Author's Note

Please let me know any mistakes I might've made. I want you to enjoy this as much as me.

A Casual Start... Right?

Wolfenheim, my home city. The capital of Lupina. It was also a carnivore’s paradise. Almost every street you turned onto had a butcher shop or delicatessen you could buy meat from. Now in my world, there were both feral and non-feral animals. I was non-feral. It may not make sense, but I’ve learned to accept it. Something to do with evolution where some species evolved into more intelligent, sapient creatures, while others lived on fully feral. Being carnivore simply meant I preferred to eat meat over anything else. Now, there were many that would prey on other evolved creatures, such as hares and deer. I, for one, despise it. I couldn’t stand the idea of feeding on a creature that could speak fully with me.

I was a lone wolf, no pun intended, when it came to hunting. Being part wolf, I was supposed to hunt in packs, but I liked to think my mother, who was a purebred fox, played a key part in my personality. I had quickly learned to be silent and stalk my prey before pouncing when I was within range. I always felt being alone helped me focus. The other wolves would always laugh at me when I went out to get food, constantly telling me that strength in numbers would be far better.

My fur was a deep orange, with nearly onyx black stripes all over. I had white fluff along my paws, around my chest, and at the tip of my fluffy tail. In my school years, many people nicknamed me “Tiger” because my coat looked like that of an actual tiger to a certain degree. While it didn’t bother me, I often forgot that they gave me this nickname, so many times I would forgot that they were talking to me when the said that name. Not that it matters now. Most of them have gotten full-time jobs, and we haven’t really spent much time together as of late.

Today was just a typical Friday afternoon, at least right now it was. I woke up at sunrise, took a hot shower, and got dressed. You know, the usual morning routine. I decided I was going to indulge a little bit today and grab some bacon-wrapped donuts. Don’t judge me, I know it sounds odd, but it’s not like I have to care what you think anyways. As far as I’m concerned, you shouldn’t even be reading my journal, but I can’t stop you now anyways.

I grabbed my phone and my earbuds, popping them in and heading out. Making sure to lock the door to my small home, I began listening to music as I walked down the street. I waved to a few neighbors, even pet some dogs that seemed to love more than they did their owners. Of course, what I wasn’t aware of at the time, was that my whole world was going to change in the matter of days.

One thing I’ve learned over the years was that our Kingdom was one of many, many on this world. Throughout schooling, I learned about the Gryphons, Abyssinian Cats, Egyptians, Dragons, and so on. However, probably one of the most dominating powers in the world was Equestria. Sounds cheesy, right? The residents, ponies as they called themselves, weren’t even that tall. They were like a perfect cross between ferals and us anthros, and the average ponies only stood at just past our waists! They didn’t have sharp teeth, fangs, claws, or anything of the sorts. No, they had magic. Sounds crazy, right?

I didn’t believe it the first time I heard about it, and laughed in class, along with everyone else. Even the professor smiled a bit. But apparently, the ponies were one of the first races on the planet. We can thank them for the fact that the sun and moon basically just sit in the sky, except at sunrise or sunset, where they just lower down and the other pops into the sky. I guess the two Princesses that rule over the empire in a diarchy can raise and lower the sun and moon.

Anyways, enough of a history lesson. Where was I? Oh, yes, I was walking down the street to the nearby cafe. As I approached the front doors, I looked off towards the ocean, where I noticed an unfamiliar airship resting in the docks.

“Odd,” I thought to myself. “I don’t recall there being any news about visitors to the capital. That airship looks really expensive, too…” Shrugging my shoulders gently, I just turned from it and headed inside the cafe.

“Jackson! I was wondering when you’d show up!” One of my best friends, Sheila, was behind the counter, her tail wagging at the sight of me. I couldn’t help but smile.

“Hey, Sheila. I slept in a bit later than normal today,” I smiled, walking up to the counter and leaned onto it.

The female husky I was honored to call one of my closest friends just gave me a toothy grin, leaning over and ruffling my hair. “Well, my day just got even better now that you showed up! It got rather quiet in here…” She noted, gesturing to the nearly empty cafe.

Following her gesturing paw, I blinked a few times, as if seeing a hallucination…. Or, actually, just simply going blind. This was one of the more popular cafes on this side of town, especially at this time of day.

Once I gathered my senses, and was more than certain I was not going crazy, I turn to Sheila. “So where is everybody?”

The look she then gave me made me immediately regret asking, as if I should’ve known the answer to my own question. She stared at me blankly for a moment, as if studying me, trying to see if I was serious. After a few moments, her flat look turned to an amused grin.

“By the Empress… You are clueless sometimes, you know that Jacks?” She giggled, knowing full well I hated it when she used the pet name for me whenever she though I did something “cute,” as she’d call it.

…. To those reading this, I’m not cute. And as a matter of fact, how you came into possession of my journal, I’d never know. But you shouldn’t read somebody’s private stuff.

