Stableby MaroonloverChaptersWanna Chat?Going to Feel That Sooner Than LaterHanging on a Wing and a PrayerWelcoming the UnwelcomeLong Way from HomeTension So Thick It's Cut-ThroatA Meet-and-Greet Amongst FriendsWanna Chat?The establishment, commonly referred to as the Hybrid's Den was a special sort of locale. The kind where you could get lost in the variety of entertainment. Where money ordered, and those bound by greed obeyed. Mind had had enough of being drawn into places such as this. Sighing as he had followed his assistant all the way here, only to come to find out that 'here' was...certainly the least professional place for a business meeting he'd ever envisioned. A main trident-shaped stage of sexualized mares and stallions groping the wooden poles as if their lives depended on it, dancing on screwed-to-the-floor hard wood tables to be hurled money by disgusting onlookers one hoof away from being kicked out for touching the merchandise. Mind, whose jet colored Unicorn body could do with a few extra meals, swept his unkempt mess of a silver mane out of his face before it ascended his headache into a fully-grown migraine. That source of his headache was commonly called Kelly, his plump yet thick-with-muscle assistant whose wood-brown Earth-Pony coat paled in comparison to her lively green mane, styled in copycat fashion after her boss. Although, in her defense, she'd had it brushed, usually often on the opposite side of her face to his, in an effort to appear more approachable to traders. The duo appeared on the raised platform overseeing the view of the massive interior, which had an immense crowd off to the right trying to fulfill their bar quota of being too drunk to walk. A hostess walked up to the new arrivals, greeting them kindly, “Hello! Can I get you a seat near the front?” Kelly stepped up to the mare, saying to keep Mind from turning around to leave, “Well, no. We’re here for the meeting. With...a Miss Duwell?” Staring at the sweetheart of a mare for a moment, the employee suddenly put two-and-two together, “Oh. Oh! Sorry about not realizing that sooner. We were only given the description of you, Kelly. And, weren’t expecting your arrival for another hour.” Mind walked up to the greeter, responding to her confusion, “Better early than late, I’d think. Now, is she in? Or, may we take a seat somewhere? Preferably away from your...entertainment.” The hostess nervously laughed before reaching out for an on-break worker saddled up right next to the five-hooves-off-the-laminate entrance, whispering something in their ear before just about tossing them off to retrieve orders from their employer. After several minutes of patiently waiting with a backed-up crowd calling out insults for the stalemate, the hostess's fellow worker hustled back to ponysally escort the pair back to the crime boss, making it perfectly clear they weren't getting the other form of escort on the way back. Dammit! This isn't how it was supposed to go down! Dancers out there giving their customers drool-ridden chests wasn’t exactly the picture Duwell had wanted to paint. Yeah, it’s not the most clean-cut establishment. Sure. But, it wouldn’t have been so bad had they just come right at noon. That would have given the staff plenty of time to close down for a half-hour to clean up enough for a respectable presentation. Bet this shit never happens to Vain's spoiled plot! A knock on the door brought Duwell from her pit of self-loathing. As she tidied up her suit, pressing it free of wrinkles, the crime lord allowed her two hopefully-soon-to-be-business-partners entry. Mind and Kelly descended into the barely lit room, unable to make much note of Duwell, aside her almost glowing light pink/purple eyes. But, what really caught the ponies' eyes were the stationed Griffons on either end of the enterprising criminal, whose gaze locked right on back to the two. Kelly was smiling, not nervously or to keep fear in check at the very sight of the guns very much evident in the Griffons' holsters. No, she liked violence. She wanted nothing more than to combat the armed trigger-happy fellows. A part of her now selfishly desired the deal to go south, licking her lips at the prospect of an ensuing battle. Mind knew Kelly always had his back, so wasn't too upset at the presence of the firepower over the counter that added to the heavy atmosphere that always transpired in these sorts of dealings. Duwell cupped her hooves together as she charged in with the introductions, “I’m Duwell Former. Pleasure to meet you, Mind. Thank you for bringing him and yourself here today, Kelly.” Kelly crossed her hooves, nodding to the Griffons that greatly contrasted the tone the crime boss delivered, “And, they are?” With a sour look descending down her face, Duwell explained to her guests, “Just...measures. Don’t be insulted. They’re my security. Hired from a friend.” Mind's expression of mild apathy rang out as he nodded, unconcern in his voice to manipulate the crime boss into stepping away from the landmine of a matter, "Of course. We both understand. Don't we, Kelly?" Kelly's grin only mildly dissipated into the wind as she shook her head in acknowledgement. Duwell, whilst still not a fan of the unsettling smile the Earth-Pony displayed, concluded her boss had a tight enough leash around the girl to keep her seated, getting on with the transaction as promised. Unfurling a schematic of a device in her own magic, she drifted it over to Mind's suddenly interested eyes. Well, as much as one slightly raised eyebrow could appear to be. Mind took note of how Duwell never strayed too far from the dark veil of her chair. How her very horn tried its best to remain suppressed in the amount of light it fired out to fulfill its purpose. She was hiding something. If Mind were the type to care about more than his work, he might've pressed onward to figure out what mare before him had done to herself. He, instead, merely regarded the blueprints set before him. Bored soon after deciphering the invention, Mind passed the papers back to Duwell, remarking casually, "I demand funding for these future projects of yours. Because you couldn't be bothered to go through third parties, I'll be requesting double the set price of whatever you had-" Kelly said simply, only to her own benefit, "In mind." Mind didn't even blink at the interruption of his assistant to finish his words with puns, as it happened far too often to scold the mare for anymore. Duwell knew this might get out-of-hoof soon, so she put her hooves in her lap, the signal for the guards to be prepared for a shoot-out. Her face obscure aside from those still radiating eyes and tight pout forming in the hints of light touching her face, Duwell pressed on with her admission, "Listen, I'm not going to pay you in the traditional sen-" Mind could feel the headache returning, waving at Kelly to keep sat. She, on the other hoof, took this motion as an opening for engaging her foes, quickly picking up her chair to easily hoist it almost to the ceiling. Duwell's face formed what could only be called a scowl, declaring, "If you aren't open to hearing my proposal, then this is your chance to leave. Dicers, escort our former guests outside." Mind sighed, not in the mood for a wasted day. He mentally and magically controlled Kelly's body, forcing her to place her chair down and take a seat in it. Duwell nodded in acceptance, shooing her guards back to their stations as she grinned for the very first time, "Hmmmm. The controlling type. My favorite. You sure you're not the woman between the two of you, Mind?" Mind didn't care to register whether he'd been tossed a compliment or insult, opening up the dialogue again, "Just what do you have to offer." Duwell cleared her throat before speaking again, "Need dirt? A priceless work of art...misplaced? Have any sexual-" Mind rolled his eyes at the mere mention of him wanting any of her offers, asking one of his own, "Okay. Fine. Workers. Lots of them. I've got several projects of my own in need of bodies. You supply the work force, you have a deal." Kelly extended her hoof out to shake on the deal instead of Mind, but Duwell's narrowing of her eyes let the mare know she wasn't welcome. Understanding the open hostility, Kelly retracted her hoof, commenting sweetly to offset the dark, disturbing setting she was in, "Awesome! This went so smoothly!" Mind immediately forgot what his assistant was jabbering on about, attempting to open Duwell's cache of secrets for a very important reason, "Now, I'm still in need of funding. Do you know of anypony else who could assist me in acquiring large sums of money?" Duwell directed the duo behind her, to the Griffons wearing grins as deep as their beaks would allow. The one on the left spoke in a voice that matched somepony who inhaled smoke since birth, "Yeah. Our boss might. He's busy right now." Kelly was the one interested now, liking where this was going as she said, "Ohhhh! Doing what?!" The guard to the right chuckled to himself as he made a pushing motion with his claws, "Heh. Booom!!!!" Going to Feel That Sooner Than LaterThe tall normally-built Griffon of khaki coat and gold-fusion head feathers named Vain Envi noticed the hero near the doorway. Easily. Vain wondered if he should tell him his eyes were much better than that of a pony's, so he could easily spot the ears, white spiky mane, and all-too gallant eyes of the brave pony. Well, Vain did love others watching him in action. Were he to call out to the hero named Nick, it could sweep the tale of two opposing forces fighting it out in a battle of powers and wits into the wind...leaving only the scene of a pony embarrassingly shuffling out as its remnants. ...I'll just let him think I can't see him. Vain turned his head in acceptance of the risks, having a feeling he might get shot at pretty quickly and pretty soon. Nick wanted to get in there, and put a stop to Vain's plans. But, Vain and his Dicers could just start butchering those poor trapped ponies kept pressed against the wall. He had waited until it was only Vain left in the main lobby of the torn-through museum, which was agony for his heart. Unlike all those previous times, lives were at stake here. He couldn't just run in there, no matter how much his body felt the need to do the right thing. He would have to plan this out. He would have to keep his thoughts in control. Now...couldIopenupwithasprayofmagic?No,tooloud.MaybeifImixedinAccelerowithmycombatspell?Itmighthitsomeponybehindhim, too.Maybe- As Nick's mind raced and was on the way to spitting out more resolutions than he could hoofle, he saw Vain turn. ... Screw planning. Nick drew power from his horn, filling his body with magic meant to enhance his agility. And, a second later, he was off to the races. Charging to the unsuspecting Griffon, Nick knew he'd never see it coming. Vain had seen it coming. More specifically, the prone-to-overthinking Unicorn dash out of his 'hiding' place, tearing down the marble on a war path to save the captives. But, still did as was expected of any villain, even shouting out the classic phrase as he dramatically glanced fully behind himself, "What the buck is going