Mafia Octavia Act 3: Crossroads

Detective Twilight Sparkle of the Ponyville Police Department, badge number 1247, slumped down at her desk, the file from her most recent case open on her desk, which incidentally, was also the cause of her most recent headache. The brown manilla file wasn't very thick actually, a testament to how little headway the frazzled purple unicorn and her once-bouncy partner Pinkie Pie had made in the most bizarre, and aggravating, case of their career.

Twilight shut the file to gaze at the cover of the file pensively. Stamped on the front cover were the two words: TOP SECRET in large, red block letters. They mocked her, silently judging the best that the Gangster-Incident Division had to offer. Under the offending letters, was the current case’s name: The Windigo Killings.

They had started about a month ago, when the back wall of a barber shop was destroyed using well-placed demolition charges, analysis of the bomb fragments had revealed that they were military-grade, the same kind that the combat division of the royal guard would use during the last war. The hole left behind exposed an executive room in the back of a deserted speakeasy, the only patron left by the time the police had arrived was the bullet-ridden corpse of a bulky earth pony who looked as though he had been gunned down while reaching for the discarded shotgun that was lying next to him, his blood hadn’t even had time to dry.

The one piece of solid evidence that had been left behind was a single, plain, white calling card reading: Courtesy of Windigo in silvery script. Since then, more victims had shown up all over Ponyville, although the cause of death wasn't always the same: some had been given a coup de gracé right between the eyes, some had their throats slit, some were hanged, had their necks snapped, and one had even seemed as if he had been burnt alive. The only constants to these murders was the appearance of the calling card, and the fact that all of them had been either higher-ranking members of the Flim-Flam mafia, or their subordinates.

But this was where the aggravation came into play: no matter the situation, no matter the method used in the killings, there was never any trace that somepony else had been on the scene before the police. Aside from bullet holes and the white calling card, as well as any other tools, such as explosives or piano wire nooses, nothing had ever been recovered. The only other modus operandi was that each of the victims had the word “guilty” carved somewhere on their bodies. It looks like we really are dealing with vengeful ghost, Twilight thought to herself, This “Windigo” really lives up to his name.

Twilight’s thoughts were interrupted when the door to her office burst open, revealing her deputy and assistant, Spike.

“Twilight,” he said calmly, “They found another body.”

“So?” She said dismissively, “there won't be any new evidence to collect, 'Windigo' is too careful to leave anything behind. Just let forensics bring me the report when they’re done.”

“That’s not why I came here Twilight,” Spike said, “The situation is different from the others.”

Twilight just sighed, and grabbed her things before following the young dragon out the door. This was going to be another long night.

***********************************A Few Hours Earlier***********************************

Vinyl Scratch yawned, completely bored out of her mind. Her first real job as a solo hitmare for Flim and Flam wasn’t proving to be very interesting, she was supposed to wait at a warehouse in downtown Ponyville for one of Flim and Flam’s more… valued lieutenants.

The stallion’s name was Senshi, his strange name reminiscent of his homeland far to the east of Equestria. He was also very late, which pissed the free-spirited Vinyl off quite considerably. While she waited, Vinyl allowed her thoughts to wander. She thought of the past four months, and how lucky she was that she even made it past her first night in Ponyville. She thought of her once best friend, Octavia. Where was she? What was she planning? Does she care that her “loose end” had joined a rival mafia? How close was she to finding her prey? And, would she enjoy having to kill her?

Vinyl shook her head, banishing the ridiculous question from her mind. Of course she would, Vinyl thought angrily, she used our “friendship” as bait to pull me closer so she could put a bullet in me! Why wouldn’t someone like that enjoy my death!? Stop being stupid, Vinyl. In this world, it’s kill or be killed. That’s the life of anyone on this side of Equs, the only thing that matters is that I don’t hesitate, not even for a moment.

Yes, Lyra had taught her that. Mercy was a luxury for the weak, one that no pony could afford in the underworld, so when Vinyl got her hooves on Octavia, she would do just that. There would be no forgiveness, no mercy, only blood. And Vinyl didn’t care whose it was, because after she finally found Octavia, only one of them-

“Hello little one, were you waiting long?” said a deep voice behind the white mare.

Vinyl jumped, “Agh! What the hay, man!” She exclaimed as she shot to her hooves, drawing her twin handguns and turning to face the stallion who had snuck up behind her, an amused expression on his face.

“My apologies little one,” He said politely, bowing his head, “My name is Senshi, I assume that you are the one that Flim and Flam sent?”

“Yeah, that’s me, sorry for shouting,” Vinyl said, stowing her guns in her two shoulder holsters and taking off her shades, “my name is Vinyl Scratch,” Vinyl said, extending a hoof, which Senshi shook firmly. Very firmly.

“Ah, you're the new member!” Senshi said jovially, “I heard quite a lot about you from Lyra-dono!”

