Glory and Fortune

Chapters

Chapter 1: An Unlikely Partnership
Chapter 2: Uninvited Guests
Chapter 3: Volkiba's Sadism
Chapter 4: First Blood
Chapter 5: Downtime (Part 1)
Chapter 6: The Last of His Kind

Chapter 1: An Unlikely Partnership

You awaken to the sound of foreign birds and animals, the feeling of a slight breeze and heavy foliage on your body, and… pain so profound that it refuses to allow you to open your eyes to scan your surroundings. “Where the hell am I?” You think with your addled brain, groaning in agony as you try to mentally pinpoint the exact causes of your suffering, but having too many to accurately count. “What the hell was that?” something says. Judging from the sound, you estimate the source to be 20 meters to your left. You try to move towards the sound, before feeling a sharp tug on your left abdomen that ignites your pain receptors like a Christmas tree. You slowly become aware that the pain is not resonating from a completely outside force, but neither from a completely inside one…

“No, why now? I’m so close to catching up to them.” the disembodied and, evidently, feminine voice says, audibly about 10 meters away from you now, as the unknown entity's strange, 4-beat footstep pattern becomes apparent. “Holy shit… I think I’ve been impaled” You muse to yourself with light-headed giddiness as you slowly become aware of the warm sensation of life-sustaining fluids steadily draining out of you as your consciousness slowly slips between your fingertips. You hear the disembodied voice, now almost directly above you, say “Celestia damn it! I need to get-” before your consciousness collapses at that moment, your last thought being “Who’s… Celestia?” before your mind turns to nothingness…

“Is this death?” You fathom, suddenly able to open your eyes to behold a vast blackness that stretches out before you. “Where am I now?” is all you can muse before a voice calls out from all around you, whispering “Don’t you die on me” as a sound makes its way directly into your head, a sound that is reminiscent of galloping. The galloping stops and suddenly you’re falling, falling so far into this endless void that the vertigo makes you nauseous, and then it stops as suddenly as it started. Then comes a terrible sensation from the blackness, as you feel an immense pain that feels as though you’re being run through the abdomen by a thousand swords attached together by burning ropes. The agonizing sensation eventually ceases, but is soon followed by an immense feeling that is as though you were drowning in magma, your lungs literally burning for oxygen. Eventually that too is replaced with the sensation that your gut is being crushed in the heart of a black hole, before the sensation stretches around your back. And then everything stops. All this takes place over a matter of minutes and all you can think in response to this treatment is “Fuck… I’m definitely in hell”.

But, after spending what seemed to be several hours musing about what other ungodly punishments the unseen owner of this dark and empty void intended to inflict upon you, you’re surrounded by a bright flash of light, and then… bed sheets, the lingering stench of disinfectant and the almost silent creak of a door ajar. You're lying on your back in a bed, quickly realizing that you're now stark naked with various parts of your upper body covered in bandages. You continue to stare at the roof, judging yourself to be in some kind of make-shift hospital, obviously abandoned due to the number of holes you spot in the ceiling and adjacent wall… “Good, you’re finally awake!” a voice excitedly says almost directly into your right ear, causing your eyes to dart in the source’s direction to behold… A four-foot tall, talking horse.

“What the fuck?” you mentally whisper to yourself. Your mind stops dead to try to comprehend the sight your eyes are showing you: A four-foot tall, khaki-colored horse with unkempt olive green hair stretching just past its shoulders that is capped by a brown, wide-rim fedora. Meanwhile, a brown cotton jacket covers it's upper body, with two holes cut into the sides between it's front and hind legs to reveal a feathery khaki-colored wing sprouting out from each of them. Finally, you focus your attention on orange-sized eyes the likes of which you’ve never seen.They're filled with a variety of colors: red, blue, yellow, green, pink, purple, orange, and many more colors dance around the horse's large pupils and make these eyes so attention-grabbing that… Wait, did you see wings, and clothes?
What kind of horse has wi- “Hey, don’t ignore me when I’m talking to you, it’s rude!” The horse irritably yells, interrupting your thought process, and causing you to stare blankly at the horse for a few more seconds before asking in a flat voice “What… the fuck are you?”

The horse scoffs and says “Good, so you can talk. I was starting to think you were incapable of intelligent thought, though the day is still young judging from your course language. Now, three questions. What are you? Who are you? And why are you here?” as it turns away from you, revealing a tail the same color as it's hair along with a tattoo of a map with snaking red dotted line leading to an X mark on it's right flank, before trotting to an olive sleeping bag on the opposite end of the building and adopting a sitting position while it stares at you and waits for a response. You decide to play difficult to get back at the intelligence-insulting quadruped.

“You… didn’t answer my question. So, I’ll ask again… What the fuck are you?” you repeat with a hint of snide in your voice, causing the horse to heave an irritated sigh and shake its head in exasperation.
“I’m a Pegasus, the name’s Gloria, and you owe me your life. Any other questions?” the visibly irritated khaki-colored Pegasus hastily answers, deciding the sooner your questions are answered, the sooner the favor will be returned.
“Yeah, just three left now for the moment. What happened? Where am I now? And are you always this much of a fucking bitch?” you ask, the snide hostility now ringing with excellent clarity in your voice, causing the mare to get off her sleeping bag before starting to walk towards you.

“Well, those questions are easily answered,” the winged mare heatedly says as she strides closer to you with every word, her wings slightly expanding with every step she takes “One: You’re in the far reaches of south-western Equestria, known to many ponies as the Jungles of the Nevermare, a thick forest that stretches all the way along the western borders of the San Palomino Desert. Two: I don’t know what happened to you other than the fact that, when I found you, you had a wide variety of injuries including a branch run straight through your lower abdominal region and multiple fractures throughout your body;” She continues, before stopping less than twenty steps away from you, visibly pissed. “And finally, Three: I’m only a bitch when somepony is stupid enough to somehow trip on a twig and get grievously injured in the process, thus interrupting *my* very important work and forcing me to drag his pale blank flank all to way back to *my* camp to fix him up with the last of *my* bandages, sutures, and magic healing salve, before having to make sure his unconscious body is nourished with foraged water and puréed gillia berries, losing valuable progress by deciding to do so… and then, when he wakes up, he decides to act like a complete, unappreciative dick!” she finishes furiously, fully spreading her wings at this moment and giving them a powerful flap that closes those last twenty steps with a speed that makes you flinch, snapping your eyes shut in expectation of the inevitable assault... which never comes.

You slowly open your eyes to see Gloria glaring at you and panting angrily, close enough for you to feel her every infuriated exhale on your skin. “Sorry…” You mutter, noticing her angry demeanor soften considerably with your change of tone, “It’s been a rough day, and I am very confused and irritated. But, I guess I'll make it easier for you, all things considered. Now, what were your questions?” you continue, tapping your stubble-covered chin thoughtfully before you finally remember. “Ah yes, I don’t know what I am, I don’t know why I’m here… and was head trauma one of the injuries I received?” you suddenly ask, causing the winged horse to nod in the affirmative. “Great… that explains why I can’t remember my name, or anything else for that matter,” You think solemnly to yourself, as a persistent silence falls between you and Gloria that lasts a couple minutes.

“So…” Gloria suddenly says thoughtfully, breaking the silence.
“What?” you respond, somewhat suspicious of the creature’s intentions.
“Well, I was just thinking. You’re a surprisingly sturdy individual. The wounds I had to work with would have killed any other pony outright. You could prove useful for this job I’m currently engaged in. If you’re interested, that is. Plus, it could be fun. I mean, you're an asshole, a big one... but it’s been so long since I last had a traveling companion that I really couldn't care less about your attitude at the moment” Gloria says, finally reaching a consensus.
“Not like I have a choice, considering that you’re pretty much the only chance I have of getting out of this humid hellhole alive.” You say resignedly as you get out of the bed to put on your clothes, which consists of a long black jacket, a white t-shirt, olive cargo pants, and black leather boots that have a slightly tight fit to them.
“It’s settled, then. Let me just gather up my sleeping bag, and then follow me” Gloria says, before holding a hoof out “Oh, and, uh... welcome aboard”
“Yeah, I’m sure it’s going to be a fun little adventure” You say sarcastically, shaking her hoof.

“So… what’s happens now?” you ask Gloria, as you struggle to move slightly as the cumbersome backpack bears its weight down on you. You’ve been following your new acquaintance through the thick Jungles of the Nevermare for the past four hours, and the silence is starting to get to you.
“Now? Now I continue trying to track down the mercenary group I was tailing before you distracted me with your little accident. The mercenary group is called The Wandering Wolves, they are lead by somepony named Volkiba who is trying to find an ancient treasure of vast wealth. Apparently, you need six medallions to acquire this treasure. If Volkiba were to come into possession of this treasure, he would have virtually unlimited resources at his disposal. More than enough to build an army capable of bringing the entire world to it's knees Luckily, Volkiba and the group only know where the one in this jungle is, and I know that another one is in somewhere in the Crystal Glaciers due north-east of here. Information regarding them is scarce. I know that one of them is called The… Diamond S-Snake of Joy” responds the mare, shuddering slightly upon mentioning it.

“What… don’t like snakes?” You ask with a wry smile, prompting Gloria to give another involuntary shudder as you tread east through the Nevermare Jungle.
“Are you k-kidding?” she unconvincingly replies, turning her head to glance at you, before looking forwards again. “Why would I be afraid of a something as unthreatening as a… l-l-legless… r-r-reptile…” she finishes, as her forward momentum slows to a standstill. You barely have time to ponder why Gloria had decided to stop before the khaki-coloured Pegasus suddenly extends her wings and bolts behind you at a blinding speed. You glance at the shaking pegasus cowering behind you, then glance to where she was standing and notice a green tree python hanging from a branch four feet off the ground, before looking back at her again.
“Tsk, daw… someone really doesn’t like snakes,” you say in a tone usually used to appease infants, causing Gloria to glare at you with a look that could kill.
“No! I hate snakes! I hate them!” She practically screams at you while passing you a large knife, causing you to roll your eyes in slight amusement.
“Fine, I’ll kill the big, bad snake for you, but I get to eat it afterwards. I'm absolutely starving,” you say, causing Gloria to go wide eyed.
"Don't you fucking dare" the khaki Pegasus breathily whispers, visibly disgusted at the thought.
"Fine, but we're setting camp in that clearing up ahead" you say, noting the setting sun as you hear the hanging serpent give an aggressive hiss as you start towards it, blade in hand.

Thirty minutes after putting up camp, and an equal amount of time spent in the warm glow of the campfire pondering just how in the hell Gloria could possibly bring herself to forage the jungle for berries at this hour due to her crippling fear of snakes, your empty stomach growled out its demand. You knew that Gloria was out there somewhere gathering your meal, but you were hungry now, damn it. Luckily, you were able to smuggle the dead python into your possession while Gloria wasn't looking. She also let you keep the blade, apparently having spares in the backpack, which will no doubt help with what you plan to do with the scaly creature that gave you a surprising amount of trouble and puncture marks. You roam the clearing, find a suitable stick, and whittle the tip to a fine point. Next, you remove the snake’s digestive tract, before contorting its body into an S-shape, and running your new skewer through its middle before placing it over the fire. Something rustles the foliage behind you, causing you the tense up and grab the hilt of your blade before you hear a familiar voice call out.

“Hey, I found a stream not far from here” Gloria says as she trots out of the thick underbrush, her different colored eyes sparkling in the warm glow of the camp fire, “Also, I hope you like takio… berries… What’s that smell?” she asks you, sniffing the air quizzically as you take a large bite out of your prize.
“Oh, this?” you say between chews, holding up the well cooked serpent, casting it’s silhouette against the light of the crackling fire before bringing it back to your mouth to take another bite “I got tired of waiting for you, so I decided to make my own meal. Want some?”
At this, Gloria’s jaw goes slack, and her gem colored pupils dilate considerably. “Is that…” she starts.
“Yep, what else would you smell roasting on an open fire around here, chestnuts?” you sarcastically reply, turning your attention to take a few more bites out of your well-earned meal. The next sound you hear is another rustle of the bushes, followed by a retching sound.
“Hey, Gloria… you alright?” you ask, before a khaki blur tackles you from behind and immediately goes airborne. “You fucking liar! What the fuck is wrong with you!?” Gloria yells, restraining you with a full nelson while hovering 50 meters above the camp's surrounding forests.
“The fuck’s wrong with me!? The fuck’s wrong with you!? Put me down so I can enjoy my damn dinner in peace!” you angrily retort while shaking your skewer, still carrying the mostly-consumed serpent, in a futile attempt to free yourself from the olive-haired Pegasus’ grasp.
“Don’t you know meat is taboo for ponies!? Its stench alone is enough to make many village ponies gag! Now drop it before I drop you!” Gloria angrily demands, making you painfully aware of your current predicament. You look longingly at the meal you worked so hard to acquire, before casting a sharp glance towards Gloria and saying “… fine,” before heaving a heavy sigh and forcing yourself to let the skewer slip from your fingers and plummet into the thick forests below, never to be seen again.

“You really don’t like snakes…” you grumble under your breath, as the khaki-coloured Pegasus slowly descends back to the camp below. “You’re damn right I don’t, especially not for dinner” the winged mare responds, still visibly agitated.
“So, what kind of civilization forbids meat?” you ask, trying to steer the conversation in a different direction.
“Why do you want to know that? Are you a spy?”, the Pegasus asks with a wary look in her eyes.
“No, it’s because you’ve told me almost nothing about this planet, aside from the fact it’s called Equestria and is most likely ruled by talking horses, if the name is any indication. I mean, if I’m going find a way back to… wherever it is I’m from, then I think I need to know a lot more about this civilization than just what I have to go on right now.” You say, making an effort not to be insulted by Gloria’s accusation and visibly failing.

“Well, first of all, Equestria is a country, not a planet. But it is the most powerful country on the planet due to the influence its citizens hold over the rest of the world. If not for Pegasi like me, populated regions would have weather patterns as unpredictable as they are out here, the seasons would not change, and without our two princesses the sun and moon would neither rise nor set.” Gloria explains as she finally touches down.
“Wait… are you telling me there is almost no natural ecosystem on this planet whatsoever? What the hell happened for things to end up like that?” you interrupt as you return to your spot at the camp fire, an incredulous look in your eyes.

“Well, apparently, according to ancient legends, ponies were not the first intelligent species to roam this planet; I never believed them, myself. But recently, archaeologists have found something strange in the rock layer that lends credence to this legend, a thick layer of ash. While not much on its own, a similar case was reported in the country of Kalmia, which is on the other side of the planet, in exactly the same layer. And even stranger, the ash patterns were very specific. We have creatures that are very similar to you, called gorillas, and our scientists have found remains from this species’ ancestors only in areas that lack that ash layer... So, it’s as though an entire civilization and its history was specifically targeted before being completely wiped clean at some point. The only proof we have to show this dead civilization ever existed in the first place came just last year in the country of Markdom's Naipony Desert, when archaeologists found a rusted metal box that contained the remains of an ancient tome. The majority of the pages and the cover had rotted away with time, and the only two words that were still legible were ‘evolution’ and ‘humanity’” Gloria answers, before returning to her explanation of Equestrian civilization.

