“An assassin?!” Applejack exclaims, almost jumping out of her seat. Putting your hand up, she stops herself and sits back down. It was pretty late at night, but something this important couldn’t wait until tomorrow. Pinkie looks back and forth between you two, a bit confused.

“What’s an assassin?” she curiously asks. It’s hard to believe that this mare is so naive with all her sexual jokes, but the look on her face screams uncertainty.

“An assassin is like a bounty hunter. The difference is, they’re paid to kill their bounty.” Pinkie’s eyes widen as the cold, hard truth hits her. Her jaw slightly slacks, giving her a dumbfounded look.

“Why would Miss Jubilee want those two dead? Did what they do really hurt her?” You shrug.

“I really don’t know. But what I do know is that we have to get to them before he does.” Both mares nod in agreement. To be honest, you didn’t care about their well-being, but they were useless to you dead. The bounty called for them alive and you intend to bring them in that way.

“What’re we doin’ standing ‘round here then? They ain’t just gonna come and give themselves up to us!” Applejack blurts, jumping up from her seat. You and Pinkie nod in agreement and stand up. Opening the door, you each exit the hotel room and make your way down into the lobby. Pinkie stops and turns to you and Applejack.

“How are we going to find them? We don’t have any leads or anything.” Applejack nods and turns to you.

“She’s got a point. Any idea where we can start?” You look down at her and shrug.

“How am I supposed to know?”

“Well, Ah assumed that since that there Marelock book gave ya the tips ta disable an unicorn’s magic, it would help ya find some way of finding somepony.” Now that you think about it, Marelock always found herself getting information from the local baddies. Maybe it would be best to start back at that pub again.

“Alright, I got somewhere we can start, but I can’t take you two with me.” Pinkie gives you an infuriated look, stomping her hoof against the ground. Applejack adopts the same look and lets out a heavy huff.

“And why can’t we go?” they say in unison.

“Because it’s dangerous, even for someone trained to defend themselves like me. I don’t want anything happening to either of you.” The last thing you wanted to do was go back home and explain to Apple family that Applejack was severely injured or tell tell the Cakes that Pinkie got herself hurt. They both step forward and shake their heads.

“Anon, we’ve been through worse. We’ve taken on dragons...” Applejack states.

“...and faced off against Discord!” Pinkie exclaims.

“What we’re tryin’ ta say is, we’ve face dangers well before ya came around and know how to take care of ourselves. We ain’t a pair of helpless mares.” Emitting a defeated sigh, you shrug and shake your head.

“Alright, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” A smile creeps onto their faces, basking in their victory. They trot along both sides of you, making sure to keep your pace. You venture into the ghetto part of town with one hand on your staff, ready to defend yourself at any given moment. The usual stallions were no longer on their stoops. Not only that, but the street didn’t hold a single living soul except for you, Pinkie, and Applejack. Opening the door to the bar, you scan the room. The place was dead; the only pony here is the bartender.

“Back again, I see,” he mutters, cleaning the counter with a damp cloth.

“Where’d everyone go?” you ask, taking a seat on a bar stool. He stops for a moment and looks around the room. His eyes stop wandering when he sees Applejack and Pinkie, who decide to take a seat in a booth. Leaning forward, he whispers in your ear.

“No idea. It’s getting pretty late, so they must have all gone home by now.” Looking up at the clock on the wall, you check the time.

“It’s only midnight,” you tell him in a flat tone. He grabs a glass from under the counter and wipes it down, not making any sort of eye contact with you. You let out a sigh and pull out an extra clipping of the article about the Flim Flam Brothers out, placing it on the counter. He looks at it from the corner of his eye and huffs.

“Those two,” he begins to whisper as you lean in, “have been nothing but trouble since they’ve come into town.”

“Well, I need to find them and bring them in. Think you can point me in their direction?” He looks back at the two mares, then to you. He leans in and drops down to an almost silent murmur.

“They’re currently downstairs in the basement. There’s a poker tourney going on right now and they’re both contestants. If you want, I can get you in.” You give him a suspicious glare.

“Why are you so eager to help me?” you ask. He puts the glass back under the counter and locks eyes with you, a look of determination across his face.

“I got my reasons and you got yours. Instead of questioning it, how about you just roll with it?” You lean back and shrug.

“Whatever you say. What do I have to do to get into this poker game?” He extends his hoof out.

