The Revenge of Dr. Negative

~~~~~~Dock 88 Customs House, Port of Manehatten~~~~~~

"Ow! Careful Twilight, sheesh!"

Rainbow Dash winced a little as Twilight fussed over the scrapes, cuts and grazing wounds she'd gotten in her rather awesomely heroic dive attack on those air-thingummies. Turned out they didn't much like being hit by that kind of magical shockwave, and had basically gotten completely wrecked in the process. Of course, she'd also probably given the city the show of its lifetime, which was a really nice bonus when she got to thinking about it. "Oh hush, Rainbow Dash. I need to get these clean! I swear you get beaten up like this on purpose sometimes..." Twilight muttered softly at her, but not angrily... just worriedly.

Rainbow Dash was not the world's most observant pony, but this was not normal behavior for Twilight. Normally, Twilight would get exasperated but amused at Dash's injuries - usually followed by some lecture on personal safety. But Twilight was acting like Rarity or AJ did when their sisters got hurt - all mutters and worried looks and stuff. Buck, Twilight half looked like she wanted to ask Rainbow if she needed a hug! Dash was pretty damn unsure what to make of this sudden attitude change, but she certainly didn't mind it! No matter how weird the change was in comparison to... everything that had happened.

That was what brought Dash's eyes to peer out the window of the small restroom and out towards the incredible skyline outside of it. Daring had said this was the city of Manehatten but that couldn't possibly be right! Dash had been to Manehatten, and while it sure was a swank town, it wasn't anywhere near this huge! Still, there wasn't a lot of reason to question her word at this point... Dash couldn't wrap her head around what was going on as it was, which is probably why her mouth opened and started talking before she realized what she was saying. "What can I say, Twi? I like having your hooves all over me." She replied in a saucy tone of voice before she realized exactly what she'd said and damn near crushed her face with her hoof.

Luckily, Twilight appeared to be too distracted to really parse that particular innuendo, only replying irritably. "Very cute, Dash. This is the last one, so hold still!" Dash winced heavily, but did as she was told this time as Twilight tied off the last bandage and settled back down onto her haunches. "Phew. There. Luckily, nothing was really all that deep. Now let's go talk to those two... ponies." Twilight said with some degree of nervousness. "And find out just how deep in it we are."

Nodding her agreement, Dash hopped down off the stool and trotted alongside Twilight back into the main room of what Daring Do had called the 'customs house'. It was a pretty worn down spot, but it had this seedy sort of charm to it. A slightly dim sparklight hung from the ceiling and cast a gentle gold glow over everything in the room. A pair of beaten-to-heck sofas that might have once been a bright blue, and now were so heavily patched they resembled quilts.  A couple of ratty coffee tables and a work desk on which was piled an interminable amount of paperwork. A row of beaten up file cabinets along the wall completed the scene, and Dash couldn't help but imagine it as something straight out of... well...

Daring herself was perched on one of the sofas with a mug of something steaming in her hooves, and the earth pony with the flaming red hair was sprawled out lazily on the other couch. There was a small pile of scattered papers on the coffee table Daring was brooding over as the pair entered the room. "Thanks for waiting, Miss..." Twilight began- as though she really didn't want to outright say that they knew who she was. Rainbow couldn't honestly blame her, it would probably be awful awkward if they revealed that they were both huge fans of her fictional books. Though to be fair, Dash was beginning to wonder just how fictional they were...

"Ah, yeah. I guess we haven't had time for names." Daring replied, with a roguish sort of grin on her face. "I'm Doctor Daring Do, and this is my..." She eyeballed the red-headed earth pony mare on the couch, who promptly grinned herself. "Sidekick. Scooter Roll." Waitaminnit. Scooter Roll? No way. Rainbow Dash thought incredulously, then gave what she'd presumed was an earth pony a much more thorough look. She's way too skinny for an earth pony. But then, so is Mr. Cake, so...

