Chapters Prologue Chapter 1: Red Planet
Some cars sauntered past me on the old road, trash and junk littering the streets and dark side walks, old and useless solar lights sit pointing into the sky. I reach down and pick up some of the junk as I walk, putting it into my saddle bags as I walk. Mostly the scrap metal that looks like it would be useful. My Prosthetic arm lagging a bit, making me focus on keeping it in sync with my other legs. My eyes roam along the ground as I walk, a door opens ahead of me, looks like a door to a bar. 2 clearly drunk mares come out, talking to each other. Wearing brand-new Sky Guard uniforms, the one on the right asks if the one on the left is safe to fly home, the one on the left says yes and she gets ready to take off. My eyes widen and I grab her by the tail, stopping the mare from slamming into a light pole. Both mares seem relatively surprised by my presence.
"Maybe you should walk home Miss." I say to the pegasus, her tail still in my mechanical talons. My voice coming out a bit gravelly from under use. Both mares look at me a bit funnily and the one that was about to hit the pole lands. I release her tail.
"Err, thanks mister. I think I will walk home.." She says to me, looking me up and down before stumbling over to her friend. They start to walk away and I turn back to my own business of collecting shit no-one else wants. I turn the corner and keep walking. Picking up scrap along the way. As I walk past an alley way I smell what kinda smells like rotting meat. I stop and turn to look down the alley, it's not very long with a dumpster on each side of the entrance, a pile of trash bags and cardboard boxes and a ladder that goes up to the roof of the building. I turn and head down the alley in pursuit of the ungodly stench.
I go between the dumpster and approach the piles of trash. My cat-like ears lower and my green eyes widen a bit, my light grey beak frowning as I sit down. My very similar catty tail wrapping around my side. In front of me rests a dead female griffin, recently beaten to death and was most definitely starving before hand. She was striped clean of everything and I hope that's in. I reach over to her face and close her eyes. My ears return to being perked as I hear hooves beat against the stone behind me. My large silver wings stretch out a bit. By the sounds of it two ponies are walking up, maybe zebra? They have hooves at least. 2 speak, one with a kinda high pitched voice, not female, just high pitched. The other one with a definitive foreign accent.
"You are in the wrong neighborhood Beaky... You know we don't like your kind around here." The High-Pitched one rather rudely states. The Foreign lad speaks as well.
"Aye Laddie.. Ye kind shouldn't be 'ere. Shoulda stayed on yer cliff top. 'Either way you'd end up dead!" I hear the hoofsteps on the Foreign Lad's side start to approach me but the High-Pitched buck stops him.
"Hold on," He said. "Look at him. If we leave him alive we could sell him to those underground arenas. I just wonder if he's a fighter.." He says with a hinting tone in his voice, while they were talking I reached into my tattered black track jacket and pulled out some polished Bronze Knuckle Dusters. Putting them on my right, and real, talon. I turn my head a bit as I clench my Cybernetic Talons into a fist.
"You want to see if I can fight?" My voice is deep from how little I use it, and kind of soft. "Then let's fight." This time my voice was strong, I quickly raise up, putting my left paw forward and jerking my right leg around, flapping my wings as I do so causing me to turn to an upright position as I swing around, forcing my fist to follow beside me, The High-pitched stallion jumps backwards just in time to dodge my metallic fist but his larger and more cumbersome friend doesn't have the time to do so. My fist makes contact with his cheek, I can see it in almost perfect slow motion as my fist pushes into his cheek I can stay it start to cave, my fist coming into contact with his jaw, the momentum was carrying from my foreleg into his jaw. The momentum carries him into the wall, he's instantly knocked out and I turned my eyes to the skinny one.
His eyes widen and he pulls out a knife, charging towards me with the knife in his mouth. I thrust my normal fist into his face, the Knuckle Duster clearly hurt him as he stumbles backwards. He shakes his head and rushes at me and uses his tongue to turn the knife around me and goes to jab the knife into me. I shoot my prosthetic arm up and grab the knife, breaking blade off of the handle and punching him in the chest with my good arm, making him stumble. Before I can think about I slide the tip of the blade down to the tip of my talons and I turn on my rear legs, lifting the blade as my metal arm goes backwards, launching forward with force, releasing the knife about halfway. The sharp blade glistens in the artificial light and gets lodged in the stallion's face. The stallion's expression gets stuck in a shocked face, blood trickling down. My breathing starts to pick up as I stare at the dead stallion, looking down to me metallic talons and horror and shock, even a bit in anger. Quickly I turn around and quickly start climbing the ladder.
I swing over the side of the building and starts running along the roof, jumping onto the wall that's around the roof and jumping across and alley way, running along the buildings I jump onto a small metal chimney and using that to get onto a higher roof. Jumping down onto a shorter one I vault over the side and land in the street in a different part of the neighborhood. My wings widen and I start to hover, putting my head in my talons, unable to entirely comprehend what happened. I hear a lot of hooves and I look around, ponies walking out of stores and dark alley ways. I'm hovering next to an old car that was clearly vandalized. A multitude of the ponies start to yell at me.
"You in the wrong place Chicken."
"Poor decision coming here my friend!"
"Hope you don't plan on going no where"
I look around at all the ponies, hoping on the car, "H-hey I don't want any trouble with any of y'all." My voice cracking a bit in that sentence. "I'm messing with my own shit right now..." I say, keeping my eyes on everypony as much as I could. A stallion chuckles.
"That right Chicken? Then why you got on that Knuckle Duster?" My eyes widen a bit and I look down to my good talons, still grasping the Knuckle Dusters tightly. I quickly take them off and put them back in my jacket.
"I got in a fight earlier, forgot to take them off..?" I kinda ask softly. It's clear he's going to attack me anyway and I definitely can't take out all of them on my own. One behind me jumps at me, my ear turning to him and I side step, getting on my back paws and grabbing him by the rear hoof, using his momentum to swing him around and I threw him at the biggest guy, knocking the brute off his hooves. That gets an all out rage as ponies start to try and pick up the car, they succeed in pushing it over. I slide onto the floor and look up at the car about to flip over onto me, I roll out from under it and stand up again just in time to get punched in the face by the stallion that noted the Knuckle Dusters. I feel a bit of my beak crack from the punch and it hurts like the fucking devil. He smiles a bit.
"Aww... Is the chicken going to cry?" He makes a mock sad face at me and a bunch of the pones start laughing. I straighten up and left my left arm, punching it forward right into his nose, the snap is very audible and his head jerks back from the punch, throwing him into the crowd of ponies. All the ponies look at the K.O'd stallion then at me. They instantly charge at me. They decide to quickly hit the breaks as they hear the roar of a diesel engine. Sounds like a Moth, i'd say 720 horsepower from the sound of it.. A black 1997 Peterbilt 379 with a raised sleeper, bull horn stacks and a bull-bar on the front of the shortened hood. Well that's normal length for the 379, Short for the 389... You get the point. The bull-bar and Smokestacks are matte black, same as my prosthetic, the rims on the truck painted black as well. It's pulling a 53'' drive-van with matching black rims. The rig comes to a stop with the passenger door right in front of me.
"Oh shit the Chicken is getting it now!" One of the ponies call out. The door swings open and I see a black pegasus mare, her muzzle is a faded pink then it thins out to a bolt like line that goes to her rear, the line outlined in dark purple. The end of her wings are tipped with pink. Her mane is very dark purple with a pink stripe in it. She is wearing a plain white t-shirt. The mare motions at me to get in the truck and I rush forward, one of the ponies calling out.
"She's helping him escape!" That causes a surge of ponies rush forward, all trying to get on the truck. I get in the seat and before I get the door closed the mare slams her hoof down on the accelerator, taking it off and putting it on the clutch as she shifts to second then the same when she shifts to 3rd. Soon getting to a moderate speed and flying down the tight streets, doing her best to stay on the same road for as long as possible. I look over at her.
"Who in the right mind saves a griffin in this town?" The mare gives me a testy smile as she glances at me and says simply.
"I do." she chuckles a bit. "First off, i'm Interspace. Second off, what the fuck did you do!?" Interspace yells the last part a bit.
"Wow calm down a bit... I'm Hilt Mars, you can call me Mars. And... I.. Just kinda pissed them off by being there..." I say the last part a bit quietly. She nods in understanding, that's how most griffins in the slummy areas get attacked. Just being there. She glances in her mirror.