You pick up the majority of her exposition, learning of towns like “Ponyville”, and cities like the capital, “Canterlot”; about how Equestria is apparently ruled by a pair of highly-revered Alicorns named Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, and that there are four types of horses, Alicorns being the rarest and having a power capable of bending the elements of nature itself to their whim. But all throughout the description your mind mostly fixates on that one word from the answer to your question…
“Why does the word ‘humanity’ sound so familiar?” you ponder to yourself, rolling the word around in your mind as though it were a pebble in a raging river. “There’s something about this word. Something… important, I’m… I’m-I’m a hu-”

“Hey!” Gloria calls, before softly asking “Are you alright? You kind of zoned out there for a second.”
“Huh? Y-yes… I’m fine” you reply distractedly, your previous thought now completely forgotten in the murky depths of your mind.
“Good, because it’s almost midnight now, which means we’ve got about 5 and a half hours before dawn.” The olive-haired Pegasus says with a yawn, stretching out her wings and hooves, before trotting into the tent while you find a tree and settle under it while folding your arms and legs before looking up to admire the night sky. “Hey, you do realize I have two sleeping bags in here, right?” Gloria calls from inside the tent “I mean, you may be a cocky asshole, but I’m not heartless enough to just leave you at the mercy of the local wildlife… but, if that’s your choice…”

You get up with a groan and walk into the tent, and notice that there are indeed two sleeping bags, apparently made for ponies judging from their abnormal size, laying on the ground. Gloria is currently occupying the sleeping bag on the right, which you notice is as olive as her hair, with her brown jacket and matching fedora not far from the foot of it. Meanwhile the other sleeping bag on the left is... “Hot… pink… with flowers” you mutter to yourself, before hearing a stifled snort and turning you head towards the source to see the mare staring right at you with a barely contained grin. “What can I say? Somepony was having a two-for-one sale in the Canterlot market and these were the only two left” Gloria states with an exaggerated shrug before bursting into peals of high-pitched laughter.
“Ha-ha, very funny.” You grumble as you crawl into the girlish sleeping bag, “Now will you mind telling me the real reason I have to sleep in this. I mean, honestly, do you really expect me to believe that crap?” you state in an irritated tone. At this response Gloria’s laughter slowly dies down and ends on a whimper, before she shifts onto her side to face away from you and a crushing silence falls over the two of you.

“It was... my sister’s” Gloria says after what seems an eternity, heaving a heavy sigh as she does so.
“Your sister’s?” you repeat, realizing that you’ve just walked into a conversational minefield.
“Yeah, her name was Fortuna” the khaki mare responds, obviously not wanting to into further detail.
“Hrm... Where is she now?” you ask, trying your best to avoid further upsetting the troubled pegasus.
“Where do you think?” Gloria quickly retorts, casting a sharp, tear-filled glare over her right shoulder that leaves you at a loss for words.
“I’m... You have my condolences” you blurt out, deciding now would be a very good time to end this conversation. As much as you want to find out the specific details, you decide against pushing your luck.
“Yeah... fine, whatever... now shut up and go to sleep” the mare harshly responds, before giving out an involuntary sniffle as she lays her head back down on her pillow.

“Hm, I wonder what this horse’s true motives are... there’s still so many blank spaces left to fill in. I wonder what tomorrow will bring. Do I even want to know?” You ponder, as your mind slowly drifts into a sound, dreamless sleep.

Author's Note

Author: Big_Boss_MSF
Editors: Big_Boss_MSF,

About this story: 1) Though it's mainly an adventure/romance/human genre story, some chapters will heavily encompass aspects from other chapters, and yes... I do consider 'sex' and 'gore' to be genres in their own right... On that note, while this series won't be heavily dependent on gore, there will be instances where I use it to further the story and character development. If it comes to pass that it becomes frequent, I'll throw that tag on. 2) There will be sex. Maybe a lot, maybe not. But it will be in this story, make no mistake about that... However, I really want to avoid pulling off a 'strangled by red string' trope here. So, the romantic relationship will not be sparked by a one night stand which, ironically enough, is... exactly how I acquired a happy relationship... Anyways, on to the final point... I wholeheartedly want to involve my audience in the creative process. So, if get an idea for this story that you want me to implement, then feel free to send me a message, and I will make sure that you are properly credited for it. Now that I've finally gotten all those formalities out of the way... let's begin, shall we? Allons-y.

Chapter 2: Uninvited Guests

You awaken to the sounds of dawn, dazedly pulling yourself out of your horribly girlish sleeping arrangements and standing up to stretch out your back until you hear a satisfying pop. Looking towards the olive sleeping bag opposite yours, you note with little surprise that it’s vacant. “Of course...“ You mutter with a heavy sigh, before hearing an odd sound outside the tent. Deciding to investigate further, you crawl out of the tent to see Gloria sitting on her pillow, her back turned to you. You clear your throat to grab her attention, noticing her ears twitch towards you as you do so.
“Good morning.” Gloria greets, her lips stained a pale turquoise, before offering you some berries of the same color “I’ve got some takio berries leftover from last night. Or would you prefer to find a spider to chow down on this time?”
“Hey, say what you will, that snake was tasty while it lasted” you retort with a mental shudder at the mention of spiders as you sit down, eliciting a slightly disgusted scoff from Gloria while you mentally recall last night’s events before deciding to bring up the final conversation of the evening. “So, want to continue last night’s conversation?” you ask, noticing her demeanor shift instantly.
“No...” Gloria says, her rainbow eyes literally glisten with a very thin veil of water in such a way that would be beautiful if not for the tragic context.
“Hrm... I understand” you reply, knowing it’ll probably take a lot of time for her to open up.
“No, you don’t understand...” Gloria says harshly as she stands up, before softening once more “but, maybe one day I’ll tell you what happened. Now come on.”
“Why? Where are we going?” you ask, as you get up to follow her to the river.
“To get you a bath, you absolutely reek” replies the winged Pegasus, pausing to put a hoof over her nose to exaggerate her point before throwing you a bar of soap.
“What, you’re not coming along?” You ask wryly, snatching the slippery projectile from it's airborne trajectory with your right hand.
“No, my curiosity regarding your anatomy was sated while I was cleaning your wounds.” The khaki-coloured Pegasus replies.
“What!? Does that mean that you looked... at my cute “son”?” you ask, with an open-mouthed expression.
“If by ‘son’, you mean that pathetic excuse of a dick, then yes. I mean, it’s not like I couldn’t ignore it; it was... ugh... protruding out of those pants that you wear underneath your pants. Honestly, I heard that most stallions have at least 16 inches on them.” the olive-haired Pegasus stutters, slightly flustered by your question.
“You ‘heard’? Are you telling me that you’ve never been laid?” you repeat with a raised eyebrow, noting the winged mare’s cheeks turn a slight shade of crimson.
“Well... no, I haven’t; But I doubt you could make that boast, Mr. 7 inches.” Gloria admits, shifting her legs in embarrassment
“And how exactly would you know that about me? Wait... did you do anything to give my ‘son’ reason to go into the 'nice to meet you' state while I was unconscious?” You ask, frightened at the prospects.
“What? No! Celestia’s tits, no!” Gloria denies, recoiling in horror at the thought.
“Oh thank God, I j—wait, what do you mean by that? Am I not good enough for you?” You retort aggressively, oddly miffed by how fast her reaction was.
“I… uh… um” The Pegasus says with a flustered flap of her now fully extended wings, her face now ruby red with embarrassment as she desperately looks for a way out of this conversation. Suddenly, her rainbow-colored eyes widen greatly, and she points behind you, towards camp.
“LOOK! A distraction!” Gloria shouts,
“What!? Where!?” you ask as you quickly turn to look for what she’s pointing at and see nothing but thick jungle brush. “Gloria, what the hell are you talking about? There isn’t anything there” You say before hearing a powerful whooshing sound that is followed by rustling tree branches, and look back to behold that Gloria has disappeared from sight. Before you can call her name a powerful kick from behind sends you flying face first onto the bank of the river. As you push your body up to kneel on all fours with a groan, you see your reflection for the first time in the flowing waters: You have a young face that is topped with straight blonde hair which is significantly longer at the back and extends to the bottom of your neck. You note with intrigue that, despite the hair on your head being blonde, your brown eyes lay below black eyebrows and you have four days worth of black facial hair growth that partially conceals the lower portion of your face. This is all you’re able to gather about your appearance before Gloria pushes you off the bank and into the frigid river with a splash.

“You didn’t have to do that” you grumble, as you wring out your drenched clothes before placing them on a small boulder to dry, leaving your underpants on for modesty’s sake.
“If you were stupid enough to fall for that ploy, then you deserved it, Dye Job” the Pegasus says dismissively while looking up at the sky with her hooves folded behind her head as she lounges on a fluffy cloud.
“Oh-ho, are we using nicknames now? In that case, I'd prefer to be called Super Devil Bomb, or something like that. Anyways, you can’t still be mad. Besides, you’re cute when you’re embarrassed” You say, scratching the back of your head casually.
“Shut it, Blondie; I still say you deserved it. Also, don’t call me ‘cute’ ever again” The relaxing Pegasus says, dragging her brown fedora over her face momentarily.
“So, what’s the plan for today?” you ask, trying to change the subject as you take your now dry clothes off the rock and put them on.
“Well, while you were splashing about, I took the opportunity to scout out the surrounding horizon. From what I could see, Volkiba and his troops are not as far ahead as I feared, judging from the fact there’s still smoke coming from their camp, which is strange. We should be able to get there well before noon. It’s said that they have outposts hidden all throughout Equestria, including at least one in this jungle, each with their own standing army. If they have come to possess a medallion as I suspect, then they’re probably heading to the nearest outpost to booze it up pretty hard. Which means... they’ll be incapacitated for a good 12 hours afterwards. Plenty of time to sneak in, find their newfound trinket, snatch it right from under their noses, and sneak out before they realize they’ve played host to a pair of uninvited guests. All we have to do is continue following them until they foolishly lead us to their front door.” Gloria states triumphantly, flapping down and softly touching down right beside you.
“Yeah, somehow I doubt it’ll be that easy...” You skeptically reply,.
“Sure it’ll be, it’s a foolproof plan; I came up with it after all. Besides, I’ve been doing this type of stuff since I was a filly. This is just another job.” The tomboyish mare replies, looking up at you.
“Hm...” You grunt out noncommittally, before the both of you go back to your camp site, pack up the supplies, and head out in the direction of the Wandering Wolves’ campsite.

As you follow Gloria through the thick and humid forest, you start to contemplate your friend’s motives. “Why is she doing this? Is it for power? That seems possible considering what these medallions are apparently protecting. But then, those who lust for power and wealth are rarely concerned with the well-being of others, meaning I would be dead right now if that were true. Is it for honor or justice or peace? That seems more her style, considering she chose to save me... but something still doesn’t fit, she may have saved me, but I can tell she wants something... something other than the medallions, yet something her quest can give her nonetheless... but what? Hrm, I guess I’ll have to stick around to find out. Not that I have a choice.” you think, before letting your mind wander for the next two hours.

“Okay, we’re here” Gloria whispers as the two of you reach the now uninhabited camp site. You find a log on the outskirts of the camp and relax while watching the khaki Pegasus occasionally tap her right hoof on the ground as she scrutinizes every detail, from the still smoldering camp fire, to the myriad of hoof prints imprinted in the ground, before settling her rainbow-colored eyes on a few drained bottles of Pony Plot Pint, which has a somewhat disturbing image of a dark blue mare with green hair in a yellow string bikini looking over her shoulder with a suggestive wink as she shows off her hindquarters. Gloria seems slightly troubled by the presence of the bottles, causing you to inquire about the importance of such a mundane detail.
“Simple, the Wandering Wolves may be a bunch of brutish marauders, but for the most part they tend not to cut loose all that much while on the job unless it involves murder. So... what would give this bunch of uptight assholes reason to drink?” The troubled mare ponders, before casting you a knowing look and tapping her snout with her left hoof.
“They must already have the medallion. Am I right?” you ask, already knowing the answer
“Bingo, seems a few of them decided to celebrate a bit earlier than the rest.” Gloria confirms, before something dawns upon her. “Which means Volkiba’s close enough to the outpost for him to allow his troops such luxury. He probably joined them in such recklessly inhibitive behavior last night, and held up the rest of the team this morning until his resultant migraine abated. Come on, we can’t be that far from them now. This will probably be the only time I ever thank Celestia for the existence of hangovers. Hm, I wondered why the smoke coming from their site was so thick this morning. Normally, they’re on the move before I wake up.” The winged mare continues as she started to follow the tracks leading to the north.

As you followed Gloria through the woods throughout the remainder of the day and an hour into the night, the sounds of the forest slowly gave way to sounds of a different, but equally wild, nature. The closer you got to the unseen source, the louder it became, and the clearer you realized just how many individuals it would require to make this level of noise. You and Gloria slowly crawl over a small hill onto a ridge, and your eyes widen at the sight you behold. You realize now why Gloria was so keen to follow this group, instead of doing aerial reconnaissance; because it would have been suicide. In front of you is a large complex surrounded by a tall barbed-wire fence spanning the perimeter. Looking past the fencing, you see a path that splits in three directions. The road to the left leads to a sea of canvas tents for the complex’s standing army; the right road goes past a significantly smaller sea of tents presumably reserved for visiting grunts, before continuing to a small prison area that’s surrounded by an additional layer of fencing; and the middle road leads past what appears to be 10 storage buildings before reaching an area which contains what you assume to be the main compound, which is protected by a massive wall of concrete. The majority of the grunts are in the larger tent area, boozing it up just as Gloria had predicted. There are about 500 grunts in the left area, not all of them conscious, and another 50 in the right. You note that there are 5 searchlights scattered throughout the complex, each manned by a grunt attentively scanning the area, in addition to about 30 grunts that are patrolling the entirety of the complex’s landscape. Further to the left the altered landscape drops off into a deep chasm with a length stretches into the horizon, before rising once more with thick natural jungle on the opposite side of its width. You don’t know how many are patrolling the complex’s interior, but you doubt that number will be very high.

“Okay… new plan, we sneak down the middle road, thus completely bypassing the majority of troops, and make our way into the main building. After which, we try to find our way to Volkiba’s quarters and steal the medallion, and make our way out” Gloria says, smiling slightly when you remark that you prefer a challenge.

You and Gloria slowly make your way down the ridge, keeping your moonlit bodies as close to the ground as possible to blend in into the darkness and dirt. You spot a gate in the fence and silently point it out to Gloria, who proceeds to pull a bit of wire out of her right sidepack’s second compartment before unsheathing her blade and attempting to pick the lock. You hear a sharp but quiet click as the gate’s lock yields to Gloria’s delicate influence. She slowly opens the gate, and the two of you make your way past the fence. Gloria stops you from continuing with her left foreleg and pulls what appears to be a small scoped crossbow out of her left sidepack’s first compartment, before pulling about 40 bolts out of the second compartment. Each bolt starts with a tiny needle that leads into a small vial filled with a green substance before ending with a notched and fletched shaft.

