A Roegadyn in Equestria

A Roegadyn in Equestria.

Chapter 38: His Bark is Worse Than His Bite. Part 2.

*Point of view: Third Person*
*Location: Open area, West of the Everfree Forest*
*Time: Just past Noon*

It didn't take long for the train to come to a stop on the part of the tracks that would have placed it near to them. The passengers disembarked after there was a loud gush of hot air being released as the train was parked. Typically, it would always stop at a station, so this meant there was quite a small drop from exiting. However, it would seem that the train was already configured to have an emergency fold out ramp just underneath the door which was just flipped.

Within moments, a group of maid’s and butler's, all of the mare variety came marching out. This was soon followed with Fancy Pants and Fleur De Lis as well, who were bringing up the rear. Brex had to shake his head at seeing how formally dressed they were, seeing as they were out in the middle of a field. Fancy Pants was wearing one of his usual business suits and Fleur De Lis was wearing a sundress and a hat that was similar to the one that she wore the other day while going out.

Ryu sat back in his chair he steeped his hand in the table, while Thalya kept trying to snuggle up to him.

Brex and Ryu were quickly spotted and the small group began to make their way over to them. As soon as they had gotten within twenty meters. Did the group stop in place and the Maid’s and Butler’s all took up a defensive stance while eyeing the succubus demons with weary eyes.

When seeing this, Brex waved his right hand over his head and called out, “Don't worry about them. They belong to my associate over here that I told you about.” When he said this, he was now pointing over to both Ryu and the dark elf Thalya, who was sitting next to him that could still be seen snuggling.

Ryu wave his hand as he said to them, “Please everyone, take a seat, I'm am called Warden. A pleasure to meet you.”

The group cautiously looked at Ryu before their eyes rested on Brex to get some form of affirmation. To this, the Roegadyn in disguise waved his hand in a motion that said come on, along with a nod. This was enough to get them to lower their guard and proceed further.

When they were about five or six feet away from the table. Fancy Pants was the one to come forward to say. “Ah, how nice to finally meet you. I do apologize for our manners. I hope you can understand our weariness when it comes to...” He had let that sentence draw on as he motion towards the pair of Succubi.

After giving a small cough. He continued on with, “Oh, and where are my manners. This is my fiancée, Fleur De Lis and our guards. I do hope that it is not a problem that we brought them along. Can't be too safe while near the Everfree after all, now can we.”

Brex waved off the concern and began to say, “It's alright. Also, you don't need to be so stiff around him. He already knows about Fleur De Lis’s family.”

This caused all an attendance on the side of Fancy Pants, to go wide eyed in shock. It was one of the maids that came forward and ask, “We will respect that the Lord knows who to disclose Information about our hive. If you believe he can be trusted, then we will as well.”

Ryu was the next to speak up and said, “Well, I know about a great deal. But everything needs to eat. I have many mouths to feed as you can see here. I have omnivores, hemovores, animavores, and emotionvores as you can see. Now, he said you were interested in my drink and Gobblers.” One the Succubi carried a Gobbler to the table.” Ryu then asked, “Gambit, do you want to hand the mugs over so the other one can fill it?”

Brex nodded to that and got up from his seat and approached the other Succubi. That was when he slowly waved his hand several inches above the table and a mug would appear where it was previously until it moved on to the next spot. Brex only stopped when he got to fifteen in total.

When he had placed the last one down, did he motion to the servers and said, “Wouldn't be right if they didn't get to have a drink either.” Ryu nodded and said, “That is fine with me. Now everyone, enjoy as we discuss business.”

Fancy Pants was the next to speak up as he asked, “Sir Gambit has already informed us that you have both these... I'm sorry, they're called Gobblers, correct? Are a species of fowl that can reproduce at an accelerated rate compared to chickens and would no doubt prove to be a viable source of meat when it comes to export and import.”

He then began to fix his monocle before continuing with, “Then there's the beverage that could be sold alongside liquor. From what he has said, “It can take on the taste of something you like, while at the same time, preventing you from becoming intoxicated fully. I personally can see that going very well for stallions that don't wish to become…” The Unicorn coughed once before finishing with, “Easy targets as you will say, when going to a bar.”

Ryu chuckled a bit before replying with, “Yes, I can have these facilities up in a matter of days. And as any Changeling will note, they have no emotions. Not even those of even basic survival instinct. So, it will be easier too not have a public outcry and say that they are hurting animals at the farm. People like that make me mad, everything has the right to food.”