Lyra… dono? Must be a cultural thing, Vinyl mused, taking her first good look at the strange stallion. He was slightly taller than the average stallion, pretty lanky actually, however his skinny limbs and torso rippled with lean muscle under his scarlet fur. His dark black mane was messy, as if he never bothered to style it, and one of his brown eyes had a scar over it. But the strangest thing about him was his attire - he seemed to be wearing something similar to a bathrobe and sash. He also didn’t seem to be carrying a weapon with him, something that should be a massive oversight to anyone in the underworld. But Senshi looked perfectly at ease, a warm smile on his muzzle.

“You’re scarlet eyes are rather unique, quite beautiful actually,” Senshi continued, his smile only getting warmer as Vinyl began to feel her face heat up with the blush. This was one of the highest-ranked killers in the Flim-Flam mafia? The very same organization that trained their assassins to be mindless killing machines and considered civilians “expendable”? Vinyl expected to see his type at high-society functions in Canterlot, flirting with fancy noblemares, not in some downtown warehouse with a neophyte mafia hitmare.

Senshi just rubbed his chin with a hoof and grinned, “You were wondering why I allied myself with masters Flim and Flam's organization, yes? It’s written all over your face, little one!” He said, bursting out laughing. Vinyl balked at the unexpected reaction, stunned that a pony like this could be stained by the kind of life they lived. Or that such a pony existed in the first place.

“Now then,” and with those two syllables, the comfortable atmosphere between the two ponies vanished like smoke, “I assume this is not a social visit, why have they sent you to me?” Senshi said, his voice suddenly growing cold. Vinyl suppressed a shudder, she still wasn’t used to how all of the family’s members could suddenly change from somepony you would meet on the street, to someone who looked as if they would rip you to pieces without a second thought. Even after a month of this gig as a hitmare for Flim and Flam, the sudden change still unnerved her.

Vinyl swallowed nervously, “yeah, that’s right. I guess you’ve already heard the name 'Windigo'?” Vinyl asked in a timid voice.

“Ah, yes. The vengeful ghost that haunts our organization, indeed I have heard of him. In fact, I have always wished to cross blades with someone so skilled as to survive a month of eliminating our comrades.” Senshi said, his infectious grin returning to his face.

“Yeah? Well you're in luck buddy, ‘crossing blades' with the Windigo is the order straight from the bosses, they want you to track him down and take him out.” Vinyl said in her most official tone, which still made her sound like a terrified school filly. She mentally kicked herself for being terrified of someone who was supposedly on her side in this insane ghost hunt.

Over the past month, dozens of grunts working for Flim and Flam had been systematically caught, questioned, and slaughtered. Several of the family’s lieutenants had been killed, thereby forcing Flim and Flam to be more covert with their day-to-day dealings in the underworld. Using their shiny new hit ponies as messengers was one of those countermeasures, less knowledge of how they operated, and easy to replace if they were killed. It was the usual, cruel way of the criminal underworld. But effective, results were all that mattered after all.

However, in this case, the results were not good at all. A full month of investigations, losses of family members, and much flexing of influence had uncovered absolutely nothing, it was as if the Windigo really was a vengeful spirit. One that was bent on nothing short of the complete annihilation of the Flim-Flam mafia.

Whoever this pony was, Flim and Flam were almost desperate to be rid of them, but so far their only reward for their efforts was a higher body count.

The mare in the mask was hollow, the walls of the alleyway below her were hollow, the warehouse she was watching was hollow too. To her, all of Equs looked hollow, and really quite dull, Octavia Melody had forgotten the weight of a pony life, forgotten the feeling of her bow on the strings of her cello, she had forgotten how to feel.

When was the last time she had heard her music?

The target this time was a rather strange unicorn. Apparently, he was once a high-ranking member of a clan of warrior-nobility. Why he had joined the mafia was beyond her, he had no reason to fall into the same darkness she was forced into.

This had intrigued the Windigo of the Apple family, and she wasn’t easily interested in her jobs. She hoped this one would shake her out of the doldrum she’d been in since she had become famous in the underworld nearly a month ago.

Flim and Flam were rightfully miffed at the fact that a single pony had snatched a valuable hostage right from under their noses. The result was a very sizable bounty on the Windigo’s head, dead or alive, spread throughout the underworld.

But it was so dull, none of those amateurish hunters had even managed to put a scratch on her, and in the end she disposed of them like she disposed of all the trash that crossed her, she left their still-warm corpses with her card, as any cordial business pony would. Heh… I’d bet Madame Orange would approve of that, Octavia thought wryly to herself as she slid down a pipe down to the warehouse courtyard below. Yes, she was hollow, but that was all she could be, all that she could be allowed to be.

A warning.

“…scratch…” Said a distant voice, “Miss Scratch, can you hear me?” Senshi said loudly, breaking Vinyl out of her daze. “Oh, sorry sir. What was that?” Vinyl asked, stumbling over her words as she was shaken from her reminiscing.

Senshi chuckled at her display of youthful naïveté, he found it rather fascinating that these new recruits could show so much of what their lives had been like before stepping into the world of killers.

Not Senshi.

No, Senshi had been born into this life. His family came from a long line of killers after all, honorable killers, but killers nonetheless.

