Chapter Three: Opening Moves

-May 3rd, 2020. 0229 Hrs-

I groan and stretch, enjoying the cricks being popped out of my back as I stretch. Danny is happily curled up with his Luna plushie, watching the TV, where yet another episode of MLP:FiM is playing. Season... five, I believe. Twenty four episodes down... and so many more to go with him before he would be satisfied. The episode is actually pretty damn funny, reminds me of a horrible romantic comedy. Rainbow Dash going on a date that she doesn't realize is a date and the worst possible date EVER? I have to admit, the show's got it's moments, but this takes the cake. I find myself laughing and chuckling along with Danny as we watch.

“See, the best part is that Dash never realized that it was a date, even after words.” Danny giggles boyishly, kicking his feet a bit with a big smirk on his face. I haven't looked over at him in a while, focused on the TV as much as he was, and I hum in agreement, checking my watch before shaking my head.

“Damn... it's zero two thirty, really?” I mutter. We've been watching the show for close to twelve hours now, with no stop in sight. “Danny, I dunno about you, but I'm hungry. What's the plan here little brother?” I say, glancing over as the credits roll.

Danny hums softly before stretching and getting up from the couch in a rather unusual fashion. As he starts walking towards the fridge, I frown. “... Dude, why are you walking on your toes?”

He blinks and looks at me, and I notice that his hair looks even longer now then it did before, and it looks like he's got something hidden in his hair. “Huh?” He says, looking distracted. “What are you talking about?”

I sigh and point to his feet. “Dude, you're walking on your toes.” And he was, just arched up and walking on tip-toe, like a ballet dancer or a cat bugler. He blinks and looks down at his feet.

“Huh... I didn't notice.” He says, settling back down onto his heels and frowning at something before he settles back onto tip toe. “Doesn't feel right to be walking any other way right now.”

I shake my head. “Whatever bro. Grab me something from the fridge.” I say as I turn back to the TV, listening to him humming along with the music as the intro to the next episode starts playing. He comes back a few moments later, still walking on his toes, and tosses me an apple.

“Apples?” I says, chuckling. “Alright.”

Danny grins at me and sticks out his tongue playfully. “It's natures candy big brother. Come on, you know you love 'em.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” I say, shaking my head as I bite into my apple. Mmm, crisp and juicy Red Delicious, my favorite. Danny sits down and yelps, shifting around. I blink and look over at him. “You ok little brother?”

“Owww! I sat down on my tailbone!” Danny whimpers, standing up and rubbing his backside before frowning a bit. “Hm... hey, big brother, I need to see something. I'll be right back.”

I shake my head, wondering what he's up to as he walks off again, and I settle in to watch the show. I wasn't really paying attention to what this episode was about, but whatever it was, it wasn't quite as good as that last episode.

A few moments pass of me absently watching the flickering lights on the TV when Danny lets out a scream. I leap to my feet, snagging my jacket and ripping my Browning out of it's holster, swearing as it catches on it, slowing me down for a few moments longer before I finally pull it free and dash towards his room, slinging the slide as I go. “Danny! DANNY! Are you ok?!” I yell out as I skid into his room, looking around wildly for any danger, only to freeze up at the most bizarre thing I've seen all day.

Danny has slumped to the ground and is staring into the full length dressing mirror that I have in pretty much every room with a closet in the house, that is to say, his room and mine, because you should always know how to look presentable. His eyes are wide in shock and he's got something his his hands. A something that is connected to his tailbone.

It's a tail, a long, dark chocolate and brown chocolate colored tail, long and flowing, and as I stepped in, two things on the top of his head swiveled towards me. Ears. Two ears. Two big, triangular horse ears.

“D-danny?” I says, looking at him in shock. He whips around, panic in his eyes as he leaps up and runs to me, glomping tight. “B-Big brother! W-whats going on? I-I felt a little weird earlier while we were watching a-and then I couldn't hear and then could hear again, so I assumed I fell asleep and...”

I take a few deep breaths and softly rub Danny's head, my hand noting the distinctly different feeling of his hair and the... fur, on his ears. It's different, very different. But it feels nice at the very least. “Easy Danny-boy, easy.” I say soothingly. “Uh... wow, this is different.” I say, thinking back to my nightmare and the strange things that happened in it. Danny with the different hair. The comparison I made to the horses and him. Jesus, this is getting kinda creepy.

“Ok, lets calm down, think this over logically...” I start to say when Danny lets out a little pouty snort, which is honestly rather adorable when combined with the ear-flick that came along with it.

“I've got pony ears and a tail Michael, logic's got nothing to do with this!” Danny whines, and I sigh.

