Power Ponies: Rise of the Red Phoenixby FoxMcCloud7921ChaptersPrologueChapter 1Chapter 2PrologueIt was another beautiful day in Maretropolis; unfortunately it was a day where Sunset Shimmer was stuck in yet another board meeting. Sunset Industries wasn’t just an enterprise, it was an empire of sorts, spanning out to different branches. Weapons Development, Research & Development, Chemical Industries; you name it, it was there. Being the current CEO of such a vast empire was not as easy as it looked and unlike most CEOs, it wasn’t the money that drove her, it was to do good in this world. The wage difference between CEOs and those below them had become so astronomical it was almost sickening. Sunset was born into a wealthy family and like her, her family wasn’t the type to showboat or spend their fortunes on meaningless things, but rather donate to charities all across the world for research into medicine or better water quality for underdeveloped regions. Sunset herself had cut her salary by fifty percent and that money trickled its way to the ponies below her. There was a reason people were so loyal to this company. Still, running a business also meant having to hear the boring stuff, although Sunset always had to know where the company stood at the present time. Fortunately, it was still smooth sailing even as the economy has been a little rocky as of late and as her CFO continued his presentation, Sunset couldn’t help but glance outside. That’s when she noticed something was wrong. Something huge was coming towards the city, a creature almost the size of the building they were sitting in right now. She got to her feet and went up to the window, staring as everyone else paused and looked at her. Only when they saw what she saw did they get up as well. The room was quiet as everyone looked to Sunset. “We need to get everypony out of here right away,” she said. She looked towards the board. “We do this in an orderly fashion, just like the drills.” She punched the fire alarm which went off immediately and picked up the phone on the desk. “Ditzy, I want you to get a hold of everypony at our sister locations. Tell them this is not a drill and get somewhere safe and away from the city!” She hung up and followed the others out of the room. The tower started to tremble slightly as some ponies started to scream. “The stairs!” Everyone quickly and calmly made their way down, Sunset being the last as to make sure no one was left behind. Once they were finally outside, Sunset saw that the city was littered with ponies, all wondering the same thing. The police had already shown up and were barking orders to evacuate the city immediately. Suddenly, one of the nearby buildings exploded, raining glass and debris onto the ground and the large crowd erupted into panic. That blast came from the creature now terrorizing the city and Sunset saw the thing looked like a centaur, but she had never seen one this large. She took off towards where the blast took place, running at a full gallop. Many of her colleagues were in a building four blocks from where she was now and she had to make sure they were safe. As she kept running, dodging debris that crashed into the ground, she managed to look up and saw that six ponies had now joined the fray. She recognized them immediately as the Power Ponies but surely even they couldn’t take on a creature that size. Her lungs were screaming for air but Sunset continued her pace, adrenaline now kicking in. She was within reach of Sunset Tower, a fifteen story building that gleamed like a beacon within Maretropolis. Right now, there were over a thousand ponies in that building and she could only imagine there was pure chaos. She got out her phone and quickly dialed a number. She was relieved when she heard a voice on the other end. “Geoffrey, please tell me you’re getting everypony out.” “We’re trying Sunset but there’s too many people and not enough time,” the griffin replied. “That thing just leveled an entire building without a struggle.” “Just do what you can, we need to make sure everypony is-” “Oh dear…” “Geoffrey!” Then Sunset saw it. One of the ponies, it looked to be the pony known as Zapp, had been hit by one of the creature’s energy blasts and was falling towards the building. She crashed through the top part of the building breaking windows but that wasn’t the worst part. The creature had attacked again, this time targeting the building itself and the top part toppled over effortlessly like a hot knife through butter. Sunset could only watch in horror as the entire starting to crumble to the ground, causing a large amount of dust and debris to fill the air. Not hesitating for a moment, Sunset dashed into the cloud of dust until she came across what was left of Sunset Tower. She looked around but saw nothing. “Can anypony here me!?” It was quiet and Sunset feared the worst. Then she heard someone calling out and Sunset followed in that direction. There was a male unicorn on the ground with a large chunk of concrete covering his lower half. “I can’t feel my back legs,” he said. “It’s alright, I’m here,” Sunset said. She used her magic to try to pick up the concrete but even for her it was pretty heavy. “Can you use your magic?” The unicorn nodded and together they were able to get the concrete off of him. Sirens were approaching and Sunset carefully dragged him out of harm’s way. “Did you see anypony else?” she asked. The unicorn shook his head. “I’m sorry Miss Shimmer, I didn’t see anypony…I think they…” But he couldn’t finish his sentence and the look of horror on his face told Sunset enough. An ambulance finally came they lifted the pony into the back. Sunset had decided to join him; there was nothing else she could do. As she got in the back, she looked up towards the sky and saw the battle continuing to rage in the sky. Only one question was on her mind at the time. “What had we done to deserve this…?” Chapter 1One year later… Maretropolis had spent much of the past year rebuilding after Tirek’s defeat. Much still needed to be done but the city more or less was back to its lustrous self. Even though crime had dropped to a significant level within the last few months, it was still present within the lower tiers of the city although, much to the surprise of the police, they were having much success capturing those low-lives and dropping them off at Alcoltraz, the highest secure prison in all of Equestria. Of course, Trot Summers did play a small part in that, even though she admitted to herself that she was being modest. She and her friends in fact played a big part, capturing criminals, whether it was bank robbers, drug traffickers, etc. Of course, they never did stay long to interact with the police. Keeping their identities safe was a top priority. Like Trot Summers, ace student at Professor Celestia’s School for Gifted Youth. Trot was currently brushing her teeth in the bathroom of her small apartment while the TV was on in the living room. She almost always had the news on, but not just to keep on track with world events. While using her magic to brush along her gums, she kept her ears up to listen closely. “…thanks in part to the Power Ponies, the large group responsible for the latest string of bank robberies have finally been apprehended. In other news, another individual has been taking on crime on the streets as well. The vigilante police now call ‘The Red Phoenix” has struck again, ambushing and capturing a large group of ponies responsible for sex trafficking in multiple cities, including Maretropolis itself-” “Ugh, Trot can I please turn this off? It’s kind of hard to study when I start hear about sex trafficking.” Trot’s friend and roommate Moon Dancer was sitting on the couch reading a book. Trot spit out the toothpaste in her mouth and smiled slightly. “Sorry Moony, you can go ahead.” She and Moon Dancer had first met at the university. They happened to share their first class together and right off the bat it seemed they had much in common. Of course, at an institution like this, magic was a very important topic. Moon Dancer had decided to turn the TV off completely, which was normal in their apartment. Moon was dedicated to her books, maybe more so than Trot, although she wouldn’t admit that out loud. Admittedly, it has been getting tougher to keep up her schedule, having to deal with school and then of course being Masked Matter-Horn. But she, and the others, knew what they were getting themselves into and she had no regrets. After rinsing her mouth out with mouthwash, Trot came out and looked over at Moon with an amused look. “Did you even sleep last night?” “Of course I did,” Moon said, glancing up slightly. “Your brain can’t process everything without a good night’s sleep.” Trot shook her head. If sleep wasn’t required, Moon would be stuck with her books all night. “Not sure why you watch the news so much. Most of the time it’s just depressing.” “Oh that’s not true,” Trot said as she sat on the couch next to Moon, relaxing for a few moments. “Besides, whenever there’s trouble, you know who comes calling.” “Yeah, yeah, the Power Ponies. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you really admire that Masked Matter-Horn.” Trot of course hadn’t told Moon her secret identity, mostly because she knew that would put her in danger. In fact, the only people who knew her identity was her mother who lived on the other side of the city. She had been worried that her mother would freak and demand that she stop what she was doing. Instead, she only made her daughter promise to be careful. “Well, she is pretty cool,” Trot said with a slight shrug. “She’s definitely pretty powerful.” “She was obviously one of Celestia’s students, that’s for sure,” Moon said as she finally put her book down. “Maybe she could teach us a thing or two.” Trot smirked slightly. “Well maybe if I ever run into her I’ll make sure to ask. Anyway, we better get going.” The two of them grabbed their bags and headed out towards the university. Around that same time, the pony Hum Drum was sitting at the table eating breakfast slowly as he felt his eyes droop from time to time. He was not a morning pony and vowed very early in his life that he never would be a morning pony. Of course, it was mostly because he stayed up late last night. “Another day of school,” he thought. “I don’t know how Trot does it." He was more interested in the video game he had been playing last night. Of course, that was only when he wasn’t busy. Working with the Power Ponies had definitely changed his sleep cycle. They were a group that acted mostly at night, but that wasn’t to say if there was a catastrophe during the day. “Just like last year,” Hum Drum thought, grimacing at the thought. The battle against Tirek had been the toughest that the Power Ponies ever faced. He had been powerful and they couldn’t beat him with strength alone. It was actually Spruce who had come up with a machine that emitted an energy that used the power inside of an old relic known as the Crystal Heart that would be able to defeat him. Hum Drum, as always, hadn’t been much help in that fight, but he was able to get that machine to the girls just in time before Tirek had managed to destroy the entire city. He may not have any special powers, but that didn’t deter him from staying with the team. The girls were like a second family to him and he knew they’d do anything for him. It helped a lot since Hum Drum didn’t see his own parents very much. Both of them had busy jobs which required them to get up very early in the morning. His mom always packed his lunch before he left, which was thankful for but he wished he could see them more instead of the two or three minutes where they came home and then immediately went upstairs to bed. “Another day of school,” he thought again as he ate by himself in the kitchen. “Well, maybe Trot and the others will have discovered something new for us to do today.” Detective Marey Allen sat at her desk with a cup of coffee as she studied a case file that was marked “Red Phoenix” on the top. There wasn’t much inside except for pictures of the criminals that were apprehended, some that were mildly disturbing, while others showed what looked like a phoenix depicted on walls and alleyways. There were some witness accounts saying the mare, assuming she was a mare, was someone who was a voice of the ponies sick of the crime and corruption in the city while others were more terrified of this vigilante and were less than likely to step out of line. Normally, Marey was not one to judge considering she, known to a select few, was a vigilante herself. However, the violence that these pictures showed was beyond brutal. Some of these criminals had the vigilante’s logo branded into their skin, which apparently was a sign that these ponies were the worst of the worst and that sealed their fate down at Alcoltraz. “You’ve been looking at that file all week Allen.” Marey looked up and saw her superior Spitfire, captain of the MPD, staring down at her. The earth pony sighed. “I just don’t get it, Captain. We should be looking up on this mare. I know she’s getting rid of criminals just like us, but there’s no way the MPD would consider her an ally.” “And what about the Power Ponies then?” Spitfire asked, taking off her shades. Marey bit back a retort. “That’s different.” But was it? Sure, they only resorted to violence when they had to and certainly not to this extreme, but like this Red Phoenix, they were acting their own and certainly weren’t being supported by the police. “I guess I see your point.” Spitfire sighed slightly. “Look Allen, you’re definitely one of our best, there’s no doubt about that. That’s why I need you, so that way when that big case, whatever it may be, comes you won’t be distracted with anything else.” “Captain, if you give me forty-eight hours with this, I know I can dig something up.” Spitfire looked intrigued. “Forty-eight hours huh? And if nothing does come up, you’ll drop the whole thing completely?” Marey didn’t want to drop it, but it was the only she was going to get authority from her superior. “Yes, I’ll drop it.” Spitfire thought for a moment. “Alright Marey, forty-eight hours and you’ll have full access to everything the department can provide. But I expect something at the end and if you got nothing, then I’m pulling the plug.” “Yes ma’am.” Marey didn’t waste any time as she finished her coffee, grabbed her coat and headed out of the office. One luxury of being head of one’s own department was that you could come into work any time you please, as long as you got what needed to be done finished. However, Spruce Spanner wasn’t one to take advantage of such things but that didn’t mean she couldn’t sleep in until seven. Unfortunately, she ended up waking up a half hour before her alarm went off. The music that suddenly blasted inside her house almost made her jump out of her bed. Her heart now beating rapidly, which for her was not a good way to start the morning, she ripped off her sheets rather angrily and glided towards the living room. As she expected, she saw her roommate and fellow heroine Zapp rocking out and standing on one of the chairs with her back towards her. Spruce rolled her eyes slightly and found the remote to the stereo and pressed the power button, cutting off the music completely. Zapp suddenly froze and turned her head slightly. “Oh…Spruce…good morning!” “Do you know what time it is?” Spruce asked. “Er…six thirty-seven?” “Yes, and I was currently sleeping until you decided to turn on my stereo and not only that but turn it full blast!” Spruce paused and took a deep breath. “Zapp, we have neighbors here and if I can hear it, they can hear it. Do you want us to get kicked out?” “No I…my apologies,” Zapp said, bowing her head. “But this contraption is really quite fascinating. And the music well, it seems to get my blood pumping. We have nothing like this back home.” Spruce sighed. She knew Zapp’s background, a princess and future queen of her tribe in a land faraway from here, and her exposure to everything here was new for her. “It’s alright…I know you meant well but…keep it down and maybe not have it on so early in the morning? I can’t exactly have my blood pumping without…you know…” Zapp looked embarrassed. “Right…I will keep that in mind next time.” Despite her short time in Maretropolis, Zapp, or Aurora as she was known by her people, had come a long way. Her dialect certainly told the others that she was of royal blood, and as if she was from a different time period, which in her case was true. Now she spoke more casual though she was still mostly polite, at least when she wasn’t summoning storms. “So uh…you want me to make breakfast?” Zapp asked. “Hmm…I suppose that’s a fair tradeoff,” Spruce smiled slightly. “Excellent! My cooking has been getting better you know.” “I…I’m glad to hear that. Just…don’t burn the house down.” Zapp scoffed. “Oh ye of little faith…” Spruce shook her head as she headed towards the bathroom and took a shower. Much to her surprise as she washed herself only a few minutes later, she could smell something heavenly coming from the kitchen. “Maybe those lessons finally paid off…” she thought. Once she dried off and got dressed, she went into the kitchen and was greeted by Zapp with a large smirk on her face. “Didn’t burn anything.” She pointed towards the table. “Eggs, soy sausage and biscuits with orange juice. Perfect way to start the morning, no?” Spruce’s eyes widened, mostly from surprise but partly because she just now realized how hungry she was. “Wait…how did you make biscuits so quickly?” “That’s my little secret.” Green Gardener was woken up in a similar manner. