One Last Job

Chapters

Childhood Woes Make Powerful Foes
Invitation
The Gala
Departure
The Offer
Clearspring

Childhood Woes Make Powerful Foes

There comes a moment when a pony must accept that they are no longer a foal. A moment when the innocence is cast away and one is subjected to the harsh realities of the world.
A parent always hopes that their child would never have to face such a moment. It is their duty, in a way, to protect their filly or colt for as long as possible, to maintain that beautiful innocence that every adult pony wishes they could experience again.

But sometimes that protection isn’t offered. Sometimes a parent doesn’t want to protect their child. Sometimes they don’t even want their child in the first place. Foals born into families like this never end up the same as their classmates or their friends. They always become the odd one out. Alone. Cast aside. Ignored. Even teachers rarely know what to do with these foals, and it’s even more rare that they can help in any way.

Ayize fell into the same boat as these foals. Everypony cast her aside like she wasn’t worth their time, she had none of the social skills that her fellow foals had, and as a whole, she was nothing like other ponies.
It certainly didn’t help that she was a zebra.

Zebras weren’t particularly hated in Equestria, but they weren’t trusted either. Many ponies saw them as devious, dark magic users that had an air of unsettling energy around them, though this was always just their own feelings being put forward as a physical manifestation in their mind.
Ayize had lost her parents at a young age. So young, in fact, that she remembered very little if anything about them. All that her orphanage knew about her was that she had been found in the wreckage of an abandoned hut on the outskirts of town and she had been missing her right front leg.

The zebra had never fit in. The orphanage staff couldn’t help but blame themselves, in a way – they had failed to notice how poorly she was treated by the other foals, usually ending up shunned, left alone and sometimes even openly ridiculed. By the time they got them to dial back on their behaviour, the damage had been done. Ayize was hurt badly, and nothing they did could make her feel any better.

Ayize’s only comfort was technology. Without any toys to play with, foals to talk to, or parents to interact with her, she had spent most of her time tinkering with metal, wood, whatever she could find, and adding it to her prosthetic right leg…or just some other project she had in the works. Given the limited funding of the orphanage, it was difficult for them to maintain it, so the bulky metal and plastic thing was primarily just a crutch rather than a functioning limb.

Ayize’s adoption was something that the staff longed for, more for the zebra’s sake than their own. However, her dislike of ponies and her stand-offish personality definitely didn’t help at all when meeting with prospective families, and the simple reality was that most ponies didn’t want to adopt a filly with a physical disability like hers.

Another reality was that they couldn’t allow her to stay forever. One day, they needed to get her to leave. She was surprisingly calm about it – she was a mare of few words, and when she turned 18 it seemed not to change. Still, the mares running the orphanage were simultaneously terrified and heartbroken by the angry stare Ayize gave them as she left.

From the beginning, Ayize never had a chance in life. That was what everypony told her, and she had trouble saying they were wrong. She was homeless, moving from town to town trying to find a job but unable to make one stick. It didn’t help that her constant meddling with her artificial limb made it unpredictable, to the point that she once hit a customer across the face while working as a waitress in Las Pegasus.

She bounced around Equestria with nowhere to go, until she had nowhere left to turn. She spent some time working in Appleloosa, which admittedly lasted longer than any other job she had. For a whole month she lived there just fine, until a particularly prejudiced earth pony decided to confront her in the street.
That pony died in the hospital a week later.

With nowhere to turn, nowhere to go, a leg that was only now starting to function and an attitude that was shifting from lost and terrified to angry and confused, Ayize gave up.
She had planned to throw herself off the edge of Ghastly Gorge. If the fall didn’t kill her, the animals there would, that was her reasoning.

But something didn’t work out. When she was standing there, staring out at the expanse of the gorge, wind whipping through her mane, she found herself feeling less and less confident in her decision. Not because she felt she had more to do, or that she could have a better chance at life – rather, she realized she had so much to learn about technology, so much to gain, so much to innovate…
And the had a long list of ponies she wanted dead, too.

She was shocked how easy it had been to build up a name for herself in the criminal underground of Equestria. Crush a few skulls, raid a few smaller towns, and you’ve got a target on your back the size of a dragon. Ayize relished in it, though – within a year, she had started her own organization – the Gifts of Mutation, as Ayize dubbed it.

The Gifts of Mutation – or GOM, as most law enforcement referred to them – was especially cruel. Many of their recruits went in with no idea of what would happen to them. The group specialized in cybernetic enhancement, most of it administered by Ayize herself, and most of it involving limbs being chopped off. If you were good, you got anesthetic. If not, well.

Ayize was a madmare, that was the way everypony who knew her would describe her…when she wasn’t listening, anyway. Once she had really started making bits, she started changing herself even more. Her bionic right leg had enough power to snap a pony’s head clean off their shoulders, many of her muscles had been cybernetically altered to be far stronger and better than a normal zebra, and her eyes, despite being completely untouched, carried a terrifying gaze that made any pony lock up if they made eye contact.

Even with her troubled background being taken into account, Ayize’s insanity was downright incomprehensible. Surely she must have had a screw loose from the beginning, but it was like there wasn’t a single one holding her together anymore. Any attempt to capture her ended with death, and any attempt to go undercover within her organization to get to her was met with equally fatal results. Truly she was a force to be reckoned with, and her group’s actions got bolder with each new member she obtained. Equestrian services have varying estimates on how many are with her. Even though the majority of their members are visibly enhanced, many are not.

The Royal Guard estimated that her organization stands at least 200 ponies strong, but the MBI (The Monarchial Bureau of Investigation) estimated only 80. Regardless, it was a group that needed to be stopped, and Ayize was a mare without remorse.

There were few solid images of her full body, but the most clear one showed a zebra with very noticeable features. Her mane was worn in a sharp mohawk, with a thick braid running down the back of her neck to contain the excess hair. A scar ran from the top of her left temple across her left eye, and all the way down to that same cheek. Her eyes were the most terrifying part of her – cold, steely, blue orbs that struck fear through even a photograph, and a grimace that displaced surprisingly perfect teeth. Her right foreleg was quite obviously metal, and as strong as the rest of her – more, even, but this was just visual. On the side of her face, slightly covering her left eye was a small visor. No one knew what it was for, but it was presumed to be some kind of communication or scanning device.

Equestria couldn’t risk using any more horsepower to try to kill Ayize, or lead any more attacks on their organization. To deal with her, they were running out of options. Celestia only realized what a threat they were in the last year, too busy dealing with the aftermath of Dusk Rider’s recent exploits to understand the full extent of the GOM’s power.

Celestia only had one option, the way she saw it. But she was fairly certain it wouldn’t work out in her favour…

Invitation

In all honesty, Lazuli had barely expected to live to the age of thirty-eight, let alone live a normal life to get to that point. It was a huge shock for her, at first, but it had been surprisingly easy to settle into normality once she knew the last reminder of her past was safely under her control and locked in her closet, and the only living reminder was locked away in Canterlot with no chance of escaping.

Her life, in essence, had reached a point that any mare dreamt of. Living in a small town, sitting behind a desk for some of the day and spending the rest with friends – it was perfect. Working as the mayor’s secretary never really got boring, and she knew almost everyone in town at this point.

Her demeanor had mellowed significantly, her eyes showing more kindness and peace than they used to. She often had glasses on, simply because she was reading a lot during her job, and her mane was tied in a bun rather than a ponytail.

Fizzlepop had changed very little. She still kept her mane in its stylish pink mohawk, and not much else about her could change, regardless, but Lazuli still loved her. Both of them insisted their friendship was purely platonic, but ponies like Rarity or Fluttershy could see right through it.

It was on a warm summer’s day that Lazuli found herself trotting down the street, enjoying the heat and the warmth – both were separate in her mind, as one was the temperature and the other was the simple warmth that surrounded the town.

“Laz!” Called a voice from down the road. She spotted Starlight, a wide smile plastered on her face, waving at her. Lazuli almost resented her, but only because she showed such little signs of change while the Dracony had gained a bit of weight around the middle. Only a bit – she would never admit to anything more.