"Shit... There are some ponies on my trailer..." She mutters. I look at her.
"What's your plan when they get to the cab?" I ask with a tone of worry in my voice.
"Hope they don't get to the cab." Is all she says. She crashes through a fence and turns onto a newer road, instantly getting on the Highway and streaking down the road, staying at normal speeds and the ponies start to get more leeway on the trailer. I frown.
"Relax, I got this." I say with a confidant smile. I open the door and climbs onto the roof, using my rear paw to close the door. I run along the sleeper and jump up high, letting the speed of the truck carry me as I drop kick a pony off the back of the trailer, he lands on the hood of a car behind the truck, causing it to pull over. 'One down and 3 to go...' I thought to myself. The other 3 currently confused staring at the sudden griffin. I take the opportunity to jump up and charge a pony and throws them off the trailer onto an over pass, I am guessing the landed on it. Another jumps at me and I roll onto my back, kicking him off of the trailer. The last one looks at me, he pulls out a gun with his mouth and fires at me, it grazes my neck, lucky miss, and causes a stinging pain. I run to him and punches his surprised face hard with my normal fist. The punch throws him onto a dumptruck heading the other way. I shake my hand a bit and go back to the truck, swinging into it. I smile at this Interspace.
"All taken care of." She returns my smile.
Author's Note
Yes I renamed Caterpillar to Moth.
Prologue Chapter 2: Electric Boogaloo
The breeze ruffled through my mane, blowing along the street as the cars drive past. I'm sitting on a roof, my back against another, slightly taller building. A small ear-bud rests in my ear and I am sitting on top of a duffel bag with a lap-top sitting on the roof next to me, tapping my hoof slightly to the beat of Disco Inferno . From down the road an armored truck is driving down the road, 2 police cars with it as well. One in front of it and one behind it. The sleek looking truck is said to be impossible to rob. I say, needs more gunpowder.
"Disco Inferno, Burn baby burn, Disco Inferno, Burn that mother down!" I tap the space bar, a manhole right under the rear bumper of the Armored Truck detonates in a glorious green explosion, the explosion ripping the road up and forcing the rear of the truck in the air, the drivers trying to hit the breaks and that, with the force of the explosion, causes the truck to get over the bumper and with the Stream-lined style of the International it flips, landing on it's roof with a softer boom. The police car in front of it slams on it's breaks and the one behind it was too close to stop in time, the front of the car falling down the hole, the car behind it rear-ending it and sending the police car into the sewer.
"Target Immobilized. Move in." At that phrase that came through my ear piece about 5 ponies come from the darker areas, wearing masks and black clothing with bags around their bodies. All Unicorns with rifles hovering beside them. Suppressed. Now I really need to get to work. I put my computer on my lap and starts going through the Police radios, getting in their GPS routing network and forcing to make it seem the crime happened on a different part of the trucks route. I hear some gunshots and look down off the roof, seeing the unicorns killing the cops. I press my hoof against my ear piece.
"What the hell are you doing!? I thought I told you no death!" I say into my ear piece, "They were incapacitated and the police wouldn't open fire, not with your fire-power. This is unnecessary!" I am staring at one particular pony, the one that organized the entire operation. He must of had a Sixth Sense telling him that I was looking at him as he turns his head and looks up at me, speaking into the ear piece he had.
"You cannot pull off a heist with out casualties. I am simply making sure that none of said Casualties are on my side. How many do you think those bombs you adore so much have killed? You are just like me." He said, the... The nerve of him to think that! I.. Am NOTHING like him..
"The nerve you have even hinting that I am ANYTHING like you is... Just plain insulting. Yes, my bombs have killed. I am not afraid to mention that. Yes I blame myself for those deaths. But... I do not attempt to kill. My bombs all have a purpose when I detonate them. None of them involve taking another's life. You.. Aim that gun. And you choose to pull that trigger." I can feel my self shaking. The anger was prominent in my accented voice.
"Wow Zap, that... Really touched me." He says, he starts making some strange movements with his hooves, his rifle lowering.
"Wait... Really?" My hears lower, I know for a fact he's more stubborn than that. Just from the things he said to the other ponies in the planning stage. Then I notice he is doing sign language, on the roof opposite of the one I am on.
"No." He states firmly, a flash of red makes my eyes widen and my ears lowering, I dive down just as a sniper shot is fired, if I hadn't moved the bullet would of definitely killed me. A new voice, a mare's, speaks over the radio as I grab my lap-top, starting to reroute all police GPS's to this location.
"I missed." The new voice states as I hit enter then I close my lap-top and shove it into my duffel bag. Putting it over myself on my right side.
"You... Missed!? It isn't that hard to kill one damned zebra, i'd know." He shouts. He does? Fuck him. I start to look around, looking for a way to escape, An Assault rifle floats up over the back of the building, many zebra curses go through my head as I jump up and turn around, jumping onto the building next to the one I was on, there's another gunshot and the sniper barely misses me, flying right past my neck, my life flashes before my eyes a bit but I have no time to stop, no time to think. I keep running, jumping up and down on the roof tops, the shots of the sniper barely missing me. My right forehoof catches on a wire on the roof, a frown adopts my face as I trip, I tuck my head in and roll from the trip, getting back to my hooves but just a second to slow, another shot getting fired from across the street, the bullet punches through my bag, and my computer. Digging it's self into my side. I, logically, scream out in pain, falling over onto my side. In seconds my grey suit jacket starts to get stained in red as my blood spreads out from the wound.
I lay on my side, clutching the wound and making sure I am putting pressure on it. My eyes closed and tearing up from the pain. I pull my bag over and start to pull out bandages, taking off my jacket and shirt, wrapping the bandages around myself. Panting a bit and grunting in pain. I take some pain killers and pop them in my mouth. I pull out a new jacket and put it on, moving my taser holster, phone, and wallet over from my other jacket. My computer fried with a hole straight it.
"Seun van 'n teef... I liked that lap-top... I peek over the roof, no sight of the sniper. I roll to my hooves, going over to the back of the building. Looking down the ladder and getting on it, climbing down and hoping onto the ground. Limping a little bit. I start to limp down the alley. Going to the main road and looking around. Starting to walk down the side walk. I take out my wallet and pull out a slip of paper, looking at the number on it. I walk over to a pay-phone, pushing a bit into the slot and taking the phone.
"Hello, is this Interspace?"
"Yes, who is this?"
"I'm Zap. The.. Specialist. You met on the street. The zebra with the Lightning bolt stripes? It seems I just got out of a job... And my computer just got busted."
"Oh my, may I ask how that happened?"
"It involved a sniper and a betrayal... That's all I can tell you.. You have anywhere I can sleep? Or.. At least get some medical assistance that I wouldn't trust going to a hospital with.."
"Well... Yes. Yes I have a place you can stay... I also just met someone who has medical knowledge. Come to the docks, Look for a Black Peterbilt 379."
"Got it. Thank you."
"Of course." The mare hangs up so I do as well. I look around a bit and put the phone back in it's slot. I exit the phone booth and start walking down the sidewalk once more, pulling out a phone and checking the map. The docks are about 2 miles away. I stop when I hear some yelling from down an alley way. I can make out a stallion talking.
"You said you'd have the fucking money bat! Now pay up, or we're taking your damned wings and selling those." I look down the alley way and pull out my Taser with my mouth, starting to walk down the alley towards the voices. 2 stallions are standing over a bat-pony mare. One is an earth pony and the other a pegasus, the earthy has a machete in his mouth and the pegasus has a mechanical leg. Clearly some sort of hunter or loan shark. Some Holographic sights lined up with my right eye appear from the top of the Taser, I fire a stun round at the Earthy with the machete. He drops it, falling onto the ground and spazing on the ground. The Pegasus looks at his companion in confusion then his ears perk and he spins around to me, holding the taser in my hooves and leaning on the wall.
"You do know that is no way to treat a mare, right?" I ask, a bit of cockiness in my voice. The pegasus's face turns red and he charges at me, shouting.
