As I moved away from the Diamond Dog leader known as 'Snoop', I heard Tenna and Boomstick up to their usual arguing. As I walked closer my head started to swim and blur my vision, yet only for a moment. After shaking my head free, I decided it was probably just a head-rush and moved on.

"I knew it was a bad idea to follow 'er!"

"You told me to make a choice, an' I did!"

"Oh suuure, let's follow the naked mare to a den of dogs! It'll be a good bit of fun, won't it!?"

"It's not my fault the dogs was followin' us before we even got 'ere!"

At that, I rounded the corner to find Tenna and Boomstick in cages opposite another, dangling from the ceiling and trying to grab at each other through the bars. They were guarded by a small Pack of around five to seven dogs with an Alpha as their leader. I looked around and found that both Snoop and the two Alphas from earlier were gone now. Hopefully Snoop was right about these guards knowing that I was supposed to be walking around.

"Hey! Mare here for friends!" One of the Pack shouted, pointing a clawed paw at me excitedly. "Get key for mare!"

I blinked in surprise while still walking towards the brothers. Well, this was going a lot better than I expected. Sure, we had all been technically captured but... we were still alive and unharmed. That counted for something good.

"Sanguine, is that you?" Tenna called out to me, his cage swinging. "What's goin' on?"

"Um... I'll let you know when we're out of here!" I called back, picking up my pace enough to move things along. The dogs may have let us go, but they could also turn on us at any moment if we took too long in confronting the Pegasai. Again my head felt top heavy, causing me to stumble.

"You alright, Sanguine?" Boomstick asked when I was within normal speaking distance of the two. The Alpha was busy turning a crank that lowered the two cages to the ground, rattling and causing the cages to swing a bit from the irregular construction of both the chain and the pulley wheel.

"I had a spear again for all of two minutes." I replied, shaking my head clear of the strange feeling. "Yes, I'm fine."

"What happened?" Tenna asked.

"Their leader stepped on it!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands up in defeat.

"What about the gems?" Boomstick inquired.

"They... made a 'deal' with me. Sort of as a 'thank you' for us not killing any of them and for my clumsy attempts at sneaking around the place getting me caught." I explained, still feeling bad that I had been caught in the first place. Sneaking around at night and stalking animals was a lot different than sneaking around Diamond Dogs, or any other creature with a brain for that matter.

"What kind of deal?" Tenna wondered.

"We have to 'deal with' the Pegasai that are killing their foragers. They want the both of you to shoot them out of the sky, or to sell them guns to use themselves for it." I explained a bit nervously. I didn't know what their reactions would be, now that everything was said.

"Hey Tenna, that means we could go to Los Pegasus with Sanguine!" Boomstick replied happily before Tenna could object.

"Yeah, give these dogs a bunch'a guns? You think that's a good idea?" Tenna asked Boomstick sarcastically. "Maybe we should strap a big rocket on yer back an' make you the first pony to the moon?"

"They're just gonna use it to shoot some Pegasai; what's it matter to us?" Boomstick shot back.

"Use that brain of yers for once and think about it!"

"Um, Tenna, Boomstick?" I interjected into their shouting match. "We're still in the Diamond Dog Den." I pointed out.

The Pack and Alpha had gathered around the cages now on the ground, looking somewhat annoyed and making growling noises at the two of them. I was caught in the middle between the brothers and the dogs and very much wanted to remain in one piece.

"Oh." Tenna dumbly replied after opening his eyes to the situation.

"We'll talk about it after we shoot some Pegasai, yeah?" Boomstick offered.

"Yeah."

"Sounds good!"

After no more conversation came from the three of us, a Pack member came up to each of the cages with a different blobish key that looked like sharpened slag and opened the cages. Tenna and Boomstick still had all of their equipment on, minus their guns of course. They stepped out a little shakily onto the rough marble floor of the den, Boomstick jumping in place for a moment. Now my stomach was feeling strange instead of my balance being thrown off. I thought about telling Boomstick or Tenna, but the wrong words came out instead.

