Chapter 11: Missing
"Why the fuck did you think to bring 'er down here!?"
"The fuck was I 'sposed to bring 'er!?"
"Not fuckin' here you prude!"
"Mmrmmph mrmrmph!"
"Quiet!"
"You're killin' me here, you aware of that?"
The previously enraged stallion took a few steps away in an attempt to calm himself down. Here he was trying to run an organization smoothly, while all his employees were screwing everything up. It didn't help that he was basically still the new boss.
The Afillyates were a shit organization. Everybody seemed to know that except its members. And Silver. Silver knew that. Being in charge, that should make him seem responsible, and in the eyes of the public it did. But that didn't matter to him. It took him about a year to take the Afillyates from a feared street gang to a semi-reputable saboteur service.
A service that just so happened to 'employ' more than its fair share of horny, drunken idiots thanks only to tenure. Idiots like the two standing before him with a kidnapped mare in between them, who was looking completely distraught and disheveled. There wasn't really any other way she should look though. Silver didn't want to meet the pony that was alright with getting taken.
"Look, just get the fuck out of here. I have to figure something out." Silver said, shaking his head in frustration.
"Okay, yous' the boss." One of the thugs said.
"Yer comin' with us." The other commanded to the restrained mare.
"You can forget that. I don't want her gettin' mistreated by you heathens. Leave her here with me." Silver said, looking the grey mare in the eyes with muffled concern.
The two stallions left wordlessly, closing the door to Silver's Office. The stallion let out an exasperated sigh.
I work so hard. Why must it be like this every day?
"I'm going to undo your bindings. Will you let me do that?" Silver asked as calmly as he could to avoid frightening the mare. She responded with a fervent nod of the head.
Silver stepped forward and produced a small knife from his coat pocket. This was a brilliant move on the part of someone trying to keep a prisoner calm. The mare reacted rather poorly to the tool and pressed herself up against the closed door of his office in a panic.
"Pete's sake— I'll do it without the knife!" Silver said loudly. He flung the knife across the room where it embedded into a small dartboard hanging from the wall. "Nineteen. Could've been worse."
With a shrug of his shoulders, Silver got to work removing the handkerchief tied around the mare's mouth and the rope surrounding her upper forelimbs. It only took about a second of freedom for the captive to try and beat Silver's face in.
The mare flung her forehooves up in an attempt to knock him away, but Silver had already stepped backwards to give her some space. She tried to get out the door, which wouldn't budge, and that's about when she realized that there weren't any windows in the room. She was stuck.
"Let me out." She demanded in a low, angry tone.
"You have some fight in you. I wish that wasn't the case, because you'll just end up creating more work for the both of us." Silver replied the tone and accent of his voice changing considerably.
"Your voice"—
"Oh you noticed, how observant." Silver said with a smile. "I'm not a hard-headed thug. I just happen to be in charge of a few."
"Well your thugs took me off the street! Let me leave before I call the police!"
"I'm just as mad about this as you. Do you think I want to have to fix this? I'd rather be doing something a little less frustrating. Tell me, what's your name?"
"Piss off."
"It's nice to meet you, Piss off. My name is Silversmith, though everyone and their grandmother calls me Silver. I'm technically the leader of this association, the Afillyates."
"Are you going to let me go or not?"
"I can't. I don't really want to be brought up with any kidnapping charges." Silver said coolly. "I just can't be turning you loose just yet."
"Well what are you planning on doing then?" The mare asked nervously.
"I'm going to treat you like a lady being kept against her will of course. What would you like for supper?"
"Freedom."
"I'll try to find some of that, but for posterity do you have a second choice?"
The mare fell silent, letting the conversation fall to the floor. It was just as well, as it wasn't getting either pony anywhere. It was unfortunate to say the least. A mare as pretty as she didn't deserve to be taken against her will. She was like a delicate flower that had been uprooted and jostled about.
I'll have to tend to her, make sure that this one doesn't wilt.
Silver opened up a slot on the door and spoke with somepony on the other side before closing it up again and walking towards his desk. The mare took the time to look around the room while everything was quiet.