I stared at Sheila, scratching the back of my neck. “Heh… Am I… forgetting about something important today…?” I asked hopefully, albeit being extremely worried that she’d think I was currently the dumbest being in existence.

She just rolls her eyes and waves a paw dismissively, but the smug grin allowed to see straight through her bull-shitting lie. “Oh, nothing really… Just some important embassy from a foreign group to try and make a treaty with us to establish trade and whatnot…”

Still drawing blanks, I wanted to slap myself a few times, but restrained. I knew I shut myself out at times, but was it really that bad?

“We’re a peaceful Empire, under the Empress’s rule, so who on Equus would we still need to establish trade with?” I asked, my head tilted to the side innocently.

Sheila let out a snort of annoyance and brought her paw to her face. Pinching the bridge of her snout just between her eyes, she shook her head. “Oh, just the most powerful race on the planet… The ones in charge of the sun, moon, and the cause of numerous “natural” disasters…? Ring any bells, Jackson?”

I stared forward, but my mind was elsewhere. She seemed relieved that I wasn’t responding, a surefire sign that I was figuring it out. However, at this point, I was lost to what was around me as I took the information presented to me and began piecing it with information I already knew of. My eyes widened as I blinked myself back to the present, the pieces of the puzzle falling together like a chess player who found the unbeatable strategy.

… Now that I think about it, I’m not sure how that analogy works, but I’ll let whomever is reading this interpret it as they wish. Not that anyone should be reading this.

“Y-You don’t mean…. The… ponies are here?!” I exclaimed hopefully.

The husky let out a loud giggle and clapped her paws in a teasing manner. “You did it! You figured it out!” Shaking her head, she smiled. “Yes, hun, the ponies sent over their fours princesses to sit with the Empress herself to hopefully establish peace and trade.”

My tail starts wagging on its own as I stared forward, a pup-like grin spreading across my muzzle. “How could I forget about something like that? It’s not like I’ve wanted to meet them and explore their lands or anything!!”

“Oh, is that so? It’s not like you’ve voiced these desires before.” Giggling, she turns and quickly gets my usual order prepared. This brings me back to the original reason why I stopped by, so I fished out my money, thinking to myself.

After a couple minutes, she comes back with my coffee and donuts, which I happily paid for. Smiling, I walked over and sat at a table, and Sheila came with me. There were two other workers, so if needed, they could cover for her, something they often did for each other anyways.

After a few minutes of silence, Sheila spoke up: “You do realize that if this works out smoothly, we’ll probably be getting more visitors of ponykind, and they’ll be seeing more of us, right? Which means it’ll be easier for you to get there…”

I swallow what was in my mouth and looked at her. But you do realize our Empress likes to take things slow. It could be months until this happens, and I’ve hit the perfect time in my life to go!”

“And what does that mean, that they’ll let you walk right onto that airship and take you over like everyone knows each other?” She looked at me curiously, seemingly noticing that I was once again in a deep thought process.

I stopped and looked at her, halfway into taking a bite. Slowly removing the delicious delicacy from my maw, I smirked. “Well… That’s not exactly what I had in mind…”

Sheila seemed to suddenly remember who she was talking to, because she slammed her paws down on the table, making me jump, and stood somewhat. She lifted a paw, followed by a short huff, and pointed accusingly at me.

“Don’t you even think about sneaking onto the airship! You’d get caught immediately!”

I just smirked and licked my lips, my tail wagging slightly. “You know me all too well, Sheila. You know I’m good at stealth, you can blame my mother for that one.”

“Ugh! You’re so difficult Jacks!” Standing up, she sighed. “Well, I know I can’t convince you otherwise, so assuming you don’t become a prisoner to the ponies, promise you’ll write from time to time?”

I smiled and nodded at her, hopping up and wrapping my arms around her and pulled her into our “casual,” yet typical, tight hug. She giggles into my ear and returns the hug, going as far as nuzzling my neck lightly. Something she knew that would make me blush. With another giggle, she pulled away.

“Just get outta here you crazy wolf…” She giggles and winks, turning back and heading to her spot behind the counter.

I blinked, my cheeks indeed a bit pink. Shaking my head, I wave. “Yeah, I’ll see ya later, Sheila!” And with that, I left the cafe, tossing my empty cup into the trash can on my way out. Stepping into the outdoors, I inhale deeply, before breaking into a job towards my home, motivation coursing through my veins as a million different thoughts flooded their way through my mind.

The trip home was rather uneventful, nobody I knew came out and said hello, and nothing in the streets distracted me. Once I had gotten home, I had grabbed a black duffel bag, stuffing about three outfits, some underwear, a couple books, my journal, and a hoodie. I assumed, given it was an airship that I was planning to sneak onto, it was going to get rather chilly once up in the air. I also grabbed the keys to my apartment, just in case I either failed at getting onboard, or somehow made it back home.