"What are you doing?" I asked Boomstick.

"Gettin' me land legs back." He replied, now rolling his shoulders.

"Oi, where's our guns?" Tenna asked the Alpha.

The large and heavily armored dog jabbed a paw thumb behind himself towards a weapons rack containing all of the cylinders that the two brothers like to carry around as well as their guns. This drew a few grumbles from Tenna, but Boomstick was happy as ever to find 'Boomy' and himself reunited.

"You can stop huggin' your wife at any time, Boomstick." Tenna groaned.

"Will your guns be enough to defeat the Pegasai?" I asked worriedly. I knew the Pegasai could fly, but that was about as far as my knowledge of them reached. Ponies with wings. I didn't feel comfortable going blindly into a situation where we could easily be killed from just lack of knowledge.

Why were my thoughts so skewed? Shouldn't I be telling somepony about this?

"Depends on how many of 'em there are!" Boomstick eagerly cheered.

"Hold on Boomstick, she has a point." He looked at me in appraisal for a moment before continuing "We've only got Bertha an' Boomy. She's got magic that she doesn't have a clue how to use, an' we're going in blind to shoot some birdbrains we've never even met or seen."

"I was also going to point out that I know of Pegasai only from stories in my tribe." I tentatively added.

"So... what then?" Boomstick questioned.

"I think we'll have to get more guns in Los Pegasus before we confront any Pegasai. Actually, I just noticed that; Guns from Pegasus to kill Pegasai. Isn't that like... poetic justice or somethin?" Tenna rhetorically questioned.

"It's actually known as coincidence." A large Diamond Dog pointed out, moving through the Pack and dressed in... the white coat from before! I had seen this Howler before I began my trip into the mines. He stood a full head taller than Boomer, making him out to be my size and a half larger than me. I couldn't tell his build from the oversized white coat that he was wearing down to his knees, but he was well dressed considering the shirt, shorts, pocket watch and glasses that he wore. He was grey in coloration with very deep blue eyes that I... actually found mesmerizing. They were like sapphires had taken over his eyes!

"An' who might you be, doggo?" Boomstick challenged.

The Howler held a paw to his chest, bowing slightly out of politeness. "I am Rufio." He stated plainly.

"Ruff." I giggled to myself. "Rufio Ruff." The feeling of dizzyness had returned along with the butterflies in my stomach and lack of balance. For some reason, I didn't care anymore. This was fun!

Rufio looked at me with concern. "Is she alright?" He adjusted a pair of glasses on his muzzle to get a better look at me. "Isn't it customary for ponies to wear clothing, as well? She is plainly naked."

"Yeah, we know." Tenna replied politely. "She doesn't like wearin' clothing for some reason."

Rufio looked to me, but I was still caught up with his name. I leaned in towards him and playfully whispered "Rrr-ruff!". I also noticed I had a small smile on my face.

"Most curious, isn't she?" Rufio replied, leaning away from me. "I've overheard part of your conversation about the Pegasai. I am to believe that it will take longer than Snoop has predicted, yes?" he asked of Tenna, making him out to be the leader of the group.

"Well, Sanguine here hasn't seen a gun in her life before meeting us -Big shocker there- and we don't have the ammo or supplies to go fightin' a big battle, let alone the ponies to come along with us for it. We're going to need more ponies in order to take on anything flying and train Sanguine in how to shoot straight if she's gonna be helpin'." Tenna explained.

Something about the way this 'Rufio' just existed made me happy to be around him. His fur was all fluffy and soft looking, like I could just jump on him like a large cloud. His eyes glanced my way a few times while he spoke with Tenna, growing more worried every time he saw me drawing nearer.

"How long will this detour take?" Rufio asked.

"It shouldn't take more than a few days to get to... where we need to. From there, we can get the equipment we need, possibly more guns as well as teach Sanguine how to use a gun."

There was a pause for a moment.

"Sanguine, what the bloody hell are you doing?" Tenna asked incredulously.