“Ok, ok, point made. Ummmmm...” I frown, rubbing the back of my head as I try to think of something to do. “Alright, alright, calling a doctor? No no, bad idea. As is calling my boss... or calling Brick.”

“Your old highschool buddy?” Danny says, tilting his head.

I nod. “Yeah, he's an enforcer. He knows more about Pony stuff then I do. I just... we got nothing here little brother! I mean, you have a MANE. A TAIL. And HORSE EARS.” I say, letting out another deep sigh, rubbing the back of my head harder before running both hands through my hair. “This is insane. Absolutely... crazy?”

I blink as Danny suddenly takes off, running for the TV, and I follow behind, wondering what Danny's up to as he starts cycling through the episodes, muttering to himself. “Danny, what are you doing?”

“The nightmare!” Danny says, continuing to cycle through episodes till it ends on one in particular. The show's finale. I sigh in distaste. The rest of the show was ok, but this episode always set me on edge. It was too short. Sure, the first half of the episode is pretty awesome, the big battle, but the last half is talking, Discord... well, killing Celestia for lack of a better term, and then that scene with Twilight being... vanished, I think the term would be.

The episode goes just as it always has, but Danny is frowning, moreso then he usually does after watching this episode. “Michael... something is missing.” Danny says, scratching behind one of his ears, which flicks up as he scratches and flattens to the side of his his head to match the other one once his hand moves away. His ears had been laying back for most of the episode.

“What are you talking about? That's the whole episode, just as it's always been.” I reply, wondering what he's going on about now.

“No, no no, it's wrong. It's very, very wrong.” Danny says. “There's a whole scene missing! The nightmare. The pony that's trying to stop him from getting to Princess Luna. Blimey, the whole scene WITH Princess Luna is gone!”

I blinks. That's a new one from him. Blimey? Where the hell did that come from. I frown at Danny, but motion for him to go on. “Alright, tell me more about the nightmare then... I mean, what's happening during the nightmare that's such a big deal?”

Danny sighs, flicking his ears, and his tail flicking to the side. “Well... the pony that was with Luna... h-he was small. And... feeling very scared. He didn't know what he could do to protect Luna...” He says, looking very nervous now, and I feel a little niggling tick in the back of my mind saying that something was very, very wrong about how he was talking about the dream.

“He... he had to be brave. He had to be. Because... he needed to protect the best Princess. He had to protect Luna!” He says, stomping his foot lightly.

I softly grab his shoulder. “Danny, Danny, calm down. I... in this dream, are you the pony, or are you watching this unfold?”

“I... I'm the pony.” He whispers.

“Well, it's a start I guess, but I dunno if that causes more problems or solves them, but it sure as hell gives me a million and one questions.” I grumble, rubbing my forehead softly, “At this point, I'm tempted to just look online for anything that could help us.”

“Us?” Danny asks, looking at me confused.

“Last I checked, you're still my little brother.” I say firmly, smirking at him. “Partially Ponyfided Person you are, I'm still your big brother, and I still have a promise to keep. And you know that McClouds never make promises they don't keep.”

Danny brightens up at that and hugs me. I smile and hug him back, and softly pat his back. “Tell you what little brother. I'm gonna hit up the net, see if there's anything on this kinda thing happening. I doubt it, but I need to do something. You go ahead and keep watching ponies.”

“Alright!” Danny says brightly.

I sigh and make my way to the computer, checking my watch as I go. It's May 3rd, and four o clock in the morning. Great. I log on swiftly, tapping out several searches after I pull up firefox.

-//-

-May 3rd, 2020. 0701 Hrs-

Well, this has been a bust. Three more hours of searching and all I'm getting is bullshit and hearsay. A few messages around various forums have seemed genuine, but honestly, I'm not buying it. Too many chances for someone to find out too much involved as I log out with a annoyed grunt. Damn, things were just not going my family's way at the moment.

A few moments later, the silence I find myself in is broken by my cell phone ringing. The screaming guitar opening from 115 starts playing. I snatch up the phone from my pocket and glance at the screen, my scowl turning into a blank stare of confusion. Brick? What the hell is he doing calling this early?

I frown again, unlocking and picking up the call. “Brick, what the hell are you doing calling the Pony Express at...” I check my watch, “zero seven? It's barely even morning dude.”

“I'm back in Seattle. You need to meet me at the Windpower Cafe in fifteen.” Brick says, gruff and to the point.

I blink, feeling very confused as I hear him speak. “What the fuck are you talking about Brick?” The Windpower Cafe was an old fashioned cafe that the Mob ran here in Seattle. Not a horrible place, the little ol' lady who ran the joint was an old Nanny of the boss, and a lot of the smaller meetings around town took place there.

“Pony. Windpower, fifteen fucking minutes. I need your help. Now.”