No windows, one door, a simple wooden desk, and multiple filing cabinets made the room feel rather bleak. It was definitely not something you would expect of a criminal organization. She expected more extravagant décor, and perhaps some kind of weaponry hanging from the walls. The only things decorating the space were a few framed pictures of various locations, the impaled dartboard, and a shiny silver plaque engraved with text she couldn't make out.
She turned her purple eyes on the pony before her and took in his appearance. She wanted to be able to recall his every feature. She started with his coat color, a very metallic grey sans any sheen. His mane and tail were a slightly darker shade, resembling the color his nickname implied. His eyes were a hazel color, with specks of brown littered in between.
He wore a light brown duster over his body, which covered his cutie mark for the time being. As she observed however, he removed it, revealing what looked to be a steadily rising line graph. It was an odd cutie mark to say the least, but considering the nature of the marks, she didn't bother questioning it.
"I took the liberty of ordering you a second set of my dinner. I'm used to more refined and cultured food, but I can't seem to stay away from this city's turnip melt. It's immaculate." Silver said, smelling the air as he imagined his meal. "I hope you've enjoyed profiling me, as it won't get you anywhere. I'm not really guilty of anything, as you're about to become aware."
"Go on."
"I didn't take you. I'm not forcing you to stay here. I'm only offering you dinner as I tell you that it would unwise for you to try and leave this building filled with drunken morons who like to harass young mares like yourself. Do feel free to try…"
"Octavia." The mare said, finally offering up some form of identification.
"Octavia Philharmonica Pie? Of the Manehattan Collective Orchestra, First seat in the String Section?" Silver said, raising his eyebrow hopefully.
"You know me." Octavia said in a surprised tone.
"I know your cello. Beautiful instrument, a Saddlevarius if I'm not mistaken?"
"Yes."
"Excellent. I'd love to hear it another time. Right now, I'm grappling with what to do with you."
"And of course you can't let me go because that's far too much trouble."
"Yes, but so is every other option. My employer is going to be furious with me. I've already lost one payment, I can't afford to let her find about you." Silver brought his hooves up to his chin.
"If you wanted to ask me?" Octavia leaned forward, trying to be casual.
"Go ahead."
"I'd just let me go and try to deal with the police. I'm sure you could skate by with them and it'd be much easier than what's coming." Octavia said with confidence.
"Oh? What exactly should I be worried about?"
"Just an old friend of mine who'll be mildly concerned once she finds out I'm gone."
"Where the hell is she!?" Vinyl asked, angry at seemingly everything.
"What are you talking about?" Aurora asked, turning to find Vinyl Scratch entering the apartment. "Where is who?"
"Octavia, who else!?"
"You could've been talking about ME!" Pinkie Pie said, popping up on Vinyl's periphery.
"Besides, she was with you. You two were gone for hours, I had assumed you two spent the day together." Aurora said sounding confused. "Is that not the case?"
"No! She was being a royal pain in the ass…" Vinyl scowled. She removed her goggles, set them on the coffee table and let out a deep sigh. "So she didn't come back?"
"No. I haven't heard a word from either of you all day, and Detective Limestone left a short while after you." Aurora replied, looking concerned. "I'm going to go find her."
"It's a huge city, good luck. Let her come back on her own." Vinyl sounded almost spiteful.
"I can't just sit here. I'll see you both later." Aurora sprung out of her seat and ran for the door, heading out of the apartment urgently. She sounded extremely worried.
"I don't know why she's so upset, it's not like she got kidnapped or anything." Vinyl snapped.
"But what if she did? Wouldn't that make you a big dumb meanie face? And wrong?" Pinkie Pie asked with evident concern.
"…shit." Vinyl took a breath and looked at the door. "What do you think the odds of that are?"
"Scratchie." Pinkie Pie scolded the mare.
"Fine, I'll see if I can get some help." Vinyl said reluctantly, as she turned to make her exit. "It's not like she really needs any!"
The white mare left the apartment, leaving Pinkie Pie there all by herself. Pinkie didn't really know what to do at the moment. She'd already managed to destroy the kitchen once, so it was probably a good idea to leave that alone for the time being.
"Aw shoot, what am I supposed to do here all by myself?" Pinkie Pie asked nopony in particular. "Hey! Vinyl forgot her goggles!"
