Ponyville Library,

Twilight’s perspective…

I groaned as I flopped my hoof over the top of my muzzle, effectively covering my eyes while I groaned. “And he didn’t say where he was going?” I asked, to which Spike shook his head.

It wasn’t the first time Evan had just up and left without a word and hadn’t come back that same night. But it was the first time he left that Lassie started to act strange… really strange.

Lassie didn’t really want to be inside and constantly whimpered while scratching at the door. Spike had said that Evan was going somewhere, but he wasn’t sure where. He had also informed me that Evan had received a letter, but from whom he didn’t know. Added to the fact that Evan had taken the letter, I had no place to start effectively searching for him.

Lassie whined and scratched at the door feverishly. “Lassie, I’m sure it’s nothing. He’ll be back, I know it,” I promised the faithful pooch, but my words of comfort didn’t serve any comfort. She lept up onto a desk near the window then pushed it open with her nose before squirming through the small space.

Immediately Lassie raced over to where Evan’s truck was always parked and began whining excessively, almost as if she was crying. I sighed sadly as I closed the window then proceeded outside, making my way towars the whimpering puppy... actually, she was growing a lot lately. She really couldn't be considered a puppy anymore due to her size.

I made my way to her and sat beside the dog who now had tears trickling down into her fur as she shuddered, heaving in deep breaths. I gently wrapped my left foreleg around her, bringing her into a loving hug. “You were there for me, now I’ll be here for you,” I assured the canine, remembering how she coached during dinner with Evan.

I could feel Lassie’s heart beating heavily as she took deep and shaky breaths, her body still shuddering as she cried. I had no idea what was wrong… I mean, Evan got into rough patches, but… surely he wouldn’t be dead. He couldn’t be, he just… he just can’t die.

Manehattan,

Evan’s perspective…

I casually strolled down the streets of Manehattan, making sure to stay away from darker alleyways or bad slums. I kept the safety latch on Belladonna’s holster unbuttoned to allow a quicker draw if needed.

I didn’t have any money for a taxi, which would’ve made this easier. However, despite not having a clue where anything was, the digital map made finding Uptown rather easy.

I strolled uphill but, as I did, an undeniable voice caught my attention from above. “HELP!” Screamed the voice as its bearer plummeted downwards. I looked up and caught glance of a grey pony in mailpony fatigues.

A small smirk crossed my face as I spread my stance and widened my arms. Derpy wasn’t looking and had her forelegs covering her eyes as she careened downwards.

As her body collided with mine I winced, partially in brief pain, but also due to the fact that her body’s momentum smashed me into the ground with a brutal force that I couldn’t counter.

I felt her body shivering on top of mine. “You know Derpy… we should… really stop meeting… like this,” I wheezed between breaths, followed by a brief chuckle. I cracked open my right eye and took a peek at her.

Derpy stopped breathing for a moment and looked up before her eyes went wide. “EVAN! Are you okay?!” she gasped worriedly and I simply nodded.

“I’ve felt better, but… I’m doing pretty good. Yourself? What brings you to Manehattan?” I asked, still lying with her atop of me.

“Oh, I had a delivery to make. But on my way back I got pulled into turbulence. Thanks for saving me... again!” she thanked me happily while smiling brightly.

I winced slightly as my body began to feel the pain of the impact, but like I said, it wasn’t too-too bad. “Yeah, no problem Derpy. You know that I’d do anything for a good friend like you,” I told her with a wink.

She got off me and stood up, brushing off her uniform before scratching her ear. “Well… what brings you to Manehattan?” she asked in her usual dopey-yet-adorable voice.

“Oh…” I trailed off, not really wanting to explain the real reason I was here. Instead, I told her a very shortened version of the truth. “I’m also delivering something,” I informed her and her face spread into another smile.

“Do yah need some help! I can lead you anywhere. I’m a great guide!” she informed me. I shrugged. I didn’t see why that was the worst idea. If she just led me to the Liotta homestead, then we could go our separate ways from there.

“Sure. I’m going to this ritzy neighborhood in Uptown,” I informed her and she nodded before turning and pointing towards the slums.

“I know exactly where that is. It’s that way. Come on, I can show you!” she announced, beginning to lead towards where I had come from. My brow furrowed as I looked to my GPS thingy. That was in the complete opposite direction to where I was going.

“Uhm… Derpy, are you sure? I think Uptown is that way,” I informed her, pointing to the direction I was supposed to be travelling. She blinked, her crossed eyes looking towards Uptown with an undaunting gaze.

She looked to the sky and started pointing with her left hoof while counting to herself. I wasn’t exactly sure what she was doing. Without warning, she stood to her hindlegs and began slowly stepping in circles, still looking at the sky and counting, this time with both forelegs pointing at the sky.

She quickly settled down to all fours, her eyes twirling around in a bizarre way as she wobbled while her balance resettled. I blinked and Derpy suddenly shook her head. “OH YEAH! Uptown is that way!” she announced, pointing in the proper direction.

I looked over my shoulder towards Uptown, then back to my ditzy friend. “Uhm… yeah,” I replied unsurely, wondering to myself if this was actually a good idea or not. Derpy began to trot towards my destination.

“Come on! I’ll show you where you’re going!” she offered, still trotting in a rather bubbly way. I just rolled my eyes and followed her. I suppose nothing really bad could come from this, as long as we parted ways before I met with the family’s Don.

As we trotted through the city, Derpy constantly pointed out several attractions that the city offered: street vendors, corner stores, and the like. I was rather surprised that she knew so much, but it quickly donned upon me that she was a mailpony and that she probably got around quite a bit.

Before I knew it, and much to my utter surprise, Derpy stopped and presented to me a small neighbourhood… well actually, it was like Hue Heifer stated. It was a large gated laneway that had four big houses… mansions actually, that were sealed off from the public by a fancy brick wall that surrounded the rather large property. There were several stallions dressed in three piece suits at the gate, along with several posted along the laneway.

The dwellings were not separated by any type of fence or otherwise, and had a rather large distance between them… well, for a city home in a sprawling metropolis. Finely cut grass lawns stood in front of each home, along with a fancy… very fancy, motorized carriages. Each carriage looked kinda like on old ‘30’s Rolls Royce Sedanca de Ville, minus a few tid bits. The wheels were all wooden carriage wheels that were a little bit thicker than the regular carriages that I’ve seen. On top of that, the spare wheel was actually on the back, rather than behind the front fender. And the storage box unit was on the front side of the vehicle, where the spare wheel would’ve been located.

