistle simply jumped down, causing cracks in the ground as she landed on her hooves. The guards fired blindly at anything moving, assuming that they were a part of The Raven's assault. However, they appeared to only be a mild irritant to Blue Thistle, and with ease, she walked right up to each one of them, bullets ricocheting off her as she did so. She flicked one on the forehead, sending him flying back into the stage. Blue Thistle then gave another a light backhand to the jaw, launching him sky-high onto the second floor. With every guard she eliminated, she snapped their gun in half with her bare hands like a toothpick. The Raven was a proficient hand-to-hand combatant, even better than Shadow Dancer. She disarmed three guards in a heartbeat, throwing a wide kick that sent them all reeling. As they staggered, The Raven went in for the kill, taking two guards by their heads and slamming them down into a table. However, before she was able to move another inch, another guard not preoccupied with Blue Thistle stepped out from behind his cover, firing wildly.

Shadow Dancer took a deep breath as she gripped her revolver, waiting for the right moment. The Raven ducked behind a table, holding an odd gadget in her right hand. As Shadow Dancer stepped out of cover, she fired two shots, both landing on each shoulder of the armed thug. As he grimaced in pain, The Raven stood up, firing a handheld grappling gun at the staggered thug's, shin. The projectile shot forward, piercing the gang member's flesh. She then grabbed the thin cable attached to the harpooned tip and tugged on it, tripping the injured thug, causing his head to crash down onto the floor as a result. As The Raven realized the others were occupied, she ran out the door after Tamashī, using her grappling hook to boost her onto the roof of the next building over.

"Blue! She's getting away!" Shadow Dancer shouted to Blue Thistle as she kicked a thug back into the bar, shattering the whole wine display behind the table.

"Come, I'll catch up with them," Blue Thistle carried Shadow Dancer outside as she finished off the last guard, using her tremendous strength to lift both of them high into the air with a single bound onto the rooftop to their right. From the skyline, Blue Thistle spotted The Raven pursuing Tamashī, who was cutting through alleyways in a desperate attempt to flee. "There she is!"

Blue Thistle and Shadow Dancer landed on the next rooftop over with a 'thud', rocking the whole structure, and they leaped from building to building together as they chased after The Raven. The Raven was well aware of this, but her tunnel vision demanded that she apprehend Tamashī before dealing with her own pursuers; luckily Tamashī had run into the middle of the street, right where she wanted him. In her hand materialized a boomerang-like object in her hand— constructed from light pink magical energies originating from her long horn. She tossed the projectile forward, and it whirred as it barrelled towards Tamashī. The boomerang plunged into Tamashī's leg, felling him in the middle of the street.

"Ah! You fucking whore!" Tamashī cringed in agony as he clutched the open wound that leaked profusely as the arcane object evaporated. "You bitch!"

As The Raven landed beside Tamashī, she grabbed his collar and lifted him high into the air, her eyes narrowing. "Tamashī Kage! You have blood on your hands! Innocent blood! Who hired you to kill that philanthropist and his family three years ago?! In that alleyway in the Upper East Side?!"

"Should we-?" Blue Thistle was shushed by Shadow Dancer atop a nearby roof; she wanted to listen.

"I will say nothing, you-! Arraggh!" Tamashī howled as The Raven dug retractable claws on her gloves into the muscle between his shoulder and neck. "Okay! Okay! I'll tell you everything! I'll tell you!" Tamashī slowed his breathing, trying to recall his memories. "It's-!" A bullet whizzed through the air and passed through his skull before he could even begin his sentence.

"Sniper! Get behind me!" Blue Thistle shouted as she jumped off the roof and stood in front of The Raven, a bullet ricocheting off her back. "Shadow Dancer, did you see the flash?!"

"I didn't see shit!" Shadow Dancer replied as she laid in a prone position on the rooftop, shuffling backward towards the ledge. As she fell off, she grabbed the knife from her pocket, shoving it into the concrete wall, halting her rapid descent. She then hid behind the corner, gesturing to the two mares to retreat into the alleyway. "Come on!"

The Raven and Blue Thistle jumped behind cover, taking a moment to catch their breath before they said another word. As Shadow Dancer looked around a corner, another shot zoomed through the air and glanced off the pavement nearby, prompting Shadow Dancer to duck behind the corner once again. The Raven spoke up first as she sat down, pulling up her hood and revealing her long, pale pink hair done up in a ponytail and her white coat, riddled with scars around her neck area. Her face still remained hidden by her mask, however. "Damn... he was my one lead."

