Chapter 16

--- Deception ---

Before me stood the old bunker that the Mayor had told me of. At the edge of town, hidden in the back alleys, just as he said. No guards, no sentries, no traps that were to be seen. Not exactly striking me as a place of bandits and criminals. But it was all I had to go on.

Saskia and I had found the bunker in less than an hour. The wind had picked up a little, the sand blasting us in the face. We stood at the entrance, preparing to head down into the depths.

“I have a bad feeling about this Shadow. I feel no ill intent coming from this place.” Saskia said, referencing her apparent ability to sense emotions.

“I feel it too. Something stinks about this whole mess. But we won’t learn anything out here. Let us venture forth.” I said.

“Agreed.” She answered.

Walking through the door, we found a staircase leading underground. Torches lined the walls as we descended, which was odd to me. But I suppose when one does not have a reactor creating constant electricity like in the stable, you have to make do with what you have.

Once we reached the bottom of the stairs, we found ourselves in a tunnel. Bare of almost anything except the torches lining the wall, some boxes filled with nothing in particular, and broken wood. No sign of life, nothing.

“For a lair of criminals, this place is underwhelming. I would have expected to see a trap, or a lookout.” I said.

“It is odd. You would think that the town guards could have gotten this far and seen there was nothing. Perhaps further down the tunnel?” Saskia said, pointing down the dark corridor.

I nodded, digging into my saddlebags for another vial of Night Eye, chugging it down and allowing my eyes to adjust to the mixture. My view of the tunnel changed as the potion worked its way through my system. Everything became more clear, seeing all the rats and vermin scurrying about.

Saskia eyed me curiously but did not ask. Then she proceeded to walk forward, not seeming to have any trouble seeing in the dark of the tunnel. Perhaps she was just used to this kind of thing. Another odd thing about her to add to the list.

“So what should we be looking for?” She asked.

“Something out of the ordinary. If ponies are hiding down here, they might have markers, or some kind of structure. Easy to get lost in the dark.” I answered.

A noise suddenly came to my ears. I stopped Saskia with a hoof as I scanned the room. It sounded like squeaking, and sure enough, a swarm of rats came running out of a corresponding tunnel. They ran past us, going between our legs. Saskia squealed a little, raising her legs away from the rodents and making swooing gestures.

I chuckled, “Eager to face bandits and raiders, but you get scared by a bunch of rats.”

“I am not scared! I just don’t like the vermin. Foul disease spreading meatsacks.” Saskia said, giving me a glare.

I laughed a little, but looked to the tunnel they came from.

“They might have been spooked by something. Let’s check out that tunnel.” I said.

“Oh yes, go towards whatever spooked the vermin. That always ends well.” Saskia said sarcastically.

Ignoring her comment, I peeked into the tunnel, seeing nothing in particular. As we made our way through, I was getting the feeling we were getting closer to something. A presence filled the air, like we were invading on someone’s territory. The hairs on my neck stood on end.

“Shadow stop!” Saskia yelled.

I immediately froze, my left foreleg in midstep. Saskia moved to me, pointing down at the ground. I looked down and found a mine, hidden under some paper. I had almost stepped on it.

“Damn it. Thanks Saskia, I almost lost my leg there.” I thanked her.

“Looks like your judgement was correct. We appear to be on the right track.” She said, disarming the mine and putting it in her saddlebags.

We combed through the area, finding two more frag mines, a bear trap, and a rigged shotgun at the end of the tunnel, leading out into another longer corridor. I was thankful for Saskia’s help in disarming them, as my magic wasn’t very reliable for these delicate tasks.

The next tunnel had no torches, which was odd as I would imagine more torches would be needed for those ponies that were hiding down here. Things were not adding up.

Saskia and I continued down the corridor, the feeling of us being watched lingering over my shoulder. My senses were all on high alert. My eyes were looking for any kind of movement. And just as I was about to relax, something moved. A small pile of broken wood boxes shifted, ever so slightly. I picked up a rock, signaling Saskia with a silent hoof towards the pile. I threw the rock, angling it just right to land behind the pile.

“Ow!” A voice yelled out.

Just as we heard that noise, a figure jumped out from the pile, firing what looked like a 9 mm pistol in it’s mouth and ran away from us. The bullet missed us by a mile and we ran to pursue the figure.

“Stop!” I yelled out.