She allowed herself to walk closer before responding. “Morning, Starlight. What’s up?”

“I haven’t seen you all day! Where’ve you been?”

“Just at the schoolhouse, talking about history.”

“Oof. Sounds uh…” Starlight’s eyes darted from side to side. “Fun!”

Lazuli snorted. “Sure, I guess.”

“Oh, don’t be a butt.” Starlight bumped her hip against the Dracony’s. “It’s good to educate foals!”

“Maybe, and I suppose it’s better than them getting it from a…not-Dracony, right?”

“See, there you go.” Starlight hoisted her saddlebags up on her back, filled with a few papers and writing utensils.

“What’re you up to, then?” Laz asked inquisitively.

“Oh, just going to work on a few spells. Studies never stop, you know?”

“I suppose not.”

“Speaking of work, shouldn’t you be at Town Hall?”

“Oh, no. I got somepony to cover for me. I thought the schoolhouse talk would take longer.”

Starlight snickered. “Well you’ve got a day off now, right?”

“…I guess I do.” Lazuli smiled warmly. “You heading to the castle too?”

“Prrrrobably.” Starlight nodded. “I dunno, I might walk around a little first. I also have to get a dress made…”

“Er…a dress? For what?” Lazuli tilted her head.

“Oh, uh…nothing! I gotta go, I’ll see you later.” Starlight started to trot away without another word.

Lazuli rolled her eyes and slowly continued down the road to the castle. Having been in Ponyville for a few years – one of them filled with hectic problems, a major blizzard and the toppling of a criminal organization – ponies here knew her quite well. It was hard not to know the only Dracony in town, and she was fine with the attention.

She still lived in the castle, as did Fizzle. Why would they not, really? It was the ideal living area, and as long as nopony else needed it, why waste residential spaces when there were alternatives?

She told herself that, anyway. She was still more than happy with living in the same room as always, and she was even happier to nudge open the door and find Fizzle there, the purple unicorn stretching on her bed.

“Oh, hey Laz!” She greeted, her smile beaming in a way that Lazuli half thought she would melt from its intensity. “What’s up? Thought you wouldn’t be back for a while.”

“Eh, turns out it’s not that hard to summarize Dracony history to a bunch of teens.”

“Pssh.” Fizzle snickered and raised her hindquarters up, kicking one leg out, then bringing it back in, then kicking the other one out, and repeating.

“Oh, did I get any mail today, by the way? I was waiting for my issue of-“ Lazuli began.

“Nope!” Fizzlepop blurted out. “Er…I mean…no, sorry. I uh, checked for you.”

“…why?” She tilted her head. “I mean I’m glad, but…”

Fizzlepop cleared her throat. “Well uh…you did get one piece of mail, but uh…I dunno if you…want to see it.”

“What is it?”

“Um…” The stretching mare sighed and flopped onto her stomach, reaching under the bed and pulling out an envelope. “It’s um…from Canterlot.”

Lazuli shrugged and took the envelope from her. “So?” She ripped the seal open with her tail, pulling out the letter and unfolding it.

Dear Lazuli,

I apologize if this letter fails to reach you in time, but I wanted to wish you a most joyous birthday. It is rare that I write such personal letters as this, but I feel that after all you’ve done, your fortieth birthday is a happy occasion. In fact, Princess Luna and I would be most happy to come and visit Ponyville simply to see you for the party, if possible.

Enclosed is a small gift that I offer to you as a token of good will. I know it has been many moons since we last spoke in the flesh, but I hope that your feelings towards us have not soured even further.

Sincerely,

---Princess Celestia.

Lazuli smirked. “See? It’s nothing bad, calm yourself.” She gave Fizzle a poke on the muzzle, making the unicorn snort in an adorable fashion.

“Well what’s it say?” She rolled over on her back, head hanging slightly off the side of her bed.

“It’s just a happy birthday letter. With something else, apparently.” She turned the envelope upside down, but nothing came out. It was empty.

“Um…look on the back?” Fizzle suggested, her expression showing she saw something already.

Lazuli turned the letter over. Taped to the back of it were two shiny golden tickets, each gleaming and quite obvious as to what they granted access to.

“…huh.” She pulled them off, and held them in her hoof. “Why is she only inviting us now?”

“Well don’t be ungrateful!” Fizzle smiled and hopped over to Lazuli’s bed, sitting down next to her. “…oh, wait. Does this mean I need to get a dress made?”

“…and so do I…” Lazuli frowned.

Fizzle playfully pulled Lazuli down onto the bed, a wide smile plastered on her muzzle as she pushed her nose into Lazuli’s neck. “Stop being such a sourpuss, I bet you’ll look great in a dress.”

“Pfft, you’ll look better.”

“Not a competition~”

The two of them laid there in Lazuli’s bed for a while, enjoying each other’s company and chatting about their plans – namely to complain about all the rich ponies – for the Gala.

The Gala

The Grand Galloping Gala was an occasion that every hoity-toity (or at least, that was how Applejack phrased it) noble in Canterlot attended. It was considered a status symbol just to get a ticket – and Lazuli was fairly certain she was the only Dracony to ever get in as anything more than service staff.

It didn’t help that her last trip to Canterlot had not exactly been pleasant. With her faked execution that she was fairly certain was the cause of any nightmares she still had, the time she spent in the jail cell and it being the staging area for her essentially overthrowing the government of her own land, it wasn’t exactly seen in a positive light for her.

Fizzlepop was a similar way. While most ponies had either forgotten about her or forgiven her, she felt out of place. It was her that had brought an entire army to Canterlot, turned their princesses to stone and nearly brought Equestria to ruin by stealing their magic for her old master. Both Lazuli and Fizzlepop did not have fond memories of Canterlot, but they hoped that this night would help.

Both of their dresses were simple, as much as Rarity tried to convolute them. Fizzle was fashioned in a dark black dress with bluish fringes, somewhat matching the style her armour used to have. She wore hoof cups that were made out of some kind of solid material, she just couldn’t place what it was.

Lazuli’s dress had her in a state of constant grump, even though it was quite gorgeous. The blue hues matched her eyes, and the dress itself had room for her tail to stick out the back – if it had pushed the skirt up to stick out, obviously it would not have been attractive, so there was a hole at the back for it. She also had hoof cups on, but hers were not as solid.

They had both arrived and were currently walking with Twilight and her friends, all of whom were in their own fancy and quite a bit more exotic dresses.

“I do not go ‘tink tink’ when I walk.” Fizzle growled, but it was a playful sort of tone. “And it is not adorable.”

“Whatever you say~” Lazuli bumped her hip up against Fizzle’s side, giggling softly. “Still, it’s cute.”

As Fizzle walked, her hooves did in fact clink and clack against the ground, much like they had when she wore armour. “Hrmph. Well…you…uh.” She glanced at Lazuli, looking around her to find something to make fun of in turn, but there wasn’t much. “Mmph…notch-ear…”

“Oh wow, good one.” Lazuli couldn’t hold back a bit of a louder laugh, but something was hiding beneath it. Fizzle knew her well enough to tell.

“Hey.” She stopped, letting Twilight and her friends go ahead. “You’re nervous, right?”

“Oh come on, we had a good thing going…”

“Lazuli, all you need to do is relax. It’s a party, like Pinkie’s! Just…less balloons, and more erm…rich.”

“It’s…not that.” Lazuli sighed and looked over at the drawbridge to Canterlot castle. “That party is going to be filled with noble ponies.”

“So?” Fizzle tilted her head.

Lazuli closed her eyes and gently let her head sway from side to side. “I’m a Dracony. And I’m not anypony important. Even if I told them the princess invited me, they’d think I’m some kind of charity case.”

“Oh, don’t be like that.” Fizzle frowned and put a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “Nobles look down on anyone who isn’t…a noble.”

“Yeah, well…mmp. You’re right I guess…”

“Come on. You’re being silly.”

Lazuli resigned herself, and started walking across the bridge with Fizzle.