"You have some explaining to do, girly," Shadow Dancer said in an exasperated tone as she turned to face The Raven. "First off, who the hell are you?! What's this talk about a philanthropist and his family? Why the hell do you want to know something like that?"

"It's complicated..." The Raven sighed as she stood back up, dusting off her suit.

"Oh, well it's about to get a lot less complicated! You're gonna give us some answers! We've turned this city upside down looking for you!" Shadow Dancer growled at the tall masked mare as the humming of an engine could be heard in the distance. "What's that?"

"Our ride." The Raven said as a heavily armored, high-tech black car pulled inside the alleyway. It's large cockpit window opened up like a lid, revealing four seats on the inside. "Get in."

"Where are we going?" Shadow Dancer asked as she and Blue Thistle hopped inside.

"To The Nest," The Raven replied as the cockpit lid secured itself onto the vehicle, activating the holographic HUD in front of her. With the press of a button, The Raven backed the sleek armored car out of the alleyway and drove down the empty street. "We'll talk there."

Season One | Episode Thirteen: Answers (In The Raven's Nest: Part Three)

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As the cockpit of Raven's armored car opened up, it revealed a whole multi-layered underground complex, fifty meters high, and thirty meters in diameter; there were probably five levels to the cylindrical shaft. She parked the car on a circular platform in the center of the lowest level. As Shadow Dancer and Blue Thistle hopped out and followed The Raven across a narrow bridge to another, larger platform, a huge robotic arm unfolded from the support pillar holding up the central platform, grabbing the car and placing on a storage level at the very bottom of the chasm. The platforms were finished with black chrome and the whole shaft was illuminated by lights which ran up the height of the complex; the top of the chasm was sealed shut by a thick, vault-like door. At the other end of the thin bridge was a series of giant monitors, around five of them. Four smaller screens were gathered around a larger central one, displaying numerous maps and files detailing multiple active criminals.

"Whoa..." Shadow Dancer remarked at the great machine that towered over her.

"This is The Nest's central computer, Constable. It has access to all criminal databases in Equestria." The Raven stated from her swiveling chair as she brought up Tamashī's file on the center screen, marking him as 'deceased'.

"Is it legal access...?" Shadow Dancer asked, though, she knew the answer to that question.

The Raven pulled up two other files out of a document labeled 'KNIGHTS'; they detailed the criminal records of Blue Thistle and Shadow Dancer. "No. But nopony is a saint."

Pictures of a young Blue Thistle popped up on the screen, displaying her in a battlefield fighting numerous robotic adversaries. Blue Thistle was not impressed. "Where did you get these pictures?!"

"Okay, lady, it's time you told us the truth!" Shadow Dancer put her hoof down as she watched her record stretch downwards down the monitor screen in the corner of her eye as she turned to The Raven. "Who the hell are you-?!"

"Mistress, here is your-..." A mare holding a silver platter in her hand trailed off as she stepped out of an elevator on the other side of the platform. "Ah, are these our guests?"

She was young, around the same age as Ditzy, and she wore a common, black maid's outfit. Her amaranth pink mane was long, done up in a neat bun at the back of her head. Her sapphire eyes were coupled well with her white complexion, and she was certainly easy on the eyes. She was short, yet she had this air of assiduousness about her that made her seem much larger in presence as she strode towards Raven.

"I'm Nurse Redheart. It's pleasure to meet you two," The maid bowed to both of them as she strolled over to The Raven with her silver tray holding a piping-hot tea kettle and two cups.

"Pink hair... light pink coat... I've seen it before..." Shadow Dancer thought to herself as she looked closely at the back of The Raven's head. "No, that can't-..."

The Raven stood up and prepared to take off her mask, but before she could, her maid grabbed her wrist, stopping her. "Are you certain, Mistress?"

"Yes, it's fine." The Raven insisted as she removed her mask, revealing her face to Shadow Dancer and Blue Thistle.

"No... that's impossible. You're supposed to be dead!" Shadow Dancer's jaw dropped as she saw The Raven's true face. "I thought you were-..."

"I survived." Fleur De Lee said as she placed her mask on the desktop of her computer.

"Shadow Dancer, you know this mare?" Blue Thistle wondered.

"No, not personally. I know of her. She's a former supermodel— the wife of Fancy Pants, a wealthy Canterlot philanthropist. I thought he and his family were killed three years ago after they were kidnapped..." It looked as if Shadow Dancer was seeing a ghost. "What the hell happened to you?"