on?!" And, there's the pain. He very deservingly got a karate kick to the base of his back, throwing him to the ground. He could only smirk through the pain, even as the civilians all took up the chance for escape by stampeding past his now-throbbing body. And, now's my turn. Standing up as the hero's attention diverted from the crime lord to making sure the inner hallways didn't suddenly explode with heavily-armed gang members, Vain rose above them all, grin staying steady as he pulled his arm back. Then, with a snap of a talon, his entire left claw was enveloped in lightning, directing some of the crowd to look back and scream as the Griffon channeled his power. A brilliant surge of electricity zigzagged towards the ground, intent on a light-show. Nick had only a few seconds to react, pushing a mare out of the way as the blast impacted, releasing a wave that charged the ground in voltage. Ahhhhahahahhhhhh!!!! Whole body seized up, and Nick could do nothing except clutch his chest as a tingling stab skyrocketed from his hooves to his head. Stand up. F-fight him off. Give 'em time to e-escape. Trying to prepare a counter-attack of some kind as he fought the will to collapse, he noticed his magic not working. It doesn't just wound me. I-I can't use my magic. He'd never stayed up past being directly struck by this body-shaking, throttling pain. So, he was relatively easy for Vain to pick up by the mane, then smash into the flooring. Vain really liked this little pony he was currently picking up and tossing around. He'd never found a hero who could hold his own against the crime lord. The Unicorn struggling to breathe and get up before him was as close as he might ever get. Which I don't know if that's pathet- A out-of-the-blue blur of red threw a barrage of hooves Vain's direction. The Griffon hadn't expected this sort of reaction as he took a knee, coughing up some of his lunch. Just as Nick prepped another spell, Dicers rolled into the main lobby, having heard the commotion of ponies crying, shouting, and brushing past each other to beat it to the entrance. They soon all diverted their attention from the runaway leverage to the lone hero, who panted and eyes twitched from various injuries. Surrounding the tired stallion with overwhelming numbers didn't seem much fun. On top of that issue, the feeling of bones ready to break wasn't much enjoyment either to the boss. And, the distinct sound of sirens playing out in the background sparked Vain's final decision of the battle, asking his members, "Any of you guys get the book?" One held up his claws in excitement, knowing extra pay would come his way. "Nice work, Dripdrop. Everygriffon else, I wanna line. We're going to make ourselves a distraction." Snapping his talons once the simple orders were followed, Vain’s Dicers immediately opened fire on Nick with their Wind Cannons, sending him, glass, wood, and other debris rocketing outside. Not caring as long as the hostages got out safe, Nick accepted his fate. He was thrown with such force that, once he 'landed' onto the cement stairs all the way outside, he could do nothing as his body bounced and rolled onto the cleared road. Nick briefly saw hooves reaching out for him, heard a blaring ringing in his ears, and felt a rumble as an incalculable amounts of cops charged into the building. Then...darkness. Hanging on a Wing and a PrayerZaed Peace had been waiting all morning for Nick to wake up, aside a few hours when she had taken a nap herself. She heard a groan and somepony calling her name as she rose up from her slumped position in the chair. "Zaed! Wake up!", Nick demanded of his marefriend as she shook herself from the uncomfortable position she'd been in. Zaed motioned for him to lower the volume, then cracked her neck as it needed some readjustment. When a satisfying pop was faintly heard, she sighed in relief. Then, got up to stretch, filling him in as she did so, "You've been out for awhile." Nick rubbed a cheek, wondering, "Still the same day?" Zaed heard more elating snaps a she cracked her back, "Nope. Tomorrow, babe." Nick moved to get out of bed, expecting something to suddenly sting or hurt. To his delight, appears all his ailments were minor. He asked of her, "Why keep me in the hospital if I wasn't even injured that much?" Zaed pointed out bluntly, "You were thrown out of a museum. Literally thrown. They were checking for brain damage, baby. I wonder...do Unicorns have thicker skulls since your kind have horns?" Nick shrugged at the suggestion, guessing as he jumped to his hooves, "Maybe. I do have essentially what amounts to a weight cuddled up to my brain." Zaed ended the aerobics routine by gently pushing her wings up as far as she could, then punctuated it by hugging Nick as he walked up. Nick let her hug him, then asked with puzzlement, "Since when does Vain hold up museums?" Zaed broke from the hug as Nick stood still, staring at her as his brain bounced all manner of ideas in his head. Zaed could almost see the gears turn in his head, ending the production of new ideas by explaining, "Let's get going. I've got a few leads." They strolled down the road as Zaed stayed by his side, whispering almost directly into his ear, "Okay. So, last night, I went-" Nick chuckled to himself, questioning her as to the low volume of her voice, "Why so quiet?" Zaed had been slightly darting her eyes whenever ponies got too close. "Nicholas. You know how sensitive my work is." Nick grinned to himself as he openly stated, "I know you hate crowds." "...Maybe so. But, regardless of my...phobias, this is still highly classified info. Hush-hush sort of stuff." Nick heard his stomach growl, remembering he hadn't eaten much the previous day. He also doubted he'd been given much in the way of food whilst unconscious. He wondered as he began looking up at signs for food places to eat from, "Think we could stop for a bit? I'm...very hungry." Zaed's ears went down, demanding, "Fine. Inside though. Table...in back." "Table in back it is, then!", Nick gleefully cheered as he took her hoof in his, running into a nearby pizza restaurant. She slipped her hoof out of his as he attracted eyes to them via excitedly hurrying in line. She breathed out nervously to him before dipping away, "I'll get us a seat." Nick didn't seem phased, knowing the ponies ahead of him would simply stop looking after awhile. As they did, he grinned to Zaed, who sat at a table that had vacancies on both sides. ... Nick and Zaed shared a steaming hot pie of melting, molten-hot cheese, flaky crust, and seasoned sauce. As they dug in, Zaed ate a single slice by taking little nibbles out of the sides before focusing on giving Nick the run-down, "Mmmm, this is tasty. But, aside the delicious food, I brought us to this particular district for a reason." She nudged the plate away without even making a sound, cupped her hooves together, then detailed out what her suspicions were, "I believe Vain is going to sell the book at that museum to somepony. Or, try to figure out how he can use it himself." Nick took a crunch out of the pizza, seemingly unhurt by the recently hot-from-the-oven piece of his own pie portion, "But...he's incapable of spell-casting. Last time I checked, Griffons were more akin to Pegasi with their similar control over the weather. But, I could be wrong here." Zaed shrugged, almost as clueless as him, "It's a spellbook that can't be used by Unicorns. Least that's what the museum curator told the investigators and I." Nick ate almost half the rest of his slice in one chomp, making Zaed narrow her eyes. He chewed innocently, swallowed, then whistled as if he'd been a perfect little pony the entire time. She shook her head in amazement, then pointed out more of why this bothered her, "He must have been in a hurry. But, didn't do his normal stunt of making a big scene, then simply flying off. He teleported out." This caught Nick's attention as he seemed genuinely surprised, then upset as he threw his hooves up in the air in disgrace, "He learned how to teleport before I did?! Dammit!" Zaed shushed him before he caused a scene. Nick crossed his hooves, still ashamed he had been beaten at such a basic spell by somepony not even capable of teleportation...seemingly. Zaed finished off the plan of attack by bringing a hoof onto the table as if she were showing a map, making circular tiny circular motions on the wood, "He probably exited by way of Gatekeeper. And, they've been growing in popularity around the Dine-And-Dash district for some time. So, we just wait for somepony to-" At that moment, by the power of ironic fate, a robber at the front of the order line yanked up the cash register, then charged out of the pizzeria like his life depended on it. The employee that had been working the front exclaimed, "Come on! That's the third time this week!!!" "I really need to talk with the police chief for some added security around this area," Zaed noted before sliding under the table. Nick greedily shoved a whole thick slice of pie into his maw before dashing off to stop the criminal's theft. The robber wearing a hoodie to hide his face thought on his hooves, launching the sturdy cash register into a side window of a building he explicitly stopped at. As he pushed in the remaining glass to lessen the broken skin he'd have after diving inside the apartments, he was unaware of a blur of red darting right for him. With an unexpected tackle by Nick, both were sent tumbling into a not-so-spacious hallway. Nick groaned as he drew himself up from his rough ride in the sky, hopeful his head was thickly lined with extra layers of bone as he clutched it from the throbbing pain. The robber too held his face in confusion and injury, but didn't seemed too desist from seeing his crime through. Picking up the cash register in one hoof, he glared at the pony who shook him up. Nick broke out into a fighting stance as he noticed the pony walk calmly forward, not a care in the world. The Unicorn wanted to take this pony down quick, so he rushed him with another Accelero spell. In only seconds, Nick's hoof collided with the criminal's skull. And, it was perhaps the dumbest thing the hero could have done. Holding his hoof as tears streamed down his horrified face, Nick delivered a stammering response towards the pony standing above him, "O-owww!!! What in the buck are you made of?! Brick?!" The pony said deeply with an air of merriment, "Nope. Earth." The Earth-Pony then turned around, and smashed Nick's chest in with a powerful back-kick. As if the pony needed anymore feeling of being a leaf in a tornado, Nick rolled back a couple hooves from the sheer strength of the counterattack. Note to self, Earth-Ponies are very...solid. Nick was sorely getting tired of having to pick himself off the ground these past few days, immediately fighting the urge to regain his breathe. In hindsight, the appropriate judgement would've been to simply curl into a ball. As he had not done so, Nick was soon launched straight up in the air like an arrow, being shot through the ceiling once the Earth-Pony uppercut the downed hero. The ringing in his ears stopped him from hearing the Gatekeeper scream out in