“Careful,” She whispers “These are tranquilizer darts, see that vial? It’s very fragile, because the needle is designed to absorb the impact, which forces the anesthetic into the bloodstream. If you were to attempt to plunge this into an enemy with your bare hands the vial would break and the glass would cut you, giving the anesthetic clear access into your bloodstream. In short, if you don’t use the crossbow, the bolt will backfire on you and put you to sleep. Got it?”
"Yep” You say, taking the darts as you and Gloria continue start down the middle path. You approach a watchtower and silently make your way up its stairway to the top, before creeping up right behind the spotlight’s operator, who is a red stallion with green hair, and getting him in a chokehold. You immediately tighten your grip, cutting off the horse’s air supply, as he desperately struggles for a free breath. Eventually, after what seems like minutes, his struggles cease and you relinquish your grip, letting the unconscious stallion slide to the floor with a quiet thud. You turn off the spotlight and make your way down the watchtower to reunite with Gloria, before the two of you continue up the road towards your objective. You and Gloria weave past the guards, and are just about at a red metal door leading past the concrete wall when someone says “Who’s there?” from behind you. “Fuck me” you think to yourself, before Gloria spots a pile of crates and dives behind them, with you following suit in the opposite direction behind a storage building. You peek out momentarily the see a purple Unicorn mare with pink hair and blue eyes approaching your location. The guard’s hoofsteps steadily approach, and right when she’s about to turn the corner and spot you, you spring on her, getting her into a chokehold, pulling your knife out of it's sheath and bringing it to her throat in one smooth motion.
“P-please, d-don’t kill me. I have a wife and two adopted daughters waiting for me in Ponyville, and I haven’t seen them in 5 months” The surprised guard says, her eyes focusing inwards as she strains to see the knife you have beneath her maw.
“Don’t worry, I’ll spare you if you can give me some information about this place” you say, calmly pressing the tip of your blade against the mare’s neck to accentuate what’s at stake for her, causing a small amount of blood to dribble from the tiny puncture mark.
“S-sure, what do you want to know?” she asks desperately as you drag her behind the cover of the storage building.
“How do I get to Volkiba’s quarters?” you inquire, keeping an eye out in the off chance that one of her friends comes along.
“S-simple, you just go t-through that door” the mare says, pointing at the red door, “And then you go straight to the end, take a left down the stairs, take an immediate right up another flight, and you’ll reach the administrative building. Officer’s quarters are second from the top, and Volkiba has the entire top floor to herself.” The terrified Unicorn says, tears slowly filling her eyes.
“One more thing, and then I’ll let you sleep a while,” You say “How many guards between me and her room?”
“I don’t know, no more than 5; everypony’s having fun in the camps.” The mare says, before hysterically begging you to let her go. You comply and strangle her into unconsciousness, before you and Gloria make your way through the door.
The two of you make your way to the administrative building, tranquilizing a horse guarding the area between the two stairways. Gloria picks the lock, and the two of you enter and press yourselves up against the corners of a short hallway that leads to a flight of stairs.
“Well, I guess your plan might just work after all.” You whisper to Gloria, before she suddenly puts a hoof to her lips.
“Shh... Did you hear that?” Gloria asks quietly, causing you to strain your ears to reveal a steady tapping sound coming towards you from the hallway.
“Hm... Yeah, I hear it” you quietly state as you ready your blowpipe and peer around your corner to see a Unicorn guard walking in your direction, its eyes cast downwards at the ground.

“Hmpm, piece of cake” you think to yourself as you nock a bolt and get the guard in your sights before pulling the trigger, sending the dart flying true with an audible fwip that causes the guard to look up far too late to dodge the incoming projectile. The tranquilizer pierces the Unicorn’s neck, its contents instantly draining through the point and into the guard’s bloodstream, causing the horse’s eyes to roll into the back of its head as it collapses to the ground with a noticeable thud that is soon followed by light snoring.

You and Gloria make your way up the flight of stairs, knocking out the remaining 3 guards, until you arrive at the top floor, which is visibly more regal than the barren concrete that marks the rest of the Admin building's walls and floors. You make your way around the hallway that covers the outer edge of this floor, before coming upon a door titled “Commander’s Bedroom”. Gloria quietly picks the lock, the moment tense until a satisfying click announces her success. The door slowly opens with an almost inaudible creak, and the two of you note the sound of light snoring emanating from within before entering. Volkiba’s living quarters are surprisingly fancy for a room that probably gets less than a couple days of use throughout the year, with various gem-encrusted pieces of furniture placed against extremely ornate wallpaper. You and Gloria scan the room, looking for anything that the medallion might be contained in before being distracted by the slumbering figure. You sneak up to the bed, to get a look at Wandering Wolves leader, Volkiba. You and Gloria are both surprised to see that the fearsome and brutal leader of this pack of bandits is... A female. Her fur is blood-red, her thick and messy mane is black as night, with a crimson horn much sharper than any you’ve seen so far rising from the thick mane to crown a face that has a 7-inch long scar extending vertically over her left eyelid. Shifting your gaze down her form, you note very muscular front and hind legs extending from Volkiba’s battle-scarred body, with an equally powerful-looking pair of wings to boot. On her flank, you notice a cutie mark that portrays a knife dripping with blood. “Great, she’s an Alicorn, and she looks like she’s very experienced in how to handle herself in a fight. Or against a pair of uninvited guests, for that matter” You think to yourself with a mental sigh, feeling a hint of fear emanate from your gut.

“Hey, I found something” Gloria whispers from the other side of Volkiba’s bed, you force yourself to tear your attention away from the slumbering Alicorn and silently stride over to the khaki Pegasus, noticing that she’s standing next to a nightstand upon which sits a small jewellery chest that is in sharp contrast to the rest of the room in its utter plainness. The box is almost as scarred as Volkiba, the fact that it’s still in her possession shows that it somehow has sentimental value to the visibly violent horse. You grab the box and pop the lid, revealing a ruby-red medallion 3 inches in diameter that is embossed with a caricature of a raven pecking away at a carcass, with the words “The Fury” engraved near the bottom.
“Well, we found it” you say, plucking the medallion from the battered box and bending down to slip it into your right boot before turning to leave the silent bedroom.
“Yep, only five more to go, now let’s get out of here” Gloria responds, as the two of you reach the door.
“And exactly where do my two uninvited guests think they’re going?” A husky voice sharply asks from behind you. You and Gloria are only given enough time to glance at one another before the unseen owner of the voice smashes your heads together with its hooves, instantly sending the both of you into the pit of unconsciousness.

Author's Note

Author: Big_Boss_MSF
Editor: Big_Boss_MSF

Well, new and improved... I can actually say that I'm now... moderately satisfied with this chapter. As reader's of this chapter will note, I'm currently in the process of retconning character appearances. I'd originally wanted Gloria to have a ruby-red left eye and a sapphire-blue right eye (or vice-versa), because... I think heterochromia is cool. However, it was too difficult to implement that without mucking up the 'narrative flow' as I call it. So... I decided that if she couldn't have two different eye colors... Then she'd have rainbow eyes! *overly-exaggerated evil laugh*. ahem, yeah, Simply put, you can just type in 'rainbow eyes' in google images and it'd be the 5th image on the top row.

Chapter 3: Volkiba's Sadism

Author's Note

Author: Big_Boss_MSF
Editors: Big_Boss_MSF,

Okay, let me just start by saying that this was a really fun chapter to write. I'm currently making improvements to existing chapters before publishing anything else. So, yeah. Always fun... making improvements, almost impossible to get it right the first time... Especially when you're Mr. 'Always-room-for-improvement' when it comes to your stories, like I am... Seriously, about 90% of the process in writing chapters with me consists of altercations, deletions, and improvements. I could shell out a chapter every day, if not for that. Still, I enjoy it, after all... I'm not looking for a generic story plot that's easily done, I'm looking for a challenge... and given the current polls... yeah, they're definitely saying "Big_Boss_MSF, you need to improve your chapters, damn it!". So, I will, happily.

Chapter 3: Volkiba's Sadism

You awaken a few hours later with hazy vision and a pounding headache in a cold cell, stripped of all your equipment except your olive cargo pants and black boots. “Urgh... Gloria? Are you in here?” You groan out, feeling around to get your bearings.
“Yeah, I’m in here... ow...” Gloria responds, the khaki-colored silhouette apparently rubbing the left side of her head with her hoof.
“Where are we?” You ask, already knowing the answer but wanting a friendly voice to permeate through your addled vision nonetheless.
“We’re in a cell block in the second sub-basement of the outpost. Why are we even here? From the few stories I’ve managed to hear of Volkiba, we should have died in her bedroom” Gloria muses, as your vision finally clears completely to reveal the khaki Pegasus is pinned to the wall by a chained collar around her neck and ropes around her legs.
“Oh, but that’s no fun” A husky voice slowly answers as its owner, Volkiba, enters your cell “You’ll die soon enough, make no mistake about that. But first, I’m going to have a lot of fun with you two before the end. Besides, I need information, mainly on where this featherless biped has hidden my medallion. Guards! Take this damn dirty ape to Room 101.”

A pair of Pegasi enter the cell, and drag you out into the hallway by your arms. You desperately try to get a decent grip on the floor with your boots, but the Pegasi are hovering just high enough to keep you unable to do so as they drag you behind Volkiba towards the foreboding room designated as 101.
“This is bad... this is really, really bad” you think to yourself as Volkiba slowly opens the door, revealing a metal rack surrounded by a wide array of tools, including scalpels, drills, needles, meat hooks, and, oddly enough, a large bucket of lemon juice.
“You’re probably wondering why there’s a lack of blowtorches and cattle prods in this room” Volkiba states as you are pulled through the doorway “The reason behind this is because I don’t need machinery to create fire or electricity, not when I can do it myself in a way that keeps my prey from dying.”
“What... exactly are you going to do with me?” you ask as the Pegasi strap your wrists and ankles to the cold metal rack with leather straps, causing the blood-red Alicorn to give a snort that shows just how much of an insect she thinks you are as she grips a scalpel in her teeth, before using her horn to open up a telepathic field between the two of you.

“Isn’t it obvious, ape? I’m going to torture you until you tell me where you’ve hidden the medallion, or until you die in utter agony. At first I planned on dissecting you to find out just where your organs are before slowly crushing them into oblivion one after the other. But there really isn’t any point to this game if you’re too dead to scream out your pleas of mercy. So instead, I’m going to superheat this scalpel here, and slowly make incisions all over your body, before dousing you in lemon juice. The lemon juice will also help conduct the shock treatment I intend to inflict upon you.” Volkiba says directly into your mind, giving a sadistic grin that makes you shudder as the guards fasten your head in place.
“The shock treatment will continue for three rounds, each round more severe and agonizing than the last. In fact... let’s make this a game in itself. If you can resist, you’ll be dragged back to your little cell to spend time with your precious friend, before you’re returned here to be tortured once more a few hours later. But if you give in or die... then the mare’s life is mine. Now let’s begin.”

Volkiba’s horn glows with a blood-red aura, bathing the scalpel in crimson light and plucking it from her teeth to hover in midair as the blade slowly begins to glow red, then orange, then white. Then she slowly brings the floating, white-hot blade to the middle your chest cavity, causing you to scream in agony as it sears your flesh, before steadily dragging the scalpel 5 inches down your body causing your flesh to part slightly and release a small amount of blood that dribbles down your chest. The stench of your cooking flesh wafts into your nostrils, causing you to gag slightly as the sadistic Alicorn inflicts another burning cut along your right armpit. This agonizing process continues for another 30 minutes until the whole of your upper body is covered with lacerations in varying states of cauterization. You hear the clang of metal hitting concrete as Volkiba moves on to the second stage of your torture, covering your face with a black cotton bag.

You ears pick up the quiet slosh of liquid as the Alicorn slowly levitates the large bucket of lemon juice in your direction. You part your eyes slightly and glance through the fabric towards the ceiling to see the silhouette of a bucket hovering directly above your head, your eyes instinctively snapping shut as the container slowly starts to tip to release it's contents. The sensation of dying skin cells is immediate as your entire body is steadily drenched by the acidic juice causing you to give another involuntary howl that allows the sour liquid to perforate your taste buds as you are waterboarded, the intense drowning sensation nearly breaking your psyche. Eventually the sensation of flowing liquid stops as you instinctively gasp for whatever air your lungs can get, rapidly drawing the fabric of the bag towards your lips before pushing it outwards as you exhale. “Now the fun really begins” you hear Volkiba say to herself, the sadistic glee towards your suffering clearly evident in her voice as she harshly pulls the black cotton bag off of your face, and looks directly at you with her vomit-green eyes.

“Are you ready to talk now? You can just give up and let your friend die, you know? I promise I wouldn’t tell a soul if you did.” The Alicorn says in an almost motherly tone.
“F-f-fuck... y-you” you stammer out with a defiant hiss, before spitting in Volkiba’s left eye. The furious Alicorn instantly retaliates by driving her right hoof into your left cheek, causing an explosion of stars in your vision as one of your back molars is knocked out of your gums and lands on the back of your tongue. You spit out the broken tooth and give a mocking, blood-laced grin that further infuriates your torturer. “... You’ll pay for that, you fucking ape. Just for that, I’m not going to go easy on you anymore.” Volkiba angrily says, cleaning the spit out of her left eye with a handkerchief before stuffing the rag into your mouth to gag you.

“I’m going to enjoy this so very... very much.” Volkiba says as her horn starts crackling with energy. “My horn can generate an electric charge of 10 million volts, so you should be very afraid right now. Because even with sustained bursts the electricity won’t be able to stop your heart unless I want it to... and I intend to keep you here as my plaything for a very long time. Now... scream for me!” the blood-red Alicorn yells as a bolt of lightning is released from her horn and strikes your battered body, causing your soulful brown eyes to go wide with unadulterated agony. You unleash a muffled scream as every muscle in your body goes taut against the intense electrical assault. The rack rattles with every involuntary spasm of your body for what seems like an eternity before the electricity stops. You try to gasp for oxygen through your gag as every muscle in your body relaxes and a damp, warm sensation steadily spreads outward from your groin and seeps slowly down your left pant leg, the stench of freshly released urine wafting into your nostrils before permeating throughout the rest of the chamber. “Yes, that’s what I like to see. Just let yourself go.” You hear Volkiba say with a sadistic laugh, obviously satisfied with your humiliation, before she unleashes an even more intense and sustained bolt of electricity. You harshly spasm once more in muffled agony as the high-voltage electric current runs through your body, your arms and legs flailing helplessly against their restraints. Eventually the second round ends, your body now visibly smoking by this point. “I’ll admit, you’re tougher than you look... But it’s not over yet, there’s still one more round left to go. And I’m going to give you the full 10 million volts for this one” Volkiba says, her horn crackling with a charge that sends electric arcs flying all around the room. She unleashes the full brunt of her capabilities directly into you, causing you to scream in pure agony against the now spittle-soaked gag with such force that your throat goes raw and the taste of boiling blood enters your mouth. Your head shakes with such savagery that it snaps the leather restraint holding it in place clean off, allowing it to whip around freely in every direction with your smoking, bleached blonde hair following suit. Your skin starts to bake and crack from the intense heat. And then, after 30 seconds of agonizing torture, it finally stops. You slump against the rack with your head hanging forward, as you stand on the verge of unconsciousness with the stench of burned flesh, singed hair, and evaporated urine lingering around you. “You just don’t know what you’re up against, do you?” Volkiba says harshly, pressing her mouth against your left ear “For me this isn’t torture, this is sport! You may be surprisingly strong-willed for a worthless ape, yet in the end it changes nothing because you have no chance of making it out of this place alive, the only thing that your willpower changes is the amount of fun I’ll have breaking you down... But, I think that’s enough playtime for now. Guards! Drag my new toy back to his cell.”