"Shouldn't of done that you striped son of a bitch!" I didn't really expect the sudden rage and he slams into me, shoving me onto the ground, my taser going flying and sliding along the ground. He raises his mechanical and tries to bring it down on my neck, I jerk myself to the side just in time to dodge the blow. That of which cracks the ground. My left rear leg goes up, kicking him right in the balls. The scream of pain is horrific and he jumps 5 feet into the air. I roll out from under him, rolling on my wound and cursing myself in pain. I get to my hooves, stumbling a bit from the pain in my side. He looks at me, clutching his balls and tries to charge at me again, with me against a wall it's clear this one would hurt. I see a small zap of electricity on his side and he starts to spaz just like his friend, falling onto the ground. The bat mare holding the taser in her mouth.
The bat mare herself is white, she has a black dragon tattoo wrapping around her back left leg. Her mane is a dark silver, some very faint blue highlights in her mane and her eyes are pink. The skin on her wings are pink as well. She looks lightly injured and bruised. It doesn't look to serious but she is standing on her left foreleg kinda funny. Doesn't look broken but maybe sprained. The black hoodie she's wearing is torn up a bit, some gashes in them. A hole in the pocket. She looks at me and drops the taser onto her wings, kinda shuffling over to me and giving me the taser. I take it and put it back in my holster. Her voice is soft and absolutely adorable.
"Th-thank you sir. I... They would of taken my wings..." She definitely seems scared, well... Terrified of the concept. And smile a bit, shrugging.
"Eh, what can I say. Save a bat-pony was on my bucket list." She must of noticed the pain in my voice as she frowns at me.
"Did he hurt you too much?" She asked, the concern apparent. She sees me clutching my side a bit and moves my jacket, gasping at the bandaged wound. "Wh-what happened? That... Looks like a bullet wound..." She holds my jacket, staring at the wound. I move her hoof away, letting the jacket fall back down to my side.
"Y-yes it's a bullet wound. And yes, it hurts. No he didn't do much damage to me. I just had to roll out from under him and rolled on the wound. I'm Geskenk. But... You can call me Zap. What's your name?" I carefully sit down. Grunting a little bit as I lean my head back against the wall, sighing.
"M-my name is Sader Sweet." She states. Sitting down infront of me. "I... Can guess how you got the nickname Zap. With the.. Odd stripes and all..." She clearly tries to put it as lightly as she can. I smile a bit, chuckling.
"Quite the sweet talker, eh Sweet?" For some reason she blushes and stutters a bit. My smile just widens, not laughing at her. "I also got the Nick name Zap because my mother was electrocuted during her pregnancy with me but survived. Geskenk is actually Gift in Zebra." She seems slightly surprised to hear that information. I start to get to my hooves. "I.. Have somewhere I need to be." I look over the unconscious stallions. "Why don't you come with?" I ask, my eyes turning back to her.
"Y-yes please..." She says, nodding gratefully. "C-can you elaborate a bit on the.. Electrocutiony thing more on the way?" She asks, looking up at me since i'm a few inches taller than her. I shrug and smile.
"Sure. I can do that." I turn around and start walking, Sader following behind me.
Author's Note
There is going to be more in Sader's part of the story.
Prologue Chapter 3: Impossible Remix
I'm driving along the Highway, the cars around me all having somewhere to be, same as me. My speedometer's needle just breaking 70 mph when a black SUV changes lanes in front of me and hits the breaks, starting to slow down. I pull the horn cord, honking at the SUV to get moving, my speed rapidly decreasing. Forcing me to downshift when the RPM's get to low. When I hit 63 mph I turn my blinker on and start to change lanes, easing over to the left. The SUV starts to do the same even though it doesn't have any room, starting to do a P.I.T maneuver on the car in front of it. The car starts to swerve, losing control and going to the right of the SUV, bouncing off of the front right of my truck. I jerk the wheel a bit to the right staying in the same lane and starting to pick up speed, the SUV only half in the lane, my the front left of my truck starts to push against the back of the black SUV, causing it to start and pick up speed.
I remove my hoof from the gas, putting it on the clutch and shifting into 18th gear and putting it back on the gas. The SUV is staying in front of me and starts trying to slow down again, but the front of my truck is already damaged so I don't even bother. My bull-bar hitting the back of the SUV and starting to push it up the highway. An exit starts coming up on the left. I fake it like i'm going to the right then jerk the wheel hard to the left, my truck not liking it much as I turn onto the exit, slowing down as I get off the inner-city highway. I sigh a bit, coming to a stop at an intersection. My eyes widen a bit, 3 Black SUVs are waiting at the light across from me. Just.. Just a coincidence right? My hoof reaches over and I take the CB Radio Mic.
"Breaker 1-9 Breaker 1-9, this is Retro asking any other trucks in the area, Have any of you had any trouble with Black SUVs?" I ask into the mic, releasing the button. Retro being my handle, not my actual name.
"I had some trouble with Black SUVs when I was hauling a trailer of Heliodryl for ASC." Replied a stallion over the radio. "Totaled my truck and stole my trailer. Damn near killed me. I advise you just drop your trailer some where. Hope they only want the load." He says. Drop my trailer? Like hell. This trailer is my personal one. I am also getting a good pay for this.
"10-4" Is all I say, Shifting my truck to first and hitting the gas, the light turning green. I start to turn right, pushing the pedal down and glancing in my mirror. All 3 of the SUVs start following me. I sigh a little, really hoping it's just a Coincidence. 2 of the SUVs pulling up next to me. They start to turn slowly into me, forcing me to the left and onto the sidewalk. I pull my cord and blow the horn, warning ponies to get out of the way. I see a mare with her baby in a stroller who clearly won't be able to get out of my way coming up. My eyes widen and my ears lower then one, simple phrase goes through my head. 'Fuck this.' I force the wheel to the right, side ramming 2 of the SUVs, P.I.Ting the one in the front, making him spin out.
I jerk wheel around as I swerve through traffic then I yank my wheel to the right as I enter an intersection, my truck sliding a bit in a drift as my trailer takes out a tree in the median, putting a dent in it and knocking the tree down onto the road. I just realize i'm on the wrong side of the road and I drive between 2 trees and drift a bit on the correct side of the road. A matte black boxtruck stops sideways in the middle of the street, forcing me to turn left into an Alley way. The Alleyway is a dead-end with a brick wall at the end. I bite my lip and let out a soft sigh then my eyes narrow.
"Ramming speed mother fucker." My hoof pushes down completely on the pedal. My bull-bar slams into the wall, my body jerking a bit as I destroy the wall, The some what magical bull-bar doing it's job in protecting the front of my truck. I burst through the other side of the wall and turn hard onto the road, my trailer doing a nice slide as I keep driving. The wall crumbing behind me and blocking my path. I turn into another alley way and turn right when I exit it. Taking a left at the next turn onto a pretty empty street. I turn in the middle of the road and back into an alley way. Turning off my truck and sitting back. Panting a bit. "Who were those assholes..." I mutter to my self.
Reaching down I carefully pull on the handle and open the door to my truck. I take the keys from the ignition and hop out, closing the door and locking it. I start walking to the side walk, looking around the bit. There's a 24/7 internet cafe sitting on the corner. I trot over to it and push open the door, walking inside. I buy myself a doughnut and some coffee and sit down at a table and pull out my phone, looking at it as I bite into my doughnut and I dial in a number. Putting it to my ear, swallowing it as somepony picks up.
"Hello?" The buck on the other end asks.
"Hey, It's Synthesizer. Has any of your transporters ever had trouble with Black SUVs?"
"Err.. Yes. 2 of our transports have lost their loads to Black SUVs. Are you being troubled by Black SUVs as well?"
"No shit otherwise I wouldn't be asking." I take a sip of my coffee.
"Don't get that tone with me. I can make sure you don't get another job remember."
"Oh, I remember. Just also remember that I am the one with the Million Dollars worth of Heliodryl sitting on the fith-wheel plate of my rig." A sigh comes from the other side of the phone.
"True... True. Are you still in conflict with them?"
"No, I managed to escape them. I am at an internet cafe right now."
"Do you want to give up the load? You will still be payed half the original."
"Oh hell no I am not giving this up. Plus i'm not putting any-one else in danger over my cowardice. I'll.. Just take some runs through the back roads. Go through the slums a wee bit."
