The next morning came before too long and the local wildlife created a natural alarm clock. The creaks and cracks as I stood up attested to the fact that the jail provided a better bed, even if the thought of being stuck in there once again was revolting. With no excuse to put off the inevitable, I made my way back to town to find a job. Which meant it was time to have a real conversation with Ms. Rose.

Once again walking through the saloon doors, I was heralded by a shout from somewhere in the back.

"We're not open! Come back after noon for your drinks!" The voice of Sapphire Rose commanded.

"And what if I'm looking for a job instead?" I yelled back as I snagged one of the barstools to sit on.

"Mack? One moment and I'll be right with you honey."

I relaxed as ten or so minutes later the mare made her way to the front.

"Good Mornin', how can I help you today?"

"Mornin', I figured you were the mare to see in town if someone needed a job," I reply with a winning smile.

Her nose scrunched up as she thought on it. "Well, I don't need the help here, and I don't think you're asking to become a working stallion."

"I'm pretty sure you just politely asked me if I wanted to be this establishment's prostitute." I replied, trying to keep my temper at such an insinuation. And why is this pissing me off as much as it is...

Looking only mildly uncomfortable, the pony replied. "I didn't mean to offend, but that's what most stallions do out on the frontier. It's relatively safe and pays more than what most ponies make."

"I'm going to need a shot. I know you ain't open, but I really need it right now." I begged the mare. The reality of the situation finally penetrating through the subconscious wall that had kept me from truly believing this was real.

Giving me a good look in the eyes, she pulled a bottle out and poured a double shot, sliding it to me afterwards. With a slightly shakey hand, I down it in one go and feel the potent brew working its way through my system.

"Thanks, I really needed that."

"Not a problem, just tell me what's going on." She replied encouragingly.

Not seeing a reason not to, and with what might have actually been a degreaser in my empty stomach, I opened up.

"I think this all might be more than I can handle. Pulled away from my home, my planet, and being dumped in a land of colorful talking ponies is bad enough. But add in magic and the complete destruction of everything I thought as true? I didn't think about it until just now, but where are the guys at? I've only seen mares for my entire stay. Are they rare, kept as sex slaves and trophies? Dying from some crazy plague that targets males? Am I in danger, and not even able to recognize it!?"

By the end of the rant, the mare had walked around the bar and hugged me.

"There there, it'll be okay honey. There's nothing wrong with the stallions here. The gender ratio is about three to one, and they tend to be a little on the fragile side." She giggled a little, before adding, "And we tend to be a little over protective of them, smarter ponies than me think it's an instinctive thing from when we roamed the world in herds."

I gratefully wrapped my free arm around her before replying. "Thanks, again."

"Not a problem, this is a test that would shatter most stallions, but it took almost four days before you even bent a little."

"Still, now that I've got all of that off my chest, how bout I help you get this place ready for the day?" I ask her with a small smile.

"A good businessmare never declines free help from an honest gentlestallion," She said in answer. "You can start by wiping everything down."

"Yes Ma'am."

"Anything else on the to-do list?" I ask the barmare.

"Nope, we should be good until later tonight. Want to go get something to eat?"

"Sure, not like I've got anything better to do."

"Then let's go down to Merry's, she's probably the best cook in town." She replied as she started towards the door.

"Sounds good to me." I say as I follow her out of the bar. "So did you have any ideas where I could get a job? Because while I'm currently living on the Princess's money, I'd like to be on my feet sooner than later."

"I'm honestly not sure if anypony here would hire a stallion, since the work around here tends to be hard and dangerous." Shaking her head sadly, she added, "It's not going to be easy convincing any mare here to hire you on, for one reason or another."

"And where does that leave you?" I ask curiously.

"In the camp of not having the need for another employee."

"Fair enough, can't blame you for that."

We made it to the little diner and I opened the door for her out of habit. Which got me a raised eyebrow, but no verbal response. The inside was nice and cozy, with a handful of tables and stools along the counter that ran across the back side of the room. Sapphire went straight towards a table near the kitchen, sitting down before making her presence known.

"Hey Merry! You've got some hungry customers!" She yelled at the kitchen.

"And they'll stay hungry if they make me fuck up this pie!" A lower and scratchy, yet still female voice barked back.

"Well when you get done, come take the new stallion's order, poor guy's nothing but skin and bone!"

"Of course he is, that daft guard forced your food down him, it'd be enough to turn a beggar's stomach." The voice snapped back.

With slightly widened eyes, I looked at my companion. "Damn, that was pretty brutal."

"Yeah, she can be a bit of a bitch, but the food's good and you need to be a little rough out in these parts anyway."

The mare in question finally came out of the kitchen, holding a menu that she set in front of me.

