1. The Thief

Smoke filled the room, swirling and mixing with the pungent smell of body odor and alcohol. The smoke came from the many varieties of cigars, cigarettes and other burning drugs. There were many ponies in the tavern, most of them carrying scars and others hiding themselves in cloaks to hide their flanks or deformities. The bar tender was one of the few who actually had a cutie mark but he bore a set of antlers on his head, one of them broken in half. The waitress had a large round plate strapped to her back to hold drinks and empty beer glasses with. She was often given crude and sexually disturbing remarks that went along with hoof-slaps to her flank but she didn't mind as long as she was well tipped and well paid. Her favorite customers were the few mercenaries who actually had manners towards mares and the one strange stallion who always wore a dark cloak. She always knew it was him from the black stripe through his short white tail. He was here tonight, eaves dropping on a conversation behind him while examining some metal tools that were attached to a small holster on his foreleg while he smoked a cigarette.

"So, you know that Count Markus, the high and mighty auctioneer in Canterlot?" The pale blue unicorn said to his companion across from him.

The pegasus retorted with a disgusted snort, "Yeah, that rich son of a bitch thinks he's better then everypony else." The green pegasus scratched at some fleas in his dirty white mane while he listened.

"Well CJ and the boys are planning on a heist. It took a bit of convincing but I got everypony to agree we'd like you to join us. The pay is going to be big." He grinned.

The pegasus lifted an eyebrow in curiosity, "Oh yeah? Anything specific we'd be going after?"

Smirking, the unicorn's horn began to glow and he levitated a scroll out of one of his saddlebags. "Yup, we got a source that says he has something special hidden away in the slave stables. It's supposed to be worth a fortune." He rolled the scroll out on the table to show his companion. "Right there," he pointed to a crudely drawn square next to a much larger rectangle that was supposed to represent a mansion, "it's in this corner hidden in a box of some sort. That's why he always has his slaves so heavily guarded."

"A box, really?" the pegasus responded, "That's not very descriptive intel." He whipped his tail and took a swig of his beer before continuing, "You guys have very poor scouts to say the least. But I'll take a nip, what is it supposed to be?"

The unicorn waved a hoof in the air, "I'm not really sure, they didn't tell me but I did hear it was supposed to belong to whoever became ruler of the Crystal Empire way back when, royalty riches or something."

"You want me to join you guys just to get a box with unknown contents?" The pegasus' ears went flat as he continued to argue his point to his companion. The hooded pony that had been eaves dropping had already left, dropping off his empty cup and a nice tip to the waitress mare before exiting through the doors. As he left the heavy dank smoke-filled air of the tavern, he was greeted by the chilled air of the frozen midnight. Thick dark clouds covered the moon and stars as it threatened rain and thunder. The pony looked up to the night's sky before starting out. Around him were all manner of swamp growth and decayed woodlands. Night creatures, timber-wolves, bats and mosquitoes roamed about the small town the others in the bar called home. There were several small shacks built with rubbish, rotting wood planks and broken signs anyone could tell were stolen from another town. A couple of the larger buildings were fortified with firepower; automatic targeted weaponry but also carried a large sign of the building's name. "Crowfoot's Crap Shack" and "Doc Maggot's Slice and Dice" were among the few other shops in the town. Every building was connected with a boardwalk to safely carry oneself safely above the crocs in the swamp below.

As he walked through the twists and turns of the boardwalk, he finally came to a stretch of the wooden platform that straightened out and led to land. Once his hooves reached the soil he decided to pick up his pace and trot. He continued until he was at the edge of the forest but not visible to anyone in the closest town. He looked around. No pony in sight. He decided it was best to keep cautious and keep to the tree line until he was as close as he could get to his destination. He passed a small cottage that had a make shift bridge over a creek and a large tree that looked as if it had been built into a house. He trotted until he spotted it, the train station. Making sure there was nopony around first, he took a hoof and pulled his hood down farther before casually walking out of the foliage.

This town was a bit more refined. None of the buildings were rotting and there weren't any creatures here that could attack you but a lot of the buildings were partially destroyed. Here and there were blood stains and bullet shells that barely shown in the night. The occasional body of a pony was lying in the streets either dying or dead. The stallion paid them no mind; they were no threat to him. He entered the station of the ticket counter which had no pony at it.

'Of course', the stallion thought to himself, 'not at this hour.' He looked around and saw a machine next to the counter. It was a dull gray color and had two slots. He had seen one before though not every train station had one. He grabbed a bit out of his saddlebag and stared at it for a moment. The train could be heard in the distance getting closer and he knew he had to hurry up. Begrudgingly, he put it in the top slot. The machine responded with a click and a beep before spitting a ticket out at him. Grabbing the ticket with his teeth he walked out to the train. He stepped through the open doors and gave the ticket to a pony that wouldn't let him pass until he did so. The ticket pony gave a bitter look to the hooded pony as the stallion walked to a seat.