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the sound of music that woke up her but the sound of pans clattering to the floor. Immediately she got up, fearing someone had broken into the house. “Well, they certainly picked the wrong house!” she thought as she grabbed her bracelets from the table next to her and made her way towards the kitchen. Deciding not to be fancy, her bracelets conjured up the first thing that came to mind, which was a metal bat. “Alright you ruffian, if you think you can just-!” She suddenly stopped mid-hoof as she stared into the kitchen. Her friend and fellow heroine Mistress Mare-velous stood in the middle of the kitchen, staring back at her with utensils surrounding her. “Mistress what the devil are you doing!?” “…I was hungry,” Mistress replied. “And you thought you could just make a mess of my kitchen!?” “I was looking where you put the pans. You got so much stuff in these cabinets they’re all ready to fall out.” Green facehoofed. “You could’ve asked me…oh well.” Using her magic, she managed to get everything tidied away. Due to the long distance between here and Alfalfis, she had decided to let Mistress stay here until they could figure out living quarters. Unfortunately, the currency that Mistress had wasn’t recognized in Equestria so she had to rely on Green for food and shelter. As a zeppelin pilot, she had worked part-time with the MPD and the Equestrian Armed Forces (EAF), but now she had to limit her work, mostly to keep herself, or rather Radiance, available in time of need. “Should I even ask what you were planning on making?” Green asked as she took out a pan. “Just something simple,” Mistress replied matter-of-factly. “Back in Alfalfis, we mostly lived on eggs, dairy and bread. We never had the stuff that’s common here.” “Hmm…now that you mention it I could go for a croissant sandwich…” Green’s eyes then widened. “Say Mistress…have you ever had a croissant before?” “A…croissant? Is that a Prench word?” “Actually yes, but it’s amazing! And even better as a sandwich.” She then put the pan away. “Forget cooking, we can go out for breakfast. Allow me to get cleaned up first.” She then trotted back to her room as Mistress stared up at the ceiling. “Croissants huh…? If they knew right now, the elders would envy me.” Chapter 2Despite its name, Celestia’s School for Gifted Youth was not only for foals, but for older fillies and colts as well. The school was the largest in Maretropolis, mostly due to the fact that it had dorms of their own. Trot and Moon had lived there for a time when they were younger but, upon being given the choice, decided to live off campus. Now in their final year, the two were both exemplary experts of magic, having almost finished most of their advanced courses. Still, for either of them, there was nothing wrong with learning more material. “By the way,” Moon said as they made their way onto campus. “You’ve been hearing about that vigilante? Red Phoenix? “The one on the news?,” Trot said casually. “It’s a she?” “Well yeah, at least according to some witnesses. I heard she can be pretty brutal with her enemies. They get branded before the police scoop them up. It’s bad news if you end up in Balkham.” Trot frowned slightly. If that was true, then that would in effect change the public’s response to the Power Ponies. Sure, they’d won a few awards in their short lifetime but this vigilante running around freely would make others think that they were above the law. “Hey, you alright?” Moon asked. Trot blinked and saw that her friend was staring at her. “Oh yeah, sorry…it sounds pretty terrible.” “Well, they probably deserve it anyway,” Moon shrugged as they entered the school. “Well, I’ll see you at lunch time.” “See you then,” Trot said as she made her way to her first class. No doubt she’ll have to bring up this “Red Phoenix” the next time she and the others met up. Sunset Industries may have been one of the biggest corporations on the planet but it had a rival of its own: BlueCorp. BlueCorp may not have as much a grip in the multiple markets that Sunset had, but its popularity came from its bioengineering and pharmaceutical departments. Most of the medicine produced and sold in Maretropolis comes from BlueCorp. But Blueblood, the current CEO, had other things on his mind. The stallion was a proud pony, the kind of pony that belonged on almost every VIP list in all of Maretropolis. Sure he was a bit of a playcolt but what billionaires weren’t. He inherited the company a few years ago after his father’s unfortunate death. Despite the change in leadership, their stock has continued to grow and it’s among the most expensive all over the world. Normally on a day like this, Blueblood would be hanging out with his colleagues or playing some ball in his downtime but today it was all business. Dressed up appropriately, he was on his way to a very important meeting. His secretary had informed him that the two ponies were currently waiting in his office. Good, because they had to know that it was his building and he would make them wait as long as he wanted to. Then again, he had to be careful with government ponies. They could be slimy, much more than him at times. As he opened the door to his office, he put a big smile on his face. “Welcome Councilponies,” he said, addressing the mare and stallion. “Please, have a seat.” He walked over to his desk and sat in his very comfortable chair. “It’s good that you two could make it.” “Well, it’s hard to refuse an invitation from the CEO of BlueCorp,” the mare, an earth pony, said with a slight chuckle. “Oh, now you’re just trying to butter me up,” Blueblood said. “Anyway, to business. I think you two and I both know why we’re here but I’ll explain it anyway: the government has been rather hush hush about our little friend, you know, the one who almost destroyed Maretropolis a year ago. That demon…thing is dead thank Faust but again we haven’t heard anything about it. Now why is that?” “Considering how dangerous Tirek was, the Council thought it best to keep the body in lockdown,” the stallion councilpony, a unicorn said. Blueblood scoffed. “He’s dead, what more danger could he possess?” “Just what are you trying to ask?” the mare asked. Blueblood smiled. “Straight to the point my dear, I love it. It’s very simple: I want that body.” The two ponies stared at him in shock. “Excuse me?” the stallion asked. “You heard me clearly. BlueCorp has a very big interest as to whom and what Tirek is. Imagine what we could learn and gain from studying him!” “Mr. Blueblood, we understand your reasoning, but that body is government property,” the mare asked. “And besides, what can we do about it?” “The Council has say in many things,” Blueblood said as he used his magic to open up a drawer and pulled out a bottle of Scotch. “You can pull some strings in…letting go of that property.” He then got out a glass and poured himself a drink before grabbing it and taking a sip. “Surely that’s not too much to ask?” “I’m sensing blackmail is coming up in this discussion,” the stallion said coldly. “Perhaps, but that’s nothing new for you folks is it?” Blueblood took another sip and took a moment to savor the taste. “I’d like to get an answer from you by tomorrow. That should give you enough time to…sort things out? I’ll be waiting.” He finished his glass as he motioned with his free hoof that they could leave. The two ponies looked disturbed as they slowly exited the office. Blueblood put down his glass with a clear smirk on his face. Most ponies are naïve enough to believe it’s the government that’s in charge, but little do they know it’s the hundreds of corporations that pull all the strings. Marey wasted no time as she headed downtown towards the slums. It wasn’t her preferred choice but it was where she found her first witness. She made her way into the old apartment complex, taking the stairs up to the third floor and looking around until she found Room 37. She knocked on the door three times. There was no response. She knocked on the door again. “Mr. Solid? Detective Allen of the MPD, I wanted to speak to you for a moment.” That apparently got the stallion’s attention. “I think you have the wrong room ma’am,” he said through the door. “There aren’t any drugs or illegal weapons here.” Marey sighed slightly. Was everyone afraid of the police? “Sir, this isn’t an arrest, I just want to talk to you about an incident the other day. Does the name ‘Red Phoenix’ mean anything to you?” It was silent for a moment but Marey soon heard the sound of the door being unlocked and it was soon opened. She was now face to face with a young pegasus maybe a few years younger than her. “Did you say Red Phoenix?” he asked. “May I come in?” Marey asked. Solid hesitated for a moment. “Yeah…sure…” He opened the door and let her come in. The inside of his apartment wasn’t too trashed but it pretty much reflected the state of the entire complex. “You’re talking about that big gang fight right?” “Yeah, but I’d like to hear your part of the story,” Marey