Fleur De Lee's face was not the same as the old billboards. She still retained most of her beauty, but her neck and cheeks were riddled with faint scrapes and burns, mementos of a horrid past forever embedded in her flesh. Shadow Dancer even saw a scar that could've only been left by a whip just above her left eye. Her elegant smile and graceful eyes had lost their luster— replaced by a slight scowl and a forlorn gaze. She was not the same mare Equestria once idolized.

"The Kage mob is what happened..." Fleur De Lee grunted as she removed her cape and armor, revealing more of her battered body. "Some pony had us abducted by Tamashī's gang all those years ago in the Upper West Side. I was the only one to live through it. Nurse Redheart luckily found me washed up on a pier the next day."

"I treated her wounds, brought her back to health, and we've been friends ever since," Nurse Redheart added as she set the tray of tea down next to Fleur's mask. "With Fancy Pant's inheritance, we built this place together."

"And for the past six months I've been trying to solve my own murder," Fleur said as she removed her chest piece, exposing the rest of the black jumpsuit underneath. "So far I've turned up a few leads, but Tamashī was the only pony who could've tied it all together. Luckily one of my drones analyzed the crime scene before the police arrived." A bridge extended outwards from the platform to the other side of the chasm; a separate room attached the chasm wall. "If you'll excuse me, I'll be in the lab. Redheart, keep them company while I synthesize the results."

"Very well, Mistress," Redheart nodded as Fleur disappeared into the laboratory. With a sigh, she sat down on a stool near the edge of the computer desk, pouring herself a cup of tea.

"You built all of this in three years?" Shadow Dancer asked Redheart as she stared up at the ceiling.

"Yep, from the ground up," Redheart nodded as she too tilted her head back and looked up. "It cost a fortune, but luckily Fleur had that kind of money. Once Fancy Pants and his heirs died, his wealth was funneled into a private, untraceable account. He left everything to Fleur."

"Fleur... she had children?" Blue Thistle glanced over at a picture lying on the other end of the computer desk; it was a small, red colt, no older than three.

"Yes... that was Red Velvet," Redheart's expression turned melancholic as she held back tears. "He, um-... he was shot when Fleur tried to help him escape captivity."

"Sweet Celestia..." Shadow Dancer's heart sank as she looked over at the picture as well. "Poor Fleur..."

"She's-... she's not the same anymore since they passed. The whole world thinks she's dead, and I'm-... I'm her only friend down here." Redheart shook her head in disappointment as she took another sip of her tea. "She doesn't smile, she barely sleeps... she has night terrors too. I've put her on meds countless times but... she always quits them. She tells me, 'it dulls her focus'."

"Can she ever be fixed?" Shadow Dancer asked.

"With what she lost... I don't know. The only thing keeping her alive are just memories, fragments of herself lying around her hooves. I stayed with her all this time because... no matter how much it ate away at me to be here with her, no matter how much she pushed me to the breaking point, I knew she needed me." Redheart's voice seemed empty, cold and distant. "Perhaps I've become infected by her misery... who knows. All I care about at this point is Fleur."

"And you have been like this for three years?"Blue Thistle inquired.

"Back and forth, yes. I'd like to think we're both building each other back up as we move along," Redheart nodded as she stood up, smiling a little. "Please, I know she may seem obtuse at times, but she needs your help. She deserves justice."

As Redheart finished her tea, Fleur stepped out of her lab holding a file filled with papers regarding the drone's examination of the crime scene. "I've found some interesting information."

"Oh? What's that?" Shadow Dancer asked, waltzing over to take a peek at the file.

"Look here," Fleur loaded a flash drive onto her computer, and the central monitor displayed a three-dimensional map of Coffin. With the press of a button she started a simulation; it was of the shooting just a half hour prior to their arrival in The Nest. "Based on the angle, the bullet was fired from a four-story building. However, there was, in fact, a flash, we simply never saw it." The simulation drew three curved paths from the shooter to the points of impact.

"So these were guided rounds then, huh?" Shadow Dancer made an educated guess as she watched the simulation.

"Exactly, and these were fifty calibers as well. There's only one manufacturer that produces such bullets in this size, Rich Industries." Fleur concluded as she looked through the file.

"Spoiled Rich's firearms company?" Shadow Dancer said as she glanced at the picture of Spoiled Rich within the file.

"Do you think Spoiled Rich had a hand in Fancy Pants' untimely death?" Redheart caught on to the implication fast.

"I'm not certain yet, but I wouldn't doubt it," Fleur answered her as she sat down on her chair and began to delve deeper into the conspiracy. "Based on surveillance from the next building over, the shooter is dressed in high-end military gear. Perhaps part of a private army?" Fleur zoomed in on badge attached to the shoulder of the sniper, which simply had an odd symbol which looked like "Φ" on it.