However, despite these discrepancies, every vehicle looked expensive. Added to the fact that they were all black, it looked like a real time ‘30’s mobster neighbourhood.

Trees littered the property and gave the scene a rather beautiful look for a city dwelling. “Well… thanks Derpy, be good,” I told her. She smiled as I walked away and towards the front gate.

The two guards, or henchponies, or whatever the hell they were, stopped me abruptly before I could get too close. “HAULT! State your business!” one of the stallions ordered.

“Flim and Flam sent me with this,” I stated, lifting away my duster coat flap and revealing the goo canister.

“Who’s she?” the other asked, pointing behind me in an inquiring way. I turned, only to see Derpy standing behind me with a rather curious look. I let out a silent groan; I had this feeling that Derpy wanted to know what was going on… or she wanted to help me in some way or another.

“Uhm… she’s my guide.” I turned back to the two guards, who looked to Derpy then back to me. The one on the left stepped back then spoke into an intercom placed on the brick wall just beside the gate.

“Uhm… there’s a… hairless ape with a mailpony here. Said they was sent from Flim and Flam. He has some canister,” the stallion spoke with a Sicilian accent.

Derpy tugged on my coat flap. I leaned over and she whispered into my ear. “These guys look scary,” Derpy whispered fearfully and I nodded.

I gave her a waving notion with my hand to not get too worried about it. “I know,” I whispered back. The second stallion took notice of our whispering and loosened his tuxedo, the bulge of what looked like the handle a hoof bow protruded from the left side of his tux. These guys were packing some serious hardware no doubt, and I’d need to play it cautious.

“Yeah, okay, I’ll send him in,” the stallion on the intercom replied, finishing up his conversation. He turned back to me. “You!” He pointed at me. “Go up the laneway and to the last house. Ask for Don Leone… and for fuck’s sake be respectful!” he swore aggressively and pressed a button located below the intercom.

The gate slid sideways and into a slot in the brick wall. ‘Damn… nice place,’ I thought silently. I gave them both an appreciative nod and, with a tip of my hat, I made my way forwards.

Derpy went to follow but they quickly stopped her. “Not you. You wait here,” ordered one of the guards. Derpy looked to me and I sighed.

“I’ll be right back Derpy. I promise,” I assured her. I felt bad for leaving her, but there was nothing else I could do. I turned and continued upwards, all the guards on the property giving me stares. A shiver went down my back, but it wasn’t one meant to alert me to danger, just an uneasy tension.

I reached the last house, which had a guard posted at the main door. He stopped me before I could enter. “Hey buddy, hand over your hardware,” he commanded me. I slowly reached into my coat and handed over the canister of goo.

He looked at it then back to me. “No, not that. Any weapons,” he ordered but I shook my head.

“Oh… sorry. I don’t have any,” I lied, but he raised a suspicious eyebrow.

“You’re not serious? Are you?” he asked and I nodded. “Who the hell trots around Manehattan without a piece?” he asked and I shrugged. He stepped forwards and up to his hindlegs to pat me down.

Within seconds he found Belladonna. “What the hell is this?” he asked, grabbing at Belladonna.

“Pocket pussy. I keep it handy,” I replied and his lip curled in disgust as he yanked his hoof away, shaking it furiously as he tried to rid himself of any sexual fluids he may now have on him.

“Ech… gross… what kind of sick fuck are you?” he asked and I just rolled my eyes.

“The kind that has debilitating urges,” I stated and he shook his head, trying to get images out of his mind.

“That’s repulsive. Just get in there and be respectful to the Don,” he opened the door, now not wanting anything to do with me. I stepped in and made myself graceful.

This place was top notch, no questions asked. There were hanging chandeliers, framed portraits of the city, and a few of a stallion, whom I presumed to be this ‘Don’ fellow and… it was just really classy in here.

“Hey!” called a voice from in another room. I turned and looked over. In a room filled with shelves of books sat a finely groomed stallion in a furnished chair. The stallion looked a little older, late fifties, and was dressed in fine noir attire.

I made my way over and bowed, removing my hat in the process. “Don’t act like a fuckin’ China-mare!” he spat and I quickly repositioned myself.

“Sorry sir!” I quickly apologized and he just rolled his eyes as he stuck a marker in the story he was reading. Setting the story aside, he gave me a once over.

“So… you come out here… to the Liotta homestead, to meet Don Leone of all ponies… dressed like a shitkickin’ fuckin' hayseed,” he mused and I gulped. This was going downhill, and fast.

“Sorry,” I apologized again.

“You got guts kid, a whole lotta guts,” he muttered just as he licked his lips. “So… you got that stuff?” he asked and I nodded. “So why the hell didn’t you give it to my stallion at the docks this mornin’?” he asked.

“I was attacked,” I replied honestly.

“The Gravelli’s?” he asked quickly and with wide eyes.

“I don’t think so,” I replied. I somehow doubted that the woman who attacked me would be working with the mob. It was possible… but unlikely.

“Then who?” Leone asked and I shrugged.

“Dunno, but she almost killed me and that’s why I couldn’t make it. I apologize for being tardy,” I replied and he groaned.

“Oh for Celestia’s sake, don’t talk like a Brit. Just apologize like a normal pony… or whatever the hell you are,” he insisted. I nodded. “Okay… kid, I’m gonna be blunt. You’re fuckin’ stupid for bringin’ that shit here. The Gravelli’s undoubtedly know that you’re the one who has that… and by you bringing that here, they know that you’re gonna give it to us,” he stated and I felt my stomach sink.

“I’m sorry sir. I didn’t know where else to go. I don’t exactly know many ponies in this town, or any of your associates,” I apologized and he nodded.

“True that… but now we're stuck with this problem. The Gravelli’s are stupid… but not stupid enough to attack us on our home front. They’ll wait until we try to move that stuff to the market to attack us…” He trailed off in thought.

“A diversion?” I offered and he nodded.

“Yeah… but what exactly?” he asked and I thought for a brief moment before coming up with a plan.

“Okay, the vial is in a canister to protect it. So I take the vial out, and in plain sight, hand off the empty canister to one of your guys. Then I make my way to some meeting point while your guy leads them in the opposite direction,” I offered. He raised an eyebrow.