The figure ignored my warning, banking left into another corridor. I picked up my speed and raced inside after them. The figure was in my sight, a female earth pony by the look of her. I was right on her tail in minutes.

“Somepony help!” She yelled.

Before I could answer, something tackled me from another tunnel entrance as I passed. We tumbled, fighting to stand our ground. Whatever had tackled me had managed to pin me to the wall with their momentum.

“You stay away from her!” A male’s voice yelled.

He struck me in the head a few times before I could recover. Once I had, I kicked him away. Getting up to face my attacker, I saw he was an earth pony, a decent size and muscle tone. He charged at me again. But I kicked off the wall and jumped over him.

Before he could turn around, I grabbed him in a headlock. Holding him there as he struggled against my strength, Saskia caught up to us.

“Give up. I don’t want to hurt you.” I told him.

“Fuck you! You work for that slimeball mayor. He sent you here to kill us didn’t he?” He yelled at me.

I was about to ask him more questions when Saskia yelled out, “Shadow look out!”

I failed to get out of the way as something picked me up by the mane and threw me off the pony. Saskia caught me in her magic, lowering me to the ground. I drew Venta and readied for their next attack. I didn’t get a chance to look at the newcomer, but they were large and obviously not a pony.

They were on us in seconds, a large axe coming down at us with force. I pushed Saskia aside and blocked the strike with my sword. Our blades clashed with sparks flying, the strength of this fighter was insane. I was thankful my blade was so well made or it would have shattered. Thank you Uncle Forge.

But as we pushed against each other, something about the axe started to look familiar. Then I finally got a good look at the creature. A minotaur.

“Mercer?” I asked.

Suddenly the pressure from the axe stopped, and he drew it back. Saskia came up and shined her horn to illuminate the tunnel. Sure enough, there stood the red minotaur I met earlier that day.

“New friend Shadow? Is that truly you?” Mercer asked.

“Yeah it’s me. What are you doing down here?” I said.

“Mercer is protecting friends. Guards not welcome down here. Why is new friend Shadow here?” Mercer said, lifting his axe and resting it on his shoulder.

“The mayor sent me down here to apprehend criminals that attacked his son.” I said.

“That’s a lie! We are not criminals! If anyone is a criminal, it’s Silver Platter!” The earth pony who attacked me earlier said.

I looked his way and found not only the mare who I had chased, but other ponies as well. Most of them were mares that had several minor injuries. Cuts, bruises and other injuries. I walked towards them, making a few back up in fear.

“What happened to all of you? And what did you mean Silver Platter is the criminal?” I asked.

The mare I had chased came forward, “Silver Platter is a monster. He tortures mares and uses them for his sick pleasure. His brothel is more like a prison where he and his friends can operate with questions.”

My eyes widened at the words and slowly grew to anger, my frown intensifying as the meaning of their words sank in.

Turning to the stallion once again, “Why did you attack Silver Platter?”

“Because he needs to die. My wife disappeared while working at his brothel. When I came to ask about her, he told me she had run off with another stallion to Olympia. But I know she would never leave me.” He said.

The mare came to his side, “I was Jade’s best friend. She was told she got a promotion and was taken upstairs to Silver Platter’s room. No pony but him and his guards are allowed up there unless invited.”

Mercer stepped in, “Mercer believes we should get to the safehouse before talking more. Guards may have followed friend Shadow.”

I nodded. As Saskia moved beside me, Mercer asked, “Who is new pony?”

Saskia smiled at him, “I’m Saskia. I came to help Shadow.”

Mercer smiled back, “Any friend of Shadow is friend to Mercer. Come.”

Mercer led all of us to another tunnel. There he pushed against one of the walls, revealing a secret passageway. All of us made our way inside, walking to a large room that seemed to be a basement. Several other ponies were there, mostly mares with the occasional stallion.

“What is this place Mercer? And why are there so many ponies here?” I asked.

“This is Mercer’s cellar, underneath Mercer’s store. Mercer lets ponies hide here from guards.” Mercer said.

The stallion and mare from before sat between us and the others, both of them were still tense, like they still didn’t trust me. I couldn’t blame them.

“Let us start over, I am Cobalt and this is my friend Tulip. We are working to rescue ponies from the Lotus Garden and help them leave town.” Cobalt said.