Now, Sapphire wasn't a small mare compared to the rest of the town, but this grey mare was built like a brick shithouse. Both her yellow mane and tail were braided in a way that seemed familiar, maybe like something I'd seen about vikings, and she carried herself with supreme confidence while also managing not to shatter everything she touched.

"Good afternoon, I'm Mack Streider," I tell her, holding a fist up. "But just call me Mack."

"Just call me Merry," she replied, giving my fist a bump.

Deciding not to question the introduction, I start looking at the menu in front of me. "I'm going to need a moment, you can start on her order while I figure out what I can actually eat on here."

"Was that a dig at my cooking?" She asked in a cold voice.

"Hell no!" I assure her hastily, ignoring the laugh from beside me. "I'm just not built for grass and flowers."

"If you say so... The usual, you fucking hyena?" She asks the mare besides me.

"Yes please, don't mind the laugh, you just don't get many ponies that'd even hint at not liking your food. It's usually the attitude!"

"Yeah, yeah. Keep laughing and I'll hide some dandelions in your omelette." She told the blue mare with an evil grin.

"You wouldn't dare?!" The quickly paling mare responded, "You know what those do to me!"

"Exactly, so don't give me a reason to do it." She then turned to me, "Just yell what you want when you figure it out."

"Fine, you're just no fun." Sapphire pouted as she replied to the cook's back.

Stifling a laugh at their antics, and from the fear of what that tank of a pony might do to me, I start looking over the menu in front of me. The fact that this was a coney-style dive became obvious immediately as I perused it, and the fact they served eggs was a godsend. And, like any good dive, they had chili dogs.

"So, uh, how do you guys make chili here? Can't say I've ever seen a chili recipe without meat in it."

The mare looked at me like I'd grown a second head. "Why would chili have meat in it?"

I'm sure I was giving her a funny look at this point as well. "How else would you make it thick and hearty?"

"Beans, if you know what chili is then you should know that."

"It's not my fault you've never had a proper chili in your life." I retort.

"Better hope Merry didn't hear that, she'd throw you out. If I'm lucky you'll land on The Mare's porch and not in the wall."

"Good point, and I'm curious as to what this'll taste like." Turning to the kitchen, I yell out, "Hey boss! Gimme a chili omelette with extra cheese!"

"Easily done, it'll be out soon!"

"Thanks boss." Turning back to companion, I add, "So, to sadly get back to important matters, you were saying that it was basically going to be impossible for me to get a job here?"

"Probably, but it won't hurt to ask around."

"You're not wrong there." I reply as we settle into a companionable silence as we waited on our food.

It wasn't long before Merry came back with our food, and a third plate that she'd brought out for herself.

"So what's the news Rose?" She asked as she took a seat.

"Nothing much, everypony's on schedule and Mack here is on a royal stipend until he gets on his hooves."

"Though that might be a little harder than I thought." I add between bites.

"Why's that? You're exotic." The cook asked.

"Because apparently all my life's work has been in mare's jobs."

"I never did ask you what you did for a living, so what was it?" Sapphire asked curiously.

"Nowadays I'm a foreman for a contractor that does the shutdown repairs and maintenance on the major pump stations across the country. Though I've done my fair share of the grunt work. I mostly helped build houses when I was younger."

"Not much construction going on around here, so I can see how that puts you in a bind. You could always go and see if Amethyst needs another miner." Merry told me.

"Do you think she'd hire him? She's got pretty strong opinions on where a stallion should be." Rose asked her friend.

"Maybe. It's not like he has anything to lose. Just make sure to tell me if she gets grabby, damn mare doesn't know how to keep her hooves to herself."

"Oh don't worry about me, I can take care of myself. Just tell me where to find the mare."

"She's probably out in the mines, but try her office first. Want me to take you there?" The blue mare questioned.

"Na, I got it. I saw it on the way in, it wasn't hard to guess what it was for. Thanks though, and give me a slip with my total on it Merry."

"I don't do IOU's, ya know." She replied grumpily.

"It's more of a royal reimbursement, so add that 20 percent tax for being a pain in the ass." I reply.

"Just this once. Next time bring some bits or your ass is mine." She growls back as she writes a total on a piece of paper

"Not a problem. Thanks again, both of you." I say as a farewell, standing up to make my way to the exit with a final wave to acknowledge their own farewells before adding one more thing before I made it out the door, "And that vegetarian chili tasted a hell of a lot better than I thought it would!"

There may or may not have been an inarticulate growl coming from the shop I was hastily retreating from. Hopefully she would take it as a joke and compliment.

There were a few ponies out and about, but most of them seemed to be at work, though I still got a few friendly waves on my way to the little outpost the miners had in town. It was an unremarkable building made of brick and stone, probably from the mine itself. Upon entering, a bell attached to the door announced my presence.