There were few others on the train at this hour which the stallion wasn't happy about. He'd prefer an empty car. He chose a seat farthest away from any other ponies as he could manage but closest to the door. He sat down and glanced out the window. The train pony was outside, looking around for any more passengers. When no others came he hopped back on the train and closed the doors. The train lurched forward before it was able to start on the tracks at a slow speed. The lurch caused the stallion to almost hit the seat in front of him but he caught himself before doing so. A rat fell out of his hood from the jerk of the train. The rat was sleeping on his neck quite nicely before the abrupt wake up call. The stallion put his hood down and held the terrified rat. She was a pure black color, well fed with a very clean shiny coat. She shivered before beginning to clean her face.

"Sorry about that Thief, I…forgot." The stallion said to the rat. His ears went back and he smiled at his friend while he petted her. She stood on her hind legs and put her paws on his dark colored nose and began to lick him as if to say, "It's okay, I forgive you."

The train ride was long and for most of it the stallion stared out the window. His deep blue eyes watching the world around the train pass by in a flash. He caught the occasional limping pony or dilapidated building but nothing too interesting for this hour of the night. His little black friend had begun to explore their new surroundings as she had become wide awake. She roamed the entire train car and even the other passengers, most of which were asleep. Thief jumped up onto the empty part of the seat where the stallion was sitting. He looked over to her and blinked. She had found a cookie and decided to eat it near someone familiar. The stallion rolled his eyes and continued to stare out the window.

"It was a rat! I told you so!" a young voice said, breaking the silence of the train cart but not loud enough to wake any of the sleeping passengers. The stallion looked over and flinched when he saw two small ponies, a colt and a filly looking at Thief.

"Eww! It's so gross, kill it!" The filly said to the colt as she backed away a step looking disgusted.

The colt looked to the rat and smiled, "I'm not going to kill it. It's cool!"

"But those things carry diseases! That's how they all died, disease! From those things! Just keep away from it Tinny, please!" The filly pleaded to her brother, worried that she would lose him to disease too.

"That guy's not scared of it." The colt looked towards the stallion in the booth that quickly looked away and back out the window, his ears dropped.

The filly's attention went to the stranger, examining him. From what she could see that wasn't covered by cloth or leather, his coat was a golden brown, his nose was a much darker color and he had a very short mane. The top was completely white while the sides were black. His eyes were a shade of dark blue, intense and…almost glistening in the dull light of the train. "Hey mister, how come you're so shiny?" she asked. Almost immediately after the question, the stallion picked up Thief, put her back onto his shoulder and pulled the hood up, trying to hide from the children. The cookie lay half eaten on the seat. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you!" she put her ears back and said apologetic, surprised at the stranger's reaction to her simple question.

Her brother picked up the half eaten cookie and took a bite, "See! He picked up the rat, it's not poisonous dummy."

The filly snatched the cookie out of her brother's hoof and set it back on the seat, "Rat's aren't poisonous, they carry deadly diseases dummy!" After she retorted her comeback at her brother, she turned back to the stranger, "Look mister, I'm sorry for calling your rat diseased." The strange pony kept his glance out the window. The rat, however, was trying to find her way out of his hood and back to her treat. The stallion put a hoof in front of his tiny friend to keep her from going back to the children and in that same moment his ears perked up with the breaks of the train.

Canterlot, a pristine city where the wealthy thrive, regardless of the war outside of their massive wall. Guard ponies roamed everywhere to keep the crime, and slave ponies, in their place. The filly and colt backed up as the stallion slid out of the seat, the half-eaten cookie lying on the seat.

"There you two are!" The stallion turned back to see another stallion yelling at the kids, "Do you want me to put the chains back on you?! Get back there right now or I'm going to have you two marked the second we get there!" The kids whimpered and scurried back to where they were originally sitting. The stallion gave the stranger a mean look before continuing after the children. The cloaked stallion watched the three ponies as they walked away for only a moment longer before he got off the train.

With his ears back he looked about the proud city, no ponies dying in the streets, no flea bitten animals roaming around and no slaves outside of their cages. Due to the number of guard ponies this city sported, it wasn't a city he fancied to steal from but he knew its layout well enough. Leaving the train station he ducked down an alleyway leading to a small canal. This water didn't have any life threatening monsters in it, just a few fish, so he knew it was safe to swim in. Stepping in as quietly as he could manage, he let Thief stay on top of his head before he went almost all the way under water. He wanted to make sure she didn't get wet. He swam through the calm hoof built river past a few buildings and under a guarded bridge, making sure to stay out of any spotlights. As he got to a fork in the canal he stopped and held onto the wall. Looking up he could see a guard standing and observing the pathway above. The stallion unlatched the bow from his leather vest harness under his cloak and pulled out an arrow from the quiver attached on the opposite side. He kicked off a bit from the wall while aiming above the guard pony's head. The arrow shot out and attached itself on a windowsill to a darkened room, the rope dangling down from the arrow. He buried himself in the water once more and waited. Neither the guard pony nor whoever lived in the house stirred. Satisfied nopony heard the arrow thud on the wood he took a hoof and grabbed the rope. He looked up at the guard pony before slowly lifting himself out of the water. He reached the windowsill and climbed in.