I nodded and looked to Tulip, “I am sorry I chased you. I knew something was fishy about this job, but I took it anyway. I hope you can forgive me.”

Tulip looked surprised at my words, and after getting a better look at me in the light of the cellar, her eyes widened.

“Are you the Guardian from Athena’s broadcasts?” Tulip asked.

I hesitated, but eventually nodded my head, not looking them in the eye. Several ponies including Tulip started to get excited, smiles growing on their sad faces.

“With you at our side, we can rescue everyone and leave this terrible place!” Tulip cheered, followed by cheers from the others.

“Slow down, I need to know everything before agreeing to anything.” I said, holding my hoof up.

“Of course, what do you want to know Guardian?” Cobalt asked.

“Just Shadow please. Let’s start with Silver Platter as he seems to be at the center of all this. I met him at the Mayor’s office and I got an odd feeling around him.” I said.

“He is a snake, one who puts on an act for the public to make him look like a gentlecolt. But underneath, he is heartless and foul.” Cobalt said, venom dripping from his words.

“He treats mares like playthings. The bottom floor of the Lotus Garden is for everypony, but the second floor is reserved only for him. Mares who are given a promotion are allowed up there, for more pay and better benefits they are told. But after a while, you notice that those mares are never seen again.” Tulip explained.

“He takes in any mare who comes looking for work. Either as a waitress for the bar, or as a prostitute. No rules except no killing. Mares have no say as to what the customers do to them.” Cobalt said.

The more I heard, the more my blood started to boil. This place sounded like Tartarus for a desperate mare who just needed to make enough caps to live.

“One day, Jade was selected for promotion. I had come to pick her up and take her home, but the guards stopped me at the door and told me to come back later. This went on for two days, and they would not tell me where my wife was. Then Silver Platter came to me, and told me she had run off with another stallion to Olympia.” Cobalt said.

“I found him after work and he asked me about Jade. I told him I hadn't seen her since her promotion. So I asked around the brothel, and the mares told me anypony who went up to the second floor was never heard from again. They say Silver Platter gets them a free pass into Olympia for a better life.” Tulip said.

“But I know that’s a filthy lie. Jade would never leave without me, and she would never abandon me for another stallion. We planned to raise a family once we had the caps to get somewhere safer, like Olympia or Fort Trough.” Cobalt said, tearing starting to form.

Tulip hugged Cobalt to try and calm him down, and I took the break to analyze the information. So mares disappear after their promotion, and supposedly get a free pass to Olympia. But surely somepony would have seen them leave town. And with how far away Olympia was from Sandpit, according to my pipbuck map, the journey would require quite the large escort.

“Any large caravans that come through here often? Enough to reach Olympia?” I asked.

“Not very often. Olympia is about two weeks' travel due to the sandstorms, the wildlife, and getting through Tantabus Pass.” Cobalt answered.

“It’s true. I came from down south, and the journey through the pass is not easy. I doubt Silver Platter as the resources to just give out free trips to Olympia.” Saskia said.

“Knowing that, I agree with you that the Olympia free pass is bullshit. Something else is going on, and the only one who can tell us for sure is Silver Platter.” I said.

“He almost never leaves the Lotus Garden. And he’s got over two dozen guards in there at all times.” Cobalt said.

“Be that as it may, we need to get answers.” I said.

Saskia, who had been silent during this interaction suddenly moved to my side, getting my attention.

“Shadow, what are you planning to do?” She asked.

“We’re going to the Lotus Garden, and confronting Silver Platter.” I answered.

“By yourselves!? That’s suicide!” Tulip yelled.

“He thinks we are working for his father right now. So I doubt the guards will stop us.” I said.

“It shouldn’t be too hard to get past a few guards.” Saskia said, smirking.

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out and a mare’s scream shortly afterwards. This made all of us turn to the door, Mercer moving towards a terminal on the wall. He pressed some buttons and the screen lit up to show us a night vision image of the tunnel. A mare was on the ground, surrounded by four guard ponies holding assault rifles. She was crying, and I could see a bullet wound in her leg.

“Magnolia!” Tulip screamed.

I glared at the screen, then moved towards the door. Pushing it with all my strength, ponies gasped as the heavy stone door moved just enough to let me slip out. I ran out and saw the ponies not too far away. Pulling out Venta and Umbra, I charged at the guards.