Truthfully, he had never been late for this meeting, he had simply been observing the ivory-colored mare as she had bobbed her head to the sound of some sort of inner rhythm, her scarlet eyes had been so far away then.

Those eyes… he knew it was pointless to dwell on it, but her appearance had awoken things that should have been left buried.

Things had been so much simpler then.

Snapping out of his own reverie to see Miss Scratch’s worried stare in his direction, he chuckled again, “I appear to have gotten lost in the past, my apologies, little one” Senshi said with a small bow.

Vinyl shot him a curious glance. “Well then!” Senshi added with his infectious grin, “I will soon be late for another appointment if I don’t hurry! Aloe and Lotus give the best hot stone massages!”

Vinyl rolled her eyes and turned to leave, grinning despite the strangeness of the stallion foreign stallion. “Alright, I’ll leave you to it then,” Vinyl said over her shoulder, “I’ll tell the boss you took the job.”

Senshi watched as the ivory neophyte hitmare left the warehouse, leaving the two occupants to their business.

“You can come out now, I don’t bite little one, but I suspect you might.” He said to no one in particular.

“I very much doubt the first part, Mr. Senshi,” The mare in the mask said, stepping out from behind a shipping crate.

Senshi chuckled, “I suppose I should be thankful that I no longer need to search for you, 'Windigo'. Although I must say, I wasn’t expecting a mare to be behind all of those deaths.”

Octavia snorted behind her mask, “Flattery won’t get you anywhere, sir. The only reason you’re still standing is that I’m curious, why would someone with your upbringing join the mafia?” Senshi stared at her incredulously, and then burst out laughing, “That’s it? That’s the reason I still draw breath? ‘Why would I join the mafia’, she asks!”

Suddenly, all his mirth stopped.

It didn’t slow, it didn't wean off, it just stopped.

“Why, indeed.” Senshi said, frowning at the ceiling, his eyes glazing over. “Suffice it to say that I was late, and the price was too big for me to pay.”

Shaking his head, he glanced towards the masked mare in front of him, “but enough reminiscing, its pointless to pine for things that are lost. You have challenged me, and therefore I shall accept.”

Senshi ignited his horn, the red aura casting a crimson haze over the warehouse. “You’ll find that firearms and explosives will be entirely unusable in this area, I detest them, you see. One can never truly feel the weight of the lives they’re taking.” He said, his horn flashing for a second time.

Suddenly, two single-edged swords appeared in front of Senshi.

Octavia cursed inwardly, those were blades generated from the user’s magic. Not many unicorns could so much as cast the spell to make one, let alone ones as large as these. Byrne had explained how truly dangerous weapons like these were. Unicorn soldiers in the last war who could make them were treated as the most elite of their ranks, simply because these blades could even potentially kill beings of pure magic, such as the princesses and Discord, not only that but they would cut through anything that wasn’t enchanted. Aside from her mask, Octavia had nothing she could use to-

One of the two crimson blades floated over to her.

Octavia’s eyes widened under her mask, as she cocked her head to the side, looking questioningly at Senshi, who was eyeing her with an expression she couldn’t quite place.

In his eyes she saw determination, discipline and… excitement? Yes, this stallion was excited at the prospect of entering mortal combat with a known killer, one that had proven to be very good at her job. Despite this, he had handed her a sword that was beyond deadly and told her to come at him.

He was either very brave, stupid, or some perverse combination of the two.

Taking up his sword in her hooves, Octavia dropped down into a low fighting stance, her opponent mirroring her movements.

A huge grin spread across Senshi’s face, “let’s dance!” and with that, he lunged forward, thrusting his blade forward at a speed Octavia hadn’t thought possible for a stallion his size. Had her mask’s clairvoyance enchantment not been predicting the path of the blade, Octavia would have been skewered then and there. Twisting at her midsection, Octavia contorted her body in a desperate attempt to dodge the incoming crimson blade, leading to a small cut on the underside of her chin, the force of it coupled with her feat of flexibility caused her to fall over.

“Cut yourself shaving?” Senshi asked over his shoulder, grinning at the reeling earth pony mare. Ha, ha, very funny, Octavia thought sarcastically, picking herself up and bringing her own sword around to face her target. Senshi turned, to face her.

And promptly vanished from Octavia’s field of vision.

Where the hell did he go!? Octavia thought frantically, turning up the intensity of her clairvoyance enchantment.

“‘Where the hell did he go!?’ Is what you’re thinking, isn’t it little one?” said a voice behind her, whispering in her ear. Octavia spun and slashed wildly, only to have her sword cut empty air, Senshi’s laughter was the only indicator that he had been there moments before. The bastard is toying with me, Octavia thought, rage bubbling in the pit of her stomach. “Get out here and fight, damn you!” Octavia bellowed, her mask distorting her voice into a voice that was as cold as the nightmare creature it was made to look like.

“Why bother?” came the reply. “You’re not even going to acknowledge me as you are right now.”

“What do you mean by that?” Octavia said, her rage building.

