Into the Darkness

Small Input by me, forgot one small scene

Staring down the dogs I waited for them to obey my command and surrender and beg for mercy.

The dogs did not beg for mercy, instead they rushed at me, those that were still twitching from being shocked were the first to be cut down, grabbing them by the throats I crushed their windpipes before tossing them to the sides, letting them choke on their own blood and suffocate. Those behind them ran as best as they could but were too grabbed by me, I broke their arms and legs, letting them writhe on the floor in agony as I step over them, waiting for any more to show up with the exception of one dog, still sitting on the floor in fear but before I could make a move he got up, turned around and ran away.

'You think you can run from me? I will find you, and when I do it will not be a pretty reunion.'

Looking down at the mass of dogs quivering before me I let out a loud, guttural roar before charging at the dogs, punching, stomping, kicking and gutting them with ease.

Once they were all killed or injured to the point of not being a threat I heard the sound of magic being used and turning around I saw for a moment nothing before seeing crystal ponies being levitated down from the holes above.

"Interrogate the dogs that are still alive, we need to know what we are going up against and if they are ever so willing to have their lives spared a terrible death, have them tell a unicorn the layout of these caves." I said as I ducked down a bit in order to avoid hitting my head on an outlaying rock that was jutting on the ceiling.

Walking away from the dogs and ponies I make my way a bit deeper into the tunnel until I came to an errant three-way fork in the road, my shrapnel launcher generating enough light from the quad-barrels which allowed me to see the three new tunnels before I blindly walked down one.

"Hmm...of course they had to make this hard on me...fucking great." I muttered as I waited for the crystal ponies to assemble behind me, Forge trotting right beside me as she levitates a scroll in front of my face, a crudely drawn map was on it and it was made with the blood that was plastered all over the place.

'Huh, was expecting ink but then again seeing that this is Forge and they took Shining Pearl from us...eh I can guess that she is beyond pissed and doesn't give two shits about these flea infested beasts.'

"Forge, take a group of guards and take the left path, Bastion take the right path. Private Sharp Tack, Private Fletcher, you two are coming with me down the center. We must find where they are holding the ponies hostage, where they have stored their stolen loot and where they are all gathered, we don't know how many of them there are and how deep this place goes."

"Yes sir." "Yes my Kell." both said as they follow close behind me as I keep my shrapnel launcher pointing down the corridor, wherever this leads will surely take me to where I want to be. And I want to be at the heart of this cave system and show these dogs what it means to wake up the sleeping giant.

Left Corridor

Looking down the corridor of rock and stone that has been given to her by her Kell, the hunt for their target has begun and she is galloping at at a rapid pace down the corridor, her horn glowing brightly as she creates a ball of light attached to the tip of her horn to produce a magical lantern of sorts while keeping her axes up beside her. Trying to keep up to the giantess of a pony the guards behind her were straining themselves just to stay next to her, all of them know that as soon as they were picked to go with her that they will be seeing a lot of fighting and death. They know that the dogs foalnapped somebody of importance to her but they don't know just how important this one pony is.

Skidding to a halt as they come to a corner all of the crystal ponies turn to the right before continuing on with their charge, and it wasn't before long that they encountered two dogs standing watch by a wooden door built into the stone around it.

Before the dogs could try to get inside and alert those that are on the other side they were silenced when Forge rammed an ax in the forehead of one dog and an ax to the throat for the other dog. Both of them were killed instantly and the spray of blood that came from the beheaded dog served to paint the wall the dog was leaning against and to paint the big hellion of a mare red.

Charging through the wooden door without breaking stride she saw that there was no dogs on the other side which disappointed her greatly. Letting out a snort of anger she went back to galloping down the hall, searching for her next opponent to splatter all over the walls.

"I hope she doesn't get us killed..." Private Bitter Root muttered as he trudged through the remains of the door, turning slightly green in the face at the sight of the two dead dogs.

"Yeah...me to." a fellow guard replied back as he nudged one of the dead dogs with his sword and quickly trotted past it as soon as the corpse started to slide to the left and down the wall, leaving behind a smear of red.

"Hurry up grunts! I will leave you behind to find your own way out if you don't catch up!" Forge shouted as she keeps on charging down the stone hall, her eyes looking for any signs of dog but all she sees is rocks, torches and more rocks.

'Where the bloody hell are they?'

Wondering where the diamond dog clan is she idly rubbed her hoof on the floor, trying to figure out where exactly the dogs are located, the map she was given says that she has just arrived at what is supposed to be a fairly large room is instead a small room with six torches, three on opposite sides, two dog banners are gently moving in a very weak breeze that is coursing through the cavern.

The first banner looked new, it held the sigil of a fairly large diamond with a crown on it over a tower shield, underneath that was two pickaxes crossing each other over a mound of random gems. The other banner on the other hand was old, tattered to the point that it might as well be shredded through and through, it held the sigil of a diamond dog skull  over a mountain of gems surrounded by a pickax on its left side and a war hammer with a sharp spike on its right.

'Whoever used to live here obviously still does but now are under a different banner, they better have a pretty damn good excuse for invading my home and kidnapping my friend!'

