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Fracture 4: Dissenting Opinions.

By Mandroid
Created: 2020-12-19 13:21:03
Expiry: Never

  1. =Fracture 4=
  2.  
  3. >You were sitting in the back of the carriage as it rolled and bounced through town.
  4. >Inside the car with you are two ponies and a Diamond Dog.
  5. >+Dust Bowl. Rock Wrecker. Rex.+
  6. >Dust peers out the window. "Ya think it'll be a good haul?"
  7. >"Ought to be, this'n here's the biggest bank this side of the Main Line." Wrecker answers.
  8. >They both continue to look over the town. "Gonna be a lotta guards there..."
  9. >"Guards not problem. We break." Rex says.
  10. >Wrecker laughs. "Heh. Could always bring in a dragon or two..."
  11. >You feel your heartbeat quicken.
  12. >Easy...keep it together.
  13. >+Remain calm.+
  14. >"Dunno, all them dragons up North got killed by SOMETHING."
  15. >"That happen years ago, pony. Need to not be scared of ghosts."
  16. >"It killed DRAGONS, dog. Dozens. I think I'm in my right mind to be a bit scared.
  17. "You're in your right mind to shut up. We're almost there."
  18. >Your three companions shut up and steel themselves as the carriage pulls into an alley.
  19. >Stupid kids...
  20. >Your thoughts take on a blue hue.
  21. >+They are un-tempered.+
  22. >Think they'll screw it up?
  23. >+Their potential for damage is high.+
  24. >"Well I like em, they have the same disposition."
  25. >+Their disposition is irrelevant in this situation.+
  26. >:And why is that? Why can't we have some concrete partners for once?:
  27. >You know why.
  28. >+Because we do not wish to be caught.+
  29. >:Because meeting new people is fun!:
  30. >*Because they'll die.*
  31. >...
  32. >Enough. We're here.
  33. >The carriage stopped and opened its door.
  34. "Faces."
  35. >Your companions pull red bandanas over their mouths and hair as they step out of the carriage.
  36. >Alright, let's be bad guys.
  37.  
  38. "Go! Now!"
  39. >Dust runs into the recently blown vault as Rex and Wrecker check the windows.
  40. >"Deputies be here soon!"
  41. "I HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME!" you snap.
  42. >You hold your axe to the neck of the clerk in front of you.
  43. "You're lucky this hasn't gone tits up, meat."
  44. >The clerk rapidly blinks her eyes, quietly regretting hitting the silent alarm.
  45. >You throw a sack at her.
  46. "Fill this with bits. Now."
  47. >The mare nervously opens the draws and begins shoveling bits into it.
  48. >Wrecker walks through the crowd of cowering bank go-ers.
  49. >"Now all y'all stay down! We're just a few men lookin' to make a living! Aint no reason for somep0ny to do something they're gonna regret!"
  50. >You glance out over the crowd, your thoughts going blue again.
  51. >Sitrep.
  52. >+The stallion near the tellers line is large and carries himself well, he is our biggest threat.+
  53. >+The young mare near the door has been glaring at us for the past four and a half minutes, she may attempt to impede escape.
  54. >Anything else?
  55. >+The sheriff's office is six blocks from here. If the alarm was tripped four minutes ago, they will be here within the next forty seconds.+
  56. >Always so nice to live in a town where you can feel safe!<
  57. >Shut it.
  58. "Hurry up back there!"
  59. >Dust runs out with the sacks of bits in his magical grip. "We're good!"
  60. "Lookout!"
  61. >"Lawmen here!"
  62. >You glanced out the window, two deputies came dashing into the bank while the remainder stayed outside.
  63. >You grab the half filled bag of bits from the clerk and run to the rear of the bank.
  64. "Out the back! All of you!"
  65.  
  66. >You toss the loot into the rear of the carriage and signal for the rest of the gang to hop in.
  67. >Once everyone was inside, you lean out the window to the driver.
  68. "GO!"
  69. >The old bastard and his grandkids earn their keep as they rocket out of the alley and down the road out of town.
  70. >The deputies all jump at the sight and rush back to their own carriages to give chase.
  71. >As you and your pursuers exit the town limits the lawmen's greater speed become apparent.
  72. >The chariots race up next to you and slam their wheels against you.
  73. >:Gah!:
  74. >+Those need to be destroyed.+
  75. >You throw open the window and lean halfway out towards the carriage.
  76. >You swing your axe at the deputies as they try to harry your carriage.
  77. >One gets it across the nose and another gets bashed in the head with the broadside.
  78. >A particularly daring stallion attempts to grab you by the wrist and drag you out.