The Gala was the same as Rainbow Dash had cared to call it – dull. That wasn’t the word she had used, but Lazuli didn’t have a problem with it, in reality. The quiet music, gentle conversation…it was relaxing in some ways.

At the gate, the two of them handed the guards their tickets. Fizzle’s was barely given a second look, but the Pegasus who accepted her ticket was careful to turn Lazuli’s over a few times before letting her pass. She shot Fizzle a look, and the unicorn just winced.

Already she had lost track of Twilight and her friends, so her plan to stick with them was already failing. She kept close to Fizzle anyway.

A few nobles gave them odd looks. Fizzlepop was regarded with at least a normal amount of respect, though her broken horn drew more than a few stares. Lazuli, however, was the target of multiple smirks and snickers. It took a bit of restraint to avoid saying anything.

It certainly didn’t help that Lazuli walked with a bit of a limp, given she had decided to forgo her leg braces for tonight. It wasn’t extremely noticeable, but with ponies already scrutinizing her very existence it was hard not to be a point of conversation for the whispering (or very audibly remarking) nobility filling the ball room.

Smells of coins and desperation, Lazuli thought to herself.

Celestia was easy to spot. She was standing at the top of a flight of stairs in the rear-center of the room…with a long line of ponies walking up to greet her. Twilight was there as well, and presumably Luna was either spending time in the dreamscape or just avoiding the Gala altogether.

“Um.” She spoke out loud, glancing briefly at her taller unicorn companion.

“Um…” Fizzle parroted, clearing her throat. “What, exactly?”

“I don’t want to talk to her.”

“What? But she invited us, Laz.”

“Let’s just avoid her, okay?”

“We’re spending at least a little time here, okay? The princess was nice enough to let us in for free with Twilight and her friends, it’s not something we should just push aside. You know?”

“Fine. But we’re avoiding her.”

“Whatever you say, miss party-pooper.”

The two of them wandered around the party for a bit longer, taking in the sights, sounds, smells and – when they got to it – some of the food. Lazuli had to admit that Canterlot food was pretty amazing, even though her only point of comparison was street food and Ponyville fare – ‘carnival’ fare, as nobles would put it.

It wasn’t until later in the night that Lazuli was starting to feel a bit worn out. They briefly encountered Rarity, who mentioned – after multiple mentions of how gorgeous their gowns were – that they planned to leave in about an hour, if the two of them wanted to come back with them.

“Should we go now?” Lazuli asked, turning to Fizzlepop, who looked just about as tired as her.

“Yeah, whenever they go.”

“Mmhm.” The Dracony yawned, and shifted to one side.

Lazuli began to turn around, only to come face-to-metal with a golden chestplate beset with a purple jewel. She nearly bumped right into it, and Celestia stepped back just a bit.

“Oh, Lazuli!” The princess smiled warmly, having apparently abandoned her ‘post’ to come and mingle within the last thirty seconds or so, and conveniently had walked to the exact spot Lazuli was headed. “I’m quite glad you decided to come. I know parties like these aren’t exactly your style…”

“Well, it’s more the ponies.” Lazuli smiled back at her. “But thank you, Princess. I was hoping to get to talk to you again.”

“Ah, as was I! Er…wanting to talk to you, of course. But…there is something I would prefer to discuss in private. Shall we?”

The Dracony looked back at Fizzle. “You’ll be okay?”

“I’ll be fine, Laz. Go on.” The unicorn waved a hoof.

With encouragement that she wasn’t leaving too early, she trotted alongside Celestia. The sight of a Dracony walking beside the princess was clearly giving several nobles the early stages of an aneurism, which Lazuli couldn’t help but grin at.

Celestia and Lazuli’s walk took them to the castle gardens, which were devoid of any ponies wandering outside. Once they were far enough away from the castle, Celestia began to talk.

“How have you been, Lazuli?”

“Well…” The Dracony shrugged. “Decent. About the same as when you came to my party a few months ago.”

“Mmm.” Celestia nodded. “I suppose it is not worth wasting your time, here. I shall get to the point.”

The two of them walked for a few more seconds before Celestia stopped. “I need you to do something for me. Something for us.”

“And what would that be?” Lazuli tilted her head.

Celestia cleared her throat, thinking for a moment about how to phrase her request. “I want to make it very clear that you are under no obligation to say yes to what I am about to ask.”

“…mhm…”

“And I apologize if it is in bad taste…”

“…mmmhmm…”

“But…there is a noble at this party who is known to be…how do I put this…an extremely unsavoury character.”

Lazuli stayed quiet and maintained eye contact with Celestia. “Erm…right.” The princess cleared her throat again. “Well…are you at all familiar with a group known as the…Gifts of Mutation?”

“…the GoM? I’m…kind of aware, yeah.”

“Well, they are a group known for raiding small towns and committing mass arson and burglary. Their most notable feature is that all of their members have been mechanically enhanced in one way or another.”

Lazuli rubbed her chin with a hoof. “Uh-huh…sounds familiar. Run by a zebra, by any chance?”

“That is them, yes.” Celestia nodded her head, glad that she wouldn’t need to explain every last detail. “As of late, this group has become…quite an issue. Their actions have been growing bolder, and their numbers are increasing. The Royal Guard had been attempting to arrest its members for quite some time now, but…well…”

“Too strong?” Lazuli asked.

Celestia frowned and slowly bowed her head. “Yes. Their enhancements are typically too much for an average pony to overpower. We have been trying to get at their leader, which we believe would easily topple an organization run with only her at the helm – but as I’ve just said, it is nearly impossible.”

The Dracony held up a hoof, closing her eyes. “Right. I can already tell where this is going. You want me to kill her, right?”

“Well, I wouldn’t put it so bluntly, but…”

“The answer is-…” Lazuli paused. Her mind began to race, gears turning in her head. Celestia stood by, inquisitively regarding the mare before her as she considered her response. “…what would I get out of this?”

The Princess winced. “Well unfortunately, we have no idea what you would desire. If you were to take the job…what would you like to receive in return?”

“Well…” Lazuli scratched her chin. “I…I have no idea, actually. I kind of have everything I want…” Her tail gently dragged along the ground, digging through the dirt. “And I’m not exactly sure I want to take on a legion of robo-ponies at the risk of losing it all.”

Celestia’s expression went from hopeful to somewhat downtrodden, a grimace forming on her face. “I was afraid of that. I do apologize.”

“But…” Lazuli continued, and hung her head a bit. “I do still owe you, of course. My rap sheet wasn’t exactly expunged just because I killed one corrupt noble, and even if you say you won’t hold it against me, I feel like I’m kind of obligated.”

“Lazuli, you truly do not have to accept this if you do not wish to.”

“Well…I’m accepting it anyway. That’s that. Do you have some sort of information package for her?”

A brown folder materialized in a golden flash of magical energy, levitated in the air by Celestia. “This has all of the information you will need.” She lowered it to Lazuli, who tucked it between one of the bands on her dress and her body. “I wish you luck. There isn’t a time limit, of course…but I would prefer if you could take it on before they lay waste to more homes.”

“I’ll do it, don’t worry.” Lazuli ran her tail along the surface of the folder, then slowly dragged the blue band tight against it to hide it from view. “I’ll write you a letter when I’m done.”

“Are you sure you want to do this, Lazuli?”

“Yep.”

“Are you sure you…can?”

Lazuli paused, the question hitting her a bit harder than it should have. In all honesty, she wasn’t sure. She needed braces to run for extended periods, she didn’t have her wings, and she was out of practice. She’d need to train a bit before she could be confident in her abilities, but…

“…yes.” She finally said, nodding her head slowly. “I think I can.”

“If you’re sure, then I wish you good luck.” Celestia bowed her head, the tip of her horn nearly touching Lazuli’s forehead before she took a few steps back. “Now, I must get back to the party, and I think you should get back to Fizzlepop.”

A smirk came to Lazuli’s lips, and she couldn’t help but giggle a bit. She didn’t know why, but something about this felt…right, even though it really shouldn’t have. “Yeah. She’s probably not gonna be happy…”

Departure

“Are you sure you’ll be okay, Laz?” Fizzlepop said, her voice practically allowing no silence for the past ten minutes.