Well, Brick's feeling pretty vocal today. I nod to myself. “Alright, alright, I'll be there.”

“Good.” With that, the line goes dead. I shake my head. That was definitely Brick, but what the hell was he doing back in Seattle?

I walk out of my room and head back into the main part of my apartment. “Danny, I'll be right back! Brick called, he said something was wrong.”

Danny pokes his head around the wall of the entryway to the living room and frowns, one ear flicking at me. “Mob stuff?”

I sigh. “Possibly. But I don't think so. He would have said other wise. I'll be right back, ok? If... well, if you figure out something, or anything else changes, call me IMMEDIATELY, got it?”

“Got it Govn'a!” Danny says with a salute and a bright grin. I shake my head and smile at him to hide my unease. Something about this really doesn't add up. I look at my messenger bag and after a few moments, carefully take the jewelry, (which I'm pretty sure aren't the actual Elements of Harmony, I mean, come on, it's a kid's TV show!) out of the bag, and put the case in the living room with Danny before walking to my room and pulling the Thompson out from under my pillows, putting it in the bag along with a drum magazine and my two extra magazines for the Browning.

I mean, nothing's wrong, but still, that nightmare really has me on edge. Nothing is gonna happen, I'm worrying over nothing, I'm just being paranoid over nothing... right?

In case you couldn't guess, that was me lying to myself, trying to convince myself that everything was ok, that Danny was fine, that Brick just wanted me to get something to drink with him, and that the boss needed me to get something else. But too many things were just stacking up. Danny's nightmares, my own nightmare, Danny's new appendages, Brick's sudden phone call while all of this was happening.

I didn't like it. All of this started with that meeting with Q... getting the jewelry. I wish I could get some bloody answers, but at the moment, it's all I can do to just keep my head on straight as I get on my bike and start it up.

-//-

-May 3rd, 2020. 0730 Hrs-

Traffic was bloody and nasty, as you'd expect from morning traffic rush in a big city. Nothing that I could make my way though with careful weaving and sliding between cars, but still, it was not pretty, illegal anywhere but Cali, and frankly, all the traffic was just making me more paranoid. I was glancing around, looking for anything that stood out, men in unusual suits, someone holding something in an usual way, unmarked vehicles, just anything... not right.

Eventually, that little cafe on the corner near the center of Seattle, the Windpower cafe, came into sight. I let out a deep breath, more of a hard sigh, of relief as I pulled up to a parking spot for motorcycles and set down the kickstand, turning my bike off as I dismounted, idly checking my Browning and my bag to make sure nothing shifted out of place during the ride, and then checked my watch. Zero-seven-thirty-three, not bad in the traffic.

I carefully picked my way inside, weaving past two hipsters looking for their fancy high class coffee that wasn't Starbucks, and looked around. The interior of the cafe was what you'd expect from a small, family run cafe. All wood, warmly lit for comfort, a small fireplace sitting in the corner, lots of comfortable couches and big, thick wooden tables. Frankly, they made for better cover, which was why they were there.

See, below the cafe was one of the safehouses for the Mob. Not a big one, maybe twenty people could fit inside. It was decently stocked, and was one of our command centers for the area. The lack of big windows and plenty of choke points made it easy to defend and was pretty much the first place I was to run to if one of the other families or syndicates were trying to muscle in on our turf.

What I didn't see, however, was the big, imposing figure of my highschool buddy, Brick. See, Brick was not someone you'd miss. I mean, he's big, bold, and built like a brick shithouse, as I've mentioned before. He probobly could walk through walls by taking the walls down, and he cuts through crowds like a hot knife through butter. And yet, I couldn't see him anywhere.

“Pony. Over here.” Aha! That's Brick! I'd recognize the low growl from anywhere. I turn, walking towards the voice. He picked the corner facing the door and away from the main store area, also away from the safehouse. Fits my paranoia pretty go- hang on a moment.

I freeze, blinking at the figure sitting at the table. That doesn't look anything like my buddy. For starters, this person is about two feet shorter then Brick, and maybe a fourth as wide. They're wearing a big sweater that looks like one of our old highschool hoodies, size XXXL. That's definitely Brick's sweater, but it's hanging off of this person like a draped curtain.

“Oh, sorry, I'm looking for one of my friends.” I say, giving the figure an uncertain smile, rubbing the back of my head. “I though I heard his voice over here.”

“That would be because you're looking at him, Pony.” The figure growls out. I jolt a little. This tiny figure is Brick?! That's certainly his voice, but...

“Pony, either stop staring, sit your ass down, and talk, or I'm going to stand up and put your head through the wall.” The-Figure-Who-Might-Be-Brick says flatly. I blink a few times and after a moment, move around the table, pulling out a chair and slowly sitting down, glancing at the door.

