Advent Of A Gunslinger

Across the continent in Caninia…

Thanks to a strong teleportation ritual, Zula had managed to transport herself across the continent within less than a day. Of course, she wasn’t going to approach the capital of where the Diamond Dogs came from. No--instead, she appeared in a location that was adjacent to it by about five-hundred meters.

A desolate area filled with scrap metal and other materials. Somewhat similar to Klugetown, this area could be considered a massive junkyard where a group of Diamond Dogs lived--isolated from the civilized ones within the kingdom.

The abyssinian approached one of the many scrap yards and knocked on the metal doors. “It’s me. You know who I am.”

With a rusty, metallic screech, the doors would slowly open up and allow the abyssinian to step inside. As she walked, she could hear a few guttural growls and feel the sensation of many observant eyes, ears and noses that were fixated on her position.

“Hmph. It’s like I’m a mouse that’s stepped into a lion’s den. How quaint.”

Despite this, she wasn’t afraid in the slightest. Zula had her sights set on one area of the junkyard and one area alone: A small building made out of a boat’s scrap metal mixed in with various shards of gemstones.

She walked inside, and came to a halt upon seeing various burly dog men at the tables. “Ahem...does anyone know where I can find Kolasi?”

The dog men fell silent and pointed to a door at the far end of the room. If anyone actually knew that name, they knew it was serious business.

Zula carried on and approached the metal door. “Kolasi? You here?”

An aggressive, yet feminine voice came from the other side. “Who wants to know?”

“You know who I am. Now let me in. I have a business proposition for you and would like to make a trade.”

“Trade, eh? Alright…” The door opened up...and standing there was a rather short and pudgy diamond dog woman. Standing at only four feet tall but with the proportions of an adult one, she was clearly suffering from a case of dwarfism. But make no mistake--she was the oldest one there. She had dark brown fur and wore a simple white t-shirt to cover herself with no pants on underneath. “Whatcha got for me, kitty-girl?”

The Alpha

Zula stepped into the room, and reached into one of her pockets. “Something that you’ll definitely like.” She pulled out what appeared to be a key.

“Hot-damn…” Kolasi replied, “Is that…?”

“The key to the Caninian Federal Reserve?” Zula said with a smirk, “Absolutely. And it’s all yours...if you do a little something for me.”

The diamond dog leader was in no position to refuse such a great offer. So she conceded. “...What’s your price?”

Meanwhile, in Klugetown…

Since Rongu was in charge while Zula was gone, he had started to make a few changes to the plans that had been laid out for the nurses working under his command.

And once his efforts had borne fruit, he was approached by one of them in his office.

“Sir. Spitha’s mother has arrived in Klugetown,” said the nurse, “Shall I bring her to you?”

The dragon trilled to himself with a satisfied expression, “Mmm--yes. Do so as soon as you can. Oh and one other thing...our neighbor is a lizard woman named Lexi. Bring her here as soon as possible as well.”

“Really?” The nurse’s tail flicked. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

Rongu got up from his desk. “I’m sure. I know what I’m doing. You just make sure your part of the job gets done.” With that, he turned and walked out of his office and towards the lift that led to the mines where ponies toiled tirelessly away for Aion crystals. “...You’ll understand what it means to feel pain soon, Spith. You should never have left me.”

Meanwhile, in Panthera…

Mio, Spitha, and the rest of their group were preparing to set off for Klugetown thanks to a carriage being drawn by a pair of earth pony stallions.

“Alright,” Mio said as he sat down within the back seat next to Spitha. “Our mission is a simple capture order for Rongu. We don’t need to do anything crazy like try and take them all on in one day.”

Spitha nodded in response. “Makes perfect sense to me, dear. I just hope we don’t have to fight our way through a bunch of those crazy nurses that you’ve told me about…”

“Pffft,” the tom scoffed, “Don’t fret over that. They’re pushovers. Our real conflict stems from the big dragon man himself. Despite his egotistical nature, he is no pushover…”

“Are you sure you want to do this, Mio?” Spitha gently placed her right claw on Mio’s head and pet him, even going as far as scratching behind his ears. “...It could be dangerous. And I couldn’t forgive myself if I saw you get hurt again.”

The tom purred, and actively nuzzled into her claw. “We each have the same goal, but we’re fighting for different reasons. You want justice for the deceptions you’ve been subjected to for the last five years and to save the innocent ponies that have been caught in this mess.”

“...Yes,” the dragon woman replied, “That is correct.”

“And I want to do the same--albeit for my own reasons,” he broke eye contact and looked outside of the carriage’s window to take another glimpse at the prosperous city of Panthera. “I want Klugetown to end up just as safe and happy as this place. It’s overrun with disgusting amounts of hatred and vile people who don’t want anything to get better. The children living there are unable to live a proper childhood or have a life devoid of conflict…” He looked downwards. “Believe me...I know what that’s like.”

Spitha fell silent for a moment as she thought about the conflicts and perils that Mio had endured throughout his life. The tom had seen the true horrors of war and had been on the receiving end of many personal attacks, and yet he allowed none of it to corrupt him or change him for worse.

The dragon woman made a mental note to herself. “No matter what happens, I’m going to make sure we win, sweetie. You deserve this more than I do.”

She shot him a kind smile. “...I’ll do what I can to help the rest of your life turn out for the better, okay?”

“...Thank you, Spitha,” he replied with a wide smile as his ears wriggled, “That means a lot to me.”

Their conversation would be interrupted by Leona who addressed them from the front row seat of the carriage.

“Are you two, ready?” said the combat medic, “It shouldn’t take us more than an hour or two to arrive in Klugetown from here. Once we’re near, our pony friends will stop and turn back, leaving us to travel on foot the rest of the way. Got it?”

“Understood,” Spitha replied, “Good thinking to keep our kind drivers safe.”

“Absolutely,” Mio added, “This is something I am choosing to do for myself and for that city.”

“Alright then…” Leona turned around. “We’re off.”