Both Fancy Pants and Fleur De Lis scrunched up their muzzles in confusion at the word, People. Before they could so much as ask to what that word meant. Brex chimed in and said, “It's a broad term for all. At one time, it was commonly used, but seems to have fallen out of practice. Please, don't pay no mind to it.” He then turned his masked face directly towards Ryu at the end of that.

The Roegadyn then went on to say, “Although, I do see that as something that would come up from time to time. However, with what was just mentioned, that could be debunked with a few simple tests for these nay sayers that would try to cause an uproar.”

Ryu then spoke up in a rather annoyed tone when he said, “Ugh, don't remind me of pony's blatant racism, it runs so deep. That it tells me they have both a superiority complex and an inferiority complex at the same time. You don't see the other races say, every-griffon or every-dragon. I'm about ready to do my job if they keep it up. Anyway, sorry for the rant, I have a problem with racists. But is there anything you want to know about me Fancy, Fleur?”

When the pair was asked that question, they began to look at one another with a questioning look. Then Fleur De Lis was the first to speak up when she asked. “I can see just what it is you mean when it comes to how we phrase that particular saying.” She then released out a small sigh before she continued with, “I too would have to say I have a problem with it myself. Considering we Changelings are not technically ponies.”

She then glanced over at the others that had accompanied herself and her fiancé before going on. “And I do know how the other races don't refer to themselves as such. But hearing you say the word people. I take it that there is more than one type of species from where you are from. If so, then it must mean, with our Lord here knowing of the phrase, would imply that you both hail from the same, if not similar countries?”

Ryu responded to that question with, “Nope, not even close. It’s a term used everywhere that is not the pony lands and that is the problem. The ponies are so insulated, they don't even know that basic info outside in the world.”

“Even crime lords from where I’m from, give them the bare minimum of this respect and ponies. It’s a wonder why none of the other kingdoms would deal with them. But it will take time to fix it, you have to and I do mean having to remove the racists with power. leave them with nothing. I'm going to quote someone here; villainy never knows itself.”

Brex was the next one to speak as he said, “This also brings me to one of the other things I want to start. It refers to helping with this, racist concept of excluding other races. Not just with the terms used in wording, but how we interact with non-ponies. There are Minotaur’s and Griffins all over the place, even if you don't see them that often. In fact, I believe that one reason that this is the case, is due to how they are treated badly.”

All in attendance that were a part of the group with Fancy Pants nodded in agreement. The Unicorn stallion then said, “I hate to say it but... You are quite correct. Sometimes I'm ashamed of being a pony myself with all the bigotry I have witnessed. Relations with other countries have not been good as of late. At one time, when the monsters showed up, we were willing to send aid, but now… We ponies are left to fend for ourselves and it has been difficult.”

That was when he reached over and held onto his fiancée’s hand and clenched it tightly as he went on to say. “Perhaps I'll take on saying people, as a way to at least start the trend among the higher class. Who knows, it might even catch on. The problem however would be the princess, seeing as she always uses that term. But that can be set aside for another day. We have other businesses to talk of. You mention that you can have these structures built within a few days. I'm quite interested in how you can accomplish such a feat.”

Ryu replied with saying, “I have skilled builders that need no food, sleep, or water. They can have the building done in hours and we can have it operating in days. Oh, and it was so funny how Celestia reacted to my gift. Br- Gambit knows what happens if I have to do my job. I hope you are successful.”

Fleur De Lis was the next to speak up when she asked, “Gift? You helped with bringing a gift to the princess?” This was obviously directed to Brex, as she was looking straight at him with newfound interest with what was just mentioned.

Obviously not being ready to be put on the spot the way he had been. Brex ended up answering in a very, unsure tone. “Yes, you remember how I mentioned having business within the castle when I happened to meet Blue Blood? That was what I was there for. You see, it may have been the reason for that late sunrise the other day...”

Ryu had burst out laughing and said, Yea! Tia needs to lighten up. But she got punished for one of her many deeds. I will not say what, but it also let her hear a voice she has not heard in a long time. But is there anything else you wish to know?”

Fancy Pants was the next to speak up as he asked, “Well, I see how the construction will be handled. But what I have to ask is. What compensation and revenue are you interested in. It would be safe to assume that a large amount would go to you. Seeing as, not only are you providing the product, but the structure as well.”