“I'm assuming that you're either Brick, or you have Brick on a cellphone on speaker, though it's got to be quality speakers...” I say, warily eying the hoodie wearing figure.

“It's me dumbass.” The figure says, sitting back in their chair. Now that I'm sitting, I can see a bit of a graceful, smoothed chin, and rounded, pouting lips that are set in an annoyed frown. I frown at them, and cross my arms.

“Bullshit. What are you doing back in Seattle? The Meetup is in four days and you're supposed to be with the Boss in NYC. You're definitely not Brick. Too small, though points for having his voice down. Who the fuck are you, how did you get my number?” I say, my hand creeping towards my jacket.

“Pony, I swear to fucking God that if you pull your Browning on me, I am going to break that hand, your arm, and your shoulder. It's me, damn it!” The figure that might be Brick hisses at me as they turn, allowing me a much better look at them.

A slender, graceful, and dare I say, feminine face looks at me. Smooth, carefully angled face, with bright, expressive sky blue eyes. A lock of unusually colored pink hair fell down in front of one of them, making the figure let out a light growl and brush it out of the way, revealing slender, but strong hands.

“Ok... ma'am, I'm having a real hard time believing you.” I say slowly, backing away as much as I can while in the chair.

The feminine face takes on a look of rage and lets out a deep, low growl before speaking up. “Fine. IF you're gonna go that way... You're Michael McCloud, You went to Rockridge Highschool, class of twenty-ten. I met you on your first day of freshman year for you, third floor bathroom, third stall on the right. I passed off a bag of weed for the Principal, a gift from the Boss to his cousin as a reminder that you were to be passed off as a nobody and to be left alone for shady dealings. The deal went down without a hitch and after that I lead you down the street to 14th and Main, where I introduced myself, Brick Farland, and introduced you to my big brother enforcer, Two-Cards.”

I blink, and frown. No one but me, Two-Cards, and Brick knew the whole set of details of that day, and I know that there are exactly four people who are still alive today who know Brick's last name. Those people are Two-Cards, myself, the Boss, and him, and he hates his last name. “... Ok, maybe I'm starting to believe you... what happened in the first firefight we got into?”

Maybe-Brick smirks at me, which was really discomforting on the slightly soft and feminine face, especially when that face was paired with his gravel-chewing voice. “August Second, Twenty-Fourteen. We were at the warehouses in the Bronx, just off the docks, and were setting a deal with the Triad. They wanted new guns, and they had a new set of explosives that the Boss wanted in on for money and for our own use. The Boss set up a trade meeting, and you were sent as the dealer, myself as your backup. You were packing that shiny new Browning HP and six magazines, with an extra round in chamber, and I had a AK47 with three extra mags, banana clip, thirty rounds each.”

I feel my jaw slowly drop as Brick continues, because I had no doubt that this odd figure was him, between the voice and the details that he was giving me. “The Triad had four guys show up. Two muscular dudes, one carrying a fucking ninja sword, the other had some kinda tactical bullpup that we never found out what it was, some Chinese knock off of an AUG. The other two guys were their dealers, two weedy thin accountant like dudes, coulda been killed by a stiff breeze, one of 'em spoke perfect English and the other guy didn't fucking talk at all. The deal went smoothly, and we had just finished writing up the documents and shaking hands when a grenade came in through the upper window...”

“... The Sicilians had found out about the deal and wanted to take everything for themselves, but we didn't bring any of it with us so they planned to kill both sides and make it look like we killed each other to start a war between the Mob and the Triads, maybe draw the Yakuza into the mix with a plant of some kind or another, but we wiped them out. One of the Traid's dealers was killed by the grenade, but we cleared out the Mafia guys. There were six. You killed three of them with the AK and the other guys got one a piece, but I got separated...” I mutter, finishing part of the story with Brick grinning and nodding as I put my jaw back in place.

“When I walked around that corner and saw you covered in blood, firing two full clips into a dead body, I thought you went nutso Pony-boy. You pulled yourself together pretty good afterwords. The Triad still call you the Blood Runner you know.” Brick says, leaning back and relaxing a bit, a smile on the feminine face.

“Brick... God damn dude, what the hell happened to you?” I say, looking him up and down. “You look like you've lost a good two tons.”

“Feel like it too. Weird shit is going down Pony, weird shit.” Brick says with a nod, glancing to make sure no one can see us as he pulls the hood down. I gasped, and felt my jaw drop again.

That oddly-colored hair continued much like my little brothers, long and flowing, and two distinct white furred ears stood on the top of his head. The very much female face was more exposed now, with eyebrows and lashes to match. The ears swivel softly as I look at them, slowly folding back as he pulls the hood back up.