“Fizz, you’ve been asking for the past hour, and I keep telling you I’ll be fine. I’m training along the way, and I’ve been training for two weeks. I’ll be fine.”

“But…but you’re not-…” Fizzle nibbled on the tip of one of her hooves. “At least let me come with you.”

“No. Too dangerous. Besides, I need to be stealthy, and…you tink-tink a lot.”

Fizzlepop’s expression went from worry to minor annoyance. “I told you, I don’t do that.”

“Suuuuure.” Lazuli smirked and flicked her tail, keeping it out straight as she began to slide her tight, pitch black combat suit on.

Even after a few years of being completely unused, the suit fit her like a glove. She was a bit surprised that there was no tightness at all, despite the fact that she only exercised in the barest sense and that her pastry consumption levels had gone up exponentially since she first met Pinkie Pie. Almost immediately after putting it on she removed it, knowing she couldn’t go out in public like this. She folded the suit up, placing it in her left saddle bag.

Fizzlepop, although she wouldn’t directly say it, didn’t like seeing Lazuli in the suit. It made the mare look a lot more…sinister. It didn’t help that Laz had elected to take the bun out of her mane and sweep it to one side like she used to, letting it drape very slightly over one eye.

It had been two weeks since they had returned from the Gala, and Lazuli had been training heavily ever since.

The unicorn spoke up again. “I…I really don’t like you doing this, Laz. You can’t even fly anymore, what if they corner you?”

“They won’t.”

“Laz, you- I-…” Fizzle struggled to form the right words. “I don’t…like this. At all. You’re not the same way you used to be, and a week or two of travelling and training along the way isn’t going to get you back to the way you were.”

“You’re worrying too much.”

The argumentative voice spoke up louder, gaining more anger by the second. “What if you die, Laz?! What’ll this all have been for if you die out there? You’re so much better off here!”

“Yeah, maybe…but I’m kind of obligated to do it now.”

“No, you’re not! You can send that folder back to the Princess and just say you didn’t want to do it, there’s no harm in that!”

Lazuli paused briefly, sliding her tail under the blade sitting on the floor and starting to place it in her saddlebag. “I can’t do that. When I accept a contract I never-“

“You’re not an assassin, Lazuli!” Fizzlepop walked forward, putting both front hooves on the Dracony’s shoulders. “You’re not. You can’t be anymore. This isn’t safe, even your stubborn head can see that! This is bigger than any contract you had before, and now you’re physically nowhere near the shape you were then!”

“I’ll be fine.”

“No, you won’t.”

“Yes I will.”

“I’m not letting you go.”

“Move.”

Fizzlepop physically tried to hold Lazuli, but the Dracony shrugged her off and started walking towards the door. “I-…” She tried to speak up, but she wasn’t sure what she could say anymore. “I…just…” She sat back against the bed, sighing deeply. “Don’t want to lose another friend…”

The purple unicorn had changed quite a bit since she moved to Ponyville. Her attitude had mellowed out – she wasn’t sure she could fight or kill like Lazuli used to anymore, and she certainly couldn’t go with her in a journey against cybernetically enhanced ponies…but those promises of fixed limbs and enhanced bodies were exactly what made Fizzle nervous.

“I told you I’ll be fine, and I told you I have to do this.” Lazuli replied.

“But why, though?! You’re making it sound like this is something personal, when it isn’t!”

“These ponies go after innocents. They destroy for the sake of destroying and they’re led by a mad mare. The Guard can’t do anything…so I have to at least try.”

The door swung open, and Lazuli began to step outside. “I’m sorry, but I promise I’ll be back. Okay?”

“Y-you…” Fizzlepop shuddered, covering the side of her face. “You can’t promise that, though…”

“I can, and I am.” Lazuli’s tail gripped the handle of the door and began to close it behind her. “I’ll be back. I swear.”

As the door swung shut behind her and fully closed with a click, Fizzlepop was left staring at it and blinking to try and clear her head.

Hearing Lazuli’s hooves disappearing down the corridor, the dark unicorn suddenly stood up and dashed to the closet, dragging out a dusty box that jingled metallically inside.

Some twinge of regret panged at Lazuli’s chest when she got on the train. Regret was quickly mixed with a bit of anxiety, recalling what had happened the last time she was on one alone, but her fears were somewhat allayed by the amount of ponies on the train. While she had been attacked when there were only a few ponies around, this time the train car was at least half full.

She slowly settled herself down in a seat at the far back of the car, reaching into her bags and pulling out the simple beige folder that she had been given. She had skimmed it twice already, but she knew that she would need to have all of the information down perfectly.

Royal Equestrian Guard, Official Document

Dossier: Ayize

Status: Leader of the Gifts of Mutation (Terrorist Organization)

Species: Zebra

Gender: Female

Danger Level: Extreme

Physical Description: Refer to picture enclosed.

Lazuli glanced down at the picture. It was a zebra alright, and she looked unpleasant from the start. Piercing blue eyes, a strong and toned physique, compounded with her right front leg, made completely out of metal. Her mane was styled in a mohawk, similar to Fizzlepop’s, only with a braid of white and grey hair running down the back of her neck to secure whatever couldn’t be forced into the style. She wore a stark grey breastplate on her front, one that she assumed was stolen from the Royal Guard, and underneath it was a tight but padded combat vest. Overtop of it all she had a dark grey coat with metal armour stitched into the shoulders and back flap.

Along her jacket were a few bandoliers that seemed not to contain much besides tools. Lazuli scanned the image for a few seconds, and grimaced slightly. The zebra didn’t look like an easy target, and the photograph had clearly been taken from an extreme distance and zoomed in.

Crimes:

Arson x15

Accomplice to arson x23

Murder x36

Attempted murder x22

Assault: x19

Assault with a deadly weapon x28

The list went on and on. Lazuli was fairly certain that even if her own criminal record was to be put forward in the same way, it wouldn’t fill up an entire page.

The rest of the notes were mainly about past attacks, current affiliated members and known hideouts. The only one Lazuli was interested in was their main base of operations, located deep in the Badlands. In order to get there, she planned to get off of the train at Dodge City and make her way south. While the exact location of the base had never been officially mapped, she was sure it wouldn’t be too difficult to find, especially with what went on there.

She inhaled deeply and slowly closed the folder, slipping it back into her bags. Gazing out the window, she laid her head up against it and allowed the gentle rocking of the train and the sound of the tracks rumbling beneath it lull her into a state of what she called sleep.

The Offer

This was not going to be easy.

That was Lazuli’s first thought as she sat at the edge of the basin, gazing down upon the compound that the GoM called their base of operations. It was extensive, though she couldn’t appreciate its entirety when she was so focused on only one thing inside. The dimming sunlight didn’t help either, but it was to her advantage regardless.

Scraping her tail blade against the sand, she slowly slid over the edge of the basin. While it was a steep fall, it was primarily sand, which made it easy to slide down. At the moment, just as she had hoped, the guards were beginning to change. They had yet to switch on the searchlights, and were currently in the process of switching shifts. Her window of opportunity was small, but she could make it work.

Making it to the fence was the only part with a time constraint. She had to make sure she didn’t move too quickly, since the dust and sand she kicked up would be visible in the light – but she also couldn’t move too slowly. If she was spotted by a single guard she was royally fucked, given that they all had enhancements in one way or another and all of them were probably capable of catching up to her…especially since she didn’t have her wings.

Somehow, she made it to the fence with almost no issue. She took a bit of a risk, pressing herself into the sand right underneath one of the search towers. Typically, in her experience, this was the best place to be. Search towers had an amazing view of the surrounding area and anything in the distance, but they couldn’t see right below them unless the operator of the searchlight physically looked over the edge, which they wouldn’t do unless they were already suspicious.

Staying still for a few seconds, she let herself breathe out. She briefly reached underneath herself, tugging at one of the straps on her suit to keep it tight. Her hind legs weren’t very happy with her at the moment…but she was fine with it.