shock at the aftermath of his surprise appearance in the hideout, "You're not my contact at all!" Moments later, the Earth-Pony from the previous room jumped up through the convenient hole Nick carved out, register in hoof. As the Gatekeeper sighed in relief, the robber said to his accomplice, "Hold on. Let me get my licks in before we go. This dude pissed me off." Frustrated, the teleportation-expert growled, but didn't impede on the Earth-Pony's prospect of retribution. Nick felt his body desire a return-to-sender trip to the hospital, but he was instead shown a look at the robber's face. Up close and ponysal, the thief bellowed out, "You some sort of wannabe hero?" Nick declared as he slurred out, "Certitied by Princess Celestia herselv." "Yeah?! Well, why don't you go send her a friendship report where the sun refuses to shine!", the angered raider smartplot-ly responded as he tossed Nick out the window in a spear-ish fashion. Nick, for the second time these past few days, was sent straight out of a building with a single question igniting in his thoughts before he fell...and fell unconscious. Where'd Zaed go?! Welcoming the UnwelcomeNick woke up for the second time this day, groaning as he opened his eyes. Zaed was standing next to him, looking out as usual. He rubbed his head as he sat up, wanting answers, "Where were you, exactly? I was busy getting the manure kicked out of me, but you were nowhere to be found!" Zaed glanced down at her coltfriend before summarizing, "You didn't have to fight that pony. You just seem to have a bad habit of running in without thinking. Thankfully for you, I was prepared to catch you when I cloaked. And, that we made it inside the teleport spell in time. And, that my cloak didn't go off before I could drag you into damn cover." Nick stood up himself, wondering where they exactly were. Zaed knew where they were, but wasn't finished reprimanding him, "Can we talk about how you always do this? You must have some sort of death wish. Honestly, you rush in to all kinds of danger, even if I'm not around." Nick tried to redirect the situation, "Can we just figure out where we are first befo-" "I know where we are. And, that the coast is clear...for now. Let's just get right back on track to what we were talking about before. You-" "You know every minute of us discussing my inability to plan is going to give Vain the opportunity to escape, right?" "Who says he didn't already escape?" "Then, why have us look around for somepony who is already gone?" "Because it's simply a matter of asking around until we locate him. After all, we're in the thick of it. Every reject of society from murderer to thief hides out here. Most police ponies that I've known that end up here? They never come back. Luckily for us, we're not cops." "But, where is 'here'?" "An Asylum." Zaed trotted out from behind the crates she'd been using to hide the pair, remarking, "Oh. And, next time you decide to run off without my saying-so, you'll be set out in the open as a distraction." Nick doubted that as he strode across the strange, candle-lit hexagonal building they'd been inside. Coming on the entrance, they were shown what awaited them outside. Row upon row of shops, tents, and shanty-towns crowded the landscape of the literal underground mass market. Massive pillars of stone and steel ascended to support the residences and businesses. The view was soon blocked by a massive Centaur stepping over to them from his post a few hooves away. He demanded of Zaed, hand reaching down to her with a frown that meant only business. Zaed tilted her head, questioning, "Yes?" The guard said only a few words, all spoken clearly, "Pay us." "You?" "Yes." Figuring the mass of muscle and aggression was simply a guard for the Gatekeepers, Zaed hooved out the small bag of coins she kept inside her mane to toss out a couple bits his way. After a few moments of waiting, he didn't seem to want to budge, declaring, "More." Zaed crossed her hooves, explaining to him cautiously, "Hey, that's plenty." Clenching the bits in his hand, he brought himself to her level, making her sweat. Nick was unsure of how to deal with the rising issue before as Zaed was more street-savvy, but now felt obligated to deal with this intruder-of-ponysal-space. Zaed waved him off with a wing for the moment, trying to follow what this Centaur was after. The Centaur pointed a finger at Nick, staring Zaed in the eyes as he asked not-so-nicely, "Pay him now." Rolling her eyes at not getting it sooner, Zaed tossed a couple coins at her coltfriend, who was very confused by the event. And, the result of said act, which was the massive monster leaving them alone to stand at his old spot once more. Zaed grinned at Nick, congratulating him, "Guess you do know how to teleport after all, Gatekeeper." It soon dawned on Nick what the big mass of muscles standing guard thought, going along with it by picking up the coin off the dirt floor before they both decided to do some walking around. Vain's smirk faltered as he entered a particular Black-Hole building, visibly concerned that it was still nonoperational. He questioned the Centaur doing repairs, "Hey! Why's this place still down? Some of us are important! Have places to be! My damn taxes shouldn't have to pay for you to stand around with your hand wedged up your-" The Centaur blew steam from his nostrils, rising up to his full height to stare menacingly above the Griffon. Vain rose into the air, hovering at the exact height to put them at equal views of each other, growling out, "What? Think I'm supposed to be afraid of a little mass advantage?" The monster sighed, hating his customers yet riding the hate all the way to the bank. He decided getting in a fist-to-claw fight might only partly be in his favor, reminding the Griffon, "Look here. I get that you have to places to be, ponies to rob, and parents to disappointed. But, do get it through that small acorn-sized brain you have that I'm also losing out money on this deal. You think I want to be missing out on my bonuses by having this dump out of commission? No. So, the sooner you get you're cat-bird plot out of my way, I can get back to fixing the bucking magic-coordinate-amplifiers." Vain flicked him off before turning around, off with his gang again to bide some time before they could return with their prize. Long Way from HomeNick and Zaed had asked around if anypony knew the whereabouts of Vain or his crew. Most rolled their eyes, some shrugged, and even a few looked around as if they were being watched. Not much transpired from the duo's interactions with the mob of Equestria's underbelly, aside Nick almost being robbed several times in exchange for 'advice'. Zaed scolded Nick in her own special way as they cuddled up outside of a bar, whispering into his ear, "What've I said about running off without me?" Nick's face fell with a mixture of shame and annoyance, "You act as though I'm helpless. I'm just as capable as you are of holding my own down here." Zaed pat his head, understanding he wanted to prove he was as capable of blending into the background as she was. He was not, though. At all. He was literally one sentence away from shouting how much of a hero he was to whoever walked upon him, so she wasn't sure if he was the one who should do the talking. Yet, he always did the talking. He was comfortable with others. Zaed disliked the pressure of those judging eyes from crowds. That's why they'd had to stop. She just wanted to sit down for a bit. As stupid as it sounded, even if they were all low-life punks with unreal scores to settle, she couldn't stand them speaking about her. She heard them do so. Whenever a laugh would call out, even if it was one of half-intoxication. Or, a pair of eyes and her own met for that split second of glancing around for any sign of Dicer activity. Or, just whispers that drifted too close to not go unheard, yet so distant they were indecipherable. So, Nick would speak, only of the phrases Zaed wanted him to. If somepony didn't catch what he'd said for some reason or didn't respond right away, the two were gone. And, it'd left them with no answered questions as of late for the several hours they'd been walking/talking. Nick suggested as his body was used as a heating device, "Maybe we should use a different approach." Zaed shrugged as she and he snuggled against the wall, "Or, maybe we'll just wait here for a bit. This is nice. You're warm. As always." Nick was going to remark himself when Zaed gently pushed him into her hooves, reaching around his back to find reach in his side fur. After that, they vanished. For good reason, too. Geg was leading his fellow Dicers on home, having followed a lead that some ponies were asking too many souls about his gang. Zree was visibly voicing her displeasure on the matter, specifically cursing that the only details most had coughed up were over the ponies' coat colors. She discharged her Aerovolver into the street several times in succession, demanding, "Next pony that's red or orange I find I say we rip 'em right open! This ain't their home! They ain't got the rig-" Style rubbed her back, reminding her as they were drawing too much attention onto themselves, "We gotta keep calm, girl. This ain't just our piece of the pie. Every foal's got a slice 'round here. Drop it for now." She did drop it, pushing him off before flying away to harass nearby Diamond Dogs if they knew anything. Zaed uncloaked Nick and herself shortly after the unruly group of Griffons took off. Nick planned on asking Zaed if they should follow the trio, but her promptly going the exact opposite direction told him to follow and say no more. ... After buying some robes to wear, Zaed decided only after some convincing from Nick to resume the open search for Vain himself. Zaed asked of Nick as she tucked some of his far-too-pointy mane back under the aged cloth again, "Must you always want things done quick? Is it ever easy? Or, are you just impatient?" Nick followed the line of questions up with a few of his own, "They were all three right there. Could've just followed them." "No. No, we couldn't have. One had an itchy trigger talon." "As if somepony being armed and dangerous has stopped you before." "Not when literally everypony around me is as well, Nicholas. One shot is all it takes for a riot down here...I'd assume." "But, you're so quiet." "But, you are not." As they descended down the street, they noted the three Griffons from before, easily noticeable from the golden guns dangling from their hips, glide down to meet up with the rest of their fellow Dicers. In the center of the Pride, Vain stood up to his full height, smirk having retreated from his beak as he apparently was in an argument with a Centaur on some subject. Zaed had Nick follow her lead, dipping his head to the side as she did. They each took turns glancing up at the assembly of provoked gang members, viewing as each and every one of them brandished their guns at the unarmed technician...except Vain. Vain's casual smirk re-emerged once more as he fell to a walking position, striding off into the street with his pack of vicious animals behind him. Zaed breathed to her