"Alright fine. You'll even get a bit extra for your trouble in that case." He hangs up. I lean back, drinking the rest of my coffee and finishing my doughnut. It was a decaff coffee. I leave the cafe and get in truck, laying down in my bed and closing my eyes. I fall asleep pretty quickly.
When I wake up I stretch my forelegs, yawning and opening my eyes. I scratch my belly a bit and sigh, looking over at the wheel then at the clock. I was asleep for about 5 hours. I roll off of the bed and land on the floor with a thud and an 'ow' then I get to my hooves, brushing my self off and putting on a white shirt. I climb into the driver seat and start up the truck, shifting it into gear and slowly pushing the pedal down, exiting the alley way and turning onto the road. I drive along some back roads, heading for the slums.
I see a Black SUV on another road as I drive past but was going the other way. I push my hoof down a bit more to speed up so I don't have to deal with that lad seein' me. I turn down a road then down another. Heading deep into the slums of NC. It's pretty tight in the slums for large cars let alone a truck like mine with a 53" Drive-van. I go around a sharp corner and a few ponies are crossing the street. I hit the breaks and come to a stop, peeking my head out the window.
"Hey, what're you all crossing the road for?" A mare looks at me with quite the smile on her face.
"There's a griffin on Cider Street. Looks like he got in a fight. We're mobbing him!" She says ecstatically.
"Oh really? Why don't I go give him a visit." I rev the engine in my truck. All the ponies clear from my path and I put the peddle to the metal. Shifting with ease and heading for Cider Street. I see the street coming up and I turn a bit into the other lane and swing around the corner. I can see a mob rushing towards a blood red and silver griffin. The ponies scramble out of the way as I slam on the breaks, my rear wheels locking up and bouncing a bit as my truck comes to a stop. I quickly shift to 1st and think about what I should do. I hear some pony shout:
"Oh shit the Chicken is getting it now!" I decide to do the dumb thing. I open the door for the griffin. The Griffin himself is mostly silver, his beak and talons look like a light grey. Beside his left foreleg, which looks like a custom prosthetic. It's painting in a matte black with a few exposed wires. And some blood on the knuckles. The griffin's chest is blood red, going to a quick point on his white belly. The red covers his chest and arches around his forelegs, going along his side, thinning down till his cat like tail. It goes along his tail to a white tip. He has dark red eyes and a slightly dumb expression on his face, probably his poker face. He also has cat-like ears with little tufts that come out of them. A somewhat mane looking thing and goggles on his head, red lenses, and a tattered black sports jacket. The left sleeve removed for his prosthetic. I motion for him quickly to get into the truck.
"She's helping him escape!" shouts a, very offended sounding pone. I put the peddle down before the griffin even has his arse in the seat, a mob of ponies rushing forward and trying to climb on my truck. I smoothly shift gears as I put the peddle down. Swerving a little to try and not run over any ponies. I swerve onto another road and do my best to keep going on that road, ignoring the griffin slightly as I try to dodge the wrecked cars sitting on the sides of the road. Driving right down the yellow line in the middle. The griffin speaks up.
"Who in the right mind saves a griffin in this town?" I glance over at him, giving him a small smile. Turning my eyes back to the road as I answer as simply as I can.
"I do." I can't help but chuckle a bit. "First off, i'm Interspace. Second off, what the fuck did you do!?" I can tell my temper rose about halfway through that sentence. I didn't mean for it to it just sorta did.
"Wow calm down a bit... I'm Hilt Mars, you can call me Mars. And... I.. Just kinda pissed them off by being there..." I glance at him and sigh. I heard that's how Griffins tend to get attacked in this city. Just... Be simply being there. I glance in my mirror, looking at some ponies carefully walking along it.
"Shit... There are some ponies on my trailer..." I mutter, a bit nervously as I try to come up with a plan for when they get to the truck. Then Mars asks the question I was dreading.
"What's your plan for when they get to the cab?" He asks, I can hear the nervousness. I look over at him then forward, we're coming up to a fence in my path. That puny little fence better move, I knocked through a cement wall!
"Hope they don't get to the cab" Is all I can really say. My truck rocks a bit as we crash through the fence, 2 pieces of fence flying in different directions as I turn onto a newer road, driving between cars and getting on the Highway, staying at 5 above the limit. Glancing in the mirror as the ponies start to get some leeway on the trailer.
"Relax, I got this." Mars gives me a cocky smile and opens the door, climbing out of the truck and closing it with his back leg. Fucker better not dent my trailer. My door gets pulled open by someone who was probably on my chassis and tries to stab me, I duck my head back as he thrusts the knife forward. I bite down into his arm and grab his knife, throwing it into the sleeper and looking at him, grabbing him by the shirt collar with both hooves as I use my wing to drive.
"Get off of my plane." I throw throw him from my rig into the bed of a pick-up truck and close my door. Picking up speed and starting to weave through traffic to get away from the pick-up, slowing back down to highway speed by the time I get a few cars ahead of the pick-up. Mars opens the door and swings back into my truck.
"All taken car of." He smiles at me. I return the smile. I then think about it and look back at the knife on my bed.
"Fuck" Mars looks at me.
"What's wrong?" He seems slightly confused, looking in the mirror.
"If that bastard was smart, he cut the lines to my trailer. Or at least disconnected them... You mind climbing back out there?" He shakes his head. "Alright, get between my truck and trailer. There should be some curly wires connecting from my truck to the trailer. If they are disconnected or cut come and tell me. Don't try to put them back on. Got it?" He nods and climbs out of the truck again. Soon swinging back in just as I start to get off and exit.
"They look like they were cut with a knife." My brow furrows and I carefully start to ease to a stop.
"Fucking hell, That probably means i'm going to get pulled over for the lights being out on my trailer.." I start up from the light I was stopped at, very carefully making my way to the air docks where I am delivering the Heliodryl.
Author's Note
Yes there are 4 of these things. Also, I live in America but New Cantorlot is set up like Britian so... I may get some things mixed up in that sense.
Prologue Chapter 4: Sour Sweet
It was a bit foggy as I was walking down the street, not quite the slums of New Cantorlot but fuck the place was still pretty shitty. Most the cars in this area are old and broke down. Rounding a corner I see a group of ponies taking the wheels off a car. I look at some cinder blocks and come over, helping them get the blocks under the axle.
"Ah shit man, thanks. Here, take this." The pony tosses me 2 break pads to sell. A pony walks out of the barber shop. A large stallion. He looks at the car then at me and the 3 other stallions.
"The fuck you do to my ride!?" I am pretty sure I see a vein pop out of his forehead.
"Oh fuck, scram! Every pone for themselves!" I turn around and jump onto the hood of the car, tossing the break pads into my satchel and taking off across the road, hopping onto a parked SUV and then over a Barbed-wire fence of a enclosed Gas station. I climb up a ladder on the side of the building and look back. The pony is sitting in defeat, looking at his wheel-less car. I turn around and run across the roof of the Gas Station and hop over the fence, into the sewers on the other side. Walking down and looking around then going to one of the sewer tunnel. I pull it off and climb through then replace it. I head down the tunnel and make a left.
I enter my little heaven. A pipe control area or something. I set the satchel on my sleeping bag. I look at my mirror, brushing my mane a bit. Smiling a bit. Damn I look hot. I frown. Who you kiddin' girl. Sighing, I turn around and opens a minifridge. Pulling out a chocolate bar and eating it. Thinking about what I should do tomorrow. Oh wait, I got that date tomorrow! He won't go for me... Eh.. At least just until I can drink some of his blood... Eh... We'll see. I put half of the chocolate bar back in the fridge. Getting out some peanut butter and a spoon, licking the peanut butter off the spoon to fill up on protein. I sigh, looking around a bit.
Biting my lip a bit I reach into the satchel and pull out 4 black leather socks, putting them on and sitting against a wall. I start to rub myself, moaning a bit. My ears lowering as I breathe carefully. Rubbing myself a bit more. My leg twitches a bit. I look around for something to assist me in this wonderful action. I moan happily as I feel my self climax. Resting a bit then cleaning my sock and pulling it off. Tossing them into my satchel again. I.. Hear a strange noise coming from one of the tunnels. I follow along it and see a pipe near to bursting. I gasp a bit but it's too late, the pipe bursts, launching shit all over me.
