"What the hell Desmond? You said we wouldn't be here that long," first mercenary said.
"I said we'd be here as long it took," the ghoul shot back in a gargling rasp. The mercs hadn't been payed to listen and so they didn't do very much of it. Desmond Lockheart didn't like paying anyone to gaurd him but he didn't know what to expect when he opened the Vault-tec Vault in front of them. He pried open the access panel on the door controls to the side of the vault door and began hotwiring the instruments underneath.
"Well, how much longer is it going to be?" the second merc asked. Desmond didn't have an answer to that question so he ignored it. Whatever was in Vault B, it had been important enough for his former rival in Maryland to consider leaving it out of his own databanks, something he was saving for a rainy day. That meant it was very valuable and possibly something Desmond could use to reach his ultimate goal: revenge against his other rivals.
The old ghoul fiddled with the controls. The two mercs shifted behind him, one of them pulled out a cigarette and lit up. They both carried assault rifles and wore the traditional matte-black combat armor members of their 'organization' normally were seen in. Desmond hoped he wouldn't have to introduce either of the gentlemen to the end of his shotgun any time soon.
Desmond had reluctantly purchased Talon Company's "premium" protection package shortly before he mounted the expedition to Vault B but he knew not to expect much from them. Hopefully, if things did turn south, they would distract whatever trouble they ran into long enough for him to escape. Of course, Desmond knew about Talon Company's mercs. There was an equally good chance that they would simply shoot him if they found anything valuable and leave. Fortunately, their mercenaries weren't known for being smart. If he did happen to locate something useful, he could simply play it off and deal with the two mercs in a more discreet fashion.
A spark flared from the door console. The grinding of enormous gears filled the small chamber in front of the entrance to the vault. The large, cylindrical door of the vault in front of them groaned. It felt as though the entire tunnel they were in was shaking. The three of them stepped forward to the door and waited for it to clear.
"Finally!" one of the mercs said. "Not paid enough to wait this long."
"At least we were paid in advance," the other merc replied, loading his gun. Desmond heard the distinctive sound of both rifles' chambers being cleared. He didn't bother to turn around and look at them as the door to the Vault slid open.
At the same time in a world closer than the other three realized, another three creatures busied themselves trying to unlock something else...
"Give it here, Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo demanded. "I should be the one to open it!"
"Nu-uh! You're not careful enough with these kinds a things!" Apple Bloom said, shaking her head. Scootaloo grasped the small safe with her hooves and struggled, trying to free it from the grip of her friend. The two tugged it back and fourth, both of them accomplishing nothing.
"Girls," Sweetie Belle interjected, "This is my sister's private safe, so if anypony should open it, it should be me. Besides, I am the one with the horn."
"Oh pe-shaw," Scootaloo scoffed at the statement. "You don't even know how to use magic yet."
"No," Sweetie Belle admitted. "But I do know how to be gentle from working with Rarity for so long. I watch and help her all the time when she's making dresses. I know how to be delicate."
Scootaloo released the box and folded her hooves. "Fine, you can try," she said. They were all eager to find out what was inside but really, they had all also been wondering if one of them happened to get a lock picking cutie mark for their trouble. None of the three crusaders knew why Rarity had gone to such lengths to hide this small locked box from them; only that it was something important. And that made it irresistible to the three fillies.
"Thank you," Sweetie Belle accepted the box. She eyed the keyhole on the front of the safe, considering how she might be able to open it. She didn't know if her sister had any keys or if she used a specific spell to open it. She could think of only one other way her sister could get it open. Carefully, Sweetie Belle held the box in front of her, bent forward and inserted her horn into the lock.
The keyhole was large enough for the unicorn's horn to easily slide into. She rotated her head clockwise as she held the box, hoping she would hit a locking mechanism of some kind. But nothing happened. Gritting her teeth, she rotated it the other way and heard a clicking noise.
"Did you get it? Is it open?" Scootaloo asked.
Sweetie Belle got excited. She tried to pull off the safe and raise her head to look inside at the same time. Unfortunately, her hooves slipped off the casing as her head rose and quickly she found she was holding nothing. For a brief moment, she looked at the startled faces of her two friends sitting in front of her and wondered why they were looking at her so oddly. She quickly realized however...
"It's stuck! It's STUCK!" Sweetie Belle shouted, panicking. She waved her hooves in fear as the small box remained attached to her horn, the contents of it jingled inside as she moved back and fourth.
"Hold on!" Apple Bloom said, moving over to help her friend. She and Scootaloo got up and walked over as she continued to flail.
"Get it off! Get it off!" Sweetie cried.
Scootaloo grabbed the box. "Hold still! We're trying!" Their friend's panic wasn't helping but the two grabbed the safe and tried to pull it off. They tugged on their friend's head and the box, desperately trying to get it to let loose.
"It's stuck! What if it's stuck on there forever?" Sweetie worried, her voice cracking.
Apple Bloom grinned. "Well, at least we know you'll be safe!" The other two weren't amused at their friend's joke. Scootaloo continued grunting, trying to dislodge the safe. Finally, pulling hard enough, the safe finally flew off the young unicorn's horn. The force of yanking the box off threw it from Apple Bloom's hooves and sent it flying across the room. It crashed against the wall.
Sweetie Belle rubbed her horn, relieved. "Thank goodness..." The three quickly got up and walked over to the safe.
"Drat, still locked," Apple Bloom said, looking down at the box. Suddenly, the box glowed and rose as if being possessed by some invisible hand. The trio backed away from it and turned around. The safe floated through the air over to Rarity who was standing in the doorway to Sweetie Belle's room.
"Girls..." she began. "What is it you are doing with this?"
