Once a Crook, Always a Crook

by TheZorotlThing

Rating: teen
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Death, Original Character, Adventure, Violence, Main 6, Profanity
Length: 5298

Talzotl is asked to team up with the Element Bearers to take down the Vanhoover Mafia. But facing off against ruthless ponies may be more diffecult than it seems.

Two months after the events of the last story, Talzotl had regained the riches as a part of his plan to make the family rich again. However, now he has been personally asked by Princess Celestia to help stop the Vanhoover Mafia. But there's a twist: he must team up with the Element Bearers, the same ponies he had imprisoned.

This story is written by me while it is proof read by M Page.
His YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/GHRockotron3000/videos

Published 2018-06-21 09:10:06 UTC
Last updated 2018-10-28 07:29:26 UTC

Chapter One - A Nightly Chat

Vanhoover

It was past midnight, and most of the ponies were at home, sleeping in one of the many houses or apartments. Few ponies were ever out this late, except for those that worked graveyard shifts, or enjoyed the night, not to mention those that were up to no good. Gallop Crush, the pudgy, middle-aged pegasus, was nervously waiting at a street corner in downtown Vanhoover. He couldn’t take the Pegatrain if he wanted to, because they were closed at this time of night. He was deep in thought when he saw a limousine pulled by a tough looking dark furred earth stallion. When the door opened, a dark blue dragon with red spikes, about as tall as Gallop, stepped out of the limo.

“Gallop Crush,” he said in a deep voice, with an accent that could blend in well with the inhabitants of Canterlot. “Get in,” he ordered.
Gallop entered the limo, and the dragon - named Megabite - followed suit. He realized that they were both not alone, as he could smell cigarette smoke. Big Boss was here and his face was covered in shadows from the dark limo. He was the one that led the Vanhoover Mafia, which committed organized crimes that spanned from the Vanhoover Region all the way to the backstreets of the Island of Neighpone, selling drugs and stolen gems.

“We have some things we need to talk about,” Big Boss stated. “The law enforcement are starting to crack down on our operations. They are sticking their muzzles where they don’t belong.”
“What do you suppose I do about that?” Gallop nervously asked.
“Many things actually. Perhaps when those particular cops visit your Crêpe shop, you could lace whatever they order with poison. I have several types if you need any.”

For the first time, Gallop truly felt frightened on the inside, having been asked to kill somepony. He had promised himself that he would NEVER do that. But he knew that refusing the ‘suggestion’ would cause Big Boss to order Megabite to either seriously injure him or outright kill him.
“What’s wrong?” Megabite asked tauntingly.
“Are you sure killing cops is necessary? We might just be giving them more reasons to come after us.”
“Finally gettin’ cold hooves, are ya?” Megabite said, cracking his golden claws threateningly, “Perhaps I should-”
“NO! I’ll do it. Just give me a few days and those cops will be history.”
“Good colt.”

Big Boss inhaled his cigarette, causing the front end to flare brightly, thus brightening up his face.
“When everything goes as I want it, the police will be the least of our worries. I’m more worried about what’ll happen if the Princesses find out about who runs this mafia. If my identity is revealed, I will be history.”
Megabite and Gallop stared at each other, they were both noting how Big Boss was thinking only of himself; but as long as they were being paid, it did not matter. However, one thing was still on Gallop’s mind.
“How can you be sure that this mafia will survive after practically donating thirty million bits?”
“A small fraction. I imagine Talzotl, like most teenagers, is spending all those bits on crap he doesn't need, and if you’re thinking that he’ll be a threat somehow, I should let you know that he’s only one pony. Who would even dare try to help him take us on?”
Gallop sighed. “I guess you’re right, boss. He is just one.”

The limousine hit a slight bump, causing Gallop to yelp in surprise. Megabite snickered at this until Big Boss glared at him and he stopped.
Big Boss continued. “Even if he dares to try, he made one mistake when dealing with us, he accepted the delivery at his mansion. Megabite, do you still remember it is?
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. I doubt that he would risk the life of his poor, defenseless old mother, unless his heart is truly black.”
“Like yours?” Gallop retorted, surprising the other occupants. Megabite cracked his knuckles and prepared to punch him, but Big Boss silently signaled him to stop with a wave of his dark hoof.
“Yes. Like mine. But I must remind you not to insult me again, or I won’t tell Megabite to back off again.” To his delight, he saw Gallop tremble.