Twilight's voice cut through Dash's thoughts, bringing her attention back to the present. "I'm Twilight Sparkle, and this is my friend Rainbow Dash... and I'd like to thank you for your timely rescue." She paused for a moment. "I'm afraid if you're hoping we have answers, we're pretty short on them ourselves." Twilight frowned a little as she lit up her horn and dragged a pair of surprisingly comfortably looking easy chairs over from another room and hopped up into them. Daring had given her an impressed look at this little feat of magic, and Dash felt a surge of pride in her friend. "Our situation is... rather fantastic, I'm afraid."

From the couch, Scooter waved a hoof airily at that statement. "Lady, we've dealt with ghosts, demons, Aztec demigods, gangsters, spies and the bucking royal family of Equestria. Trust me when I say there ain't nothin you could throw at us that we haven't at least heard of before today." Dash couldn't help but make comparisons to a certain much younger pegasus from home... and yeah, the voice was a little different, and the ages were a lot different... but Dash could very easily imagine Scootaloo growing up to be just like this mare.

Twilight smiled faintly. "I'm afraid I don't have all the details but... we were at my library in Ponyville when we heard about an accident at one of our friend's shops. There'd been some kind of magical incident." She frowned. "Which I don't know how it happened to be honest. When we got there, there was some kind of portal just hanging in midair. Our friend Rarity was being held hostage by this madpony in a doctor's coat-" Both Scooter and Daring whipped their heads up at this statement, startling Twilight out of her narrative.

Daring quickly leaned across the table. "What'd he look like? Describe him, every little detail!" Her voice was sharp, and her eyes were narrowed. Scooter had hauled herself up from the couch and was leaning forward on her seat herself. Dash took this moment to crane her head around just a little, with the pair of them focused on Twilight and... Damnit, she was wearing some kind of jacket over her shoulders. It was just bulky enough that it might be hiding wings, but there was no way to tell.

Twilight bit her lip for a moment then nodded. "He was about... This tall." She intimated with a hoof wave. "Red mane and mustache, both really frizzed out. His coat was heavily stained with something." She frowned a little. "Bright yellow coat, he was wearing these brass rimmed lab goggles. He had some scrapes and bruises on him too, I think - but anything else I can think of about him is hazy. Our meeting was rather abrupt." She finished, and tapped her hooves together nervously.

Daring sank backwards into the couch, pulling her helmet off and rubbing at the bridge of her nose. "You'd think after a decade and a half of doing this, I'd learn better than to walk out of the room when the bad guy is still obviously alive." She said with a miserable expressiveness, then glared daggers at Scooter. "And I don't want to hear a word out of you, Scoots." The flame-haired pony grinned back at her, and Daring shook her head. "Sorry. Finish up the story, Twilight - looks like we got a lot in common."

Twilight nodded a little. "Like I said, he was holding our friend Rarity hostage. He got distracted by something and Rainbow Dash tackled him to try to get her free... and they all fell through the portal." Dash winced a little, rubbing the back of her neck and wondering why she'd done the stupid-in-hindsight stunt. "Rarity's little sister ran in after her, and then I followed." She frowned softly. "What confuses me is that I arrived completely by myself, but only Dash was anywhere near me. I didn't enter the portal that long after Sweetie Belle did."

Daring opened her mouth, but Scooter flung her hoof out. "Wait a sec, Daring! Did you just say 'Sweetie Belle'?" Twilight nodded at this, and Scooter worked her mouth around a little in consternation. "Daring, I know that name. That's the new kid they've got singing at the Blue Note. But she showed up eight months ago."  Twilight's jaw did a little drop, and Rainbow Dash's eyes went very wide... Eight *months*!? But.. how long has Rarity been here then? It was a sobering, terrifying thought... Dash had only gotten to this place a few hours before Twilight had.