“You know kid… for a shitkickin’ hayseed… you’re not all dumb,” he appraised me and I smiled.

“Thank you sir. It means a lot,” I replied. He reached over to a small intercom on the desk and began speaking to a stallion on the other end, probably one of the guards from the front gate. I began to let my gaze wander across the beautiful room. It had wonderful Italian architect designs.

As he quickly wrapped up his conversation, he turned his attention back to me. “Alright, so here’s the deal,” he began. “You’re gonna go outside and give the canister to one of my guards at the gate. Then make your way down to Mickey’s. It’s a shitty motel, but I know the owner. Just tell him Don Leone sent you and you won’t have to pay. Like I said, it's a shitty place, but you’ll be under the radar. Stay there until midnight then make your way over to Central Park. Go to the underground washrooms and my guy will be there to do the real pickup. And from there, you’ll have held up your end of the bargain.” He smiled and gave me a nod. “You know kid, my family could use an associate like you,” he offered, well… I think he offered.

“Thank you sir, but I must decline. I’m not really one to do this line of work, but I do appreciate the offer,” I replied and he just shrugged.

“Well the offer stands.” He motioned for the door and I nodded. I removed the green nutrient vial from the canister just before leaving. Making my way out the door, the guard at the door stepped out of my way, not wanting to be anywhere near me.

I moseyed down to the front gate where Derpy was waiting. I walked up to the stallion waiting for me and slowly offered him the canister. He took it then began to walk down the street.

“What was that?” Derpy asked wonderingly.

“Don’t worry about it Derpy,” I replied, not wanting her to get into this affair. She gave me an inquiring look, obviously not thrilled with the fact that I was holding information from her. “Can you show me where Mickey’s motel is?” I asked her and she nodded with a little bit of irritation. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked her to show me and just used the GPS... but I guess I didn’t want to just ditch her like that.

Third person…

It was getting late. Street lamps flickered and illuminated the streets. The, city ambiance was somewhat silent compared to it's usual tone, but even still, it was not enough to allow one to sleep peacefully. Prostitutes sold themselves on street corners while drug dealers did their own business with others in dark alleys.

A lone stallion rushed through the streets in a rather inconspicuous way.

The Liotta henchpony quickly trotted down the streets of Manehattan on his way to a safehouse. He took a corner rather quickly before dipping into an alley. He made his movements quick and spiffy, trying to get to his destination as quickly as possible. He knew that Gravelli associates would most undoubtedly be watching him, even at this very second.

He took a sharp corner in the alleyway but, just as he did, a bat smacked him in the snout, knocking him onto his flank. He winced in shock and surprise as the blunt pain from his nose trauma struck him hard.

Blood trickled down his nose and from his lips, tainting his mouth with its metallic taste. “ARGH!” he groaned just as a hoof kicked him in the gut. A hoof reached down and grabbed the canister from the inside of his suit jacket.

Opening it up, the stallion realized that there were no contents. “Where is it?” he asked, but the Liotta henchpony simply spat blood at him.

“Fuck you,” he hissed. The leader of the group nodded. Several stallions grabbed the Liotta stallion and pinned him to the wall as the bat was once again swung, this time into his left hindleg’s knee.

He screamed in torment as his knee was shattered. “GAH! FUCK YOU!” he screamed, and the bat was again swung, this time into the other knee with similar results. He whined and grimaced in absolute throbbing pain as the aggressor with the bat lifted the stallion’s chin with the tip of the weapon.

“Where is the stuff?” he asked rather calmly.

“Up your mother’s cunt,” the Liotta stallion replied snidely before spitting blood into the other’s face. The stallion with the bat cocked back for a swing, but rather simply slammed the butt of the handle into the Liotta stallion’s face, smashing several of his white teeth.

Blood spurted from his mouth as his body was dropped to the ground in a heap. Shards of white teeth were spat out of the stallion’s mouth as he was again kicked in the gut, resulting in a gagging reaction.

The stallion caressed his mouth in an attempt to ease the excruciating pain. “Feel like talking?” the attacker asked, but the stallion still refused, simply shaking his head.

The pony with the bat set aside his weapon as he knelt atop the brutalized pony. “Hey Vince, pass me that rusty 'ol razor you have,” he ordered and the Liotta stallion’s eyes went wide.

One of the stallions in the group passed the leader a rusty, old, straight razor. “Wha are yuh guh-a do?” the beat up stallion asked, barely able to piece together words due to his smashed mouth.

“I’m gonna cut off your boys, seeing as how you don’t like talking,” the leader replied darkly as he flipped open the razor knife.

“NO WAI!” The stallion barely managed, motioning from him to stop.

“Couldn’t make that out, what were you saying?” the leader asked mockingly as he moved to cut off the stallion’s testicles.

“WAI, I AWCK! AH’LL AWCK!” He tried painfully to piece together words.

“Still can’t understand you,” the leader taunted as he cut open the stallion’s suit pants, the blade constantly cutting deep into the stallion’s thighs, and around his private area.

“ARRG! Cen-al par-awk!” the stallion bellowed and the other stallion with the knife stopped.

“Go on, I’m listening,” he offered.

“To-ight… mi-ight… aww… wa-room… in cen-al pa-awk.” The Liotta stallion finally broke down. The stallion with the knife smiled.

“Very good,” he replied before reaching into his coat and pulling out some serious hardware. The leader gripped the handle on his hoof bow which was specially designed for hooves. The Liotta stallion saw the leader pulling out his hoof bow and his eyes went wide. The sides of the gun flipped out into crossbow limbs as the weapon chambered the first bolt.

“WAI!” the Liotta stallion screamed for mercy, but it was the last thing he did…

Evan’s perspective…

So we got a little lost and ended up traversing down a bunch of streets in downtown Manehattan. We began down an alley but Derpy suddenly stopped. “Derpy?” I asked and she gave me an inquiring look.

“What was that you gave him?” she asked, still not dropping it.

I let out a sigh. “If I tell you… you can’t tell anypony, okay?” I asked and she nodded before swivelling around.

“Tail Twist Swear,” she replied, wiggling her flank a little. I nodded, turned around and bumped flanks with her.