Pinkie Pie lifted the goggles off the table and looked them over. She had never had the opportunity to observe them so closely, seeing as how Vinyl never took them off around her. Or anypony for that matter. The brilliant purple frames had an different shade in the lenses when held up to the light, and the metallic blue frames only served to brighten their image.
They were a very pretty set of eyewear, which was to be expected, considering the mare's attachment to them. Pinkie knew that Vinyl was a lot more worried about Octavia than she let on thanks to the fact that she'd left them behind. Pinkie knew what to do.
"I'm gonna go find Scratchie and return her goggles! I'll bet she'll love that!" The bright pink mare said excitedly.
She followed the other two mares out the door after a few moments, locking the door before closing it. She reached the ground floor of the apartment complex and stopped in her tracks, a rogue thought entering her mind.
Did I leave the oven on?
"Well, did she?" Twilight asked.
"It's Pinkie. Of course she did." Rainbow Dash responded, turning to address the hyperactive pony. "Isn't that right, Pinkie."
"That was the funny explosion!" Pinkie responded jovially.
"You decimated the kitchen." Vinyl Scratch deadpanned.
"But the cake that went everywhere drew a smiley face on the wall!" Pinkie Pie snorted with laughter at the very mention of the impromptu mural.
"Yea, that was pretty cool." Vinyl conceded, a small smile escaping onto her face.
"I thought the shrapnel was more interesting. I never realized the destructive capability of an oven before that." Aurora replied almost seriously. The rest of the room was laughing at that, now discussing the petite pony jury-rigging ovens all over the world.
"So we've got the three of ya'll headin' in different directions." Applejack said, breaking everypony out of their laughter. "Who're we followin' first?"
"Might as well start on Reggie's end. That's where I ended up." Vinyl looked over towards the khaki stallion. "Besides, I'd like you all to hear how stupid this guy really is."
"Oh for the love of"—
—"Celestia, Thundervolt! Would you announce yourself when you come in! You almost scared me half to death." Reggie yelled at the pegasus, trying desperately to slow his heart rate. "Skulking around my home like a serial murderer."
"Sorry. I would have sent you a message, but wireless communication hasn't really made it out there yet." Thundervolt replied cheekily.
"I told you I know of at least three ponies besides myself who're working on it. Nopony can seem to land a contract, it isn't our fault!"
"Calm down, that's not why I'm here. I was wondering if you had a spare bed I could use."
"Nope, you're going to have to climb into mine and snuggle." Reggie said seriously, looking the stallion dead in the eye.
"You'd like that wouldn't you?" Thundervolt said with a calm smile. "You're always trying to lead unsuspecting stallions to bed, aren't you?"
"Shut up, there's another bed in the room across from mine." Reggie said giving in, unable to keep the charade going comfortably.
"Thanks, I appreciate it. One more thing." Thundervolt turned to look at the stallion. "Is Limey around? I need to talk to him."
"He was here earlier today, and he mentioned something about stopping by later to talk to me. Stick around and I'm sure you'll get a chance to speak to him." Reggie said, looking eager to move onto a new subject. "So, wanna see something cool?"
"It's why I know you in the first place. What've you got?" Thundervolt said as he followed the stallion up the stairs to the third floor of his workspace.
"I've got something really cool."
"Ok, what is it?"
"It's this!" Reggie stopped beside a large, off-white cube about his size and gestured towards it happily.
"What the hell is it?" Thundervolt asked, not understanding.
"It's a three foot tall block of plastic explosives!"
Thundervolt's pupils constricted. He took about five steps backwards and started to hide near the stairwell. Reggie frowned slightly and walked towards the pegasus with a calm expression.
"Aw c'mon, it isn't dangerous in this state. It needs a controlled electrical charge and a primer to detonate. The way it is right now, you could do anything you want to it!" Reggie explained. He sauntered over to the large block and looked cheekily at Thundervolt.
He reared back on his front legs, coiled his body, and then put all his force into his hind legs. His rear hooves smashed into the cube doing nothing but leaving a few hoofprints. The explosives didn't explode, but Thundervolt's heart almost did. Now visibly recovering from the trauma, the pegasus walked onto the floor with his khaki companion.
"So you're saying electricity sets these things off?" Thundervolt asked with curiosity, his wings at the back of his mind.
"Well yes, but it has to be a specific amount of voltage. A rogue static shock won't do anything. I'm not sure about high voltage though, so don't go shocking them with power lines."
