"So what do you suggest mayor?" asked Farren, settling down into his chair for an extended discussion. Silence settled upon the diminutive office as the mayor put a hoof to her chin and got to putting her thinking cap on. For some time, the office is silent save for the quiet heartbeat of the clock on the wall tapping out a regular tempo. The occupants of the room thinking their own thoughts, musing over their own problems and diving deep into introspection that would make even the most seasoned philosopher sputter in indignant awe. Of course, as is dictated by law of the universe (and cliches), this silence is summarily interrupted by the intervention of one purple drake.

The door is thrust open, smashing the carefully composed silence into smithereens like so much expensive china. Within the office all eyes are drawn to the diminutive yet animated figure at the doorway, whom has now proceeded into the confines of the room and with the eloquence of a creature with dire purpose, proceeds to collapse onto the floor and throw up kaleidoscope colors onto the old carpet which was once a priceless treasure from the eastern provinces. Of course each individual present reacts in their own personal way: Purple Smart of course reacts as any good older sister should, with care and compassion coming to her troubled little brother's aid. The Mayor Mare, ever the stoic and serious matriarch of a tough town with not a shred of nonsense in her body, also comes to the distressed drake's aid albeit in a more reserved and calm manner. However, what garners the most attention is from the third member of the party, whom has not left his seat be it by alarm or by conviction, but calmly sits there, and reaches over into the nothingness for a conveniently placed jug of water and a glass. While the other two quadrupeds panic most excellently, agonizing over this dilemma most dire, the human merely picks up the exhausted child, sits him on his lap and gently feeds him the glass of water.

"Twilight, miss Mayor, please, a moment of calm if you would." The soft yet firm tones of his words striking them like a slap to the face, with sheepish expression they return to their previous seats. Anxiously awaiting for an explanation.

Looking back to the exhausted boy in his lap, Farren raised his head up and gently asked him, "Spike I presume? Now, what is it that has you in such a state, don't speak too much but please tell us what is wrong."

"Rarity, diamond dogs, trouble, help!" Spike gasped out before sleep took him by force and he fell back into the arms of Farren.

"Diamond dogs? Hmm, interesting..." the man mumbled as he stood up once more and cradled the sleeping dragon in his arms. "Twilight?"

"U-um, yes? What is it Farren?" the librarian sputtered, her wings ruffling in nervously.

"Could you please take Spike home? The poor child has obviously run here from quite a distance, hes absolutely exhausted." Passing a snoring Spike to Twilight, who took the boy into her magic, he then turned to the mayor.

"Miss Mayor, could you please inform the town guard or some such authority to gather at the gem fields? I will go ahead and retrieve miss Rarity." with that, Farren turned to the doorway to leave, but was stopped by the ever stoic mayor.

"Farren, you can't. Those are diamond dogs! They're dangerous, and you can't handle them alone. Just wait for the town guard we can go in together and rescue miss Rarity then." replied the mayor, as Twilight looked over her brother in worry, checking for bruises and cuts.

"Miss Mayor, I am older than the mountain upon which your rulers sit upon, I have seen more battle and bloodshed than the oldest of your veterans, and I have faced dire evils so horrifying, that even the gods themselves could not hope to face them alone, a few diamond dogs are well within my capabilities." As he spoke, he turned back to the agitated mayor, his eyes literally burning with emerald flames, "However I do understand your concerns, and that is why I am asking you to prepare your town guard, I am a little rusty after all, so I will most likely need the guard to be there to catch the stragglers that will try to escape."

Turning back to the doorway and stepping out into the lobby he left the mares with a final word, "There is a reason why I was called 'The Herald of Cinis." during my days in service to the Crown."

"Wake up, gem hunter pony, wake up hurry." Rumbled a soft voice, its tone urgent yet unhurried. Again Rarity was assaulted by a soft barrage of pokes to her barrel, rousing her from her reluctant slumber.

With a soft yawn, the pony raised her head from the folded up burlap bag that was her pillow and took in her surroundings, and found it wanting. She was underground, in a side room closed off by a metal barred door, which looked to be secured by a rusty padlock, barely keeping together. She then turned her attentions to her supposed "roommate" who for some reason was in here with her.
Her fellow cellmate was a diamond dog, but with distinctly feminine features. Her face resembled that of a Boxer hound, her piercing blue eyes cutting through the near complete darkness of the subterranean accommodations barely lit by a sputtering torch somewhere down the hallway. She too wore a vest like that of her compatriots, but her front paws were chained together, her vest was threadbare and torn, her right eye sported a exceptional shiner, and she had bruises on just about every inch of her body that her blood caked fur covered.

"You must wake up, pony, them be here soon, need you awake for gem hunting." the diamond dog rumbled, her voice rasping and wheezing worryingly.

"Oh my goodness, are you alright deary? You look terrible!" Rarity looked over her injured companion to and fro, each injury and wound compounding her worry tenfold.

Pushing her worried cellmate away with a wave of her paws, she huffed and settled back down into the corner of the dark cell, and began to lick at a wound on her arm, "Pah! Am fine, little scratch. No need worry. Heal soon."

Settling back down into her meager hay bed with a worried look, the white unicorn looked to her new companion, "Still...oh, very well. By the by, where are we? This place is absolutely ghastly." She asked looking around her dirt encrusted surroundings with abject disgust. "Oh where are my manners, my name is Rarity. What is your name miss...?"