They heard me coming, turning towards me as I appeared in their line of sight. They raised their weapons, watching me with tension.

“Guardian, have you completed your task?” One of the guards asked.

“What do you think you’re doing!?” I yelled, pointing to the bleeding mare.

Saskia had caught up to me and was at my side, both Bane and Blight floating in her green magical aura. The guards aimed at her as well.

“We are here under Silver Platter’s orders to retrieve his property.” The guard in front said.

That one sentence made me freeze in place. My body unmoving as my blades hung in the air in my magical aura.

“What did you say?” I said, just loud enough to be heard.

“You deaf? I said we are retrieving Silver Platter’s propert...” He said.

Before he could finish his statement, Umbra had flown through the air, and was lodged in his eye socket. He fell silently to the ground as the blade pierced his brain. The other guards stepped back in fear, but it was too late for them.

I closed the distance in less than a minute, my sword cleaving through the next guard like a hot knife through butter. His combat armor was no match for my steel. I turned to the next one, who had his gun up, but I quickly drew out Desert Rose and put a bullet in his head.

The last one didn’t have time to get his gun up as a spray of bullets from Saskia’s guns ripped through his body. He dropped to the floor dead alongside his fellow guard ponies.

As the last of the guards fell, Tulip and Cobalt had caught up. Tulip cradled Magnolia in her hooves, with Cobalt applying bandages to her leg.

I stood there, above the corpses of the guards. My breath heavy as my anger flowed through me. That bastard had truly lied to me. And he would pay dearly for it.

I turned towards the exit, Saskia calling out to me, “Shadow, where are you going?”

I stopped, but did not turn around.

“The Lotus Garden.” I said.

I started walking again, hearing Saskia behind me. I did not look back. I only moved forward, towards the bastard that had turned me into his errand boy.

“Shadow!” Cobalt yelled.

I didn’t turn my head to look at him, but I waited for what he had to say.

“When you find that rat, find out what happened to my wife Jade, and the other mares who have disappeared.” Cobalt said.

I nodded and continued my silent walk.

As we made it to the exit, one guard was standing watch. When he saw us, he smiled, “Ah Guardian, how does the hunt? You see my buddies down there?”

I said nothing, only moving forward. When I made it to him, a flash could be seen as my sword removed his head from his shoulders. He didn’t even have time to scream.

The Lotus Garden was everything I had expected it to be, a worn out two story building with several posters of ponies in lewd outfits. A large pole was standing in front of the building, an old flag pole by the look of it, but no flag in sight. A second story window right above it, the curtains hiding the inside. The front door was large and made of glass. Two mares stood outside the doors along with two guards.

I walked towards them, the guards recognizing me, “Ah Guardian. Have you completed your task?”

I held my head low as I spoke, “Yes. I am here to speak to Silver Platter, and retrieve my companions.”

“Excellent, go right in.” The guard said.

They allowed Saskia and I through the door, not knowing my true intentions. The inside of the building was nicer than the outside made it out to be. A fine red carpet leading to a front desk. Mares dancing on poles in skimpy outfits, blowing kisses at me and Saskia. I walked to the receptionist desk, a stallion’s face greeting me.

“Ah, you must be the Guardian. Silver Platter has been expecting you. I’m afraid you will have to wait though. He is busy in his office at the moment.” He said.

“Where are my friends?” I asked.

“All in good time. Please have a seat and wait.” He said, pointing to the chairs behind us.

I got up in his face, “I’ll say again. Where are Ratchet and Moonlight?”

“They are being well cared for.” He said.

Clearly he was going to give me an answer, so I decided to move past him and into the main lobby of the brothel.

“Hey, you cannot go in there! Guards!” He yelled out.

I ignored him and kicked down the door. This startled several of the mares, making them look my way. Saskia moved inside, turning to me as I slammed the doors shut, pushing a heavy desk in front of it. I could hear the guards cursing outside, bashing the door in an attempt to follow us.

I turned back towards the room, “Ratchet! Moonlight! Where are you?”

The mares all looked at me warily, none daring to speak up. But over their whispers, I could hear something. The bashing of a door, and it wasn’t coming from behind me. I ran forward, the mares moving out of my way as I found myself in a hallway. The bashing was coming from the end of the corridor. Two guards came out of some adjacent rooms, holding batons. As I moved towards them, they grew nervous, their batons shaking in their telekinetic grips.

