“He’s becoming an issue.”

“Not yet, he’s not. We don’t even know what he’s doing.”

“He’s gunning for us, and I do not want to be unprepared for when he reaches us.”

Spike and I don’t argue very often. When we do, it’s about something big. This time, we were debating our options. There was a threat to the Mythos crew, and Spike and I had differing ideas on how to deal with it.

“We need to get rid of him before it’s too late,” I said, leaning on our circular map. “If we let him get ahead of us, it’ll be Lyra and Moonie all over again.”

“But he’s not a threat yet. He doesn’t even realize it’s us,” argued Spike. “If we make our move now, he’ll definitely be on our ass. Don’t show your hand until all cards have been dealt.” I smirked at my friend, laughing at how much of me has rubbed off on him.

“Using my own advice against me,” I chuckled. “Fine. We ignore The Captain for now, but if I even remotely feel he might be a problem…”

“Right hand to God, I’ll deal with him,” promised Spike. “Now, about Dash…”

“She doesn’t need to know about this. Like you said, don’t show your hand.”

“Alright. So, you gonna make me wait until she gets here to talk to me about the job?” asked Spike, laying out on the couch. “You’ve been hyping it up all day.”

“What can I say? This one excites me,” I said with a shrug. “I want to wait for Dash. It’ll be easier to explain if—”. I felt my cellphone go off, one of my spares for business. Unless it was Silver thanking me for the books, it would be Dash apologizing for being late. True to my prediction, it was the latter, based on the number. I flipped open the phone and silently brought it to me ear.

“Yo, Boss, sorry I’m late,” said Dash. “I lost track of time, family stuff, and… Well, I’m down the block, I’ll be there in two minutes.”

I closed my phone and returned it to my pocket. While waiting for my team to assemble, I borrowed Spike’s laptop to get my files together. Keeping sensitive documents like work plans on a laptop was typically a horrible idea. However, it was encrypted six ways from Sunday, and it never left the laundromat. Furthermore, we replaced it every three or four months. It was as safe as this dangerous risk could be.

“Wow, you made a PowerPoint?” asked Spike. “You must really like this job if you’re willing to pick up a computer.”

“Shut up, boy,” I said with a snicker. I heard a dull thunk from upstairs from the dryer, then Dash’s steps down the ladder. Her steps quickened, and she eventually shoved open the door. Dash looked tired, as if she had ran here, which—in retrospect—she likely did.

“Yo, sorry, guys,” panted Rainbow. “I was watching the news and my sister came in, we started chatting, and I kinda lost track of time.”

“You can’t pay bills with excuses, Ms. Dash,” I said. I was about to continue on, when I realized what she said. “Wait, you have a sister?”

“Uh… Yeah. Well, kinda,” Dash said with a shrug. “It’s kinda weird.”

“What’s her name?”

“Scootaloo. Why?” Dash seemed nervous, but I wasn’t quite sure of what. I assumed she must have been hiding something

“Never heard you talk about her before,” I said. I played it cool, as if I was just asking. “Just curious.”

“I don’t like mixing home and work. That’s how things get weird. Speaking of work…” How interesting. Dash seemed quite eager to change the subject. “Who are we robbing today?”

“No one. This job is different,” I said with a grin. I spared about half of my mind to be suspicious of Dash, but focused mainly on work. “If you’re anything like me, you’re going to love this one.”

I opened up my files, clicking a particular video and displaying it on the screen. It was bank security footage, but not one of a bank Mythos had hit. I grabbed Spike’s trusty laser pointer, then started the video.

“Watch,” I said simply. I played the silent video. On screen, it was normal bank business for a few moments. Then, out of the blue, a girl runs in, brandishing a handgun at the bank teller. She wore a mask different from a Mythos mask. It was a simple cloth piece that did little more than cover her face.

“How’d you get this?” asked Dash.

“As it so happens, I have connections. Technically speaking, I own that bank,” I said. “It’s how we do our laundry. Now hush. It’s getting good.”