Daring shook her head slowly. "Looks like things are more complicated than I thought." She said softly, obviously used to having to state the obvious. "Kid, go give Rosie a call. Tell her to meet us at the Blue Note in an hour or so." Scooter nodded and hopped up off the couch, shoving her forehooves through the arms of her strange black jacket before trotting off into another room. Rosy? Dash wondered... could she mean...? "As for you two, I don't want to make any promises... but it looks like we're chasing the same pony." Daring gave them both a level, serious look. "You both know how to handle yourselves in a tight spot. How do you feel about teaming up?"

Twilight and Rainbow Dash exchanged a look, Dash's practically lighting up with excitement. Twilight looked worried at first... and then, there was a glimmer of hope and a dash of her own excitement. Dash felt her heart flutter a little at the look on Twilight's Face... and wondered just what the universe might throw at them next. Team up? With Daring Do? "We're in." Rainbow Dash said confidently, a broad grin on her face. Maybe she'd even get a chance to talk to Twilight about... stuff. Oh! And I'll get to find out the truth about that stupid Silver right from Daring Do herself!

And that just made the idea of the adventure all the sweeter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"It's so big." Twilight Sparkle whispered as she stood outside of the dockside house, her eyes ranging over the gloriously glowing skyline. It was like something out of a fairy tale, or... well, a Daring Do novel. Has it occurred to you yet, Twilight? That you might very well *be** in a Daring Do novel?* Twilight slowly shook the thought out of her head. It was impossible! So was that crash through the doorway. So is... this thing.

Twilight's eyes slowly ranged over the sleek and shiny vehicle Scooter had called a 'Motorcycle'. She still had no idea what the thing ran on, but it was clearly a mechanical device and not something strictly magical. I'm beginning to think there are a lot of things that are going to be 'impossible' here. She thought wryly, when the door swung open to reveal the other big impossibility of the night.

Daring Do slowly waltzed out with a gusty sigh, and came to stop next to Twilight. Her own eyes ranged over the skyline with a slight smile. "I never get tired of seeing her like this. All bright and glittering in the night, like nothing could possibly bring her down." She sighed a little. "Reminds me a lot of somepony."

Oh... she must be talking about Manehatten Silver. Twilight thought faintly and bit at her lip - there was no way she could possibly bring the subject of him up like this. Daring would start to ask a lot of uncomfortable questions Twilight really didn't have the answers to. "I'm sorry." Twilight hedged with, getting a surprised look from Daring. Crap! Twilight cover! Cover fast! "I mean.." She continued, looking a little hesitant. "It sounded like somepony you've lost or something."

Daring Do blinked and nodded once. "You're pretty observant. Yeah, a stallion." Her eyes hardened a little and she turned away from Twilight. "Doc's got him, just like he's got your friend. Dunno what he wants with em, but I'll bet it's to hurt me." She shook her head slightly. "Let's forget about that for now. We'll tell our stories once we meet up with Rosie." Daring turned back to Twilight with a slightly more confident grin. "So, tell me about your pegasus friend. She's seriously the real deal, isn't she? That wasn't just some fluke up there."

Twilight nodded, feeling a proud smile cross her lips. Why on earth would I feel proud of Rainbow Dash? I'm hardly her keeper! "Best flier in all of Equestria, and you're never going to find a more loyal friend."  Twilight said with just a hint of a grin. "We've been through a lot together, me and her. I don't think there's anypony else I'd rather have watching my back." And that was the truth, Twilight realized. Okay, maybe Applejack could qualify too, but... I think I'd still prefer Dash.

Daring nodded a little in response to that. "Heh, you sound like Rosie." She said, oh-so-softly... and in a way that sent a little shock down Twilight's spine. Did she...? But that was foolish to speculate about right now. "Anyway." Daring shook her head out. "We'll save the rest of our stories for the Blue Note." She eyeballed Twilight up for a moment in a way that made her blush. "Gonna have to scrounge up something for you to wear, though. This is Manehatten after all. Pony not wearing anything on the street's gonna attract attention where we're going."

Twilight swallowed a little, but smiled anyway. "What did you have in mind?"