coltfriend just a few decibels above silence, "Look's like we found our next destination." Tension So Thick It's Cut-ThroatZaed and Nick descended down the street, headed for the Centaur who'd almost been riddled with holes moments ago. The Centaur brought out a cigar, sighed, then placed it in his mouth as he looked around for a lighter nestled in a random vest pocket. He soon found it as two little ponies gazed up at him, obviously about to ask him a question that'd been spoken a hundred times before. Today. He put up a finger, acknowledging their presence yet needing a smoke before he'd engage in conversation. Nick was going to ask the tower of muscle a question that'd been slipped into one of his ears by Zaed on the way, but the still-appointed finger wagged to send him silent. A deep drag later, the smoked monster inquired with the passion of a pony stuck filling their taxes, "What? You want in?" Nick glanced to his fillyfriend, who replied with a shrug. The Unicorn delivered with a tinge of uncertainty, "...Yes?" The Centaur swung his sprung finger to direct their attention skyward. The neon sign, rather marked by broken pieces of metal and seemingly bitten-off lettering, told them the opposite of their half-desires. It was closed. Another hit off his tobacco-stuffed stogie, the stationed worker asked again, "Anything else?" Nick got on the subject that should've been his first priority, "Yeah. About that group of Griffons who just-" "Piece of advice, don't try them. Half of 'em are crazy. Other half is just looking for a fight." "We don't care about that." "Should, little pony. You should. They're packing. Not just what mother nature gave 'em either. You saw what I did. Hopefully, at least. For your own good." "I know they have guns." Zaed said as she only now peered into the violet Centaur's vibrant eyes, "What did they want from you?" The Centaur's strong posture lazed, going into a lean against the wall for support as he admitted, "Only reason I'm still kicking. I and my kind watch, clean, and most importantly fix the Black-Hole stations around here. Hard work for a hardy breed. You're welcome, bunch of ingrates." "...When will it be open again?" Frustrated, he literally sucked up the rest of the two-thirds of the cigar in one swoop. Zaed walked off from the beast of a hybrid, knowing he'd have a few choice words for her after the ashes from the roll blew away. Nick smiled sheepishly at the steamed monster before tagging along behind the mare as per usual. Vain had brought his squawking, smack-talking squad back to the residence they'd been reducing to shreds since they'd been stuck in this Asylum. The yak owner groaned as the griffons all rolled in to once again disrupt the semblance of quiet that'd settled since their departure. She told in her broken accent, "Nu! Nut agrain! Gu! Yout pay good bit, vut yout very vad guestes!" Vain swooped in to charm the sturdy broad, knowing exactly what to say, "Look, look, look. We need a place to crash-" She slung his arm off her neck, twisted it, then held him in place as his crew all stared in shock, "Crast iz vight! Nuw gu!" Vain used his not-about-to-be-broken-off arm to halt his Dicers from bringing out their weapons on the old illegal immigrant, "Everygriffon calm down." Then, his head swiveled to give the yak a 180-degree smirk, which he amazingly held with all the chaos on the brink of igniting. As an offer, the crime lord suggested instead of them being barred, "I'll pay twice what I've already paid previously. And, to sweeten the deal, you get to keep our guns with you tonight. If we're good cocks and hens, we get them back tomorrow." Everygriffon couldn't believe what they were hearing, yet made their voices loud and clear to argue against the proposal. That is, until Vain's free claw flowed with electricity in their direction, quelling their hooting. The yak's eyes danced between the arrogant griffon in her grip and his band of misfits, thinking on whether it was worth it letting these punks once more into her home and business. Eyes rolling, she shoved Vain off into his gang's claws, then exclaimed as she shook her horned head, "Put yourl tings on mu desket. Den, awa wit yout tu yourl loshing. Nu more commotion. Nu more banging. Nu more curzing. Yout hear?" Vain bowed to the motel owner before leading his group over to the desk. They all hesitantly reached into their holsters, flipped the guns around for safety, then dropped the armaments into a pile. Everygriffon did as was planned...aside Vain. Vain didn't carry guns. Or, encase himself in armor like the rest of his Dicers. He was far too confident in his abilities to use external means like that. He did pluck two weighty bag of coins from under a lengthy wing, depositing it on top of the assortment of guns like a cherry on a sundae. Finally, the gang left the old-timer alone to charge upstairs, intent on trying to be as quiet as possible as they sharpen their claws and beaks on her furniture as revenge. ... About close to a half hour later, two robed ponies drifted into the building, requesting for a place to stay for tonight. The elderly yak just sighed as yet more suspicious characters rested up at her inn. Though, she did set up her establishment in a place as close to lawless as was possible, so complaining about how shady someone was would be hard to do if every customer fit the bill. Never stopped her, though. She spat out the pencil to address her guests attire, "Ye hoodz muz come off." Nick and Zaed did as they were told, rolling their concealing clothing off to give the yak an eyeful of her newest visitors. She stared at the Unicorn on the left, confused by his white hair. It extended up, spiky all the way through, and divided into three triangular sets of mane. He had a normal build, but could use a bit more meat on his bones if her maternal instincts had a say in his upbringing. Eyes were dark, aside the upside-down arches of dark red that gave them an unique look. She had to admit a pony of Maroon coat had never crossed her path until today. The pony on the right was slightly shorter. Pegasus, maybe. It was hard for her to tell, but the prominent curves on the her sides told the yak it was more than likely wings. Peach colored coat was so close to the mane color that it was hard to make out a distinction for the yak's reduced vision. What aided in finding the strips of hair curling down the pony's head was the Diamond highlights that tipped the ends of each of the defined curves. Eyes were also black, yet lit up by the tiny streak of light orange at each opposite edge. The yak thought they were some of the least intimidating creatures to desire a stay at her lodging, but maybe her perception of ponies in general had something to do with that opinion. She accepted their payment, gave them directions to the very top level where they'd be sleeping at, then lent each a key. Before they vanished upstairs, she couldn't help herself in stating, "Yout vay do as yout vease. Vut, I find yout two stallions makring ze love in my hotel, dis will be yourl only night ontu my premizez." They both agreed while still trying to decipher the foreigner's accent. ... As Nick and Zaed ascended up the flights of stairs by hoof, Zaed couldn't help blush once the yak's message hit her. All alone, Zaed still whispered to Nick with a blush, "She...thought I was a stallion." Nick waved it off as he took her in a side hug, "No, she probably didn't mean that." "You certain of that?" "Never certain of a thing, Zaed." "Great. Thanks for calling me a guy," she said in shame as she didn't return the hug, cloaking herself as Nick tried to correct himself. Dammit. Anddddd, she's cloak. Crap. A Meet-and-Greet Amongst FriendsZaed and Nick didn't talk much that night, despite Nick's regular requests to. Calling me a stallion. Hmpf. Nick had given up after the eighth time of prodding, hating to go for one more try when it was obvious she was not talking again until morning. ... Nick was suddenly thrust out of bed from a restful slumber, being thrown to the carpet in a hail of sheets and pillows. His words were a string of drool and tiredness, just babble to his much more alert love. Zaed whispered as the dawn slipped in from the windows, loud enough to be on the threshold of a quiet yelp, "Dicers! Nick, Dicers!" "Mice?! Where?!", Nick tumbled from his imprisonment to flail around, trying to find the rodents of disease before they could attack himself or Zaed. Zaed rushed to his side, cupping his mouth as she growled, "Damn your hearing. I said Dicers. They're in the room adjacent to ours." Warmth from the covers fading, Nick felt a cold shiver run down his spine as he thought out loud, "I wonder if Vain's with them." She promptly re-clamped his mouth with an aggravated hoof, demanding in a sliver of a voice, "Stooppp talking so louudddddd." Nick was exasperated at being told to be quiet, even when he was certain that nopony could hear him. ... "Hey, guys! Wake up! We gotta get going! Boss says so!" Zaed narrowed her eyes at Nick for his loose mouth, then redirected her annoyance at the door. Breathing in real deep, she crept over to the entryway, not making a creak or peep as she got into position. As she reached to the back of her head, a dark blue mist appeared. And, from seemingly within the mist itself, was drawn out a bow into her readied hoof. The bow was of a dark wood, painted with faint white lines from the top limb to the bottom. And, it had three strings instead of one. The construction of the design was meant for Pegasi only, as they were the only pony race capable of pressurizing air from simply the atmosphere, which would be used to fire arrows. As this was no ordinary bow, the arrows also held a certain unique quality. For when Zaed pulled back the suspending strings, mist soon followed into place of the release string from seemingly nowhere. And when this mystical mist evaporated, an arrow of dark blue was armed for firing. "What the buck you talking about, Fedden?! We were in this room! You a dumbplot, dude!" ... Zaed was now breathing a sigh of relief as her bow and arrow puffed away, getting up and stretching as if there weren't an entire gang of -- from their knowledge -- armed gangsters outside. Nick was going to ask something, but Zaed had her eyes trained on him the entire stretch routine, narrowing them whenever she felt he'd blow their cover. After a half hour ticked by of Zaed stretching and Nick cleaning the room up several times, they thought it'd be a good time to depart the room now. When Nick went towards the door, Zaed pulled him away, pointing towards the window. After the Unicorn's look of confusion, Zaed rubbed her cheek as she admitted, "I don't want to see the Yak again. She called me a stallion, ya know?" Understanding, Nick walked to their new route of escape behind Zaed. She unlocked it, told him to grab onto her neck, and he did so as they saw how far up they were. Nick was actually scared of heights, so noting the very long fall down turned his feelings of care into slight fright. But, before her could change her mind, he was pulled with her outside, screaming as they fell towards the streets below.