Looking at the two banners before going to the metal door Forge saw that it was locked from the other side and if she could guess it was also barred as well. These dogs did not want her to be let in, but upon investigating the door the giantess saw what looks like a mining cart rails leading directly inside and partially leading out as well.

"Someone get me a hammer, we are going to break our way in." the giantess shouted as a unicorn levitates a fairly large hammer through the gathered guards behind her and passes the weapon to her.

Without even saying thanks Forge starts to hammer the door, the blunt head smacking into the hard wrought iron door, trying to break through or at the very least dent it to the point where it could be forced open from the outside.

Right Corridor

"Commander Bastion, the Second Unicorn Regiment is standing by for orders." a moderately armored unicorn said as she stands at attention, the light blue/grey mare stood at attention as she and those behind her wait for their commander to give them their orders.

"Sargent Whistle, tell the regiment to get into Shield and Arrow formation, keep your ears open and your eyes peeled, we know that these dogs like to dig holes so keep your weight well distributed, they might make pitfall traps just for us."

"Sir yes sir!"

With the order given Bastion heard his unicorns get into formation and waited for their commander to trot into the center of the battle formation and tell them to march.

With a snort from Bastion the sounds of equal marching thundering hooves echoes throughout the cavern, alerting everyone to their presence. What neither of them know is that they are marching through empty corridors and hollow halls, not a single sight of diamond dogs until after they showed up at an unguarded thick wooden door.

Knocking on the wooden door did nothing but when he pushed the door open he was met with a spear to a face. Using his magic to deflect the spear to the side Bastion backed up and away from the door before ducking to the side to let the regiment behind him open fire with a barrage of large wood and crystal bolts.

As the bolts go through the doorway the sounds of dogs yelping in pain, maybe they should have ducked or dodged out of the way of the bolts if they wanted to stay alive.

Marching through the door with a magic barrier up, Bastion slowly trots into the next stone hall only to see that the bolts struck true and killed three dogs and wounded seven more as there are bolts embedded into their shoulders, arms, legs, chest and gut, one dog had a few bolts in their back.

"Secure the bodies, if they are beyond saving then give them a mercy kill, if they can be saved then tend to their injuries before capturing them. We need them alive for a possible hostage trade if these dogs are smart enough to know how to do one." Bastion said before trotting past them with half of his forces, the rest stayed behind to tend to the wounded and to perform their duties.

A brisk trot later Bastion found himself at a large metal door, similar in appearance to the one that Forge found but this one looks new, recently put in by the looks of it and the banners here are of only one kind, the banner holding the diamond and crown. Torches line the walls and it lit the room well enough that it could be considered the outside world in the day.

"Sir? The door is locked and there is no means to open it from our end, what are our orders?"

"That door looks too thick to break it down with a hammer or a battering ram...melt it down."

"Sir?"

"Find us the pyromaniac, get Corporal Molotov front and center."

"Yes sir!"

The old stallion didn't have to wait long as the fire-obsessed stallion trotted over to the commander and gave a salute before standing at attention, wondering what was planned for him.

"Corporal Molotov, I happen to need your...peculiar set of skills."

"Need me to burn something down?"

"Yes, I need you to melt that door down, if you can melt just the hinges so we can knock down the door that would be much appreciated, if not then melt it down to the ground."

"With pleasure sir!" Molotov shouted with glee before turning to face the opposing door with a wicked smile on his face.

As soon as Bastion took a couple of careful planned steps back and behind a magical barrier as he watched his soldier do what he does best and turn things into ash and cinders.

Watching with peeked interest the other guards look around the corner of the wooden door that was removed or around the magic barrier that has been set up and with baited awe they wait for Molotov to do his job at destroying things with fire. With a snort and a hoof dragging against the stone floor Molotov's horn glows a red color before bursting to life with a small ball of flames, drifting in and out of the sphere as it steadily grows larger, small drippings of molten heat lands on the floor by his hooves but he doesn't shy away from it.

Once the sphere reaches the approximate size of a beach ball he then directs the sphere away from his horn, keeping control over it, and as soon as the ball of liquid fire touches the door it latches onto it like a possessive ex-girlfriend. The liquid fire starts to sizzle and pop on the door, the metal starting to glow red from the intense heat, the stone surrounding the door also starts to glow from the temperature that has attacked the door.

"Hmph, this shouldn't take long to melt into scrap metal." the dark red unicorn snorted as the door started to glow white hot with blotches of red mixed into it.

The door refuses to melt or budge, the metal refusing to turn into a pile of molten slag.

"Come on...come on!" Molotov grunted as he started to strain under the magical pressure building up within him, usually when he burns things with his magic it usually takes a few seconds but now it is well into its fifth minute and he legs are starting to shake from the strain.

Minutes start to roll by and soon the young stallion couldn't keep the spell powered and gives in, the spell waning before dispersing but the door is still covered in molten fire, the door starting to melt and bend. At first they all thought it was a failure but that was when they started to hear the sounds of the door groaning, the hinges have melted off and now it was just standing tall on its own.