The limousine pulled up at a large house near Bit-silano Beach. Gallop’s house, to be exact. Almost eagerly, Gallop attempted to leave the limo but was blocked by Big Boss’s hoof.
“Remember, do whatever you can to deal with those cops, and make sure it is not traced back to me.” He shut the door, and the stallion pulling the limo trotted off but not before giving Gallop a stern huff and letting him exit.

Gallop entered his house and put on his pajamas, brushed his teeth, and hopped into bed. However, he could not sleep, as his mind wondered once again to how he had ended up in this heinous lifestyle.

Twenty Years Ago

He was once extremely poor, and forced to live on the streets. He ate whatever was edible from trash cans that he found outside of restaurants. There were no shelters for him to stay at during the night, so he often slept in old, abandoned houses or factories.

During his stay at what he thought was an abandoned factory, he was roughly shook awake by a group of tough-looking ponies wearing black beanies. He feared that very night would be his last, until the ponies were stopped by the stallion called Big Boss. After begging and pleading, he managed to convince him that he would be valuable to his organization, as he had skills in breaking into houses. Big Boss agreed, and at this point, he often assigned him to steal from rival gangs with remarkable success.

After ten years of this, Big Boss bought him a suite where he started his Crêpe restaurant as a front for his crimes, which was a part of the deal when Big Boss secretly gave him the funds required to start it up. On that day, he was the happiest he had ever been in his life.

Present
Now he was not happy. In fact, he was far from happy. He couldn’t even be happy if he was shit-faced. He had been a witness to countless murders and thefts from innocent ponies. Gallop wondered how long he could keep it up before he ended up having a heart attack from the stress.
So many times he had wanted to betray the Mafia, but he never had the guts. As far as he was concerned, he would be serving Big Boss until the day he died.

Chapter 2 Homework Bound

Chapter 2 Homework Bound

Ricktaki Mansion

Talzotl Ricktaki hopped off the train at Horse Coltingwood Station. His mansion was on top of the Hill of Strong, east of the station. It had been a month since school had started again, and it was his last year of high school. It had been three months since he had kidnapped the Element Bearers. Despite giving up half of his gained riches, he couldn’t help but feel smug, for he had to have been the first pony to defeat them.

For the first few weeks after his mother had been cured of her illness, Talzotl had been scared that Twilight would have the Royal Guards of Canterlot swoop in on him and lock him in the dungeons. When they never showed up, he concluded that they were never called upon.

Today his Social Studies class had been studying Dragon culture and one of Princess Ember’s advisors had shown up to teach them about their history. Some of Talzotl’s classmates had been excited that one of the dragon ruler’s emissaries had shown up to answer their questions, and others were apprehensive as the dragon was not a resident of Vanhoover like the local dragons. Dragons that weren’t a part of Equestria had quite a bad reputation. While the emissary looked tough, it turned out he was quite nice and was eager to answer the many questions that came his way.

Talzotl had trouble trotting up the hill as his saddle bags were filled to the brim with his school books and items he needed to complete his weekend homework assignments. However, as he was one of the smartest ponies in Equestria, he had no trouble completing them all. One day, he had completed a five page essay on the Founding of Equestria within two hours, when usually it would take half a day for the average pony to research and write the essay. However, Talzotl liked to read during his spare time and history was one of his favorite subjects.

Physical Education wasn’t his favorite subject. Many of the more fit ponies would often taunt him for his lack of muscle and slow galloping. Though he had no muscle, he was not fat and was slightly skinny as he would sometimes skip dinner so that he could keep up with his studies and schemes. However, he always ate a large lunch to make up for this.

He finally made it up the hill, and he saw the familiar ancient walls with the remote activated portcullis. He took the remote out of his saddle bag and pressed the open button. After entering and pressing the close button, he noticed a little brown owl staring at him with little black eyes. Talzotl raised his hoof and exclaimed, “Shoo!”. Rather than fly away, the owl raised it’s eyebrow and opened his orange beak to hoot at him, as if it was taunting him.

Deciding that it was not worth it, and concluding that the owl would have to fly away at some point, he entered the mansion, where he was greeted by his loving mother, Kimono. “How was school today, son?” she said as she wrapped her pinkish-purple hooves around him.
“Good as usual,” he responded. “We had a dragon visit us.”
“Did he try to eat you?” Kimono asked jokingly, and playing along, Talzotl shook his head.