Wanna Chat?The establishment, commonly referred to as the Hybrid's Den was a special sort of locale. The kind where you could get lost in the variety of entertainment. Where money ordered, and those bound by greed obeyed. Mind had had enough of being drawn into places such as this. Sighing as he had followed his assistant all the way here, only to come to find out that 'here' was...certainly the least professional place for a business meeting he'd ever envisioned. A main trident-shaped stage of sexualized mares and stallions groping the wooden poles as if their lives depended on it, dancing on screwed-to-the-floor hard wood tables to be hurled money by disgusting onlookers one hoof away from being kicked out for touching the merchandise. Mind, whose jet colored Unicorn body could do with a few extra meals, swept his unkempt mess of a silver mane out of his face before it ascended his headache into a fully-grown migraine. That source of his headache was commonly called Kelly, his plump yet thick-with-muscle assistant whose wood-brown Earth-Pony coat paled in comparison to her lively green mane, styled in copycat fashion after her boss. Although, in her defense, she'd had it brushed, usually often on the opposite side of her face to his, in an effort to appear more approachable to traders. The duo appeared on the raised platform overseeing the view of the massive interior, which had an immense crowd off to the right trying to fulfill their bar quota of being too drunk to walk. A hostess walked up to the new arrivals, greeting them kindly, “Hello! Can I get you a seat near the front?” Kelly stepped up to the mare, saying to keep Mind from turning around to leave, “Well, no. We’re here for the meeting. With...a Miss Duwell?” Staring at the sweetheart of a mare for a moment, the employee suddenly put two-and-two together, “Oh. Oh! Sorry about not realizing that sooner. We were only given the description of you, Kelly. And, weren’t expecting your arrival for another hour.” Mind walked up to the greeter, responding to her confusion, “Better early than late, I’d think. Now, is she in? Or, may we take a seat somewhere? Preferably away from your...entertainment.” The hostess nervously laughed before reaching out for an on-break worker saddled up right next to the five-hooves-off-the-laminate entrance, whispering something in their ear before just about tossing them off to retrieve orders from their employer. After several minutes of patiently waiting with a backed-up crowd calling out insults for the stalemate, the hostess's fellow worker hustled back to ponysally escort the pair back to the crime boss, making it perfectly clear they weren't getting the other form of escort on the way back. Dammit! This isn't how it was supposed to go down! Dancers out there giving their customers drool-ridden chests wasn’t exactly the picture Duwell had wanted to paint. Yeah, it’s not the most clean-cut establishment. Sure. But, it wouldn’t have been so bad had they just come right at noon. That would have given the staff plenty of time to close down for a half-hour to clean up enough for a respectable presentation. Bet this shit never happens to Vain's spoiled plot! A knock on the door brought Duwell from her pit of self-loathing. As she tidied up her suit, pressing it free of wrinkles, the crime lord allowed her two hopefully-soon-to-be-business-partners entry. Mind and Kelly descended into the barely lit room, unable to make much note of Duwell, aside her almost glowing light pink/purple eyes. But, what really caught the ponies' eyes were the stationed Griffons on either end of the enterprising criminal, whose gaze locked right on back to the two. Kelly was smiling, not nervously or to keep fear in check at the very sight of the guns very much evident in the Griffons' holsters. No, she liked violence. She wanted nothing more than to combat the armed trigger-happy fellows. A part of her now selfishly desired the deal to go south, licking her lips at the prospect of an ensuing battle. Mind knew Kelly always had his back, so wasn't too upset at the presence of the firepower over the counter that added to the heavy atmosphere that always transpired in these sorts of dealings. Duwell cupped her hooves together as she charged in with the introductions, “I’m Duwell Former. Pleasure to meet you, Mind. Thank you for bringing him and yourself here today, Kelly.” Kelly crossed her hooves, nodding to the Griffons that greatly contrasted the tone the crime boss delivered, “And, they are?” With a sour look descending down her face, Duwell explained to her guests, “Just...measures. Don’t be insulted. They’re my security. Hired from a friend.” Mind's expression of mild apathy rang out as he nodded, unconcern in his voice to manipulate the crime boss into stepping away from the landmine of a matter, "Of course. We both understand. Don't we, Kelly?" Kelly's grin only mildly dissipated into the wind as she shook her head in acknowledgement. Duwell, whilst still not a fan of the unsettling smile the Earth-Pony displayed, concluded her boss had a tight enough leash around the girl to keep her seated, getting on with the transaction as promised. Unfurling a schematic of a device in her own magic, she drifted it over to Mind's suddenly interested eyes. Well, as much as one slightly raised eyebrow could appear to be. Mind took note of how Duwell never strayed too far from the dark veil of her chair. How her very horn tried its best to remain suppressed in the amount of light it fired out to fulfill its purpose. She was hiding something. If Mind were the type to care about more than his work, he might've pressed onward to figure out what mare before him had done to herself. He, instead, merely regarded the blueprints set before him. Bored soon after deciphering the invention, Mind passed the papers back to Duwell, remarking casually, "I demand funding for these future projects of yours. Because you couldn't be bothered to go through third parties, I'll be requesting double the set price of whatever you had-" Kelly said simply, only to her own benefit, "In mind." Mind didn't even blink at the interruption of his assistant to finish his words with puns, as it happened far too often to scold the mare for anymore. Duwell knew this might get out-of-hoof soon, so she put her hooves in her lap, the signal for the guards to be prepared for a shoot-out. Her face obscure aside from those still radiating eyes and tight pout forming in the hints of light touching her face, Duwell pressed on with her admission, "Listen, I'm not going to pay you in the traditional sen-" Mind could feel the headache returning, waving at Kelly to keep sat. She, on the other hoof, took this motion as an opening for engaging her foes, quickly picking up her chair to easily hoist it almost to the ceiling. Duwell's face formed what could only be called a scowl, declaring, "If you aren't open to hearing my proposal, then this is your chance to leave. Dicers, escort our former guests outside." Mind sighed, not in the mood for a wasted day. He mentally and magically controlled Kelly's body, forcing her to place her chair down and take a seat in it. Duwell nodded in acceptance, shooing her guards back to their stations as she grinned for the very first time, "Hmmmm. The controlling type. My favorite. You sure you're not the woman between the two of you, Mind?" Mind didn't care to register whether he'd been tossed a compliment or insult, opening up the dialogue again, "Just what do you have to offer." Duwell cleared her throat before speaking again, "Need dirt? A priceless work of art...misplaced? Have any sexual-" Mind rolled his eyes at the mere mention of him wanting any of her offers, asking one of his own, "Okay. Fine. Workers. Lots of them. I've got several projects of my own in need of bodies. You supply the work force, you have a deal." Kelly extended her hoof out to shake on the deal instead of Mind, but Duwell's narrowing of her eyes let the mare know she wasn't welcome. Understanding the open hostility, Kelly retracted her hoof, commenting sweetly to offset the dark, disturbing setting she was in, "Awesome! This went so smoothly!" Mind immediately forgot what his assistant was jabbering on about, attempting to open Duwell's cache of secrets for a very important reason, "Now, I'm still in need of funding. Do you know of anypony else who could assist me in acquiring large sums of money?" Duwell directed the duo behind her, to the Griffons wearing grins as deep as their beaks would allow. The one on the left spoke in a voice that matched somepony who inhaled smoke since birth, "Yeah. Our boss might. He's busy right now." Kelly was the one interested now, liking where this was going as she said, "Ohhhh! Doing what?!" The guard to the right chuckled to himself as he made a pushing motion with his claws, "Heh. Booom!!!!"