The robber-to-be was apparently yelling at the teller to fill up a bag, periodically looking over her shoulder to shout at the civilians. One girl, with grey skin and silver pigtails, got bold. She made a run for it. The robber turned and fired, catching the girl in the neck. I noticed Rainbow flinch, not used to that sort of cold-blooded murder.

“Jesus,” whispered Rainbow. “I don’t get it. What’s the job?”

“Wait a second, you need to see the next video,” I said. I pulled up the video in question. It was a different bank, another one of mine. Two girls in trench coats walked in, tears running down their faces. They got to the teller and removed their jackets, revealing vests outfitted with enough plastic explosives to level the building. The teller panicked, and filled their bags with cash without much questioning. It wasn’t until the girls turned around did Dash notice.

“Wait, wait, is that the same girl that got shot?” she asked. I nodded. “What are the dates on these?”

“The first video was last Saturday. This one was from yesterday,” I said with a grin. “And both girls in both videos are exactly the same. These girls are doing fake heists.”

“Fake… Fake heists.” Spike took a moment to let that sink in. “That is freaking brilliant!”

“I know, right? So, I figured we’d approach these shining young stars and…” I paused for a second, trying to find the proper word. “Recruit them.”

“Wait, I still don’t follow,” said Rainbow. “I get that they’re working together, but how does supposedly murdering someone help you rob banks?”

“Think about it. If you saw someone die, you wouldn’t want to piss off whoever killed them,” said Spike. “And the explosives, that’s just brilliant! Tellers have their reservations when giving their cash to a criminal, but a hostage? Whole different game.”

“They’ll do anything to save those poor girls,” I chuckled. “People are so stupid. They just love to play the hero.”

“Whatevs. Heroes aren’t real,” scoffed Dash. “Everyone is out for themselves.” How interesting.

“Oh? You don’t believe in good, Ms. Dash?” I asked. “Didn’t your mom and dad teach you that there are everyday heroes? Ones without capes? Doctors, firefighters—”

“Cops? SWAT?” Rainbow dropped her carefree tone. “What about Special Agents for the FBI?”

I froze, my lips shaping to form a lie that my brain hadn’t come up with yet. Spike shared my shock, and similarly had nothing to say. Dash crossed her arms over her chest, tapping her foot impatiently. She was waiting for an explanation.

“Remember how I said I was watching the news?” said Dash. “Well, I managed to catch a press conference given by a certain Captain Shining Armor.”

“Shit,” said Spike.

“This Shining Armor douchebag is apparently stopping at nothing to bring down the fabled Mythos Crew,” Rainbow continued. “He’s what you’d call a threat to business, so I did a bit of research.”

“Dash, hold on just a sec, I—” I began.

“And, lo and behold, he’s your fucking brother!” Rainbow exploded. “Your goddamn, honest-to-god, flesh and blood, motherfucking brother! How could you not tell me about something this big? I’m sick and tired of you assholes lying to me!”

“I know, I know,” I said, raising my hands up to my chest. “Calm down. Look, I’m sorry. Thing is, I was afraid you’d react like this. You’re right, though. I should’ve told you.”

“You’re damn right, you should’ve told me! I’m a part of this Crew, just like you two. This matters! You can’t just keep important shit like this from me!”

Rainbow was livid, and justifiably so. It was wrong of me to withhold something this big from her. I made a mistake in thinking that I could manipulate her without giving her any information. It was arrogant of me.

“Shining Armor is indeed my brother,” I said with a heavy sigh. “And we’re close. He doesn’t know about my side-business. As for as he knows, I work for the Royal Library, which I do. He doesn’t know anything about Mythos, and—surprising though this may be—I have no intention of telling him. He’s coming up on us, yes. Spike and I were discussing options.”

“Well, maybe you should’ve included me in that discussion,” said Dash. I nodded slightly. Again, she was kind of right.

“And we will. From now on, you’ll be kept in the loop,” said Spike. “Twi just didn’t want to have to act against her brother yet. You must know what that’s like, to fight with your sister. This is kinda a big deal.”