Moving a bit closer to the fence, she tilted her head towards it and cocked an ear. She listened…

No humming, no crackling. Reaching out with a hoof, she gave it a tap. Not electrified, and no perimeter alarm. For a bunch of high-tech terrorists, that’s surprising…she thought to herself, but counted it as good luck for her.

Climbing the fence was too dangerous, and was way too obvious. Instead, she jammed her tail into one of the openings in the chain-link surface, starting to cut through one wire at a time until she had made a dome shape. It was as small as she could make it, and she was careful not to cut it off of the actual fence.

Wiggling through the hole she had made, Lazuli very carefully folded the metal back into place. Any guard who looked closely enough would see something was wrong, but they would need to be suspicious in the first place. Straightening up, she looked around.

The compound was surprisingly empty. She could hear guards walking – but not many. The dull thump of a hoof was often followed by a mechanical whirring or clicking sound, and she assumed it was from the cybernetics they all had.

Lazuli had picked the closest tower to the main building. In fact, it was right behind it, with only a few tents and a road running through the space between the fence and the central structure. She ducked behind some large crates left out beside the tower, and continued to scan the area.

She found herself taking back what she had said about it not being an easy task. The guards were practically non-existent, and the only real ones she could see were earth ponies. They were gathered at a makeshift table that was just a crate with a cloth draped over it, playing some card game…or something with dice. Or a combination of both. Lazuli couldn’t tell, and it didn’t matter. None of them were looking in her direction, so she started to move forward, keeping herself low against the ground.

The shadow of the factory – she decided to call it that, since that was what it appeared to be – provided excellent cover for her. With her wings strapped to her sides by a thick layer of black fabric that was used to cover the holes her wings previously stuck out through, she was practically invisible in the darkness.

The back door wasn’t a great option. Sure, it would get her into the building the fastest, but it was more dangerous as well. Looking up, she spotted a ventilation shaft…no, still not a good idea. For all she knew, the vents here might spew fire or toxic smoke at random intervals. It was unlikely, but she didn’t exactly want to go through a vent if it was suspended above a furnace or something.

Finally, she settled on a window high above her, about ten metres off the ground. Looking around once more to make sure that none of the guards were watching, she hooked her tail into one of the pipes jutting out of the wall and used it to help pull herself upwards. Latching her hoof around another pipe, she glanced backwards again. Still no suspicion. This place sucks at security…she thought to herself, but it only made her job easier after all.

She had a bit of trouble getting to the window, but once she found a solid hoofhold underneath it, she slowly peeked inside.

The inside of the building was, in fact, a factory. The main floor she was looking at was a wide open assembly line, and through the slightly ajar window she could hear the thunks and hissssses of hydraulics and all sorts of machines working non-stop. Ponies trotted around the cement floor, with varying levels of deformity. Some simply had a robotic limb, some had two or three, but there were some that looked more metal than pony. Lazuli knew for a fact that it would be suicide to even try to engage them, so she needed to stay as quiet as possible.

Pushing the window open, she slowly slid through the opening and hitched herself onto one of the rafters high above the factory floor. She shimmied along until she got to the catwalk that hung over it all, glancing around its whole length to ensure there was no one else up here before moving forward. Every move she made had the catwalk creaking with protest, and she definitely wasn’t fond of it…but she continued along, moving quietly and slowly to keep anyone below from hearing.

Stealth missions were always a lot more tedious than ones where the target was out in the open. It was even more difficult given that Lazuli had no idea where Ayize was, though she could assume that she was somewhere on the upper floors. Even then, given what she knew about her, she could have been wrong.

She was about to reach the other end of the catwalk when she heard a scream from below her. While normally she would be laser-focused on her objective, this time she couldn’t help but look down. The catwalk was more of a grate than a platform, which allowed her to see what was below, albeit a bit grainy.

Cocking one ear, she could also hear the voices below.

“What have I told you about fucking with my machines, Lug Nut?” The voice was female, and made Lazuli uneasy for some reason. She couldn’t see the source, but she could see a quivering stallion lying there on the factory floor. One of his hind legs – his left one, it looked like – was missing, and the stump was sparkling as if a cybernetic limb had been torn out of it.

“I-I’m sorry! I-I was- I was just trying to-…” The stallion tried to defend himself verbally, but his own terror overcame his desire for survival. He stared blankly as the mare approached, stepping into Lazuli’s view.

It was Ayize. There was no mistaking her. The vest she wore covered her upper body, and her right front hoof clanged noisily against the concrete floor, her eyes locked right onto the stallion cowering before her. “Trying to what? Slow down everyone else? You fucking broke the machine, dumbass!

“N-no, I-…I- I was…” The stallion, Lazuli realized, couldn’t have been older then twenty-five.

Ayize lifted her metal hoof and brought it down on his chest. The stallion winced, a small yelp escaping him, but she hadn’t hit hard. More like a nudge than a punch, though she was now pinning him down. “You’re fucking pathetic. I want you to stand up to me, dumbass! Not fall on your ass and start begging!”

“S-sorry, I-…”

“No, not fucking sorry! For fuck’s sake, why am I even spending time upgrading you useless piles of shit?!”

“B-but ma’am, it’s only my f-first week-!” The stallion begn, but Ayize brought her hoof up again. Lazuli’s muscles twitched. She had to resist the urge to jump down as she watched the metal limb swing down…and crash right into the stallion’s skull with a sickening crunch.

Lazuli did the same as every other pony on the factory floor, and looked away. She had seen plenty of gore in her life, but something about this rubbed her the wrong way. Knowing Ayize, it was entirely possible that the stallion had done nothing wrong…hell, he might not have even been willing to work for her. But that was just speculation on her part. At least she knew where Ayize was now…

As she was about to start moving again, she heard the zebra speak up again. “Everyone, your shifts are done. Can’t do anything with the machines when they’re broken. Someone clean up this asshole and take the night off. I’m heading upstairs.”

Well, there was Lazuli’s answer. The clopping of hooves and murmuring voices accompanied her announcement, and Lazuli heard the machinery in the room begin to slow down and stop.

The Dracony shimmied all the way to the other end of the catwalk, and sat there for a few minutes. She was right at another window, but she knew this one didn’t lead outside. She would have to take the risk to see what was inside…and just hope there was no one there, or if there was, that they weren’t decked out in cybernetics and enhancements.

Finally, she reached up with her hoof and pushed at the window. It swung open easily, opening up to the interior of a nicely furnished and sizeable office area. On the opposite end of the room sat quite a few heavily stacked bookshelves. The desk was sitting against the wall to the left of the window, and the door to the office itself was on the right. She glanced behind her, then wiggled her way into the window and shut it behind herself.

Lazuli was surprised by how easy it had been. It was like their security was flat-out turned off, or they had just gotten extremely lax. Then again, she imagined the Royal Guard wasn’t exactly stealthy with any attempts they made, so maybe that confidence in their ability was warranted on the GoM’s side.

She sighed deeply as she shut the window, slowly looking around. The office was simple enough, though the view it had – overlooking the factory floor – made it seem like it was for a supervisor. Stretching herself out, the Dracony began to head for the door…

Only to have it swing open. Out of instinct she leapt into the air, narrowly managing to grab one of the beams above and cling to it, swinging herself around so she was laying flat on top of it. Dust made her nose twitch, but she knew how to force herself not to sneeze.

As the door opened, she heard the clanging of metal against tile before anything else. It took her mind a second to realize that the mare entering the room was Ayize, wearing the same vest and random assortment of baubles that she had before.

The zebra snorted as she stepped inside, glancing out the window to gaze over the factory floor. “Idiots…” She muttered, and Lazuli presumed that she was talking about the ponies working down there. “All of them. I need better henchmen…” She mused, slowly trotting to her desk and sitting down.

Ayize briefly remained silent, her cold, blue eyes scanning the room. Eventually, Lazuli saw her head stop, staring at the window…specifically, the section that she had come in through. She still stayed quiet, her lips curling into a bit of a grin, though from Lazuli’s position above her she couldn’t quite see the expression.

