The Shadows of War

Four ponies crept along in the dark. The Manehatten Mane Bank was their target, and the truck they had gotten out of was empty, although with any luck it would be full by the end of the night. They had this one chance, this ONE shot to make the score of their lives. The bank held over twenty million bits, most of its value in gold ingots, and provided loans to all of the largest businesses in town. It was freshly completed, and each of the thieves had a different skill and goal.

Eye Spy, an intelligent and cunning individual who had a background in electronics and security, knew the surveillance systems used in this type of building quite well, and had a method for tapping them and shorting them out without ever showing his own face. Years of his ideas being overlooked in the field of security had made him bitter, and other than the money, he was doing this out of pride.

Red Wire was an ex-miner with a knack for explosives. He knew EVERYTHING about anything that exploded, burned, or made bright flashes. Limited college and academic success had ensured that he would always only be a low level person in his company, even though he was the best explosives expert they had, and this contributed to his need for money.

Spell Check, an aging professor at a small university, was knowledgeable in the ways of spell breaking and bypassing complex enchantments, having studied all his life. His need for money was due to his low standing at the university, and the bills that came with his ailing health. The need for funds for his grandchildren to go to college was his sole driving motivation.

Speed Chaser was an ex-racer, a Pegasus professional driver who had spent some time in the army as a combat driver who transported officers to and from the front line, and upon his discharge, had entered hotrod racing in Los Pegasus until a fiery crash had ended his career. Missing two fingers on his left hand, he was refused the chance to return to the professional or even private circuits, with bitterness and alcoholism driving him deep into debt. His job was to make the getaway successful, and to keep an eye out on the front door.

All four of them knelt outside the front door. Spell Check kept an eye out. Years of staring at textbooks and intense focus on magic had given him a trained eye, and at his hand motion they all sank into the shadows until he whispered “Just a cat. Spy, pick the lock.”

Eye Spy nodded and knelt, inserting a lockpick and a turner, concentrating. Twenty seconds later, there was a faint 'click', and he whispered “Go go go! Get inside, I'll disable the alarm! Wire, get the guard!”

Spy ran forward and spun around, tearing off the cover of the security panel while Wire slipped into a hallway. A moment later, there was a THUNK and a sigh, and Wire came back, carrying the unconsious guard back and stealing his card. “Guard taken care of. Spy, the alarm?”

“Here it is... and here it goes” he said, smiling. “Alarm taken care of. Chaser, Wire, you guys got the kit? Get to the vault” he said, turning back to the alarm. “I'm gonna set the alarm to go off after we leave. Should draw the police off.”

Wire and Chaser nodded, heading into the back. After finishing the alarm, Spy got up, nodding to Spell Check. “Alright... you SURE you can crack the enchantment on that vault?”

Check sighed and nodded. “These old bones aren't worth much else. Professor's salary isn’t enough to leave much for my kids and grand-kids. Wish it was possible to do it decently but...”

Wire nodded. “Sorry old man, but honest means will only get you so far in life. Lets go” he said, heading back to the giant steel vault in back.

The vault in question had a 2-ton door with an interlocking mechanism. It was state-of-the-art, bleeding-edge technology with arcano-tech enchantments. It required both the casting of a spell and disengaging the lock at the same time. Failure to do both would render the vault impossible to open until someone from the company came out to manually open the vault using a code even this team could not get ahold of.

Fortunately, the professor and Red Wire had the tools they needed to do both. The professor had helped research the spell used on the vault-

“Hold on!” said Golden Bits, staring at the floor plan. “That's a stretch!”

Off to the side, Rainbow guffawed. “Yeah man, even for you! You spent three weeks on that map, and THAT is the best you have?”

I sighed at both of them. I had cracked two banks, but this one stumped me. From every angle, that vault was impregnable. I had even sent a letter to Princess Twilight asking about spellbreaking, and she admitted that she had no idea how to crack the 'hypothetical' spell I had sent her. If the princess of magic could not do it, I had no idea who could.

“I guess so, but if they don’t have an inside man, there is frankly no way to get in. At least, not a way I can see. Getting to the vault is easy, but getting inside is impossible... or close to it. Unless you are a unicorn with raw power at LEAST equal to the Princess of Magic, you are not cracking that vault.”

Golden Bits giggled and looked up at me. “That is what I was hoping to hear. I doubt that any vault is truly safe, but since very few have access to the power of Discord, and of them even fewer would plan to rob a bank, I dont think we need to worry overmuch about it. So, just to put it on the record, what is your final assessment of this vault?” she asked, head cocked to one side.

I stared back at the plan, before looking at Rainbow and shrugging. “Secure. Doubt anyone is getting in anytime soon. I'd put my money in it.”

