Seven feet beneath the lavish gardens of lilies, white roses, marble steps, a hot sweaty body, and muscled legs boldly bounded with water splashing over big black boots. Striding across the metal pipes, Strongpony Bulk Biceps rushed through the drains, hooves pushing a metallic cart holding a dark box. He focused on his view as he called in with the Operator. "How is everything?" He huffed, looking behind and almost swearing he saw a ghost.
Back on the street level, the Operator confirmed from his binoculars across the block. She ensured everyone’s locations with trackers. "Everything is smooth thus far." she stated as she crouched lower, "We've successfully replaced the real diamond with a replica. And our thief has managed to use her hairclip to escape the office."
The guards stood in front of Spoiled Rich's iron-doored mansion, softly exchanging ideas with each other. A shadow passed by the wind, causing a breeze and an unusual chill in the area. "It's getting a bit cold isn't it?" One of them asked. The other nodded in response, their breath rising in the frosty air. As the peaceful moon shone upon them, they nevertheless felt on edge, as recent thefts had always made them worry they would be next.
How ironic that they were right. Up above them, a hooded figure wearing a leather latex suit skillfully leapt off the ledge with a zipline, using one of her acrobatic tricks she learned long ago. She avoided using her wings, as it would attract attention with loud noise. She left smoothly and just as mysteriously as she arrived. Meanwhile, as the strong pony continued onwards, confident in the plan, he thought over how this had come to fruition.
A month ago, they had realized the issue as they interacted with one of the Operator’s past acquaintances. Granny Smith was well respected in her farm and was planning to rest in peace, but someone had discovered she owned a priceless diamond. And so one defenseless night they snatched it from under her nose. As the traders continued selling the diamond at higher and higher prices, they abused their power and wealth to flaunt their prize. The offers were getting ridiculous, and transference of power along with fame boosted their status, especially the current owner, Spoiled Rich.
When Granny Smith learned of the news, she was beyond appalled. They recalled Granny Smith wrinkly hoof forming a fist, trembling mouth, and worried face. "Those bastards..." Her brows crushed together fiercely, "It was a priceless religious artifact. They had only sought to gain profit." But the Operator knew different. She had to repay her kindness and her lessons -- it was precisely this professor that broke him out of her originally uncaring and callous personality. She had known that this old lady could hardly win in some court case. Granny could hardly protect and much less prove her ownership.
And so the boss convinced the others to join. She put together a plan to smuggle the diamond out of the building and into a drain, past the guarded front gates and successfully retrieving it back to its truthful owner. Getting past the security was the easy part; learning the guard patrol and building layout was trivial for some pony like the Operator. She only had to find the right moment to send Rainbow in and climb to the office’s window. Even though there was only a fifteen minute time window, that was more than enough for her plan. As Rainbow snuck in with the fake diamond, she had to replace the real one so as to avoid the pressure plate censor. Getting to the diamond was slightly trickier, but the Operator dabbled in enough hacking to gain enough time to fool the security system. After the Operator disabled the firewall, Rainbow managed to open the glass chamber and quickly exchange it. And so only the final obstacle was left: getting out without getting caught.
"But something's wrong..." The Operator warned, seeming to notice something shuffling in the background, "I’m monitoring activity and it's too peaceful." She grew suspicious as her hound-dog eyes darted left and right. "Turn left up at the intersection ahead."
"Will do," Bulk Biceps said, shifting his weight to heave the box over. It was at that moment when he heard a loud sound in his ears as he winced. It sounded like a door crashing open -- similar to ones he had broken before.
"Dammit! I should've known!" The Operator stated, with the sound of the window opening and the clack of formal shoes. "Spoiled Rich's resources were better than I thought... they found me. I'll have to meet you up later. Follow the path like I given, and meet up Rainbow at the point we talked about."
Bulk Biceps’s strained face showed stress as he gritted his teeth. He just hoped the plan wouldn't fall apart. He desperately worked through his mind, remembering how the Operator had compared the plans to fighting to remember the parts. He had always had trouble learning and retaining information, but the Operator seemed to know what was best. "Uppercut" through the long drain. "Elbow hook" going left. As he worked his brain, he finally made it to the exit, with the familiar face greeting him, the slick and mysterious Thief of their plan. Relieved, he delivered the diamond into their getaway car.
But as they were smoothly driving back to our headquarters, they heard some static on their headphones. Uh oh. That can’t be good. Bulk Biceps thought. They heard the Operator shout as she was wrestled to the ground. "Hahaha... we got you now, Operator. You had no chance of escaping our grasp. But we'll give you a choice here -- join us, or die here."
They weren't certain what the operator was going to say. Her true intentions were hidden, and she always kept a part of her plan to herself. Indeed, they heard her shudder and struggle, only to finally spit out the words: "Fine... I'll help you with your project."
The thief and the Strongpony gasped in astonishment. They didn't think that she would so easily give up without a plan. Gripping the steering wheel tighter, the thief nevertheless continued driving, uncertain what to do next. As the earpiece went out completely, even the Strongpony had a darkened expression. The operator had been forced to cut her ties due to her enemies. And they no longer had a brilliant mind to guide them. While Rainbow was smart in her own right, this seemed like it needed much higher guidance, one with a more overarching view. As they arrived in silence, the two sat in thought about what they would do. The thief tapped her chin and her eyes brightened with inspiration, suddenly remembering a seemingly trivial fact. “Ah! Didn’t the Operator had a past lover? She might be able to help us.” Her memory was remarkable. She had only mentioned it once but, they had broken up a while ago due to his sneaky nature and surprise in their date which backfired. Even so, she seemed to have trouble getting over the mishap. If anyone knew the Operator, it had to be her.