Not that I was expecting much success, but I’ve been planning to do something risky. My life has been so boring up to this point, and I wanted to say I’ve done something daring. I partially have Sheila to blame for this. She’s always been trying to push me out and do stuff, but I always came up with excuses to stay inside or whatever. I just happened to really like messing with all my tech stuff.

But anyways, back to tonight. The sun was getting low in the sky, so it was about time to put my plan into action. Not that there was much of a plan anyways. I began jogging through the streets, my duffel bag strapped tight against my bag. I was constantly looking around, listening for anything that could possibly give away information I would need to use to assist me.

However, the only details I heard revolving around the ponies was that they had a successful meeting with the Empress, and trade would commence soon. This made me feel a bit relieved, knowing that there wouldn’t be as much worry from either side.

It didn’t take me very long to come into view of the airship, and let me just say, it was magnificent. The propellers at the top of the ship, three in total, looked polished and cleaned. There was something else. I wasn’t sure what it was, but the airship as a whole seemed to give off some sort… power-like aura. Now, I wasn’t too up to date on other races, but I heard the ponies and their lands were just filled with “magic,” so I could only assume that’s what this was.

But anyways, I turned down a road, heading downhill. This area of the capital was more for smaller, lesser-known companies to set up business and whatnot. Of course, this area had a direct connection to the harbor, so I could only assume that the ponies came through here at one point. As the wind picked up, I pulled my hoodie tighter and marched onward, determined to get to the ship before they left.

Of course, with my luck, nothing ever goes to plan. But where’s the fun in that, anyways?

As I walked, I heard a faint metal clanging up in front of me, just outside of an alleyway. As I slowly approached, I noticed what appeared to be a dark, bluish-grey metal helmet lying on the ground. However, it looked odd. It wasn’t the shape of any species I had known, and was much too small to be of any use for a canine like myself. I bent down to pick it up, and that’s when I heard the most heart-wrenching sound ever.

“SCREEEEEE--MPH!”

The only sound to echo through the night, a muffled screech? Odd, never heard a canine make that kind of noise. But it sounded distressed, and leave it to me to leave somebody to their demise if I could do anything about it.

…

That didn’t really come out right, but I was too lazy to fix that. Whatever, you shouldn’t be reading this anyways.

My ears suddenly picked up on a commotion from the alleyway, and upon peaking my head into the dark corridor-like space, I barely made out a few forms in the end of the hallway. With a sigh, and curiosity peaking, I set my bag and the helmet into a little spot on the wall that was set in father than anywhere else, and out of sight to a common passerby. Grabbing a small metal bar, about a foot long, I twisted the end, and a moderate blade, about 18 inches long, protruded from one end.

Just to be safe, mind you. I could be walking into a trap and be mugged or something. Not common, but still a likelihood.

I nearly screamed in anger at the sight that came before me. As I crept closer, the dim light of the moon showed me a horrific scene. Before me, were three male dogs, backing a figure, which I presumed was the source of the screech, into a corner. Her dark blue fur almost blended into the night, and I noticed rope around her midsection. Definitely an equine, but different, somehow. Tied to her sides were what I assumed to be wings, but they looked like bat wings, not the feathery one of ponies I was told of. A closer look showed me a terrified gaze from the pony-like creature, her bright orange cat-like eyes shining brightly from the lighting, despite her fearful look.

Her muzzle was tied shut too! That must’ve been what muzzle that screech. As I approached the group of three, I noticed one licking his lips, his rough voice making my ears twitch.

“Oh shut it, you stupid horse… You’ll be begging for more when we’re done! Besides, there’s nothing to stop us anyways… You and your stupid princesses don’t even belong here! We’ll take that flank of yours and make it ours~” With that, he took a closer step forward.

I let out a low growl at all this, loud enough for all four creatures in the alley to freeze and look at me. I had the blade carefully hidden behind me. The first canine snarled in annoyance, looking to his compatriots.

“Deal with this hooligan. Make sure he doesn’t say anything about any of this.”

The two others, who seemed oddly quiet, turned. One pulled out a combat knife and the other just cracked his knuckles. This was one of those few times where I was actually thankful to my fucked-up, deceased father. He taught me combat skills as a form of self-defense, and they saved my sorry butt a few times. Here’s another, I suppose.

As the one with the knife approached me first, he growls. “Leave and never speak of this, or we’ll track you down.”

You smirked. “And if I don’t, you’ll just hurt me, or worse, kill me?” I said in a mocking tone. “I wouldn’t be a very good hero if I let you have your way with this innocent creature.”

The third piped up. “HAH! Innocent? They’re trespassing on our lands, and expecting us to just cooperate! Innocent is something she is not!”