Your lower legs drag against the concrete floor as you slump over the back of one of the guards as he carries you back to your cell, the designation “D-29” painted on the floor in front of it. His female partner opens the door to let him carelessly toss you into the cramped room. You hear Gloria let out a choked sob upon seeing your terrible state, knowing in her heart that this is the fate that also awaits her.
“G-Gloria... p-please talk to me. Say something to take my mind off the pain...” You whisper unsteadily, whimpering in agony as you try to push yourself off the cold floor with your left hand.
“W-what should I talk about?” The khaki Pegasus asks, trying her best hold back her tears and visibly failing.
“Tell me about yourself... Where were you born?” you enquire, finally gathering the strength to achieve a sitting position against the wall opposite Gloria.
“I-I was born in a place called Arkala, it was a small hamlet with a population of 15 ponies. To the north there were rolling pastures of pink grass, me and my sister used to run through those fields all day when we were fillies. To the south, beautiful amber mountains that glistened as though they were made of frozen apple cider. To the east, a lake with water so clear we could always see the bottom when we went swimming in the summer months. And to the west, a peaceful forest with such vibrant colours and life that my sister and I spent the majority of our time in that forest just exploring, soaking in the sounds of the wildlife and admiring the beauty of it all. The only thing I remember about my parents is that they were miners, wanted us to take up the family business. They died in a cave collapse when Fortuna and I were very young, and once the two of us had entered our teen years we realized that there wasn’t much point in sticking around anymore. But... maybe it would have been better if I’d stayed there...” Gloria says with a dreamy sorrow, her wet eyes closed so that she might better visualize those bygone days.

“It’s okay, Gloria, don’t worry. Because I have a plan” You say soothingly, standing up with a groan before limping over to undo the restraints pinning the khaki Pegasus to the wall.
“What plan could you possibly have to get us out of here?” Gloria asks incredulously, giving her wings a slight flap.
“Simple, I had an opportunity to pick the guard’s pockets as he was carrying me back here.” You say as you open your right hand to reveal a shining gold key, causing Gloria to gleefully give you a big hug.
“That’s wonderful! I overheard a pair of envious guards talking about a room with a bunch of storage lockers just near here. Apparently, it’s where they temporarily keep the confiscated goods of their prisoners before they’re divided up and distributed amongst the officers. Our equipment should still be there. Plus, almost everypony will probably be dead drunk by now, so it should be as easy to get out of here as it was getting in.” Gloria responds, her wings flapping excitedly.
“Good, that settles it then. I want to get as far away from this damned hellhole as possible.” You say. You start to limp towards the cell door, when suddenly, your legs give out from beneath you and you collapse to the ground with a weak groan.
“Are you okay!?” Gloria says, her eyes wide with concern.

“No-no-no-no-no. We don’t have time for this! Volkiba’s going to be back any moment. We need to get out of here, right now!” You quietly mutter to yourself, despising your current state of helplessness. You glance at the key, then to the cell door, then to Gloria, and make your decision with a heavy heart and sigh. “Get out of here...” you weakly say to your companion, holding the key out to her.

“What?” Gloria whispers in wide-eyed bewilderment, staring at you with an utterly shocked expression on her face.
“You heard me, get out here. Leave me behind, and just... run as fast as you can. Please, I’ll only slow you down, and time is of the essence right now, so... I-It’s there... in my right boot...” you whisper weakly, eliciting a quizzical look from the olive-maned Pesasus.
“What’s in your boot?” Gloria asks, visibly on the point of tears.
“The raven medallion, apparently the guards were too stupid to look for it in my boots. That, or they didn’t know how to take my boots off due to how tight they fit and how big their hooves are. Personally, I'm going with the former. Ha-ha, either way, they were still as thick as molasses in this regard. And we win in the end, because of that dumb luck.” you continue with a weak chuckle, before you notice Gloria getting a determined look in her face.
“No...” She strongly whispers, trotting towards you and taking the key anyways.
“What you do mean ‘no’? We don’t have time to argue this, Gloria. Either you go right now and leave me behind, or we both die an agonizing death in this horrible place, before or after they figure out how to pry my boots off, leaving them able to go on unopposed.” You whisper coarsely, irritated at the Pegasus’ resistance.
“NO! I’ve already lost enough in my short life; I refuse to lose anything else just yet!” Gloria yells defiantly, the faint glimmer of tears in her eyes forcing you to relent. The khaki Pegasus hoists you over her shoulders, before unlocking the cell door. Gloria rushes down the hallway and into the storage room, puts you down to look for and find the locker designated “D-29”, and then smashes it clean open with a single, powerful buck of her hind legs. Gloria gathers up her gear, quickly puts on her brown jacket and matching fedora, and stuffs your black jacket and white t-shirt into her sidepack, before gathering you up off the ground and hoisting you over her back once more. She moves as quickly as she is able towards the stairway, checking your position on the map.
“Okay, good. All we have to do is go up these stairs until we reach the first floor and from there it’s a straight shot to-“ is all Gloria manages to say before a blaring alarm sounds, and a familiarly husky voice booms out of the intercom.
“We have an escaped prisoner in Section D, anypony not completely drunk off their flank is ordered to apprehend and place them in the torture chamber for immediate punishment!” The voice of Volkiba reports, alerting every conscious guard to your current escape attempt.

“Shit! There’s no way we’re going out the front door now! Ah, what does the map show...? I got it! This stairway also leads downwards to a mostly unused hallway that ends with an access hatch into the sewers. If I can get that hatch open in time, then we might have a chance!” Gloria says as she rushes down the stairway, the sound of many hoofsteps now emanating from the basement two levels above. Gloria gallops down the hallway as fast as her hooves can carry her without having you slide off her back, the sound of hostile guards slowly getting louder. Gloria finally reaches the access hatch and gets to work picking the lock, knowing full-well of the hell that will befall the two of you should her concentration waver even for an instant as the enemies’ hoofsteps fast approach you.
“... Come on, find some room... I got it!” Gloria exclaims, as the life-saving click rings true and the khaki Pegasus forces the hatch up with great urgency before leaping down the shaft as the guards move to recapture you. The chase continues through the sewer, with Gloria now struggling to keep ahead of the pursuing guards as the end of the pipe beckons the two of you with hopes of freedom.

“Hold on tight! This is going to be a tricky take-off!” Gloria shouts as she leaps the final distance and spreads her wings, unevenly gliding out of the pipe and across the chasm as a few of the pursuing guards prove unable to stop in time and plummet to their deaths on the rocky stream below. Gloria quickly flies into the thick jungles to escape the sight of any following Pegasi scouts, breaking through a large amount of small branches as she dodges oncoming trees. Eventually, after putting enough distance between you and your pursuers, Gloria starts to steadily slow down before softly landing right outside a small cave. She bends her hind legs, causing you to softly slide off of her back and onto the jungle floor.

“That was a stupid thing for you to do, Gloria. You risked failure and agonizing death for my sake, why?” you groan out, as Gloria checks out the natural structure and finds it devoid of any sign of prior inhabitants.
“When I told you that I’m not heartless enough to leave you at the mercy of the local wildlife, I meant it. I’ve lost too much in my 21 years as it is. And I don’t want to lose anything else for a very long time.” Gloria says, setting up two sleeping bags in the dark cave before carrying you inside.
“Hah... all that pain, misery, and loneliness, and it just made you... kind. Who would have thought?” You hoarsely say, as you’re plopped down onto your soft sleeping bag. You ask for a mirror, and Gloria pulls a small mirror out of the third compartment of her right side-pack before walking over to you.
“Yeah, maybe... I guess I also owed you one as well.” Gloria says, as she sits on her hind legs next to you and hands you the mirror. You pop it open and your eyes widen at the sight. Your entire body is slightly charred, covered in lacerations and cracked in multiple places; your facial hair has been completely burned away, and the hair on your has been burnt black in places, yet is somehow still intact. "Damn... I guess Volkiba wasn't kidding when she said she had complete control over her power, because I should be dead." you think to yourself before deciding to continue to conversation
“Why do you say that?” you ask, raising an eyebrow quizzically as you close the mirror.
“Because, I heard what Volkiba said while she was using her telepathic field to talk to you. You could have easily ended your suffering by letting me die. But you didn’t... Thank you.” The olive-maned Pegasus says gratefully.
“What can I say? It doesn’t seem right to let down a damsel in distress, even if she is a horse.” you reply with a smirk, causing your friend to scoff.
“Yeah, right, you just keep dreaming that I'm a 'damsel in distress'. Still, I want to repay that favor.” Gloria says, getting up slowly.
“What, how can you possibly repay me at this time?” you ask, a suspicious look on your face.
“Are you still in pain? Because if you are...” Gloria says, rolling you over onto your stomach and putting her front hooves on your back. “Then I believe I should help mitigate that, don’t you?” as she slowly starts to massage your aching upper back.
“Ohh...” you groan as you feel your tense muscle fibers steadily unknot, as Gloria applies varying amounts of pressure to help soothe your agonized body.
“You like that?” Gloria asks with a slightly sultry tone in her voice.
“Yeah... you know, for a race without fingers, you’re pretty good” you say dreamily, enjoying every moment of your treatment.
“Hm... just ‘pretty good’?” Gloria replies teasingly, moving her hooves downwards to work on your lower back.
“Where’d you learn to do this kind of stuff?” you ask, now rendered practically paralyzed by the soothing sensations.
“I worked as a masseuse during my early teens to pay rent, when Fortuna and I were living in Manehattan. When I first started I had a more than a few dissatisfied customers, but over time you learn the tricks of the trade.” The khaki Pegasus answered.
“Oh my...” you say with an exaggerated drawl, eliciting an embarrassed chuckle from Gloria.
“Well... now that you’ve made that sentence go somewhere horrible, would you mind turning over so I can work on your front?” The khaki Pegasus requests, as you slowly roll yourself onto your back, before closing your eyes in dreamy satisfaction as the mare massages your lower abdominal region. Another small chuckle causes to you force open your right eye, to reveal a clearly humored Gloria.
“What’s so funny?” you ask, causing the Pegasus to look at you with an amused grin of her face.
“Hm? Oh, it’s nothing important. It’s just that... ahem... seems like somepony is very excited to be receiving this massage” Gloria says in a sing-song voice, pointing a hoof towards something below your waist. You move your head up from the pillow to adjust your line of sight, already knowing what your eyes are going to see.

“Hm, it would certainly seem that way, wouldn’t it?” you say, casually noting the tent in your trousers.
“Yeah... just to be clear... I’m not going to be massaging that.” Gloria states with a slight blush on her face before focusing her massage on your lacerated chest cavity, her face now almost directly above yours.
“Tsk, that’s too bad. Don’t massages sometimes have a so-called ‘happy ending’ attached to them?” you respond teasingly, causing Gloria to go an even deeper shade of crimson
“Oh, please. That line never worked coming from any of my customers. Why would it work coming from you?” Gloria asked, with a slight sparkle in her rainbow-colored eyes.
“Um... because I’m not exactly a pony, am I?” You say, causing khaki Pegasus to pause her massage momentarily before deciding to lay on top of your upper body, her lips hovering less than 10 inches away from yours as her hind legs slightly compress you abdominal region.
“You’re right... you’re not a pony.” Gloria says thoughtfully, her shoulder-length mane serving to curtain out the rest of the world, leaving only her face in your view as her beautifully unique eyes seemingly look straight into your soul. “And yet... even then, you withstood complete agony in order to protect somepony who isn’t even a member of your own species...” She continued, her lips now 5 inches away and getting closer.
“Even after enduring so much hardship already, you were still prepared to sacrifice yourself just to make sure I would have enough time to escape... there’s only one other pony who would have been willing to go through such hell for my sake alone. And she's gone now. Because I made a mistake..” Gloria finishes tearfully, her lips finally touching yours.

You inhale in wide-eyed surprise at the sudden sensation, the warmth of the Pegasus’ lips instantly caressing your own. You hear the subtle flap of her wings in the background, creating a gentle breeze that cools your agonized and exhausted body. You slowly wrap your arms around Gloria’s back, pulling her closer as you open her lips with your own, allowing your tongues to come together. After what seems like an eternity, Gloria breaks the kiss, before following up with a quick peck on your lips as you break your hold to let her climb off your body.

“Well, that did nothing to help my predicament, in fact I think it made it worse” You state jokingly, feeling a strange sense of satisfaction nonetheless as you lay on top your pink sleeping bag with your hands behind your head, too tired to even crawl into it.
“Yeah, sorry... But I don’t dance on the first date...” Gloria says, dragging her olive sleeping bag next to yours with the corner of her mouth.
“Tell me, is your average ‘first date’ always this exciting?” you ask, as the Pegasus crawls into her sleeping bag and adjusts her position to face you.
“Mm, no. The polar opposite in fact, I always wound up bored to tears. 12 prospective coltfriends in 6 months and not one of them had the guts to make it to first base.” Gloria says, blushing slightly with this admittance.
“So, you’re telling me I have a chance?” you say, causing the khaki Pegasus to give a light chuckle.
“Oh yeah... you’ve definitely got a chance. You’re a surprisingly competent adventurer. The previous 12 got antsy at the thought of leaving their hometown. So you can imagine what they thought about the prospect of exploring the whole of Equestria and getting into dangerous situations for the fun of it. Tell you what, help me gather up the other 5 medallions and maybe we’ll celebrate with some well-earned quality time.” Gloria says with a wink.
“Alright, I’m holding you to that.” You say with a chuckle, before your exhaustion finally overtakes you and you fall asleep.

Chapter 4: First Blood

“Araki…” a voice calls out from the darkness. It’s black once more, the empty void completely surrounding you. “Who’s there?” You call out to the darkness, as a light flashes to reveal a field of black roses in the midst of dawn and a woman, who looks very similar to you in appearance in every way except gender, standing at the opposite end of the burnt-black field. She’s dressed all in white, and seems to shimmer in the light of the morning sun. “Who are you?” you ask, wary as the woman ignores this question and starts to approach you with an almost gliding gait to her step. “Araki, you do not belong here anymore” The woman says, as she continues to stride towards you. “What do you mean ‘I don’t belong here’? I don’t even know where here is. And why are you calling me ‘Araki’?” you respond, as black petals start to float in the gentle morning breeze.
“Because that is the name you were given, so many years ago.” the woman says, stopping her stride to stand in the middle of the field.
“What you do mean? Who are you?” you repeat, assuming a defensive stance.
“Who I am is no longer important, all that matters now is that you go and fulfill your purpose, Araki” the woman says, raising her arm to point at you, her thumb and middle fingers held together tightly.
“What’re you-“ is all you manage to say before the woman snaps her fingers, unleashing a burning light that sears your vision white. The last words you hear the mysterious entity say are “Everything Burns”.