said as she sat down on the dusty sofa and got out her notebook. “Gang violence is a big problem around here right?” “Oh yeah,” Solid replied. “This complex has seen its share of battles, but thankfully I’m smart enough to keep my door locked at all times. Anyway, things got really ugly that night. First it started outside, but then it made its way in here. You’d think between a group of unicorns and a group of pegasi you could tell who’d win the fight easily right? Wrong, pegasi can play just as dirty at times. The griffins are the only ones worse than they are.” “So what happened then?” Marey asked. “Like I said, the big fight made its way all the way up here,” Solid continued. “I thought I was going to have a hole blown through my wall but then…she came.” “The Red Phoenix?” “Yeah… as soon as I heard both groups shouting I got curious and peeked outside my door. What I saw next was just plain amazing.” “Go on.” “This mare, I could tell she was a mare by her size but…she wasn’t one you wanted to mess with. She was a unicorn, I don’t remember if the police know that. Anyway, the way she moved was so…mesmerizing for lack of a better term. She put a beating on both sides. Sure, they tried to gang up on her but she was smart and she could teleport away at a moment’s notice. She wore all red and had a red mask…guess it was supposed to look like a phoenix judging by her name. It was amazing and terrifying at the same time.” “So what did she do to those two groups?” Marey asked as she kept writing down her notes. “Oh, most of them went to the hospital with broken limbs but a few of them, I’m assuming they were the leaders of each side, they got it much worse.” “How so?” “She…” Solid had to take a moment. “She brought out a branding iron…heated that sucker up in a quick blaze and…she marked both of them in the chest. They screamed bloody murder for minutes and it terrified everypony here. She was gone soon after and that’s when I got a good look at the bodies.” His eyes seemed to widen more in fear. “It was the symbol of a phoenix…it was her call sign and…well if you end up in Balkham with one of those you’re as good as dead.” “I see…thank you for telling me this Mr. Solid,” Marey said as she got up. “Detective…are you guys going after her?” Solid asked. Marey knew she couldn’t give out any details so she decided to be as vague as possible. “We’re looking into an investigation that’s all.” “I see.” The pegasus leaned back in his chair. “She may sound like bad news to you guys, but I can promise you this: the guys she goes after are much worse. And honestly, I don’t think you guys will ever catch her. She’s too clever for that.” It was getting late in the evening as the sun began to lower past the horizon. It was at night that Maretropolis truly shined. It was also at night when the dark underside of the city would reveal itself. There was a group of five unicorns waiting near the shipyards for their new delivery of what they called “Pixie Dust.” Pixie Dust was exactly as it sounded like, it gave magic users a big boost in stamina and strength and as such the MPD was working hard to get it off the streets. The biggest downside of using such a drug was that it caused massive migraines once the effects wore off and has been known to cause major nose bleeding. “I don’t like this…I don’t like this one bit…” one of the younger colts said. “They’re late. We’re sitting ducks here.” “Will you shut the hell up?” the largest of the group snapped. “They’re not late. They still got five minutes.” “He’s just worried about that Red Phoenix chick,” another chuckled. “D-Don’t bring her up! You’ll jinx the whole operation!” the colt cried out. “Shut yer mouth already!” the leader snapped. “Who cares about her? I’ll snap her like a damn twig.” Suddenly there was the sound of something banging against one of the shipping containers nearby. “What the hell was that?” “It’s nothing, metal creaks and groans every once in awhile,” the leader growled. “Oh Faust, she’s here, we’re done for!” the colt yelped as he tried to run off. “Get back here you little shit!” The leader managed to pull the poor colt back with his magic. “Honestly, I’m ready to throw you in with the fishes if you don’t-!” Suddenly he went quiet as he heard something small hit the ground. He looked over as he saw a small round shape rolling in their direction. They all stared at it as it rolled to a stop and the leader realized too late what it was. “Oh sh-!” The flashbang suddenly went off, blinding and deafening the ponies at the same time. The leader barely had time to react as he felt something big slam into him, knocking him onto the ground. It was hard to hear, but he could hear his buddies crying out in pain as a figure moved around them with a quickness that was unlike anything he’d ever seen. His chest was heaving slightly as he tried to get up. The figure had its back towards him and he smirked with a slight grimace as he prepared an attack. However, just as he was about to strike, the figure suddenly teleported. He could only stare in surprise as a force suddenly fell on his back, causing him to cry out in pain. “So…still think you can bend me like a twig?” The leader was no coward, there were few things that scared him, but the voice he heard in his ear made his blood run cold. The voice was definitely female, but it was modified that it sounded more like a growl, like a manticore about to drive its fangs into his neck. The unicorn felt a hoof hit him against his head hard, which caused his face to smash into the concrete below him. “Pixie Dust huh…? You little pricks only feel confident when you shoot that shit up your muzzles. Sorry, there won’t be any deliveries tonight.” The Red Phoenix paused, realizing she had already knocked the unicorn out, along with probably some teeth as well. His loss. She looked over at the others, groaning in pain. It was the young colt that was looking at her, terrified, that caught her full attention. She stepped off the large pony and walked slowly towards the colt, who curled up in fear. “Please, I don’t want anymore trouble, I’ll do whatever you ask just don’t…don’t…” He was suddenly at a loss of words as the mare stared at him. “You’re still young,” she said, catching him by surprise. “You still have a future ahead of you. Don’t waste it on this. Now get out of here.” The colt was more than happy to oblige as he got to his feet and ran away as fast as he could. The mare turned around and looked at the remaining unconscious and semi-conscious ponies. “Now to deal with you four…” By the time the police showed up, they found four unicorns tied together with almost five kilos of Pixie Dust. It appeared that the leader didn’t make it through unscathed as he had a brand mark right next to his horn. One of the officers sighed. “Red Phoenix strikes again,” he said as he got out his cuffs. “If she keeps this up, we’re going to lose our jobs,” his partner said. The officer scowled. “It’s bad enough with the Power Ponies but this one resorts to extreme violence. Better call this one in then…” Just outside of Maretropolis, there was a large forested area that spanned miles and in the middle was a large mansion that acted as a winter home. It was quiet throughout the night; at least until there came the sound of an engine running as a large vehicle came through the clearing of trees. As it reached the house, a platform raised, revealing an underground path that the vehicle raced into. A large tunnel led into a large lair and as soon as the vehicle parked on a large circular pad, the door opened and the Red Phoenix came out. There was a large array of computers and television screens in this lair that showed the current news and what was going in not just Maretropolis but the entire world. The mare sat down in her chair before taking off her mask. Sunset Shimmer stared at the screens, sweat slightly rolling down her face. Around the desk she was sitting at, pictures of recent events were strewn, including pictures of the Power Ponies which always gave her a twinge of irritation. “Another successful evening Mistress Sunset?” Sunset glanced over at the small pony sitting at her desk. It wasn’t actually a real pony but a hologram, an AI she created that took the form of her old butler when she was a little filly. “You could say that ALF,” Sunset said quietly. “Pixie Dust users.” The AI seemed to scrunch his muzzle in disgust. “Ah, yes, it would seem that the MPD is still struggling to get it off the black market.” “As long as ponies continue to make it, the war will never end,” Sunset said. “Anything I missed while I was gone?” “You received an invitation for a party over at Blueblood’s mansion tomorrow night, though I suppose you already knew about it,” ALF said casually. “Send out the RSVP ALF,” Sunset said as she typed BlueCorp’s name into the database. The BlueCorp logo came up on the large screen. “I think it’s time Mr. Blueblood and I finally meet.”