Deciding to get his homework done now, he politely ended the conversation and went upstairs to the study he inherited from his father. Setting the homework down on his desk, he decided that he would work on the math first; he picked up his pencil with green hued magic, and began writing the answers to the equations. He remembered back in eighth grade when his class began studying advanced Algebra. He had studied it on his own when he was in sixth grade and was therefore able to pass the many Algebra tests, while his classmates were trying to grasp the subject. Although, there were a few other ponies who were near his level.

As soon as he finished his math, he began working on the History of the Dragon Kingdom essay. However, as he picked up the pencil, he noticed the owl he encountered earlier, perched on the windowsill. With a disgruntled sigh, he picked up the telephone on his desk and called a store that sold owl treats. He requested that they deliver it with a promise that he would pay them extra bits for it. Thirty minutes later, a worker from the store delivered the treats, and Talzotl managed to sneak them into the study without his mother knowing.

After creating a trail of owl treats that led to a wooden box propped up with a piece of wood that had a string tied to it, Talzotl opened the window and the owl eagerly began following the trail. Talzotl imagined the owl thinking Ooh! Piece of candy. He hid behind a bookshelf, held the string, and waited for the owl to get closer and closer to the box. However, after eating the second-to-last treat, it noticed the last one under the box and he flew up and saw Talzotl hiding; it raised it’s eyebrow as if to say, “Really? How dumb do you think I am?”
Talzotl would not give up. His essay would have to wait. He went to the bathroom and looked inside the medicine cabinet to look for sleeping pills. He found some, and after crushing them up, he mixed the powder with a cup of water. He returned to the study and pretended to sigh in defeat. “Alright owl. You win. Here is a peace offering.” He set the glass down on the desk and the thirsty owl flew down and chugged the water. After it was done, he flew around the room and to Talzotl’s amazement, it was getting slower and slower until he fell asleep. As it fell towards the floor, Talzotl caught him with his magic and put him in a cage.

Studying the owl, he noticed that it resembled an owl he saw when he broke into the Castle of Friendship. With smugness, he wrote a note and tied to to the owl’s leg and returned to his essay while he waited for it to wake up. To his annoyance however, he discovered that while the owl was drinking the water, it splattered some of the water onto the paper. Gritting his teeth, he took out a new piece of paper and began re-writing the essay.

However, before he was able to complete the first paragraph, he heard his mother call him. “Talzotl, there’s mail for you.” Talzotl bolted downstairs wondering who would send him mail. Sorting through the mail he noticed an envelope addressed to him. The stamp had the Royal Equestrian Seal, which he knew was only used by one of the two rulers. Opening the letter, he read the contents.

Dear Talzotl,

I request your presence at the

Royal Castle of Canterlot as there

is something I need from you.

I know you currently attend school, but I will

gladly vouch for you if you miss any

classes during the school week.

From,

Celestia, Princess of Equestria

Talzotl swore under his breath, as he believed that Celestia had set a trap for him. However, it quickly occurred to him that if she wanted him arrested for the kidnapping of the Element Bearers, she would’ve sent her Royal Guards to the mansion. Heading to the kitchen where Kimono was cooking dinner, he tapped her back to get her attention.
“What is it, dear?” she asked softly.
“The letter that was sent to me was an invitation to Celestia’s School For Gifted Unicorns and it seems they want to assess my skills as a unicorn.”
Kimono’s eyes went wide and she squeezed Talzotl causing him to not be able to breathe for a moment. “I’m so proud of you!” she exclaimed. “My son is going to be taught by the Princess herself!”
“Thanks mom,” Talzotl squeaked “But you’re crushing me. Room… getting… darker...”
“Sorry,” she sheepishly said and let him go. “When do you have to leave?”
“Probably tonight. It’s supposed to start tomorrow afternoon.”
“Well then, you better get packing.”

Talzotl rushed upstairs and packed a couple suits in his saddle bags that he felt he would need to wear in the presence of the Princesses. He felt guilty for lying to his mom, but he didn’t want to tell her that he was possibly going to be arrested for kidnapping. As he went to the front door, Kimono was waiting to say goodbye.
“Do you want me to pack a lunch for you?” she asked.
“There’s no need. I wouldn’t mind trying some of the food they have in Canterlot.”
“Okay.” Kimono hugged him while taking care not to squeeze him too hard this time. “Have a good time there.”
“I will.” Hopefully Talzotl finished in his head and he trotted outside where the sky was starting to turn dark.