With just a push of cyan magic from a different crystal guard the door slowly started to tilt away from the crystal ponies and in a few seconds it fell over, landing with a very heavy THUD followed by dirt and dust being kicked up.

"Now stallions and gentlemares, lets get this done. Capture them all, crush them into the floor and walls and restrain them, we will need them if we are to counter Forge's blind massacre."

Center Corridor

Slowly walking down the poorly lit corridor I see nothing but shadows and rocks for what feels like a few minutes until we are stopped by a wall made of stone and in the middle of it, a slightly out of place chunk of stone.

'Hmm, a cleverly concealed stone door, a little too smart from these dogs...'

"A dead end sir."

"Uh huh...that is what they would want you to think Private Sharp Tack."

"Sir?"

"The stonework, why would they make a path of stone that leads nowhere let alone make it go this long in one direction instead of making it a winding path to confuse those that sneak in here."

"So you think that this is a secret passage that leads somewhere?"

"Oh I know so."

'Cause I paid attention during those dungeons and dragons games that my uncle used to rope us into. Roll your dice to see if you find the hidden door, oh yea, I roll a natural twenty.'

Knocking on the stone wall I hear nothing for a while, just hearing knuckle on rock but as I drag my hand to a different spot and rapped my knuckle against the stone I heard a hollow thunk and found what I was looking for.

'Bingo.'

Putting my hands on the false wall I tried to push it but got nothing, then when I tried to turn it I still didn't get anything so I decided the next best course of action was a simple one. Stepping back from the wall I aimed my shrapnel launcher at it and told my two guards to step back as well.

Blow it the fuck up and hope whatever on the other side wasn't valuable and important.

"Cover your ears, its about to get loud!" I shouted just before firing at the wall, explosive flaming rounds shoot forth from the barrels, spiraling around each other before impacting the wall, the concussive force cracking the stone wall before the next four salvos continue to crack and break the wall until finally it crumbles into burning rocks and pebbles.

Stepping into the opening I force it wider by breaking the edges with my hands until it was wide enough for me to easily walk through without having to duck or crawl.

Poking my head through the debris I saw nine diamond dogs, all of them were waiting for me to show up but they were expecting ponies, not an Eliksni to be breaking through the wall.

"Ding ding schools in bitch!" I shouted before leaping into the next chamber, the nine dogs letting out yelps of terror and fear as I started to beat the ever living shit out of them.

Pro-Tip: Never fight something that is easily three feet taller then you, wearing heavy metal and leather armor, has four arms, carrying and explosive incendiary weapon, two swords and three grenades, and is currently being fueled by piss and vinegar with a hint of anger.

Pro-Tip #2: Do not be smaller then me, if I am angry enough and my brain is working properly I can and will use you like a weapon.

Grabbing the first diamond dog that was in sight I grabbed him by the ankles and swung him like a mace at the second nearest dog, the dog went down hard, being hit by something that weighs roughly a hundred pounds sure can do some damage. Throwing the dog like a spear at another dog was priceless, he wasn't as sharp as the other dogs but when you toss em like an actual weapon it can send fear into the hearts of your enemies.

Then came the beatings, punching, screaming, kicking, biting and cursing, that was all that can be heard from the room we are in and beyond it. It is a funny thing really, that I am fighting dogs and they are barking and biting me like what dogs back home would.

'I wonder what would happen if I had a dog whistle...would they all sit down and obey me or just cower in fear?'

Pushing that thought aside for now I continued on with my beatings, punching a dog in the face, punting another dog into the wall, even going so far as to giving one dog a love tap (pretty much flicking them) in the balls.

When it was over I was standing tall, proud and surrounded by whimpering dogs with my two guards standing back watching it all.

"You know you two could have helped me with this?"

"We didn't want to ruin your image sir."

"Yeah, you totally had this under control."

"Feh, whatever...now lets tie these bastards up and leave em for Bastion to pick up." I said before flicking the same dog in the nuts, the loud girly squeal of pain echoes around us, man I just love that sound.

"So boys, shall we go down the dark creep tunnel?"

Diamond Dog Colony

Maxi was panicking, his mind was alight with strange visions, sights, knowledge and emotions. He didn't know why or how he was getting all of these things but he was being bombarded by all of it at once, his brief connection with the crystal heart allowed him to feel 'different' from the rest of his people. His mind has been filled with thoughts, knowledge that he shouldn't know of let alone the influx of emotions and feelings, the most important feeling is guilt and shame at this current moment.

Sparky on the other hand his scared out of his mind, he just witnessed an ungodly beast slaughter his friend and he was the only one to survive, he ran all the way through the hidden entrance, through the checkpoint and right into the center of the colony before shouting out that there are intruders within the colony.

With that shout alone it scrambled the entire colony into action, men and women scrambling about, the male dogs running to the barracks to grab their swords and spears, their helmets and rugged plate armor. The female dogs and children quickly scrambled to the hideout in the deeper part of the colony, moving aside the center statue that was in the small town-colony and climbed down into the depths to get away from the intruders that now invade their home.