Going to Feel That Sooner Than LaterThe tall normally-built Griffon of khaki coat and gold-fusion head feathers named Vain Envi noticed the hero near the doorway. Easily. Vain wondered if he should tell him his eyes were much better than that of a pony's, so he could easily spot the ears, white spiky mane, and all-too gallant eyes of the brave pony. Well, Vain did love others watching him in action. Were he to call out to the hero named Nick, it could sweep the tale of two opposing forces fighting it out in a battle of powers and wits into the wind...leaving only the scene of a pony embarrassingly shuffling out as its remnants. ...I'll just let him think I can't see him. Vain turned his head in acceptance of the risks, having a feeling he might get shot at pretty quickly and pretty soon. Nick wanted to get in there, and put a stop to Vain's plans. But, Vain and his Dicers could just start butchering those poor trapped ponies kept pressed against the wall. He had waited until it was only Vain left in the main lobby of the torn-through museum, which was agony for his heart. Unlike all those previous times, lives were at stake here. He couldn't just run in there, no matter how much his body felt the need to do the right thing. He would have to plan this out. He would have to keep his thoughts in control. Now...couldIopenupwithasprayofmagic?No,tooloud.MaybeifImixedinAccelerowithmycombatspell?Itmighthitsomeponybehindhim, too.Maybe- As Nick's mind raced and was on the way to spitting out more resolutions than he could hoofle, he saw Vain turn. ... Screw planning. Nick drew power from his horn, filling his body with magic meant to enhance his agility. And, a second later, he was off to the races. Charging to the unsuspecting Griffon, Nick knew he'd never see it coming. Vain had seen it coming. More specifically, the prone-to-overthinking Unicorn dash out of his 'hiding' place, tearing down the marble on a war path to save the captives. But, still did as was expected of any villain, even shouting out the classic phrase as he dramatically glanced fully behind himself, "What the buck is going on?!" And, there's the pain. He very deservingly got a karate kick to the base of his back, throwing him to the ground. He could only smirk through the pain, even as the civilians all took up the chance for escape by stampeding past his now-throbbing body. And, now's my turn. Standing up as the hero's attention diverted from the crime lord to making sure the inner hallways didn't suddenly explode with heavily-armed gang members, Vain rose above them all, grin staying steady as he pulled his arm back. Then, with a snap of a talon, his entire left claw was enveloped in lightning, directing some of the crowd to look back and scream as the Griffon channeled his power. A brilliant surge of electricity zigzagged towards the ground, intent on a light-show. Nick had only a few seconds to react, pushing a mare out of the way as the blast impacted, releasing a wave that charged the ground in voltage. Ahhhhahahahhhhhh!!!! Whole body seized up, and Nick could do nothing except clutch his chest as a tingling stab skyrocketed from his hooves to his head. Stand up. F-fight him off. Give 'em time to e-escape. Trying to prepare a counter-attack of some kind as he fought the will to collapse, he noticed his magic not working. It doesn't just wound me. I-I can't use my magic. He'd never stayed up past being directly struck by this body-shaking, throttling pain. So, he was relatively easy for Vain to pick up by the mane, then smash into the flooring. Vain really liked this little pony he was currently picking up and tossing around. He'd never found a hero who could hold his own against the crime lord. The Unicorn struggling to breathe and get up before him was as close as he might ever get. Which I don't know if that's pathet- A out-of-the-blue blur of red threw a barrage of hooves Vain's direction. The Griffon hadn't expected this sort of reaction as he took a knee, coughing up some of his lunch. Just as Nick prepped another spell, Dicers rolled into the main lobby, having heard the commotion of ponies crying, shouting, and brushing past each other to beat it to the entrance. They soon all diverted their attention from the runaway leverage to the lone hero, who panted and eyes twitched from various injuries. Surrounding the tired stallion with overwhelming numbers didn't seem much fun. On top of that issue, the feeling of bones ready to break wasn't much enjoyment either to the boss. And, the distinct sound of sirens playing out in the background sparked Vain's final decision of the battle, asking his members, "Any of you guys get the book?" One held up his claws in excitement, knowing extra pay would come his way. "Nice work, Dripdrop. Everygriffon else, I wanna line. We're going to make ourselves a distraction." Snapping his talons once the simple orders were followed, Vain’s Dicers immediately opened fire on Nick with their Wind Cannons, sending him, glass, wood, and other debris rocketing outside. Not caring as long as the hostages got out safe, Nick accepted his fate. He was thrown with such force that, once he 'landed' onto the cement stairs all the way outside, he could do nothing as his body bounced and rolled onto the cleared road. Nick briefly saw hooves reaching out for him, heard a blaring ringing in his ears, and felt a rumble as an incalculable amounts of cops charged into the building. Then...darkness.
Hanging on a Wing and a PrayerZaed Peace had been waiting all morning for Nick to wake up, aside a few hours when she had taken a nap herself. She heard a groan and somepony calling her name as she rose up from her slumped position in the chair. "Zaed! Wake up!", Nick demanded of his marefriend as she shook herself from the uncomfortable position she'd been in. Zaed motioned for him to lower the volume, then cracked her neck as it needed some readjustment. When a satisfying pop was faintly heard, she sighed in relief. Then, got up to stretch, filling him in as she did so, "You've been out for awhile." Nick rubbed a cheek, wondering, "Still the same day?" Zaed heard more elating snaps a she cracked her back, "Nope. Tomorrow, babe." Nick moved to get out of bed, expecting something to suddenly sting or hurt. To his delight, appears all his ailments were minor. He asked of her, "Why keep me in the hospital if I wasn't even injured that much?" Zaed pointed out bluntly, "You were thrown out of a museum. Literally thrown. They were checking for brain damage, baby. I wonder...do Unicorns have thicker skulls since your kind have horns?" Nick shrugged at the suggestion, guessing as he jumped to his hooves, "Maybe. I do have essentially what amounts to a weight cuddled up to my brain." Zaed ended the aerobics routine by gently pushing her wings up as far as she could, then punctuated it by hugging Nick as he walked up. Nick let her hug him, then asked with puzzlement, "Since when does Vain hold up museums?" Zaed broke from the hug as Nick stood still, staring at her as his brain bounced all manner of ideas in his head. Zaed could almost see the gears turn in his head, ending the production of new ideas by explaining, "Let's get going. I've got a few leads." They strolled down the road as Zaed stayed by his side, whispering almost directly into his ear, "Okay. So, last night, I went-" Nick chuckled to himself, questioning her as to the low volume of her voice, "Why so quiet?" Zaed had been slightly darting her eyes whenever ponies got too close. "Nicholas. You know how sensitive my work is." Nick grinned to himself as he openly stated, "I know you hate crowds." "...Maybe so. But, regardless of my...phobias, this is still highly classified info. Hush-hush sort of stuff." Nick heard his stomach growl, remembering he hadn't eaten much the previous day. He also doubted he'd been given much in the way of food whilst unconscious. He wondered as he began looking up at signs for food places to eat from, "Think we could stop for a bit? I'm...very hungry." Zaed's ears went down, demanding, "Fine. Inside though. Table...in back." "Table in back it is, then!", Nick gleefully cheered as he took her hoof in his, running into a nearby pizza restaurant. She slipped her hoof out of his as he attracted eyes to them via excitedly hurrying in line. She breathed out nervously to him before dipping away, "I'll get us a seat." Nick didn't seem phased, knowing the ponies ahead of him would simply stop looking after awhile. As they did, he grinned to Zaed, who sat at a table that had vacancies on both sides. ... Nick and Zaed shared a steaming hot pie of melting, molten-hot cheese, flaky crust, and seasoned sauce. As they dug in, Zaed ate a single slice by taking little nibbles out of the sides before focusing on giving Nick the run-down, "Mmmm, this is tasty. But, aside the delicious food, I brought us to this particular district for a reason." She nudged the plate away without even making a sound, cupped her hooves together, then detailed out what her suspicions were, "I believe Vain is going to sell the book at that museum to somepony. Or, try to figure out how he can use it himself." Nick took a crunch out of the pizza, seemingly unhurt by the recently hot-from-the-oven piece of his own pie portion, "But...he's incapable of spell-casting. Last time I checked, Griffons were more akin to Pegasi with their similar control over the weather. But, I could be wrong here." Zaed shrugged, almost as clueless as him, "It's a spellbook that can't be used by Unicorns. Least that's what the museum curator told the investigators and I." Nick ate almost half the rest of his slice in one chomp, making Zaed narrow her eyes. He chewed innocently, swallowed, then whistled as if he'd been a perfect little pony the entire time. She shook her head in amazement, then pointed out more of why this bothered her, "He must have been in a hurry. But, didn't do his normal stunt of making a big scene, then simply flying off. He teleported out." This caught Nick's attention as he seemed genuinely surprised, then upset as he threw his hooves up in the air in disgrace, "He learned how to teleport before I did?! Dammit!" Zaed shushed him before he caused a scene. Nick crossed his hooves, still ashamed he had been beaten at such a basic spell by somepony not even capable of teleportation...seemingly. Zaed finished off the plan of attack by bringing a hoof onto the table as if she were showing a map, making circular tiny circular motions on the wood, "He probably exited by way of Gatekeeper. And, they've been growing in popularity around the Dine-And-Dash district for some time. So, we just wait for somepony to-" At that moment, by the power of ironic fate, a robber at the front of the order line yanked up the cash register, then charged out of the pizzeria like his life depended on it. The employee that had been working the front exclaimed, "Come on! That's the third time this week!!!" "I really need to talk with the police chief for some added security around this area," Zaed noted before sliding under the table. Nick greedily shoved a whole thick slice of pie into his maw before dashing off to stop the criminal's theft. The robber wearing a hoodie to hide his face thought on his hooves, launching the sturdy cash register into a side window of a building he explicitly stopped at. As he pushed in the remaining glass to lessen the broken skin he'd have after diving inside the apartments, he was unaware of a blur of red darting right for him. With an unexpected tackle by Nick, both were sent tumbling into a not-so-spacious hallway. Nick groaned as he drew himself up from his rough ride in the sky, hopeful his head was thickly lined with extra layers of bone as he clutched it from the throbbing pain. The robber too held his face in confusion and injury, but didn't seemed too desist from seeing his crime through. Picking up the cash register in one hoof, he glared at the pony who shook him up. Nick broke out into a fighting stance as he noticed the pony walk calmly forward, not a care in the world. The Unicorn wanted to take this pony down quick, so he rushed him with another Accelero spell. In only seconds, Nick's hoof collided with the criminal's skull. And, it was perhaps the dumbest thing the hero could have done. Holding his hoof as tears streamed down his horrified face, Nick delivered a stammering response towards the pony standing above him, "O-owww!!! What in the buck are you made of?! Brick?!" The pony said deeply with an air of merriment, "Nope. Earth." The Earth-Pony then turned around, and smashed Nick's chest in with a powerful back-kick. As if the pony needed anymore feeling of being a leaf in a tornado, Nick rolled back a couple hooves from the sheer strength of the counterattack. Note to self, Earth-Ponies are very...solid. Nick was sorely getting tired of having to pick himself off the ground these past few days, immediately fighting the urge to regain his breathe. In hindsight, the appropriate judgement would've been to simply curl into a ball. As he had not done so, Nick was soon launched straight up in the air like an arrow, being shot through the ceiling once the Earth-Pony uppercut the downed hero. The ringing in his ears stopped him from hearing the Gatekeeper scream out in shock at the aftermath of his surprise appearance in the hideout, "You're not my contact at all!" Moments later, the Earth-Pony from the previous room jumped up through the convenient hole Nick carved out, register in hoof. As the Gatekeeper sighed in relief, the robber said to his accomplice, "Hold on. Let me get my licks in before we go. This dude pissed me off." Frustrated, the teleportation-expert growled, but didn't impede on the Earth-Pony's prospect of retribution. Nick felt his body desire a return-to-sender trip to the hospital, but he was instead shown a look at the robber's face. Up close and ponysal, the thief bellowed out, "You some sort of wannabe hero?" Nick declared as he slurred out, "Certitied by Princess Celestia herselv." "Yeah?! Well, why don't you go send her a friendship report where the sun refuses to shine!", the angered raider smartplot-ly responded as he tossed Nick out the window in a spear-ish fashion. Nick, for the second time these past few days, was sent straight out of a building with a single question igniting in his thoughts before he fell...and fell unconscious. Where'd Zaed go?!