“Hm.” Ayize mumbled, bringing her metal hoof up to her chin. “Didn’t expect you to get here so early…Dusk.”

Lazuli’s eye twitched, but she remained silent and clutched the beam tighter. Her tail curled around it, holding her there.

“You know that I know you’re there, so just come out already. You can’t outsmart me.” Ayize crossed her hooves over her chest. “I’m not going to hurt you. It’d be a shame to kill you twice. Just come out.”

Again, Lazuli didn’t move…but her professionalism could only last so long. She hadn’t spoken the entire time she had been in the building, but she finally swung herself over the edge of the beam, dropping to the ground so she was facing Ayize.

There was one thing Lazuli couldn’t deny about the zebra – her stare was intense. Those steely blue eyes stared right into hers, and she was just glad that her own confidence hadn’t been taken from her along with most of her assassin abilities over the years. “Hey.” She said calmly.

Ayize leaned forward in her chair, resting her hooves on the desk and her chin upon those. “I honestly didn’t expect you here tonight, Dusk. I wasn’t even ready to believe my scouts when they said it was you…I suppose you have more tricks up your sleeve than I knew about.”

“Sorry, do we know each other?” Lazuli frowned, brushing her mane out of her eye. “I mean, have we met?”

“No, not really.” Ayize shook her head. “I’ve seen you around though. I contracted you a few times.”

“Mmhm.”

“What, don’t believe me?”

Lazuli stretched herself out, whipping her tail back and forth. “You’re going somewhere with this, right? You would’ve tried to attack me already if you didn’t have something to say.” She raised an eyebrow, which earned a slight smirk from the zebra across from her.

“Well…you’re not wrong there. Have a seat, won’t you?”

“I’m not too keen on sitting in a chair set in front of a crazy mare’s desk.” Lazuli replied.

“You flatter me.” Ayize’s voice darkened just a bit. “Please, have a seat.”

The Dracony, seeing that any chance to get closer was a chance worth taking, slowly trotted forward and sat down in the chair across from Ayize. “Alright, so what is it? A bribe, a threat, or…?”

“Well…it’s a bit of the first, minus the er…how do I put it…temporary nature of money.” The cybernetic zebra smiled again, leaning forward just a bit more. Lazuli noted the way her body was – relaxed, not ready at all for combat. She didn’t have her guard up at all. And yet, she was interested enough in the zebra’s words to continue listening without taking advantage.

Ayize paused for a minute, figuring out what words to use. “Now…as I understand it, you’ve been through a great deal since you…died, yes? And yet I haven’t seen you acting upon any contracts at all.”

“I don’t do it anymore, if I’m being honest.”

“What reason do you have to be honest with me? I’m a target, am I not?”

“Yeah. Exactly. No one’s spreading secrets when they’re dead.”

The leader seemed taken aback for a second, but her smile returned quickly. “I see. Well…” She stood up from her desk, hitting a button underneath. Almost immediately Lazuli moved, but metal cuffs came out of the armrests of the chair, pinning her arms down. Her legs were cuffed in a similar manner, and her tail couldn’t do much if she was sitting on it like this, unless Ayize stood in front of her. She internally cursed herself – she had been too trusting, right off the bat. Was this really how far she had fallen?

Ayize seemed surprised that it had worked, too. “…oh. Well…that wasn’t my plan, but I suppose this works twice as well, doesn’t it? Based on your reputation, I thought not a single one of those would have caught you.” She patted herself on the back, literally, with her metal hoof. “Now…as I was saying…”

Lazuli had at least been prepared for it, although she clearly didn’t have the reflexes for avoiding the trap. Her tail swung upwards, slashing at the cuffs on her hind legs in the process. Flexing her core muscles, she swung herself backwards, slamming the chair into the ground behind her and smashing it into splinters. Her tail quickly cut the other two cuffs off, her heart beating a few ticks faster as she kept her eyes glued to Ayize.

“Ah.” Ayize nodded. “Well that’s smart, I suppose. Get rid of the trap in the room before fighting your opponent, not a bad idea.”

Lazuli had to admit that it was intimidating when Ayize got into a more battle-ready position. Her metal limb was held slightly in front of the other, her whole body crouched lower to the ground. It was fairly clear that the zebra was more of a tank than an agile fighter, but that didn’t make her any less dangerous. As she crouched lower, Lazuli watched her metal leg whirr and shift in place, preparing for combat. This was exactly what Lazuli had hoped wouldn’t happen on this mission, but she just had to hope her training over the last three weeks or so had been enough.

She could tell that Ayize was wary, though. Even though Lazuli had been out of the public eye for years now, her reputation among more well-read criminals still stood. No one had ever escaped when she was contracted against them, at least not in any way that was recorded. The zebra was understandably cautious…but with a small crick of her neck, that caution seemed to be thrown to the breeze.

Lazuli was surprised when she charged forward. The thundering of her powerful legs against the ground gave away how much power she had, but Lazuli knew that power didn’t always mean an advantage. Her own muscles tensed and she dodged to the side…but something didn’t feel right. As she transferred her weight to her hind legs, they both buckled under the sudden force and she fell sideways. While she did avoid Ayize’s charge, she was now scrambling to get up.

The zebra saw Lazuli fall, and immediately spun to catch her off guard – but then she stopped. Her head tilted slightly, ears twitching. This was Dusk Rider, right? Or had she just been presumptuous and assumed that every Dracony with blue hair was her?

Lazuli got back to her hooves, trying to hide her nerves by scowling at Ayize. Even her glare had lost its effect though…especially on a zebra who had one of her own.

Ayize ran forward again, but this time she wasn’t just charging. She stopped a foot away from Lazuli, ducking under a stab from the Dracony’s tail and swinging her heavily armoured metal hoof towards Lazuli’s head. Lazuli instinctively brought her leg up to block it…but that was a terrible decision. A painful CRACK echoed through the room as the two limbs made contact, Lazuli howling in pain at the sensation. Nothing was broken, she was fairly sure, but she heard a familiar, yet still extremely painful pop as her shoulder was dislocated.

Ayize took advantage of the Dracony’s mistake, rearing up on her hind legs and slamming her remaining foreleg into her chest. Lazuli was thrown backwards, knocked into the far wall before dropping flat on her face, clutching her injured leg and breathing heavily through clenched teeth.

“Is this…seriously you, Dusk?” Ayize said slowly, pacing towards the Dracony as though she weren’t even a threat. She watched Lazuli’s tail held above her head, and kept at a distance where it couldn’t strike her.

Lazuli gritted her teeth harder. Admittedly, she was ashamed of herself. She knew three weeks hadn’t been enough. In fact, she knew she shouldn’t have taken this job. “It’s…Lazuli…” She said slowly.

“…Lazuli? So is that your real name, or are you just some Dracony trying to act like Dusk, then?” Ayize replied. Lazuli lifted her head, her bright blue eyes locking onto the zebra’s.

“Yeah, it’s me…” Lazuli winced as she tried to stand. Her leg was throbbing, and she could barely move it. She stood, but only with her injured leg dangling a bit off of the floor.

Ayize remained silent for a few seconds, watching the injured Dracony’s movements. “…huh. So you really let yourself go, huh? I was wondering why your wings weren’t working.”

Lazuli didn’t reply. Ayize spoke again. “You know, the only thing that injured you there was yourself.”

“What?” Lazuli grunted.

“You. You did that. If you had just dodged, or maybe been a bit stronger, you wouldn’t have gotten hurt there. And maybe if your legs weren’t so…weak.”

Lazuli’s gaze wavered, her eyes shimmering a bit. “I didn’t want to do this. I was obligated.”

“To who, someone you owe bits to?” Ayize slowly backed up, leaning back on her desk and tilting her head. “Actually, no, nevermind. Listen…Lazuli, right?” She waited for a response, and finding none was given, she continued. “You ever wanted to use your wings again?”

“That’s a stupid question. Of course I do.”

“And you want to use your legs like you used to as well, right?”

“…where are you going with this…?”