I leaped and grabbed both their heads with my hooves, bashing their skulls against each other. Not enough to kill them, but knock them out. They slumped to the floor groaning as I moved past them. I found the door where the knocking was coming from.

“Shadow! That you partner?” Ratchet yelled from the other side of the door.

“Ratchet! Stand back!” I yelled out as I reared back for another buck.

My buck turned the door to splinters, revealing my friend. He looked fine, but he was missing his battle saddle and saddlebags. Saskia had caught up at this point.

“Shadow! Saskia! Boy howdy am I glad to see the two of ya.” Ratchet said.

“Ratchet, what is going on? What happened?” Saskia asked.

“Things were fine when we got here. Then Silver Platter said he needed Moonlight to check on an injury from his attack. She agreed, but when I tried to follow them upstairs, the guards grabbed me and threw me in here.” Ratchet said.

That statement made my blood run cold. Moonlight was taken to the second floor. Memories of what Tulip and Cobalt said about Silver Platter rushed through my head. This was bad.

“How long has it been since she was taken?” I asked urgently.

“Maybe an hour or so.” Ratchet said.

I turned to Saskia, “Saskia, stay with Ratchet and help him find his stuff. I’m going to get Moonlight.”

“Shadow, are you sure? We can go together.” Saskia said.

“I’ll be fine. Now do as I say!” I yelled out, walking back into the hallway.

I made my way back into the lobby area, where I found yet another familiar face coming from another hallway.

“Shadow! What are you doing here?” Sasha asked.

The zonkey looked stressed, her mane was a mess and she was breathing heavily. I moved to her side.

“Sasha, what’s wrong? Why are you here?” I asked.

“I cannot find my mother. I’ve been here for over an hour, but the guards just kept telling me to wait. I asked the other mares, but they won’t tell me anything.” She said, panic in her voice.

I glared to the other mares in the room, most of them staring at me in fear.

“Where is the zebra known as Zaheera!?” I yelled out.

They flinched, but after a while, one finally spoke up, “She… was taken up to the second floor earlier today.”

My blood boiled as I gritted my teeth, my anger increasing with every second. Ratchet and Saskia had returned, having found Ratchet’s weapons and belongings.

“Ratchet, Saskia, take care of Sasha and wait for me here. Sasha, I will find your mother. I swear it.” I said, looking to Sasha with determination.

She nodded and immediately went to Saskia for comfort. Saskia wrapped her hooves around her in a hug and nodded to me.

I soon found the stairs leading to the second floor, seeing as there were two guards in front of it. I walked towards them and they immediately pointed their batons at me.

“Hold on there bucko. No one goes up here except Silver Platter and his mares.” He said.

Ignoring his warnings, I continued forward. When he moved to stop me, I grabbed his head and bashed it against the wall. He fell in a heap as his buddy moved to whack me with his baton. I ducked under the weapon and knocked the pony down. He laid on his back dazed as I struck him in the head, knocking him out.

The door to the second floor laid before me. I moved to open it, finding it locked. Normally I would have just kicked the door down, but thought it would be better to go in silently from now on. Searching the two guards, one of them had a key. Unlocking the door, I moved to the staircase. Each step felt heavy as I moved up, like something was telling me not to go.

When I reached the door out of the stairway, I turned it slowly, stopping for a moment as something caught my attention. A scent. A scent that I was familiar with.

Rotting flesh and blood.

I swung the door open, and the sight that greeted me shook me to my core. I can never unsee what I saw. The image burned into my memory.

Mares. The hallway was filled with dead mares, hung up like slabs of meat on a rack. Each one with cuts, bruises, and some missing horns and wings. Judging by the state of decay, some of these bodies were a least a week old. It was sickening. I would have thrown up if I was a normal pony. But I wasn’t.

What kind of pony was this guy? What kind of monster would do this kind of thing?

“AAAAHHHH!” A mare’s voice yelled out. A very familiar voice.

Stealth was no longer my concern at this point. I ran with all the speed I could muster. There was only one door. And I was not stopping.

The door was no match for my strength as I bashed right through it, sending splinters everywhere.

“What in Tartatus!?” Silver Platter yelled.

I saw him, standing over Moonlight, putting a muzzle on her. Her limbs were all tied with rope to the bed posts, preventing her from struggling. When she saw me, her eyes were wet with tears, puffy and red. With that image, all my restraint and mercy was gone.