"Huh." Thundervolt smacked the cube himself and was shocked at the feel and texture of it. It was pretty enjoyable.
"You wanna hit it some more, don't you?" Reggie asked excitedly.
"Hell yeah I do!"
"You're idiots." Aurora said.
"That's what Keyes said." Reggie replied.
"Well, that's sort of what Keyes said…" Thundervolt trailed off.
"Are you two trying to kill yourselves!?"
The pegasus and the unicorn stopped attacking the cube of explosive plastic and turned to find their pale green detective friend watching in horror from the stair well.
"Hi!" Reggie said with a mad smile.
"I should put you in jail!"
"It isn't explosive like this."
"E-Explosive?" Keyes asked, clearly confused. "Isn't that a solid block of cocaine?"
"It's a solid block of unprimed plastic explosives." Reggie answered simply.
Keyes charged his horn up and looked at Reggie very seriously. "Let's see the permit for that. I find it hard to believe that you'd be able to acquire that amount of explosives for any project."
"You're absolutely right Keyes, however I didn't get a hold of this beauty, the company did. They've been working on some kind of mining project and needed a place to keep the explosives." Reggie said.
"And they put it here?"
"I offered, I mean how often do you get to see something this awesome up close?"
"You're bludgeoning something volatile. You must have a death wish."
"Weren't you listening Keyes? It's stable like this." Thundervolt cut in. "Just let it go for now, I need to talk to you about something."
"That's fine. I have something I'd like to discuss with you as well." Keyes replied. "We'll go into one of the spare rooms downstairs."
"You guys can't talk up here?" Reggie asked in a confused tone.
"It's a sensitive matter, Reggie. I'll fill you in once we work it out." Keyes dismissed the stallion, ushering Thundervolt down the stairs. "Don't worry, it's nothing personal."
"Of course. I'm not offended at all…" Reggie said, hiding his disappointment poorly.
"That's the spirit buddy!" Thundervolt added before disappearing down the stairs with Keyes in tow.
The two stallions quickly made it back to the first floor and entered the room Thundervolt was set to spend the night in. Keyes shut the door behind them and turned to face Thundervolt, sizing him up for a moment before starting his inquiry.
"I'm aware you also have some things to say, but I'd appreciate if you'd let me do the talking for now."
"That's fine. What do you want to know?" Thundervolt asked, shifting to a more serious tone of voice.
"I'm not going to bother questioning where you came from, or what you've been involved in in the past. I won't get a straight answer if I do." Keyes began. "I simply want you to connect a few dots that have swirling around in my head as of late."
"Understood."
"There's been a recent spike in crime here in the city, resulting in increased patrols. I've been drafted by the Manehattan Police Department into going on some of these extra patrols. Last night I met a very curious pony at the scene of a disturbance." Keyes said. He looked over towards the pegasus before continuing. "She was very gifted a fighter for someone her size, and she was also very withdrawn in comparison to some other tough ponies."
"What does she have to do with anything?" Thundervolt asked, sounding mildly curious.
"You mentioned something about keeping watch over a friend, correct?"
"I did."
"How was your view of my conversation with her from the south side window?" Thundervolt remained silent in response. "You can save the act. You two wear the exact same clothing, and according to her associate, she mentioned a partner."
"And what of it?" Thundervolt asked, sounding almost defensive.
"I want to know just how many of you are out there. You two aren't your average everyday ponies, and you're certainly not with any organization I know of." Keyes asked suspiciously. He scrutinized Thundervolt's facial expressions as he spoke.
"It's only her and I, and we're no longer a part of this organization you're referring to."
"A free agent is even more dangerous. How am I supposed to trust that you and she aren't up to something of your own accord?"
"You're not." Thundervolt said simply. "You can only take my word for the fact that I'm not planning anything. The rest is up to how paranoid you really are."
"You're treading a thin line here. What makes you think you're so immune to any consequences?"
"The consequences of my actions are things I have to live with. They won't be brought forth by some big-shot detective working for the city police." Thundervolt said irritably. "I'm not doing anything, but even if I was, you couldn't stop me."
"You're only antagonizing me here. It's like you want me to take action."