A snort rippled out of the zebra’s nose. “Are you seriously not getting what I’m saying here? Okay, let me spell it out.” She shifted back, sitting up on her desk properly.

“You’re Dusk Rider. You’re probably one of the most infamous assassins in modern Equestria. Am I right there?” She asked, earning only a slight shrug and a nod from Lazuli. “So, I’d be kind of stupid to kill you. I’d also be stupid to let you go, especially since you’re as…erm…” She tapped her chin. “Injured as you are. So…” She leaned back, resting both of her hooves behind her on the desk. “I’m making an offer.”

Lazuli barely reacted, but a small twitch in her lip gave away her interest. “What kind of offer?”

“I want to take you into the GoM. Not even as a proper member really…let’s call you an experiment. I’ve never worked on a Dracony before.”

“You really think I’ll say yes to being an experiment?” Lazuli’s eyes narrowed.

“You’re not seeing the picture here. Your wings don’t work. Your legs are clearly shot, I could tell there. I can tell you’re not…yourself. So you know that I could definitely fix you.”

“As if I’d let a madmare grope around and lop off parts of me.” Lazuli snarled, crouching a bit lower.

Ayize put her non-metal hoof to her forehead, inhaling deeply. “You’re really not the smartest mare, are you? I’m offering to fix you. I’d give you new wings, wings that work. I could reinforce your bones, make you stronger and faster than you ever were before. Hell, I could give you two cybernetic hind legs. Dusk, I think you’re missing your opportunity here.”

“I came here to kill you, Ayize. What makes you think I’m going to say yes?”

Lazuli tensed up as Ayize kicked the side of her desk. A panel slid open, revealing a projector that lit up to show an image plastered on the wall to Lazuli’s right.

“Because I know you don’t want to go back to your current life, do you?” Ayize said slowly.

The image on the wall was one that both scared and amazed Lazuli. It was Ponyville – more specifically, an image of Lazuli and Fizzlepop sitting out on the balcony of Twilight’s castle, smiling and talking to each other.

“Wh-…how did you…” Lazuli glanced at Ayize incredulously.

“I know about her, Dusk. I know about how you’ve been living in Ponyville and making friends with ponies there.” Ayize shifted forward, standing up from her desk and walking over to the Dracony, who raised her tail again. The zebra still walked forward, her expression a bit more serious. “I also know a lot about Draconies, and I think you know what I’m talking about…”

Lazuli’s hind legs moved back very slightly, her eyes darting between the picture on the wall and the zebra talking to her. She wondered, briefly, how Ayize had this set up already…but she figured if she had these pictures, she was probably aware of when she arrived at the base, or at least at Clearspring. “I don’t know what you mean.” She frowned gently.

“Yes you do.” Ayize raised her head a bit. “How long does the average Dracony live, Dusk?”

“…” Lazuli remained silent, her eyes shaking as they tried to maintain their focus on Ayize. “…I…” She cleared her throat, swallowing slowly. “I…about…two hundred years, up to three hundred and fifty sometimes…”

Ayize nodded. “Mmhm. And how old are you?” She asked slowly, glancing at the picture herself.

“…thirty-eight.” Lazuli replied.

“And how long does a pony live, on average?”

“…I…they…” Lazuli gulped again. How was a zebra who was known to be an insane sadist getting into her head? “About…eighty years…”

“And Fizzlepop is thirty-three, right?”

Lazuli’s breath caught in her chest. Her mouth moved, but no words came out. “She…sh-she…yes…”

“So.” Ayize’s voice didn’t change, and neither did her face. “You’re telling me that you’d prefer to live there in Ponyville for another seventy years max, having the time of your life with Fizzlepop – that is, IF you two remain friends that long and she doesn’t become senile, and then spend the hundred or more years after that suffering because your one true friend died? You’d prefer that, instead of getting your wings back, getting your legs back to full strength, and being the…excuse me but I don’t have another word for you…badass assassin you used to be?”

Lazuli’s breathing became heavy, trying to maintain a straight face, but her eyes were wide and locked onto Ayize’s.

“Tell you what.” Ayize smiled, but it wasn’t exactly genuine. “Why don’t you head off to wherever you’re staying the night tonight and think about it, hm? Come back to me tomorrow night if you accept.” She held out her non-prosthetic hoof to Lazuli.

Lazuli expected her to be offering a hoof to shake, but instead she continued to reach forward. The zebra’s hoof grabbed hold of her shoulder, forcing it back into place with a painful crrrrccck that made Lazuli yelp, but not much more.

“There, see? All better.” Ayize smirked confidently, slowly shaking Lazuli’s now-mended hoof.

The zebra slowly trotted over to her desk, pushing down on a button and speaking into a microphone bent over on it. “Everyone, may I have your attention please.” Her voice audibly echoed through the factory floor, and presumably the rest of the base. “We have a very special guest here today, and I’d like it if none of you mess with her, got it? So, if any of you see a Dracony walking by, I know you’ll want to tackle her or something, but don’t. She’s going to be one of us soon, anyway.” Her smirk knew no bounds now, shooting Lazuli a wink. “That’ll be all. Go back to whatever you were doing.”

Lazuli stared incredulously, then shook her head. “Alright…well…no promises, but…I…” She gently put weight on her recently injured leg, making sure she could before standing up straight and inhaling deeply. “What do I do…if I decide to say yes?”

“Meet one of my guys at…let’s say Clearspring, eh? Easy enough. Oh, wait, you don’t have your wings…” Ayize tapped her chin with a hoof. “You know, if you just say yes now, wouldn’t be an-“

“I’ll meet them there.” Lazuli said firmly, and opened the door to the office.

“Hmph. Suit yourself.” Ayize sat back on her desk again, not allowing herself to smile any differently until the door closed. Once it did, she started giggling and grinning like a filly who just got a new puppy.

About ten minutes later, Lazuli was walking back to her camp. As she saw the makeshift tent nestled between the rocks, her whole body suddenly felt sore…she couldn’t wait to rest.

But something was wrong.

There was smoke coming from the camp. She hadn’t lit a fire before she left – hell, it would have been stupid to. Something wasn’t right…it wasn’t hot enough to start random fires.

She approached with caution. Her movements were slow, but her aching leg made it hard to stay quiet. As she poked her head around the outcropping of rock to peek at the source of the fire, her heart dropped.

Sitting there, facing the entrance, was a purple unicorn with a lighter purple mohawk and a broken horn. She was wearing her black armour and hoof cups, and tending to a pot that was sitting over a crackling fire.

Once Lazuli made herself visible, Fizzlepop looked up. “Oh.” She said bluntly. “You’re back. So how’d it go?”

Clearspring

The town of Clearspring was a somewhat quiet settlement nestled a few miles to the East of Dodge City. Its population rarely exceeded a hundred, and almost everyone knew everyone. Larger than Ponyville, but much smaller than most other cities. It had gotten its name from the conditions it often had. Due to a low Pegasus population and not really being big enough to be included in most weather patrols, it was clear and beautiful almost every day. The few pegasi who did live there had an obligation to make it rain every so often.

As the train pulled into the station and Lazuli stepped out, she felt a bit of calm tranquility hanging over the town…but something else was there, too. A feeling of unease. A bit of fear, even. It was evident in the way that the ponies on the platform looked at her, their expressions mixed with the southern hospitality that the region was known for and a bit of fear of the unknown. Then again, they had probably never seen a Dracony, so that could have been part of the issue.

She wasn’t going to be staying long, though. She would pop into a store, get the supplies she needed and head out to the Badlands. She wanted her mission to be over as soon as possible, so she could get back home and forget about what she was carrying in her bags forever. Luckily, she had at least been smart enough to bring bits with her, so she could pay for whatever she needed.

Looking around, Lazuli realized she was one of a very small number of ponies getting off the train here. She could see why – Dodge City was far better known, Clearspring was just closer to the Badlands and therefore a better staging area for her. She started to trot forward, using her tail to brush her mane to one side, but she was almost immediately interrupted.

“’Scuse me, miss?”