We sit staring at one another for a good five minutes before I'm able to work up the voice to speak. “What the fuck... just... what... what the fuck?” I say, looking at him with wide eyes. “How the fuck do you have fucking horse ears on top of your head? Who did this to you? Did they do it to Danny at the same time?!”

Brick blinks. “Wait, Danny? Little Pipsqueak's got this happening to him too?” Brick says, leaning forwards.

“Horse ears and tail, and... well, I think he's got a mane, but I can't really tell, but his hair changed color.” I say, leaning back in my chair, idly aware of the door to the cafe opening and closing.

“Well... small favors then.” Brick mutters. “What is his cutie mark?”

I blink, looking at Brick in confusion. “His... cutie mark? What, like My Little Pony?”

Brick huffs. “YES, like my little pony! Come on, I know Danny is a brony, what is his cutie mark?”

I frown. “I don't think he has a cutie mark Brick.” I say. Danny didn't mention anything about a cutie mark. “At least, if he does, he hasn't said anything about it. He's just had the changes. What's going on?”

Brick sighs. “I don't know, all I know is that we were in the middle of a meeting when the boss mentioned that my hair looked lighter and I noticed it was changing color! I got one of the other enforcers to cover for me and discovered that my hair was still changing, and when I went to take a shit I found a big red cross on my ass. A cutie mark of a background pony. I took the rest of the day off when I noticed I was getting... shorter. I grabbed one of the trucks and started back for Seattle.”

I shake my head. “Why back to Seattle? It's only, oh, I dunno, on the other side of the fucking country from NYC.” I ask, looking as confused as I feel, I'm sure, tilting my head as I tap my fingers on the table.

“My safehouse is here, dumbass, and more importantly, most of the other field-docs are here. There's still business to be done, not all of us are going to the The Meetup.” Brick says with a flat glare. “I wanted someone from home to check me over. I started driving and kept on going, hopped a plane or two discreetly. Got back late yesterday when I noticed that... these... were here.” He says, gesturing to the ears. “I also felt uncomfortable sitting. I had assumed because I was traveling for so long, but instead, it was a bloody horse tail!”

I hiss at him, motioning for him to bring his voice down. We had gotten a glance from one of the nearby patrons. “Alright, alright, point made, drop the volume. So you were having these changes. Why didn't you call the doc?”

He falls quiet for a moment and then whispers back. “Because I woke up without feet and my penis this morning, that's why.”

… Well, it's official. That's the strangest thing I've ever heard anyone say about anything. Ever.

“Wait, wait, what?”

Brick glances around and shifts. I prepare to cover up my eyes, mentally worried that he's gonna flash me when instead he lifts up a leg and shows me a great, big hoof. A horses hoof. Right were his foot should be. I tentatively reach out and touch it.

“Uh, wow. Ok.” I mutter, softly tapping the hoof again, just to confirm for myself that what I'm seeing is real. “So... no... uh... junk?”

“Just a equine vag.” Brick confirms. “No, I'm not showing you.”

“No offense bro... uh... dude...” I bite my lower lip, not quite sure what to call Brick right now, so I finish up with a lame, “Brick, but I don't exactly want to see your... not so normal pieces. Less then I want to see your normal ones.”

Brick snorts softly. “Right. So, what's the deal with your little brother? What happened to Pipsqueak?”

I sigh and lean back as Brick puts his hoof down... er, her hoof down, and I cross my arms. “Long story or short story?”

“Short.”

I smile. That was a bit of classic Brick there, short and to the point, and oddly, made me feel a bit better. “Well, you know the First was my birthday and Danny's-”

“It's mine too.” Brick says bluntly, interrupting me and making me start.

“What? But we always celebrated on the thirtieth.” I say, looking at her in confusion. She sighs, and gives me another light glare.

“That's because my family celebrates birthdays at the end of the month. It's safer that way. Actual date of birth was the first at noon.” Brick says, crossing her arms. Weird to associate that male voice with the female body... wait, wait, no, female body with Brick's voice! What the hell am I thinking?!

“Ok... weird. Wish you told me that sooner... maybe...” I hum for a second in thought and then shake my head. “Right, back to the story. I finished up with Mr. Q over that art deal, the five necklaces and the tiara. Afterwords, I called you, ran home, and had the birthday celebration with Danny. I ended up passing out on the couch, too much good malt. Wound up in a nightmare, a pretty nasty one at that. Danny woke me up, heard me talking too much, I explained what I dreamed, something about Q being that badguy from the MLP show.”

Brick holds up a dainty hand to stop me. “Wait, wait, back up. Mr. Q was Discord in your dream?”