PrologueIt was another beautiful day in Maretropolis; unfortunately it was a day where Sunset Shimmer was stuck in yet another board meeting. Sunset Industries wasn’t just an enterprise, it was an empire of sorts, spanning out to different branches. Weapons Development, Research & Development, Chemical Industries; you name it, it was there. Being the current CEO of such a vast empire was not as easy as it looked and unlike most CEOs, it wasn’t the money that drove her, it was to do good in this world. The wage difference between CEOs and those below them had become so astronomical it was almost sickening. Sunset was born into a wealthy family and like her, her family wasn’t the type to showboat or spend their fortunes on meaningless things, but rather donate to charities all across the world for research into medicine or better water quality for underdeveloped regions. Sunset herself had cut her salary by fifty percent and that money trickled its way to the ponies below her. There was a reason people were so loyal to this company. Still, running a business also meant having to hear the boring stuff, although Sunset always had to know where the company stood at the present time. Fortunately, it was still smooth sailing even as the economy has been a little rocky as of late and as her CFO continued his presentation, Sunset couldn’t help but glance outside. That’s when she noticed something was wrong. Something huge was coming towards the city, a creature almost the size of the building they were sitting in right now. She got to her feet and went up to the window, staring as everyone else paused and looked at her. Only when they saw what she saw did they get up as well. The room was quiet as everyone looked to Sunset. “We need to get everypony out of here right away,” she said. She looked towards the board. “We do this in an orderly fashion, just like the drills.” She punched the fire alarm which went off immediately and picked up the phone on the desk. “Ditzy, I want you to get a hold of everypony at our sister locations. Tell them this is not a drill and get somewhere safe and away from the city!” She hung up and followed the others out of the room. The tower started to tremble slightly as some ponies started to scream. “The stairs!” Everyone quickly and calmly made their way down, Sunset being the last as to make sure no one was left behind. Once they were finally outside, Sunset saw that the city was littered with ponies, all wondering the same thing. The police had already shown up and were barking orders to evacuate the city immediately. Suddenly, one of the nearby buildings exploded, raining glass and debris onto the ground and the large crowd erupted into panic. That blast came from the creature now terrorizing the city and Sunset saw the thing looked like a centaur, but she had never seen one this large. She took off towards where the blast took place, running at a full gallop. Many of her colleagues were in a building four blocks from where she was now and she had to make sure they were safe. As she kept running, dodging debris that crashed into the ground, she managed to look up and saw that six ponies had now joined the fray. She recognized them immediately as the Power Ponies but surely even they couldn’t take on a creature that size. Her lungs were screaming for air but Sunset continued her pace, adrenaline now kicking in. She was within reach of Sunset Tower, a fifteen story building that gleamed like a beacon within Maretropolis. Right now, there were over a thousand ponies in that building and she could only imagine there was pure chaos. She got out her phone and quickly dialed a number. She was relieved when she heard a voice on the other end. “Geoffrey, please tell me you’re getting everypony out.” “We’re trying Sunset but there’s too many people and not enough time,” the griffin replied. “That thing just leveled an entire building without a struggle.” “Just do what you can, we need to make sure everypony is-” “Oh dear…” “Geoffrey!” Then Sunset saw it. One of the ponies, it looked to be the pony known as Zapp, had been hit by one of the creature’s energy blasts and was falling towards the building. She crashed through the top part of the building breaking windows but that wasn’t the worst part. The creature had attacked again, this time targeting the building itself and the top part toppled over effortlessly like a hot knife through butter. Sunset could only watch in horror as the entire starting to crumble to the ground, causing a large amount of dust and debris to fill the air. Not hesitating for a moment, Sunset dashed into the cloud of dust until she came across what was left of Sunset Tower. She looked around but saw nothing. “Can anypony here me!?” It was quiet and Sunset feared the worst. Then she heard someone calling out and Sunset followed in that direction. There was a male unicorn on the ground with a large chunk of concrete covering his lower half. “I can’t feel my back legs,” he said. “It’s alright, I’m here,” Sunset said. She used her magic to try to pick up the concrete but even for her it was pretty heavy. “Can you use your magic?” The unicorn nodded and together they were able to get the concrete off of him. Sirens were approaching and Sunset carefully dragged him out of harm’s way. “Did you see anypony else?” she asked. The unicorn shook his head. “I’m sorry Miss Shimmer, I didn’t see anypony…I think they…” But he couldn’t finish his sentence and the look of horror on his face told Sunset enough. An ambulance finally came they lifted the pony into the back. Sunset had decided to join him; there was nothing else she could do. As she got in the back, she looked up towards the sky and saw the battle continuing to rage in the sky. Only one question was on her mind at the time. “What had we done to deserve this…?”
Chapter 1One year later… Maretropolis had spent much of the past year rebuilding after Tirek’s defeat. Much still needed to be done but the city more or less was back to its lustrous self. Even though crime had dropped to a significant level within the last few months, it was still present within the lower tiers of the city although, much to the surprise of the police, they were having much success capturing those low-lives and dropping them off at Alcoltraz, the highest secure prison in all of Equestria. Of course, Trot Summers did play a small part in that, even though she admitted to herself that she was being modest. She and her friends in fact played a big part, capturing criminals, whether it was bank robbers, drug traffickers, etc. Of course, they never did stay long to interact with the police. Keeping their identities safe was a top priority. Like Trot Summers, ace student at Professor Celestia’s School for Gifted Youth. Trot was currently brushing her teeth in the bathroom of her small apartment while the TV was on in the living room. She almost always had the news on, but not just to keep on track with world events. While using her magic to brush along her gums, she kept her ears up to listen closely. “…thanks in part to the Power Ponies, the large group responsible for the latest string of bank robberies have finally been apprehended. In other news, another individual has been taking on crime on the streets as well. The vigilante police now call ‘The Red Phoenix” has struck again, ambushing and capturing a large group of ponies responsible for sex trafficking in multiple cities, including Maretropolis itself-” “Ugh, Trot can I please turn this off? It’s kind of hard to study when I start hear about sex trafficking.” Trot’s friend and roommate Moon Dancer was sitting on the couch reading a book. Trot spit out the toothpaste in her mouth and smiled slightly. “Sorry Moony, you can go ahead.” She and Moon Dancer had first met at the university. They happened to share their first class together and right off the bat it seemed they had much in common. Of course, at an institution like this, magic was a very important topic. Moon Dancer had decided to turn the TV off completely, which was normal in their apartment. Moon was dedicated to her books, maybe more so than Trot, although she wouldn’t admit that out loud. Admittedly, it has been getting tougher to keep up her schedule, having to deal with school and then of course being Masked Matter-Horn. But she, and the others, knew what they were getting themselves into and she had no regrets. After rinsing her mouth out with mouthwash, Trot came out and looked over at Moon with an amused look. “Did you even sleep last night?” “Of course I did,” Moon said, glancing up slightly. “Your brain can’t process everything without a good night’s sleep.” Trot shook her head. If sleep wasn’t required, Moon would be stuck with her books all night. “Not sure why you watch the news so much. Most of the time it’s just depressing.” “Oh that’s not true,” Trot said as she sat on the couch next to Moon, relaxing for a few moments. “Besides, whenever there’s trouble, you know who comes calling.” “Yeah, yeah, the Power Ponies. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you really admire that Masked Matter-Horn.” Trot of course hadn’t told Moon her secret identity, mostly because she knew that would put her in danger. In fact, the only people who knew her identity was her mother who lived on the other side of the city. She had been worried that her mother would freak and demand that she stop what she was doing. Instead, she only made her daughter promise to be careful. “Well, she is pretty cool,” Trot said with a slight shrug. “She’s definitely pretty powerful.” “She was obviously one of Celestia’s students, that’s for sure,” Moon said as she finally put her book down. “Maybe she could teach us a thing or two.” Trot smirked slightly. “Well maybe if I ever run into her I’ll make sure to ask. Anyway, we better get going.” The two of them grabbed their bags and headed out towards the university. Around that same time, the pony Hum Drum was sitting at the table eating breakfast slowly as he felt his eyes droop from time to time. He was not a morning pony and vowed very early in his life that he never would be a morning pony. Of course, it was mostly because he stayed up late last night. “Another day of school,” he thought. “I don’t know how Trot does it." He was more interested in the video game he had been playing last night. Of course, that was only when he wasn’t busy. Working with the Power Ponies had definitely changed his sleep cycle. They were a group that acted mostly at night, but that wasn’t to say if there was a catastrophe during the day. “Just like last year,” Hum Drum thought, grimacing at the thought. The battle against Tirek had been the toughest that the Power Ponies ever faced. He had been powerful and they couldn’t beat him with strength alone. It was actually Spruce who had come up with a machine that emitted an energy that used the power inside of an old relic known as the Crystal Heart that would be able to defeat him. Hum Drum, as always, hadn’t been much help in that fight, but he was able to get that machine to the girls just in time before Tirek had managed to destroy the entire city. He may not have any special powers, but that didn’t deter him from staying with the team. The girls were like a second family to him and he knew they’d do anything for him. It helped a lot since Hum Drum didn’t see his own parents very much. Both of them had busy jobs which required them to get up very early in the morning. His mom always packed his lunch before he left, which was thankful for but he wished he could see them more instead of the two or three minutes where they came home and then immediately went upstairs to bed. “Another day of school,” he thought again as he ate by himself in the kitchen. “Well, maybe Trot and the others will have discovered something new for us to do today.” Detective Marey Allen sat at her desk with a cup of coffee as she studied a case file that was marked “Red Phoenix” on the top. There wasn’t much inside except for pictures of the criminals that were apprehended, some that were mildly disturbing, while others showed what looked like a phoenix depicted on walls and alleyways. There were some witness accounts saying the mare, assuming she was a mare, was someone who was a voice of the ponies sick of the crime and corruption in the city while others were more terrified of this vigilante and were less than likely to step out of line. Normally, Marey was not one to judge considering she, known to a select few, was a vigilante herself. However, the violence that these pictures showed was beyond brutal. Some of these criminals had the vigilante’s logo branded into their skin, which apparently was a sign that these ponies were the worst of the worst and that sealed their fate down at Alcoltraz. “You’ve been looking at that file all week Allen.” Marey looked up and saw her superior Spitfire, captain of the MPD, staring down at her. The earth pony sighed. “I just don’t get it, Captain. We should be looking up on this mare. I know she’s getting rid of criminals just like us, but there’s no way the MPD would consider her an ally.” “And what about the Power Ponies then?” Spitfire asked, taking off her shades. Marey bit back a retort. “That’s different.” But was it? Sure, they only resorted to violence when they had to and certainly not to this extreme, but like this Red Phoenix, they were acting their own and certainly weren’t being supported by the police. “I guess I see your point.” Spitfire sighed slightly. “Look Allen, you’re definitely one of our best, there’s no doubt about that. That’s why I need you, so that way when that big case, whatever it may be, comes you won’t be distracted with anything else.” “Captain, if you give me forty-eight hours with this, I know I can dig something up.” Spitfire looked intrigued. “Forty-eight hours huh? And if nothing does come up, you’ll drop the whole thing completely?” Marey didn’t want to drop it, but it was the only she was going to get authority from her superior. “Yes, I’ll drop it.” Spitfire thought for a moment. “Alright Marey, forty-eight hours and you’ll have full access to everything the department can provide. But I expect something at the end and if you got nothing, then I’m pulling the plug.” “Yes ma’am.” Marey didn’t waste any time as she finished her coffee, grabbed her coat and headed out of the office. One luxury of being head of one’s own department was that you could come into work any time you please, as long as you got what needed to be done finished. However, Spruce Spanner wasn’t one to take advantage of such things but that didn’t mean she couldn’t sleep in until seven. Unfortunately, she ended up waking up a half hour before her alarm went off. The music that suddenly blasted inside her house almost made her jump out of her bed. Her heart now beating rapidly, which for her was not a good way to start the morning, she ripped off her sheets rather angrily and glided towards the living room. As she expected, she saw her roommate and fellow heroine Zapp rocking out and standing on one of the chairs with her back towards her. Spruce rolled her eyes slightly and found the remote to the stereo and pressed the power button, cutting off the music completely. Zapp suddenly froze and turned her head slightly. “Oh…Spruce…good morning!” “Do you know what time it is?” Spruce asked. “Er…six thirty-seven?” “Yes, and I was currently sleeping until you decided to turn on my stereo and not only that but turn it full blast!” Spruce paused and took a deep breath. “Zapp, we have neighbors here and if I can hear it, they can hear it. Do you want us to get kicked out?” “No I…my apologies,” Zapp said, bowing her head. “But this contraption is really quite fascinating. And the music well, it seems to get my blood pumping. We have nothing like this back home.” Spruce sighed. She knew Zapp’s background, a princess and future queen of her tribe in a land faraway from here, and her exposure to everything here was new for her. “It’s alright…I know you meant well but…keep it down and maybe not have it on so early in the morning? I can’t exactly have my blood pumping without…you know…” Zapp looked embarrassed. “Right…I will keep that in mind next time.” Despite her short time in Maretropolis, Zapp, or Aurora as she was known by her people, had come a long way. Her dialect certainly told the others that she was of royal blood, and as if she was from a different time period, which in her case was true. Now she spoke more casual though she was still mostly polite, at least when she wasn’t summoning storms. “So uh…you want me to make breakfast?” Zapp asked. “Hmm…I suppose that’s a fair tradeoff,” Spruce smiled slightly. “Excellent! My cooking has been getting better you know.” “I…I’m glad to hear that. Just…don’t burn the house down.” Zapp scoffed. “Oh ye of little faith…” Spruce shook her head as she headed towards the bathroom and took a shower. Much to her surprise as she washed herself only a few minutes later, she could smell something heavenly coming from the kitchen. “Maybe those lessons finally paid off…” she thought. Once she dried off and got dressed, she went into the kitchen and was greeted by Zapp with a large smirk on her face. “Didn’t burn anything.” She pointed towards the table. “Eggs, soy sausage and biscuits with orange juice. Perfect way to start the morning, no?” Spruce’s eyes widened, mostly from surprise but partly because she just now realized how hungry she was. “Wait…how did you make biscuits so quickly?” “That’s my little secret.” Green Gardener was woken up in a similar manner. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the sound of music that woke up her but the sound of pans clattering to the floor. Immediately she got up, fearing someone had broken into the house. “Well, they certainly picked the wrong house!” she thought as she grabbed her bracelets from the table next to her and made her way towards the kitchen. Deciding not to be fancy, her bracelets conjured up the first thing that came to mind, which was a metal bat. “Alright you ruffian, if you think you can just-!” She suddenly stopped mid-hoof as she stared into the kitchen. Her friend and fellow heroine Mistress Mare-velous stood in the middle of the kitchen, staring back at her with utensils surrounding her. “Mistress what the devil are you doing!?” “…I was hungry,” Mistress replied. “And you thought you could just make a mess of my kitchen!?” “I was looking where you put the pans. You got so much stuff in these cabinets they’re all ready to fall out.” Green facehoofed. “You could’ve asked me…oh well.” Using her magic, she managed to get everything tidied away. Due to the long distance between here and Alfalfis, she had decided to let Mistress stay here until they could figure out living quarters. Unfortunately, the currency that Mistress had wasn’t recognized in Equestria so she had to rely on Green for food and shelter. As a zeppelin pilot, she had worked part-time with the MPD and the Equestrian Armed Forces (EAF), but now she had to limit her work, mostly to keep herself, or rather Radiance, available in time of need. “Should I even ask what you were planning on making?” Green asked as she took out a pan. “Just something simple,” Mistress replied matter-of-factly. “Back in Alfalfis, we mostly lived on eggs, dairy and bread. We never had the stuff that’s common here.” “Hmm…now that you mention it I could go for a croissant sandwich…” Green’s eyes then widened. “Say Mistress…have you ever had a croissant before?” “A…croissant? Is that a Prench word?” “Actually yes, but it’s amazing! And even better as a sandwich.” She then put the pan away. “Forget cooking, we can go out for breakfast. Allow me to get cleaned up first.” She then trotted back to her room as Mistress stared up at the ceiling. “Croissants huh…? If they knew right now, the elders would envy me.”
Chapter 2Despite its name, Celestia’s School for Gifted Youth was not only for foals, but for older fillies and colts as well. The school was the largest in Maretropolis, mostly due to the fact that it had dorms of their own. Trot and Moon had lived there for a time when they were younger but, upon being given the choice, decided to live off campus. Now in their final year, the two were both exemplary experts of magic, having almost finished most of their advanced courses. Still, for either of them, there was nothing wrong with learning more material. “By the way,” Moon said as they made their way onto campus. “You’ve been hearing about that vigilante? Red Phoenix? “The one on the news?,” Trot said casually. “It’s a she?” “Well yeah, at least according to some witnesses. I heard she can be pretty brutal with her enemies. They get branded before the police scoop them up. It’s bad news if you end up in Balkham.” Trot frowned slightly. If that was true, then that would in effect change the public’s response to the Power Ponies. Sure, they’d won a few awards in their short lifetime but this vigilante running around freely would make others think that they were above the law. “Hey, you alright?” Moon asked. Trot blinked and saw that her friend was staring at her. “Oh yeah, sorry…it sounds pretty terrible.” “Well, they probably deserve it anyway,” Moon shrugged as they entered the school. “Well, I’ll see you at lunch time.” “See you then,” Trot said as she made her way to her first class. No doubt she’ll have to bring up this “Red Phoenix” the next time she and the others met up. Sunset Industries may have been one of the biggest corporations on the planet but it had a rival of its own: BlueCorp. BlueCorp may not have as much a grip in the multiple markets that Sunset had, but its popularity came from its bioengineering and pharmaceutical departments. Most of the medicine produced and sold in Maretropolis comes from BlueCorp. But Blueblood, the current CEO, had other things on his mind. The stallion was a proud pony, the kind of pony that belonged on almost every VIP list in all of Maretropolis. Sure he was a bit of a playcolt but what billionaires weren’t. He inherited the company a few years ago after his father’s unfortunate death. Despite the change in leadership, their stock has continued to grow and it’s among the most expensive all over the world. Normally on a day like this, Blueblood would be hanging out with his colleagues or playing some ball in his downtime but today it was all business. Dressed up appropriately, he was on his way to a very important meeting. His secretary had informed him that the two ponies were currently waiting in his office. Good, because they had to know that it was his building and he would make them wait as long as he wanted to. Then again, he had to be careful with government ponies. They could be slimy, much more than him at times. As he opened the door to his office, he put a big smile on his face. “Welcome Councilponies,” he said, addressing the mare and stallion. “Please, have a seat.” He walked over to his desk and sat in his very comfortable chair. “It’s good that you two could make it.” “Well, it’s hard to refuse an invitation from the CEO of BlueCorp,” the mare, an earth pony, said with a slight chuckle. “Oh, now you’re just trying to butter me up,” Blueblood said. “Anyway, to business. I think you two and I both know why we’re here but I’ll explain it anyway: the government has been rather hush hush about our little friend, you know, the one who almost destroyed Maretropolis a year ago. That demon…thing is dead thank Faust but again we haven’t heard anything about it. Now why is that?” “Considering how dangerous Tirek was, the Council thought it best to keep the body in lockdown,” the stallion councilpony, a unicorn said. Blueblood scoffed. “He’s dead, what more danger could he possess?” “Just what are you trying to ask?” the mare asked. Blueblood smiled. “Straight to the point my dear, I love it. It’s very simple: I want that body.” The two ponies stared at him in shock. “Excuse me?” the stallion asked. “You heard me clearly. BlueCorp has a very big interest as to whom and what Tirek is. Imagine what we could learn and gain from studying him!” “Mr. Blueblood, we understand your reasoning, but that body is government property,” the mare asked. “And besides, what can we do about it?” “The Council has say in many things,” Blueblood said as he used his magic to open up a drawer and pulled out a bottle of Scotch. “You can pull some strings in…letting go of that property.” He then got out a glass and poured himself a drink before grabbing it and taking a sip. “Surely that’s not too much to ask?” “I’m sensing blackmail is coming up in this discussion,” the stallion said coldly. “Perhaps, but that’s nothing new for you folks is it?” Blueblood took another sip and took a moment to savor the taste. “I’d like to get an answer from you by tomorrow. That should give you enough time to…sort things out? I’ll be waiting.” He finished his glass as he motioned with his free hoof that they could leave. The two ponies looked disturbed as they slowly exited the office. Blueblood put down his glass with a clear smirk on his face. Most ponies are naïve enough to believe it’s the government that’s in charge, but little do they know it’s the hundreds of corporations that pull all the strings. Marey wasted no time as she headed downtown towards the slums. It wasn’t her preferred choice but it was where she found her first witness. She made her way into the old apartment complex, taking the stairs up to the third floor and looking around until she found Room 37. She knocked on the door three times. There was no response. She knocked on the door again. “Mr. Solid? Detective Allen of the MPD, I wanted to speak to you for a moment.” That apparently got the stallion’s attention. “I think you have the wrong room ma’am,” he said through the door. “There aren’t any drugs or illegal weapons here.” Marey sighed slightly. Was everyone afraid of the police? “Sir, this isn’t an arrest, I just want to talk to you about an incident the other day. Does the name ‘Red Phoenix’ mean anything to you?” It was silent for a moment but Marey soon heard the sound of the door being unlocked and it was soon opened. She was now face to face with a young pegasus maybe a few years younger than her. “Did you say Red Phoenix?” he asked. “May I come in?” Marey asked. Solid hesitated for a moment. “Yeah…sure…” He opened the door and let her come in. The inside of his apartment wasn’t too trashed but it pretty much reflected the state of the entire complex. “You’re talking about that big gang fight right?” “Yeah, but I’d like to hear your part of the story,” Marey said as she sat down on the dusty sofa and got