As Rainbow explained to Bulk Biceps, he nodded in agreement. “It seems like the most reasonable option.” He replied. And so, with diamond saved in the headquarters, the two drove off once again, to find Operator’s ex. It took only twenty minutes to reach her home, which was a surprisingly short amount of time. But as they knocked and called out, they heard no response. With Dash’s ears pressed to the door, she heard a ruckus going on inside. Just what was happening? Fearing the worst, Dash begun taking out her lockpicking tools. But with his previous anger unrelinquished, Biceps impatiently delivered a strong kick, breaking down the door.
His eyes widened in horror to see the owner’s furniture ripped, scattered, with broken glass on the ground. The mare was sprawled out with blood splattered all over her. He took a step back, trying to block Dash’s eyes, but it was too late. The thief felt dizzy as she fell to her knees, overwhelmed by the scene in front of her. And the prepetrator was nowhere to be seen.
Sunset found herself cornered on the edge of the ten-story building. The masked stallion was slightly winded from running up the staircase but managed to quickly recover. He pointed the pistol directly at her chest as he took deep breaths. “Just hand over the files, and we’ll let you go.” He stated menacingly. As Sunset held onto the precious documents, she felt vertigo as she looked behind her, biting her lips. She was eight feet away from the nearest building ledge. Sunset had confidence in her strength, but even this was a stretch. Still, giving away these papers was simply not an option. And so she turned, jumped, as the man reluctantly shot the pistol in an attempt to stop her.
Her eyes widened as she missed the edge by a hoof’s length. As she screamed, her arms clutched at the empty air, as she fell, and fell…
“CUT!” A man with glasses and a French accent proclaimed, walking towards the actress. “well done Sunset, tres bien,” she dusted off herself as he praised, looking towards the other actor, “and you too. Looks like you finally got into the role, eh?”
He sighed in relief. It took a full twenty takes to manage all the subtleties in this single scene. The French director, Monsieur Melville, was a bit of a perfectionist who directed only the best masterpieces that the film had seen. He was impressed how Sunset managed to everything to his satisfaction, but he was surprised at how difficult acting was. He had heard from Sunset that she loved practicing method acting -- replicating the movie in real life -- but he had no idea how Sunset managed to set up this scene on her own.
Melville patted the stallion on the back, while Sunset raised an eyebrow at him. He was tired at the practice, and Sunset rolled her eyes as she beckoned the director for a favor. She leaned in with a playful smirk, still looking directly at her friend. “Oui, oui, of course,” he hoof-waved at her, his favorite actress, “you two can take a break, we’ll shoot some other scenes in the meantime. I’m happy with what we got here.”
“Come on, Operator,” Sunset said eagerly, holding her partner’s hoof and urging him out of the studio, “let’s get some lunch. The meal’s on me.” She smiled as she put on her sunglasses. The operator, on the other hand, groaned inwardly at the heat under the summer sun. He rarely liked being outside, and if it wasn’t for Sunset, he would probably still be at home. Still, he enjoyed her vibrant nature and her energetic personality that contrasted against his lazier mindset. It wasn’t a special day in any way. But he felt special when near Sunset.
As the gears turned in his mind, he nodded and stopped Sunset in her tracks with a resisting pull. “Actually… I’ve got something in mind myself. Let’s visit the new restaurant, Lennard’s.” Sunset looked disgruntled, but nevertheless followed along. As Operator offered her a seat, he sneakily talked with the waiter, with him nodding and whispering something to him.
“What’s this all about?” Sunset asked, head resting on her hoof, curious about the interaction. Operator only gave a non-committal smile. They ordered their food and had a chat over current events, though Sunset couldn’t get the initial interaction with the waiter out of her mind. He seemed strangely distant, as if he was still acting, just in a different way. Sunset felt constantly at edge faced with this unusual interaction. It wasn’t robotic, but it felt tailored towards her needs rather than what he desired. Indeed, they had managed to finish the final course and Operator still said nothing about his plan. Just as she was about to impatiently ask again, the waiter delivered a neat little cake with ribbon on it. They gathered around Sunset, beginning singing a Spanish variation of Happy Birthday. Sunset was embarrassed with red hot cheeks, and they clapped as she awkwardly blew out the candle. She shot a look of disapproval at Operator, as they left. But as she fished out her wallet, he was already one step ahead with signing the bill.
Sunset couldn’t take any more. She stood up, angry, cheeks red and hooves clenched. “Operator!” She stated firmly, trying to keep her voice in check, as he looked at her, clearly confused. He had given her everything any one could possibly want. A surprise turn around, even if a slight lie, helped produce a lovely date. Or so he had thought. “You know that I don’t like lying for small gains. I’m not that kind of person!”
The Operator raised an eyebrow. “I get it, I really do, but when all’s said and done, what’s the issue?”
She shook her head in frustration. “I was the one who wanted to get lunch for you! I want this to be a healthy relationship where I can give as much as you, but you…you keep rejecting everything. I don’t know what’s going on with you. You’re… suffocating me!”
Some customers’ eyes were drawn to the commotion, as they wondered what was going on. She stormed out of the restaurant as the Operator sat stunned, with his arm reaching out to nothing and brilliant plan completely backfired. He couldn’t understand. Every previous woman he had dated strategically for his planning wanted to take advantage of him. And he would manage to secure key information in secret in exchange for being a “service boy”. But this wasn’t the usual type of woman he was used to. And he completely lost the point of a genuine relationship. As he sat in thought, he felt defeated, head raised to the ceiling. He was sure he knew everything about Sunset, but it seemed like good people were far harder to know than malicious people.