Welcoming the UnwelcomeNick woke up for the second time this day, groaning as he opened his eyes. Zaed was standing next to him, looking out as usual. He rubbed his head as he sat up, wanting answers, "Where were you, exactly? I was busy getting the manure kicked out of me, but you were nowhere to be found!" Zaed glanced down at her coltfriend before summarizing, "You didn't have to fight that pony. You just seem to have a bad habit of running in without thinking. Thankfully for you, I was prepared to catch you when I cloaked. And, that we made it inside the teleport spell in time. And, that my cloak didn't go off before I could drag you into damn cover." Nick stood up himself, wondering where they exactly were. Zaed knew where they were, but wasn't finished reprimanding him, "Can we talk about how you always do this? You must have some sort of death wish. Honestly, you rush in to all kinds of danger, even if I'm not around." Nick tried to redirect the situation, "Can we just figure out where we are first befo-" "I know where we are. And, that the coast is clear...for now. Let's just get right back on track to what we were talking about before. You-" "You know every minute of us discussing my inability to plan is going to give Vain the opportunity to escape, right?" "Who says he didn't already escape?" "Then, why have us look around for somepony who is already gone?" "Because it's simply a matter of asking around until we locate him. After all, we're in the thick of it. Every reject of society from murderer to thief hides out here. Most police ponies that I've known that end up here? They never come back. Luckily for us, we're not cops." "But, where is 'here'?" "An Asylum." Zaed trotted out from behind the crates she'd been using to hide the pair, remarking, "Oh. And, next time you decide to run off without my saying-so, you'll be set out in the open as a distraction." Nick doubted that as he strode across the strange, candle-lit hexagonal building they'd been inside. Coming on the entrance, they were shown what awaited them outside. Row upon row of shops, tents, and shanty-towns crowded the landscape of the literal underground mass market. Massive pillars of stone and steel ascended to support the residences and businesses. The view was soon blocked by a massive Centaur stepping over to them from his post a few hooves away. He demanded of Zaed, hand reaching down to her with a frown that meant only business. Zaed tilted her head, questioning, "Yes?" The guard said only a few words, all spoken clearly, "Pay us." "You?" "Yes." Figuring the mass of muscle and aggression was simply a guard for the Gatekeepers, Zaed hooved out the small bag of coins she kept inside her mane to toss out a couple bits his way. After a few moments of waiting, he didn't seem to want to budge, declaring, "More." Zaed crossed her hooves, explaining to him cautiously, "Hey, that's plenty." Clenching the bits in his hand, he brought himself to her level, making her sweat. Nick was unsure of how to deal with the rising issue before as Zaed was more street-savvy, but now felt obligated to deal with this intruder-of-ponysal-space. Zaed waved him off with a wing for the moment, trying to follow what this Centaur was after. The Centaur pointed a finger at Nick, staring Zaed in the eyes as he asked not-so-nicely, "Pay him now." Rolling her eyes at not getting it sooner, Zaed tossed a couple coins at her coltfriend, who was very confused by the event. And, the result of said act, which was the massive monster leaving them alone to stand at his old spot once more. Zaed grinned at Nick, congratulating him, "Guess you do know how to teleport after all, Gatekeeper." It soon dawned on Nick what the big mass of muscles standing guard thought, going along with it by picking up the coin off the dirt floor before they both decided to do some walking around. Vain's smirk faltered as he entered a particular Black-Hole building, visibly concerned that it was still nonoperational. He questioned the Centaur doing repairs, "Hey! Why's this place still down? Some of us are important! Have places to be! My damn taxes shouldn't have to pay for you to stand around with your hand wedged up your-" The Centaur blew steam from his nostrils, rising up to his full height to stare menacingly above the Griffon. Vain rose into the air, hovering at the exact height to put them at equal views of each other, growling out, "What? Think I'm supposed to be afraid of a little mass advantage?" The monster sighed, hating his customers yet riding the hate all the way to the bank. He decided getting in a fist-to-claw fight might only partly be in his favor, reminding the Griffon, "Look here. I get that you have to places to be, ponies to rob, and parents to disappointed. But, do get it through that small acorn-sized brain you have that I'm also losing out money on this deal. You think I want to be missing out on my bonuses by having this dump out of commission? No. So, the sooner you get you're cat-bird plot out of my way, I can get back to fixing the bucking magic-coordinate-amplifiers." Vain flicked him off before turning around, off with his gang again to bide some time before they could return with their prize.
Long Way from HomeNick and Zaed had asked around if anypony knew the whereabouts of Vain or his crew. Most rolled their eyes, some shrugged, and even a few looked around as if they were being watched. Not much transpired from the duo's interactions with the mob of Equestria's underbelly, aside Nick almost being robbed several times in exchange for 'advice'. Zaed scolded Nick in her own special way as they cuddled up outside of a bar, whispering into his ear, "What've I said about running off without me?" Nick's face fell with a mixture of shame and annoyance, "You act as though I'm helpless. I'm just as capable as you are of holding my own down here." Zaed pat his head, understanding he wanted to prove he was as capable of blending into the background as she was. He was not, though. At all. He was literally one sentence away from shouting how much of a hero he was to whoever walked upon him, so she wasn't sure if he was the one who should do the talking. Yet, he always did the talking. He was comfortable with others. Zaed disliked the pressure of those judging eyes from crowds. That's why they'd had to stop. She just wanted to sit down for a bit. As stupid as it sounded, even if they were all low-life punks with unreal scores to settle, she couldn't stand them speaking about her. She heard them do so. Whenever a laugh would call out, even if it was one of half-intoxication. Or, a pair of eyes and her own met for that split second of glancing around for any sign of Dicer activity. Or, just whispers that drifted too close to not go unheard, yet so distant they were indecipherable. So, Nick would speak, only of the phrases Zaed wanted him to. If somepony didn't catch what he'd said for some reason or didn't respond right away, the two were gone. And, it'd left them with no answered questions as of late for the several hours they'd been walking/talking. Nick suggested as his body was used as a heating device, "Maybe we should use a different approach." Zaed shrugged as she and he snuggled against the wall, "Or, maybe we'll just wait here for a bit. This is nice. You're warm. As always." Nick was going to remark himself when Zaed gently pushed him into her hooves, reaching around his back to find reach in his side fur. After that, they vanished. For good reason, too. Geg was leading his fellow Dicers on home, having followed a lead that some ponies were asking too many souls about his gang. Zree was visibly voicing her displeasure on the matter, specifically cursing that the only details most had coughed up were over the ponies' coat colors. She discharged her Aerovolver into the street several times in succession, demanding, "Next pony that's red or orange I find I say we rip 'em right open! This ain't their home! They ain't got the rig-" Style rubbed her back, reminding her as they were drawing too much attention onto themselves, "We gotta keep calm, girl. This ain't just our piece of the pie. Every foal's got a slice 'round here. Drop it for now." She did drop it, pushing him off before flying away to harass nearby Diamond Dogs if they knew anything. Zaed uncloaked Nick and herself shortly after the unruly group of Griffons took off. Nick planned on asking Zaed if they should follow the trio, but her promptly going the exact opposite direction told him to follow and say no more. ... After buying some robes to wear, Zaed decided only after some convincing from Nick to resume the open search for Vain himself. Zaed asked of Nick as she tucked some of his far-too-pointy mane back under the aged cloth again, "Must you always want things done quick? Is it ever easy? Or, are you just impatient?" Nick followed the line of questions up with a few of his own, "They were all three right there. Could've just followed them." "No. No, we couldn't have. One had an itchy trigger talon." "As if somepony being armed and dangerous has stopped you before." "Not when literally everypony around me is as well, Nicholas. One shot is all it takes for a riot down here...I'd assume." "But, you're so quiet." "But, you are not." As they descended down the street, they noted the three Griffons from before, easily noticeable from the golden guns dangling from their hips, glide down to meet up with the rest of their fellow Dicers. In the center of the Pride, Vain stood up to his full height, smirk having retreated from his beak as he apparently was in an argument with a Centaur on some subject. Zaed had Nick follow her lead, dipping his head to the side as she did. They each took turns glancing up at the assembly of provoked gang members, viewing as each and every one of them brandished their guns at the unarmed technician...except Vain. Vain's casual smirk re-emerged once more as he fell to a walking position, striding off into the street with his pack of vicious animals behind him. Zaed breathed to her coltfriend just a few decibels above silence, "Look's like we found our next destination."