"S-son of a bitch!" trembling a bit I carefully go to my satchel and take out a sheathed knife and belt. I put it around my waist and head out of my tunnel. My eye twitching a bit I go to the water and start to roll around it. Doing my best to clean the shit off of myself. Literally. I sit up in the water. Wet and cold. I look around. I forgot to take a towel. I must of been pissed. I mutter in high pitched, bat-pony squeaks and starts heading back to my tunnel. I stop dead into my tracks as 2 large stallions pull the grate off. Starting to climb through. Those guys are loan sharks. And... I totally owe them like... 2,000 bits. I start to slowly back up then spread my leathery wings and take off.
I start flying as fast as I can. Trying to stay low so the Sky Guard don't spot me and get suspicious. Looking around I notice I am in a newer part of town. A few ponies stop and stare at the wet bat-pony mare with a knife around her waist. I blink at them. Carefully making my way along like I don't notice anything is amiss. I then swing into a clothes shop. The pony behind the counter's eyes widen when he sees me.
"Hey I need like some clothes now." He looks at me, then seems to be looking over me for anything that holds money. "Err... I don't have any money on me." That seems to settle his decision. He straightens up a bit and looks at me. A stern look in his eyes.
"This isn't a charity. Get out." Damn. I frown and turn around, walking out of the shop and looking around. I fly across the street and look at a sign on the coffee shop. 'Free Coffee for the homeless.' Hey, I technically count as that. I don't have to pay any sort of rent so I am most likely homeless. I walk into the coffee shop. Making my way over to the counter.
"Err.. Hello. I heard you give coffee to the homeless." I'm not sure if the barista is just stoned or really tired. He is just kinda looking off into space. He blinks a few times.
"Oh hey. What'chu want? If it's sex it's the wrong place sweetheart." My brow furrows with that. If I didn't have self control I would smacked a bitch. Might still do it matter-fact.
"I want a coffee. Sweetheart. I'm homeless." The barista looks me up and down. Sizing me up.
"I believe it." Bastard. He starts making me some coffee. Giving me the cup. "Now fuck off please your stinking up my working environment." I don't even smell. I take the coffee and take a sip then turns around and heads out back onto the street. Looking around then heading over to a dumpster in an alley and leaning against it, taking another sip.
"Alright... There are two loan sharks at my home... They are clearly looking for me... And I don't even have any fucking clothes... I am wet, not in the good way, and cold. Fuck me..." I start to pace a bit, looking around. Unsure what to do. I drink another sip of coffee and walk out from the alley way, turning onto the side walk and I just start walking. Muttering to myself a bit as I do so. "What will these bastards do if they find me... Oh fucking hell.." I just walk, not really looking where I going. A pony i'm walking past, also homeless, gives me an old hoodie. Old black hoodie. I thank him and put it on.
I get pulled into an alley way, a clearly surprised look on my face. A stallion throws me onto the ground and I look up, grunting in pain. My eyes widen at the two stallions above me. The same two that broke into my 'home' a little while earlier.
"Where the fuck is our money you little slut." I look up at them, sprucing my lips a bit and thinking.
"Um... Give me another month." I say with a smile, trying to play it off. My nervousness is apparent. They look at each other, they both grab 2x4s and start beating the shit out of me. They drop the 2x4s. One pulling out a Machete and the other one just flexing his mechanical leg a bit. He punches me right in the face, I slide back about a foot with a cut on my face, I grab my face in pain.
"You said you'd have the fucking money bat! Now pay up, or we're taking your damned wings and selling those." My ears lower and I look up at them. Suddenly the one with the machete starts spazzing like a fucking maniac, i'm honestly not sure if he's having a seizure of something. The Stallion falls down and behind him is a... Rather sexy looking zebra. A modified stun-gun of sorts in his mouth. He is light grey with jet black stripes in the shape of lighting bolts. His muzzle is also black. His mane is a bit messy though in a pony tail. His legs fading to a nice jet black and with deep blue eyes. He's wearing a grey suit jacket with a black tie. He's leaning on the wall to the alley way like a badass by the time the Loan Shark turns around.
"You do know that is no way to treat a mare, right?" The zebra asks the stallion, a smug smile on his face. I swear I can see heat waves come off the stallion as he charges at the zebra.
"Shouldn't of done that you striped son of a bitch!" The zebra's eyes open a bit in surprise as the stallion slams into him. This Zebra's taser goes flying and lands on the ground, sliding towards me. I start to walk towards it but then I notice the fact that FUCK MY LEFT LEG FUCKING HURTS!! I look at it and see that it's bleeding. Some wood still in it. I put as little weight on it as possible, leaning down to pick up the taser in my mouth. A absolutely horrific scream sounds out that hurts my ears, forcing them to lower. I look up and see the Zebra rolling, standing up leaning against the wall. Clutching his side a bit. The pony clutching his balls. He gets ready to charge at the zebra again. I quickly pick up the taser in my mouth.
"Go to hell." I say quickly, firing right after 'hell' and hitting him in the side. The pony falls to the ground. Spazzing just like his friend. A dumb look on his face. I look over at the zebra staring at me. I drop his stun-gun onto my wing and shuffle my way carefully over to him. Giving him the taser. He takes it and puts it in a holster under his jacket. I speak in a very soft voice, the only voice that really wants to come out right now.
"Th-thank you sir. I... They would of taken my wings..." I could hear the fear in my own voice. As the adrenaline was disappearing I could feel the absolute fear of my wings being taken. The zebra shrugs a bit, smiling.
"Eh, what can I say. Save a bat-pony was on my bucket list." Even all the cockiness in his voice couldn't mask the pain. I glance at him clutching his side.
"Did he hurt you too much?" I was pretty concerned... This zebra is hot I don't want him to die. I grab his jacket and move it to the side. Underneath is a bandage wrapped around his body, blood stained with what... What looks like... "Wh-what happened? That... Looks like a bullet wound..." I can't help but stare at it, my ears lowering. He shoos my hoof away, letting the jacket fall back down.
"Y-yes it's a bullet wound. And yes, it hurts. No he didn't do much damage to me. I just had to roll out from under him and rolled on the wound. I'm Geskenk. But... You can call me Zap. What's your name?" He has an amazing voice. He sits down, grunting a bit in pain, he leans his head against the wall behind him with a sigh. I sit down in front of him. My forelegs blocking my currently wet marehood.
"M-my name is Sader Sweet... I... Can guess how you got the nickname Zap. With the.. Odd stripes and all..." I try to put it lightly but he just smiles at me, giving a light and pained chuckle.
"Quite the sweet talker, eh Sweet?" They way he asks the question and the look on his face I move my hooves a bit closer to my slightly quivering marehood. Blushing deeply and stuttering a little. His smile widens and he laughs a bit but I get the sense he isn't laughing at me. "I also got the Nick name Zap because my mother was electrocuted during her pregnancy with me but survived. Geskenk is actually Gift in Zebra." I... Actually didn't no that. He must of seen the surprise on my face and he looks out of the alley way, starting to get to his hooves. "I.. Have somewhere I need to be." His eyes look over the currently out-cold loan sharks then turns his beautiful eyes back to me. My tail covering my rear quite tightly. "Why don't you come with?"
"Y-yes please." I nod my head, a bit grateful actually. Then I put my hoof to my chin and I look up at Zap, who's a bit taller than me. "C-can you elaborate a bit on the.. Electrocutiony thing more on the way?" He nods slowly, starting to head out the alley.
"Sure, I can do that." I follow behind him, my tail between my legs still. We walk along the side walk and I catch up to him.
"Before I was born my... Mother was pregnant with me and getting groceries on the outskirts of a pollution zone. The warm areas. A huge storm started when the cold air blew in. It ended up being a huge thunderstorm and she was electrocuted but some how she survived. She was rushed to a hospital. When I was born I was... Well.. Alive. And I had these stripes. They named me Gift. Or... Geskenk. That's pretty much all that happened." I look at him, at a slight loss for words. We continue to talk with each other a bit on the way to what looks like the Air Docks of New Cantorlot. WIth airships n' shit. When we got there we saw a modified Solid Black Peterbilt 379. A black Drive-van behind it. A Griffin was doing something between the trailer and the truck sleeper. A pony mare waved us over.
