Conviction

“How’d Spike get inta’ the monument in broad daylight? Easy. The Royal Guard were carrying out orders directly from Princess Celestia herself. Why in the hay they listen? Shining Armor. Ya’ see, Filthy Rich was always a thorn in Twi’s rear. She knew Filthy Rich was financing Blueblood’s Op, but the stallion kept things under lock ‘n key. It made Twi’ furious, and ah’ tell ya’ what. You don’t wanna’ tussle with that unicorn. What she did know was Blueblood and Filthy were meetin’ at the monument in the mornin’ ta’ ‘discuss’ some matters or importance. Twi’ took this immediately to Celestia. She didn’t like it one bit. She wanted ta’ know what they were plannin’ n’ such so getting’ Spike on site for surveillance was a must… and a lil’ more if need be.”

The Celestia Monument

Spike entered the gated off area of the monument. The press was there setting up all their equipment for the upcoming ‘Running of the Leaves’ marathon. It was a huge event for Canterlot. Ponies from all over Equestria came to compete in this race.

Filthy Rich was sponsoring the event so undoubtedly he would be there early to take a hoofs-on approach to his work. His security detail was nowhere to be found making Spike’s job just a little easier.

“I’m here, Twilight, what now?”

“Hold on, ok, Princess Celestia is on the line. We need you to eavesdrop on Blueblood’s and Fithy’s conversation.”

“And here I though Third Epsilon was the best of the best, bug it. Isn’t it obvious?” The condescending tone in Spike’s voice wasn’t making matters any better.

A familiar voice came through. One of great power and distinction, Princess Celestia, “Spike we already tried. Filthy’s people scrubbed my monument top to bottom to find anything like that in preparation for Filthy Rich’s speech. We had no time to set up more equipment.”

“Plan B then?” Quizzed the dragon.

Twilight’s voice now came through his earpiece, “you of course. The press’ equipment is still there. Find the control room and establish an uplink from the booth to me. The directional microphones there will still be active so you’ll be able to record their conversation from a safe distance.”

“Understood.” Replied the dragon.

He walked casually over to a set of metal stairs leading up to a raised booth above the ground. The white cube that stood upon a plethora of metal bars holding it above the earth was the control booth Spike was looking for.

There was no pony inside. Just a laptop and the various controls used to record the speech Filthy was going to give. The dragon established a link up to the monitoring system and played around with the microphones to get a feel for them before Blueblood and Filthy Rich arrived.

“Twilight I’ve accessed the feed are you getting the uplink?”

“Yes, good work Spike, remember those microphones are directional so you MUST capture them on the camera focus to pick up their voices.” Twilight was sounding a little more stressed than usual.

“Here they come…” replied the dragon.

Spike saw the prince and the business pony walking into the monument’s main atrium from opposite sides meeting only feet in front of each other.

“Mr. Rich, thank you for meeting me on such short notice. We have some last minute logistical issues to even out before the big show begins.” Cooed the prince trying to appeal to the business pony’s financial obligation to his operation.

“Blueblood, we are only a day away from this and you want to talk requisitions, right here, right now?”

“It’s clean. My ponies have already wiped this place free from any surveillance equipment. Besides, I knew you couldn’t resist from being here. Your company did invest a lot of bits into this year’s ‘Running of the Leaves’ celebration.” Retorted Blueblood.

“One of my companies, Mr. Blueblood. I have several, but you know that, including Equines in Arms. I’m guessing that’s why you came to see me isn’t it?” Filthy Rich was as wealthy as he was arrogant.

“I assure you we’ll discuss Equines in Arms failures another time. I’m here to discuss what I need to make everything go smoothly without hindrance.” Blueblood was enrage at the pompous earth pony in front of him, but he held his tongue from any further objectionable comments.

“Oh really…” Filthy Rich trailed on.

“Yes, Spike is still alive and YOUR ponies failed to neutralize him!”

“Oh don’t worry about that dragon; he’s just a pawn that was allowed to live.”

“If HE’s getting cold hooves about this OP-“

Filthy interrupted the prince’s tangent of anger, “Melchior knows what he’s doing, don’t question them, and if I am correct weren’t YOU the one that was suppose to take care of Spike? He’s becoming a real nuisance to this operation, Director Blueblood.”

“Watch your damn mouth, Filthy. Melchior may have given you the position you have, but you haven’t been proving your worth. My ponies will deal with the dragon since Equines in Arms was unable to.” Blueblood wanted desperately just to slam his hooves into Filthy’s face. He was making a fool out him and Third Epsilon by failing to kill a single rogue agent.