“I mean that you have yet to share your name. Names are powerful, a mere title such as ‘Windigo’ is a mask that keeps one from sharing their true self when it truly matters. In the end, a mask is a mere piece of wood or cloth that hides the truth. Not a tool, not an icon of some silly comic hero, just a façade. No matter how many ‘sight’ enchantments it has, it will always cloud your vision and distort what could have easily been seen with your own two eyes.”

Octavia began a retort, only to catch herself.

Octavia pulled off her mask, revealing her purple irises for what seemed like the first time in a thousand years. Suddenly, Senshi appeared just a few paces ahead of her, leaning against a shipping crate. His sword planted blade-first into the ground, and he was grinning like a child before a bowl of Nightmare Night candy.

“See? Was that so hard, little one? And such a pretty face too! Now then," He said, yanking his blade from the floor and retaking his fighting stance, "properly introduce yourself to your opponent!” Octavia raised her own sword in a salute, pointing the tip towards the grinning unicorn.

“My name is Octavia Philharmonica, now known as Octavia Melody, Windigo of the Apple family, and I challenge you.”

“Ah, horse apples!” Vinyl exclaimed suddenly, remembering that she had left her saddlebags in the warehouse. This outburst led to a few suspicious glances from the surrounding ponies. “Sorry ‘bout that,” Vinyl said nervously, her cheeks turning pink from embarrassment. This wasn’t good, her planner was in those saddlebags, she had written the location of her rendezvous with Lyra and BonBon in there, she’d hate to think what would happen if somepony else found it before she did. Making an abrupt one-eighty turn, Vinyl began to gallop back to the warehouse where she met Senshi.

*CLANG*

The warehouse resonated with the sound of metal on metal as the magic blades clashed once more, sparks flying off the blades as they scraped along their twin’s length. “So, Octavia-dono.” Senshi said, their blades still interlocked, “I’m curious about something.”

A push of the blade and a scrape of metal had the two combatants separated again.

“Oh? And what would that be?” Octavia asked.

“Why is it that you came back to haunt Flim and Flam’s organization?” Senshi replied, “The way I see it, you could have used your ‘recently deceased’ status to just walk away from this life.” Senshi said, readjusting his grip on his sword.

“Do you honestly think it would have been that simple?” Octavia retorted.

*CLANG*

Another blade impact shook the rafters of the warehouse as the two ponies once again came together.

“No, but that still doesn’t explain the reason for the mask. There was no reason to become a vengeful spirit. However, I do have a theory about that,”Senshi said casually, ducking under a cut from Octavia’s blade, which neatly severed a stack of steel girders that had been stacked behind the scarlet coated unicorn.

“Interesting, let’s hear it then,” Octavia said dryly, parrying Senshi’s repost, causing the swords to spark again at each other’s contact.

Cut, parry, dodge, parry, parry, cut, parry, repost, dodge. It was a simple, yet complex pattern that the two fighters had fallen into. Around and around in circles they went in their deadly dance, leaving the scars from their presence all over the warehouse in the form of large, inexplicable gashes where there shouldn’t have been any, on the concrete floor, the walls, and the most recent victim: a pile of now miniature steel girders.

Parry, feint, cut, dodge parry, cu - “You had somepony to protect, didn’t you?”

Octavia stopped mid-swing, the blade mere inches from impacting with Senshi’s own sword once again. The stallion chucked, “it would seem I have ‘hit the nail on the head’ as you say in this country. You and I are not so different after all, I too once protected somepony that meant everything to me.” Senshi said, taking up his stance once more to face off against his opponent, “the fact that you are still among the living puts this one in danger doesn’t it? That is why you hid behind your mask”. Octavia remained silent as they resumed their deadly dance, the two blades cleaving the air and leaving arcs of crackling magic energy in their wake.

The sound of blades clashing over and over grew deafening as the match took on a more frenzied pace, the blades blurred as the speed of each cut and parry increased. The resonating sounds getting faster and faster until it formed a veritable waterfall of metallic scrapes and impacts.

*CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG*

This wasn’t good. The fight was taking too long, it would only be a matter of time before some random passerby took notice of Octavia and Senshi’s struggle and alerted the cops, Octavia didn’t want to be around when that happened. I need to end this quickly she thought, searching for an object, a flaw in Senshi’s technique, anything that would give her an edge in this standoff.

Suddenly, Octavia had an idea.

It wasn’t a particularly good idea, in fact, it was a huge gamble. A completely senseless and boneheaded idea that Vinyl would have probably been extremely proud of, had she been there. Jabbing her blade towards her opponent, Octavia then jumped backwards gaining some distance. Rising up to her hind legs, Octavia feigned a loss of balance as she ‘struggled’ to stay upright.

Senshi took the bait.

Lunging forward, sword outstretched, Senshi darted towards the stumbling mare. At the last moment, Octavia twisted at an impossible angle, and gasped as Senshi’s crimson blade missed its seemingly fatal strike, leaving a deep gash in her side. Octavia’s blade crackled with fury as it descended toward its target, leaving a large, diagonal slash across Senshi’s entire torso, blood erupting from the newly opened wound. Senshi stumbled back before slumping to the floor. Octavia, hoof pressed against her side to stem the bleeding, hobbled over to where Senshi lay slumped against a steel support pillar.