You awake with a start in the cave to the sound of heavy rain outside, the dream still fresh in your memory, as you sit upwards and cover you face with your hands. “Araki…” you mutter to yourself, your shaky voice rebounding slightly off the walls of your shelter as you lay back down on your sleeping bag.
“Mm, what is it?” a familiar voice mumbles out from your left, as it’s half-asleep owner wraps her upper-left hoof around your still-charred chest, causing you to wince slightly.
“Nothing... just... a bad dream, that’s all” you answer, grasping the figure’s hoof slightly with your right hand.
“You said ‘Araki’. Who’s ‘Araki’?” the figure asks, her wings sleepily giving out a single flap.
“Hm... I guess... I’m Araki” You say, still somewhat troubled by the dream.
“Mm. Nice to meet you, Araki. My name’s Gloria.” the khaki Pegasus greets as she nuzzles her snout against your neck, before drifting back to sleep.
“Hm, same to you.” you reply, as you lay there, silently pondering the meaning of your dream. “Everything Burns, what does that mean?”

Dawn eventually breaks, and you sit up, stretching out your back with a pop. You look at the sleeping Gloria, admiring her peaceful form momentarily before getting up and walking out of the cave with a limp. You raise a hand and shield your eyes slightly to give them time to adjust to the natural light, the sounds of the wet jungle slowly becoming apparent to you. “God, I hope I can go somewhere nice after I get out of this place. After yesterday, I just want to spend time in a place where I don’t have to be on edge 24/7.” you grumble to yourself, as the sound of shifting fabrics and hoofsteps emanates from inside the cave, alerting you of the fact that your winged friend has woken up.

“Good morning, Araki.” Gloria says happily as she trots out of the cave and into the rainy jungle.
“Oh, so you remembered?” you say, slightly surprised considering her groggy state at the time.
“How could I forget the name of my savior? Though personally, I still prefer Dye Job. Now do you want breakfast now, or do you want to just want gather it along the way?” the khaki Pegasus asks, flapping her wings to keep the rain off.
“I just want to get out of here as quickly as possible. Though a snake wouldn't sound half bad” You answer, eliciting a small, slightly disgusted, chuckle from your friend.
“You know what, considering what you went through, I guess I’ll let it slide from now on...you damn carnivore. Anyways, I’m with you on getting out of here. Chances are they’re still looking for us, so we should probably head to the nearest town and stay at an inn or something.” Gloria says, her demeanor shifting to one of slight somberness.
“... They’re going to be hunting us forever now, aren't they?” you ask, sighing inwardly.
“Yeah... they are. Not just because we have the medallion. The mere fact we got out of our cell is a grave insult to Volkiba’s reputation, let alone escaping one of her outposts. We should go.” Gloria answers, momentarily re-entering the cave to gather up the sleeping bags.
“So, can we go to Ponyville or whatever it’s called? I’m interested to see what the big deal about that place is” You ask, as Gloria exits the cave and tosses you your long black jacket and white t-shirt for you to put on.
“Sure, as a matter of fact, that’s where I was planning to go. I've got this acquaintance that lives there, she’s a bit of an egghead, but she could probably help us find the exact locations of the remaining five medallions, including the one I know is located somewhere in the Crystal Glaciers. Plus, the medallion we've acquired will be safe in her hands.” Gloria says, visibly giddy at the thought of being able to finally enter friendlier territories.

“All right, it’s settled then. Come on, I've had enough of this humid hel- wait a minute... when we first met, you mentioned that these jungles were on the far south-western reaches of this country... and that an entire desert divides this forest from the rest of Equestria” You reply, not looking forward to the idea of walking through a desert, especially in your weakened state.
“Yeah, well, don’t worry about that. We’ll be flying there, after all.” Gloria says, expanding her wings gracefully.
“Huh? Are you sure you can carry me for that long? I don’t mean to sound like an ass, but you were barely able to haul my battered body out of the outpost.” You ask, deeply unsure of Gloria’s plan.
“Honestly, I don’t know. But, I do know three things: One, you were brutally tortured less than 12 hours ago. Two, I need you strong, Araki; and you sure as hell won’t get a chance to recoup your strength while walking through a desert. And Three, they’ll find us eventually if we stay here. So, shut up and get on my back... you ass.” Gloria says, as the two of you let out a simultaneous chuckle.

You climb on the khaki Pegasus’ back, wondering if the four-foot mare will be able to take off before having all uncertainties dispelled as Gloria shoots upwards in a blur.
“By the way,” You shout, trying to overcome the sounds of the howling air resistance as rain smacks against you like hailstones, “What do we do if we come across any Pegasus scouts?”
“Oi, Dye Job, reach into my right sidepack's first compartment! I was able to reacquire the crossbow and about 20 tranquilizer bolts along with most of our supplies while in the storage room.” Gloria loudly replies, holding her fedora on her head with a hoof to keep it from flying away.
“Only twenty bolts? I thought we had around 40 when we were captured,” You ask, your eyes closed by the screeching winds as you rummage blindly through Gloria’s sidepack.
“We did. But, apparently, confiscated goods are distributed among officers before anything else, the only reason we still have the crossbow is because they already had their own. Considering that all my poison darts were gone when I smashed the locker open, I’m guessing they’ll be using them mainly for silent assassinations and executions.” Gloria answers as she bursts through the cloud layer, leaving a trail of white haze behind her.
“You had poison darts on you? That doesn’t seem your style, Gloria.” You say, your long coat fluttering wildly behind you like a flag in a hurricane.
“I know, I only had them in case I came across someone who was better off dead. I never got a chance to use them either. It’s a shame, really. I wouldn’t have minded putting one in Volkiba’s neck when I had the chance.” Gloria says, slowing to a hover as she scans the horizon for hostile Pegasi.
“Don’t say that, Gloria. You’re not a cold-blooded killer.” you say, bending forward to stroke her mane soothingly.
“Maybe not yet... but considering what we’re up against... well, ponies can change, and not always for the better.” Gloria says, before uttering a sharp gasp.

“What is it? What do you see?” you ask, as you knowingly nock a bolt into the crossbow.
“What do you think, Blondie? Looks like we have company” Gloria says, pointing towards three distant but quickly growing specks on the horizon.
“Thought as much... I think you should get moving, Gloria. We might as well lead these guys on a merry-” You say, before being cut of by a sudden lurch backwards as Gloria starts flying to the north-east.
“Way ahead of you, Dye Job. I can’t go at top speed with you're weight hindering me, so they’ll catch up soon enough. Hit them when they get in range.” Gloria says, your pursuers now about 50 meters away from you and closing fast.
“Gloria, if I knock them unconscious, won’t a fall from this height kill them instantly? I mean, I will if I have to, but it’s still a harsh way to go” you say, sending a bolt flying at the pursuing Pegasi as they move to dodge it, now 30 meters away.
“Don’t worry, we’re above the cloud layer, remember? The magical relationship between Pegasi and clouds works both ways. Meaning that just as Pegasi can walk and lounge on clouds, so too will clouds help break a Pegasus’ fall in a pinch” Gloria answers with winded breath, as you nock another bolt into the crossbow and fire in the direction of an emerald green stallion.
“Yeah... I’m pretty sure that’s not how thi- wait, what the hell?” you say, as the airborne dart pierces the skin of the pursuing Pegasi and you watch in disbelief as he crashes softly onto the cloud layer with a pomf that sends up a smalling scattering of haze. “Well... I’ll be damned” you think to yourself, as you casually nock another bolt.
“See? I told you so.” Gloria says with a chuckle, as you send the bolt flying towards your pursuers and hit nothing but air.
“Yeah, yeah. Give me a break; it’s only my third day here.” You say, loading another bolt and promptly firing it into the neck of another Pegasi, watching as it too lands unconscious onto the soft cloud layer below; leaving a pink, blue-haired female Pegasus with emerald eyes as your sole pursuer. However, you are unable to nock another bolt before the Pegasus quickly closes the distance and latches herself onto Gloria’s underbelly, pinning the khaki Pegasus’ wings to her sides. You quickly hook your legs tightly through the narrow gap of air between the two embattled Pegasi to avoid falling to your death as your pursuer locks her front hooves around Gloria’s back in a death grip and goes into a spinning nosedive, intent on taking the two of you with her.

Gloria struggles to free herself, as the kamikaze Pegasus mare drags the two of you through the cloud layer, revealing a fast approaching sea of yellow sand below. “Sleep the bitch!” Gloria screams at you. You don't have time to load the crossbow, so you grab a bolt and raise your arm as you look at the two pink forelegs holding their owners death grip on Gloria secure. "I'm sorry" you mutter as you bring the bolt down on the pink Pegasus' left foreleg, directly depositing its point into the skin of the pink Pegasus’ left wrist. The impact forces the bolt to release about a quarter of its sleep-inducing contents into the hostile Pegasus’ blood stream before the vial shatters, causing the long-haired mare’s tight grip to loosen as she partially loses consciousness. The two Pegasi part in mid-air and Gloria spreads her wings as soon as they are free, steadily slowing her rapid descent as her subconscious opponent’s form violently crashes into the desert sands at terminal velocity, throwing up a large cloud of dust upon the fatal impact. Gloria lands softly as you shakily unhook your legs and pull yourself off her back. You’re only able take a couple of steps before you collapse on all fours from vertigo and empty your stomach onto the hot sands. You regain your composure before standing up and walking towards the pink Pegasus’ impact zone. “Ah, no... fuck...” You groan out through your teeth, running your hands distressingly through your hair as the dust settles to reveal the grisly sight. Your eyes widen in terror as you realize she’s still moving.

You run up to her battered and spasming body, as yellow sand steadily turns red all around her. Her blue hair is almost completely dyed red with her own blood, and one of her wings has been torn clean off by the impact. Meanwhile, you see a gash along her underbelly that is large enough to reveal her mutilated insides to you. As you kneel into her line of sight, you notice the entire right side of her face has been shorn off, leaving nothing there but bits of muscle tissue, cracked bone and an empty eye socket.

“W-what’s your name?” you ask shakily, unsure of whether the pegasus will be able to respond.
“S-Silvia... S-Silvia A-Azure.” The dying mare responds, visibly in agony with every word as she stares at you with her remaining emerald eye.
“Silvia Azure...” you repeat as your vision blurs with tears “That’s a beautiful name. Where are you from Silvia?”
“I’m f-from... C-Canterlot. I used to live there with my parents and little sister. She’s 15, 4 years younger than me... H-her name’s... A-Acalia. P-please, can you f-find them for me and tell them something?” the mutilated Silvia asks, desperately gasping for every breath.
“S-Sure... What do you want to tell them? I’ll... I’ll make sure it reaches them” You ask, the tears now running down your face.
“Tell them... that I’m... s-so s-sorry, for l-leaving without t-telling them... I heard it was a g-good job, with lots of t-travel o-opportunities. H-ha... I always... w-wanted to see the world... and n-now I n-never w-will...” Silvia says weakly, before going into a seizure. You embrace the thrashing mare, holding her tight as everything she was slips away until she finally goes still after one final twitch. You rise from the deceased mare as the desert wind starts to gracefully blow.

You continue to stare in silence at Silvia’s mutilated corpse until a pair of khaki hooves wrap around you from behind and try to tear you away from the brutal scene. “Please don’t look, Araki.” Gloria whispers shakily into your ear.
“Why shouldn't I?” you mutter monotonously before uttering a scoff that causes Gloria to let out a choked sob as you continue “Why shouldn't I gaze upon the spilled blood for which I am responsible, undoubtedly the first drop of many?”
“Araki, it isn't your fault” Gloria replies tearfully as she holds you tight “There’s no way either of us could have saved her”
“Don't talk to me. Nobody EQUESTRIAN HAS ANYTHING TO SAY TO ME TODAY!” you scream furiously, causing Gloria to release her embrace with a surprised squeak at your sudden outburst.
“We had ample chance to save her, and instead everything she was, everything she could have been, has been snuffed out in an instant, all due to my actions! Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a fucking message to deliver!” you continue, your vision blurred by tears as you start to move your legs. Suddenly, an intense pain explodes from your upper chest, forcing a choked scream from your lips as your legs give out from under you and bring you to your knees. You dizzily raise your left hand, and notice that you hand a bunch of cuts on it... as well as a distinctive green substance.

“Damn it, Araki! I told you not to use the bolts like that! Who knows what effects the anesthetic is having on you. Plus, I told you to not to overexert yourself until your body’s been given time to heal, and what do you do? You get so emotionally worked up over something you had no control over that you gave yourself heat exhaustion!” Gloria yells with a sob, unclipping her canteen from her belt and bringing it to your lips.
“How can you be so cold about this?” You stammer out deliriously, before the luke-warm water pours from the container and into your mouth.
“Araki, I know... I know everything you’re feeling right now, I've been there. But I also know for a fact that if I had tried to save her, we would have been to heavy to slow down in time and the two of us would be dead in that crater right alongside her. Don’t you see, Araki? Volkiba’s troops are willing to die if it means taking their enemies with them, and considering her reputation as a sadist, I'm not surprised by that. Again, I understand how you feel; no should die like... that. But for Celestia's sake, blame the one's giving the orders” Gloria says, lifting the canteen from your lips to take a swig herself.

“Thank you... for understanding” you say halfheartedly, as Gloria gives a sigh before putting you on her back.
“We'll talk about this after we find a place to recoup. Ponyville’s out of the question for the time being seeing as I don’t have enough energy left to walk there, let alone fly. Luckily, my cutie mark comes from the fact that I’m very good at memorizing the locations of things and places once I know where they are, helped alot during my teen years when me and Fortuna were living in a messy Manehattan apartment and I had to find my keys at least once a week. It also worked quite well when combined with Fortuna’s sense of direction. Her cutie mark was a compass, obviously. I remember catching a glimpse of a small city about 10 kilometers away as... Silvia... was trying to suicide attack us. We can go there and check in at an inn.” Gloria says, noticeably hesitating to mention Silvia’s name around you.
“Wait, you carry money?” you ask, the thought of sleeping in a bed improving your mood significantly.
“Blondie, I spend most of my time exploring the plot end of nowhere, looking for forgotten relics of great value. Why would I risk losing my hard-earned bits in the woods when I could just keep them safe and sound in a bank account?” Gloria asks rhetorically, looking back at you with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah, I kind of figured you were going to say something like that” you say, your usual personality slowly reaffirming itself.
"Anyways... you're not dead yet, so that probably means you're going to be sleepy for the rest of the day" Gloria says as she starts walking in the direction of the town.

You spend the next couple of hours staring sleepily at sand, sharing crappy jokes with Gloria to help ease the boredom. Finally, after what seems like an eternity, you arrive at your destination.
“Ah, we’re here. The walled desert city of Pori, one of many such towns where ponies and camels share the same community” Gloria asks, slightly intrigued by this fact.
“What, camels and ponies don’t get along usually?” you ask curiously as you climb off her back, still noticeably unsteady.
“Oh, they do now; But there was a war a couple centuries ago and ever since there’s been lingering animosity between the two races. But nowadays it’s barely noticeable, if at all existent. I’m sure it still is in the more radical subcultures, but in this town camels and ponies live together under an element of mutual harmony.” Gloria answers, looking around for visible directions and finding none.