"What the hell is that?" Shadow Dancer raised an eyebrow at the strange letter.

"This is a Greko symbol, an ancient, extinct language," Fleur stated as she got a closer look at it.

"Come to think of it, Blue... that terrorist who led the attack on the parliament building had the same badge on his shoulder too. I think I heard his henchmen call him... Chi?" Shadow Dancer pieced together the memory of her encounter with the late stallion.

"Interesting. Then this terrorist cell is more organized than previously thought," Fleur scratched her chin at the picture of the masked sniper.

"Is there a way to get to this guy?" Redheart wondered, laying out all the evidence across the table.

"Find make and number of gun?" Blue Thistle suggested as she squinted at the rifle in the stallion's hands.

"Excellent idea," Fleur zoomed in on the weapon, deciphering the code on the side of the barrel. "Interesting..." Fleur looked into records detailing the weapon and manufacturing date. "This rifle was sold three weeks ago to Semper Fi, a former Equestrian marine who served in the invasion of Yakyakistan four years ago. He was dishonorably discharged after disobeying orders." Fleur dug deep into police archives. "Ah, look at this... according to police records, he went missing two years ago. He must've gone underground with this terrorist group around that time. The trail goes cold from here."

"So is there a way to find this guy?" Shadow Dancer asked.

"No, not until we've done some digging into Rich Industries..." Fleur revisited her last page detailing the history of Semper Fi's rifle. "According to this bill of sale, the rifle was sold to Semper via a private, online purchase made by an employee in the Sales Department, Fire Sale."

Blue Thistle nodded with satisfaction. "So then we find him..."

"We find Semper Fi..." Nurse Redheart chimed in.

"We find out Rich's dealings with the terrorists." Shadow Dancer said.

"Then we bring them all down, one by one," Fleur concluded as she got out of her chair, sorting the pieces of her armor strewn about the floor. "And we find out who killed my husband and son, and bring them to justice."

"Alright, I like the sound of this plan," Shadow Dancer said as she remembered Blueblood's firm instructions. "But first, Fleur, I need to know something..."

"What's this?" Fleur raised an eyebrow at Shadow Dancer as she reached into her pocket and handed her a small business card; it had the symbol of The Equestrian Knights printed on it.

"It's a request." Shadow Dancer replied as she crossed her arms. "As much as I want to help you out of the kindness of my heart, we came here for one mission... apprehending you. But now that apprehension is out of the picture, I want to offer you this. Consider it a 'get out of jail free card', courtesy of Prince Blueblood."

"I'll consider it..." Fleur answered her as she tucked the card into her jumpsuit, fastening her gauntlets onto each forearm as she did so. "Personally I'm not a fan of your organization, and I'm especially not a fan of that narcissistic scoundrel either."

"Believe me, I know the guy is a dickhead," Shadow Dancer began coaxing Fleur. "But if you want to continue your operations in Manehattan, I suggest you do it legally. Trust me, dispensing vigilante vengeance is no way to go about it-."

"This is not vengeance, Miss Shadow Dancer, this is justice, plain and pure," Fleur De Lee interrupted her. "And all of Manehattan shall have it."

"Fleur... she still has a point..." Nurse Redheart weighed in. "We can't keep going about this by dodging bullets from thugs and police, there's only so much Commissioner August can do."

"As I said before, I'll consider it. No promises," Fleur said as she put on her cape and mask. "I'm not so sure the public can trust your organization yet."

"Understood," Shadow Dancer nodded in agreement as she fastened her jacket. "So... don't mean to pry, but... do you have a suit in my size I can borrow?" Shadow Dancer wondered as she tapped on the gaiter of Fleur's suit. "No capes, though, I don't do capes."

"Yes, I may have one or two..." Fleur answered her as she activated a control panel on her computer desk, revealing an array of suits that popped up through trap doors nearby. "But for Celestia's sake do not toy with any of them! They each cost more than the yearly rent of a condo in central Manehattan."

"Yeah, yeah, no problem..." Shadow Dancer found herself drooling over the sleek combat suits. "Oh, wow, this is gonna be epic..."

"I assume you don't require a suit, correct? Seeing as how you're bullet proof and all that." Fleur asked Blue Thistle, who simply shrugged her shoulders and grunted. "I'll take that as a no."

"Please be careful, okay?" Nurse Redheart said to Fleur as she stepped back into the elevator.

"Don't worry, Redheart, They'll be fine. They're in good hands," Fleur reassured her as the elevator doors began to close.

"I wasn't worried about them..." Redheart muttered under her breath as the elevator doors shut in her face.