Senshi chuckled, “It seems you’ve won out in the end, little one.”

“It looks that way, yes.” Octavia replied, "Why did you take such an obvious opening? You knew it was a trap."

Senshi laughed again before cringing at the pain it caused him, his horn flashed again and a black lacquered scabbard appeared in front of Octavia. “Consider this blade… a parting gift from me, Octavia-dono. Please accept.” Senshi said, straining to get his words out. Once more, his horn flashed and his own blade shortened, turning into a long, red-bladed short sword, which he promptly jabbed into his stomach with a pained gasp.

“Allow this old warrior… one last request…” Senshi choked out, his voice ragged, “use… that blade… to protect the one you hid from... don’t fail the same way I did,” Octavia nodded, taking the scabbard and sheathing her sword, before slinging it across her back. Senshi smiled warmly before drawing the blade across his belly, spilling more of his blood onto the concrete floor, accelerating his end.

“T-tavi…?” A small, shocked voice echoed from the doorway on the other side of the warehouse.

Octavia turned towards the sound of the voice, and froze. What she saw before her in the warehouse entrance scared her more than anything she had experienced since joining the mafia. More than Byrne’s training, Lyra’s threat, or her nightmares.

The voices.

They were going absolutely insane now, Octavia had thought she had them under control, Byrne had taught her how to lock them out, keep them quiet. Count to four… inhale, count to four… exhale. But it didn’t work.

Because standing in the doorway, was Vinyl Scratch.

Senshi glanced up, his eyes were glazed over, unable to see anything anymore, “Ah, I see… it seems we were both… too late…” Senshi said, a grin on his lips as his consciousness faded fast, "I’ll see you again soon… Hana…" Senshi gasped out as he drew his last breath.

“V-Vinyl…” Octavia stammered, “What-“

“Why.” Vinyl said, cutting her off. She was trembling, Octavia wasn’t sure if it was with rage, fear, or both at once. “Why did you disappear? Why are you a mafia member? Why did you send me that letter? WHY DID YOU TRY TO KILL ME!?” Vinyl suddenly screamed, tears leaking out from behind her signature shades.

Octavia’s breath caught in her throat, “Vinyl, what the hell are you talking about?”

“Don’t screw with me, dammit!” Vinyl shouted, pulling one of her handguns from her concealed shoulder holster, her hooves shaking as she pointed it towards the mare she had thought was her best friend. Vinyl pulled a crumpled envelope from inside her coat and tossed it to Octavia with her magic. Octavia caught and opened it.

Dear Vinyl,

I know I have no right to ask for your assistance after disappearing like I did, but I really need your help. I’ve crossed a member of the local mafia and I need someone I can trust to help get me out of Ponyville. Please, you’re the only person who can help me Vinyl. I’m staying at the Golden Horseshoe Inn, just ask for “Octavia Melody”.

Yours,

Octavia Philharmonica

Octavia couldn’t help it. It started small, but like a parasprite swarm it grew larger and larger, until the whole warehouse was echoing with Octavia’s mad laughter. A single gunshot pierced the hollow mirth as a bullet left a gash on Octavia’s cheek.

“Don’t laugh, don't you dare laugh, damn you!” Vinyl screamed, “You have no idea what I was like after you just vanished!”

“So you end up buying the most contrived, clichéd piece of garbage ‘help me, Vinyl!’ letter that just so happened to show up on your doorstep? I have to say, I thought more of you than that, Vinyl.” Octavia said, her sides still shaking from the ridiculousness of the situation.

She only stopped laughing when the shaking irritated her gash from Senshi’s sword.

“I can tell you with the utmost confidence that I didn’t write this trash,” Octavia said, crumpling the letter and shoving it into her pocket, she would have to burn it later.

“Didn’t I say not to screw with me, you bitch!?” Vinyl shouted, the gun quivering in her grip.

“Sorry Vinyl, but it looks like you’ve been had,” Octavia began.

“Yeah, no fucking shit, Tavi.” Vinyl said menacingly, all traces of sadness gone from her voice. What replaced it was pure hatred. “The only pony who would have benefitted from any of this is you Tavi, was I really so much of a loose end that you just had to kill me off? What did you have to gain by dragging me into this!?”

“Nothing, because I didn’t try to kill you!” Octavia replied, her voice cracking as she desperately tried to keep her composure.

“BULLSHIT!” Vinyl screamed, steadying her aim on Octavia’s head, preparing to fire.

And then, Octavia pulled out her mask.

“You don’t realize it yet, Vinyl.” Octavia said, her voice strained under the weight of her emotions, “but you’ve crossed over the edge of the map, and here there are monsters.” And then with a drop of a concealed smoke grenade, Octavia pulled on her mask, the eldritch blue glow spilling out of the eye holes, making her look truly monstrous.

And then the Windigo made her exit.

When the smoke cleared, all that was left in the warehouse was the corpse of a once honorable warrior, a stunned white unicorn mare with an electric blue mane, and a small, white business card with silvery script.