“Tail Twist Swear,” I repeated. We turned around and I began to give her the short yet fulfilling and truthful story. “Okay. That canister used to have some stuff in it that those ponies wanted, but other ponies want it too so they’ll fight over it. So I kept the stuff that was inside of it and just gave him an empty canister so that he could be a diversion. So I’m supposed to meet this other stallion… or maybe it’s the same one, I don’t know. And I’m supposed to give him the real stuff tonight,” I informed her.

“And what is the stuff?” she asked, delving deeper into the topic. I took a deep breath. I didn’t really want to go into it, but I promised.

“A nutrient substance,” I replied and her eyes went even more wonky than usual.

“So why do they want it so badly?” she asked, going even deeper.

“Because…” I trailed off and decided to be completely honest with her. “They stole it from them. And those guys stole it from some other ponies. So now I’m trying to get it to them,” I replied and her mouth went agape.

“YOU STOLE IT!” she gasped and I quickly corrected her.

“No! I didn’t steal it. Somepony else did. They just wanted me to deliver it,” I told her, but her shocked look remained.

“Why would you do that?! That’s bad!” she gasped and I groaned. This is exactly why I didn’t want her knowing.

“Derpy I... A friend asked me to, and a friend helps a friend,” I stated.

“But stealing is really bad, and you shouldn’t be a part of it. Maybe you shouldn’t be friends with those ponies,” she suggested and I sighed.

“Remember Flim and Flam? The ponies in the desert who helped me save Ponyville even though they didn’t want to?” I asked and she nodded. “Those are the ponies that asked me… so I kind of owe them, you know?” I stated. She went to counter but got choked up on words.

“I… I can’t believe… you’d do something like this,” she stammered, shocked that I would do this kind of work.

“Derpy… there are some things about me that even I don’t like. But friends help friends, no matter what,” I told her.

“But there has to be a limit,” she replied and I looked to the ground in despair. I can’t believe this was happening.

“Derpy. I swear that I don’t like doing this but… I… I just…” I trailed off and Derpy just stood there, wide eyed and shocked. ‘GODDAMMIT! FUCK I HATE THIS!’ I swore at myself silently.

“Are you gonna do it again?” she asked and I let out a deep breath.

“I don’t know Derpy. It just… Flim and Flam help me in ways that they don’t like when I ask, so… I help them in ways I don’t like when they ask,” I replied. She blinked, shocked greatly from what she was hearing.

“I just… I just don’t know what to think. I didn’t think you were like this,” she stammered and I gulped.

“I’m not, Derpy,” I told her, but she shook her head.

“But you are. You’re doing it right now,” she countered. Both of my hands grasped my head as I thought furiously. I didn’t want her to think I was some sort of criminal… but maybe I was. My heart sank even further.

Derpy continued to step back while I was thinking furiously to myself. Suddenly a scream echoed in the alleyway and I immediately looked up. A poorly dressed stallion held Derpy up on her hindlegs, a nasty old knife held dangerously close to her throat.

“Alright buddy, no horseshit! Just give me everything you’ve got!” the mugger ordered. ‘Oh great! Another goddamn mugger! DO I NOT HAVE ENOUGH FUCKING THINGS GOING ON?!’ I thought angrily to myself.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t have anything,” I pleaded. He shook his head, still holding my petrified friend in his grip.

“Bullshit! I just heard you talking about that stuff… the nutrient stuff that those other ponies want! Give it to me and I’ll let your friend live!” he hissed, pulling her tighter to him. “But if not!” He tugged the knife tight to her throat and my eyes went wide in anger.

‘Big mistake!’ my conscience thought. “Listen… buddy… just let her go, or else!” I warned in a deep voice and he simply scoffed.

“Wrong answer! Don’t fuck with me, I’ll kill her! I swear I will!” he spat. My shooting hand dangled down to my side.

“Derpy… I’m about to do something really bad. Close your eyes and be very still, okay?” I pleaded.

“Hey buddy, shut the fuck up and give me the stuff!” the stallion ordered. Derpy closed her eyes and stiffened. I began to recite a rather vulgar nursery rhyme. My left hand steadied in front of my face as my right hand etched towards my hand cannon.

The mugger took a moment to think, the knife moving slightly away from Derpy’s neck as his head peaked out to the side. “Wha…” He trailed off and stifled a laugh. Time seemed to slow down significantly as my right arm made a seemingly single fluid motion.

My right trigger finger stayed extended while the rest of my hand gripped the handle of Belladonna and pulled her from her domain. In a brief moment, my handgun’s sights lined up with the baddy’s head. My left hand shot forward with great speed and took the gun into a two hand grip as my trigger finger slipped into the guard and brushed against the trigger.

His eyes didn’t even have time to go wide as I squeezed back. The mighty pistol rocked in my hands, a brilliant flash of light illuminating the dark alleyway as a bullet sped into the stallion’s skull at supersonic speeds.

The complete right side of the mugger’s head splattered into a mist of blood and skull fragments. His body was pulled back, along with Derpy’s who was still in his grip. Smoke emulated from the barrel of my hand cannon as I stood motionless, still in my two hand shooting stance. I depressed the hammer of my pistol, spun it on my finger, then blew out the smoke before quickly holstering her.

I stepped over, looking down upon the mess. Most of the stallion’s face was missing… and blood littered the area along with brain particles. Derpy went to get up but I stopped her. “Derpy, whatever you do, don’t open your eyes,” I warned her, picking her up and wiping her face with a flap of my duster coat.

I quickly rushed her out onto the street, several ponies looking at Derpy and me. We began to rush down the sidewalk and to Mickey’s Motel. “What happened? Can I open my eyes now?” she asked.

“Yeah, you can open your eyes. Just don’t scream,” I told her. She opened her eyes and saw the vast amount of blood that stained her fur and uniform. She took a deep breath, her eyes going wide as she went to scream, but never managed as my hand covered her mouth. “Derpy, sssh!” I ushered her down another street and finally to Mickey’s Motel.

I rushed in with Derpy and the recipient at the desk looked to us in shock, but quickly settled. “Oh! You must be the ones Leone sent. The hairless ape and the mailpony, right? Sheesh! What happened to her?” he asked, shocked from all the blood.

“Mugger,” I replied subtly.

“IS SHE GOING TO BE ALRIGHT?!” he gasped and I nodded.

“Not her blood, the mugger’s. We need a room, one with a shower,” I told him. He nodded and passed me a set of keys. I gave him a nod and rushed Derpy to the room. Locking the door behind us, I let out a deep exhale, which was followed by a high pitched scream from Derpy.