I was petting Rufio's arm, having rolled up his sleeve just to feel his fur. "Rufio is really soft." I purred.

"What's gotten into her?" Boomstick asked, the brothers moving towards me while Rufio remained still, staring at me curiously.

"I'm... not entirely certain." Rufio replied hesitantly. "We've captured more than a few unicorns that strayed too far from their fortress, but none of them have had a reaction like this."

"What do ya mean by that?" Tenna asked suspiciously.

"Oh! Nothing negative, I assure you." Rufio blurted quickly. "It's just... normally they're crazed or catatonic. This 'Sanguine' seems enthralled by my fur of all things."

"So~ft." I cooed.

"Oi Rufio, do you mind if we get somethin' from our packs? I've got a hunch." Tenna asked.

"By all means, Earthen. I am immobilized by Sanguine at the moment." Rufio replied cautiously, trying to lift his arm away from me.

"The fuzzy is mine!" I cried, clinging to his arm. I was now holding onto Rufio for dear life, lest my fuzzy be taken forever!

"Oi Tenna you best hurry mate, she's gettin' wacko!" Boomstick warned.

"I can see that!" Tenna shot back, sprinting past me to his backpack and digging through it. He flung pots, pans, clothing, foodstuffs and even a smaller thing that looked like a tiny gun before finding his 'Magi-tector'. "Here we are!" He declared in triumph, holding it upwards while fiddling with some turning metal bits on the device. After a moment it sprang to life and crackled a storm of repeating high pitched noise.

"Get out of here, now!" Tenna shouted, grabbing both backpacks and running for the entrance to the mines. Boomstick was running right towards me and reached out one of his arms, scooping me away from the beautiful fuzzy that was Rufio. Thankfully, the fuzz-master ran alongside Boomer with ease.

"Where are we going?" He asked, keeping pace.

"Away from here!" Boomer replied, dodging around a few stacked crates. I saw blurry images of surprised dogs moving out of our path and soon chasing after, caught up in the excitement.

"Rufio, you mind tellin' these blokes that we're not on the menu?!" Tenna yelled over his shoulder.

"I still don't understand why we're running!" Rufio barked in reply.

"I'll let you know when the noise stops!"

We ducked and wove past more obstacles, one of which being my poor spear that had been snapped in half. Most of my focus was blurring in and out, making sight a difficult task. After what seemed like ages of bouncing around in Boomer's arms, we arrived outside of the mines.

"There, you hear that?" Tenna asked, holding up the magi-tector. "It's slower our here than in there!"

"Yes, and?" Rufio asked.

"That means that your mineshaft is loaded up to the nose with magic, mate! Bad kinds'a magic!" Tenna insisted, waving the device around and pointing the coils of it at Rufio.

"...I don't understand what you mean. 'Bad magic'?" Rufio asked.

"The kinda magic that messes with yer head! Changeling magic!" Tenna hissed.

"How so?"

"It lowers your will to -not- do certain things... oh, what's the word..."

"Inhibitions?" Rufio suggested.

"Yea!" Tenna pointed excitedly, "That's it! It lowers your inhibitions and makes you do stuff you wouldn't normally do."

They all looked at me with concern, Boomstick setting me down onto the rough marble of the quarry outside. He held his hands to my side so I could remain upright and I leaned on them for support, my whole body feeling sick.

"Are you alright, Sanguine?" Boomstick asked, ensuring I didn't topple over.

"Head feels... eugh." I complained, holding my head in my hand as well as attempting to hold my stomach with the other. "I think I need to sit." I then toppled over backwards landing hard on my back.

Tenna and Boomstick crowded around me while Rufio observed from a distance, taking out some plank of wood with paper on it and taking notes.

"You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" Tenna asked Boomstick, the both of them kneeling at my side while I tried to hold my pounding head together.

"Might be one of them infiltrators nearby?"

"Yeah, maybe in the cave, too." Tenna replied gravely. "We're gonna need our guns for some huntin'."

