The Might Of Gods

Michael sat upon a beanbag chair in a small room. In front of him was an office desk with the grey pony behind it. Other than the beanbag chair and the desk, there was nothing to decorate the bare room.

"So you're tellin' me," Michael queried, "that you brought me here to hunt down a zebra?"

"We need a bounty hunter, and you fit the qualifications," Scissorwhip stated. The apelike creature in front of him made him nervous just by appearance alone. It was one thing for it to be from another realm, but it was an entirely different thing for it to look so bizarre. Not a single bit of fur on it save for its head, and it was much bigger than him.

"You can't do this yourself?" Michael questioned.

"We can't use other ponies as bounty hunters." Scissorwhip pushed his loose glasses into place as he spoke. "Princess Celestia would be angry..."

"I don't work for free, ya know." Michael had a big grin on his face as he stared into the pony's eyes. If he had to work in another dimension, he wanted to be paid handsomely. "I want some coin."

"C-Coin?" stuttered Scissorwhip.

"Moolah, dinero, profit, cash, bread, cheddar, dough, bank, all that," Michael replied.

"You mean bits? We certainly have those." Scissorwhip took a few gold coins from nowhere, which surprised Michael a little, and placed the bits on the table.

Michael picked one of the bits up and examined it. "Holy fuck. Is this gold?"

"Y-Yes?" Scissorwhip didn't want to offend the creature by accident. He felt like he was caged in with a lion.

"If I brought these back with me, I'd be rich!" Michael stood up and reached out towards Scissorwhip with one arm, scaring the pony out of his wits. "You got yerself a bounty hunter! Where do I start?"

"We need you to talk to one of the guards who saw the murderer last night. His name is Clay Bricks. He said he would meet you at The Galloping Filly. He'll be there at night." Scissorwhip just wanted the creature gone as soon as possible.

"You guys have the dumbest names," Michael commented as he waltzed out the room. Before he closed the door behind him, he peered at Scissorwhip, intimidating him. "Where the fuck's my cat?"

"C-Cat?" Scissorwhip stuttered, frozen in fear.

"Right here, big guy." Out from under Scissorwhip's desk came Flora, stretching her legs.

"How long were you under there?" Michael picked up the cat and placed her on his shoulder.

"Since last night," Flora replied. "These jokers kept trying to call me over to 'em like I was some common stray."

"You do kinda look like one," teased Michael, getting a hiss from Flora in return.

The Galloping Filly, a popular place with ponies of all colors coming and going. During the day, it wasn't as busy, but at night, guards would pack the place, chatting amongst themselves and having a good old time.

William walked through the double doors, eyeing the barcounter. "Finally, some place to eat!" He sauntered over to the barstools and sat down, making the furniture squeak in protest. "Gimme beeeeeer please!"

"Beer?" The bartender, a dark gray pony, stared at the newcomer with confusion. "We don't sell nuthin' called 'beer.'"

"Then lemme put it in more words for you. Alcohol, booze, the good stuff," Michael spelled out.

"Sounds like you got hit on the noggin one too many times, buddy. Alcohol is medicine here. To use that for a drink is just crazy," the bartender explained. "But we DO have Horseshoe Bay pineapple juice. I bet that'll give ya a buzz."

Michael stared at the bartender, his eyes filled with murderous intent. "You mean to tell me... that beer doesn't exist here?!"

The bartender stared back into Michael's eyes with an intent of his own. "You got a problem with that, buddy?"

Everypony in the bar looked upon the scene with excitement. It looked like it would be a good old fashioned bar fight until...

"Wooooaaaaaah, Big Guy!" Flora hopped up on the counter to cut through their line of sight. "We got a job, remember? I don't think gettin' thrown in jail is part of the plan."

"But Flora, you KNOW I need something to drink. I need my buzz! It's my baby! My lover!" argued Michael. He wanted nothing more than a nice cold beverage to make him feel alive again. Alcohol was the driving force in his life. Whether it was on the road or in a bar, he carried a bottle with him.

But now, without his brew, he was feeling anxious. He needed to find a way to get his buzz. "Gotta focus," he whispered to himself. "I'll find some later..."

Flora looked at her partner with concern. "Hey, big guy. C'mon. I can see our target." She waved a paw in the direction of a small table in the corner of the room. Sitting at that table was a sky-blue unicorn with green eyes in Equestrian armor.

"How do you know it's him?" Michael asked, looking at the guard.

"Because he's been taking glances at us since we've walked in," the cat replied. "Honestly, do I have to be the one to be aware of what's going on in our surroundings?"

"Shut up," replied Michael. He walked over to the corner table, squeezing past several other guards. "Fuck, this place is cramped."

He eventually managed to make his way over and sat down in a free chair. "Hey, you. I heard you could gimme info."

The unicorn looked up from the table at Michael. "Y-Yeah... I do."

"Alrighty!" Michael clapped his hands together once and kept them their, pointing both index fingers at the pony. "Let's start from the beginning!"

Looking at Michael with a somber look in his eyes, the guard began his story.

"My name is Clay Wall. I was on guard with two other ponies to protect the Royal Laboratory in the basements of the castle. It was a pretty quiet night until we heard a noise coming from inside the lab. When we went inside, the whole thing was a mess, beakers and vials everywheres, potions spilled onto the floor.

"That's when we found the criminal. He wore this cloak, so I couldn't get a good look at him. His movements weren't natural... He would twitch constantly, and when we attacked, he was able to dodge with such great speed, it would've made the wonderbolts jealous."

"Eventually, we were able to chase him outside, but after he threw this bottle, everything was covered with smoke, and I couldn't see a thing! That's when I was knocked unconscious. When I came to... my companions were... w-were..."

The guard looked down at the table. "I could've ordered us to pull back, but I didn't! It's my fault they're dead! I was in charge!"

Flora hopped up on the table and rested a paw on the guard's hoof. "There there. You didn't know what was gonna happen.

Michael just sat there, staring at Clay. "Do you know what he took?" He was obviously in there to take something. Otherwise, he wouldn't be there."

"I don't know," the sniffling guard replied. "But if it came from the Royal Laboratory, it would probably be something dangerous. I would know, because I've seen some things that just aren't normal."

"Things like what, hon?" Flora asked.

"Like... Like ponies being able to levitate things without their magic," Clay answered, "or being able to punch through diamond! It's crazy!"

"As crazy as talking horses?" Michael whispered under his breath.

Flora hissed at her human companion. "Shush!"

"Make me," Michael challenged before standing up and walking away.

Flora turned to Clay and smiled. "Would you excuse us for a moment? My friend and I need to discuss some things."

Getting a nod from Clay, Flora jumped off the table and into the air before turning and kicking her hindlegs into Michael's back, sending him flying across the bar and through a wall, dust and splinters of wood flying everywhere. Ponies stared in awe of the feline's strength. For a small creature, she could definitely pack a punch.

"You idiot! You need to learn some manners!" Flora scolded, her fur raised.

Michael could barely move from the heavy blow that was dealt to him. As he coughed from the dust particles flying in the air, he slowly got up and turned to face his partner.

Running down his face were streams of blood, showing that it was his head that struck the wood first. The rest of his body was covered in fresh scratches, and his white t-shirt and blue jeans were covered in dust. He didn't speak. All he could do was stare with murder in his eyes.

The bartender looked at Michael, then at Flora, idly cleaning out a glass cup. "So... Which of you are gonna pay for that wall?"