“Pay the buy-in and I’ll take care of the rest. It’s thirty bits.” Pulling out your purse, you hand over the small golden coins as he heads towards a door in the back of the room. You walk over to Applejack and Pinkie, leaning over and bringing your voice down to a whisper.

“So, apparently Flim and Flam are part of some poker game that’s going on right now down in the basement of this place.” Applejack’s eyes widen as she tries to get away from the table, only to be stopped by you. “You two have to stay here while I try to get them out.” Pinkie stands in her seat, looking completely insulted.

“Anon, we told you we could tak-” Lifting your hand in the air, you cut her off.

“It’s not that I don’t believe you two can take care of yourselves, it’s the fact that those two know what you look like. You’ll blow my cover by just walking into that room.” Pinkie releases a sigh and crosses her forelegs like a disheartened child as Applejack nods in agreement.

“Anon’s right, Pinkie. Ah think he’ll be fine on his own, though,” she says with a wink.

“I would suggest you two try and find any other exits in the event that they try to run away.”

Behind you, someone clears their throat to get your attention. The bartender beckons you from the doorway, signalling the okay to enter. Turning to the two mares, you give them a nod and make your way towards the basement. The stairway leading down is rather dark and damp. The only light source is a couple of candles that line the walls. You can feel a chill run down your back as the temperature changes dramatically. Once you reach the bottom, the bartender stop and turns to you.

“They’re just about to start. Just sit down in an empty seat and play. You any good at poker?”

“I know how to play and I can lie if I need to,” you casually say with a shrug. He gives you a deadpan look and opens the door. You shield your eyes from the blinding light and wait for them to adjust. The room is small, but nicely furnished, complete with shag carpeting and marble finished walls. The only exits are the one you came in from and a single doorway on the opposing door. A single, round poker table sits in the middle of the room, housing five chairs that are already seating four stallions.

Taking your seat in the middle of all of them, you look around the table at your competition. To your left, your gaze meets with two familiar faces: Bruce and Marston. They give you both surprised looks as you pull yourself in towards the table and look over to the right. Sure enough, the two devious brothers sit to your right, whispering amongst themselves as they eye you tentatively. The dealer takes his place at the head of the table and grabs the deck with his magic aura.

“The name of the game is hold ‘em. Big blinds will start at two bits and small blinds will start at one. Once you run out of chips, you are eliminated from the table. Is that understood?” Everyone nods in unison. The dealer deals everyone their hands as you put in the small blind. Bruce leans over and whispers into your ear.

“What are you doing here, kid? Cherry knows I work alone. If you’re here to help, you’ll only get in the way,” he says as he puts in his blind. Once the deal is done, you take peek at your cards. A two of diamonds and a seven of clubs. The worst hand possible, just your luck. Marston folds his hand as Flim and Flam call.

“I have bad blood with them. With two on your hooves, I’d say it would be best if you had some assistance, don’t you think?” you murmur into his ear. The dealer takes the deck and begins placing down cards for the flop. A two of hearts, a two of spades, and a king hit the table. Looks like luck has decided to take your favor.

“So, what brings you boys to Mustangia?” asks Flam, hiding his smile behind his obnoxious mustache. No one acknowledges his question and continues on. Tapping your fingers on the table, you signal a check. Flam’s smile disappears as Bruce taps the table as well and begins to mutter into your ear.

“Alright, but only ‘cuz you’re with Cherry.” Using his magic, Flam folds his hand and turns to his brother, muttering something in his ear again. Flim takes six chips and throws them into the pot.

“I raise six bits.” Grabbing six chips, you call. Bruce follows in suit.

The dealer places down the turn, which happens to be a six of clubs. Now would be the time to raise. If there was a time you had to thank the author of Marelock Holmes, it was right now. In the last book you read, Marelock was forced to play a game of poker to get a lead on a grand master thief. And using her tactic seems like it’ll work in your favor.

“I raise ten bits.” A sudden awkwardness fills the air as your chips enter the pool. Bruce looks down at his cards and back to the table’s. Grabbing the chips, he throws in ten of them.

“Call.” Not moving your head at all, your eyes turn wander towards Flim’s face. He shows no sign of emotion as he throws throws in ten chips.