I nod, shrugging. “Yeah. I dunno, it was just weird. Danny was having all these weird changes going on, longer hair and it was a different color, which turned out to be true, looked like a horses mane in my dream. We went to the Zoo because he installed a sidecar onto my bike...”

“Did that actually happen?” Brick asks.

“Yeah, it's his birthday gift to me. For easier package delivery and to give him rides. If you'll stop interrupting?” I say, raising an eyebrow at her.

“Sorry.”

“Anyway, I ended up getting a call from Q, and he told me that I needed to die in an explosive way, and take the Elements with me. I had no idea what he was talking about but some guys in mismatched suits followed me and started shooting at me and Danny while we were riding home. They were firing a M4 or something and then a fucking RPG. I think I killed the driver because the vehicle peeled off and then two more came up... and then Danny woke me up.”

Brick stares at me. “These guys in the suits... how do you mean, mismatched?”

I blink, and look at Brick. “Uh... well, black and white suits, but not pinstriped. I mean, like one half is white, one half is black, side by side, or they're wearing open suits, their shirts were half and half, and then their suits were half and half the other way, or just... mismatched. Usually in black and white. Kinda like Two-Face or his goons in the old Batman games and comics. Why?”

Brick lets out a slow breath. “What do you have in your messenger bag, right now?”

“Thompson, it's loaded with a stick and I've got a extra drum mag for it, and two extra mags for my Browning. Didn't bring the jewelry because I've been paranoid like all hell since the dream.” I say, sitting back.

“Good... good. Listen, don't react too quickly, but one of those guys from your dream is sitting at the bar right now.” Brick says slowly. I twitch lightly, but her hand leaps out and is on mine in a flash, holding me back. “Hey. Relax. Don't draw yet. I'm letting the bartender know. I'm gonna take your messenger bag. I don't have my piece on me.”

I nod and look at her as she grins at me. “Listen. When I say go, this whole place is gonna go to hell. Don't shoot the guy, yet, but if he reacts strongly to you breaking and running, don't be afraid to shoot him. Where is your bike parked?”

“Right out front.” I say, forcing myself to calm down enough to not bolt or tense up. Tensing would be bad right before I ride, especially if I end up cramping up or something stupid like that.

“When you run, I'm right behind you. Start the bike, I'll jump in the sidecar. We'll make tracks for your place. You still got that hidden compartment above your bed?” Brick asks. Funny, her voice sounds lighter then it did a few moments ago. Higher.

I shake that thought, deciding not to mention it before speaking up, “Of course I do. We'll grab our gear and flee, right?”

“Our gear? Jeez, you're too giving Pony.” Brick teases with a sigh, shaking her head. I chuckle.

“Best friend in trouble, little brother in trouble... the family is in danger, and you know as well as I do that I made a promise.” I say, sitting up straighter.

Brick waves a handsignal, just two fingers held together that split apart, towards the bartender. I don't need to see the countersignal from the bartender to know that they know what's up, and the gesture to the oddly-dressed man in the suit, wearing shades inside... pretty obvious now that I think about it.

“And McCloud's keep their promises.” Brick says with a grin and gives me a warm, one armed, brotherly hug as she slides the bag from me and slowly unzips it. “On three.”

“THREE!” I yell, and bolt out of my chair, bolting for the door as Brick rips my Thompson from the bag, racking it and loading a round into the chamber as she starts right after me, slinging my bag over her shoulder as I reach into my jacket pocket.

The guy in the suit knows what's up apparently as he reaches into his own jacket, pulling out a frankly oversized piece, like he's trying to show off. Some kinda fifty-cal jobbie, probobly a Deagel, though why anyone would want to use that is beyond me. Overpowered piece of shit.

I dash past the guy in the suit, putting my shoulder into and through the front door, blowing it open with a loud crash as I run for my bike, just as the guy with the gun prepares to open fire, the click of the safety coming off audible.

Well, audible for all of two seconds before the sound of a Chicago Typewriter spelling out another message of death is heard. I don't need to look to know that guy's going down the painful way as the sound of flesh getting ripped apart by .45 rounds and blood splattering hits my ears followed shortly by screaming and yells of surprise as I hit my bike and leap on, starting the engine and revving twice when Brick leaps into the sidecar.

“MOVE IT PONY!” Brick yells at me as I peel out, whipping the bike and sidecar around and leaping onto the road, cutting off a guy in a pinto as we make our way gone as fast as I can. We're pulling away and a good two hundred yards off from the Windpower cafe when I hear a muffled whup, and then an overpowering bang. Heat peels across my back as I whip my head around and look in shock as a fireball licks the sky, right where the Windpower cafe was.

“Brick!”