“Excuse me... are you looking for directions?” A camel asks, as you notice he’s wearing a fez.
“Why, thank you. Um, yes, I was just wondering where the nearest inn is. Could you please point me in the right direction? Oh, I’m sorry, I never asked you your name, what is it?” Gloria asks, noticeably more polite with the camel than she is with you.
“But of course, güzel. My name is Mehmet Ali Karaca. There’s an inn between each of the four entrances, but the nicest one is the Aşk Geyik Inn, which is immediately to the right. Just follow the wall and you’ll come across it eventually.” the fez-wearing camel answers, bowing politely.
“Why thank you” Gloria replies, copying the camels bow. “By the way... what does ‘güzel’ mean?” Gloria asks, intrigued by the camel’s choice of word.
“It means ‘beautiful’, in my native tongue” the camel answers, as you notice Gloria acquire a lovely shade of pink to her cheeks.
“Oh, my...” Gloria shakily stammers out, as Mehmet Ali departs with a hearty chuckle.
“So...” you start, before Gloria cuts you off.
“Why can’t you give me such nice complements?” Gloria asks playfully, giving you a light shove with her right hoof.
“I’m making an effort not to be insulted” you respond, causing Gloria to give a light chuckle before hovering two feet above the ground momentarily to kiss you on your cheek.
“I know, but I’m stuck with you, Dye Job. And I wouldn't have it any other way.” Gloria says as the two of you start to walk in the direction of the Aşk Geyik Inn, the sun beautifully setting from behind to elongate your shadows

Chapter 5: Downtime (Part 1)

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Chapter 6: The Last of His Kind

You’re awakened by a slight stinging sensation coming from your upper chest region. You look down to see Gloria applying a cotton ball to one of your many wounds.
“Thought you were out of disinfectant...” you mumble out groggily.
“I was, I still am actually.” Gloria says before holding up a full bottle of clear liquid. “Potato liquor, 100 Proof. Works as well as disinfectant in a pinch, also good for parties...”
“You didn't go out drinking without me, did you?” You ask, as Gloria soaks the ball and applies it to another region, making you wince.
“No, I bought this during dinner last night, remember? Anyways, want to do some shopping after breakfast?” Gloria replies, throwing the cotton ball in the nearby trash can.
“Sure, that sounds fun. And after that we’re going to be hitching a train to Ponyville, right?” you ask as you get out of bed
“Yep, we’ll be having lunch on the train, and after we meet my friend we’ll have dinner at her house” Gloria says
as she walks out the door.
“Well, you managed to bribe me with promises of food. Let’s go” you reply, putting on your shirt and jacket before hurrying out in pursuit.

“I still don’t understand it... Meat is forbidden, yet consuming the unborn youth of chickens is perfectly okay?” you ask as you and Gloria walk towards the shopping district, having just finished a breakfast of pancakes and scrambled eggs with peppers.
“You make it sound like our society’s morals are strange and juxtaposed. Besides, a main ingredient in most sweets is eggs. And trust me, most ponies love sweets, especially cake. I'm not one of them, however” Gloria says, as the two of you reach the shopping district, and immediately enter a general store.
“Point taken, so why are we here?” you ask, looking around at the various items
“Canned goods” Gloria says as she browses the wares “If we’re going to be heading into the glaciers to find that medallion, it would greatly help if we were able to locate it before starving to death.”
“Speak for yourself, Gloria. There’d be nothing for you to forage in a frozen wasteland, but I’m sure I’d be able to come across something... tasty.” You say, your mouth watering slightly at the thought.
“Yeah, yeah, I get it... you’re a meat eater. But considering that the majority of those animals would be polar bears, wolves, wolverines, pissed-off walruses, and the occasional yeti, I’m pretty convinced you’d have your work cut out for you. No snakes for you, Blondie.” Gloria says as she finds what she’s looking for
“Well, you know me... I like a challenge. Hm?” you reply before something catches your attention. “Wait, ponies smoke?” You ask as a feeling of familiarity comes over you.
“Yeah, some do… why?” Gloria says as she walks to your side to see what you’re curious about, before inhaling a breath through her teeth and pausing slightly.
“You’re going to pester me until I relent if I say ‘no’, aren’t you?” she asks, seeing that you’re ogling a box containing 50 Ponita cigars, and a carton of Felix Ictus cigarettes.
“Yep, pretty much“ you say casually, as you make slight puppy dog eyes at her.
“Fine, I’ll buy you them just this once. But once you smoke them all, you’re on your own.” She says with a sigh, pulling out a bunch of coins and paying for the goods.
“Thought you said you didn’t carry bits.” You remark with an incredulous look.
“I made a withdrawal of 100,000 bits before waking you up this morning. I don’t like using the bank card. Now come on, we’re going to miss the train” Gloria says, before the two of you depart for the train station.

You walk as fast as your still-sore body will allow as you follow Gloria to the empty train station. The khaki Pegasus pulls out 200 bits to pay for two tickets. You wait patiently, noting that only one other customer has arrived thus far. Eventually, the steam engine pulls into the station, the chatter of passengers audible even from a distance. You and Gloria board the train, and all goes silent.
“Why are they staring at me?” you ask Gloria, noticing every face in this compartment is looking straight at you.
“Pori doesn’t receive many visitors, so its people just considered you another foreigner. This train however is filled with people from the main cities, like Canterlot... and they know that you’re an... uh... oddity” Gloria says, trying to be as soft as possible as the train starts to move
“Oddity, huh? I’m pretty sure the word you were looking for is ‘freak’” you reply, spotting an empty bench. Gloria makes no response and the two of you take the empty bench and sit down. You close your eyes as you pull a cigarette out from its pack with your teeth, and inhale its aroma through your nostrils as you light it. You sigh and part your eyes slightly to see that every pony in the train car is still staring at you.
“Hey, Gloria” you say, trying to get your partner’s attention
“Yes, what is it?” she responds, looking disdainfully at the cigarette hanging from the corner of your mouth.
“What time is it?” you ask, leaning your head against the wall to stare at the ceiling.
“Um, 9:38 in the morning, why?” Gloria answers, checking her watch
“No reason... how long until we reach Ponyville?” You reply, the cigarette unmoving with your mouth as you inhale.
“About 6 hours, why are you asking so many questions?” Gloria answers, looking at you with an inquisitive expression on her face as you take a deep drag on your cigarette, before putting it out.
“Right, fuck this, I’m not sticking around so these assholes can stare at me like a circus freak. I’m going to take a leak.” You say, getting up to head to the bathroom.
“Didn't need to hear that, Dye Job” Gloria responds, audibly disgusted by your crudeness.

“Hm, I wonder if I’ll receive the same reception in Ponyville” you mutter to yourself as you drain your bladder into the urinal. “I don’t doubt it, and considering that Gloria’s plan is to meet her egghead friend I guessing that they’ll want to dissect me or something.” You continue as you flush, before going to the sink to wash your hands. You hear a stall door open behind you, and glance into the mirror to note the pony coming out. “Hm, it’s that one from the station.” You think to yourself as you turn on the tap. You momentarily look over the pony before taking your eyes off it: Black body, a long blonde mane, black latex body suit, an extremely feminine face accentuated by vivid cerise-tinted eyes, and most telling of all, a small dagger in its left hoof. Also, an almost unnoticeable bulge in the groin area informs you of the murderous pony’s gender, to your slight surprise. You casually continue to wash your hands as the effeminate stallion slowly approaches you, unaware that you know of his intentions. You wait until the stallion’s hoof steps stop, before taking a cigarette, lighting it, and quickly turning on your heel with your fist clenched to strike the would-be assassin. The assassin anticipates this, and ducks underneath your preemptive strike before he thrusts forwards with his blade, but you dodge easily and deliver a punch to the left side of his face. The assassin retaliates with a slash across your face, forcing you to arch your back against the sink to avoid the blow.
The black stallion immediately follows up with a stab to your left shoulder, and you take this opportunity the punch him in the eye with your right, causing him to reflexively relinquish his grip on the blade as you follow up with an uppercut to the stallion’s jaw, knocking him unconscious before he has an opportunity to regain his footing. You casually pull out a notebook, which has the words ‘Silvia Azure’, ‘Canterlot’, and “SP Desert” on the first line of the first page under the title ‘Kills’. You apathetically pull out a pen and put the title ‘Interrogations’ at the top of the second page, before closing the notebook and stuffing it back into the breast pocket of your black overcoat as you inhale the tobacco smoke into your lungs while you dismissively pull off the sheath strapped to his left foreleg and claim it for your own. You then stuff the stallion's unconscious body into a bathroom stall, tying him to the toilet, and clean up as best you can, remembering to pull the knife out of your shoulder, leaving a noticeable hole in your coat, and slide it into its sheath before strapping it under your right pant leg. "Damn it, that bastard owes me a new overcoat" you think to yourself as you depart the faculties.

You return to the carriage as Gloria looks at you with slight concern.
“What took you so long, Araki?” she asks, visibly concerned.
“Just got an unexpected visitor in the bathroom” You say casually, causing Gloria’s eyes to go wide.
“What? Somepony tried to kill you?” She asks quietly, trying not to draw attention.
“Yep, he’s unconscious now, so I had an idea. Let’s grab him and move to a carriage with private compartments. I want to… interrogate him when he wakes up. The excuse is that he got drunk and we, a pair of good Samaritans, are taking him back to his compartment.” You say, putting out your cigarette and throwing it in the trash with a single smooth motion.
“Sounds like a plan, let’s do it.” Gloria says, as the two of you vacate your bench and head towards the bathroom. The two of you open the stall, untie the stallion and carry him belly up, with Gloria holding the upper portion and you carrying the lower. You take this time to note that a hole has been purposely cut into his body suit to show of his cutie mark, which consists of a small dagger cloaked in shadow. You are slightly uncomfortable with how you are carrying him due to the sight you’re forced to deal with as you hoist him past intrigued bystanders that fill the carriage’s corridor, constantly trying to deflect attention with the phrase ‘It’s alright folks, he just had a bit too much to drink’ while suspecting it’s not the unconscious, ambiguously gendered pony they’re intrigued by. Eventually, the two of you find an unoccupied compartment, and lay the unconscious stallion on the couch before taking the one opposite. You take a cigar out of your pack, light it, and take a deep drag while noting its heavenly fragrant aroma before leaning forwards to softly slap the right side of the stallion’s face until he groggily comes to.

“Ugh… I rather thought I would wake up dead… Or not wake up at all, as the case may be… But, I see you haven’t killed me yet.” The stallion says with a voice as feminine as the rest of him, still not quite awake as he opens his pink eyes.
“I decided to torture you for information, it's the least I should do to you for fucking up my coat” you bluff casually while pointing to the hole, trying to be as intimidating as possible to make the assassin think twice about attempting to finish the job.
“Oooh… Kinky, I like a pony who knows how to push my buttons in all the right ways. But I think I’ll pass on ‘fun time’ for now and get to the point. My name is Midnight Shadow, I’m an assassin sent by Volkiba to kill a pair of escaped prisoners… And I have obviously failed in that regard. So, if you’re not bent on killing me, then I have a proposition for you” the stallion says, now fully awake. You roll your eyes and make a ‘get on with it’ gesture with your fingers.
“Well, here’s the thing, I failed to kill you. So, I can’t go back to Volkiba, she knows what kinds of ‘fun’ I don’t like… so, I’m thinking I should join you. I’m quite good at information gathering, as well as all the skills that come from being an assassin for 10 years. I also know 50 different massage techniques.” Midnight says, giving you a suggestive look on the last sentence.
“Hm… How do I know you won’t kill me when you have the chance?” you ask, taking a drag on your cigar.
“Well… You don’t. But, if my honesty is anything to go on then you can rest easy. Besides, you've already beaten me once. I’m sure you could overpower me again if the... need arose” Midnight says, giving another suggestive look. You give an inward sigh as you turn to Gloria, who’s sitting right next to you.
“What do you think?” you ask your partner, who’s flapping her wings in deep thought.
“Hm… I don’t know, we will need allies now that we've put ourselves at the top of Volkiba’s list. I've been thinking about buying a house in Ponyville, due to its central location and relative safety… Plus, I have more than enough money to build a decent underground base…” Gloria says, pondering the prospects before turning to the assassin and asking if he has any knowledge in construction.
“Not really… But I’m a fast learner. I could even teach you some things, mon amour,” Midnight answers, casting a seductive look in Gloria’s direction.
“Uh… no thanks, just helping us with construction would be good for a start” Gloria says, visibly blushing.
“Hah, a pity… But, I’ll join you two beautiful ladies regardless.” Midnight says, catching you slightly off-guard.
“Um… yeah, I could say the same thing about you.” You say, scratching the back of your head in embarrassment.
“Oh? Oh... My apologies… Still, gender doesn't matter much to me; when you’re born in a brothel, you tend to overlook such... constricting notions in favor of something physically constricting. That reminds me… where’s the rope?” Midnight says in a playful manner.
“Uh… how did you know I have rope?” you ask, somewhat impressed by Midnight’s perceptive capabilities.
“This isn’t the first time I’ve been tied up while unconscious, maybe the first time after being knocked unconscious… Anyways, my shoulders are always stiff after those types of games. But, I digress... is it a deal? Am I to join your merry troupe?” Midnight asks, with a distinct glimmer in his eyes.
“You have got to be one of the most perverted ponies I will ever meet. Plus, you tried to kill me less than an hour ago… Still, if you’re capable of what you say you are, and plan to stay loyal to us… then I guess you can tag along” You say, closing your eyes resignedly before feeling a kiss on your left cheek.
“Midnight… you better not be doing what I think you’re doing” you say irritably with your eyes still closed, unable to deny a slight exhilaration towards the notion.
“My apologies, I tend to be quite… showy in my affections,” Midnight says, before whispering “But, part of you enjoyed it, don't deny that” directly into your ear before returning to his side of the compartment. “This is going to be a long train ride” you think to yourself with a sigh. You spend the rest of the trip making small talk with Gloria and your new ally, the two of you deflecting his constant flirtations, until you finally reach Ponyville.

“Well… this looks peaceful” You casually remark as you and your allies exit the train and step onto the small boarding station. The first thing you see is an oak tree that has a sign of a book attached to a limb.
“Hm, at least Pori had a brothel, even if it was shamefully tucked away in an obscure back alley… this place just looks like a nunnery to me. Pity” Midnight says flatly, giving his blonde tail a disgruntled flick.
“Yeah well… At least its climate is more agreeable” Gloria says to Midnight, slightly amused by his luridness.
“So… What’s going to be first, visitation of friends or purchase of property?” you ask Gloria, pointing towards the oak tree.
“Yep, that looks to be her style. Still, I think it would be nice to buy a house first, so Midnight can get a tiny headstart on the ‘renovations’ while we visit my friend’s house.” Gloria says as the three of you walk past the tree, and towards the town square. The three of you come across town hall and walk inside. A grey-maned pony with half-moon bifocals looks up from her desk and gives you a smile.