"Name is Saphire, we in cell of diamond dog den. You are captured of northern diamond dogs, me southern dog. Was traveling. Found den. They find me, take over den. Then make mate with me and beat. When bored they mate, when angry they beat. They find you, you find gems, so you find gems for dogs, then dogs mate you, you find more gem. Is new life for you." Saphire wheezed out.

"Oh...oh dear..." Rarity's face fell with each broken sentence, her hope plummeting to the depths of her soul as she realized that this horrid existence would be her life for as long as her new masters wished.

As the two inhabitants sat quietly, dreading the arrival of their captors, they heard something unexpected; the sounds of screaming and the deep rumbles of explosions. Frantic yips and howls echoed through the tunnel as more explosions shook the tunnels, and through all this coming chaos, there was a voice. This was no ordinary voice, no...this voice was wrathful, dark and thundering. While what was being said could not be made out, its inflections and tone was all too clear to those who heard it; 'it is foolishness to resist, do so and meet your doom.' Each explosion and the frantic howls and yipping of diamond dogs came ever closer with each passing moment. Until, a single scrawny diamond dog pup scrambled and pawed his way to the door of the cell, his blood red eyes wide in abject fear. In its paws was a rusty key on a bent key ring that he desperately clutched onto. Without another word he shakily shoved the key into the padlock and yanked it to the side, releasing the lock with a metallic snap. The padlock had barely enough time to fall from the door before it was pushed open, the door then secured and locked from inside by the pup, and then barred closed by the spear haft that the pup was holding.

While the pained howling continued the pup then turned to Saphire, and with tears in his eyes leaped and buried his face into her stomach, "Mommy!" came the muffled cry from the little pup, followed then by muted sobs as he bawled in his mother's arms.

"Ruby, my pup. You alive!" Saphire cried out in joy, "they said you die! They kill you many moons ago, they give me your bloody vest. But you safe! You alive! Am glad!" Wrapping her chained paws around her scraggly son, Saphire held him close, quietly shedding tears as she kissed her son on the head and rested her head on his.

This sweet moment does not last, as they are interrupted by another diamond dog, one much bigger and shaggier than the other two, as he slams into the bars of the cell door.

"Hey! Open door stupid pup! Let me in now!" growled the dog in desperation, his anger and fear mixing into a volatile combination. Bashing his heavy frame into the cell door again, he tries frantically to barge his way in. "Stoopid pup! Why yoo lock door with spear!? Let me in! Hurry, before it finds me!" Now the howling has died down, and an eerie silence bogs down on the little group, then, they hear it; the crackling of flames and the jingle of metal.

"It herr! Let me in! LET ME IN NAO!!!" the diamond dog screams, his face blanching pure white underneath the dirty grey fur. "LET ME IN STOOPID PUP! IMMA KEEL U! LET ME IN NAAAAAOO-"

With a bright green flash of fire and a loud 'FWOOOSH!' the diamond dog is sent flying further down the hall, the smell of burnt fur and flesh hanging heavy in the air. Then, the voice speaks.

"Slaium a hundur, mat a hundur."

The clang and jingle of armor with each heavy step heralds the arrival of the source of such fear and death, each thudding step a death knell for whoever was unfortunate enough to cross its path. What appeared infront of the battered door however, words could not do justice.

The black figure stood above all, its pointed helm carving a furrow into the ceiling. Its harsh looking mace soaked in blood, and within the recesses of the spiked helm gouts emerald fire burned where the eye holes were, lighting the poorly lit dungeon better than any mere torch would. Peering through the bars of the abused door, the black knight's burning gaze illuminated the confines of the cell, revealing the three terrified occupants within. With a huff of satisfaction and a nod, the towering figure then proceeded to walk through the cell door, the metal bars melting instantly to the touch. As he stood there looming over the terrified pony and dogs, the flames in his eyes flared and covered his whole self in bright emerald flame. Before the trio whirled and twirled a tornado of fire, and in an instant it was gone, and there stood Farren.

With a sigh of exhaustion, the man slumped down against the door frame, his face haggard and drawn in fatigue. Looking up at the now confused trio with a weary smile he turned to Rarity and said, "Hello there miss Rarity, forgive me for arriving so late...There was a pebble in my shoe and simply had to remove it. Then there was the riff raff back behind me a ways that where just absolutely determined keep me from retrieving you. Again, a thousand apologies for the delay."

After a moment to catch his breath, he stands up, brushes off his cloak, and peers out the door looking one way or the other, checking for more enemies. "Now...if you are able, shall we depart?"

Author's Note

Hey there gents, I finished this chapter, and I have a few things to say:
First, thank you Chikun Bot for being the first to send me a character idea. I do appreciate it to no end.
Second, YA'LL SEND ME YER CHARACTER IDEAS! Message me an idea, don't matter what it is; your own personal OC, a random concept, sum sorta edgy black sabbath kinda deal, it don't matter! SEND THEM TO ME!!! I want you guys to be as much of a part of this as I am writing it.(send edgy ones, I wont judge, theirs not enough edge in this story.)
Third, the pictures I used in this chapter are most definitely not my own, and so thanks to the people who made them. Credit to em.
Finally, Pray for me ya'll, I'm applying for colleg, and if I get in I'll be able to write more stories like this! PRAY FOR MEH!

Again, thanks all of you who come here and read it. I appreciate constructive criticism, and like I said I appreciate you guys sending me ideas or pitching me new concepts. Thank you all for sticking with me so far. I AINT STOPPIN TILL IM HITTING THE THOUSANDS OF CHAPTARZ!!