With the cry of invaders ringing in the air Maxi quickly made his way to his own hiding spot, he knew that the invaders were better then them, he knew that going out to fight them would only lead to his death or capture so he did what he was supposed to do in a situation where the enemy is about to get them, hide and wait for it to blow over. Sprinting into his home Maxi went straight to where his bed was located and lifted his up, the small bedroll being tossed aside as the rock was pulled up to reveal a hollow alcove to fit in. Climbing right on in and placing the rock right back over he kept his head down, waiting for everything to end.

And as for Sparky, he grabbed a new spear and helmet and assembled with a new group of dogs, this group this time are actual brutes, big burly dogs that know how to fight and kill and they are not afraid of anything besides the dragon that is acting as his liaison from the kingdom.

Assembling throughout the underground town the guard dogs (bu-dum tist) get into positions, hiding in barrels, behind doors, on roofs, underneath welcome rugs and carpets. Sparky was hiding in a wooden barrel that just so happens to be holding a rather large amount of crystal cherries that was recently stolen from the actually heavily protected city above.

'I hope they don't get in.'

Left Tunnel

"Fuck this!" Forge shouted as she tosses the now bent and broken hammer aside, a few of the crystal guards that were watching the whole thing were shaking a bit, they were scared that in her current state of mind that she might use one of them to be the battering ram.

Turning around the giantess started to buck the door, trying to use her strength to kick the door down off its hinges with little to no effect other then tiring herself out.

"My gods, what the hell is this door protecting?" a guard shouts out as Forge gives one last kick before stepping away from it.

Giving a sigh of defeat the giantess takes the broken hammer off the floor before tossing it at the door in frustration before leaving it alone.

"Forget the door, lets go around and meet up with our Kell and back him up." Forge shouted at the guards before starting to gallop to the busted door but she comes to a skidding halt when her ears pick up something.

CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAK THUD

'Could it have been really that simple?'

Once the door hit the ground Forge turned around and galloped straight through the door to find nothing but a room with two of the same banners and six torches, but with that came a mine cart filled with raw ore and gemstones still lying within.

Ignoring the mine cart the giant hellion stormed through the well-lit corridor that was soon filled with crystal guards, following after her as they tried to keep up, the torches are starting to appear in abundance and in frequency until finally they all arrived at what looks like a part of a town and a mine at the very end of it. The opening of a fresh mine was just a few meters away from them, there was three mine carts, one of them was overturned with gems and rocks spilled out of it, and right behind it was a spear quivering in place.

'Too easy.'

Grabbing the cart with her magic she pushed it across the ground, knocking the diamond dog that was hiding behind it down before crushing it against the wall, killing it from being squished to death.

"Form up ponies! Secure this point and hold it! This is their town, hold it here and wait for the others to arrive, we don't want to take all of the fun for ourselves!" Forge shouted with glee before burying her ax into the forehead of a dog that leapt out behind a different cart, dying immediately from having its brain scrambled by a metal object.

Holding a staggered line that is currently downhill from the rest of the town is a bit of a problem but they manage to pull it off by using magic to form a decent barrier to protect themselves from arrows and rocks.

"Come on Bastion...where the hell are you!"

Right Tunnel

Stepping past several groaning and moaning dogs Bastion pulls out a handkerchief and cleans off a logy that a dog spat at him earlier after he was tied up and waiting for pick up. Stepping on his tail and going on his way down the tunnel with half of his guard in tow the elderly stallion marched on, looking and waiting for more dogs to capture to bring back to the surface, whatever their Kell has planned for them must be important.

"Sir, we got word from Forge's group, they have breached a door like the one we just cracked open and are now in a town. I suspect it belongs to these dogs sir." one of the new guards said as he stops beside Bastion, the recruit was relatively unharmed in all aspects of the word, his armor has yet to be damaged or dented in any way besides some dirt and grime.

"Hmm...tell her to hold her position until we arrive, I can only assume that the door we found will also appear somewhere in the diamond dog's hidden town. Get the dogs topside and regroup with us here, double time it private!" looking back to the dogs that are being magically lifted and hauled away Bastion could only smile a small amount as he lets out a small chuckle.

"Aye aye sir!"

The young recruit saluted before galloping off into the hall behind them all, fading from view to relay the message to the other battle leader.

Waiting for the young pony to come back wasn't very long, he came back with a new layer of dirt and grime along with a spider web tangled in his helmet, apparently he tried to leap over a rock and instead jumped into a web that still had a rather large spider resting in it. Naturally he screamed like a little filly because he was surprised by the spider, something a crystal guard should not be afraid of but then again it was his first mission and he was all jitters and nerves.

Once the last of the dogs got to the surface and the unicorn regiment was at full strength Bastion made them march on again, finding not a single dog until after they arrived at the top of the underground town, easily being able to see Forge's forces from where he is standing.

"Hmm...trying to use the height of their positions to their advantage...lets take that away from them gentleponies." Bastion said with a smile worming its way onto his face as blasts of magic start raining down onto the opposing dogs positions. The blasts of magic colliding with the rooftops and roads, sending bits of rock, dirt and throwing the unsuspecting dogs into the air, tossing them every which way as they get hurled into the walls and floors around them.