“I’ll take care of Equines in Arms, you just stick to the op,” Filthy’s voice trailed on as he walked a different direction, Blueblood following at his side, “it’s interesting you chose this of all the place to meet me, Blueblood. The eyes of the Princess are upon us.”

“I prefer to keep our plans away from the eyes of Celestia.”

“Oh? And here I though you liked the spotlight, I guess I was wrong.” Filthy said sarcastically.

“I’ll play along if I have to, but don’t expect me to enjoy it. I’m not here to play public relations. The pony who stands at that podium reading a speech is the one with the least protection.” Replied Blueblood.

“Indeed. Protection is quite important. Especially with what’s about to go down.”

“Which is why you shouldn’t even be here.” Snarled the unicorn.

“But I have to. Executive Overseer, as I like to call it. Taking chances is not something I like to do. A ‘hoofs-on’ approach has always been more effective.” The pompous earth pony was as paranoid as he was annoying when it came to details of micromanagement. He couldn’t keep his hooves out of anything he had his bits invested into.

“You were supposed to be in Fillydelphia, not here. I cannot keep you safe when all hell is about to break open. My ponies and I will be too busy.”

“I never asked you to ‘protect’ me.”

“Are you sure? This is to keep you alive and the operation.”

“Some things require a more ‘direct’ approach. Now if you’re done wasting my time, Blueblood I have a photo shoot to be at in ten minutes. I’ll see you when this is all over.”

Blueblood stuck his head up in the air, “good day to you to, Mr. Rich,” and walked off down the concrete staircase leaving Filthy Rich alone and unguarded in the atrium.

“Spike, go after Blueblood, now’s are chance.”

Spike defied the mare offering his own intuitive answer, “no we can find Blueblood another time, and Filthy Rich is still here. I should have a ‘talk’ with him.”

Princess Celestia came over the transmission backing up Spike’s decision, “I agree. I want to find out about this ‘Melchior’ and Filthy Rich seems to know the most about him.”

“Understood Princess, I’ll hold Blueblood in place.” Said Twilight.

Spike exited the booth and leaped down onto the ground from the metal railing above. He walked up the long, white, concrete stairs that lead up to the monument’s main atrium. A statue of Celestia stood one hundred feet high towering over everything in Canterlot except for the royal castle itself.

Spike could hear the conversation between Twilight and Filthy Rich over his comm. as he approached a large pillar pressing his back up against it as he moved from the pillar to Filthy as silently as possible.

“Mr. Rich, my name is Twilight Sparkle. I’m calling on behalf of Mr. Blueblood, Director of Third Epsilon.”

“Oh, I know who you are, Ms. Sparkle, what does he want now? More money to waste on trying to kill Spike? He’s on his own if that’s what this is about.”

“Mr. Blueblood felt that there could be some ‘negations’ between you two that could be furthered discuss in private if you are available, Mr. Rich.”

“Oh? Like bribery? I don’t care what he as to offer. Just tell him to do his fucking job or I’ll find somepony more capab-“

The dragon held the earth pony at an arm’s length. His claws poking into Filthy’s fur and skin, drawing a little bit of blood, “you shouldn’t talk to Twilight like that.”

“Ah! Help! Guards! Where are my damn guards!” exclaimed filthy holding the dragon’s arm that gripped his neck.

“It’s just you and I Filthy. Now let’s chat. What connection do you have with Blueblood?”

The earth pony’s brazen ego only got him into more trouble, “ask nicely.”

Spike lifted his knee and into the earth pony’s stomach. He fell to the ground wrapping his hooves around his stomach before receiving several painful blows to the head from a TV nearby that Spike had requisitioned for this interrogation.

“Ah!” screamed the brown earth pony, “Blueblood’s just a pawn. This is much bigger than him. Or Third Epsilon. They’re just tools of the trade.”

“Good boy, now why does Blueblood want you in Fillydelphia so badly? What’s going on?”

“Your interrogation techniques are rusty, try again Spike.”

Spike obliged the masochistic pony. Shards of broken glass still protruded out of his skull as blood dripped down his face. The dragon picked up the business pony and slammed him onto the control panel sending sparks flying in all directions and Filthy Rich seizing from the electrocution.

The smell of burnt fur and skin filled the air as Spike dragged the pony off of the panel and held him up in the air again. His legs dangling just inches off the ground.

