One Last Job

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?”