out her notebook. “Gang violence is a big problem around here right?” “Oh yeah,” Solid replied. “This complex has seen its share of battles, but thankfully I’m smart enough to keep my door locked at all times. Anyway, things got really ugly that night. First it started outside, but then it made its way in here. You’d think between a group of unicorns and a group of pegasi you could tell who’d win the fight easily right? Wrong, pegasi can play just as dirty at times. The griffins are the only ones worse than they are.” “So what happened then?” Marey asked. “Like I said, the big fight made its way all the way up here,” Solid continued. “I thought I was going to have a hole blown through my wall but then…she came.” “The Red Phoenix?” “Yeah… as soon as I heard both groups shouting I got curious and peeked outside my door. What I saw next was just plain amazing.” “Go on.” “This mare, I could tell she was a mare by her size but…she wasn’t one you wanted to mess with. She was a unicorn, I don’t remember if the police know that. Anyway, the way she moved was so…mesmerizing for lack of a better term. She put a beating on both sides. Sure, they tried to gang up on her but she was smart and she could teleport away at a moment’s notice. She wore all red and had a red mask…guess it was supposed to look like a phoenix judging by her name. It was amazing and terrifying at the same time.” “So what did she do to those two groups?” Marey asked as she kept writing down her notes. “Oh, most of them went to the hospital with broken limbs but a few of them, I’m assuming they were the leaders of each side, they got it much worse.” “How so?” “She…” Solid had to take a moment. “She brought out a branding iron…heated that sucker up in a quick blaze and…she marked both of them in the chest. They screamed bloody murder for minutes and it terrified everypony here. She was gone soon after and that’s when I got a good look at the bodies.” His eyes seemed to widen more in fear. “It was the symbol of a phoenix…it was her call sign and…well if you end up in Balkham with one of those you’re as good as dead.” “I see…thank you for telling me this Mr. Solid,” Marey said as she got up. “Detective…are you guys going after her?” Solid asked. Marey knew she couldn’t give out any details so she decided to be as vague as possible. “We’re looking into an investigation that’s all.” “I see.” The pegasus leaned back in his chair. “She may sound like bad news to you guys, but I can promise you this: the guys she goes after are much worse. And honestly, I don’t think you guys will ever catch her. She’s too clever for that.” It was getting late in the evening as the sun began to lower past the horizon. It was at night that Maretropolis truly shined. It was also at night when the dark underside of the city would reveal itself. There was a group of five unicorns waiting near the shipyards for their new delivery of what they called “Pixie Dust.” Pixie Dust was exactly as it sounded like, it gave magic users a big boost in stamina and strength and as such the MPD was working hard to get it off the streets. The biggest downside of using such a drug was that it caused massive migraines once the effects wore off and has been known to cause major nose bleeding. “I don’t like this…I don’t like this one bit…” one of the younger colts said. “They’re late. We’re sitting ducks here.” “Will you shut the hell up?” the largest of the group snapped. “They’re not late. They still got five minutes.” “He’s just worried about that Red Phoenix chick,” another chuckled. “D-Don’t bring her up! You’ll jinx the whole operation!” the colt cried out. “Shut yer mouth already!” the leader snapped. “Who cares about her? I’ll snap her like a damn twig.” Suddenly there was the sound of something banging against one of the shipping containers nearby. “What the hell was that?” “It’s nothing, metal creaks and groans every once in awhile,” the leader growled. “Oh Faust, she’s here, we’re done for!” the colt yelped as he tried to run off. “Get back here you little shit!” The leader managed to pull the poor colt back with his magic. “Honestly, I’m ready to throw you in with the fishes if you don’t-!” Suddenly he went quiet as he heard something small hit the ground. He looked over as he saw a small round shape rolling in their direction. They all stared at it as it rolled to a stop and the leader realized too late what it was. “Oh sh-!” The flashbang suddenly went off, blinding and deafening the ponies at the same time. The leader barely had time to react as he felt something big slam into him, knocking him onto the ground. It was hard to hear, but he could hear his buddies crying out in pain as a figure moved around them with a quickness that was unlike anything he’d ever seen. His chest was heaving slightly as he tried to get up. The figure had its back towards him and he smirked with a slight grimace as he prepared an attack. However, just as he was about to strike, the figure suddenly teleported. He could only stare in surprise as a force suddenly fell on his back, causing him to cry out in pain. “So…still think you can bend me like a twig?” The leader was no coward, there were few things that scared him, but the voice he heard in his ear made his blood run cold. The voice was definitely female, but it was modified that it sounded more like a growl, like a manticore about to drive its fangs into his neck. The unicorn felt a hoof hit him against his head hard, which caused his face to smash into the concrete below him. “Pixie Dust huh…? You little pricks only feel confident when you shoot that shit up your muzzles. Sorry, there won’t be any deliveries tonight.” The Red Phoenix paused, realizing she had already knocked the unicorn out, along with probably some teeth as well. His loss. She looked over at the others, groaning in pain. It was the young colt that was looking at her, terrified, that caught her full attention. She stepped off the large pony and walked slowly towards the colt, who curled up in fear. “Please, I don’t want anymore trouble, I’ll do whatever you ask just don’t…don’t…” He was suddenly at a loss of words as the mare stared at him. “You’re still young,” she said, catching him by surprise. “You still have a future ahead of you. Don’t waste it on this. Now get out of here.” The colt was more than happy to oblige as he got to his feet and ran away as fast as he could. The mare turned around and looked at the remaining unconscious and semi-conscious ponies. “Now to deal with you four…” By the time the police showed up, they found four unicorns tied together with almost five kilos of Pixie Dust. It appeared that the leader didn’t make it through unscathed as he had a brand mark right next to his horn. One of the officers sighed. “Red Phoenix strikes again,” he said as he got out his cuffs. “If she keeps this up, we’re going to lose our jobs,” his partner said. The officer scowled. “It’s bad enough with the Power Ponies but this one resorts to extreme violence. Better call this one in then…” Just outside of Maretropolis, there was a large forested area that spanned miles and in the middle was a large mansion that acted as a winter home. It was quiet throughout the night; at least until there came the sound of an engine running as a large vehicle came through the clearing of trees. As it reached the house, a platform raised, revealing an underground path that the vehicle raced into. A large tunnel led into a large lair and as soon as the vehicle parked on a large circular pad, the door opened and the Red Phoenix came out. There was a large array of computers and television screens in this lair that showed the current news and what was going in not just Maretropolis but the entire world. The mare sat down in her chair before taking off her mask. Sunset Shimmer stared at the screens, sweat slightly rolling down her face. Around the desk she was sitting at, pictures of recent events were strewn, including pictures of the Power Ponies which always gave her a twinge of irritation. “Another successful evening Mistress Sunset?” Sunset glanced over at the small pony sitting at her desk. It wasn’t actually a real pony but a hologram, an AI she created that took the form of her old butler when she was a little filly. “You could say that ALF,” Sunset said quietly. “Pixie Dust users.” The AI seemed to scrunch his muzzle in disgust. “Ah, yes, it would seem that the MPD is still struggling to get it off the black market.” “As long as ponies continue to make it, the war will never end,” Sunset said. “Anything I missed while I was gone?” “You received an invitation for a party over at Blueblood’s mansion tomorrow night, though I suppose you already knew about it,” ALF said casually. “Send out the RSVP ALF,” Sunset said as she typed BlueCorp’s name into the database. The BlueCorp logo came up on the large screen. “I think it’s time Mr. Blueblood and I finally meet.”