~~~~~Elsewhere, in a hidden lair...~~~~~

Rarity reclined gracefully on the surprisingly comfortable bed which she had become rather used to over the past... well, she really wasn't entirely sure how long it had been. The lack of windows or clocks in the room meant that time passed in strange fits and starts. It certainly wasn't her featherbed at home, but one worked with the resources one had. That really did sum up the whole of how she had spent her stay here - working with what she had to do what she could.  Fortunately, she did have plenty of ink and colored pencils, so much of her time had been spent imagining her next clothing line based of the... interesting fashion choices of the guards here.

Rarity had no real memory of what precisely had happened once she'd fallen through that dreadful magical thing.  She had simply awoken in this room, surrounded by much of what she was surrounded by now. Richly appointed carpet, finely made furniture and all of the sophisticated needs of a lady right at hoof. She'd actually been quite surprised that she hadn't awoken in some dreadful cell. True, the light was provided almost entirely by some kind of oil lanterns and the door was very heavy and very locked, but the rest could hardly be complained about. She even had a lovely modern restroom, complete with a fine shower.

The door to her little cell opened thrice daily, whereupon a suited servant earth pony and a trio of heavily armored - and heavily armed -  guards would escort a tray of food and sometimes a box or two of small things she had requested. New shampoos, a bathrobe, more pencils and ink. No sewing supplies, sadly. The servant had politely informed her she was not to be trusted with sharp objects, and then apologized most profusely. Rarity's hooves itched to create something, but she was certain that was not likely to happen soon.

Today though, things were different. She'd always noticed her room was suspiciously clean every morning which she awoke from her slumber, but this morning there was new furniture here as well - a new bed, if slightly more sparsely appointed than hers. There was also a new dresser, and a new writing desk - all of which looked like they were suited for some rough-and-tumble working class stallion. All of her questions had gone rebuffed however, and she'd been forced to speculate why such a bed might be placed into her room. Surely there was nothing untoward going on, was there?

It was not until late that evening, as Rarity contemplated turning in for the evening when the door opened an unprecedented fourth time for the day... but this time there was no servant. Only six guards carrying a bruised and unconscious stallion in between their armored hooves.  They dumped him rather unceremoniously onto the plain bed, and dropped four or five large cardboard boxes labeled "Slvr" on the side in crude markers, before leaving without a second word and slamming the locked door behind them.

Rarity did not hesitate for longer than a moment. Gauze, rubbing alcohol, and hot water straight from the tap were at her hooves in mere moments. She quickly turned the brown coated, blonde maned earth pony over on the cushions as gently as she could. Did we have... Yes, we did. She quickly came back with the small glass bottle of painkillers from the bath room and gently dipped a soft cloth into the alcohol laced water, using it to gently clean the various scrapes and cuts all over his... well, rather handsome form. Keep your mind out of the gutter, Rarity! She quietly scolded herself.

He winced, even in his unconscious state as she vigorously scrubbed the cuts clean, then bandaged them up as best as she could with limited resources. Her hoof gently brushed back his stiff, thatch mane and smiled a little. As if on cue, his eyes squinted for a moment then slowly opened up, revealing a pair of bright, distinctly silver eyes looking up at her unfocused. "Are you an angel?" He asked in a rough, but soft voice.

Rarity couldn't help but giggle a little at that incredibly cheesy line, and shook her head. "Afraid not, darling. You're still quite amongst us in the land of the living." She paused and eyeballed the room around her. "For whatever value of living one can ascribe to this place." She shook her head then smiled at him. He really was quite dashing looking, if a bit rough around the edges.

The stallion nodded minutely, then winced. "Ow. I hate it when they use the rifle butts..." Rarity floated the bottle of painkillers into view. "Oh, thank Celestia. I'll take two of those, please."  Rarity nodded and helped him get the pair into his mouth, which he swallowed without water. "I'm Silver. Manehatten Silver, and I am awfully tired." He said with a slight slow smile. "But I'd rather not sleep until I know the name of the pretty mare I'll be bunking with."

Rarity couldn't help it - she laughed softly, an elegant sound that sang through the room. "My name is Rarity, darling. We'll talk more in the morning." She gently patted him on the shoulder and he nodded, his eyes closing softly... His lips muttering softly as he fell into sleep.