I cringed as she screamed even louder. “THIS IS BLOOD! OH MY GODDESS! I’M COVERED IN SOMEPONY’S BLOOD!” she cried out and I settled a little.

“Derpy, just calm down, I-“ I began but she quickly cut me off.

“JUST CALM DOWN! HOW CAN I BE CALM?! THERE’S SOMEPONY’S BLOOD ON ME!” She continued to scream.

“Derpy, please just quiet down and-“ But Derpy again cut me off.

“Oh… oh my goddess… you killed him… you killed him didn’t you?!” she asked hysterically.

“Yes,” I replied honestly.

“Oh my goddess… you’re a murderer!” she cried and my heart sank. ‘Great! My best friend thinks I’m a murderer because I saved her life!’ my conscience spat.

“No Derpy I… I didn’t murder him. He was going to kill you,” I replied but she shook her head as she cautiously stepped away from me.

“But you… you murdered him. He’s dead… and his blood is all over me,” she countered. My heart began to race; I couldn’t lose my best friend.

“Derpy… there’s a line between murder and self-defence,” I informed her, but she wouldn’t take any of it.

“But… but you… he’s dead. Don’t you feel bad?” she asked and I gave her the most honest answer.

“No. I don’t feel bad for killing him. He was going to hurt you if I didn’t,” I replied but again she countered.

“No. Not if you had given him that stuff!” she replied.

“I couldn’t do that! Then we’d be in even more trouble,” I told her but she started to break down and cry.

“But you killed him. He’s dead! Don’t you even feel a little bad?” she asked. I felt bad, but not in the way she was asking. I flopped down to my knees in despair.

“Derpy… it was the only thing I could think of… I know… it was pretty bad, but-“ She cut me off.

“But you… he’s… dead,” she whispered and I nodded.

“I know. But Derpy, I love you, and I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. If I had given him the stuff he wanted, then the Liotta’s would’ve come after us. And if I didn’t… then he’d have killed you,” I told her and she gulped.

I pulled Belladonna from her holster, ejected the magazine then racked back the slide, removing the live shell from the chamber. “There’s a reason these aren’t in your world…” I trailed off and thought about the few things I had learned about this world that made it imperfect. “Well, from what I can tell anyway. Back on my world… these were used to kill,” I informed her and her eyes went wide.

“Did you ever kill?” she asked and I nodded. “Ponies like you?” she asked but I shook my head.

“No. None of my kind ever gave me an appropriate chance. Derpy… I don’t kill just because I feel like it. I’ll only kill if it’s necessary… and believe me, it needed to be done,” I told her but she couldn’t handle it.

“I can’t… I can’t believe it. Ponies shouldn’t need to kill other ponies.” She began to weep and I took her into a hug. I felt her shuddering against me as she cried, still traumatized by this event.

Now I was really wishing she didn’t come along. “Derpy… I love you. That’s why I killed,” I told her. In thought, I realized this was the first pony I had ever killed. Truthfully, most people say killing others is a difficult thing… maybe this is why. Not that you feel bad for doing it, but because others viewed you differently afterwards.

“Do you forgive me?” I asked, holding her in a gentle hug. There was a long silent pause that seemed to drag on forever. My heart sank and it was as if it wasn't beating.

“Yes,” she whispered softly.

I exhaled in relief, not realizing that I had been holding my breath. “Do you still think I’m a murderer?” I asked hesitantly, praying that she didn’t view me as such.

She didn’t say anything, she just shook her head against my chest. “Tail Twist Swear?” I asked and she nodded.

“I just wish that nopony had to die,” she whimpered. I nodded.

“So do I Derpy… so do I,” I said softly.

“I think… I think…” she whispered. I leaned back to look at her. “I think I need a bath,” she whimpered while shuddering. I nodded and helped her to her hooves. Walking over to the low quality washroom, I left her to her privacy.

“Can you… help me? I’ve never washed somepony else’s blood off before,” she asked me, still in a very timid and traumatized voice.

I nodded and walked into the washroom with her. I started running the bathtub, which was a shower bathtub combination. I filled the tub with rather warm water. I looked to the soap, which looked pretty nasty, but it was all we had.

Looking to Derpy, I saw that she had removed her mailpony uniform and was looking at herself in the mirror, disturbed by the sight that presented itself. My eyes shut as I let out an emotionally pained sigh. I didn't want her to go through this... nopony should have to go through this. Blood stained her fur and made my heart sink further. “Derpy,” I whispered, catching her attention.

“I’m so sorry. From the bottom of my heart… I swear that I wouldn’t have done it unless it was absolutely necessary.” She swallowed and nodded. I let out an exhale, a lone tear dribbled from my eye.

Derpy slowly trotted over and stepped into the tub. I grabbed one of the old cloths from a rack and dampened it in the tub water. Very gently, I began to scrub her down. She whispered something, so faintly that I could barely hear it.

“What?” I asked as I continued to wash the blood from her.

“You’re… you’re still my best friend. You did what… needed to be done,” she said to me, loud enough so that I could hear. My heart rested easy for the moment. “But…” She trailed off. “If that’s what needs to be done, then… then I can’t go with you anymore. We can still be friends afterwards, but… I can’t do this,” she informed me, on the verge of bawling.

“Derpy… you… do you think differently of me? In a bad way?” I asked but she shook her head silently.

“No. I know you’re not a bad pony, you never were… but I never thought that you would kill a pony,” she replied. Well… as bad as I felt about it, at least she knew the truth about me. I was a killer, no way around it. I started applying soap to the wash.

I rested a hand over my face as I sighed. Before I could think, a hoof rested on my shoulder. Looking up, I saw Derpy looking to me with soft, gentle eyes. “It’s okay. You did the right thing. You’re still a good pony,” she assured me and I smiled.

“Thanks Derpy,” I thanked her. She looked to me then leaned forwards, planting a kiss on my cheek.

“No. Thank you. For saving me again,” she whispered. I nodded and continued to wash her clean. Her fur was rather smooth and fine. Her light blonde mane was straight and dripping wet… well, I suppose it should be since she was getting washed.

After over an hour of silence, I had washed all the blood from her fur and mane. Derpy stepped out of the bath and shook wildly, water splashing everywhere. My eyes clenched shut as water splashed me in the face.