Chapter Three - The Second Meeting

Canterlot

After two trips, one on the PegaTrain, and one on the Friendship Express, Talzotl finally arrived in Canterlot. There were plenty of shops that sold extravagant clothes, food and other things that many rich ponies here bought. Talzotl had been to Canterlot a couple of times before, and though he hadn’t been there in years, not much was different. He heard that the last two Grand Galloping Galas had some sort of chaotic twist to them. Last year, a draconequus named Discord arrived with a creature called The Smooze. The year before that, Fluttershy, who was normally a timid pegasus, went crazy and chased a bunch of animals into the dance hall. Needless to say, each Gala had ended in disaster, but Princess Celestia was said to have enjoyed them. This caused Talzotl to question her sanity sometimes.

Since it was late in the evening, Talzotl determined that it would be inappropriate to meet with the Princess at this time, so he decided to stop at a restaurant. Going inside, he was escorted to a booth near the window that faced the main street.

A unicorn waitress with green fur, a red mane that was tied back into a bun, and pink eyes, poured Talzotl a glass of water to drink with a little bit of ice, quite different to a cheep late night diner Talzotl once went to where the waitress there gave him water with too much ice. After a few minutes of looking at the menu he was given, he told the waitress what he wanted: a large order of fish and chips and a glass of root beer to drink. The waitress went to the kitchen after writing down his order on a notepad.

Since the food would take a while to arrive, Talzotl reflected on what he had done over the years to regain his wealth. He once sold a priceless artifact to a hardened criminal, and had made a killing in crafting fake IDs at his high school. Although the faculty there thoroughly investigated the ID forgeries, they could not connect them to Talzotl. The principal correctly suspected it was him, but by getting rid of evidence, Talzotl had managed to trot free from the accusations. He also started writing stories for foals under the pseudonym Robert Moonch, and those sold modestly. Eventually, he somehow came upon a secret ad, offering thirty million bits for the proof that the Element Bearers had been captured. Talzotl assumed he had received the ad due to his short-lived fake ID business.

Talzotl’s line of thought was broken when the waitress returned with his fish, chips and root beer. When he took a bite out of the fried fish, his mouth immediately burned. He silently screamed, trying desperately not to curse, and somehow succeeding. He quickly took gulps of the icey root beer to cool his mouth down, but not before noticing that the ponies in the restaurant were snickering at his misfortune. He gave the fish time to cool and proceeded to eat the horseshoe fries, which the ponies of Canterlot for some reason called ‘chips’. Judging the fish to be cool enough, he slowly bit into one and found them quite warm, which is exactly how he liked them. He was fighting every urge to drool at the utter deliciousness of the fish.

As soon as he was done with his dinner, he paid the bill and went to a hotel room that he managed to book just as the hotel was filling up. Once he entered, he practically threw himself onto the bed and immediately went to sleep.

***

Ponyville Station

Twilight Sparkle and her four other friends, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity, put on their snow gear as they prepared to meet Fluttershy at Ponyville Station and board the train to Yakyakistan, or so they thought. They had received a letter via Spike from Princess Celestia requesting an audience. Not wanting to disappoint her former teacher, not that she ever could, she quickly packed her bags and told her friends to do the same. On their way, they noticed a volcano that had tracks leading into it materialize out of thin air, and a few seconds later, it disappeared. Twilight shook her head knowing that this was Discord’s clever, yet futile attempt at getting his friend Fluttershy to stick around.

Once they said their goodbyes, the train took off on its way to Canterlot. However, Celestia had instructed them to tell their families and friends that they were going to Yakyakistan, as what they were doing was to be kept a secret for the time being. Not willing to lie to her family, Applejack simply stated that she was heading somewhere out of town for a while.

“I wonder what Celestia has planned for us?” Twilight said.
“Maybe she wants us to spy on some changelings,” Rainbow Dash said excitedly.
“Whoa there, partner!” Applejack admonished, “It’s probably not that exciting. Maybe she just wants us to solve a friendship problem among some rich ponies.”
“If it was a friendship problem, then the map would’ve told us,” Rainbow retorted.
“Maybe it’s a problem that the map can’t sense,” Fluttershy suggested in her soft voice.
“It’s most likely that a new threat has risen and only we can stop it.”

Eventually, all six ponies got bored of talking and just watched the train go by many green fields and small towns until it entered the tunnel that went up the mountain. About half an hour later, they finally arrived in Canterlot.

As they trotted towards the Royal Castle, on the city’s main street, Twilight thought she had seen a pony with blue fur and a long blonde mane sitting inside a restaurant, but before she could take a closer look, a burly stallion pulling a carriage got in the way.