  79. >+Throw him.+
  80. >You twist your hand and grab the stallion by the hoof before pulling the hoof and body attached to it down.
  81. >The deputy rolls and skips along the ground behind you, making his compatriots pull back to save him.
  82. >*GO FASTER.*
  83. "SPEED IT UP, OR YOU DON'T GET PAID!"
  84. >The family pulling your cart takes it into high gear and pulls away from the lawmen.
  85. >You flip your axe back into your hands and aim.
  86. >This had to be perfect...
  87. >+Wait...+
  88. >The two remaining sheriff carts line up perfectly.
  89. >+Now!+
  90. >You toss your axe at the wheel of the lead chariot, shattering it and causing the vehicle to skid on the ground.
  91. >The chariot behind slams into the lead one and sent both of their occupants sailing into the air.
  92. >You pull yourself back inside as your chariot sails over a hill further into the mountains.
  93.  
  94. >The carriage screeches to a stop in front of a rundown shack next to a large mesa.
  95. >You and your partners-in-crime hop out as the family pulling you collapse on the ground to rest.
  96. >Dust laughs as he trots into the house, bit bags in magical grip. "Did you see the looks on their faces when we burst in? Priceless!"
  97. >*This one is good.*
  98. >Dust dumps the bags out on a very large table.
  99. >In moments, the four of you are counting the total up.
  100. >Wrecker lets out a low whistle. "Damn...one and a half mill..."
  101. >:HA! WE'RE RICH!:
  102. >*Money is of no value...*
  103. >:Hmph! Spoilsport.:
  104. >The four of you begin dividing up the bits between yourselves, making sure to leave a large pile for your driver.
  105. >Paying a driver well would ensure a good job from them.
  106. >As you all collect your agreed upon number of bits, you saw that there was still a huge pile left on the table.
  107.  
  108. >"What that pile for." Rex asks.
  109. >"S'for the boss, idiot." Wrecker says. "The guy who planned this here heist."
  110. >Dust pushes the boss's bits into a bag. "I hear that he's some big problem for the law out here, that he keeps pullin' these jobs and no one can stop him."
  111. >"Just some walkin' disaster area for the entire Mild West."
  112. >Rex throws his bag over his shoulder. "Hear he was ex-royal guard. That why can can't get caught. Knows all tactics they use to catch him."
  113. >*Idiot kids.*
  114. >You scrape your share of the bits into your bag. [spoiler][/spoiler] "You shitlords really want to know who the boss is?"
  115. >The three of them look between each other and you before nodding.
  116. >You reach into your pocket and throw something onto the table.
  117. >The three of them are so focused on it that they don't notice you grab the boss's bag.
  118. >Resting on the table in its place was the rusted and dirty badge of a royal guard commander.
  119. >You yank the badge by its chain back to your hand as you step out.
  120. "Good job today, boys. Might be seeing you around."
  121. >As you leave, Dust runs to the door. "But...why'd you risk your neck if you were the ringleader of this!?"
  122. >You toss the drivers their share and glare back at him hollowly.
  123. "Boredom, mostly."
  124.  
  125. >It was later now, much.
  126. >Luna's moon hung high in the sky as you walked.
  127. >With your bag of bits over your shoulder, you thought.
  128. >We can't go back there for a while.
  129. >+Five months would be a fair estimate.+
  130. >:We said that about Cowpenhagen and look what happened there.:
  131. >+Cowpenhagen was an exception, we could not have known that stallion would become mayor.+
  132. >:Let alone that he'd hold a grudge...:
  133. >What about moving forward?
  134. >*Find me something to fuck.*
  135. >:There he goes again...:
  136. >*DON'T TEST ME, YOU GREEN IDIOT.*
  137. >All of you calm down.
  138. >One foot in front of the other for now.
  139. >+We need to dump this money, it will draw attention. A replacement weapon will come in handy as well.+
  140. >:Another axe!:
  141. >+We also need to lay low.+
  142. >*Need more work. Need to stay active.*
  143. >What we need is a friend...
  144. >You stop mid stride and stare towards the Northwest.
  145. "Appleoosa..."

BiE 1: Introductions

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BiE 2: Train, pains, and narcissism.

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BiE 3: Exposition and espionage.

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BiE 3.5: More trains, soon to be back pains.

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BiE 4: Home Improvement.

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