Author's Note
I'm used to ponies with clothes. Also, Holy fuck i'm done with these we can get to the actual story now!
Chapter 1: The Cantorlot Republic
A light blue 1957 bel-air with blue classic rod rims with white wall tires and a white roof pulls into a parallel-parking spot in the slums of New Cantorlot. The car sitting low to the ground with it's side-pipes shuttering to a stop as the engine of the car is turned off. All the windows completely blacked out. Across the street sits a building. An old Textile factory now used by a mob boss. If you get him drugs, you get protection. Protection not scared to kill innocents. A drug deal was recently struck. A self-driving van pulls up in front of the Textile factory. The side door slides open and 2 ponies get out. Nodding at the 2 guards by the door and heading in. They walk up stairs as two mobsters investigate the bel-air. One of the ponies knocks on the door to the office of the Textile building, which allegedly the entire top floor of the 5 story building. The mob-boss speaks from the other side of the door.
"Come on in!" The mobster opens the door and heads in with his buddy, lifting up a paper bag. A smile grows across the mob boss' face. He motions them over. "Come on let me see the good stuff." The Mobsters bring the bag over and places it down in front of their boss. He stands up and opens the paper bag, inside is a plastic bag of "Cocaine." The Mob Boss makes a glee full noise. Grabbing the bag and lifting it out.
"It weighed exactly as they said." One of the mobsters comments, they all hear a beep and the Boss looks in the bag. In the bottom of the bag was sitting a small silver disc, about 4 inches in diameter. A red light in the middle. The light turns to blue and the Boss' eyes widen.
Outside one of the mobsters is lifting up a brick with his horn to break the window on the old Bel-air when he hears a loud explosion behind him from the Textile factory. He drops the brick and swings around, the glass from the windows is flying outwards from the force of the explosion, 2 feet of stone on the walls is also exploded outward in a perfect, large circle. Causing the roof to fall and collapse onto the rest of the building, crushing the floor under it and some of the 3rd floor. The Bel-air roars to life and the wheel turns, the tires start to spin and some flame spurts from the side-pipes as the car takes off, it accelerates so hard that the back bumper scrapes against the ground. The roar of the engine making the car sound angry. The 2 mobsters that were investigating it look at each other then run after the car as it drifts around the corner. They round the corner but the car vanished. Not even the engine sound is audible.
The '57 uncloaks as I turn it into a lot, passing the a fence gate which automatically closes behind me. I drive through the lot, passing 45'' Drive vans and autonomously driving lot rigs as I head to a large garage door on the back. The large door starts to open, revealing the matte black 1997 Peterbilt 379 behind it. I turn a bit and drive beside the truck, which is plenty of room, turning into the large warehouse where the Cantorlot Republic holds base. The most secure hide out in New Cantorlot. To our knowledge of course. I pull my master piece onto a lift. Shutting it off and putting the key in the inner pocket of my dark grey-ish black denim jacket. Black leather driving gloves on my talons and the print Gryphon Autos on the back of my jacket, between the wing holes. I open the door and get out, closing the door behind me as I head into the office of the old Auto Repair shop, which services now as Zap's little heaven. There are also Soda machines in there. Zap doesn't seem to be in his room but his van was missing as well. His van roughly looks like a 1982 Chevy G20.
"Well look who's back from their joy ride." A joking female's voice says from the door way to Zap's room. A smile dawns on my beak a bit and I look over, Synthesizer leaning in the door way. Only 34 but already having some grey in her mane. I look back to the soda machine and pushes in a Bit. Pressing the button for the Black Cherry soda as I respond.
"You know damn well that wasn't a joy ride Interspace." I grab the soda as I chuckle a bit. "Though The '57 seemed to work well and that cloaking tech Zap stole is amazing. Where is Zap anyway? He finally take Sader out on a date?" I open my soda and takes a few sips from it. Interspace walking over and playing with a Luna Bobble-head Zap has. She turns her head to me with a roll of the eyes.
"Please, you know Zap only goes for mares way out of his league." We both share a bit of a chuckle at that. "Also I am pretty sure he has an eye on that Candy Chip mare. The Hacker from the Sunjackers?" I forgot about her, The Sunjackers. Could be a rival group.. But it's not the police so I am pretty sure we're friends. Plus that Atom Smasher mare is pretty cute looking...
"You did never answer my question on where Zap is though, and i'm guessing Sader. It's rare one of us leaves alone." I say, when I just left alone a few hours ago. I... Hope she doesn't bring that up.
"You are right about that, Zap and Sader are scoping a place out. Some storage garages. You know what i'm talking about right?" I nod, odd that they be scoping a Self-Storage place though.. "Well the place had an increase in guards recently, about a day or two ago. A little birdy told us that some of the Big Corporations are moving a large shipment of Heliodryl. But they are trying to do it discreetly with moving trucks." THAT's why their scoping out a Self-Storage lot...
"Isn't that... A bit dangerous?" I look at her, sitting down as I drink some of my soda. She looks back at the Bobble-head.
"Well... Yeah. Quite dangerous in fact. But not if the crooks don't know you're doing it. Then it's rather safe and less obvious than an armored truck. You know?" She smiles at me. I like where this is going. But it well be hard to rob the truck with out getting much attention.
"Smart... Very smart. Also a lot easier to rob." She nods. "I'm a bit hungry from testing out The '57. Can we go get some food?" She looks at me and nods. Turning around and heading out of the room. I stand up and follow her. Closing the door to Zap's office then turning around and following Interspace, which is heading to a car which looks like a 1988 Chevy Caprice Classic. We... We really like Chevrolet. I get the passenger door for her then gets in the driver side myself, starting the car. It's nice V6 coming to life quite satisfactorily. I back it off of the lift I park it on and turn around carefully, driving out beside Interspace's truck and through the open garage door. The door closing behind me.
The car glides smoothly across the road, once a Caprice always a Caprice. The Autonomously driving cars next to me on the highway. Interspace, who decided to wear a jacket, is playing a bit with her unloaded gun. An Albatross .67 Assault. Chambered in Gryphon .67 Striker. More commonly known to ponies as .45 ACP. The .67 Assault is a very similar style to the Calf M1911 that the pony military used for years in the early to mid 1900s. Though of course the .67-A is made for talons, the grip and trigger under the slide, a single talon is required to pull the trigger. All that's needed. I my self carry an Albatross .67 CC. (Concealed Carry) which is pretty much the same as the Calf Commander just made for Gryphons.
Interspace's Albatross Assault is rather special though, a gem was infused with the metal of the supposedly cursed weapon. A stone that corresponds to another stone, a stone on a pendant. Both the gun and the pendant's stone is a dark, midnight purple. The actual necklace and wrapping around the stone is Sterling Silver. Any creature, Pegasus, Unicorn, Zebra, Gryphon, anyone who wears the pendant can wield the gun as if they were levitating it like a Unicorn would be able to. This adds as an advantage to a Pegasus like Interspace. She doesn't need to mouth-wield a gun like most. Such as Zap does with his stun gun. There are rumors that the gun is cursed though, the one with the pendant comes to an early death. I myself am concerned for Interspace since rumors such as these have come true but she doesn't seem to worry about it so I never talked to her about it really.
I soon pulled off the Highway and turned onto a normal road, parking in a parking lot of an amazing taco restaurant. I open Interspace's door for her and helps her out. Heading around the car and getting the restaurant's door for her too.
"Such a gentlegriff." She smirks at me with a slight tinkle in her eye and goes to find a seat. I sit down with her. A waitress giving us both menus then heading away, letting us browse. "Hey Hilt, Call Geskenk and Sader. Maybe they can meet us here." I nod and pull up my left fore-leg. Rolling up my sleeve to reveal the matte black metal under neath. A hologram appears from a little panel that opened on my foreleg. I start swiping trough it with my right talons till I get to contacts, calling Zap. I can hear the ringing through an ear piece in my ear. The zebra of topic picks up.
"Hello?" The pleasant voice of Zap asks over the phone.
"Hey Geskenk! It's Hilt. Synthie and I are at that Taco Place I love. We were wondering if after you and Sader were done shopping you could come here to talk."
"Oh, well... Last time I went there the Big Bang happened in our lavatory but... The mares that work there are rather cute yes?"