The room was dark with the pungent smell of old dust lingering in the room. This home hadn't been used in years. There was nothing in it but a bed of straw, a dresser and an unused candle. Nothing of value to the intruder. He continued on to a window on the adjacent side of the room from where he came in and peered out. Just down the road was his destination. He watched, waiting to see more guard ponies but none came. The stallion was a very patient pony and would wait an hour just to be safe. Watching, waiting, learning the guard's appointed path of travel. There was only one guard. He walked past the front of the mansion only once in the hour that the stallion waited, he must walk around the entire property by himself. No other ponies were outside at posts, how strange. Knowing the sun would rise within the next hour, he had to act now or wait another day. The stallion was patient, but not that patient.

He climbed out the window and looked up; the roof was just within hoof's reach. He climbed up and looked around. The guard pony that was next to the canal had fallen asleep so it was safe for him to walk on the path but he wanted to be sure he wasn't going to get caught. The stallion jumped to the nearest roof and continued on. Luckily, the majority of residences were all connected together, confined to fit as many ponies as possible in one space. A couple more rope arrows provided the stallion within reach of the stable that belonged to the Auctioneer. With no pony in site, he dug his last rope arrow into the side of the building he stood on and slid down it. Now he just had to get inside of the wall. He wasn't sure when the guard pony would be back but he would be coming from his left side so he trotted right. Not too far he found an apple cart set up to sell goods that was just tall enough for him to reach the top of the wall. He climbed on top of the small wagon's roof and peered over the wall. No spot lights but there were two guard ponies. Luckily they looked a bit tired from staying up all night.

The stallion climbed atop the wall and clopped along it. Below him were some bushes that would provide adequate cover from the guards. He dropped down next to the bushes and sank low. Putting a hoof to Thief, he nudged her awake, "Okay buddy, time to find the shiny!" He whispered to the rat as he pulled her gently out of his hood. The rat cleaned her face before looking up at her master. He nudged her gently with his nose and she scurried away toward the barn. As he walked along the bushes in search of a way to the barn for himself, his cloak began to get caught on the branches, rustling the leaves. The guard ponies' ears perked up and began looking in the direction of the sound.

"You heard that right?" One guard pony said to the other.

"Uh…not sure." The other pony said trying to think clearly. He believed that it was lack of sleep messing with his mind.

"Well I know I heard something, better make sure one of the slaves didn't dig themselves out again." He replied before starting to walk in the direction of the bush. When he reached the hedges he looked around, pushing them out of the way to see behind and between them. Nothing. "Hm. Maybe it was just that damned raccoon again." He said disappointingly before returning to his post.

The stallion hid behind a crate, his cloak hidden, balled up under the same bush that claimed it. He looked around and found a safe passage to the side of the barn. Walking around to the back, he found a spot where a couple of the side boards were broken. He put his nose to the hole. It was just big enough for his head, but not his whole body. He continued around the barn and spotted a window at the top, nothing to climb up to it though. His ears went back. He continued around until he could see the guard ponies again but found no other entrances. He quietly trotted back to the broken side and looked in, moldy straw and manure could be seen along with other odd shapes in the darkness, most likely slave ponies huddled together in the frosty night air. And…something moving. Thief scurried to the stallion with something in her mouth. He stepped back and let her out. He took the object from her and examined it. It was a rock, possibly a shard of something, maybe uncut diamonds, he couldn't tell but he wanted it, all of it. He had to have it, whatever it was.

Thief ran back into the barn, the stallion knowing from his companion's leave that there was more to be had. The stallion had to get inside. He needed those shiny rocks. The stallion went back to the side with the guards and pulled out one of his arrows. Still hidden he aimed at a metal sign across the way, well past the guard ponies. He pulled back the string and let go. Twang! The sign cried out as it was struck with the arrow. The guard ponies knew they weren't imagining that sound and ran towards it, ready to take down any intruders.

