"And over here we have the newest collecting of rocks that were found in the Equestrian Caverns."
"Okay." She stared at a rock with small quartz inside. "Geode. Most likely-" She licked it. "175 years old. What do you think, Boulder?"
"..." The imaginary rock pet of Maud Pie commented.
Maud Pie and the curator/director of the Equestrian Society of the Preservation and Study of Rocks were enjoying the cool caverns of the Equestrian Caverns. They were currently on the second floor of the miles deep caves. It was the safest as far as stability, but the best part was during the summers when the second and first floors were relief areas for the miners. But in the spring, it was still a little chilly.
"He says he wants to marry it. How quaint." She looked the curator dead in the eyes. "Is this all you found?"
He gulped. It always unnerved him how the mare was so into...rocks. He may have been a geologist, but not even he could understand what Maud Pie did. She was the one who had found the Equestrian Caves and many of the lower levels. It was her "Rock sense" that had allowed them to discover the hidden cavern that led to a boom in the jewel industry. Yet, through it all she only made one comment:
"I like rocks."
Attempting to face her in the eyes, he wilted a little. "Yes, Ms. Pie. We are working as hard as we can-"
"Leave us. Please."
"Us?"
She pulled out the pet rock of hers. "I would prefer that you not forget my pet."
Stunned, the stallion back away quietly. "Do as you please."
With a nod, she waited for the curator to leave and close the door. She honestly despised him. How could such a renowned geologist be so careless? Not only had he almost scratched the most important piece, but he had risked lives to go so deep into the caverns. If she had had her promotion, she would only allowed herself to go down so deep. Nonetheless, she couldn't do anything about it. She didn't really care about the fame; the director could keep it. She merely wanted what she had been searching for a long time.
The prize was a smooth rock. Absolutely normal on the outside; some would even say it was just another rock. But Maud Pie knew better. The "rock" was in fact a long lost artifact of the Crystal Empire. It had the unique ability to sense crystals deeper into the ground and also attract them towards the user. True, it needed to be used by a unicorn, but the Pinkies always have a special connection with rocks, except Pinkie Pie.
She looked closely at the artifact. Taking out her "pet" she placed it next to the artifact and awaited its response.
"Maud. This is it."
"I knew it. How much do you think we can sell it for?"
It took a moment before Boulder responded. "Most likely, we won't be able to."
Maud frowned. "Why is that?"
"Because the gentlestallions at the door would more than likely take it.
She turned to the still locked door. Then, she heard the scream of the director. The sound of a fallen body hit the floor and echoed. Hoof steps continued shortly after. Maud picked up her pet and took the artifact. Stuffing it into her saddle, she thought what she could use for a weapon. While her hooves were strong, she didn't want to kill somepony. She only used it for absolutely dire situations.
The intruders knocked on the door. Hard.
"Open up! We know you have what we want." He clearly wasn't going to ask a second time. When no answer graced his question he put his hoof to the door and knocked it over. Brandishing a rather large knife, he stood in the center of the room, bewildered.
"I thought you said he was in here!" He turned to a shorter stallion. Maud couldn't make out his face due to her being concealed in the rafters. What she did see was 4 stallions and a mare with a hood over her head.
"She's here. I know it." Maud was slightly stunned. It could have been a bluff, but something told her that the one with the hood was the most dangerous of all. It was unlikely that she had the ability to search out rocks or crystals. However, one never lasted too long in the business without being a little suspicious.
"This was probably the wrong room. Let us go." The hooded mare left with the stallions behind her. Dropping from the rafters, Maud made sure to land on a softer piece of flooring. She tiptoed to the door. Hopefully, they she could slip past them and get to the main entrance. She peeked her head and looked left and right. Slipping her body through the door frame, she made sure not the make the slightest sound.
It was horrible timing. "Ms. Pie."
The gray pony turned to see the little troupe had returned from their previous search. And standing with them was the director.