"You better not be coming to tell me those imbeciles managed to flood the tunnels again!" A harsh voice yelled from somewhere in the back.

"Nope, can't say that I know anything about that. Just came in to see if you needed an extra set of hands." I replied in the general direction of the voice.

"The fuck are hands?" A brown mare asked as she walked out of a small office in the back.

I waggled my fingers at her in response.

"Ah, the stallion that's got everypony riled up. Ain't got no use for wimpy stallions here."

"How about one that's a veteran construction worker?"

"Don't need those daft mares to mess up more shit because they want to impress the new 'stud'."

"Well that's a damn shame. Have a nice day ma'am." I told her as I turned around. Her only response was to return to her office with a flick of her orange tail.

With that turning out to be a total bust, I made my way back to the guard outpost to retrieve the rest of my gear.

To my surprise, Bright Spark was still there when I arrived.

"Good afternoon Lieutenant."

"Good afternoon Mr. Streider," she replied. "How can I assist you today?"

"I just wanted to get the paperwork done sooner than later and to get the rest of my gear back." I told the guard as I pulled the papers from my pocket."

"I appreciate it. Shouldn't take too long, and I'll put your gear on the table." The mare told me as she turned towards what I assume was an evidence locker.

"Thanks."

Turning my attention to the wonderful world of paperwork, I begin actually filling everything in. Whole lot of basic stuff, such as date of birth, hometown, country of origin, and physical attributes. At the very end, it asked for a description of my cutie mark. The thud of my gun and knife being set on the table interrupted my musing on the subject.

"Hey LT, what's a cutie mark?"

She looks at me like I'd grown an extra head, but answers the question. "The picture on our flanks. It symbolizes what our special talent is. I got mine when I helped lead a group of my friends when we got lost on a cave tour."

"Huh, well that's a thing. So what do I put since I'm not a magic pony with a mark?" I didn't really understand what a stylized burst of radiance had to do with anything, but I chalked it up to magic.

"Just write your race down, that's what the gryphons and minotaurs do."

"In that case I'm done." I tell her as I sit my pen down. "So do I get another little card or something waterproof?"

"I'll just cast a duplicate and preservation enchantment on it. The enchantment will draw power from you to fuel itself, but the amount magic needed is absolutely miniscule, so you don't have to worry about it ever exhausting you." She answered matter-of-factly.

"You do realize I don't have magic, right?" I respond with a raised eyebrow.

"How can you not have magic, everything has magic." Her eyebrow raised to match me.

"Everything on this world. Magic doesn't exist where I'm from." I tell her levelly.

"But how?" She blanches at the thought. "Nothing can live without magic."

"Nothing in this world," I correct her, "But fairly easily on mine, even if I don't know the science behind it."

"We'll just keep both copies here until we figure something out. The idea of not having magic of any kind is unsettling." The guard replied with a sigh.

"Sounds good to me, though I don't know how long I'll stay here if I can't find a job."

"That is a problem out here, isn't it? Maybe you should go to Canterlot. I'm sure you can find something there, and the Princesses would probably like to meet you."

"But not enough to visit the ass end of nowhere?" I ask with a smirk.

"Nope. You'd have to fuck up something fierce for that to happen." She replied with a straight face.

"Good to know, and I'll think on going to Canterlot." Looking at the clock, I noticed it was starting to get close to dinner. "It's been pleasant, but I think it's time I head off. I'll see you later."

"I'm sure I'll be seeing more of you as well. Be safe." The mare told me as a farewell.

"Thanks, I'll try." I reply as I stand up, attaching the reclaimed gear to my belt. As I got to the door, I had a final thought, and figured I might as well put say it out loud. "It was also nice seeing you be a little less stoic. I know you're a professional, but a man needs some social cues to work with."

My statement was met with a snort and nothing more, so I figured it was in my best interests to retreat. With that in mind, I debated on where to go from here. Merry might let me work for food, at the very least, but if I went to The Steel Mare I could use my tab and keep an ear open for someone who was looking to hire someone new. So the decision was great food with a chance of dismemberment, or alcohol and a chance at getting a job. Reaching into my wallet, I pulled out an old half-dollar coin my grandpa gave me, distant memories coming to mind at the sight. Figuring fate, or destiny, or whatever the hell they called it here had a plan for me, I gave it a flip.

Author's Note

So this took forever, and I'm sorry. Unfortunately, guilt-tripping doesn't work on me or all of this would likely be easier. Oh, and cliff hanger! Woo! If anyone has a particularly strong opinion, reply and there's a 50% chance I go your way.

As usual, this is self edited, so point out any fuck ups and I'll fix them at my earliest convenience.