Honor of Thieves

A Thief's Game
///

"Well, are you going to tell your dogs to sit?" Crimson said as royal guards held their spear at his neck, "I invite you here, after all these years, and this is how you treat me, very rude you know."

"It's okay, lower your spears." She said and her guards obeyed, but stayed alert.

"How dare you treat the princess with such disrespect." A white unicorn said.

"Let me guess you're Rarity, element of generosity." He said seeing her surprise and smiled, "And to your left is Honest Applejack, Positive Pinkie, Loyal Rainbow Dash, and Kind Fluttershy, aye? It's so easy to learn so much information in two months!"

"How do you know so much about us anyway?" Rainbow Dash said annoyed at the thief.

"The thieving world has eyes and ears all over Dashie." He said to purposely annoy her, then he turned towards Celestia and Luna, "Now don't you want to hear my offer?"

"First, where is my student?" Celestia said, "I won't hear your terms until I get a report from her."

"She's in the library, I don't think she even slept last night." He said looking towards the library.

"Could you show us the way?" Luna asked.

"Go left and it's the first door the right." He said pointing to the hall, "Now if you'll excuse me I need to grab a few things." Then he watched them head towards Twilight and the library. He then went to the storage room to the right and looked around to make sure he wasn't followed.

'19, 25, 6.' He thought as he turned the knobs to a safe door behind the wine casks. Then he looked around again and went through. The vault was underground and was only almost impenetrable. That was then, and now it's only used for holding what valuables that are left in there, thieving equipment, and Sapphire who was still a statue.

"Ooh!" a voice said, "Look at all this stuff!"

"Oi!" Crimson said looking out the intruder, which was Pinkie, "Pinkie what are you doing in my family's vault?"

"Twilight finished her report and everyone is looking for you." She said

"Tell her to send her guards down here. I need to get someone."

"Who?" She asked

"You'll see." He said before she left as quickly as she appeared.

///

"What do you have planned for us now thief?", Rarity asked standing with the others outside.

"Just simple game I played with my family and friends, but I have a proposition for the princesses." He said standing in front of a hedge maze, "If I win you release someone for me, but I'll stay in Ponyville under the Elements watch, and if I lose I'll serve my jail time with Sapphire with me."

"Why don't we just put you back in the stone." Applejack said

"Either way, I'm going to be imprisoned." He said.

"Fine we have a deal." Celestia said, "Now what is this game."

"It's pretty simple. It's like hide and seek." He explained, "There are two teams, except in this occasion, you will find and catch me." Then he dropped six blowpipes and darts.

"What are these for?" Rainbow Dash asked

"You'll catch me using these." He said picking up a dart, "These darts will stun its victim for two hours, and if you get hit three times you're down for the count."

"What about you?" Twilight asked

"I have six but in a stronger dose, but don't worry it won't kill ya." He answered, "Now since it's six to one I'll use a piece of equipment I own. Now everyone got that."

They nodded in agreement and Crimson explained the rules.

"Rule one no wings, rule two no magic, you will get a signal to show that you are out. Red for the Elements and gold for me. Now happy hunting." Then he threw a smoke bomb down and disappeared in the maze.

"After him!" Twilight yelled

///

"He is a slippery snake is he?" Applejack said as they walked through the maze.

"I heard that Aj, but I won't say you're wrong."

"Where are you, you creep!?" Rainbow Dash yelled turning the corner and getting separated from the others.

"Rainbow, get back here!" Applejack yelled to no avail. Then they saw a red flare rise and they all ran to where the orb came from. When they saw Dash she was lying on the ground with a dart in her flank.

"I thought using magic was against the rules!" Rarity yelled.

"He didn't use magic, he used that cloth right there." A paralyzed Rainbow Dash said, while Pinkie kept poking her body and asking if she could feel it.

"Ooh look at this design, it matches the hedge almost perfectly!" Rarity exclaimed, "I wonder if he made it?"

"He mostly deals with plants and paralyzers." Twilight explained, "It's most likely a family member made it."

"Um, girls can we please leave?" Fluttershy squeaked, "I don't like it here."

"Don't worry Fluttershy this will all be over soon." Twi reassured, and when she turned around to look at her she was paralyzed like Dash was with a dart in her flank.

"Don't worry the guards will come and drop them off in my home with a antidote ready." Crimson said from the shadows.

"We got to stay on our guard girls he could be hiding anywhere." Rarity said, "Why'd he suggest this game anyway? Its so barbaric."

"Did you see that statue in out on the patio?" Twilight asked

"Yes." They all said

"Well he says that statue is actually his friend who cast a petrification spell on herself to be with him, but she could make it temporary." Twilight said with pity towards Crimson.

"Stay in one place and I'll get you one by one." He said then hit each one to prove his point, "I won. Here eat this you'll be able to move, but you'll be numb."

"Well that was hardly fair Crimson." Rarity said now annoy at him, "You had the advantaged no matter what we did."

"Well I wasn't made a thief for nothing." He replied with a bit of smugness in his voice.

"Yeah you mean cheater." Pinkie said sticking her tongue at him.

"The was the only thing I used was the cloth." He retorted.

"Speaking of which, who made it?"

"My mother, she could make the greatest clothing and camouflage. She even made my foal blanket for me after I was born." He said smiling.

"Oh, well she seemed like a nice mare." Twilight replied.

"She was, and my father wasn't such a bad guy either." He added as they reached the entrance and just barely dodging Rainbow Dash going to punch him, "Not so fast with your body being numb, aye?"

"Shut up you cheater!" She yelled incredibly pissed at the stallion.

"A deals a deal Celestia now give them the elements and free Blue Rose." He said ignoring the numb and wobbly pegasus.