Out of the corner of Bastion's eye he spots Molotov holding a torch in his magical grip and with a bit of magical force a stream of fire combined comes shooting out, hitting a few dogs as they roll on the ground to put the fire out, dropping their weapons and a few strip off their armor to put themselves out.

Out of the other corner of his eye he sees a dog get the drop on a guard, raising his spear to make a possible killing blow but gets blasted off the guard and instead then gets the same treatment as the dogs that came before him, a heavy weight crushing his body as he falls to the floor in pain.

The point of the restraining spell is to not resist, the more you resist the more painful it becomes, and seeing how these dogs aren't that smart they thrash around and try to fight back which in the end renders them with either broken bones or torn muscles.

It didn't take them long to start pushing the dogs into the center of their small town but that was stopped when they saw a dog fall a ledge above him. The dog hit the ground hard before it started to roll down the road leading to the center before stopping at the base of a fountain.

Almost every single pony and dog looked up to find the source of the being responsible for tossing said dog almost three stories to the ground, that was when Forge, Bastion, and both the unicorn regiment and the volunteers see a tall bipedal being with four arms holding another dog before tossing him down as well.

"It seems like I missed the party, no matter. I guess I will just have to make do."

Center Tunnel

Walking down the dark tunnel was a good idea, the whimpering of the two dogs I was holding made it apparently clear that we are alone, with my shrapnel launcher acting as a torch the five of us could see what was somewhat close to us and as we marched on all we saw was stone and dirt.

It didn't last long as we eventually find a shabby looking wooden door and with a light application of force from my foot I kicked the door in, sending splinters and chunks of wood everywhere.

I don't know why but this home seems kind of...shifty to me. And by shifty I mean it looks like a place where someone would go to drop some illegally obtained goods off to earn a quick buck before bailing if the police arrives. Bringing my shrapnel launcher to a nearby torch resting on the wall I see the fire illuminate the room a little bit better, this room was lining with what looks like some of the things that was stolen from the world above, there was shiny utensils, plates, armor and weapons, a bust of Sombra's head that must be destroyed for the sake of the crystal ponies or better yet, I just might put it in a museum.

"Huh...this place seems...dull...aw well, time to get moving. Come patsy, we have work to do!" I shouted with a smile on my face which can't be seen due to my rebreather but I digress, kicking open another door which explodes into splinters and wood I see what I have been looking for, kinda.

Down below my ponies were fighting against the dogs, there was screaming, crying, shouting, barking and yelping, howling and dying. My ponies were obviously winning by a landslide, and quite literally a landslide when a unicorn grabbed a cart that was filled with rocks and tipped it over, making it rain basketball-sized rocks down the street.

'These little ponies make me so proud...it almost brings a tear to my eyes....now if only I can fucking cry! I swear to god if something sad happens and I can't let out a manly tear or two I am going to flip my shit!'

Releasing that peculiar thought from my head I look down to the fighting and decided that now would be a good time to show myself. Looking at the dog in my left hand I decided that it was time to teach him how to fly without any basic lessons, with a heave and a ho I threw the fucker out the doorway and watched as his body hit the ground hard with a THUD before rolling down the street.

Tossing the other dog down as well I then made the jump from the overlooking home before talking over the sound of silence that has filled the underground.

"It seems like I missed the party, no matter. I guess I will just have to make do."

And with that said a loud cheer coming from my ponies as they start to push the dogs to the center of the town.

We are taking our time with the defeat of the dogs, we are going home by home, searching for any stragglers or holdouts and we are surprised to find that all of the dogs are gone, there was roughly three hundred dogs when they came up to the surface and we pretty much knocked a huge dent in that number. I guess those that are down here are those that survived the raid up top, but where are the women and children?

Pushing down to the center of town with the cheesy fountain at their backs, the diamond dogs were barely holding their line, they were quivering, their hands shaking as their swords and spears wobbled in the air, they were afraid and we knew it.

"Drop your weapons, and you will be spared. If you don't then we will show you no mercy." I said while having my shrapnel pointing at them that was then accented by me pulling out my two swords, showing them that they won't be coming out of this alive if they resist.

My point was proven further when the crystal guards surrounded them, glaives, swords and glowing horns. Forge was snarling at the dogs, dragging her hooves against the stone road, her axes floating beside her as Bastion is across from her, holding up his officer's sword in his magical grip.

The sounds of weapons being dropped fills the air as they raise their paws, surrendering themselves to me as ropes are hauled around their arms, legs and bodies, hogtying them to ensure that they don't escape.

"Bastion, I know there are more of these dogs here, the civilians are missing...we need to find them." I said as I looked at the captured dogs, letting them know of my next intentions for them.

"I will get right on it sir, but for now we must tend to both our wounded and theirs." the old stallion said as we both looked at the relatively small group of injured, cuts, scrapes and bruises were a majority of the injuries that have been sustained.

"Tend to their wounded? I rather let them bleed out for what they have done, but." I said as I walked over to the fountain, grumbling the last bit as Bastion trotted beside me, ever the important military adviser that he is.

"But?" the all important question, but what?