Courtesy of Windigo

**********************************************Present Time************************************************

Twilight gagged as the strong stench of blood hit her sensitive nose. It hadn’t taken her long to reach the warehouse, once she heard that her quarry had been there and had done something differently, she had rapidly teleported down the streets of Ponyville with a frantic Spike clinging to her to keep from falling behind the overeager purple unicorn.

Spying her partner Pinkie Pie, Twilight flashed her badge to the two on-duty officers guarding the scene. “Are the forensics team finished with their preliminary examination of the body?” Twilight said, slipping into full detective mode.

“Yup,” Pinkie replied, “They took the body to the coroner a little while ago for a formal evaluation, the autopsy should be along soon, but I think we can safely assume that the cause of death was blood loss.” Pinkie said, eyeing the large maroon stain in the concrete next to them. “It must have been a pretty big wound to spray that much blood everywhere,” Twilight remarked, “any signs of a struggle?”

“Everywhere” Pinkie deadpanned, gesturing to the numerous slashes carved into various surfaces around the warehouse.

Twilight trotted over to a pile of steel girders, or what was left of them, the metal supports had been cut cleanly in two. “These marks couldn’t have come from a normal blade,” Twilight muttered, running a hoof over the edge of the cut. “Must have been a magic blade, the only unicorns that are taught the spell to make one are in the military, and even those are few and far between…” Are we dealing with ex-military? One with a grudge against Flim and Flam? She voiced her question to Pinkie. “Maybe, one things for sure though, its pretty likely Windigo is a unicorn. That or the blade came from the victim, which I’m pretty sure is unlikely.”

“Why do you say that?” Twilight asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“Because,” Pinkie replied, “Only one gunshot was fired in this warehouse, and the victim showed multiple abdominal cuts, no puncture wounds could be seen.”

“We also found this,” Pinkie said, holding up a metal cylinder, “a standard-issue smoke grenade, usually used to provide instant cover for troops out in the trenches when they needed to expose themselves.”

“So you’re saying Windigo ran off after the gun was fired?” Twilight said, beginning to grow excited, “Pinkie! Do you know what this means!?”

“No I don’t Twilight.”

“It means we have our first witness! Somepony caught the Windigo in the act and fired a shot at him! The absence of firearms on the body confirms it! Have all available officers do a thorough sweep of the surrounding area, whoever it is might still be somewhere nearby! Well? What are you waiting for? Go!” Pinkie gave a quick salute, and galloped out of the warehouse, leaving Twilight behind.

She wasn’t alone long however, as a certain young drake ran in just as Pinkie left, carrying a large manilla envelope in his claws. “Twilight! The autopsy report is here!” Spike gasped, out of breath as he handed the thick envelope to Twilight, “Thank you, Spike. What would I do without you?” Twilight said, taking the report in her magic, levitating the coroner’s notes out of the thick envelope.

Date: May 19th
Post Mortem Examiner: Dr. Red Cross

Subject is an athletic older unicorn stallion with brown irises, scarlet coat and black mane and tail. Subject also has a large facial scar over his right eye, however it does not appear to have caused any damage to the eye itself. Subject’s body is covered with old scars and wounds, suggesting a long history in some militarized or violent organization. The subject’s cutie mark has also been burned clean off, impossible to I.D. the victim based off that, however this burn mark is uniform, suggesting that a brand was used, and looks to have been on the subject’s body for quite some time. The brand is most likely not relevant his death. Estimated time of death is around 10:30 PM. Cause of death: loss of blood due to two lacerations on the torso, the first runs diagonally across from the Subject’s left shoulder to the right hip, likely caused by a large, bladed weapon. The second laceration appears to have been made by a much shorter blade, the angle of the cut suggests that the Subject wielded the weapon himself, however the same cannot be said about the first. Assumed to be a successful suicide attempt by the Subject after engaging with an assailant.

There are no pieces of a metal blade within the Subject’s body, nor are there any signs that the blade had any trouble passing through the rib cage. The blade only just barely missed the heart and lungs, however damage to the pericardium resulted in the heart wearing a hole in itself from the resulting friction. The same can be said about the lower cut, there are no signs of resistance from the abdominal organs as the smaller blade passed through.

There is also a high chance that the Subject hallucinated during his final moments due to the blood loss. He died with a smile on his face.
END OF REPORT

“So there were magic blades in play here…” Twilight murmured, “Wait… ‘Wielded the blade himself’? A suicide? Then he was fighting the Windigo, but then lost?” Twilight sat on her haunches, rubbing her chin with her hoof in deep contemplation, trying to fathom what she had just read. Why would anypony commit a suicide if they were already moments from death? It made no sense! Most ponies would try and escape their fate, but he just embraced it! Wait…

He embraced death…

Twilight’s eyes grew wide as her mind buzzed with activity, remembering all her lessons on other cultures from Princess Celestia.

Twilight shot up to all four hooves, startling her dragon assistant. If she was right about this, then they may have been misinterpreting what actually happened here. “Spike,” Twilight snapped, causing the young drake to jump again, “Did they find either blade that was described in this report?”