"Geskenk.. we need to talk business alright? You can check out mares after we get our next Paycheck alright?" The zebra chuckles on the phone.
"Okay okay. Sader and I are on our way Hilt. Do keep Synthesizer entertained until we get there, I don't want her all cranky from bordem again."
"Of course. See you soon." I hang up the phone, we tend to use our real names in public since there are always cops listening. They know me as Mars, Synthie as Interspace, Geskenk as Zap and Sader as Runner so... We're good. The waitress returns. A young unicorn. Maybe 20 at most. She levitates a notebook and pencil next to her and asks with a rather cheery tone.
"Hello, i'm Straw Bed and i'll be your waitress today! How may I take your order?" Interspace was looking at the menu but then puts it down. I know what I want already.
'May I have a Xtra Cheese Chalupa and a Grape Destiny please?" The waitress nods then turns her head to me.
"I'll have two Meat Lord Tacos and a water with a lemon please." She nods and writes it down, going to take the menus but I stop her. "Actually we have two on the way, can you leave the menus here?" She blinks a few seconds then nods.
"Of course." She turns around and heads away with our orders. About 10 minutes later a G2000 catches my eye. Looking out the window I see Zap turn into the parking lot in his van. Parking next to our Caprice Retro. Zap and Sader get out of the van. He locks it then they both walk in. A few seconds of looking around and me waving my wing Zap and Sader come over and sit with us. Zap smiling. His grey suit still looks nice as always and his black tie rather stylish. His mane is brushed back into a pony tail. Sader is wearing a black track jacket like I used to wear.
"Ah, I sure do like this place." Zap comments, the waitress returning and giving Interspace and I our food. She looks at the two new comers and Zap speaks up before she can ask anything. "2 quesadillas and 2 Destinies please." The waitress opens her mouth then nods, heading off again. Sader and Zap come here a lot and eat the same food... Zap then turn his eyes to me. "So... About talking business..."
Author's Note
Yes, this was shorter than most of my Character chapters. Just meant to get you a bit more situated with the CR's position 3 years later. Yes it's 3 years later. I forgot to mention that. This is now the same time that the Sunjacker's comic goes with. The action and heist and stuff will be next chapter.
Interspace's Peterbilt idled nicely. The smoke stacks beside the cab vibrating. The truck is sitting on the side of the road, Waiting. The windows tinted to almost pitch black, from the outside. With a bit of unicorn magic they are still clear on the inside. Interspace is sitting behind the steering wheel. On the wind-shield is a hollow-gram map of the city. There is a single dot on the map. Blinking as it moves along the highway. Getting closer to our position. I take some gloves and slide them onto my talons. Leather driving gloves. I pull my .67 CC out of it's holster under my jacket. Looking it over then starting to screw on a silencer. Hopefully I won't need to use it but anything is possible. I put it in the belt of my pants by my tail. When it gets about a mile away from our position Interspace reaches to the gear-shift. Pushing in the clutch and putting it in first. Pulling off from where we were waiting. She gets onto the road then onto the entrance of the highway, speeding up and shifting gears and starting to head down to the Highway.
"Alright." Zap comments over our ear pieces. "You should see the van with the Experimental Heliodryl coming up on your left. Should be an uh... Chocolate brown G2000." There was an air of uncertainty in his voice. Though intel on this sort of thing is sketchy since the main reason it's in a civilian van is to not call attention to it. Interspace focused her mind to driving. Glancing in the mirror and speeding up a bit. She slowly starts to pull her Rig over to the left, in the lane in front of the van.
Sitting on the back of the of Interspace's Truck, which she's taken to calling Nyx, is a black 48' trailer. Spread-axle and drop deck. The main purpose of this trailer is to hold vehicles in them. In the front bit of the trailer is a little tech office for Zap. Which is wear he is now. Between him and the vehicle bay is a 2 inch thick wall of magically sealed Plexiglas. There is a door in the Plexiglas too and when it is shut magic seals it closed. Most of our magic stuff is done by Zap's old college roommate. A unicorn mare by the name of Solar Flare. Ironic name eh? The highway is about to go through a tunnel. A not very long tunnel, but long enough.
"Killing the lights." The lights in the tunnel all get turned off. The door on the trailer starts to open, scraping along the ground a bit. The door opened to a ramp right in front of the van. Zap makes it so all the windshields and windows on the cars dim so no-pony can see this. He hastily hacks into the van, turning off the tracker and taking control of the wheel and acceleration. He makes the van accelerate and drive into the trailer. He shuts down power to the van and keeps the doors locked. The trailer door closes just before they exit the tunnel. The windshields and windows return to normal on all the cars. Interspace drives like nothing happened. She smirks a bit to me. I return the smile.
Interspace starts to pull off of the highway after getting on an exit. She stops at the stop light and starts moving when it turns green. I lean back. Sighing in happiness.
"Alright, the two guys never saw my face. I knocked them both out. I got Solar waiting at a location for us." An address pops up in the middle of the split windshield, a hologram hovering over the dashboard. Interspace starts driving to it. "She still expects payment for doing this for us by the way." Interspace sighs a bit and gets on the comms.
"I understand fully and she's getting payed in full. This is the deepest I want to drag her into this. A relieved sigh comes from Zap. Interspace does her miraculous thing and drives through the streets with ease. She pulls onto a road that goes past a park and starts to drive along it. She carefully comes to a stop. Though she leaves the truck running. I glance in the mirror. A door on the side of the trailer opens. Nothing too big just a pony-sized door. It's above the rear tires on Nyx. A stairway extends down to a unicorn mare standing on the side walk. The mare herself is yellow, her legs and ears fade gradually to a bright orange. Her mane is red with streaks of white in it. She is pretty young but has had a very stressful life. She looks up at Zap and walks up the stairs. Said stairs retract into the trailer and the door closes. Interspace pulling off of the curb.
We have Solar Flare here to do one thing. Mind Magic. She is taking the memories from the two driver's encounter with us. Everything up to them getting in the van. She is putting them in memory orbs of which we will be shattering. Solar wants to be as innocent as possible but she is amazingly skilled in the magical field. Mainly stuff with neuroscience. She is also researching stuff like Suntech, trying to get the neurological connections more certain. Better use. Solar doesn't even know why she helps us. She told Interspace and I she thinks it's because Zap is the one who took her virginity and vice-versa. She gets the feeling that has something to do with it but Interspace quickly shut her down. Said something like 'Trust me darling, if a stallion takes your virginity and you still talk to him you'd be married by now.' By the way she said it she makes it sound like she isn't a virgin. I mean she is 34 but still. I personally want to find out who her first was. Solar still seems to think that she has some sort of connection with Zap.
"She's done, pull over some where." Well speak of the devil. At Zap's cue Interspace pulls over. I open the door and slide out of the rig. The stairs descending at the same time. Zap lets me into the trailer and then we go to the vehicle bay part of it. It isn't the first time Solar and I have talked or anything but I still feel a aura of intimidation or hatred come off of her when i'm near her. I don't think she likes me very much. Zap and I open the doors to the van. I pull out the guy on the left and Zap the one on the right. We carry them out and bring them out of the trailer. Putting them behind some dumpsters in an alley way. Zap climbs back into the trailer and I walk over to Solar.
"This is a pretty nice neighborhood so you shouldn't have anything to worry about. Their's a gas station a few blocks that way." I point down the road in the direction of a visible gas station. "Just head there and call a cab or your friend or something."
"Alright.. Thank you." She says nodding.
"No, thank you." I give her a friendly smile and climb back into Nyx. Interspace starts to pull away from the curb once more. She starts to drive along the city streets once more. I lift up my prosthetic, opening the hologram menu and starting to swipe through it. I send out a call to Sader and wait for her to answer. Leaning back. I can hear the ringing in my ear piece. Suddenly the sweet and adorable voice of Sader Sweet dances it's way into my ear drum.
"Hello?" I smile a bit. We tend to use our real names when talking on the phone in case anyone is listening. But we refer to Sader as well.. Sader. So I like to get a bit creative.
"Hey there Sweet-cheeks. How's the shopping?" The bat-pony groans through the phone. She doesn't like it when I call her Sweet-cheeks.
"It's goin' alright Hilt. I am still annoyed that i'm doing this instead of you. But.. At least i'm able to get something for myself."