"But I think it is best in our interests that we tend to them as well, a healthy prisoner is much more valuable when they aren't dead or weak." it is a fact that a sick or dead prisoner has no real use other then pissing off the enemy to the point where they might kill off a few of their hostages.

Looking for the rest of the dogs was fruitless, they were already gone and they were no where to be found.

My guards started to look for a means of how they managed to escape, when they found the front entrance to the town they found that it leads beyond the cave and that it eventually leads to the frozen tundra beyond the barrier of the empire.

"My Kell! I found all of our stuff!" a guard shouted as a few of the guards went to the source of the shout, the door to the treasury was slightly obscured behind a large rock.

Removing the rock and rolling it to the side we pushed open the door, expecting it to be locked but instead it was unlocked and wasn't even closed all the way. Opening the door we were assaulted by the glint of gold, trinkets and babbles, paid for in blood, there was so much treasure in here that I know that not all of it had to be from us.

"Start removing everything within the dog treasury, what is theirs is now ours." I said as the ponies started to levitate, drag and lift everything that was inside, putting gold coins into bags, levitating statues, utensils, urns and other ceramic goods out.

It didn't take long for us to find the crystal heart, it was buried underneath so much ill gotten loot that by the time we found it the world above was already starting to suffer a blizzard, the warmth that was in the empire has finally left it.

"Get this back to the surface, place it on the pedestal, if it doesn't activate immediately then wait for my return. Guard this heart with your life, we can not let it fall into enemy hands, take a small detachment of guards with you to ensure it gets to its destination safely."

With a salute from her and five other guards they left immediately, taking the heart back to the surface, all I can hope for is that it turns back on and everything goes back to normal, or at least as normal as things can get in this world.

'Note to self: Find whoever fucked in my room. Note to self two: Find a way to make a security camera to watch my room.'

We spent at least three hours emptying out that chamber, the dogs are now broke, we gained a hefty chunk of pocket money and we got the crystal heart and a strange gold pony statue, I don't know who owned that thing but I think that would look great in my bathroom holding bars of soap and scrubbers up for me. Now if only if I can find a beaver to taxidermy so it can be used to hold up a plate at dinner, that would look awesome.

"I found something!" a guard shouted and almost immediately everyone set upon him like vultures on a fresh carcass.

We descended to what looks like the barracks for the diamond dogs and found that next to it looked like a basement of sorts, breaking the lock was easy when I punched through it and opened the thick wooden door to reveal a set of stairs with torches lighting the way down.

"Huh...anyone wanna care to guess where this might lead?"

"A dungeon?"

"A safety shelter?"

"I don't know but we can find out!" I said before walking into the winding staircase, leading to only god knows where.

I was only half way down when I was called by a guard to come back up, he said he found something in the entrance tunnel that leads back to the tundra.

Going back up and following him to where he found the strange wall we gave it a push and a shove before finding out that it is a hidden passageway, a way to sneak in and out in case things go wrong.

'Damn these dogs love their hidden doors, they are like the dwarf's in D&D.'

"Hmm...go back to everyone else or go down the hidden passage or take the mystery box...fuck it lets go with the mystery box!" and for those that don't know the mystery box this time is the hidden passage, it was either that or make a mystery box and put some random thing inside of it and place it on the ground for someone to find.

I wonder what Shining Pearl is doing right now.

Hidden Chamber's Holding Cells

Shining Pearl is not having a good day, getting kidnapped while she was asleep, being tossed into a dirty cell and not having a bathroom to use to relieve oneself. On the outside she is fine, emotionless, and the picture perfect definition of calm, but in her head she is raging hard.

'How dare these mutts throw me like that I am a noblemare for Faust's sake! Do they not know how many hooves I had to step on to get this far, how many fools I had to blackmail, bribe and maim to climb the social latter! I swear if I get out of here I will show them the unbridled rage a mare scorned can unleash!'

"Hey! Shining Pearl! You okay over there?"

"Yes Clear Cut, I'm fine, although this cell could use a bit of cleaning. There is dust and dirt everywhere!"

"Well these are diamond dogs, can't exactly expect them to be clean and hygienic."

"Hey! You be quiet pony!" a dog jailer shouted as it smacked a wooden club against the jail cell.

"Oi! Prick!" that got the dog's attention and as soon as he got close to the cell door he felt something hit him in the back of the head before falling over unconscious.

With a floating  crushed chamber pot floating right beside the dog before being placed on the floor, a glow of magic surrounds the key ring on the ground before floating up and unlocks the door holding the slightly not-so-pristine Shining Pearl in her room.

Once the diamond dog was rendered unconscious the key was removed removed from his possession and was used to open the door to her cell before it started to open up other cells as well.

"So Clear Cut, ready to find out where we are and find a way out of here?"

"You betcha ma'am, lets show these dogs what it means to be prim and proper." Clear Cut said as he levitates the club off of the dog and starts to make his way to the doorway leading out of the prison area, Shining Pearl was busy unlocking cells and freeing those that have been captured.

As soon as every single crystal pony was freed from their cells the free ponies made their way to the door, all of them started to mill around when they realized that they didn't exactly have much of a plan to escape other then killing the dogs that were in their way.