Tension So Thick It's Cut-ThroatZaed and Nick descended down the street, headed for the Centaur who'd almost been riddled with holes moments ago. The Centaur brought out a cigar, sighed, then placed it in his mouth as he looked around for a lighter nestled in a random vest pocket. He soon found it as two little ponies gazed up at him, obviously about to ask him a question that'd been spoken a hundred times before. Today. He put up a finger, acknowledging their presence yet needing a smoke before he'd engage in conversation. Nick was going to ask the tower of muscle a question that'd been slipped into one of his ears by Zaed on the way, but the still-appointed finger wagged to send him silent. A deep drag later, the smoked monster inquired with the passion of a pony stuck filling their taxes, "What? You want in?" Nick glanced to his fillyfriend, who replied with a shrug. The Unicorn delivered with a tinge of uncertainty, "...Yes?" The Centaur swung his sprung finger to direct their attention skyward. The neon sign, rather marked by broken pieces of metal and seemingly bitten-off lettering, told them the opposite of their half-desires. It was closed. Another hit off his tobacco-stuffed stogie, the stationed worker asked again, "Anything else?" Nick got on the subject that should've been his first priority, "Yeah. About that group of Griffons who just-" "Piece of advice, don't try them. Half of 'em are crazy. Other half is just looking for a fight." "We don't care about that." "Should, little pony. You should. They're packing. Not just what mother nature gave 'em either. You saw what I did. Hopefully, at least. For your own good." "I know they have guns." Zaed said as she only now peered into the violet Centaur's vibrant eyes, "What did they want from you?" The Centaur's strong posture lazed, going into a lean against the wall for support as he admitted, "Only reason I'm still kicking. I and my kind watch, clean, and most importantly fix the Black-Hole stations around here. Hard work for a hardy breed. You're welcome, bunch of ingrates." "...When will it be open again?" Frustrated, he literally sucked up the rest of the two-thirds of the cigar in one swoop. Zaed walked off from the beast of a hybrid, knowing he'd have a few choice words for her after the ashes from the roll blew away. Nick smiled sheepishly at the steamed monster before tagging along behind the mare as per usual. Vain had brought his squawking, smack-talking squad back to the residence they'd been reducing to shreds since they'd been stuck in this Asylum. The yak owner groaned as the griffons all rolled in to once again disrupt the semblance of quiet that'd settled since their departure. She told in her broken accent, "Nu! Nut agrain! Gu! Yout pay good bit, vut yout very vad guestes!" Vain swooped in to charm the sturdy broad, knowing exactly what to say, "Look, look, look. We need a place to crash-" She slung his arm off her neck, twisted it, then held him in place as his crew all stared in shock, "Crast iz vight! Nuw gu!" Vain used his not-about-to-be-broken-off arm to halt his Dicers from bringing out their weapons on the old illegal immigrant, "Everygriffon calm down." Then, his head swiveled to give the yak a 180-degree smirk, which he amazingly held with all the chaos on the brink of igniting. As an offer, the crime lord suggested instead of them being barred, "I'll pay twice what I've already paid previously. And, to sweeten the deal, you get to keep our guns with you tonight. If we're good cocks and hens, we get them back tomorrow." Everygriffon couldn't believe what they were hearing, yet made their voices loud and clear to argue against the proposal. That is, until Vain's free claw flowed with electricity in their direction, quelling their hooting. The yak's eyes danced between the arrogant griffon in her grip and his band of misfits, thinking on whether it was worth it letting these punks once more into her home and business. Eyes rolling, she shoved Vain off into his gang's claws, then exclaimed as she shook her horned head, "Put yourl tings on mu desket. Den, awa wit yout tu yourl loshing. Nu more commotion. Nu more banging. Nu more curzing. Yout hear?" Vain bowed to the motel owner before leading his group over to the desk. They all hesitantly reached into their holsters, flipped the guns around for safety, then dropped the armaments into a pile. Everygriffon did as was planned...aside Vain. Vain didn't carry guns. Or, encase himself in armor like the rest of his Dicers. He was far too confident in his abilities to use external means like that. He did pluck two weighty bag of coins from under a lengthy wing, depositing it on top of the assortment of guns like a cherry on a sundae. Finally, the gang left the old-timer alone to charge upstairs, intent on trying to be as quiet as possible as they sharpen their claws and beaks on her furniture as revenge. ... About close to a half hour later, two robed ponies drifted into the building, requesting for a place to stay for tonight. The elderly yak just sighed as yet more suspicious characters rested up at her inn. Though, she did set up her establishment in a place as close to lawless as was possible, so complaining about how shady someone was would be hard to do if every customer fit the bill. Never stopped her, though. She spat out the pencil to address her guests attire, "Ye hoodz muz come off." Nick and Zaed did as they were told, rolling their concealing clothing off to give the yak an eyeful of her newest visitors. She stared at the Unicorn on the left, confused by his white hair. It extended up, spiky all the way through, and divided into three triangular sets of mane. He had a normal build, but could use a bit more meat on his bones if her maternal instincts had a say in his upbringing. Eyes were dark, aside the upside-down arches of dark red that gave them an unique look. She had to admit a pony of Maroon coat had never crossed her path until today. The pony on the right was slightly shorter. Pegasus, maybe. It was hard for her to tell, but the prominent curves on the her sides told the yak it was more than likely wings. Peach colored coat was so close to the mane color that it was hard to make out a distinction for the yak's reduced vision. What aided in finding the strips of hair curling down the pony's head was the Diamond highlights that tipped the ends of each of the defined curves. Eyes were also black, yet lit up by the tiny streak of light orange at each opposite edge. The yak thought they were some of the least intimidating creatures to desire a stay at her lodging, but maybe her perception of ponies in general had something to do with that opinion. She accepted their payment, gave them directions to the very top level where they'd be sleeping at, then lent each a key. Before they vanished upstairs, she couldn't help herself in stating, "Yout vay do as yout vease. Vut, I find yout two stallions makring ze love in my hotel, dis will be yourl only night ontu my premizez." They both agreed while still trying to decipher the foreigner's accent. ... As Nick and Zaed ascended up the flights of stairs by hoof, Zaed couldn't help blush once the yak's message hit her. All alone, Zaed still whispered to Nick with a blush, "She...thought I was a stallion." Nick waved it off as he took her in a side hug, "No, she probably didn't mean that." "You certain of that?" "Never certain of a thing, Zaed." "Great. Thanks for calling me a guy," she said in shame as she didn't return the hug, cloaking herself as Nick tried to correct himself. Dammit. Anddddd, she's cloak. Crap.
A Meet-and-Greet Amongst FriendsZaed and Nick didn't talk much that night, despite Nick's regular requests to. Calling me a stallion. Hmpf. Nick had given up after the eighth time of prodding, hating to go for one more try when it was obvious she was not talking again until morning. ... Nick was suddenly thrust out of bed from a restful slumber, being thrown to the carpet in a hail of sheets and pillows. His words were a string of drool and tiredness, just babble to his much more alert love. Zaed whispered as the dawn slipped in from the windows, loud enough to be on the threshold of a quiet yelp, "Dicers! Nick, Dicers!" "Mice?! Where?!", Nick tumbled from his imprisonment to flail around, trying to find the rodents of disease before they could attack himself or Zaed. Zaed rushed to his side, cupping his mouth as she growled, "Damn your hearing. I said Dicers. They're in the room adjacent to ours." Warmth from the covers fading, Nick felt a cold shiver run down his spine as he thought out loud, "I wonder if Vain's with them." She promptly re-clamped his mouth with an aggravated hoof, demanding in a sliver of a voice, "Stooppp talking so louudddddd." Nick was exasperated at being told to be quiet, even when he was certain that nopony could hear him. ... "Hey, guys! Wake up! We gotta get going! Boss says so!" Zaed narrowed her eyes at Nick for his loose mouth, then redirected her annoyance at the door. Breathing in real deep, she crept over to the entryway, not making a creak or peep as she got into position. As she reached to the back of her head, a dark blue mist appeared. And, from seemingly within the mist itself, was drawn out a bow into her readied hoof. The bow was of a dark wood, painted with faint white lines from the top limb to the bottom. And, it had three strings instead of one. The construction of the design was meant for Pegasi only, as they were the only pony race capable of pressurizing air from simply the atmosphere, which would be used to fire arrows. As this was no ordinary bow, the arrows also held a certain unique quality. For when Zaed pulled back the suspending strings, mist soon followed into place of the release string from seemingly nowhere. And when this mystical mist evaporated, an arrow of dark blue was armed for firing. "What the buck you talking about, Fedden?! We were in this room! You a dumbplot, dude!" ... Zaed was now breathing a sigh of relief as her bow and arrow puffed away, getting up and stretching as if there weren't an entire gang of -- from their knowledge -- armed gangsters outside. Nick was going to ask something, but Zaed had her eyes trained on him the entire stretch routine, narrowing them whenever she felt he'd blow their cover. After a half hour ticked by of Zaed stretching and Nick cleaning the room up several times, they thought it'd be a good time to depart the room now. When Nick went towards the door, Zaed pulled him away, pointing towards the window. After the Unicorn's look of confusion, Zaed rubbed her cheek as she admitted, "I don't want to see the Yak again. She called me a stallion, ya know?" Understanding, Nick walked to their new route of escape behind Zaed. She unlocked it, told him to grab onto her neck, and he did so as they saw how far up they were. Nick was actually scared of heights, so noting the very long fall down turned his feelings of care into slight fright. But, before her could change her mind, he was pulled with her outside, screaming as they fell towards the streets below.