This time, the leader stopped. “And they really think the empress will do something with them!!” He roars into laughter, making my nerves go on end.

With a loud growl, I slashed at the closest guys knees. I winced at the blow, since I hated violence, but knew this was the only way to save the poor mare’s life.

… Mare? That’s what you call a female equine, right? Eh, I’d figure it out eventually either way.

I watched at the look of pain went through his body, and with a howl, he dropped the knife and fell to the ground, whining like a bitch and gripping at his cut legs. The brute, while unarmed, lunged at me. His body was massive, and could have probably crushed me in an instant -- had I not bounced to the side. With a flick of my wrist, the blade swung back behind me, slicing his tail clean off.

My ears flinched just as I heard a loud growl. Jerking my head to the side, I had just enough time to see the glint of metal as the leader tackled me against a dumpster, knocking the wind out of me. My blade dropped to the ground as he reached back with a knife in his paw, ready to strike. As air slowly crept its way into my lungs, I jerked to the right as he swung, the blade grazing my cheek and slamming into the plastic cover of the dumpster.

With a hiss of pain, I kicked him off of me, reaching up to my cheek. I whined as my touch stung, and I could feel the bare skin from where he sliced my furs. I pulled back my paw, seeing it red with blood. A long growl bellowed out of me, and I grabbed the knife from the dumpster and, without hesitation, threw it into the leader’s shoulder.

Huffing, and covered in sweat, I was thankful for my hoodie still being up over my head. I grabbed my weapon, retracted the blade, before marching over to the dog leader. I knelt before him, forcing him to make eye contact.

“I don’t want to ever catch you doing this again, ya here?” Simply to prove a point, I twisted the knife in his shoulder, making him howl with pain.

“O-Okay, you sadistic freak! J-Just let me go!”

I let out a growl and stand up. He wasted no time in jumping up, and running off, the brute carrying the injured thug out along with them.

I stood there, panting, dropping to my knees at the sight of all the blood we had caused. I would’ve stayed there, if a soft whimper behind me hadn’t brought me from my thoughts. I look back to see the pony still bound. I got up and approached her, but she backed up, tears in her eyes.

“H-Hey, easy there… I won’t hurt you, I promise…” I said in the calmest voice I could muster. I bent down, and grabbed my own weapon, pulling it back out to cut her ropes. She whimpered loudly, but I held out my other paw. “I won’t cut you… Just trust me…”

Thinking quickly, I slowly reached forwards with my empty paw. Her eyes fixated on it as I got closer. I slowly rested it against her head, and I felt her body tense up. Slowly, I reached over and gave her ear a soft scratch. I was surprised to hear a soft purr from the mare, as her body slowly relaxed.

“Are you ready…?”

She stared at me, nodding softly. Nodding with her, I reached forward and pull the ropes from her muzzle, then cut the one from her midsection. She immediately unfurled her leathery wings, flapping them and seemingly stretching them. She slowly stood, staring at me. Eventually, she spoke.

“....Why?” Is all she said.

“Hmm? Me?” I looked at her in confusion, tilting my head as I stood up.

She snorts. “No, the unicorn behind you. Yes, you! Why’d you save my life?” She almost growled, walking to a corner where a pile of armor, which seemingly matched the helmet, was lying scattered on the floor of the darkened alleyway.

I blinked. “Wow… Not even grateful? I saved your life because it was the right thing to do!” I snarled back, turning to simply walk away.

However, the lack of movement in my peripheral vision made me slow down. Turning back once more, I see her staring up at me in silence. “I’ve only seen hostility in your kind. From what I’ve heard, your kind lives off of the ideals that everyone is expected to support themselves, and only the strong make it,” she says, looking at me with a hint of what I assumed was… curiosity? Maybe confusion. I wasn’t sure. I’ve never been very good at reading facial expressions.

I shrugged. “Um, yeah, that sounds about right. I think it’s a bit on the stupid side, but it’s how I was raised.” In fact, it was more truthful than not, what with my father having been an ex-militant for the previous Empress and her Crusades. Drove his mental state through the floor, too.

A hiss of annoyance brought me out of my distracted thoughts, and I looked down in curiosity. “Hmm?”

“Where did those bastards put my helmet?!” She growled, flapping her wings as she floated into the air to look around.

I blinked, then smiled. “It’s over here! They kicked it out into the street, I think…” I ran over to the helmet and grabbed it, taking it over to her. She snatched it from me, nodding at me as she slipped it on over her head.

“Um, thanks. Now I gotta go before I get in trouble for disappearing from Her Royal Highness Princess Luna’s side.” She then took off down the alley.

As I watched her fly off, I grabbed my bag and slung it over my shoulder. If that was how these ponies were going to act, then I was in for a wild adventure. Though the thought intrigued me all the more. With a smile on my muzzle, I made sure my hood was still on before trekking down the street towards my destination.