She nodded, taking the plans back and rolling them up. Putting them into a tube, she handed them to the suited security guard behind her and got up. “Miss Dash, Mister Wing, thank you for letting me come over and for your... interesting... take on Chowder” she said, the corners of her mouth twitching, and Rainbow wincing. That had not been her best meal, as she had accidentally used slightly sour milk, and the chowder would surely come back to haunt us later. “I look forward to securing your services in the future” she said, as we shook hands. With one more nod at Rainbow, she and her guard left, and I sat back down, rubbing my head.

Finally, I looked up at Rainbow, who was twiddling her thumbs and staring at her shoes. For a couple of weeks, I had been wanting to ask this, ever since Blaze had left, but the time had never felt right. I had come to the conclusion that it would never be the right time, and that there is no time like the present. I was not getting any younger, and at the rate I got into fights, I would not make it to thirty.

She looked up just as I opened my mouth, and I found myself entranced by her eyes again, those beautiful orbs promising security and love... those magenta eyes that had watched over me both in sickness and in health, the eyes that gazed into my heart, seeing the true me behind all the scars and the mutilations visited upon me by the ravages of war. A heart that now skipped a beat...

“Didja lose something over here?” she asked, one of her ears up, and one of them down. Her muzzle scrunched up in a curious manner, and the corner of her mouth quirked up. Once again, I blushed, the words I had worked on first bottling up, and then spilling out.

“Wanna dinitme?” I gargled, cheeks reddening again, and she giggled.

“I don't know, is it fun?” she teased, still looking at me as I mentally facepalmed.

“Erm, since some of the pans are still dirty, do you wanna go out with me? Erm, to dinner? You know, to eat?”

She tittered again, and I inwardly groaned. Great idea, remind her of the cooking mishap.

After a minute, she nodded. “Sure! Where were you thinking?”

I sat back, thinking. “How about... that little pasta place? The Neightallian restaurant. They make great salads and pasta dishes, at least that's what one of the bank tellers was saying to me yesterday. I think it might be... nice?” I said, more of a question than a statement as I looked back into her eyes.

Alot of people, a lot of the guys I hung out with in the army and even before then, they would go on and on about breasts, or hindquarters, or hips or curves, all the bits below the shoulders. Many would talk about tails or manes, but for me... it was the eyes. I loved the eyes in a person, and someone with clear, sharp eyes, eyes that didn't just look, but saw everything they gazed upon, those kinds of eyes spoke to me. And those were the kinds of eyes she had.

She smiled, nodding. “Sure! I'll go and get something to go out. Lets get a move on” she said, getting up and heading to her room. In preperation for my work today, I was already dressed fairly nice, but for once... I wanted to do something special for Rainbow. The restaurant we were going to was pretty nice, not SUPER classy, but nice all the same, and it had a decent dress code. So for tonight... I smiled to myself as I headed for the spare room.

Rainbow was faster than most ponies at a good many things. Running, racing, flying, anything athletic really. Apparently she could get ready to go much faster than most females are reputed to do so, as fifteen minutes later she was coming out, dressed in a white shirt and slacks, pulling on a section of her mane to get it to go straight.. and stopped dead. She blinked twice when she saw me standing by the door, softly smiling, and I stood there.

I had dressed up in my Dress Uniform, the soft hat perched on top of my head between my ears, and green shirt and pants decorating the rest of my body. My black boots were shined to the point that if I were to look down, I could count my teeth in them. On my chest, my medals and ribbons hung, each telling of something I or my unit had done, my campaign ribbon, and the purple heart. Above all of them was a gold and silver medal, inscribed with the Old Equestrian rune for Honor. It was shined, and her eyes gravitated to the Medal of Honor on my chest.

Slowly, her eyes rose... and I thought I saw the faintest red on her cheeks, but it might have been the light from the slowly dimming sky. Finally, she swallowed twice and said “That's... your uniform. You put that on for... me?” she asked, approaching. I nodded, smiling at her as she came closer, before offering her my hand. “If I may have the honor of escorting you, m'lady?” I said, trying not to choke on my words.

She now clearly blushed, and I looked down too, until she walked forward and took my hand, nodding. “S-sure... That uniform looks really nice on you. L-lets go, huh?”

I nodded, holding her hand as we headed out. The day outside, darkening towards evening, was a hallmark of mid spring. Birds chirped overhead, telling each other about the worms they had collected, or the other birds they had chased off, or their young. A few wispy clouds hung overhead, the kind we Pegasi used to let the ground bound know that we had a storm in the works. There would probably be a thunderstorm tonight, judging by the teams in the sky that were assembling clouds off to the edges of Ponyville.

