[Rhinestone] The Treasured Trinket:The Bar [PM for invite]

[brianblackberry]

Martini Paradise was steaming mad; she didn't expect the green pegasus "Baron" to hoof over the trinket, but she wasn't expecting him to suddenly kick the bed into their faces, literally! The next thing she knew, she was buried under a tangle of wood, sheets, pillows, and mattress, uninjured thanks to the soft down padding, but nonetheless tangled along with Brazil Nut and the now thoroughly panicked blue earth pony mare, who was flailing and screaming incoherently under the covers with them.

Martini could hear that Baron, that accent, that VOICE! through the bed, though she couldn't make out what he was saying over the panicked screams of the patron. That ... that mule! She wasn't going to let him get away with it!

It is said one can find hidden reserves of strength when adrenaline peaks or when one feels their back is against the wall. Dams performing great feats of strength to save their foals, and all that. This was as true for magic in unicorns as it was for physical ponies of any kind. In Martini's case, she'd had enough. For a brief moment, there was just rage - rage at that Baron and all he had done and wanted to do. She never felt such anger at a single pony before, and at that moment, all the anger and hurt focused in her horn. The next thing anypony knew, the bed, sans pony and pillows, flung across the room at tremendous speed, as if kicked by the strongest of bulls. It smashed against the far wall with such force as to shatter the frame. There, standing where the bed had started, was the pink unicorn mare snorting with rage, Martini's horn glowing with an intense green, the magic of pure unbridled vehement passion. It was all for naught, though - the foul pegasus had already made good his escape through the window, avoiding the fate she had intended for him.

Martini's horn dimmed as her feelings of anger faded to disappointment, and the weariness of performing such feats of magic settled in on her. She felt like breaking down and cry from all that has happened. A stray wisp of smoke floated through the air, touching at her nostril. Oh no ... He, he didn't set the place on fire did he?! Turning around and quickly looking out the door, Martini could see that fires had already broken out all over the bar floor and up along the curtains. "Nooooo! Oh, Celestia, noooo!"

Looking back at Brazil and the frightened patron, she yelled, "follow me and run to the exit NOW!!" before charging downstairs where Brazil's young companion was looking rather upset. "Get outside, foal!" Martini snorted as she pointed with her forhoof to the still clear entrance to the Rhinestone. She wasn't going to have anypony lost to this fire, not even the goons that the Baron had so callously left behind.

There was no way she could carry such ponies physically - she had to keep relying on that strength all unicorns shared - her horn, and hope she had enough focus and strength to do what needed to be done. Even with her magic, she couldn't really lift the massive hoodlums, so she had to settle for dragging them out the door one at a time, tossing them unceremoniously out into the dirt street. No time for subtlety or a comfortable landing, just getting them out would have to be enough. "Oh, ponyfeathers, this is already getting hard!" The strain of all that had happened was already starting to cripple her magic - she could feel the strain as she flung the second brute out the door - but she wasn't going to leave, not until all were safe outside. And all the while, she kept screaming at the top of her lungs, "FIRE! FIRE! EVERYONE OUT! FIRE!" She didn't want any of the sleeping patrons to burn up, either!

[SunsetSombra]

Once he had seperated himself from the bedcovers that had caught him underneath, Brazil felt nothing but pure outrage as he watched the Baron slip from their grasp...and with the trinket as his reward - a frustrated snort of annoyance was all anypony would see of his pent up frustration before he found himself distracted by the brazen young Martini as she took charge of the situation, leading the way downstairs and barking an order for Survey to leave, before single hoofedly starting to remove the dazed and unconscious hoodlums from earlier on...she was clearly a very strong mare and Brazil couldn't help but grin slightly at the sight.

Still, given that the building was on fire and all, he didn't want to simply let her be the only one to be doing something, and thus after ensuring Survey was alright outside, he charges back into the bar and starts scooping up one stooge onto his back, hoisting himself back up straight and grabbing the leg of another between his teeth...straining to drag the KO'd brute to the outside, watching as Martini started to look as though the strain was beginning to get to her.

Considering everything that she'd been through, it only felt right to help her as much as she could...and right now, this was possibly the only real way he could see fit to do so, given that there really wasn't much they could do otherwise. However, in the back of his mind, Brazil was already positive he knew just what he needed to do to set things right...and that was to hunt down that accursed Baron in anyway he could, find and confront him and then win back her trinket.

Yes, that seemed like the truly most appropriate way of dealing with the situation - come what may, Brazil Nut would not let Martini's misfortunes be in vain!

[RoyalDice]

Survey, still busy trying to get out the fire, quickly became bedazzled with the situation he worked himself in. The bar.. burning.. the baron.. escaping.. the fire.. spreading.. all this quickly rushed through his head, getting a bit disorientated by it. He started to think how this had happend, and quickly concluded that this situation had been caused by himself. The Baron.. the bar.. the trinket.. he wasn't sure what was the priority currently, so he just remained standing flustered in his place. Debris falling along side of him and the wood crisping at the heat of the flames, suddenly he heard a yell coming from the pony that Brazil was defending. Martini.. something.. he remembered, as he shook his head. ''O-oh.. no.. i-i'm..'' he gulped, cut himself off, and quickly nodded. He grabbed ahold of his saddlebags and dashed towards the door.

Arriving outside, grunting and panting, he shook his head. No, no.. no.. no.. no.. no! How could he had gone such a terrible mistake! He stood there, trembling and wimpering a bit. ''..I.. i-i'm..s-so.. s-so.. sorry..'' he said with a silent voice. He was completely not sure how he was supposed to apologize for burning down the bar of a pony, so he quickly grew silent. The small colt now was not only a heap of nervousness, but now also guilt-ridden and terrified. He remained on his spot, not trying to say anything that could make the situation even worse than it already is. What were they going to do now.. what was /HE/ going to do now.. he could never pay for all the damage... oh no.. no... no. He sighed, and dropped his ears in shame, quickly levitating the book out of his saddlebags and opened it, starting to write again. It was a long day, and enough could be written in the small book. With the bar, slowly going up in ashes, he was gently brushing the quill along the paper, writing about pretty much anything. And mostly the guilt he feels.

((Thus this story is concluded - See the sequel at Treasured Trinket Part 2: The Map of Royals!!))