“He wants to run the op when the Megaspells are triggered. There are three of them scattered across Canterlot. In just a few hours they’ll go off wiping out most of the city and the neighboring towns letting him play commando. He’s trying to impress important ponies you know.”

“Where do I find the Megaspells?”

“I didn’t hear ‘please’?” said the earth pony smirking.

Spike pulled out his pistol. The suppressed weapon struck instant fear into Filthy as he received a bullet to knee, crippling his right leg.

“If you make me say please, I might have to shoot the other leg too.” Said the dragon smiling sadistically.

“I have no idea, Spike. That was part of the op. Keeping me uninformed in case something like this would happen. It’s too late for you Spike. The ponies I work for have been planning this for quite some time.”

“Melchior, who are they?”

The earth pony spit some blood onto Spike’s cheek in defiance to his question. He replied with a sharp pain in the earth pony’s flank. He had plunged his knife into Filthy’s flank and twisted the blade, grinding the tip of the knife against his femur.

Filthy was wailing in pain begging the dragon to stop. The dragon reluctantly pulled his blood-soaked knife out and held it to the pony’s throat.

“T-they’re the ponies who run this show. In Equestria, Boardor, Zebrica, you name it, they’re there. It’s Melchior who’s going to get me out of this dump once Blueblood’s done at the Roy-“

An unsuppressed shot in the back caught Spike off guard. He looked over to see where the noise had come from. He saw a unicorn dressed in an police officer’s clothing. They made eye contact and the unicorn blitz out of the monument running as fast as he could.

Filthy Rich had a bullet hole in his chest. The precise shot indicated this was no fluke. That was a trained assassin who just killed the only pony other than Blueblood who knows about the operation going down here in Canterlot, tonight.

“What the hell was that Spike!” screamed Twilight.

“Filthy Rich is dead, the assassin is on foot. I’m going after him.” Replied Spike as he started chasing the assailant.

“We need him alive, Spike. That assassin is the only link we have between Third Epsilon and Melchior.” Princess Celestia’s voice came over the comm. and into the dragon’s ear.

The chase began between the two. Spike was leaping over ponies left and right trying to keep up with the assassin. The killer shot blindly behind him nearly hitting Spike and several civilians.

“Spike I’m picking up a lot of heat from the local police. They’re on their way to your position. Lethal force is NOT authorized. You may subdue them, but don’t kill them. Celestia’s orders.”

“Get out! Everypony get out!” screamed the assassin shooting into the air. Mobs of terrified mares and stallions exited the tent he ran into. Spike followed behind him diligently.

“Stop right there!” A police officer caught Spike off guard holding him at gunpoint and approaching him slowly, “I have the susp-“ Spike took his opportunity and grabbed the officer’s gun and punched the pony in the side of the head knocking him unconscious.

Spike scurried through the crowded streets spotting the assassin as he ran into a local coffee shop shooting wildly into the crowd. Spike was only thirty feet away from the assassin when the blast of an I.E.D went off sending shrapnel and bits of the pony that killed Filthy into the air and spraying across the ground. It was a trashcan that contained the bomb. As soon as the assassin ran passed it, the fiery explosion blew Spike onto his back covering his face from any projectiles.

“Spike! Are you alright?!”

“Yeah, but the assassin is dead.”

“No time for that now, I’m reading multiple Third Epsilon squads converging on your location. Lethal force is authorized. Just stay alive until Shining Armor gets there. He’ll escort you out of there.”

Three armed ponies stormed inside the coffee shop. They formed a circle guarding all sides to not be flanked, but Spike was better than that. He was already above them on the second floor and with three more shells that hit the ground next to him the ponies below fell silent in their deaths.

The sound of more hooves clopping against the ground alerted the dragon to more hostiles. This time there was five of them, but that wasn’t a problem for Spike. He took his time silently eliminating the two ponies that guarded the outside entrances before advancing inside to kill the remaining combatants.

“Your ride is there Spike. Shining Armor is just outside the North entrance waiting for you. I suggest you get moving. I’m reading a squad of at least ten more combatants headed your way.”

Spike didn’t take any time to waste and jumped through the second story window, ducking and rolling onto the ground. A black SUV with tinted windows was waiting for the dragon. The passenger door opened revealing a handsome stallion. His long blue mane and smile captivated the dragon for mere seconds as he hopped inside and slammed the door shut behind him.

“Glad you could make it.” Said Shining Armor.