"Well I got called to work. So it isn't my fault really."
"Please, don't make me laugh Hilt. The main reason i'm here is because you and Zzzz.. Geskenk drink through the Destiny™ supply so quickly."
"Sweetie i've seen you grab some Destiny™. Don't try blaming us. We conserve our drinks."
"You drink a can a day!"
"There are ponies who drink more than that daily."
"Yeah and they probably lost a limb for it."
"The Fourth Wall is a cruel mistress..."
"What was that Hilt?"
"Nothing!" I quickly hang up the phone and realize that we're on the highway, probably heading for the docks. I look over at Interspace and I see her giving me an odd look. "What?" I ask, a bit defensively. She shakes her head and looks back forward to the road.
"So, how's Sader?"
"Oh, she's alright. Still annoyed that she's the one doing all the shopping and not me. That, kinda feels like laziness doesn't it?" I ask. Looking over at Interspace, she glances at me as she drives. Quickly turning her gaze back to the road.
"Yeah, you do most of the work but Sader is good at scouting stuff out. She doesn't tend to have many uses in the execution of the heist but she's damn useful in the planning." The buildings we're driving past steadily starts to get more and more industrial like as we get closer to the Sky-Docks. The Sky-Docks is basically like normal nautical docks, just for air-ships. Most of the Air-ships have been shut down since it's dangerous to run them in the cold because the propellers might freeze up. Most vehicles that are used to travel between cities are specially designed and use Magical Nuclear power. Many just using the Nuclear Heat to keep the vehicle warm. These are the same companies that created the marvel that is SunTech™. The vehicles used to travel between cities tend to be large 4 axle'd behemoths that run on a MN Generator, they're too large for city streets so it's rare to see one if you aren't travelling beyond the City Line.
We use a kinda medium sized warehouse in the Sky-Docks as our base of operations because there is a large bay area where we can park our various not stolen vehicles and it's rare that any one'd go over there. Most of the area is shut down but there are some small-ish private companies that run out of that area, just using the warehouses to store their stuff. We like to make most ponies think that's what we are. Nyx's blinker broke me out of my mental ramblings as Interspace turned into the small compound that is the entrance to our Warehouse. Interspace swings Nyx around and starts to back the trailer up to the garage door where Nyx is normally parked. I hop out of the truck and run over to the garage, opening said garage door. I wave my talon, giving the signal to Interspace to keep backing up. She keeps coming till a few feet of the trailer, about 3, are inside. Then of which I raise my talon up flat like a wall, telling her to stop. Zap starts to open the trailer's rear ramp from his little office inside.
I head up the ramp of the trailer and get in the van, turning it on with manual control and backing it out of the trailer carefully. Really we don't want the van we just want it's cargo. I park it next to where Nyx is normally parked. The trailer's door closes once more and Interspace pulls out of the garage to go park said trailer. Zap trotting in under the closing garage door just as I was getting out of the van.
"So, now that we have another G2000... My van has been making some weird noises when I back up..." He gives me a smile. Heading around to the back of the van. I roll my eyes a bit.
"So where you telling the truth or just yanking my chain?" I ask, looking through the van and out the back window. He looks up and winks at me then opens the back door. He pulls out a lead-lined brief case. The case has the SunTech™ logo on it and the locking mechanism is juvenile. He shuts the rear door on the van and heads into the main area of the warehouse. Taking it up to the little living room above the office where Zap normally keeps his rear. He places it on the coffee table and then goes to get some Destiny™ soda. I sit down on the couch, looking at the box. I lean my head back and wait. In about 3 minutes the garage door opens and Nyx backs into her little bay next to the stolen G2000. Interspace gets out and heads over to us, walking up the stairs and sitting down next to Zap and I. Zap of which is clearly enjoying his soda.
"So are we waiting for Sader before we check out this Experimental Heliodryl?" Interspace asks, looking between the two of us.
"That's the plan. When I was in the van dealing with the drivers I saw a letter on the dash board." Zap hands said letter over to Interspace, she opens it.
"'Experimental Heliodryl, H3-4K. Codenamed "H3L10." This is a prototype product.' Interesting..." She glances up at the closed case. "What's so different about this Heliodryl?"
"Well, we haven't actually opened the case yet. It might be obvious. I get the feeling it's supposed to be more efficient than current Heliodryl."
"That might be true.." Zap said, a hoof on his chin. "Though it may also need to be distilled to tell the difference. I know there's a priest at the old Celestia church that distills this stuff." An imaginary army of heavenly flutes starts to play as Sader's voice suddenly cuts in.
"Then we should get going." We all jumped at the bat-pony's voice. All 3 of us looking at her. "Well, go on and open it." I blink at her for a few more seconds then lean forward and pop the latches on the case, raising the lid. Inside is 5 vials of H3L10. Right off the bat the first difference I can see is that the actually Heliodryl is lighter than normal Heliodryl. Brighter more so. I quickly close the case.
"Let's get this to the Father." The 4 of them nod. "Actually, Interspace, you and Sader stay here. Zap and i'll go." They both nod.
"I need to clean this place up a bit anyways." Interspace commented. Sader doesn't seem quite as happy but she obliges. I motion Zap to stand up as I do so. Grabbing the case.
"We should hopefully be back soon. Cya later." They both wave at us as Zap and I head down the stairs. We head over to our nice Caprice Retro. I grab the keys from the key ring and unlock the car, getting in and turning it on. Zap gets in next to me with a slightly perplexed look.
"Why did you want me to go with you and not Interspace? Or Sader? I know you trust Interspace more and just prefer Sader." Oof, low blows much Zap?
"I know you've been taking an interest in SunTech™ so I thought you'd like to come along." I carefully drive over to the garage, driving out once the door is open.
"How do you know I have an interest in SunTech™?" He looks at me as I drive. The case is sitting between is.
"Hah, please. You have like, 5 SunTech™ magazines sitting in your office. Plus i've woken up to you tinkering with my arm." He seems surprised at the second one.
"Wait really? I thought you were always asleep..." He looks down, seeming to try and think of a point where I was awake.
"Yeah, I woke up but didn't move. Peaked an eye open. Saw you working on it. Funny, after that I was thinking about how my arm was working. It seemed to be working smoother than it used to." I give him a small smile.
"Well... It's quite the old model so I won't lie, I have been working on it a bit. Using techniques and that of newer models and adding some new bits of my own. I've been meaning to ask how it was holding up for you." He seems kinda happy i'm not mad at him.
"It's been working really well. I feel like I have better control than I used to of it it seems slimmer. More stylish."
"Well... There was one night that I didn't really want to work with little fiddly-bits like wires and things. So I spent most of the night working on design." He seems proud of it. I am not one to judge I think it looks nice, less bulky.
"Well now that you know that I know. I'll let you work on it with out needing to hide during the night. It'll just have to be me doing something like watching TV. Otherwise I won't be able to sit still for that long."
"I understand. Thank you, as well. I look forward to playing with it. I was thinking about adding sharp carbon tips to your talons to make them quite sharp and deadly. Or maybe running an electrical current through them so you can use them like taser claws. I think that'd be nifty."
"Oh no we're here." He has a lot of plans... It's just one little arm! I shut the car off and grab the case. Getting out in sync with Zap. We both close the doors and I lock it. I hug the case with my wing and we start to walk into the church. Zap looking up at it in sub awe before picking up the pace a bit to rejoin me at my side. We head into the church and he leads me to a side door. He knocks on it. A voice coming from the door.
"Yes? Who is it at this hour?"
"My name is Zap, We have something you may be interested in Father."
"Oh, do please come in." Zap opens the wooden door and walks in. I follow behind and close the door afterwards. I drop the case and Zap grabs it with his mouth. Putting it on the counter by The Father. An older pony, brown with a greying mane and yellow eyes. Large glasses on his face.
"Sir, this is experimental heliodryl. We.. Procured it with the hope of it being useful to a cause. Though... We don't know how to distill it and we don't yet know what i'll do. It is still experimental." The Father looks over the case. Inspecting it then opening it and looking at the vials of H3L10.
"I may know someone who might be willing to test a vial..."
"Who is it?" I ask. Stepping forward a bit.
"A reliable runner of mine.." He says, holding one of the vials up and looking at it. "Atom Smasher."