“I call as well.” As the last card lands, you restrain yourself from pumping your fist into the air. Another two enters, marking your victory. There’s no way you could lose. Taking the rest of your chips, you push them into the pot.

“All in.” Bruce doesn’t hesitate to fold; if he threw his cards in any faster, you would have mistaken them for shuriken. Flim smiles and pushes his pile of chips in.

“I call.” His face goes from surefire to defeat almost instantly as you flip your cards for the showdown.

“Four of a kind,” you gloat, reaching out to the pile and grabbing the pot. He reveals his hand have a six and a jak; a full house. Piling the chips on top of each other, you smile as you count your winnings.

“Nice haul kid,” Bruce whispers, nudging you in the side. “Listen, after the showdown of this hand, I’m gonna take my chance. I’ve played with these guys before, and usually they start cheating when one’s knocked out. I’ll accuse them of such and take my chance. You go for the other one with the mustache.”

You nod and turn your attention back to the two brothers. If you were going to keep them from getting killed, you were going to have to be quick. The dealer shuffles the deck as Bruce and Marston put in their blinds. Flam eyes you and Bruce cautiously before whispering something to Flim. The dealer distributes the hands and lays the deck on the table. Peeking at your cards, you have pocket aces. Lady luck must be your side tonight in this card game; hopefully she’s willing to give you a bit more for what’s about to happen. Everyone calls the blinds, ready for the flop. A jack, king, and queen land, all spades. Looking at your hand again, you check the suits: a heart and club. Grabbing twenty chips, you raise. Bruce and Flam call as Marston folds.

The dealer runs the turn, placing down a nine of diamonds. Bruce pushes his pile in, a slick grin lining his face.

“All in.” Flim shakes his head and calls, placing his chips into the pot. Grabbing the same amount of chips, you call as well and wait for the flop. The dealer places the river and looks up at the two brothers. Letting out a heavy sigh, you enter your focus state, ready for whatever happens next. Bruce flips his cards over to show a seven and eight of spades, giving him a flush. Before you can flip yours, Flim places a hoof on your hand.

“There’s no need. I won.” He flips his cards over to reveal an Ace and ten of spades.

“A royal flush? You’re definitely cheating, you dogs!” Bruce screams as he pushes himself from his chair. His horn begins to glow as a knife comes out from under the table.

“Now would be a good time to stop him,” says a voice behind you. Extending your arm out, you take the staff’s advice and clothesline Bruce. He looks at you, completely bewildered as he collides with the ground. Flim and Flam are already heading out the back door as you turn around. Unsheathing your staff, you take off after them, not before hearing Marston scream, “Damn it, ya can’t go anywhere without screwin’ up something for me, can ya?!”

Running up the stairs, a bright light above blinds you for a moment as two figures make their way out the exit. Once you reach the top of the stairs, you see an orange blur round the corner of the building.

“Applejack!” She looks back at you as you enter the alleyway and continues her pursuit. You catch up to her as the two brothers turn onto the main street. Making your way onto the street, Pinkie gallops to your side, looking up at you.

“How’d the tournament go? Did you win?” Glaring down at her, you resist the urge to smack her in the back of the head. She gives you a sly smile as something whizzes past your head. Looking back, you see Bruce with several knives levitating in the air, ready to be thrown.

“Anon, you and AJ have to catch them. I’ll hold him off.” Pinkie stops and turns around, ready to face off against the stallion. There was no way she could take this guy on her own. Sliding to a halt, you raise your left arm up and grab a marble. Bringing back the sling, you aim down the small sight towards his horn and fire. The marble flies quickly across the street and makes contact.

...With his eye. The stallion screams in agony as the knives hit the ground. Pinkie jumps into the air and dropkicks him as you turn around to catch up with Applejack. You watch as the two run around a corner and quickly follow in pursuit.

“We got ’em now!” Applejack exclaims. Looking down alley, you notice why she’s so confident. There’s a tall fence at the end of the alley that’s a little taller than you blocking off the exit. The two stallions’ horns begin to glow as they approach the metal obstacle. Pulling your staff forward you turn your head to Applejack.

“Jump on my back!” you command. She gives you confused look as you scream again. “Just do it!” She rolls her eyes and does as you say, wrapping her hooves around your neck. Flim and Flam cast a spell at the fence, temporary lifting it up fence enough for them to slide under. They stop and turn around to mock you, making funny faces and laughing. Taking the opposing end of your staff, you dig it into the ground and vault over the fence. Their smiles quickly fade as you ascend into the air and take off again.