Creeping open my eyes, I spotted Derpy with a feverish smile on her face. Her smile lifted my spirit just a little. Derpy laughed nervously. “Sorry… it was an accident,” she apologized.

“Don’t worry Derpy. It’s alright.” I knelt down with a towel and quickly dried her off. As I stepped back, I gave her a nod. “Well Derpy… I guess you should be going.”

Without a warning, she lept onto me, squeezing me in a tight hug. “You were always you. You might have killed, but you’re still the stallion… the guy, which I liked to play with. Please don’t change,” she whispered and I nodded, wanting to burst into tears so badly, but I had to stay strong.

“I won’t Derpy, I promise.” We hugged for a little while longer before she let go and broke from the hug. She gave me a nod then left with a smile. I’m not sure if the smile was forced or not, but it left me feeling a little better about myself.

‘Hmm… funny. Most people say it’s hard killing another but it seems harder to live with how others view you,’ my conscience spoke up as the door closed behind Derpy.

“Shut up,” I told the voice as I moved over to the bed and flopped down. The mattress creaked and I noticed several dead cockroaches and cigarette butts on the bed sheets, even several used condoms. “UGH… Gross,” I groaned.

I looked at the pillow. It had nasty chewing tobacco stains and cigarette burns in it. The bed sheets had several stains of which the origin I didn’t want to know. I got up and moseyed over to the couch.

The couch served a little better, only having a few cigarette burns in it. The couch itself reeked of urine and had several stains in it… probably piss stains. I just rolled my eyes and laid down.

I looked to my watch which, despite being submerged in water, still worked like it used to. Though the watch arms were dead like usual, the digital readout read bang on: 9:45pm. I set the alarm for 11:30pm then rested my head on the armrest of the couch.

Just before I could fall asleep, the door opened. I looked up to see who it was, only to see a large bipedal figure in the doorway. “Howdy cowboy,” said a familiar voice.

“Ugh… Derreck,” I replied tiredly as I flopped my head back down against the armrest.

“WHAT?! Are you fuckin’ kidding me? I saved your life not even twenty-four hours ago and that’s all I get? ‘Ugh, Derreck,’” he mused in a playfully annoyed voice.

“Sorry… just really tired right now… and stressed out...” I trailed off as I thought of Derpy. Something about how she now thought differently of me just… it just really got to me.

“Yeah well… I’ll keep watch, you take a nap,” he offered and I raised an eyebrow.

“So why exactly are you here again?” I asked wonderingly.

“What? Is there something wrong with hanging out with a good friend?” he asked but I just shook my head and passed out. ‘Whatever… he can do as he likes,’ I thought while my world went black.

Manehattan,

Third person…

Derpy strolled down the somewhat empty streets, the recent occurrence still stuck in her mind. She had never been so close to a pony getting killed, let alone being part of the killing.

Though she didn’t think too differently of her close friend, the thought still plagued her mind. Just something about killing made her body shiver.

Nearby, in the shadows of the city, three stallions sat in an older motorized carriage. “Yeah… that’s her alright. Grab her,” the leader of the group ordered. They had been following Derpy since she had left the motel, figuring that perhaps she might have the vial now.

Two of the stallions stepped out of the vehicle and began to trot at a faster pace than Derpy, whom paid them no mind due to her mental struggle. “Excuse me, miss?” asked the first stallion, stalling Derpy in her tracks.

She turned to face them but didn’t even manage a peep as the duo tackled her, tossing a black bag over her head. Her muffled screams didn’t even reach the street corner as the black carriage rolled up beside the group. The two stallions tossed her in the back seat then hopped in, the vehicle departing before the doors even closed…

Mickey’s Motel,

Evan’s perspective…

I awoke to Derreck nudging me. “Come on, it’s time to go,” he ordered me. I looked to my watch. It was 11:29pm. I rolled my eyes and flicked off the alarm before sitting up, rubbing my eyes.

My head throbbed as my body tried to shake off the dreariness that plagued me. Derreck ushered me up. “Come on, let’s go.” With that I stood up. I grabbed the partially spent magazine for Belladonna and loaded it back into my gun.

I holstered her but still left it unstrapped, just in case. We proceeded out the building and down the streets of Manehattan, making our way to Central Park as quickly as possible.

Nopony bothered us, let alone even made eye contact. Derreck was dressed in brown trousers like mine and a white T-shirt which was a size or two too small, gripping at every curve of his muscular frame. His head was shaven down and he had a blunt, serious look on his face.

We used the GPS to locate Central Park and arrived fairly quickly. Within minutes, we located the underground washroom in the middle of the park and proceeded down the steps and into the stallion washrooms.

The washroom floor was littered with garbage: food wrappers, soda cans, and even more used condoms. “Jeeze… talk about midnight romance,” Derreck muttered jokingly. I just rolled my eyes. “So where is this guy?” he asked and I took a look at my watch. It was just after midnight, but maybe he was running late.

I paced over to a nearby sink and started washing my face. Even the sinks were pretty scuzzy. Derreck moved towards the toilet stalls. “I gotta piss,” he muttered. I was about to say he could use the urinals but I saw that they were all pretty low to the ground, no doubt meant for ponies, not a 6’2” hulking mass of a man like Derreck.

“JESUS FUCK!” Derreck yelped and I turned to see what the problem was. Inside the toilet stall was a stallion, with a hoof bow bolt shot into his forehead, and a letter attached to the bolt.

The letter was written in blood, no doubt his. ‘Liotta scum.’ Derreck stepped back and a shiver went down my back. I turned to see three stallions rushing into the washroom. “DERRECK, LOOK OUT!” I yelled as I moved to intercept them.

As I turned to apprehend them, I slipped on the slick floor and fell to my back. “UGH!” I groaned as my head smacked off the tile flooring. Derreck turned just as the first stallion swung a bat at him.

He ducked the bat and gave a one-two punch to the stallion’s gut, knocking the wind out of him with brutal force. The stallion staggered back and Derreck cocked back his leg and shot it forwards, giving the guy a straight kick that sent him hurtling straight into the far brick wall across from the stalls.

The two other stallions moved on Derreck as I tried to gain my equilibrium, my world still spinning. The stallion on Derreck’s right moved for a hit. My big friend drove a straight punch into his gut with his left fist before giving a low kick into the stallion’s kneecap.