“Ignore it Pony, we got bigger problems right now!” Brick yells back, getting me to focus on the road again before she draws my attention again with a growling curse.

“Pony, what did those cars in your dream look like?”

“Big, black unmarked SUVs, some kinda Escalade or Cadillac!” I yell to her, mentally cursing.

“We got two following us right now!”

“FAN BLOODY FUCKING TASTIC.” I howl in annoyance, revving harder and swerving around a granny driver in an oldsmobile as I draw on all the horses hidden in my engine to take the road with a vengeance, the speedometer quickly climbing to highway speeds as I make a run towards the on ramp.

“Pony! Please tell me that you've made some kind of modification to this thing!” Brick yells as she moves to a more comfortable firing position, leaning against the front of the side car as she braces, aiming the Thompson behind us.

“No, I kept the Express road legal!” I yell back.

“Well, then you better be great at dodging!”

“Why?”

Bullets answered my question as one whipped by my ear and took out my mirror, just like in the dream, some kind of rifle caliber ripping up the road as we were fired upon. I curse, ducking my head a bit as I quickly check my ear. Didn't hit me, but it sure as hell got close. And this time I didn't have a bloody helmet on!

I grit my teeth as I hear the Thompson open up on the SUVs, Brick letting out a fierce yell as she fires at the black vehicles. I bite my lip, fearing that it was the nightmare all over again when a bit of the asphalt kicks up and hits me in the cheek, making me wince in pain. Yep, not a dream.

Brick fires off a few more choice shots before cursing, dropping the stick mag into my side car and pulling out the drum magazine. “Help would be nice Pony!”

“How? I can't exactly drive comfortably one handed, and I'm not some fucking action hero!” I say as I swerve the bike and sidecar, pulling us out of the line of fire, hopefully, as Brick works the bolt of the Thompson and starts firing again. She lets out a victorious yell as I hear tires screeching and the sound of metal crunching and scraping across the ground, and then the hard crash and breaking of glass of something heavy hitting something solid.

“HAH! Flipped 'em! Got the driver, and their buddy couldn't get around! We're clear Pony-Boy!” She crows. I let out a light breath as I continue riding hard. For some reason, I really, really doubted we were clear after only two SUV's.

“Hide the Thompson Brick, I'm gonna pull onto the highway. Keep out of the lime light, so to speak. No need to be around when the cops show.” I reply, veering towards the on ramp that I had planned to hit to try to outrun the SUVs before pulling up onto it, slowing down to the legal limit.

Brick nods to me, her ears swiveling as she stows my Thompson away out of sight but still in easy reach. I look around, glad to see that we aren't in any danger for the moment, minus my missing mirror, and we smoothly integrate into traffic.

Jeeze. That was just like my Nightmare, well, minus having someone that could use a weapon with me and other cars on the road. And having a real weapon with me. In fact, all that's missing is the phone call.

We make quick time down the highway, and we soon reach the exit towards the apartment complex when Brick reaches over and taps my shoulder. “Find a seven-eleven or something to pull up too!” She yells out. I nod my agreement as we roll down the off ramp.

There's a small convenience store right down the street from my apartment complex. Not exactly the biggest place in the world, and I'm friends with the owners, a little old chinese lady and her son. Her son is a good kid, he's gonna go places in the world. We pull in smooth, and I turn off my bike, dismounting and stretching a bit, Brick hopping out of the sidecar after putting the Thompson back into my messenger back as I look at my mirror.

“Damn, shattered... gonna need to replace that.” I sigh, shaking my head. It's not that bad, I can replace it myself once we get back to the apartment, but damn it, I hate having to replace my mirrors. I average about three every month, so it gets annoying after a while. Brick walks up next to me with a grin.

“Another broken mirror Pony?” She says with a light chuckle. I shake my head at her and then gasp.

“Dude! Hoodie! Hoodie!”

Brick blinks, tilting her head at me in an adorably confused way. “Huh?”

I groan and grab her hood and pull it up over her head, leaving enough for her to see. “Your ears Brick! Crap, were they visible for the whole ride?”

Brick blinks at me and then facepalms, cursing. “Crap, yes, my hood was pulled down by the wind!” She says, looking around. “I don't think anyone followed us though, so we should be ok.”

I groan, shaking my head. “Be careful man, we don't want people to notice. Less reason for us to be noticed, the better, especially after... well, that.”

Brick nods in agreement and starts towards the convince store when my phone starts ringing. I sigh and shake my head. Jeeze, seem to be doing that a lot recently. “Go on in Brick. I'll follow behind you after my phone call.”