"Oh, hello mares and gentlecolts. May I ask why you are looking for me?"
The curator had the gall to speak. "You! I've known you for all these years. Why did you never tell me of your abilities? We could have been rich!"
Maud sighed. "I'm afraid it would never have worked. You want both the fame and the riches. I'm just here for the money." She did a quick take on the thugs. One was carrying a club, another a wrench, and the last one with the big knife.
"Ms. Pie." The hooded pony called. "I have the utmost respect for your skills. But I am afraid you must give me the artifact. Otherwise the colts here will have to bury you deeper than these caverns."
"Easier said than done.
"Then please enjoy this parting gift." She clapped her hooves and the thugs began to walk towards her. Maud knew the caves well enough to get out. However, she would still need to deal with them outside where they could encircle her. This was, it was one at a time.
The one with a club and a skull for a cutie mark took the first swing. It was an easy dodge as Maud flipped backwards. She followed it up with an uppercut from her hind legs, landing a perfect upward blow on his chin. More than likely, we wouldn't be eating for the next few years. Seeing his fallen comrade, the 3rd pony ran from behind the second and attempted to cut her in two. Unfortunately, he had underestimated the mare. As he swung, she grabbed the blade and bucked him in the stomach. With a howl of pain, he doubled over and Maud finished with a curb kick.
The final enemy saw he had very little chance alone. "You can go, if you want. I'm not here for you."
"But then I wouldn't get paid." He took off his hat and began to a spell.
Maud just laughed. "Far too slow." She raised her hooves way above her head and brought them down in front of her. Instantly, the floor began to shake and the stallion lost his concentration. The shaking continued yet still. Maud knew that the shockwaves would rebound off the floor and continue long enough for her to land a blow. Running across the cracked floor, she head butted the stallion who fell back in rage.
"Alright, mare. Come get some." He lowered his horn and prepared to charge.
She tsked. "Using a horn for physical fighting? You are as stupid as you are bold."
With a roar, the thug threw his whole body...and stopped. Maud was holding out her hoof, completely stopping the unicorn.
"Wh-What? How?" He attempted to lift his head and found that he could not. "How did you-"
"You think I'm some average pony? Well, you have misjudged. And unfortunately, this will lead to your shame."
"Who are you?" He again attempted to raise his head.
"No one special." With her other hoof, she completely broke of the horn. Magic began to flow from the wound. Losing strength, the stallion fell to the floor, knocked out.
"Oh hay." The director and the robed pony were gone. Most likely, they had gone deeper into the cavern. Not that it mattered. She could return to the surface, catch a cab to Manehatten, and get the more boring side of the whole ordeal over with. But a bigger question plagued her mind.
Who was the mysterious mare? How did she know about the artifact? It wasn't a well known fact, yet she had gone in knowing what she wanted. Not to mention she knew her name. With nothing but questions, the artifact, and her pet, she rode the lift to the top floor into the sunlight.
It was time for a visit with The Merchant.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Manehatten. How she despised it.
The bustling city held nothing for her. The rocks and mountains that had once been here were now covered by pavement and modern buildings. Most ponies misunderstood Maud from just looking at her. While her speech pattern was boring and it seemed that she only cared about rocks, she actually cared a lot about nature. Rocks were a part of that. As for her "boring" part, that was just to her sister.
But when she visited her business associates or had a job, she was far from boring. She was a...hunter. Maud never associated herself much with the fictional "Daring Do". but her job description was along the same lines. If a client wanted something, she got it. She got her money, and she would enjoy life and her rocks on the farm. Her current job required her to obtain a rock. At least, that was the job description. But Maud knew that to survive in a dog eat dog world, you had to be a wolf.
From her research, she discovered more about the rock he wanted. And why he was willing to pay such a hefty price. Whoever had it would be worth a fortune. The only reason she hadn't kept it was because she didn't need the trouble of a loose end. That, at the bits were better for buying things. Who wanted a mysterious rock that barely anyone knew about and only a unicorn could use?