I quickly bit down on his mane, throwing him over my shoulder onto the ground at the foot of the bed he had Moonlight on. She tried to scream, but the muzzle kept her from doing so. I quickly cut all the ropes keeping her bound and removed the muzzle, earning a crushing hug for my efforts.

“Shadow! You’re here!” Moonlight cried out into my chest.

She couldn’t get another word out as sobs racked her body. Her tears soaking my chest fur as I held her close. She had rope burns on her legs, and her braid was in shambles. Pulling her back, I examined her closer. She had bruises on her face, and a cut on her cheek. A shallow wound, but still bleeding slightly. She had more bruises and cuts along her body, down her back to her flank, one cut just above her cutiemark. I took the bedsheet and wiped away the blood.

“Moonlight, I”m so sorry. I never should have left you two.” I said.

She didn’t answer, only buried her face back in my chest. She was traumatized, and I had let it happen.

A groan came from behind as Silver Platter got back to his hooves, holding his head. When he saw me glaring daggers at him, he immediately reached for a gun he had on a dresser. I immediately threw Venta, my sword piercing his shoulder, pinning him to the wall.

He screamed in pain, trying to pull the sword out, but the pain was too much for him. He looked back at me, eyes filled with fear.

As I moved to get off the bed, something else caught my attention in the room. Dread creeping into my being at the sight.

There, hanging by her forelegs on the opposite side of the room, was Zaheera. She was unmoving, with cuts and bruises all across her body. Her nethers told me that this bastard had his way with her multiple times. One of her hind legs was twisted at an unnatural angle.

I got off the bed, moving towards her without a word. My hoof pressed against her neck to check for a pulse. Nothing. I stood there, tears flowing down my face now. Hot angry tears.

Suddenly, Ratchet and Saskia came through the door. Both of them saw Moonlight immediately. Saskia immediately went to Moonlight, holding her close.

“Shadow, what in tarnation is going on?” Ratchet said, before looking my way and seeing Zaheera.

Saskia noticed his reaction and looked as well, “By the Goddesses…”

I took Umbra and cut the ropes that held her up, catching her limp body in my magic before setting her down. Her eyes were still open, so I closed them gently.

“I’m sorry this happened Zaheera. May the Goddess Luna embrace you in her light. And know that I will see your daughter to safety.” I prayed for her.

Turning to glare once more at Silver Platter, I saw he had pissed himself in fear from my gaze. My sword still in his shoulder as blood flowed down.

I stood up and addressed my friends without turning away from the bastard, “Where is Sasha?”

“We told her to wait outside. Why?” Ratchet said.

“You two take Moonlight out of here and find Sasha. I’ll bring Zaheera’s body once I’m done here.” I said, my voice dark.

“Shadow, what do you mean by…” Ratchet asked before I cut him off.

“Do as I say Ratchet! Get Moonlight out of here!” I yelled, my expression nothing but anger and rage.

He flinched back at the volume of my words and nodded. He and Saskia gently coaxed Moonlight out of the room. When I could no longer hear their hoofsteps, I moved closer to the little shit that was still impaled on my sword.

I pulled out the sword and he slumped to the floor. Desperately, he tried to get to his hooves and run. I took out Desert Rose and gave a silent warning to him as I cocked the hammer back. He tried to run anyway, and earned a bullet in his hindleg.

He screams in pain, dropping to the floor and trying to crawl away. I fired another shot, hitting one of his forelegs, making him stop crawling and look up at me.

“You think you’ll get away with this!? My father will have your head on a pike!” Silver Platter yelled.

I kick him in the face, “What kind of pony are you? How could you do this to all these mares? How many have suffered because of you?

He spat blood at me, “What do you care? Mares are just playthings. Made for stallions to enjoy.”

I kicked him in the gut, “Keep talking like that and I might take your tongue.”

I dragged him to the wall again and held him up, “Tell me, did you kill a mare named Jade? And where are the other mares you’ve taken up here? I saw the bodies in the hall and I know there are surely a lot more.”

“If I tell you, I’m dead.” He whimpered.

“Do you really wanna try your luck with me?” I said, pressing him harder against the wall.

“AH! Alright I’ll talk, I’ll talk. A mare comes through here every month. She pays me a lot of caps for healthy mares. I don't know what she uses them for, probably breeding.” He said.