Soon enough, we arrived at the Neightallian restaurant, where we walked in the front door. A unicorn stallion met us, standing behind a small wooden podium with a book. It was not a reservation-only place, but you could reserve a private booth if you had the bits. I stepped forward, glancing at Rainbow, and then to him.

“Table for Two please... in a corner, if you have one.”

He looked down at the book, his horn lit up as he looked a bit distant, and then smiled. A moment later, an earth pony mare came over, dressed in a suit and smiling broadly. “This way please!”

Rainbow squeezed my hand as we walked in, and my pulse quickened. It was at this moment that my brain realized this was a DATE!

The familiar panic began to rise, but another glance at Rainbow set me at ease. She looked happy, much happier than usual. Finally, the mare led us not to a corner table, but a private booth in the back. Rainbow glanced at it, and then at the waitress. “Um, we don't have a reservation... and we don't really have the bits for this either...” she said, ears going flat.

I nervously began to mentally calculate my funds until she tittered. “Nonsense! A Wonderbolt reservist and a decorated war hero showing up here? Front Door notified the manager, and she insisted that you get the private booth! Also, your meal is on the house, including dessert... Mister Wing. Five Star will be out shortly, make yourselves comfortable!”

The last name gave me pause, but I would be damned if I let ANYTHING get in the way of making this night the best night of my life. I stood to the side, letting Rainbow in first, and then sat across the table from her. The menu in front of each spot showed a list of excellent pastas and salads, and a selection of Pizzas that catered, to my surprise, both to ponies and to Gryphons. There was a Pepperoni pizza... bluh. Rainbow and I both looked at them, before she looked up. “Hey... lets get the giant pasta bowl. We can split it... if ya want to” she said, looking down, seeming a bit abashed for a moment. This was unlike her... was she just as nervous as me?

I nodded, and looked at the waitress. “Um, the giant pasta dish, and maybe a light ale?”

Rainbow looked over their list, humming, before looking up. “Black Dragon Vodka, please. Make it a double.”

I did a double take. Black Dragon Vodka was favored by the denizens of Siberia and Sailors for two reasons... it was sour enough to pucker your stomach, ensuring you wouldnt heave overboard, and it was strong enough to clean ANY engine part, or provide emergency fuel for a gas powered boat. It was rumored that the Gryphons had experimented on it as a suitable source of fuel for rockets and flamethrowers. That stuff was HIGH test... and MUCH stronger than anything I had ever had before.

“Erm... Dash? You sure that's a good idea?” I asked, and she grinned at me.

“Hey, I'm just a civilian, and you're a soldier. I would think you should be the one getting the heavy stuff!”

She held that grin, before suddenly blushing as she clapped both hands over her mouth. “I didn't mean anything by that! You don't have a drinking pro-” she said, looking horrified at her faux pas, cheeks burning red.

I just held my look, before shaking my head. “Only reason I would use Black Dragon Vodka would be to set something on fire. Still, you held my head out of the loo often enough...” I said, remembering my week of illness.

Finally, the Waitress had our orders, and departed. Rainbow and I did what most people probably do on their first date... sit quietly and stare at either the ceiling, the floor, or the table, with the occasional quick glance at each other.

Just as I looked up to talk, a MASSIVE pegasus approached. He was bright green, with a short dress shirt and a hat. His upper right arm showed five stars on what seemed to be a dinner plate, and he smiled. “Welcome to the Pasta Place! I'm Five Star, and I was surprised to hear you two were visiting my humble restaurant!” he said, his deep voice booming. “You are Mister Wing and Miss Dash, right?” he said, squinting.

We both nodded, and I stood up, holding out my hand. “Thank you for the booth, sir, and everything else. I didn't expect the VIP treatment when I wanted to take Miss Dash here out for dinner.”

He shook my hand and smiled. “Well, it's the least I can do to make up for my son's horrible behavior. Yeah, I'm Silver Star's father. Well, partially for that, and partially for what you have done for your country. My brother was military, I was a cook in the army, and well... I hear what you did. Just my way of saying thanks, son” he said, before turning to Rainbow Dash. “You there, little lady, you hold onto him. Boys like him are hard to come by, and you wont ever find anyone else as loyal, 'cept you of course. You two kids have fun tonight!” he said, nodding at her before leaving.

The whole thing left me a bit flustered, and as I sat down, my mind reeled a bit. That was the first time someone had not only not freaked out over my face and past, but rewarded me for it! The whole thing left me feeling... a bit confused.

Rainbow grinned at me. “See? Some people around here have a bit of respect for you! You aren't alone, you know. Keep that chin up, sunny days ahead for you!”

As our food arrived, I thought about it, and smiled. “Of course there are sunny days... any day with you is sunny” I said, reaching under the table and taking her hand. There was a spark, and I knew... I wanted more than a friend from her. There was nobody else I wanted to spend my days with.