"Ma'm we are at the Towers. That will be 25 bits."
Snapping back to the real world, she opened her purse and paid. Stepping out, she looked at the tall Towers. They were really a collection of skyscrapers that would most likely topple at the smallest bump. Yet, they always stood tall.
She went into the building. The receptionist did a double take at the pony who just entered. Maud didn't really wear different clothes. It was certainly a shock for the prim and proper pony of Manehatten.
Maud strolled to the receptionist. "I am here to see a Mr. Market."
"Oh are you? Well, Mr....Who did you say?"
"Market."
"Oh. I wasn't aware he was taking invitations from trash. Would you like me to send him a call?"
Maud rolled her eyes. "Yes, that would be great."
The receptionist picked up the phone. "Hello, yes. Could I please have Mr. "Market"," She air quoted with her hoof, "come down? He has a visitor." She hung up the phone. "He will be here shortly." The receptionist put on her brightest and fake smile.
"Thank you." She trotted over to a couch and sat down. Boulder and the artifact were hidden deep within her saddle, just in case someone had any ideas. She picked up a nearby newspaper and read the first article.
It was about a cave in at the Equestrian Caverns. Apparently, an earthquake had passed nearby and had weakened the structure. The director (who was still alive, darn it!) commented about his condolences to any family who had been injured or lost someone. All the while assuring that the Society would help with relief. While Maud didn't care for his lies, she was concerned. She may have gone overboard and created the earthquake. However, she knew the extent of her abilities and it was most likely not her fault. It was just some bad luck. Not. Her. Fau-
"Hello madam. We are here to escort you too Mr. Market." A pair of burly security guards stood near her. He leaned in close. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way." He pulled out a large billy club. "Personally, I wanna do it MY way." He grinned.
"I'm afraid you stallions have the wrong mare. I am here to see Mr. Market, not two ugly bodyguards."
"OOOOh!" The other guard taunted. "She has a mouth. I say we take her round back and give her the treatment."
She stood up from the sofa. "I am going to see Mr. Market."
"Well, we ain't gonna let ya. It’s our job." They both stood tall, ready for a fight. And Maud gave them one.
The first guard swung low at her body. She jumped high and landed on his head with a deafening crack. His skull was certainly damaged, if it wasn't already. But that was clearly not enough. With a yell, he grabbed her hoof and slammed her down. She began to see stars.
"Hey. If you are gonna dispose of the trash, take it outside." The receptionist called.
But Maud wasn't going to give up so easily. She flicked her hind legs up and hit the guard on the chin, knocking him to the ground. He did not move. The other guard just stared, then remembered he had a weapon. Swinging like crazy, he made an attempt to hit her.
It was clear he had no experience. With a quick move, Maud grabbed his hoof, moved the weapon away, and broke it. She shoved him to the ground and prepared to land a final blow for a knockout.
"Ms. Pie! Good to see you!" Came a voice from behind her. She turned to see a tall, blue figure in a blue suit. "My apologies. My new receptionist will hopefully do better."
The soon-to-be-fired receptionist nearly burst into tears. Maud stood up and straightened herself. "It's fine. She didn't know her place."
The suited pony nodded held a hoof up. "Please, let us go to my office. I trust you have what I asked for and we may need to discuss in private. Ms. Quill, please cancel all my appointments for the next 20 minutes. This is important."
Breaking from her shock the secretary gave a bright smile. "Yes sir! Ms. Pie, please fill out this form-"
"No need." Her boss interrupted. "Like I said, I was expecting this. No need for it to go on the record." He turned to Maud. "I am sure you would not want that either."
"I try to keep movements quiet, so thank you. I trust you will grant me the consideration of privacy as well?" Maud responded with a smile, offering a hoof.
"Of course." His voice was clear that he wanted to be in control of the situation. He was all smiles, when needed. It was no wonder he had wanted none of this to go on the record. After all, the black market dealing was illegal in ALL of Equestria. He was just The Merchant.