Boomstick and Tenna looked to Rufio expectantly. "Oh, well yes. Gather your weapons and find the infiltrator. Do you need assistance?" Rufio replied.

"Trust us, we can find a changelin'." Boomstick said while standing in unison with Tenna. "You make sure she stays safe. The Changeling is gonna come lookin' for her sooner or later. They always know when somepony gets caught in their net."

I noticed the change in their demeanor, their accents slipping into a more refined version that lacked the slurring and casual nature it usually bore. I was feeling a little bit like bait for this changeling at the moment, but I was also trying not to vomit as well. Whatever mind magic this thing had cast on me was throwing my entire body for a loop, and I felt like I needed to go back into the mine to make it all go away.

"We'll be right back, Sanny. You hold in there." Tenna patted me on the shoulder before quickly turning to Boomstick, motioning for him to follow as they jogged back into the mine.

The sun that had blasted my eyes uncomfortably was soon shadowed by Rufio looming over me. "You are a very curious pony, Sanguine." He mused.

"Why is that?" I asked, rolling onto my side and trying to ignore the cold marble beneath me.

Rufio declined to answer my question and instead started walking away.

"Hey, what if the changeling comes back?" I called after him.

He looked around the area for a moment before returning to me, a large smile on his face that caused me to worry. It wasn't a friendly smile.

"Making sure the coast is clear, my dear." He purred.

"What?"

He then picked me off of the ground; the rush of my senses being overtaken coming back in full force.

"Let's go on a little trip, shall we?" He asked, adjusting my position on his shoulder by throwing me into the air a bit.

"Okay!" I chirped happily. The sickness was gone, replaced with the warm embrace of his very soft fur. I felt like something was wrong, by every attempt to figure out what was immediately covered in the need to follow Rufio and do whatever he wanted.

Maybe he would let me snuggle with him?

We had gone on a walk through the forest, leaving the mineshaft well behind.

"Are Boomstick and Tenna going to come with us?" I asked Rufio.

"Possibly. I need to be certain of several things before I can coax them into joining our little adventure, Sanguine." He cooly replied. "Can I trust you to follow me? You are very light for a pony, but it still becomes tiring to carry you after awhile." He asked politely.

"Sure!"

He set me down onto the forest floor, leaves crunching underhoof from having dried out. Rufio had chosen to rest in a wide open clearing in the forest for the moment, giving me the chance to snack on some of the food I had stored in my various pouches.

"What are those?" He asked, leaning closer to me.

"Just some berries I found in the forest earlier." I replied, popping a few into my mouth.

The conversation died at that point, Rufio becoming disinterested with my eating. We stayed in that clearing for a few minutes before I felt that something was wrong.

"Are we waiting for somepony?" I asked Rufio curiously.

"Yes. They should be here any moment now." He responded curtly.

I looked around at the surrounding bushes and found nothing out of the ordinary for what I had observed the past few moments.

"Are you sure? It doesn't look like anypony is coming."

"They will be here." He assured me, shifting impatiently and looking around with shifty eyes. He glanced at his pocket watch a few times, tapping his paw impatiently in the dirt.

We waited for what seemed like ages now, Rufio pacing back and forth and growling to himself in annoyance at how long everything was taking, complaining about the unreliability of changelings and the studies that he was unable to continue from having to guard me.

I was sitting on a log, following the adventures of a resilient caterpillar as it swiggled its way across the mossy overgrowth of the fallen trunk. It had nearly climbed a leaf when my ears twitched, causing Rufio to notice.

"Did you hear something?" he asked worriedly.

"I think so." I replied uncertainly. "It sounded like it came from-" I had been pointing in the general direction of whatever annoyed my ears when a deafening boom sounded from the treeline, the ground practically erupting with dust in an arc from direction the noise had come from originally.

I fell over backwards, my hooves in the air above the tree trunk as I was floored from the noise and covered my ringing ears. I looked skyward and saw a figure loom over me, grab me by the shoulders and drag me on my flank and tail away from Rufio. The further we got, the more sick I became. More louds booms came from the treeline, pausing for brief periods before resuming.