“Twilight,” Rainbow yelled impatiently, “I thought we were meeting the Princess, not going window shopping.”
“We don’t need to meet her now. But you’re right.” Twilight admitted. They entered the room in the castle that was loaned to them by Celestia, and once Luna’s night set in, they turned in for the night in their beds.

***

Talzotl woke up suddenly, and almost forgot that he wasn’t home. It was lucky that he woke up, because he heard a knock on the door. He opened it to find a male unicorn concierge, with a brownish black mane, pushing a cart full of food.
“Hello sir,” he said in a posh Canterlot accent with a cheerful attitude. When Talzotl booked the hotel, he was promised free continental breakfast. “I have your continental breakfast.” The cart was full of blueberry, raspberry, and strawberry muffins and scones. Talzotl was allergic to strawberries so he chose the blueberry and raspberry pastries.

“Thanks,” Talzotl told the concierge as he gave him a five bits tip.
“Have a lovely day,” the concierge replied rather awkwardly with a quite toothy grin that oddly would’ve fit an evil looking clown or something, and pushed the cart to the next room that was occupied. After he finished his breakfast, he took a long shower, washing his body twice, and his mane and tail three times. He quickly ironed his three piece suit and put it on. Once that was done, he trotted straight to the castle.

When he approached the bridge that went over the moat, he was stopped by a Royal Guard.
“Name and business,” he firmly demanded.
“Talzotl Ricktaki. Princess Celestia has summoned me.” Talzotl was a bit worried that the guard might not believe him. However, the guard simply ordered him to wait while he went inside to verify his claim.
After two minutes, the guard told him to follow him to the throne room. He saw many rooms and tried to peek through the doorways, but the guard glared at him to stop. The guard eventually stopped trotting which meant that they had arrived. He opened a door and heard a mare’s voice.
“Let him in. You are dismissed.”

Talzotl entered the throne room. The path to the Princess’s throne was marked with a red carpet. A tall, alabaster alicorn with a forever flowing, and ethereal, rainbow mane was sitting upon the throne.
“Talzotl Ricktaki,” she said kindly.
“Princess,” he simply responded with a bow. Sure, he may have committed some crimes, but he had utmost respect for the Princess.
“It’s been a long time since I saw you.”

One day, when Talzotl was around seven, his father had used his wealth to get Celestia to come over for dinner. His mother, Kimono, had been adamant that he had nothing but manners when the ruler of Equestria was with them. However, to everypony’s surprise, Celestia had the manners of the average pony.
When she left the mansion, the Ricktaki family witnessed Celestia lowering the Sun and raising the Moon first-hoof. Talzotl had told his friends about the whole thing the next day.

“Hello? Equestria to Talzotl.”
Talzotl swiftly shook himself back to reality. “Sorry,” said an embarrassed Talzotl. “I was just remembering the time you visited us.”
Celestia smiled. “You know you don’t have to stand all the way over there. Come closer.”
Talzotl nervously trotted towards the Princess until he was right in front of the golden throne.

“W-what is it that you r-request of me?” Talzotl nervously asked. In response, Celestia flashed her horn and conjured a holographic image of Equestria with little red and blue dots.
“The Vanhoover Mafia is up to no good,” Celestia began. “They have sold illegal drugs and stolen gems. Their influence is so great that they’ve spread to Neighpone and possibly even Canterlot.” The red dots multiplied and moved from Vanhoover to Neighpone and Canterlot. “If they are allowed to continue, many innocent ponies will suffer in the long run.” The blue dots moved to all four corners of the map while the red dots kept multiplying and they started to corner the blue dots.

“If you’re so worried about what the Mafia is doing, why don’t you just stop them? You’re THE ruler, right?” Talzotl suddenly stated with a cocky, know-it-all attitude.
“Because if I swooped in just like that, I might get the wrong pony. That’s why I summoned you here. I know you’ve had dealings with them.”

Talzotl was flabbergasted at how Celestia knew what he had been up to, but he was not about to just admit it.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, your highness. I don’t have any ties with the mafia!”
Celestia frowned and, raising an eyebrow, she firmly asked, “So you didn’t foalnap my student and her friends?”
Talzotl didn’t let her see how shocked he was. Since she had no proof, he was going to continue denying everything. However, before he could do that, Celestia conjured a scroll with her yellow-hued horn and began to read it.