The stallion winced as his busted leg refused to support his weight and he began to collapse. As he fell, Derreck used his remaining momentum to hammer a heavy punch into the throat of the stallion. The force of the hit not only collapsed his windpipe, but sent him careening across the room and into the other stallion whom he’d hit first.

The third stallion who still posed a threat moved to strike. Derreck pivoted then drove his left elbow into the stallion’s throat. He hacked and staggered back as Derreck took a step back.

Crouching low, Derreck swung a roundhouse kick into the stallion’s temple, killing him before his body even hit the ground. My mind was still a little hazy as I tried to stand up.

“Easy, you hit your head pretty hard.” Derreck moved towards me.

“Yeah… but not as hard as you hit those goons,” I joked and he just snickered.

“There’s the Burdy I know and love,” he congratulated. I thought to myself. ‘Yeah, but did I know and love myself this way?’

Through the corner of my vision, I spotted the first stallion standing back up, with one of those hoof bows in his grip. “DERRECK, LOOK OUT!” With a flash of motion, I lept up and pushed Derreck out of the way.

In one fluid motion, my right hand snapped out Belladonna and fired three quick and consecutive shots. The first two struck the stallion’s center mass, slamming him back against the wall. The third and final shot splattered his brains against the wall. Each shot had pierced straight through the stallion and ripped chunks out of the concrete wall.

My ears rang as I was temporarily deafened. The already thunderous gunshots had been echoed inside the small enclosed washroom, almost amplifying the sound. I shook my head as the final stallion dropped dead to the ground, a smear of blood staining the wall behind him.

“Thanks… nice shot,” Derreck appraised me.

I nodded. “Yeah… I uhh… don’t mention it,” I replied, staring at the deceased corpses. At least Derpy was no longer with me. “What now?” I asked, seeing as how my contact was dead.

“We get outta here, before more show up. Come on, let’s get back to the motel,” Derreck suggested.

I depressed the hammer on my pistol and holstered her. “Good idea. I don’t wanna be around when the cops find these guys,” I stated. We rushed up the dark steps of the underground washroom.

Quite to my surprise, there were no screaming ponies. Probably due to the fact that ponies had no idea what guns were. Though they did have those hoof bow thingies. The bows however, didn’t produce a loud report like most firearms.

We traversed out from the washrooms and spotted a black carriage, a really swanky one. It was a newer motorized version and the lights were still on, the beams nearly blinding me as I looked at it.

“I think that was theirs… and I don’t think they’ll be needing it anymore,” Derreck informed me as he walked over. “Come on, hop in. I’ll drive,” he offered and I obliged. Opening the passenger door, I groaned. The vehicle was rather tiny and, like all things in this world, not meant for a large man.

I squirmed into the car, Derreck already muttering curses as he readjusted the driver seat. “Fucking midget ponies,” Derreck cursed to himself. “My shoe is bigger den dis car,” he joked before looking at the steering wheel.

It wasn’t actually a steering wheel. It looked somewhat like an ATV steering configuration in a way. There were two bars that came up, but there were no throttle controls.

On the floor was a set of pedals that closely resembled a manual transmission vehicle’s pedal system. There was also a stick handle on the steering shaft that was probably… well, I had no idea. I'd say the windshield wiper controls but there were no windshield wipers. There was also a stick lever in between Derreck’s legs.

“Alrighty, seems easy enough… just uhh… dirt-bike handles instead of a steering wheel.” Derreck pressed on what we both presumed to be the clutch but the vehicle started to move forwards. Derreck immediately let go of the clutch pedal… or whatever it was.

He held the steering wheel. “Uhm… uhh… well…” Derreck scratched the side of his head. “Maybe I uhh…” he trailed off and pressed on the clutch pedal again. The vehicle started moving forwards but the engine started to bog down.

“I uhh…” Derreck again let go of the clutch pedal. “Okay maybe…” Derreck pressed on the clutch and as the vehicle started rolling forwards, he pressed on what should be the gas pedal, but instead the vehicle screeched a bit and stopped. Derreck immediately released both pedals.

“OH FOR FUCK’S SAKE, I CAN WALK FASTER!” Derreck roared, slamming his fists forwards. His right hand struck the little handle that was on the right side of the steering column.

The motor revved high, probably nearing its limit. Derreck immediately grabbed the handle and pulled it back, settling the engine. “Okay, maybe, uhh…” Derreck trailed off and pushed the handle forwards again while pushing down on the clutch pedal.

The vehicle jogged a little and started moving forwards at a faster speed, not bogging down like before. “Okay so uhh… the little stick thing is the gas and the clutch pedal is… a mixture of the clutch and gas pedal.” Derreck muttered curses to himself about the difficult configuration.

As we neared the exit of the park, Derreck let go of clutch pedal and pressed on what he believed was the brake, the middle pedal. The car jogged as it came to a stop but quickly started to travel in reverse and hammered a tree.

“Shit!” Derreck swore irritably. “Okay, so maybe...” Derreck began to play with the controls again, putting it back into forwards. As we neared the exit, he released the clutch and pressed on the furthest right pedal, which brought the vehicle to a stop.

“Okay, give me a piece of paper,” Derreck ordered.

I reached to the glove box and pulled out a piece of paper and an oiled quill. Derreck scribbled some writing onto the paper then tagged it to the corner of the window. It had the pedal configuration along with the shaft.

The furthest left pedal was labelled ‘Combination of clutch and forwards’. The middle pedal was ‘Reverse’ and the furthest right pedal written ‘Brake’. The handle attached to the steering shaft was ‘Throttle’ and the lever between his legs was labelled ‘Unknown’.

We began down the streets of Manehattan, swerving through the streets at a rather slow speed. “Jesus… this thing is slow as fuck,” Derreck cursed as he cranked the throttle wide open. “Maybe if I…” He began to dick around with the controls again as he was driving.

He grabbed the lever between his legs. “Wonder what this-“ He was cut off as he pushed the stick ahead and the car lurched forwards. “Oh… well that works,” Derreck mused to himself.

The vehicle started picking up quite a bit of speed. “Uhm Derreck… maybe we should… you know… SLOW DOWN!” I gripped the dashboard of the vehicle as he cranked the vehicle around a corner.