"Rarity, huh... that's a pretty name."

~~~~~The Blue Note~~~~~

"Twenty minutes to curtain, Sweetie! Hey... You okay in there, kiddo?"

A very pretty - and very worried looking pegasus with a powder blue coat and bright blue eyes poked her head through the door with a smile. "Hey, me and the girls are gonna grab some grub up at the Cat's Deli after the show. You in? My treat." She asked in her chirrupy voice, her head tilted at an angle so her long, shiny and sleek dark blue mane fell in waves over her shoulders.

Sweetie Belle turned on her little stool and smiled up at her - Bluebell was one of those ponies who just had a habit of looking out for everypony, but she'd always been extra nice to Sweetie Belle. "Sure thing, Blue." She said in a surprisingly happy sort of voice. "I'll meet you out front?" Blue nodded at that, and then vanished out of the door. Sweetie Belle had never heard the saying 'you can get used to anything', but if she had she'd have agreed with it. Four or five months ago, she'd have been in here crying a little almost every single night. And every single night, Bluebell would stop in and give her a hug with those big feathery wings of hers and tell her it'd be okay.

The other girls here were pretty okay too, considering how incredibly new everything was to Sweetie Belle now. Discreet Whispers and Pleasurable Company had both been really super nice to her too, even if they were usually busy at night doing whatever they did at the club. The bartender, Dry Martini had never failed to be there when Sweetie needed some advice about something she'd never encountered back in Ponyville. Even the club manager, Miss Kitty was always willing to take a little time out of her day for her. Of course, she'd been the one to bring Sweetie Belle in after... well, after everything had happened to her.

But now, eight months down the line from the incident which had torn her away from everything she ever knew, Sweetie was starting to accept her new life. She really, really missed Scootaloo and Applebloom, not to mention her big sister, but Sweetie knew just how insane her situation sounded. Who could she tell?  She'd tried sending a letter to the Princess but either it hadn't gotten to her, or maybe she'd just been dismissed as a kook. She wouldn't have been surprised if it had been both of those things.

Rarity had always told her there were something’s you just couldn't change, and maybe this was one of them. She looked up into the mirror into the pretty and made-up face that looked back at her, and she had to smile. Besides, it wasn't all bad. There was plenty of good stuff too. Bluebell and Discreet and Pleasure were all really good friends, and Martini knew how to mix up the best milkshakes. That, and... well, there was the one other thing that had changed for the better.

Sweetie Belle quickly called up her magic into her horn which glowed a quiet silvery white, and lifted the dress off of its hook by the door, slipping into it with a practiced ease over her sleek white body. Pausing only for a moment to turn her hip a little towards the mirror and smile at the sight, before tugging it all the way on. She quickly trotted out the door and into the back stage hallway, gently floating a packet of sheet music in front of her as she decided on the songs she'd sing tonight.

Yeah, things weren't so bad. After all, if you got to do something you loved to do, got to have wonderful friends and good times with them, and got to live in this fascinating and amazing world she'd fallen into... what was there to complain about? She only hoped Rarity was okay, wherever she was. Though Sweetie knew Dash and Twilight would probably easily be able to take care of her. That was what she kept telling herself, anyway, as she passed a tall, pink coated earth pony with a slow smile on her face. "Evening Sweetie. Big crowd out there tonight."

Sweetie Belle smiled at Miss Kitty. "Good night for tips then, Miss." She replied with a chirrup of happiness. "What kind of mood is the crowd in?" She asked casually as her eyes watched Lotsa Laughs send the club into peals of uproarious laughter after one of his trademark slapstick jokes.

Miss Kitty purred a little, as was her habit, before speaking. "They're gonna need a nice cool down after Lotsa's act. Arpeggio and her sister are here tonight, so I figured we could use a little smooth and jazzy. Think you can manage that?" She asked, tilting her white and purple streaked mane with that slow and sensual smile of hers, somehow smoky and heated and suggestive all in one facial gesture.

Sweetie chuckled softly, leaning up just a little to kiss Miss Kitty on the cheek, like she'd done for her new big sister so many times before. "You got it boss." She winked, and pulled out a dozen or so old favorites, humming softly to herself as she did so. There were some things you just couldn't change. It was better to enjoy what you had, and make the best of it.

Sweetie kind of liked it that way.