“Ah, visitors. My name is Mayor Mare. What can I help you with?” Mayor Mare says as she gets up to greet you.
“Hello, my name is Gloria, and these are my friends, Araki and Midnight. We were looking to buy a house in Ponyville.” Gloria says, bowing in the same manner she did with Mehmet in Pori. “Oh my, it’s rare to see such politeness.” Mayor Mare says, visibly delighted as she goes to her desk to look through some papers.
“Well, you’re in luck; there’s a house for sale across from the Carousel Boutique, if you’re interested. Only 50000 bits, too.” Mayor Mare says, showing you a picture of the house. The you and Gloria grimace slightly at the picture, while Midnight whistles at the sight of a house that looks like it would topple in a stiff breeze, but you buy it nonetheless after deciding to fix it up over the next few months. Gloria hands over 50, 000 bits for the house deed, before the two of you depart the town hall.

“God, this place is a dive…” You mumble to yourself, as you look over the house: It’s a two story cottage, with broken windows and a small stairway leading to the front porch and door. The roof is full of holes, and the timber that was used in its construction has cracked and bended with time.
“Oh, I don’t know, this place has character… like a few brothels I’ve been to in my travels.” Midnight says, nostalgia evident in his voice.
“Is that all you think about?” You ask, raising an eyebrow with a disdained bemusement.
“When I’m not on the job… yeah, pretty much. By the way, did you know that the average colt or stallion thinks about sex every seven seconds? So, really, I’m not all that unusual, I just voice my thoughts more often that the average stallion.” Midnight remarks as the three of you walk onto the railed front porch and through the front door. The inside of the house has the same dilapidated look, with no furniture except a battered and rusty stove that’s visible in the kitchen across from the front door. The entire ceiling is covered with cobwebs, the majority of which are still occupied, causing you to shudder.
“Aw, what’s wrong, Araki? Don’t like spiders?” Gloria asks, gleeful at the chance to finally get you back for the remark you made when she was faced with a snake. You casually reach up with your right arm and slowly crush a hairy spider that has a diameter of 5 inches with your bare hand, all the while staring defiantly at Gloria with a bored expression on your face.
“… You were saying something?” you casually ask as Gloria snorts in disappointment, before adopting a softer demeanor to your face. “Yeah, I’m afraid of spiders,” You confess, “but I’m not about to let you hold it over me”. You note that Gloria has a vaguely impressed look in her rainbow eyes after this remark. “Well, I’ll get busy here while the two of you talk to your friend over in the library.” Midnight says as you and Gloria depart your new lodgings.

“Oh, look Sweetie Belle, new neighbors. Why, hello there, darlings!” A cheerful and elegant voice calls from direction of the Carousel Boutique. You see a pair of light-gray female unicorns, one noticeably younger than the other, approaching you. The one on the left has an indigo mane, azure eyes, and a cutie mark consisting of three radiant gems in a pyramid formation. You cast your eyes downwards to note that she’s also wearing a quartet of fancy shoes on her hooves. The one on the right has a light purple mane with pink streaks, light green eyes, and lacks a cutie mark. “Hello, my name’s Araki, but I also answer to ‘Dye Job’ or ‘Blondie’. This is my friend, Gloria, and we have another pony named Midnight Shadow living with us.” You say, shaking the older pony’s hoof.
“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Araki. My name is Rarity, and this is my little sister, Sweetie Belle. We are the current proprietors of the Carousel Boutique, which specializes in the absolute height of Ponyville fashion and also doubles as our simply gorgeous home.” Rarity says, before being interrupted by Sweetie Belle.
“Big sis, can I go now? Apple Bloom and Scootaloo are waiting for me at the CMC Clubhouse.” Sweetie Belle says, visibly anxious as Rarity heaves a small sigh.
“Yes, you can go and play with your friends, Sweetie” Rarity says, even though Sweetie was already gone at the word ‘yes’. “My sincerest apologies for my little sister’s eagerness; she and her friends spend the majority of the day trying to find their cutie marks, completely obsessed with it. Came up with an admittedly fetching name for themselves too, The Cutie Mark Crusaders. Hah, everypony tells them that they’ll get their marks when the time is right, but kids will be kids. Plus, it’s good for them to have something to do… even if that something usually amounts to causing chaos on a daily basis” Rarity says with a bemused flip of her mane.
“Yes… anyways, we should get going; we’ve got a very important errand to run at the moment. Sorry we can’t say and chat” you say, holding out your hand.
“Oh that’s quite alright; I’m quite busy myself at the moment what with an order of 6 gem-encrusted dresses for the “Pony of Pop”, Sapphire Stones. I was kidnapped by this underground trio of ruffians calling themselves the ‘Diamond Dogs’ in the process, but as you can see, I got out thanks to my friends and… Spike. Anyways, I’ve held you up for far too long, darling. Toodles.” Rarity says, curtsying gracefully before returning to her home and workshop. “Diamond Dogs… That’s a pretty good name” you think to yourself as you and Gloria start towards the library.

You and Gloria make your way to the Golden Oak Library and knock on the door. You hear movement from behind the door before it opens to reveal… a small, purple lizard with green eyes, an equally green set of smooth spikes running down from head to tail, and the capability of bipedal motion.
“Hello? Can I help you?” The bipedal lizard asks, it’s tail swishing occasionally.
“Well, that’s new. What are you supposed to be?” you ask the purple and green lizard.
“I could say the same about you. Anyways, the name’s Spike, and I’m a dragon” the purple says, causing you to raise an eyebrow with intrigue.
“Yeah, should have known… Anyways, my name’s Araki and this is Gloria. We’re looking for an egghead to tell us about this relic we came across.” You say as you regain your composure.
“Oh, then you’ll want to talk to Twilight Sparkle. She decided to stay out with her friends a while longer after today’s events, so you two can come in and I’ll put the kettle on while we wait.” Spike says, as the two of you follow the dragon into the library. You’re eyes widen with slight surprise at the circular room that makes up the majority of the first floor of the library, to the right is a stairwell leading up to what appears to be a bedroom, to the left is a reading desk and an open door leading to what appears to be a kitchen, in the exact centre of the room is a statue-burdened table that you assume is whatever it needs to be when in use, and the walls are indented to form an expansive bookshelf running the length of the wall, with the two doors being the only interruption to this pattern. “It seems… bigger on the inside” you think to yourself as you realize just how spacious this room is compared to what it looked like on the outside. You and Gloria take a spot at the table as you hear the whistle of a kettle emanate from the kitchen. Spike brings three cups of tea shortly afterwards and the three of you start conversing.

“So… what do you do around here, Spike?” you ask as the dragon hands you a cup of tea.
“Well, I’m Twilight’s assistant. I mainly organize and fetch her books while she’s engaged in research, I also write her letters to Princess Celestia, keep her checklists in order and help her practice magic” Spike says as he takes a sip from his cup.
“So, Twilight’s a Unicorn?” you ask, sipping your tea ungracefully.
“Yep, she’s also the owner of an Element of Harmony; specifically, she represents the Element of Magic.” Spike says, causing Gloria to spit out her tea in shock, creating a puddle on the floor.
“Wait… so that was Twilight who helped purify Princess Luna?” Gloria asks, her rainbow-colored eyes wide with surprise, as the purple dragon grabs a mop to clean up the mess.
“Yep, she had help from her friends Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and… Rarity” the purple dragon says with a noticeable amount of longing in his voice in regards to the last one.
“Oh-ho… I know that tone. Sounds like someone has a crush” you say, causing Spike to go beat-red.
“N-no I don’t, why would I? B-besides, I’m a dragon, a b-baby one at that. Why would she…” the purple dragon says as he focuses on mopping before you put a hand on his shoulder, causing the dragon to immediately quiet.
“You doth protest too much, my new friend,” you say with a knowing chuckle, having noticed that exact same type of hesitation from Rarity, “Anyways, if you play your cards right, I have a feeling you’ll win her affection. Hell, maybe I’ll help you with that once my business is done” you continue, before hearing the front door open behind you and a cheerful “I’m home” resound from who you assume to be Twilight Sparkle. You turn your head towards the owner of the voice, and see a purple Unicorn with purple eyes, a shoulder-length dark blue mane with streaks of pink and purple, a matching tail, a cutie mark of a large pink sparkle surrounded by smaller white sparkles on its flanks, and a confused expression on its face.

“Oh… I didn’t realize I was expecting company. Huh, Gloria, is that you?” the purple Unicorn asks, visibly surprised by the familiar face.
“Twilight, it’s good to see you.” Gloria says, getting up to greet the Unicorn
“So, you two are friends?” you ask, raising an eyebrow.
“Somewhat, we talked a few times at the Canterlot Museum whenever she brought in a new relic” Twilight says, summoning a pair of sofas out of thin air for the three of you the lounge on.
“Speaking of friends, Twilight, I remember you being quite the shut-in when you were living in Canterlot. So, how’d you come to have 5 friends?” Gloria asks as you take your seats.
“That was one of Celestia’s elaborate plans, I’ll give you the abridged version. I found this prophecy regarding Nightmare Moon’s return, she sent me here to make friends, I made friends and together we saved Equestria and purged the corrupting influence from Nightmare Moon, hence converting her back to Princess Luna. Celestia later told me that she had planned the whole thing, from the very beginning” Twilight says with mile-a-minute speed, now visibly panting as she glances at you.
“By the way… What exactly are you?” Twilight asks, her attention now completely focused on you.
“I was kind of hoping you’d be able to answer that, considering the only thing I know is that my name is Araki” you say, as the Unicorn gets off her couch to examine you more closely
“Well, I can tell that you don’t belong here, Araki. I’ve never seen your kind in any of my books.” Twilight says, examining you closely. She sniffs your clothes and raises her left eyebrow in great intrigue. “Artron energy…” She mumbles, before telling Spike to get the core sample from the basement while she rushes upstairs. She comes back down, carrying a small item that’s more technologically advanced than anything you've seen so far. It’s about the shape and size of a pen, with a red diode at one end and a switch on the other.

“Um, What is that?” you ask, pointing at the device.
“I don’t know, to be honest. Dr. Whooves lent it to me a week ago, saying ‘you’ll need this a week from now’ before informing me what artron energy smells like. He then said to ‘switch it on and use setting KS-7258’ before recommending I acquire a core sample from one of the archaeological digs. After that, he disappeared and I haven’t seen him since.” Twilight says, causing you to scratch your head in utter confusion.
“Question: Is he insane?” Gloria asks, raising her left foreleg slightly as one would in a classroom.
“Well, he does refer to himself only as The Doctor, goes on about Daleks, Cybermen, and about how he needs to fix something called a TARDIS in order to stop a chinchilla from eating the universe. On the other hand, he’s insanely smart, and has helped solve quite a few impossible math questions in his spare time. Plus, he said he took the liberty of making ‘transdimensional improvements’, whatever that means, to every house in Ponyville before I first arrived here” Twilight says, before pointing the device at you and turning it on, causing a warbling sound to be emitted from the device as the red diode lights up. A slight burning sensation immediately starts at the top of your head before quickly working its way down to your feet. Twilight looks at the device quizzically, before holding it next to her ear and flicking the switch again.

“Interesting… so that’s how this thing works. It’s a multi-functional tool. Anyways, it just scanned you, and it’s now giving me the read-out” Twilight says straining her ear slightly.
“Yeah, I kind of got that impression. Anyways, what’s it saying?” You ask as
“Well, you are apparently 22 years old and were born on the 3rd day of… August? Hm, I’ve never heard of that month before. And… that is not possible…“ Twilight says, her voice petering out as her eyes go wide.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” you ask with concern as to Twilight’s shift in demeanor.
“Araki, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but… You’re entire race is extinct.” Twilight says solemnly, eliciting a sharp gasp from Gloria.
“What?” you ask sharply with a surprised tone.
“Also, whatever killed your race caused a temporal distortion that pulled you into the future” Twilight continues, ignoring your question.
“What!?” you repeat, with a higher-pitched tone.
“Finally… the resulting temporal distortion was so severe that it automatically induced a time-lock on itself, meaning there’s no way to make it back without destroying the universe in the process.” Twilight finishes, giving you a sympathetic look
“… What?” you say with a flat tone, now deeply desiring a cigarette.

“Twilight, I got that core sample you wanted” Spike says as he reemerges from the basement, carrying a cylindrical tube made of stone before placing it at Twilight's feet.
“Thank you, Spike. Now then…” Twilight says as she points the device at the core sample, and flicks the switch. The devices warbling sound continues at a steady rate as Twilight slowly moves it down the layers of rock. When she reaches a black ash layer, the device’s warbling becomes frantic.
“Yep, I figured as much” Twilight says with a sigh before turning to you.
“What is it now?” you ask, not wanting to hear anymore bad news today.
“Well, first of all; you’re probably a member of what that tome found in the San Palomino Desert referred to as ‘humanity’, due to the residue artron energy being from around the same time period. Judging from your anatomy, I’d say that you evolved from some sort of ape. Other than that, nothing else can be garnered except wild hypotheses.” Twilight says, putting the device down on the central table.
“Everything Burns” you mumble to yourself, causing Twilight to raise an eyebrow.
“What did you say?” she asks, perplexed by your random statement.
“Hm? Nothing, just a dream I had. The phrase ‘Everything Burns’ was prominent in it… Wait a minute” you say, realization dawning upon you. You reach down into your right boot and pull out the ruby-red medallion and lightly toss it to Twilight, who grimaces slightly at where you were keeping it. Twilight catches it and examines the medallion for about 5 seconds before gasping slightly, causing Gloria’s ears to perk up in expectation.

“So, what is it, Twilight? I heard it was part of a key to an ancient treasure of virtually infinite wealth.” Gloria says, slightly hopeful.
“That’s one possibility… But there is another legend attached to the supposed purpose of these items.” Twilight says as she stares at the medallion.
“Well, what is it then?” you ask, now intrigued as to what this other legend may portend.
“Well, the other legend states that this medallion was one of six that belonged to an ancient Alicorn king whose name has been lost to time. This king was apparently so powerful, that his mere existence started to threaten the whole of reality. In an effort to prevent the cataclysm, the king divided his very essence and infused it into six medallions. Allegedly, if one is able to gather these six medallions, that pony would be given such immense power that none would be able to stand in their way. The Alicorn king knew of this, and so he used the remainder of his vast essence to fashion 6 powerful guardians in order to protect the medallions. He fashioned them after their namesakes: The Topaz Hornet of Agony, The Emerald Spider of Terror, The Amethyst Octopus of Death, The Ruby Raven of Anger, The Sapphire Wolf of Sadness, and The Diamond Snake of Joy. Apparently, the catch is that only an Alicorn would be able to use these medallions, however… anypony would be able to absorb the essence held in the colossi, even you, Araki. I’m pretty sure the wizard devised it as a fail-safe, because the only way one would be able to retrieve the essence of a guardian that somepony else killed would be to kill that pony; which would be very difficult due to the fact the essence of even one guardian apparently is able to increase the power of it's killer exponentially. While both legends state that a powerful Alicorn wizard did indeed fabricate the guardians with a portion of his essence, the true purpose of the medallions could be one or the other” Twilight says, looking at you.