She waves me off as I pull out my phone and unlock it, picking up the call. “You've reached-”

“The Pony Express. Yes, yes, I'm quite aware that I've reached you, Mr. McCloud. Now, that wasn't very nice, how you played with my toys.” My blood freezes as the voice on the other end of the line speaks up. A voice I've heard a few times recently. Once in person.

“Mr. Q.” I say, a chill going up my back.

“The one and only. Tisk tisk. Why are you getting involved Mr. McCloud? Oh, because I wanted you to! Such a willing Pawn as well. Taking the Elements with you wherever you go. Come now, did you really think I was going to let you walk away with those? And then you come back out into the open with the same messenger bag? Really, it was obvious.” Q says, smug and annoying as ever, but now, that darker tint I heard during my nightmare is much more focused.

“What the hell do you want Mr. Q? Your toys? You mean the guy in the suit that blew up the cafe and the ones that had that horrible accident?” I growl. My dream was right! Which makes me even more worried honestly, because now I'm dealing with a damned psychopath. Like I didn't have enough to be paranoid about.

“Oh come now, they weren't real. I don't have nearly enough influence in your world to have real people. But nor does most other magics. The Elements, for example. Twenty-Five years of no charge leaves them nice and dead. Ready to be destroyed! Not by my hand of course... no, they're in your possession. Their destruction is on your hands.” Q crows, obviously pleased with himself. “It was the plan, you see. The whole time. I've waited so long for my plan to come to fruition. And now, now, it's almost done!”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” I say, feeling a cold shiver of dread roll down my spine along with a unsettling feeling of unease.

“Hehehe... Heaahahahaha! MUAAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAA!

FOR FIVE SCORE, DIVIDED BY FOUR!
YOUR MEMORIES REMOVED! YOUR BODY CONFUSED!

FOR YOUR INSOLENCE YOU MUST PAY!
CAST OFF TO A LAND FAR, FAR AWAY!”

I hiss, snatching the phone away from my ear. This fucker was LOUD, and more importantly, something about what he was saying was shaking me in the very core of my being. I gripped at myself as I threw my phone at the wall, as hard as I could. It shattered upon impact. And yet, the voice continued, hauntingly screaming through my ears.

“TO SCATTER THE SIX, JUST THE START OF MY TRICKS!
THEIR MINDS ARE WEAK, YOUR OUTLOOK'S BLEAK!

THEY FORGOT EVERYTHING AND SHALL LIVE AS FOOLS!
NOT EVEN YOU SHALL CHALLENGE MY RULE!”

The words scorched me. I felt like someone stabbed a knife in my chest, and let out a strangled, pained cry. Moments later arms wrapped around me and I felt myself pulled over to my bike, away from my phone, which was smoking before it shorted out with a loud POP.

“Pony! Pony! Goddess damn it MICHAEL! Deep breaths brother! Come on, calm down! You're gonna be ok!” Brick's voice filtered through my ears, about two octaves too high. I let out a pained whine, my feet scrabbling against the ground for something to grip onto, some kind of traction.

The fact that she actually said my name filtered into my head, making me shake and pull my head together long enough to look at Brick. Her face was written with worry and she was muttering under her breath, her hands flying over my body before pressing two fingers into my neck.

“Pulse is flying. Damn it Pony, talk to me!”

“B-brick... Q... I... wha...” I stutter, trying to regain focus before she pulls me up onto my feet.

“You had a panic attack, I- wait... you were talking with Q? Mr. Q? The same guy that you've been doing art deals with for the last six years?” Brick says, blinking at me.

“Yeah, the same Q. He... he was saying some weird shit. It felt wrong, like he was trying to attack my brain or something.” I say, panting a bit.

“... I've heard that before, what he said. Discord said it.” Brick says, “In the series finale.”

“Wait, in my little pony? What the hell are you talking about Brick?” I say, looking at him in confusion. Brick finally gets me stable and clambers into the side car.

“I'm not sure, but we need to get back to your place. Now. Get on and drive Pony. It's time to watch a cartoon.” Brick orders, frowning deeply. I shakily comply, way too rattled to argue, getting onto my bike and starting off as Brick pulls a carrot out of a shopping bag and starts quietly munching on it.

I blink at that, pulling out of my little moment a bit. Brick never was one much for carrots. Or veggies of any kind. But frankly, today has been weird enough without questioning eating habits, what with being shot at and having a cafe explode and... I suddenly have the urge to check my watch. I glance at my watch as I wait for a car to clear out of my way so I can pull onto the road and boggle at the time. It's not even thirteen hundred yet. Noon-Thirty. I groan, holding my head in my hand for a moment.

It's gonna be a long day.

Chapter 3 End

Author's Note

Another chapter, another week. As always, if you liked it, leave a comment, if you didn't also leave a comment so I can improve!