"I don't want you taking action. I want you on your toes. Trouble follows my partner and I around, and so the more prepared you are for something to go wrong, the better." Thundervolt said. "If you're done, I'd like to get into bed. It's been a long day."
"I was under the impression you wanted to ask something of me."
"I was going to ask if you wouldn't mind keeping tabs on Aurora for me. I can't get close any longer thanks to my little run in with the mare from the apartment. Seeing as how I can't be trusted however, I'll have to go about it a different way."
"Perhaps we could come to an agreement?" Keyes said, sounding thoughtful.
"I'm listening."
"I could keep my eye on the apartment, and your friend for you. Pass by on my patrols; make sure everything is in line."
"Yes?"
"And you could help me with something."
"Something like what?" Thundervolt asked curiously.
"Something that I've wanted to do for a while, but haven't found a good enough cover for breaking the law to do it."
"Limey, you've come to right pony."
I think this is the place. Sheesh, how long has it been since I've seen him last?
Vinyl stared wordlessly at the door in front of her. Here she was, in the middle of the night, standing in front of the supposed residence of an old friend. One she hadn't spoken too for a long time. Granted it was for good reason, but it was still odd coming by. Especially to ask a favor.
Knock. You've been standing here for too long.
The mare pounded on the door perhaps a little harder than she should have. Vinyl could have sworn she heard a pair of voices cease after she knocked, but decided to pay it no mind. She exercised some patience and waited until she heard hoofsteps heading towards door.
With a few small clicks, the latch and deadbolt on the door were disengaged, and the door swung inward to reveal a khaki stallion with magenta eyes standing on the inside of the room.
"Vinyl? That is you! Oh wow…"
"I know, It's been a while Reggie." Vinyl said awkwardly as she looked into the stallion's eyes.
"Please, come in! No need for you to be standing out in the hallway." Reggie said, ushering the mare into his residence. "I almost didn't recognize you without your goggles. I don't think I ever saw you without them before now."
"My wha— Oh, I must have left them at home." Vinyl said uncomfortably.
"I'm sure they'll be fine. So tell me, what are you doing here? I mean, I'm not complaining, it's just so…"
"Unexpected?"
"Overdue."
"I know. I'm sorry; you know I would have stopped by if I could have."
"I'm sure. That doesn't matter though, you're here now." Reggie said with a genuine smile.
"Right…Listen, Reggie? I actually came by to ask you for help, not to catch up." Vinyl said, quickly adding an afterthought. "At least not this minute."
"Of course, whatever you need."
"Octavia didn't come home tonight, which doesn't happen. Ever. I'm starting to think that maybe she ran into some trouble…" Vinyl explained, sounding a bit more frantic than she would have liked. "Is there any way you can help look for her?"
"Definitely. I'll put word out that she's missing immediately. Anyone related to this company will know to be looking for her in a matter of hours." Reggie said proudly.
"Wow, seriously? How do you plan to do that?" Vinyl asked, clearly impressed.
"I'll put out a memo. Ponies tend to pay attention to those when they see the label 'Chief Shareholder', if you know what I mean."
"Chief WHAT!?" Rarity yelled, catching everypony off guard.
"Shareholder." Fluttershy replied quietly, seemingly unfazed by the mare's outburst.
"I heard him, Fluttershy!" Rarity said dismissively, moving her gaze around the room. "Did nopony think to inform me that I was sitting beside the owner of the most prominent corporation on Equestria's eastern half!?"
"Nope." Vinyl said simply, looking directly at the unicorn with disdain.
"Meh, I don't think it's that important to the story." Reggie said, shrugging his shoulders.
"He's right, it isn't. I'm going to skip ahead to the part that matters, if you don't mind." Aurora cut in, looking at the trio.
All three ponies supplied nods of approval.
"Ok, so there I was roaming the streets like an idiot…"
Hey there everyone. Sorry for being late. Then again, I never said when I'd update, so screw y'all. Here's another chapter that I hope will last you until the next one. I have finals, and projects, and shit to be doing that isn't this, so don't hold your breath for an update. I'd imagine it being published in around two weeks, maybe three. I love you all, and you love me. So just chill out, and it'll be here before you know it. You should all motivate me by reviewing this chapter. It makes me warm and fuzzy, and makes my hands want to type.