"Let me go!" I cried, struggling to break free.

"Come on, Sanny! I'm not losin' you too!" Tenna growled back, struggling to regain a hold on me as I squirmed. My emotions were becoming erratic, flinging themselves like an abused toy from elated to heartbroken to everything in between with every step and pull away from Rufio, whom I now had no idea where he had gone to. The booms were now following behind us, the noise accompanied by the sounds of the forest being shredded by what I could now identify as the 'wall of pain' gun.

"Stop strugglin'! We're tryin' to help you!" Tenna insisted, wrapping his arms around my torso and pinning my own arms to my sides, lifting me into the air and simply carrying me away further. "Boomstick, we gotta go!" He called over his shoulder.

"Jus' one more blast for good measure!" Boomstick shouted back, accompanied by another deafening roar of his 'Boomy'. "Ah'right, now we run!"

My ears were perpetually ringing, giving me a hint as to why the brothers were always so loud all the time. The feeling of sickness was starting to go away the further we got, but I was still incapacitated and unable to even move my arms where I wanted them to. This was partially because Tenna had pinned them to my sides, but mostly due to the overwhelming sickness of being away from Rufio. It wasn't as strong as it had been in the mines, but still powerful.

"You think she's gonna be alright?" Boomstick asked, huffing from keeping pace as the two ran away with me being held by Tenna. Earthen are very strong, I realized in my dazed state.

"We'll have ta see, Boomstick. I knew somethin' was funny about those mines, but Sanny here seems to be real bad with changeling magic." Tenna said between breaths and small leaps over obstacles that impeded our path.

"What's the plan?" Boomstick asked.

"We're goin' to Los Pegasus. Unnex should be able to fix this... hopefully."

"Unnex? That sod?"

"We'll have a proper talk about it when... we're not running, alright?" Tenna snapped back, leaping over a fallen log mid sentence.

After several more minutes and when the brothers could carry me no longer, they paused to catch their breath and recover.

"Think we lost em?" Boomstick gasped for breath, his hands on his hips as he paced around and kept his eyes on the lookout for anything moving in the treeline.

"They'd be swarming us if we hadn't." Tenna replied simply, setting me down on the ground while I covered my stomach in pain with my arms. "You're gonna be fine, Sanny; Don't you worry."

"Eugh." I groaned, curling into a ball in a vain attempt to make the sickness go away.

"How much ammo you got left?" Tenna asked Boomstick as he looked me over for any injuries or scrapes.

"Only used about six or eight shells. I got plenty if we get into a scrap again." Boomstick replied, putting more cylinders into his gun and snapping it back together when he was done.

"If things get dicey, you can always used the H-E Shot." Tenna suggested off hand, finding that I hadn't taken any injury worth worrying about.

"You sure? They might be more trouble'n they're worth in this forest." Boomstick asked with surprise, taking an orange cylinder from his chest belt and holding it up with an expression of worry.

"It's either death by changeling, or death by splinters and shrapnel." Tenna shrugged, unslinging 'Bertha' and putting his own cylinders into the gun.

"Ah, got ya." Boomstick agreed, swapping out the cylinders of red for the orange now.

"You okay, Sanny?" Tenna asked.

"My head feels like a river of fish trying to go upstream." I complained, the sickness having progressed around my body several times. My eyes were half lidded and fluttering in my attempts to keep them open while my hands tried to keep my head on my shoulders, pressing against my jaw and cheeks.

"Yeah, we're definitely going to take you to Los Pegasus with that much exposure." Tenna replied with finality, a click of Bertha for punctuation.

"Then we're gonna come back and shoot those Diamond Dogs and the Changelings." Boomstick agreed with a dark grin that promised many more loud booms to come.

Author's Note

Hopefully I conveyed the absolute confusion of having one's mind taken over with magic from Sanguine's point of view

Let me know in the comments if you have suggestions of how to do something like that better, and what your thoughts are on the chapter!

Thank you for reading, and comments are always appreciated!