“So… it may not be a virtually infinite source of wealth, but some kind of overly elaborate doomsday device instead… Great. Hey Spike, I need a light.” you say, giving in to your desire as you pull a cigarette out of its package with your teeth as Spike walks up to you, before kneeling slightly to allow the purple dragon to exhale a small, green flame that turns the tip to ember. You thank the dragon as he saunters off.
“Why didn’t you just use your lighter?” Gloria asks disdainfully, her eyebrow raised.
“Because, if I’m going to die under the foot of a giant wolf, or spider, or whatever we’re going to come across in the glaciers, then I want to at least be able to say ‘I had a dragon light my cigarette for me’ before I kick off.” You say casually, sitting back on the couch.
“Yeah, a baby dragon” Gloria says with a scoff, causing you to waggle a finger at her.
“Nobody needs to know that. Besides, he’s pretty cool, and I’m going to get him a date with Ms. Rarity if I somehow manage to survive this whole thing. Can’t exactly be a ‘baby’ dragon if he has a girlfriend, right?” you reply as you lean your head over the back of the couch, your arms spread out across the top. Gloria lets out an irritated sigh before turning back to Twilight, who is visibly grinning at what you just said.
“Twi, would it be okay to leave the medallion with you? We can’t afford to let Volkiba get her hands on it, less so now given the additional possibility.” The khaki Pegasus asks, causing the purple unicorn’s smile to disappear slightly.
“Of course, it’d be fine. I’ll inform Celestia about this too, maybe we’ll be able to capture Volkiba before she becomes too much of a problem.” Twilight says, her smile widening once more at the thought of Princess Celestia.
“Somehow I doubt it’ll be so easy, Twilight. You said it yourself, Gloria; Volkiba has outposts all throughout this country, possibly the world, all of them decked out as beautifully as the one we saw.” You say, shuddering slightly at the memory, causing Twilight’s smile to vanish completely.
“Oh, what happened?” Twilight asks, causing Gloria to regale the entire sordid affair from start to finish.
“I was afraid of this, if Volkiba has indeed slain one of the guardians as you theorize, then there's no telling how powerful she actually is. For the sake of Celestia, tell me if there is anything else I can do to assist you.” Twilight says anxiously.
“Well, there is one thing. Do you have any idea where these medallions could be?” Gloria asks, causing Twilight to tap her forehead in an attempt to jog her memory.
“I do remember that I read something about them a long time ago. But it’ll probably take a few days for me to find the text, as you can tell” Twilight says, making a sweeping gesture towards the vast number of bookshelves with her right foreleg. “In the meantime, why don’t you stay the night, it’s just about dinner time anyways” Twilight continues, as you crack your left eye open partially at the mention of food.
“Oh no, we couldn't intrude. Besides, we've already bought a house here and it’s in serious need of renovation.” Gloria says, causing you to sit up straight.
“Huh? But you promis-“ you say before Gloria cuts you off with a sharp glare of her rainbow-colored eyes. You return to your former position with a grumble as Gloria and Twilight make small talk before parting ways. You follow Gloria out of the door, the cigarette hanging lazily from the corner of your mouth.

“You promised me dinner…” you say irritably as soon as the front door closes behind you.
“Yeah well, I thought it’d be nice if my pseudo-coltfriend tried my home cooking before meeting the rest of the neighbors” Gloria responds as the two of you make your way back to your new lodgings. The two of you slow to a standstill as the recently purchased property comes in to view. “What... the… fuck...?” You mutter with a wide-eyed expression as your cigarette falls out of your slack-jawed mouth. The house is now completely repaired, with a fresh coat of yellow paint to boot. You and Gloria break into a sprint as Midnight comes from around a corner, a wide smile on his face as a cheerful, multi-voiced “Surprise!” is heard and a small amount of ponies leap out from the nearby bushes. “Midnight… How did you…?” you start before the feminine stallion raises his right hoof to silence you. “Simple, when you have looks as good as mine and know how to use them along with a promise in regards to certain ‘rewards’, finding additional help becomes the easiest thing in the world. On that note, we have five new recruits; three of them are expert carpenters and the remaining two being a pair of attractive metal working sisters, twins no less. We could have had fifty, but the other forty-five prospective recruits fled in quite a panic after I revealed my actual gender to them. On the plus side, they were so shocked by the revelation that it never crossed their minds to stick around and demand payment. Oh, and don’t worry, the recruits who were tolerant enough to overlook the ploy will live in their own homes until our planned ‘additions’ begin. So, be honest, big boy; Am I good or am I good?” He says with an extravagant flip of his long mane.

“Ha… I’ll admit you are pretty good, Midnight” You say with an impressed chuckle as the stallion mentions that he also took the liberty of using some bits he picked out of Gloria’s side pack to buy furniture. Gloria is still too stunned by the improvements to the house to notice this blatant admittance as the three of you make your way into the house, letting the new recruits return to whatever task they were previously occupied with. The inside of the house has been equally improved, with a dining room to the left decked out with a fine oak table and matching chairs, and the kitchen utilities have been replaced with newer models. The main living room now has a sofa with plush cushions and an oaken frame, matching armchairs, a bookshelf adorned with various books and decorations, and a soft carpet underneath all this. You rush up the stairs for the first time to see a hallway with two doors on each side, three of which are name-tagged, each leading to what you assume to be four medium sized bedrooms judging by the similarities between your room and the still-unclaimed quarters; both have a bed matching the texture of the couch and chairs, a nightstand, a personal bookshelf, a dresser and a chest for one’s clothes and personal belongings. At the end of the hallway is a door leading to a large bathroom with an opulent marble sink, and bathing utilities of similar quality. “Fuck… we were gone for only 3 hours and they managed to do all this…? Damn” you think to yourself as you go down the stairwell and into the basement and note that, in addition to the usual utilities, there is a slightly dirty pickaxe, a small hole in the floor that designates the beginning of further planned ‘additions’, and various bits of metal framework that will no doubt be placed in the hole when the time is right.

You walk up the stairwell to the first floor, the smell of cooking in the air as you make your way to the kitchen. You see Gloria and Midnight both making separate sets of meals, their dialogue leaving no doubt that they’re competing for who will be the chef of the group. You roll your eyes in bemusement as you head into the living room and sit in the middle of the three-seat sofa… and that’s when the joyous illusion the renovation provided shatters and the reality of your situation finally comes crashing down around you. Your entire race is dead, and that means that you are the last of your kind. You cup your face in your hands as an emotional emptiness washes over you, rendering you incapable of any reaction as all sound and sight fades away and your world shrinks down to the microscopic space between your face and the fingers that cloak it. You feel no anger, no sorrow, and no fear, just a deep sense of longing, loss, and self-pity. You don’t know how long you remain like this, but when you finally gather the effort to raise your head out of your hands the first thing see as the world comes back into focus is Gloria and Midnight, sitting on the sofa alongside you with sympathetic looks on their faces. Before you have a chance to say anything you’re smothered in a group hug, giving a shaky sigh as your as you open your mouth in an attempt to speak. “I’m the only one left. The last of my kind” you say emotionlessly.
“Yeah… do you want to talk about it?” Gloria asks, caressing you as a mother would to calm her infant as Midnight does the same.
“What’s the point? There’s no way to change the outcome, and I can’t even remember a thing about my race anyways. So, really… there’s nothing to talk about. I have no past, no future. I’m incapable of turning my genetic material into a new generation. What will my legacy be… if I cannot pass the torch?” You say flatly, shaking the two ponies off you.
“Life isn’t just about passing on your genes, Araki,” Midnight says as he places his right foreleg around your shoulder. “We can leave behind much more than just that. Through actions, speech, literature and music; we can make our mark on history… Besides, I’m pretty sure somepony out there can whip up something that will make you capable of reproduction… though, it may turn out that the resultant offspring is some strange pony-human hybrid” the feminine stallion states with a wry smile that helps to cheer you up somewhat.
“Hmph, for a deadly assassin, you seem to know an unusual amount about the philosophies of life” you say with a strained chuckle as you pat the black pony on the shoulder.
“Yeah, I know, I’m a living contradiction in that regard.” Midnight says, visibly happy that his efforts were not in vain.
“So… feeling any better, Araki?” Gloria asks as she hugs you once more.
“No… not really, but at least I have enough energy to get off this couch and go to bed” You say with a yawn.
"Agreed, goodnight Araki." Gloria says with a kiss on your cheek before departing your company and heading upstairs. You try to follow suit before being stopped by Midnight.
“Oh no you don’t, big boy. You’re not going anywhere until you have some nibbles.” The feminine four-foot stallion says as he pushes you back onto the sofa before heading to the kitchen. He comes back carrying a plate with a wide variety of foods on it. The smell of meat makes its way to your nostrils as your eyes go wide in delight at such a surprise. “How did you know?” you ask as Midnight sets the plate in your lap.
“Gloria told me about what happened at Twilight’s house while we were cooking, so we decided to make something extra special for you to help you cheer up. Ha, Gloria gagged somewhat while making it, but soldiered on anyways. I grew up around such smells, due to that brothel I was born in being situated within the walls of Gryphonia’s main capital, Scythia, so I’m able to tolerate it… Still, doesn't change the fact that meat wreaks havoc on my digestive tract” he says with a smile as you greedily dig into the meal. You finish your meal in record time, and unleash a satisfied belch that elicits a humored chuckle from your friends.
“So, you were born in the land of the Griffins?” You ask with an intrigued eyebrow.
“Yep, that’s part of the reason I’m so feminine… due to the fact that at the time of my birth, they were trying to curtail an overpopulation problem so bad, that they were literally offering free sterilizations to its citizens with no questions asked. My mother, who ran the brothel alongside her husband, was already pregnant with me by the time the program went into effect. However, she died while birthing me; and the loss possibly drove my father insane because he denied my existence and even chose to have me sterilized almost immediately after I was out of the womb. When I was eight, he sold me to an assassin’s guild, happy to finally be rid of me. The last thing he said to me was “This will be the perfect line of work for a pony whose first act of his life was murder”. When I entered my teens, the effects of my sterilization became readily apparent. I had an equal amount of testosterone and estrogen in my body, which caused me to acquire my androgynous facial features and voice. Also, all my other… masculine features were stunted by the decreased testosterone to such an extent that I couldn't grow a facial mane even if I wanted to. Still, can’t complain with the perks it’s given me, because no one ever assumes that such a sweet-looking pony like me could possibly be a deadly assassin until it’s too late. Anyways, after ten years of training and killing under the assassin guild’s flag, this pony named Volkiba hired me to do a job six months ago; she was so impressed with the outcome that I was the first person she contacted when a pair of prisoners managed to escape her jungle outpost. And we all know how that story played out, in a way I don’t regret in the slightest” Midnight says with a giggle.
"That explains your philosophy... guess that means we’re in the same boat when it comes to reproductive prospects. So, what was the first job Volkiba gave you?” you ask with great intrigue, but Midnight simply chuckles and sticks his tongue out at you.
“Ah-ah-ah, I don’t normally kiss and tell. But because you were kind enough to spare my life, I think I’ll simply shelve that story for another day. Besides, I think it’s about time we went to bed, ourselves” Midnight says as the two of you vacate the sofa and head towards the stairs leading to the bedrooms.

“By the way, Midnight; you said you were well-versed in information gathering.” you say, stopping the stallion midway up the stairs.
“Yes… am I to assume that you have use for them already?” the feminine stallion asks, raising an eyebrow in intrigue.
“Exactly. While Gloria and I were infiltrating the outpost, I managed to interrogate a Unicorn guard at knifepoint who said she had a wife and adopted kids waiting for her in Ponyville. I can’t know for certain, but judging from the way she talked about it, she seemed about ready to desert her post right then and there…” You say thoughtfully, as Midnight’s rosy eyes take on a knowing look to them.
“Ah, I see what you’re getting at. You want me to confirm your suspicions as to whether this Unicorn did indeed desert her post out of the desperate desire to see her family again; and in the chance that she is indeed present in this town, you want me to follow up by using the fact that you spared her life as leverage to recruit her into our ranks as a lieutenant in order to payback that favor. Am I right so far?” Midnight asks, causing you to chuckle.
“Damn… you weren't kidding when you said you were good at information gathering.” You say, as the two of you resume your ascent of the stairwell leading to the second floor bedrooms.
“It was hardly a difficult deduction. Anyways, I’ll start on that first thing tomorrow. Besides, adding a Unicorn to the group would complete the little ‘variety pack’ we have going on; a magic user would be a boon when we head into the glaciers to look for the medallion. Hell, maybe later on we can further expand our diversity to include other nationalities” Midnight says as the two of our stop in front of your respective rooms.
“Considering that we’re going to have to be an army without a nation like Volkiba's Wandering Wolves are if we’re to have any chance of effectively standing up to her horde, that’s more or less inevitable. I even heard the perfect name from Rarity, who said she came across a trio of tunnel-dwelling ruffians today who go by the same title: Diamond Dogs” You say folding your arms in agreement.
“Catchy, I like it. And considering the fact we’re going to be living under similar, if improved, conditions once work on those additions is underway, we may just end up bringing them under our wing in the process. By the way... you sure you’re feeling okay, Boss? I mean, I can’t imagine what you must be feeling right now” Midnight says as he takes on a somber tone, before you raise your right hand slightly to silence him.
"I said it before, Shads. There’s no point in me getting upset over events I have no memory of in the first place. Maybe when… if my memory returns I’ll allow myself more time to grief about whatever part I played in my previous life. But, for the moment, I’m the last human… And I intend to show the people of this world what my race is capable of." You say determinedly.
"Hmph, you’re a tough one. No wonder I wasn't able to beat you… Well, good night Boss" Midnight says as he opens the door of his bedroom, causing a noticeable smell of sweat, lust, and feminine perfume that likely belonged to a certain set of attractive twins to break free from the confines of his quarters and snake it's way into your nostrils. You chuckle to yourself at the lurid implications before entering your room. You take off your clothes as you make your way to the bed until you're down to your underwear, before falling face-first on the soft mattress and letting sleep wrap you in it's warm embrace.

Author's Note

Author: Big_Boss_MSF
Editors: Big_Boss_MSF

Well, this is another reference-heavy chapter, mainly for gamers and... nerds like me (Though to be fair to myself, I'm a tough nerd and gamer...). Though the decision to make reference to Doctor Whooves was merely one of two possibilities for that particular scene; the other being that Twilight, already a science-oriented type, would have had a way to scan him; most likely magic due to her being a unicorn. Still, the 'Doctor Whooves' path worked out well, somewhat humorous... No? Little bit?... Anyways, the addition of Rarity was not planned, but helps to further ease a certain 'character drought' I've been trying to fix. Also, it gives the main character something to do in regards to the subsequent 'Downtime' chapters that I plan to have on occasion. Also, seeing as how I've started introducing characters from the actual show, this does raise the question of "What constitutes a main character?". Well, simply put... if a character appears in... let's say between 50 and 75% of the story, then I will add them to the MC roster. On that note, I'm already making plans in regards to potentially incorporating the Mane 6 into the roster later on due to their unique talents (Ex. Rainbow Dash making a good scout, messenger, and combatant due to her incredible speed; Twilight being in weapons R&D due to her sciency persona... and, of course, Pinkie Pie would probably be the one who helps keep morale high by planning a lot parties.)

So yeah, big chapter, might be my biggest, might not be. Who Knows? After all, I'm not writing the story... it's writing itself in my mind, and I'm just putting it to paper. I have to assume that's how most authors feel about their works; never talked to an author before, so I wouldn't know.