“What’s this mare’s name? What does she look like?” I demanded.

“I don’t know her name, and she always wore a cloak. All I could see was a horn and red eyes. Those blood red eyes.” He said, tears flowing at this point.

Blood red eyes and a cloak. That sounded like Achyls and Algea, but neither of them was a unicorn far as I knew. Were there more of these mares than just the two I had encountered so far? Did this mare have the same abilities as the others?

“Where can I find this mare?” I asked him.

“I don’t know, she comes to me. I think she’s from down south, she always talks about the brothel in Olympia.” Silver Platter answered.

So little to go on, but it was something. Olympia seemed to be the place for a lot of the answers I seeked. I glared back at the stallion, putting a hoof to his shoulder wound, applying pressure. He screamed in pain as I held him there.

“So you test mares to see how well they are in bed and those who you think qualify, they get sold off to this mare. That sound about right?” I asked.

He nodded vigorously as I held him there. I leaned in to glare at him.

“Zaheera… She had a daughter. She wanted a new life here, free from her past in Zebrica. And you took that away from her.” I said, my voice returning to it’s low dark tone.

“And what’s worse, you tried to defile my friend Moonlight.” I said, applying more pressure.

I threw him into the bed, causing it to collapse from the force of the impact. Walking back towards him as he laid there, I began to strike him repeatedly. I didn’t stop, not even when I heard bones cracking and blood splattered against my face.

“Please stop! Please! Let me go, I’ll do anything! Please!” Silver Platter begged.

I did stop after another minute of pummeling him, taking a step back. His body was now covered in black bruises and blood dripped from his many wounds, including a broken nose and shattered jaw.

“There are many things in this life that I hate Silver Platter. Monsters who pray on the innocent, beings who kill for fun or sport. Slavers who take away someone’s freedom. But do you know the one thing I hate most of all?” I said, looking directly into his frightened eyes.

He didn’t answer, not that he could. He laid there, whimpering in fear.

After a minute of silence, I grabbed him in my magic, lifting him to put him right in my face, giving him the answer to my last question.

“Rapists.”

With that last word, I threw him with all my might towards the window. The glass shattered immediately upon impact. Silver Platter began to descend as gravity took hold. Falling as he screamed to the best of his ability through a shattered jaw. As he fell, his body came into contact with something. The flagpole.

A sickening wet noise rang out as Silver Platter’s body was impaled on the flagpole, straight through the gut. Blood pouring from his body and running down the sides of the pole. The grisly sight caused several screams to erupt from outside. But I didn’t care.

I picked up Zaheera’s body, cradling it in my magic as I gave another silent prayer and apology. I walked out the door and into the hallway. But as I made my way down the corridor, another body caught my eye.

A red unicorn mare with a red mane, wearing a large broach, gold with an emerald in the middle. I remembered the words of Captain Slate from earlier that day.

“My daughter disappeared a week ago. She worked at The Lotus Garden, but didn’t show up for work one day. I think these fugitives had something to do with it. When you find them, press them for information about a unicorn mare with a crimson red coat and mane. She was wearing her mother’s broach, gold with a large emerald in the middle”

This was her, his daughter. I took her body too, cutting it down from the ropes that held her up. This poor mare was yet another victim of a deranged stallion. She deserved to be buried by her father.

I stood at the front door of the building, holding both corpses in my magic. As I opened the door, I found several ponies had gathered. Mayor Rich stood with Captain Slate and several guards. Ratchet, Saskia, Moonlight and Sasha were standing alongside Mercer, Tulip and Cobalt. And several citizens, including Red Delicious had gathered as well.

Mayor Rich had tears on his face, his expression rage and pain, “Guardian! You killed my baby boy!”

I didn’t answer, only glaring back at him, then looking at the impaled corpse of Silver Platter.

“Yes I did. He deserved far worse.” I said.

Gasps came from the crowd, ponies and other creatures looking at me with mixed expressions of fear and shock.

“Ponies of Sandpit, you have been lied to for far too long. The time has come for you to know the truth, no matter how bad it hurts.” I said, loudly so everyone could hear me.

Sasha stepped up from her place at Saskia’s side, slowly coming to stand in front of me. Her eyes looked on the corpse of her mother.