"Are you sure that this is a good idea ma'am? I mean we aren't exactly armed to handle whatever guards are on the other side of this door."

"Clear Cut, at first I was sure we can do this but now...not so much, we can hold out here until either more dogs start showing up or we get rescued."

Hidden Chamber

The diamond dogs have gathered into the hidden hall, the main door leading to their town has been barricaded and locked from the inside. All of them are hoping and praying that the crystal ponies that have invaded their home would leave, but upon hearing the sounds of hooves, bodies and hammers battering against the thick wooden and metal door that they knew that they have been found.

"We are trapped!" a dog shouted as the others started to yip and yelp in terror and fear.

"No we are not! Take the secret door out! They are in our caves, we can leave through front entrance!" another dog shouted back, yelling louder then everyone present in the great hall so all can listen to his words.

All of the diamond dogs started to rush to the main doors of their home, trying to get away from the retributive fury that awaits them on the other side of the doors to their back but as they scramble to open they couldn't hear the sounds of paws scraping at the door they are trying to open on the other side.

As soon as they managed to get the other doors to opened up all they saw was a tall figure, cloaked in blue metal armor with leather lying underneath it, in its hands was a ornate looking staff and dripping from his body was blood, and surrounding him was several dozen diamond dogs, their bodies eviscerated to the point of being unrecognizable. Bodies were scattered everywhere, many of them are missing arms, legs, heads and tails, but all of them had one thing in common, they were brutalized.

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"The Great Destroyer has arrived! The end is near!" a dog shouted as they all started to panic and backed away from me, a few brave dogs in the crowd moved forward, trying to protect those behind them but they are just delaying the inevitable.

I threw my shrapnel launcher at the first dog that ran up at me, he barely managed to catch it but as soon as he did and looked up my fist was already burying itself into his face, dropping him like a bag of hammers.

"Surrendering is your only chance to survive. Those that resist will be put down like the dogs that they are."

The next dog came up to me and with my shrapnel launcher back in my hands, and instead of shooting the bastard I instead opted to use my launcher like a bludgeoning weapon and bashed him aside and into the wall to my right.

Then came the third dog I just decided that will be the prime example of what awaits them if they keep resisting my order of surrender. Aiming my shrapnel launcher at the charging dog I simply pulled the trigger and watched the dog explode into a shower of charred meat and bones.

"Throwing your lives away like this is such a waste of life, your lives are at stake if you do not surrender to my authority."

Trying to get these dogs to give in is hard work, especially when a fourth dog tried to kill me from behind but he was stopped when he was magically lifted by one of my guards before being thrown into a wall, hopefully being rendered unconscious as I keep on striding forward, hoping to breaking their will to fight on.

"We will never surrender ourselves to a beast that holds no honor!" a dog shouted as he started to walk through the crowd of cowering canines.

The dog was wearing what must be clothes of nobility or at the very least of militaristic origins. It was holding what looks like a jeweled rapier in its paws and a jeweled dagger.

"So says a dog that raids a kingdom for slaves and gold, for the weak to try to steal from the strong and not expect for any form of retaliation to form and strike back. You are truly pathetic if you have thought that we would have let this go." I said as I started to walk toward the offending leader, the other dogs moved aside and once we were in the middle of the room they formed a circle, my two guards waited by the door, creating a barrier to prevent them from escaping.

"Bah! You think you are strong? We easily snuck into your homes and took what you did not need! Those ponies we took with us failed to fight back, worthy slaves and they can fetch a high price in the market for being of a unique origin!" man this dog just stole first place on my shit list, replacing my brother so far by a landslide. All he needs to do is steal my food from the fridge, take a shit and not flush, steal my games, steal my laptop, steal my cellphone and lastly puke on my bed and we are set.

"Your eyes must be betraying you if you have not yet noticed that I tower over you, my body is stronger then you, my armor is impenetrable. My swords are a fury made from my wrath!" I roared out as I charged forward, using my shrapnel launcher as a mace as I crash it down onto the ground, the barrels not even denting from the impact as my two smaller arms unsheathe the electrical swords at my waist as the dog deftly dodged the blow.

"And I can see that you lack any discipline or true skill."

"That's what you think, for all you know I am a master of the sword or just a fool pretending be one, you will find out soon enough." I said as I tossed my shrapnel launcher behind me, I didn't hear it hit the ground so I can only assume that my guards caught it with their magic.

"I highly doubt you are any kind of master other then a leader for those glittering ponies." taking a stab at me and easy being deflected to the side by my arc shield, I tried to reach for the blasted weapon and remove it from his grasp but he pulled back just in time.

My size and speed was being countered by the dog's well trained fighting style and speed. I might have to cheat to win this.

Oh who the hell am I kidding, if this dog is their leader then I might as well scare them into submission if they go by a pack mentality.

Dodging another swipe he lunged forward for yet another stab but as soon as his rapier hit my chest it snapped in half, the front half of the blade shattering like glass while the back half remained whole. Before he could move back I grabbed him by the throat and yanked the weapon out of his hand before ramming what was left of the blade into his throat before letting him go.