Landing firmly on the ground, you take off, not giving Applejack a chance to get off. They continue down the road, still keeping a distance from you. There was no chance you two could catch up with them. A crazy idea pops into your head.

“Applejack, grab my staff!” She puts her head over your shoulder and gives you a deadpan look. You facepalm and shake the staff in your hands. “The staff in my hands, idiot!” She looks at the staff, then back to you, her expression unchanged. With a roll of her eyes, she jumps onto your staff as you lift it up.

“Anon, ya sure this’ll work?” Shifting her end behind you, you get ready to swing.

“I have no idea!” you bellow as you launch her forward. Applejack flies into the air towards the two. Flim looks behind himself, his jaw dropping as Applejack comes back down to the ground right above him. She lands firmly on top of him, pinning him down and pulling her rope out from her saddlebag. Flam turns around, horn glowing brightly. Pulling out a marble, you holster your staff and ready yourself to take a shot. Exhaling, you enter your focus state and aim for his horn. His magical aura begins to wrap around Applejack as you let the shot go. It makes direct contact with his horn and stops his spell short. He rubs his horn, trying to null the pain.

“Run, brother! It isn’t worth it!” Flam hesitates for a moment, not wanting to leave his brother behind. He quickly changes his mind as you begin running towards him. He runs around the corner with you following not too far behind. You quickly enter the alley and stop. There’s nothing but an empty can and a wall about a few feet in.

“How did he...?” You look around and check everything out in case he has some sort of trick placed, but nothing pops up. Letting out a disappointed sigh, you exit the alley and approach Applejack, who is busy hogtying Flim. A line of duct tape covers his horn as he struggles to escape from the ropes tight grip.

“Ah’m guessin’ he got away?” You nod as she tightens the knot at his hooves. Pinkie comes bouncing down the street, covered from head to hoof in confetti. You’re almost hesitant to ask.

“Pinkie, what happened?” She looks at your with a serious face and shakes her head.

“You don’t want to know. Long story short, Brucie got away.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” you think to yourself. Grabbing the rope tying the stallion, you lift him up and look around. A small sign sits at the corner of the street sporting a big ‘P’ across it. Following it, you begin heading down the street.

“Might as well drop this one off,” you mutter with Applejack and Pinkie in tow.

“Listen, pal, can we talk this out? I’m pretty sure we can come up with some sort of agreement.”

“You should be thanking me, buddy,” you reply, giving him no sign of hope for getting away. “There’s a hit out for you and your brother’s head. I’m bringing you in so that the hitman can’t touch a single hair on your mane and to collect my damn bounty. We’re going to have to find your brother as well. He’s still in danger.” He seems almost surprised hearing this.

“There’s a hit out for us? Who put it?”

“Miss Jubilee!” blurts Pinkie. You shoot a glare in her direction; there was no need for him to know who put out the hit. Flim sighs, sounding almost distraught.

“I told that brother of mine not to mess with that lady. But no! He never listens to me and then we end up having to run out of town. That stallion can be very promiscuous sometimes, I swear!” Giving him a scoff, you enter the police station and place the stallion on the counter. The officer behind the counter looks at the stallion, completely confused, then back to you.

“Where’s the other one?” You furrow your brow and look around you.

“Must have gotten away. Think you can take this one for now while I look for him?” He rolls his eyes and hands you a bag filled with a hundred bits. You shake the bag, listening to the clanging of coins and point at it.

“Isn’t this supposed to be five hundred bits?” The officer gives you an annoyed glare and pulls out the bounty flyer.

“Says right here that both of them will get you five hundred bits, one will only give you a hundred. Unless you can bring in the other guy, that’s all you get.” Taking the bag, you pocket it and turn back to the two mares.

“This sack is too light.” Pinkie lowers her eyelids in a seductive manner, ready to strike. You quickly slap her in the back of head before a single word can emit from her mouth.

“Ow! All I was gonna say was after that night with Miss Jubliee, I’d expect no less!” Pinching the bridge of your nose, you let out a disgruntled sigh.

“Damn it, Pinkie.”

Author's Notes:

An update? Before a month? WHAT SORCERY IS THIS?

Answer: Jack Daniels