“Shadow, is… is that my? She said, not able to finish the sentence.

I nodded and set Zaheera down in front of her, “I’m so sorry Sasha. She was already gone by the time I arrived.”

Sasha didn’t look at me, she fell to her knees, leaning closer to her mother. She nuzzled her, getting no response. After a second, she screamed in grief and pain. Burying her face in her mother’s mane, crying tears of deep sorrow.

“Shadow, explain yourself! What is the meaning of this?” Captain Slate demanded.

I turned my head to look at him, my expression blank as all the anger slipped away. I moved the other corpse I had brought into his view. He looked confused at first, but after getting a good look at the body, his eyes widened.

“That can’t be… my Valentina?” He said.

I took the broach from her, and showed it to him. He immediately ran towards me and cradled her. Taking the broach from me, he simply sat there and held her. After a while, his head snapped to look at me.

“Who did this!?” Slate screamed at me.

I pointed to the impaled corpse of Silver Platter, “He did. He has killed several mares in this brothel.”

“You lie. No way it can be true. I was working with the pony who took my baby girl from me?” He said.

“You don’t have to believe my words. Check the second floor of the brothel.” I said.

Looking back to Sasha, she had stopped her mournful crying to look up at me.

“Sasha, let’s get out of here.” I said.

She hesitated but nodded. I picked up Zaheera in my magic once again, walking in the direction of my friends.

“Hold it right there!” Mayor Rich yelled out.

I stopped to look his way, my expression dull and uninterested.

“You think you can come into my town, kill my son and just walk away?” He said.

“Yes I do. You will never see me in this town again. And I suggest you don’t try and stop us. Or I will kill you as well.” I said emotionlessly.

He took a step back, but did not say anything. After a while, he gestured for his guards to stand down.

“This isn’t over Guardian. You will pay dearly for what you have done.” Mayor Rich said.

Captain Slate took his daughter into the Lotus Garden, most likely to look for the evidence I told him about. Several other ponies went into the building, following the captain.

I paid them no mind. Sasha and I had rejoined Mercer and my friends, all of them looking at me with worry.

“Friend Shadow, Mercer thinks it would be best for you and friends to leave.” Mercer said solemnly.

I nodded, “I agree. May I ask one thing of you Mercer?”

“What do you ask of Mercer?” He asked.

“Take Sasha somewhere safe, and help her bury her mother. Then take her, Cobalt, Tulip and the other ponies away from here. Take them to Hydra Junction. Tell Mayor Wrangler that I sent you. He will take them in.” I said.

He looked surprised, but nodded, “Mercer will do this. Mercer cannot stay here either. Farewell Friend Shadow.”

Sasha looked back at me, but only for a moment. I gave Zaheera’s body to Mercer, and he carried her away as he led Sasha and others away.

Cobalt stayed behind along with Tulip, standing in front of me, “Shadow, what about Jade? Did you find her?”

I looked to him with sad eyes, “There are several corpses in that building. Check them for her. But if she is not there, then she may be alive still.

Cobalt’s eyes widened, “What do you mean?”

“I got some information out of Silver Platter before he died, apparently he was selling mares to somepony for breeding. He didn’t know who she was, she wore a cloak and had red eyes. Your Jade might have been taken south.” I told him.

Cobalt looked away with tears, “Thank you Shadow. Be safe my friend.”

I didn’t answer, and Tulip did not speak to me. She led him back to the group following Mercer.

Ratchet came up to me, “Shadow? What now?”

I didn’t answer. I just started walking. I could hear my friends hoofsteps as they followed behind me. We walked until we reached the gate, the two guard ponies we met when we arrived in the city let us through without trouble. They hid behind the large doors as we passed by.

Into the night we walked, no words spoken. I had none left.

Footnote: Level Up

New Perk added:
Guardian’s Wrath Rank 1
You have shown the wasteland your darker side. When enraged by your enemies horrendous actions, you have a chance of this perk activating. Once activated, Guardian’s wrath increases your strength by 1, but you suffer a -2 penalty to your Charisma. This perk can also affect the relationship between you and your companions.

New companion: Saskia

Sandpit: Unpredictable
The ponies of Sandpit do not know what to make of you now. But your actions have made a strong impression on the town. Whether that impression was good or not is yet to be seen.

Author's Note

Hey guys, Hades here. Another chapter down, and man it was a dozey.