The tires squealed as the carriage shook violently, obviously not intended for these types of maneuvers. As we approached the motel, Derreck attempted to slow down. “Alright… if we, uhm… try to, uhh…” Derreck pulled back on the lever but the transmission gears grinded against the lever. He quickly began to throttle down the engine but the vehicle’s motor bogged out and quit.

“OH SHIT!” Derreck cursed as he slammed on the brake. The brake helped somewhat but not nearly enough to stop us before the carriage slammed into a brick wall. Without seatbelts, our bodies were tossed forwards. I slammed my face off the hard dash and split my upper lip while Derreck clacked his head off the windshield, cracking the glass.

He leaned back. “Fuck this, next time we walk,” he told me as we both went to get out. I stepped out fine but Derreck just booted his door off, sending the door itself skidding down the sidewalk.

We both walked into the motel, where the recipient from before was waiting. “You’ve been getting calls nonstop for the last hour,” he informed me. I looked to my watch. It was 1:39pm.

“Yeah… we’ll uh… answer it from our room,” I informed him. Derreck gave him a smile, but his mouth was bleeding due to the impact he took from the windshield. The recipient stallion just smiled nervously.

My big lug friend and I made our way into my room, where Derreck immediately went to the washroom to clean himself up. I stroked my face in exhaustion. “No what do we do?” I asked aloud.

“Ah dunno,” Derreck replied, coming out of the washroom while cleaning his face with a dirty towel. He tossed the towel aside and smiled. Remarkably, all his teeth were still aligned properly and had a sparkly white look to them.

I gave him a smile, my split lip leaking blood onto my teeth and tainting them red. He just rolled his eyes. “Maybe you should brush your teeth more often,” he quipped and I just rolled my eyes. ‘Just brush your teeth and that’ll make them indestructible,’ I thought silently to myself.

The phone suddenly rang and we both looked at it. “Who do yah think it is?” Derreck asked. I swallowed and slowly picked up the old dial phone receiver.

“Hello?” I asked, but all I heard was a mare sobbing. “Uhm… hello?” I asked, but the crying just continued.

Derreck raised an eyebrow. “Who is it?” he asked and I just shrugged. “What do you mean?” And he mimicked my shrug.

“I mean, I dunno. I think it might be some weird sex line or something,” I replied and Derreck’s eyes went wide.

“Oh, let me hear,” he stated, grabbing the phone from me. His face twisted into a strange frown. “Man… that’s a fucked up sex line,” he stated, handing the phone back to me.

I grabbed the phone from him and gave him a stupid stare. “It was a joke… and I think the phone call is too,” I replied before bringing the phone back to my ear.

“Hello? Is this some kind of joke?” I asked, the sobbing no longer present.

“Only if you consider your friend’s life a joke,” said a voice from the other side.

“What?” I replied, not sure what kind of sick joke this was.

“We have your associate, the mailpony, with us. She is unharmed at the moment. However, if you do not give us the vial, her condition will worsen,” the voice informed me.

My eyes went wide as I realized whom the sobbing probably belonged to. “DERPY! I swear to fuck if you hurt her-“ I began to roar, but the voice cut me off.

“You are not in the position to be making threats,” he replied. “Now, I will say it one time; bring us the vial. Go to Central Park, where you killed my stallions… leave the vial in the trash canister just outside the stallion washroom, then leave. Your friend will be released as soon as we get the vial.”

“You release her right now goddammit, or I swear to fuck I’ll gut you!” I boomed, but instead he didn’t reply. I heard more sobbing followed by an agonizing scream. My eyes went wide as I gasped. ‘WHAT THE FUCK WHERE THEY DOING TO HER?!’ I thought helplessly.

Again the stallion’s voice returned. “That was the wrong answer… so we broke her wing. Now, you will listen or we will begin to break other parts of her,” he stated, my rage quickly building and boiling over. “Are you listening to me?” he asked and I nodded silently, but quickly realized that he couldn’t see that.

“Yes,” I snarled while gritting my teeth.

“Now… take the vial to Central park. Leave it in the trash bin outside the door to the stallion washroom, then leave the area. After we pick it up, we will release your friend. But if you do not deliver it by sunrise, then your friend will die… in a painful way.” With that, the phone hung up.

I still held the receiver to my head, the phone itself beeping at me to tell me the line was closed. My eyes were still wide, my rage skyrocketing. Distant memories of Tristan surfaced and reminded me of how helpless I was then… and now. My hand began to clench harder against the phone. Derreck rested a hand on my shoulder. “What’s wrong?” he asked, completely oblivious to what was going on.

“They have…” I trailed off and tensed in anger. “My friend… and they’ll kill her… unless I give them this,” I stated, showing him the green vial. He put on a straight face, took the phone from me, hung it up, and waited several minutes. After several minutes of silence, he picked up the phone receiver and began to dial a number.

He first dialed ‘*’ then '6' and finally '9'. The phone rang for several seconds before the other end picked up. “Manehattan harbour, we’re closed right now but open tomorrow morning at 6:30am. If there’s-“ Derreck cut him off in a deep voice, still a serious look on his face.

“Gimme yer address dere…”

Author's Notes:

So I recently read this article about a young kid, I think he was under ten, anyway he was bullied for liking My Little Pony and everyone called him gay and taunted him etc. So anyway, poor kid committed suicide. Now today I was at McDick's getting a McFlurry (Cause that's the only thing I really like from McDick's) and I saw they had My Little Pony toys, so I ordered all 8 figures (There's Princess Luna and Celestia, then Twilight, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and DJ Pon-3, yeah go figure, they leave out Applejack.) Anyway, so they only had Rainbow Dash and the DJ in stock so I got those two figures and they have these little stand mounts to keep their balance in their pose. Anyway, so I'm gonna tape the bottom of the mounts to the dash of my truck (Yes I actually have a 1997 F-250HD that I named Cadence and it's not just some fantasy truck I conjured up in the story) So I'm gonna tape these figures to the dash of my truck just as like a "FUCK YOU!" to all the bullies out there and as a tribute to those who are shunned and shit by others just because they like ponies. There's nothing wrong with liking a cartoon meant for little girls, and if someone ever told me I was wrong for liking ponies, I'd break their nose and say there's something wrong with their nose. I know not everyone is as big and scary looking like me, but just remember, the bullies are only picking on you cause they're scared little cowardly shits who wouldn't say it to people like me. SO cheers everyone (Everypony) and have a good Easter eh!