“No, no I don’t think so, none of the forensics team members found anything that could have been a murder weapon.” Spike said, So either the Windigo or our mysterious third party witness took the two blades present from the scene of the crime…

Twilight was deep in thought when she felt a hoof on her shoulder. Twilight turned to face a slightly deflated Pinkie Pie who was staring at her intently. “Yes Pinkie, what is it?” Twilight asked, a little annoyed that her train of thought was interrupted by the normally bouncy pink mare. “The officers are out, but they haven't found anything so far. How are things on your end?”

“I think we’ve been interpreting the evidence wrong, I need to head back to my library and confirm a few things just to be sure,” Twilight said, “Have the forensics team do another thorough Spell Check on the area, I want to make sure that we didn’t miss any hidden messages the victim left behind.” Pinkie nodded and trotted off to find a forensics unicorn. “Come on Spike, we have a long night ahead of us.” Twilight said, waving her assistant over from the white chalk outline of the victim’s corpse.

This was going to take a LOT of hot chocolate.

Octavia peeked out of her cover in one of the many back alleys in Ponyville, one more street to cross and she would be home free. She heaved a sigh of relief when she saw that the street was currently deserted. Clamping a hoof full of gauze against the gash in her side, Octavia began to limp towards the tall iron gate on the other side. Her suit was lined with a special spongy padding to reduce blunt force trauma and to absorb blood should she get injured, so at the very least, Octavia didn’t need to worry about leaving a blood trail. No, her only concern was to get back to her safe house before somepony saw her out in the open. She didn’t often use this entrance, but she wasn’t usually this badly injured either. She probably had her earth pony constitution and absurd amount of training with Byrne to thank for the fact that she was conscious enough to be able to get this far, given how much blood she had lost.

The gates to Ponyville Graveyard creaked open with a sound that set Octavia’s teeth on edge, they seemed to be saying “Thank you for the new tenants, Windigo.”

She hated that sound.

Stepping past the accusing gates, Octavia entered the field of stone monuments to the dead. Why did Jack have to put an entrance here of all places? It seemed like a sick, cruel joke to the former cellist.

A large crypt stood in front of Octavia, a stone apple carved into the archway above yet another one of those hateful iron gates. Octavia pulled out a key from her trench coat and unlocked the door, this one seemed to be saying: “Welcome home, Windigo.” Octavia glared at the offending structure. Entering the mausoleum, Octavia limped up to one of the many stone coffins lining the walls of the crypt, a pony whose name had never been on any birth certificate adorned the top of the lid, next to an apple carving.

“Pardon my rudeness, Mr. Red Delicious.” Octavia muttered, pressing her free hoof against the carving. A small click echoed through the musty old crypt as the lid of the concealed entrance popped open. Octavia closed and locked the iron gate before carefully descending down the ladder to the tunnel below, the entrance closing automatically above her.

One of Octavia’s first “jobs” as the Windigo was to memorize the entire labyrinth that was the sewer tunnels underneath Ponyville, all for the express purpose of reaching her very own bunker. For somepony who had spent her entire childhood memorizing complex orchestral scores, such a task was easy.

Another cruel joke by the apples: they had decided to codename this bunker as The Crypt. Approaching the concealed door, she pressed a hidden apple carving disguised under some risqué graffiti and slid into the hole that opened up in front of her.

Inside the Crypt was something more akin to a military barracks than an actual home, sparse furnishings adorned the concrete room: a table, a few chairs, a cot, and a cello stand, where the large beige instrument sat, gathering dust.

Her cello case was used for much more sinister purposes now.

Octavia pulled Senshi’s final gift off her back and hung her mask on a peg next to her weapons rack. Limping towards the small kitchenette, Octavia winced as she reached for the large medical kit hanging above the sink. Taking the kit in her mouth, Octavia used her lighter to ignite a small candle lying on the table before collapsing in an adjacent chair. She began to peel off her clothes and pulled out a suture needle before heating the tip of the needle.

She always hated this part.

Pouring some rubbing alcohol into the wound with a hiss as the burning liquid came in contact with her bloody wound. Count to four… inhale. Count to four… exhale, thought Octavia, using the mantra Byrne had taught her in order to push aside anything, pain, fear, emotions.

Letting out a sigh as the pain subsided, Octavia reached for the needle. She set her teeth and began to sew the gash closed. The voices started up again, some offering advice, some insulting, some making inquisitions into her well being, they were all so annoying. “Shut up, all of you.” Octavia said quietly through gritted teeth, tying off the sutures before cutting the thread. Octavia then heated up the blade of her combat knife, and pressed it against the sewn-up cut, cauterizing the wound.

Octavia blew out the candle and stowed the medical kit under the table, sitting there going over the events of that night.

“MOTHERFUCKER!!!” Octavia suddenly screamed, slamming her hoof into the table with a roar that would have put a manticore to shame. Why… WHY!? Everything Octavia had gone through, the training, changing her last name, moving to Ponyville. It had all been to protect Vinyl from the world she had joined! So why the hell did she receive a letter telling her to come to Ponyville… to the Golden Horseshoe Inn… Shortly after the Flim-Flam gang raided her room… Lyra.