Dear Princess Celestia,

Just letting you know that me and my friends

were foalnapped by this crazy stallion named Talzotl Ricktaki

in Vanhoover. He kept us in his mansion

underground and forced us to solve

puzzles in order to escape. He was

promised thirty million bits if he captured us

successfully. He let us out as soon as he got the money.

Signed, Twilight Sparkle

Talzotl’s face went pale as he cursed internally. Nevertheless, he managed to regain his composure. “So what are you going to do?” Talzotl asked like a smart aleck, “Arrest me?”
“That’s what Luna suggested when I showed her the letter. She also considered the death penalty, which I fortunately abolished many years ago. To this day, she still argues with me over it. But regardless, I believe that, with your knowledge of the Mafia, we can shut their criminal business down once and for all.”
“You got the wrong idea, Princess. I don’t know as much about them as you think I do.”
“Then perhaps you’ll learn more about them during your quest. You are one of the smartest creatures here, after all.”

Talzotl took a moment to process all of this. Twilight told Celestia everything, except the part where she accepted his bribe. He could potentially use this fact against her in the long run. He finally spoke again.
“There’s no way I can do this alone. You have to send someone with me.”
“You’re right,” Celestia coldly agreed. She conjured a letter and began writing hastily. A few seconds later, she poofed it away..
Talzotl didn’t get to see who the letter was for. “Who did you get for help?”
With a smirk, she said, “You’ll see.”

The door opened behind a suspicious Talzotl and he saw, without any surprise, a lavender alicorn with a mane of two shades of purple, an orange earth pony with a blonde mane and a brown stetson, a bouncing pink earth pony with a darker pink poofy mane, an alabaster unicorn with a violet curled-up mane, a cream-coloured pegasus with a light pink mane, and a light blue pegasus with a polychromatic mane.

Upon seeing Talzotl, all six of them gasped with both Rarity and Fluttershy almost fainting and Applejack and Rainbow having to break their fall. Twilight trotted forward until she was within hooves length of Talzotl, glaring at him. However, Talzotl simply smirked at Twilight.
“Twilight Sparkle. I had a feeling we would meet again at some point.”
“How does it feel knowing you took money from one of the worst criminal organizations in all of Equestria?” Twilight asked resentfully.
“It feels great actually. But you’d know all about that, now wouldn’t you?.” retorted Talzotl with a smirk, seeing a flicker a guilt on Twilight’s face.

“I suggest you both stop acting like little foals. There are more important things going on,” admonished Princess Luna, who had just entered the throne room.
Twilight was about to apologize to the Princesses when Talzotl beat her to it, much to her frustration.

“As I explained to Talzotl, the Vanhoover Mafia is at large and you all need to stop them.” Celestia stated.
“Well, what are we waiting for?” said an enthusiastic Rainbow Dash, “Let’s kick some Mafia flank!”
Talzotl turned around to stare at Rainbow Dash. “I’m afraid it’s not going to be that simple. Taking down a criminal organization is not the same as beating up Changelings or performing a Sonic Rainboom.”
Rainbow had nothing further to say. She did not remember ever facing a mafia. She thought the Shadowbolts counted, but then she remembered they were not real, just illusions crafted by Nightmare Moon.

“Now,” Celestia said with a serious tone, “I want all six of you to shake hooves with Talzotl and promise that you will settle your differences with him for now.” All seven ponies obeyed Celestia and were subsequently dismissed.
However, as the Guardians of Harmony were leaving, the Princesses pulled Twilight aside and Celestia whispered, “If Talzotl tries anything, send word to us immediately.” Twilight simply nodded.

***

Royal Castle Cafeteria

The Guardians and Talzotl met in the cafeteria where the Royal Guards usually ate during their breaks. It was unusual for anypony other than guards and the Princesses to be in here, but Celestia told them it was alright.
Applejack had grouped two tables together to accommodate the seven ponies, so that’s where they were sitting.
“Since you all need me for Mafia-related help, I’ll tell you that we’re not taking the train back to Vanhoover.”
“And why is that?” demanded Rainbow Dash.
“Because if they see you six snooping around, the whole mission will be compromised.” Talzotl responded.
“The Mafia isn’t some secret clubhouse full of ponies who think they’re cool because they know how to use Dark Magic; these are some of the most dangerous ponies ever, the worst of them being the Stalliongrad Bratva.”
“What have you got in mind then, Ricktaki?” Twilight briskly asked, hoping that Talzotl wouldn’t have the answer.
“We’ll have to get back to Vanhoover the hard way.”