Maud and Mr. Market trotted to the elevator and went up to the top floor. On the way there, Maud attempted to get a better perspective on her buyer.
"Cameras?"
"Not in this one. But don't worry. I wouldn't bother doing something fatal at this stage. You have what I wanted and that is what matters." He pulled out a cigar and lit it. he offered one to Maud.
"I don't smoke. Clouds my mind sometimes." Never knew when a cigar might blow up in your face.
Mr. Market grinned. "Never let your guard down eh?" He turned back to the elevator doors. I have to money just as you asked for. Although it was a little strange..."
"I need it for my next job. It is none of your business." She kept a rock solid face.
"Very well then." He opened the elevator doors to a long hallway with a tall door at the end. The hall itself was enormous. From her position, Maud felt small and insignificant to the majesty of the gold arches. Scenes of creation from even beyond Celestia stared down on her. At the end of the hallway was a pair of double doors.
"Right this way, Ms. Pie." Mr. Market waved.
The room itself was...small. In fact, there was just a desk and a few shelves.
"Sorry I don't clean up."
"I won’t be long." Maud responded. "Do you have my money?"
"Straight to business I see. Very well." He hefted a large suitcase from behind his desk. "1 million bits. As promised."
"Open it." She demanded.
"Really. I wouldn't do anything so dastardly."
"Do it." She continued.
The business man grimaced. Then smiled slyly. "If you insist!" With a swing, he threw the opened suit case of poisoned cupcakes-
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"No no no!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "That is not something that would happen to her!"
"Well in all honesty, I doubt she was a black market rock dealer in the first place." Twilight countered.
"I thought it was cool." Fluttershy commented.
Applejack just laughed. "I know ya like a good book, RD, but you can't be serious! I doubt even Daring Do can do the things Maud can do."
"Go back to the gem mines." Rarity smiled. "I like gems."
"I thought it was cool!" Pinkie replied. "All the 'bam!' and 'pow' sounded really cool! And maybe she is a secret agent who sells rocks on the black market. I don't really know. I see her only once in a really really really long time!
The others just sighed. They had been at it for hours trying to make up their minds on who Maud Pie really was.
"Allow me to be the sensible one." Applejack interrupted as Pinkie began to ramble. "She was just a regular mare visiting her sister. She happened to just be really interested in rocks, move faster than Rainbow Dash, be smarter than Twilight, more fashionable than Rarity-"
"I'm going to stop you right there." Twilight interrupted. "What was your point?"
"My point is that even a mare who can destroy rocks with her bare hoof can have a regular life. There is little doubt in my mind that she is some secret agent or assassin."
The others sighed. It was a little obnoxious.
Twilight smiled. "She's right. I mean, she’s probably long gone now. Who wants a milkshake? Spike! Make us some milkshakes!"
"Make it yourself!" Spike called from his room. "I'm busy!"
The others laughed. "Oh spike!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She could hear their laughter all the way from the library. She smiled. Twilight and company really were good friends to her sister. But she had business to take care of. She pulled out a small radio and dialed in a number.
"Golden Ray. This is Rock. They are almost ready for the test."
BZZZZZZZZTTTTTTT
"Good. Once they collect the final keys, they will understand their purpose."
"And your promise?"
The radio went silent.
"I will do as you asked."
Silence for another moment. Then, "You were unable to trigger another reaction?"
"No. It seems I am not one of the triggers. Perhaps we should send-"
"Stop." The voice commanded. "I will figure this out. Just keep tabs."
"Very well. Rock out."
The gray mare sighed. Her dear sister had no idea just what was about to happen to her.
Author's Note
Alright! Another one down.
I may not be able to get this week's prompt. I will be searching for colleges over springbreak. So enjoy the story, give feed back, and enjoy!
What I tried: Working up to a shocking ending.