"And that is why you should have surrendered to me, otherwise you lose your life..." I started before cutting his head off with one of my swords, "...and your head. Now those of you who are still alive, you can either live in my new world or die in your old one...in fact you can live above ground or stay down here and slowly starve to death."

I let those dogs mull it over and soon enough they gave in, they knew that I would actually let them die like that and as soon as my guard ponies broke down the front door they tied every single dog up and started to walk them out but we were stopped by a surprise guest.

As the dogs walked up the stairs to leave the caves cracks started to form and as soon as I looked up and tilted my head in confusion as to why the roof is cracking I thought for a moment that we are having a cave in.

"MOVE!" I shouted as the dogs looked up to see the cracks starting to spread faster and farther until finally it gave out and something fell down and it sure as hell wasn't a rock.

Watching the dog fall I had opted to just let him drop, eat shit and probably die from the impact but instead I caught him before looking him over.

'He has been in contact with the crystal heart...it left its mark on him...he even had the smallest hint of bonding with it...I think I can use him to get these dogs in line.'

"Guards," I said as two came up to me, one was still holding my shrapnel launcher, I took it away from him before handing them the dog in my hand, "Take him with the others but have him separated from the rest when you put him in the cells. I will speak with him shortly."

The dog didn't resist or try to fight back, he just accepted his fate and lowered his head in defeat.

Returning to the surface was a bit of a problem but I decided to be the last one out so that the others can leave first and that I can be the last one out as my size would surely block the passage as I climb up.

When I got back to the surface I saw that every single pony was waiting for me and when they finally saw me they all started to cheer, glad to see that I am alive and well. As soon as I pulled myself out of the hole the unicorns sealed them up, trying to mend the damages that was done to the roads.

The crystal heart wasn't working when I climbed up but as soon as the ponies saw me their love and affection or joy started up the heart, re-creating the dome and once again bathing the Crystal Empire in its glorious warmth and light.

Now I must rest, apparently fighting, exploring and looting the cavernous system of the diamond dogs that once lived below me is a tiring prospect and must now rest in my conformable if not slightly small bed.

Hidden Chamber Prison Cells

Waiting for the fighting on the other side to be over and whatever loud ruckus was going on the other side of the heavy doors, Shining Pearl and Clear Cut waited quietly for it to end to make their escape, if it was the crystal guards fighting the diamond dogs then they can join in on the fray and assist them but all of them know that would lead to them either getting injured or killed, so instead they choose to sit and wait for it to end.

What they didn't know at the time was that by sitting there waiting they have just barely dodged the bullet of evading the wrath of someone whose job it was to collect what was due, and when that being found that its payment was missing and every single diamond dog was gone with the exception of the blood that laid on the floor as a payment of retribution.

When they heard something let out a loud enraged roar that echoed throughout the cave system and back they knew that whatever it was that is out there, it is not a dog or an Eliksni, they can't exactly recall what it might be but for now their minds are drawing up blanks.

"Clear Cut, I am going to poke my head out of this room and see if it is clear for us to make a run for it, I don't think any of us can handle whatever it is that is here. We must get out of here now before it decides to check the one room it hasn't been into yet."

"Aye, I am right behind you mi'lady." Clear Cut said quietly as he got into position right beside Shining Pearl, knowing fully well that this might be a suicide run to freedom if the beast that was roaring shows its face right outside the door.

Looking at the ponies behind herself and to to the side Shining Pearl gave one last shudder of fear before steeling herself, pushing open the heavy door leading out of the prison cells that oddly leads directly into the small safe haven that was hidden underneath the town. Upon looking up she saw a small hole in the ceiling and beneath it was several flakes of stone from where something has fallen from. Giving the room a once over to see if the coast is clear and finding out that it is, Shining Pearl gave everyone a small smile before nodding, signalling everyone that it is safe for the time being.

Making a mad gallop to the back exit where the eloquent pony saw even more blood splattered all over the walls and floor and for some reason on the ceiling where a body is strangely splattered up there and so far refuses to fall down. Stopping there and quickly turning around to signal the rest of the ponies within the prison to gallop over to where she is.

One by one the crystal ponies galloped their way to freedom, the ponies that had children on their backs had to be extra cautious so they don't accidentally drop them on their mad dash to the surface and away from whatever it is that is roaring so loudly. Without sparing a second glance back the group of kidnapped ponies huddled together and galloped as one straight to the Crystal Empire, the crystal heart was already turned back on and was emitting its rays of warmth and its barrier was back up, just a few miles away from where they have exited the cave tunnel.

There was much rejoicing when the ponies returned home, how they escaped was revealed as somewhat being left behind but when I told them that I was going to come back down there once all of the prisoners have been tossed into their prison cells, surrounded by crystal and metal to prevent them from digging out to freedom. Shining Pearl gave me a death glare for practically 'forgetting' her and the rest of the crystal ponies behind but she forgave me when I hugged her and gave her mane a good brushing.

I swear that girl is just trying to train me to be a husband for a pony or something, next thing I know she might try to teach me how to eat like a noble pony and how to act like one.

Like that will ever be the day.