Now with no pony in the way of the entrance, the stallion entered the stables. The pungent stench of excrement and bodily fluids was enough to put a shudder down the stallion's spine but he carried on. Thief came back to him with another stone in her mouth and just like the first stone, he put this one in his saddle bags. She ran off to the back corner and the stallion followed. She led him to a pile of shadows all huddled together. The slaves. He knew he had to stay quiet or fear waking them but Thief had already done that. A little colt smiled as he petted her, happy that she returned. Two other ponies were awake and staring at the stranger who had entered their holding pen. A female unicorn used her weak magic to make a small light to try and see who it was. The glow of the horn illuminated against the stallion's glistening coat and brightened the room even further. He took a step back in the same moment the awake slaves huddled closer together and away from the intruder.

The other adult pony was a pegasus, light tan color with a white mane and tail, his wings were poorly clipped, and dried blood still clung to what was left of his wings. Aside from their many other scars, each of them had a clear mark on their flanks right where their cutie marks would be; three scars that overlapped each other making a distinct letter 'S' identifying them as Slaves. The beaten pegasus gingerly spoke to the intruder, "Who.. who are you? You're, you're not going to… to hurt us are y-you?" He was obviously terrified and had the most scars out of the three whom the intruder could see.

The stallion weighed in his options. Normally slaves ask for help or freedom when they can if they see an unfamiliar face. The stallion didn't have a habit of playing the hero and wasn't interested in starting. Neither was he interested in getting himself caught and becoming shackled next to them. He knew the consequences if he became a slave. Or at least, he thought he did and he didn't want any part of it. He put his ears back. He knew he had to threaten these ponies to keep them quiet. He hated hearing the whimpered cries and begging of a slave pony and he didn't want to hear it now. "I'm a slave pony murderer and if you don't do as I say, the young colt is going to be my next victim." He lied as he stared as the colt and gave a slight grin.

The slaves shuddered and huddled even closer together, the unicorn mare trying to hide the young colt.

"My friend found these and I want them." The stallion said as he brought one of the shiny rocks out from his saddle bags. The unicorn mare pointed in the direction of the corner and the stallion followed her direction. Thief popped out of the straw, the only clean pile in the barn, with another shiny rock in her mouth. After tucking it away in his saddle bag he dug around in the straw and found a box. Thief had gnawed a hole in the corner of the box as an entrance for herself but the stallion didn't have any way to get in without unlocking it. He took two long thin metal objects from black bands around his forelegs and began to pick the lock. With his expertise, it was easy enough to open and reveal the treasure inside. He stared at it for a moment, admiring its beauty before he heard the guards outside returning to their posts.

"Fuck." He whisper to himself, his exit now blocked. After putting all the contents of the box into his saddle bags he looked around, the slave ponies were still huddled together, the unicorn's light dimming from exhaustion and terror. He spotted the open window at the top. It was still too high for him to reach and nothing to get on top of to reach it. Unless… His gaze turned back to the slave ponies, the unicorn in particular. "Levitate me." He commanded.

"L-levitate you?" the unicorn frightfully asked.

"Yes. Up to that window. I can get down from there."

"But, I-I um…" the mare shook her head, "I-I can't, I'm not strong enough and I never really learned any spells to-"

"Then wake somepony else who can!" the stallion said frustratingly. Almost loud enough for the guards to hear and think it was more than just night terrors from one of the slaves.

The pegasus woke another pony, this one was pegasus mare. She was in pristine condition for a slave, hadn't even had the 'S' carved into her flank yet. The unicorn quietly explained to the pegasus mare before she nodded. Her wings were torn but not nearly as bad as the stallion's had been. While the slaves whispered to each other, Thief crawled up the stallion's leg and back to her sleeping spot on his neck.

"Um…I-I can still fly but not very well. Plum Lick said she'd try to help us." The mare said, referring to the unicorn. She spread her wings and went into the air. She was very wobbly, but was able to manage herself. She picked up the intruder stallion and began to lift him into the air. She struggled to go higher, every second took forever in the stallion's mind, and he had to get out before the sun rose and somepony came to get the slaves. With what little help the unicorn could provide, they finally made it to the window and the stallion grabbed onto it. He lifted himself up as the pegasus gratefully stood on solid ground once more. Not taking any looks back to the slaves, the intruder made his escape.

Author's Comments: I do not own My Little Pony or any of their characters. This story is completely fiction and not meant to offend anyone at all. The majority of the OC's in this story, including but not limited to: Clout Upshot, Garrett Strata, Glaciated Era, Frostwork Crystalline and Backdraft Ignition, are owned by the author herself or one of her siblings. Please do not steal any of the OC's here unless you have permission by the author of this story that you can have that particular pony because it is either not owned or no longer wanted by its owner. All ponies introduced in the story will have it stated in the Author's Comments when they are introduced, weather they have an owner and who that owner is.

Feel free to ask any questions, Ratt doesn't bite and absolutely loves constructive criticism! 3

Characters:

Clout Upshot – Owned by RadioactiveRatt

Backdraft Ignition – Owned by RadioactiveRatt