Rainbow didn’t want to drop it, that was obvious. What was equally obvious was the fact that Spike had struck a nerve. Dash bit her lip in thought, trying to decide if this would be the last straw for her. After a long, tired sigh, she pulled out a cigarette and stuck it in her mouth.

“What the hell were we talking about?” asked Rainbow as she lit her cigarette. “The girls. What are we going to do?”

“Kidnap them,” I said simply.

I watched the girl, the leader girl, from through my binoculars. From my position a hundred or so feet away, I could see her flawlessly—even in the perfect darkness of the moonless night. The other girl was somewhere else in the house, but I couldn’t see her from my position.

“You have the other girl in sight?” I asked.

“I do now,” said Dash, her voice ringing in my ear through my earpiece. “She’s leaving the basement. When do we move in?”

“As soon as Hydra’s ready.”

“Uh… Yeah, we’re all good,” said Spike. “Van’s parked and I have the route all planned. Let’s go.”

“Remember how to pick the lock?” I asked Dash as I moved forward and crossed to the house in question. I pulled the revolver that I stole from Silver (I liked it, so I kept it) and held it down as I moved on.

“Yup, but doesn’t matter,” said Dash.

“What?” I approached the front door and went to pick it when it swung open. I levelled my gun at the head of whoever was on the other side, pressing the barrel against Apollo’s mask.

“Door’s unlocked,” she said. I shook my head.

“Get ready,” I said. I led her through the house, splitting up in the living room. I would go searching for the leader, while Dash would take the other girl. The house was a decent size, but it wouldn’t take me too long to find the girls. The leader was leaving the kitchen when I left my surveillance spot, so I figured she’d be heading to the bathroom, then bed. The bathroom was empty, so I went on to the master bedroom. I got there and…

“Where the heck did she go?” I muttered to myself. I turned around just in time to see the girl I was gunning for aim a pistol in between my eyes.

“You robbed the wrong house,” she said. “Who are you?”

“Medusa. That’s what they call me, anyway,” I said calmly. “And to whom do I owe the pleasure?”

“Diamond Tiara. Why are you here?” she asked. She was so focused on me that she didn’t hear the not-quite-silent footsteps of my partner.

“There’s something here of value to me,” I said. “One last question. Does that rag smell like chloroform to you?”

Rainbow wrapped her arm around Diamond’s neck, forcing a rag over her nose and mouth. After a few minutes of struggling, her flailing ceased and she fell unconscious. Almost without effort, she hefted the unconscious girl over her shoulder.

“The other one is downstairs, if you wanna grab her,” said Dash. “What’s with you and getting held up at gunpoint? Is that some kinda trademark of yours? Or is that something new that comes with age?”

“Shut up and take her out to evac,” I said. “We’ll get them up to speed when we get to the second safe house.”

I followed Dash out of the house, stopping to grab the other girl. I was a bit annoyed at how sloppy I was getting. Maybe Dash was right. I was getting old.

Maybe I shouldn’t have sought after two new students until I have the first one where I want her.

“You bowed down to Rainbow Dash quite easily. How much did that hurt your ego?”

“Not at all. I didn’t bow to her. I simply chose my battles.”

“She asserted her dominance over you.”

“I showed compassion by allowing her to be angry.”

Twilight peered at the persecutor angrily. The little man was really getting under her skin, and she thought he must’ve been aware of that.

“There are two ways to tackle a situation like that,” explained Twilight. “I chose the tactful route. I was wrong and—instead of seeming like a tyrant now—I saved it for later.”

“Was there actually a ‘later’?”

“There were several. Dash is more stubborn than most. She needed constant pressure or she would start thinking that she ran the Crew. Worse, she began thinking that I was to be bargained with.”

“And the other girls. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.” The prosecutor looked at his notes to ensure that he had the names correct. “Did they have this problem?”

“Oh, no. They had a much different problem. It’s a shame, too,” sighed Twilight. “When I looked at Diamond, I saw myself.”

“And what was the problem?”

“I saw too much of myself.”

Author's Notes:

Sorry for the delay on this one. Hope you enjoyed!