And just like that, everything clicked into place.

Lyra had used Octavia as bait to make sure she had the leverage needed to make her talk, and then used said leverage to gain a new ally by feeding her misinformation. Lyra was surprisingly more intelligent than Octavia had given her credit for.

“I’m gonna murder every last one of those fuckers…” Octavia growled through gritted teeth, and then she would finally be able to explain the situation to Vinyl before she became as stained as she was. Yes, Vinyl was still pure, but Octavia had no way of knowing how long that would last. She may already be too late. “No, no giving up is not an option. I will save her from this.” Octavia said, more to reassure herself rather than to make a commitment.

“Save who, sugarcube? You're not hiding anything from me, are you?”

Octavia spun towards the entrance to see Applejack standing in the entrance to the Crypt, carrying a small box on her back. “No one boss, just… had a little trouble with this last one. Regardless, what brings you here? I doubt this is just a friendly visit.”

Applejack snorted, walking over to the table and setting the box down, “So then,” she said, removing her signature stetson hat, “what happened tonight?” Applejack asked, looking to Octavia for an answer. “The target should be making his way across the Styx by now, assuming he has the bits to pay for passage.”

“I see he left a gift, looks pretty nice,” Applejack said, gesturing to the discarded sword lying next to the weapons rack. “Yeah,” said Octavia, limping over to the sheathed blade. “It’s a magic blade, a big one. The red color is a nice touch as well, I think I’ll keep it.” Patting the hilt of her new weapon, Octavia then limped back to her seat, slumping down with a grunt as her side flared up again.

“I’ll be out of commission for a few days though, the target was sharper than he looked, and he managed to cut me.”

Applejack nodded, rubbing the bridge of her nose with a hoof, “Just don’t overdo anything, I’d hate to lose ya’ ,” Applejack looked up with weary eyes, “Is everything all right with you, Jack?” Octavia asked.

“Jus’ a little trouble with the cops, one of their investigations almost struck too close to home. Nothin’ I cant handle.” Octavia nodded, “So, what’s in the box? My next assignment?” Applejack snickered, “You wish, no this is a present from Smith for all your troubles.”

“Ah, the mysterious ‘Smith’, so what’s in it then?” Applejack opened the box, releasing the sweet smell of one of the Apple family’s greatest secrets: an apple pie, fresh from the oven.

Octavia struggled to avoid salivating at the delicious assault on her olfactory senses.

And failed miserably, such was the power of the almighty Apple family apple pie.

“My regards to Smith,” Octavia said, trying her hardest to avoid drooling in front of the Don of one of the most powerful mafia families in Equestria, only to be betrayed by her traitorous stomach, who growled in approval of the gastronomic delight in front of her. This set Applejack roaring with laughter, which only intensified when she saw Octavia’s reddened face and embarrassed expression. We are going to have a serious talk later, mister! Octavia thought, glaring at the treacherous body part. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was, but she guessed getting cut and losing as much blood as she had, this much could be forgiven.

“I’ll leave you to your present then,” Applejack said, standing up and placing the stetson back on her head in one fluid motion, and began to head towards the sewer entrance. She stopped halfway, turning toward Octavia, her eyes hard and cold. This was no longer the mare from a mere moment ago, Octavia now faced the true face of the Apple family’s Don: Applejack “Jack” Apple, former bearer of the Element of Honesty, and one of the most dangerous mares alive.

“A word of advice Windigo,” Applejack said, emphasizing Octavia’s title, “don’t bother thinking that ponies as stained as us can save anypony, we’ve all sold ourselves to an eternity in Tartarus just so we could live a little more comfortably in these hard times. Shoot, we’ll probably just get a double sentence for dragging you into all this once the prohibition started."

"But make no mistake, the only motive that really matters in our line of work is money. That’s all y’all are gonna find, bloodstained bits as far as the eye can see. The Elements of Harmony Bearers couldn't stand each other no more for Celestia’s sake!” Applejack said, her face impassive, despite the weight of her words.

“Look around, we live in a world where Laughter’s gone dull, Loyalty is bought, Generosity is conditional, Kindness is replaced by cruelty, Honesty is replaced by lies, and Magic is used for murder. If the six of us couldn’t save each other, what chance does anypony have anymore? This might be war, but it’s a war of the worst kind: one where money and influence are the only prize. There’s no grand cause, no redemption for any of us who get drafted. The most we can do is keep living for ourselves, and nopony else, forget about saving whoever you were thinking about, because it’s already too late. If they need saving, you won’t be the one doing it.” And with that, Applejack left the Windigo’s Crypt. Octavia couldn’t be sure, but she thought she saw a silvery tear slide down Jack’s cheek as she turned to leave.

Octavia stood up, heading to the mini fridge in her kitchenette. The smell of the apple pie suddenly seemed a lot more sour than it was before.

This was going to take a LOT of hard cider.

Author's Note

Yay! Another chapter posted!

As for Senshi... don't worry, I have plans for him...

Anyway, like and comment! Your critiques are VERY important for my growth as a writer!

Thank you!