Her head turned. It was a male voice, but it sounded soft, albeit with a heavy Southern accent. Standing there was an earth pony, with light creamy coloured fur and a brown mane and tail. She couldn’t see his cutie mark from here, but based on his overalls she just assumed he was a farmer of some sort. “Er, yeah?”

“Pardon me, but mind if I ask what y’all are?”

“…um…me? I’m a Dracony.” Lazuli replied. She supposed her assumption was correct.

The stallion’s brow furrowed. “Can’t say I’ve heard of ‘em before…y’all ain’t one of those crazy robot-ponies’ experiments, right?”

“Wha- experiments? No, I’m…just a Dracony.” Lazuli glanced from side to side, an action that seemed suspicious but was primarily just her checking if someone was approaching – it seemed to be just them, though.

“…right. Well I ain’t exactly convinced…we’ve had lotsa trouble with ‘em around here, and I’d wanna keep one of their kind as far away from here ‘s possible.”

“Well, you won’t have to worry.” Lazuli forced a smile. “I’m just buying some things and I’ll be on my way.”

“Buyin’ things and leavin’? But ain’t you just come off the train?”

Lazuli inhaled deeply. “Yes, well…I’m headed into the Badlands.” She almost instantly realized that was the wrong thing to say, the stallion’s body tensing up just a bit and his eyes narrowing.

“So you are with ‘em.”

“No, I’m really not.” She tried to salvage the credibility she had left, clearing her throat. “Actually, if you want the truth…I’m against them.”

The earth pony’s eyes remained fixated on her, but after a few moments his expression softened. “Well, I hope fer your sake that you’re tellin’ the truth. Ya don’t wanna know what we do to them…G-whatevers when we catch ‘em.”

“Right…thanks.” Lazuli nodded slowly and began to trot off of the train platform, rolling her eyes when her back was turned to him.

She could have sworn she heard some odd mechanical whirring when she turned away, but she passed it off since the train was just beginning to pull away.

The general store wasn’t much, but Lazuli wasn’t sure what she had been expecting. It had the essentials of what she needed though, so she was happy for that.

Walking in, she was greeted by a rather chubby and happy looking earth pony mare from behind the counter. She politely waved back and smiled in return, then got down to finding what she needed.

First she went to the back and looked through the various tarps and covers they had. She knew they wouldn’t have proper tents that one could take out of a box and build, but she could improvise fairly easily. Hoisting a large beige tarp onto her back, she moved over to the tools. She picked up a hammer, a few wooden stakes, a survival knife and a few feet of rope. Her tent was the only real thing she would need, at least she assumed so. Plus, her funds were somewhat limited by her own fault, so she kept that in mind.

A few more things were added to her list. Bottled water, a special hat and visor combo designed to protect one’s face against wind and sandstorms, and a medical kit just in case she got more injured than she could afford to let heal on its own.

When she brought it all to the counter, the mare was still cheery, albeit a bit inquisitive. “’S an awful lot of stuff here, hmm? Where’re you plannin’ to go campin’, darling?”

“Oh, yeah.” Lazuli nodded. “I’m actually uh…going a little ways into the Badlands.”

“Badlands? Whew, I’ll wish ya luck on that, hon. Not a lot of ponies go in there just ‘cause…” She sifted through all of the items Lazuli had brought, then rang up the total. “All this’ll be a hundred and fifty, hon.”

Lazuli winced, but was glad she had enough. Digging into her saddlebags she pulled out her coin pouch, noting that the mare behind the counter held her gaze on the black cloth jutting out of the Dracony’s bag for a few seconds while she counted out the coins. Finally dumping what amounted to a hundred and fifty on the counter, she started to gather up the items and put the smaller ones in her bags.

The earth pony mare leaned up against the counter. “What’re you plannin’ to do in the Badlands, anyway?”

“Oh, just…trekking, I guess. I like a challenge.”

“Ya sure that’s all you’re doin’?”

“You’re the second pony to ask me that in this town, but yes, I’m sure.”

The mare snorted. “Ya know…I can smell a liar a mile away.”

“Well…you have a great nose then, I guess. Congrats?” Lazuli put the tarp on her back again, securing it on top of her two bags and putting the hat on her head, keeping the visor pulled up.

The mare, clearly realizing she wouldn’t get a straight answer out of the odd creature in front of her, simply shrugged. “Well y’all better hope I don’t catch ya causin’ any trouble, ya hear? I don’t take lightly to troublemakers…”

“So I’ve heard.” Lazuli grunted as she shifted the weight on her back, forcing on a smile again. “Thank you, though. Trust me, I won’t be causing any trouble here!”

She turned to leave, pushing open the door with her head and stepping back out into the street. The mare watched her leave, then sighed and went back to cleaning off some of the things on the counter. “Poor gal’s gonna get eaten alive out there…”

The Badlands weren’t hard to find on their own, and it was only assisted by a massive sign sitting on the southern edge of the town.

NOW ENTERING THE BADLANDS. (Good Luck)

Lazuli was unperturbed by the sign, and stepped past it. She had to admit that after she really began to get to the deeper parts of the desert, she could see why it would be a problem for normal ponies. Sun beating down, dry sand sinking and sifting under your hooves…it was terrible for anyone.

But it was perfect for Lazuli. Having the heat billowing around her, heat that was even carried in the air, it felt amazing for a cold-blooded creature like herself. Granted, it also made her feel a bit lethargic after a while, but it was a great break from the norm that she experienced in Ponyville.

She trudged through the sand for what felt like, and probably was, hours. The general location of the GoM base was in the very heart of the Badlands – Lazuli ended up walking for nearly five hours straight before she caught the first trace of it.

In the distance, smoke billowed out of a large crater in the sand…or rather, it seemed like a crater at first glance. In reality it was a carved out basin, laid with brick and metal at the bottom. Lazuli crawled all the way to the edge of the basin, lying her stomach down on the sand to look out upon it.

It was like looking into a mad scientist’s deluded wet dream, Lazuli thought. The base itself was a sinister, dark building that looked more like a factory than a base of operations. Smokestacks billowed with exhaust, and Lazuli could only imagine what was churning inside to cause that much pollution. Dotted around the base were smaller, less refined buildings and tents, all surrounded by a tall barbed wire fence. Each corner of the fence was covered by a tall lookout tower, equipped with searchlights and, presumably, each housing a pony. Right now, since the sun was only just beginning to set, she imagined that they would be taking their positions in said towers. Lazuli briefly wondered why the towers weren't designed to crest over the top of the bluffs, but realized fairly quickly that the wind and the height would make such a feat of engineering extremely annoying at best.

It was more than reasonable for her to assume that Ayize was in the main building. She knew her best chance of getting in was probably right about this time of day – when they were just starting to set up the search towers, and the light was only just starting to grow darker. She sat there for a few more minutes, scanning every bit of the base that she could before moving away from the edge of the basin and standing up.

She knew it was dangerous to set up camp out in the open, especially if she was keeping it close to the base. She turned back the way she came and walked a few hundred metres from the artificial valley, to where she had found a fairly sizeable outcropping of rock jutting out of the sand. Finding that the rock was more than large enough to house a tent, and perhaps even protect her from any sandstorms that might arise, she started to set up the tarp with the wooden stakes and rope that she had bought.

Once her tent was pitched and she saw the moon beginning to rise in the sky – for the process was quite fast in Equestria, of course – she decided she would need to take on the mission, or at least a quick scouting mission in the base tomorrow. Pushing open the rudimentary flap she had fashioned for her tent, she laid down a blanket inside and unpacked her saddlebags. First she laid out the medical kit, leaning it up against the rock that she had used to form a wall on one side of her tent, and then she took out her suit and laid it out on the blanket. Her eyes fixated on it for a few seconds before she laid herself down, letting the fading light of day turn into the near pitch-blackness of night. Knowing the desert, it would likely get quite cold, and she just hoped that the tent would protect against the worst of it for now.

As she settled down to sleep, she briefly considered trying to make contact with Luna in her dreams…but she decided against it. Better to do jobs like this with no connection that might distract you, she thought.