Ryu responded by saying, “Well, bits to me are worthless. I could always use raw materials such as iron, stone, wood. Oh, and magic books would do good for compensation.”

The stallion tapped his chin a few times while adopting a thinking pose. After a moment or two, he replied after snapping his fingers. “I believe such an arrangement could be managed. Now when it comes to the books, are you referring to the knowledge itself or the rarity of the tome? I'm sure that we can come to an arrangement. From what I can see, you most likely are in no need of bits. Just as you have mentioned.”

However, before he could even go on any further, his fiancé was the next to speak up as she asked quickly. “Oh, I have a question. It's obvious that you're a Diamond dog, but could you tell me just what he happens to be?” At the end, she was pointing one of her index fingers towards Brex while giving him an all-knowing smirk. She also went on to say, “I have asked him once yesterday, but he didn't want to tell me.”

Ryu then said, “I could, but I won't. It's his business. but I'm not a Diamond dog. Just like you, I am a mix of races. Thirteen races, to be exact. And I want books with spells, their theories and anything else that’s a given to those magic arts.”

Again, all of them were surprised to hear that what they thought was a Diamond dog, turned out to be something that had a mix with so many other races.

Letting out what could have only have been a relieved sigh. “Brex turned towards the Unicorn mare and said, “I told you before. I will show my face when I feel ready.” He then turned his attention towards Ryu and asked, “And as for you, I would suggest not surprising them too much. I already have worries about their eyes being permanently damaged with how much I do it.” This only caused all of them to begin to blush sheepishly as they averted their eyes from him.

The Wolfman then said, “Then you need to stop holding back information, my friends know what I am. The longer you wait, the harder it will be. I told you how it will go, just talk with her in private. It will go a long way to resolve your issue, I'll even go with you. You need to get closure.”

Brex could only shake his head lightly Before he started to raise his right index finger to motion that he was about to say something. However, fate on the other hand, wanted its chance and barged into the conversation.

From just beyond the trees to the Everfree forest, came an ear-splitting screech that caused the mugs on the table to rattle in place. Even a few of the Changelings ended up covering their ears for some means of protection.

From right above the tops of the trees, came flying out a figure that closely resembled a Griffin. However, it then took on a dive bomb move and exited the tree line and was now speeding towards the group.

As it drew closer, it became apparent that it was no Griffin, but a deformed pony with bird like features such as clawed legs and their front hands having only four digits and sharp, long claws. Much of their body was clothed, but had feathers sticking out through the openings and a pair of large, overly sized wings that had a mix of colors consisting of white and green mixed in.

Ryu quickly draws out Valkyrie, letting off a flurry of shots. Thalya looked pissed at the interruption of her cuddles. She brought her staff to bare as all the shadows all-around came to life. A flood of shadows erupted towards the attacker, but only a few could reach the attacker's height. The Succubi rush over to the Fancy Pants group and used some of their magic to snap them out of the shock of the event.

The apparently deformed pony was attempting to evade a number of the shots being fired, with only a few grazing the feathers. However, one did hit dead in the center of its chest, but instead of inflicting any damage, there was a resounding metal upon metal sound that echoed loudly. But it seemed that the initial impact had caused it to back off and had taken a higher altitude that made it at least three times compared to that of before.

It would seem that the others had finally snapped out of it due to the Succubi's efforts. Fancy Pants was the first to exclaim while pointing at the unknown attacker, “Just what in Equestria is that Monstrosity?!”

Brex was the next to speak up as he pointed towards the train and called out, “All to the train, get inside. Stay away from the windows if you can. Don't want to take the chance of that thing's noise causing them to shatter on your faces!”

He then focused on it and brought up the status bar to see just what it was they were up against. Within a second, the health bar was displayed and showed the following.

Name: Garuda.

Class: Primal.

Level: 20.

Difficulty Level: High.

He then turned towards Ryu and said, “I think that's a primal. I'm getting the name Garuda and its only level twenty. It's obviously weaker compared to the last one.”

When he heard that, Ryu responded with saying, “Oh, that's all? You keep them safe, I got this. Decipher the laws of magic, let the sins of Icarus weigh on your soul, Plummet!” Garuda lost control of her wings. She kept falling to the ground at an accelerated pace. When she hit the ground, she landed on one of her wings and we heard a snapping sound. When Garuda had hit the ground, she was getting swarmed by shadows. The Succubi followed Fancy Pants’s group in the train, being noncombatants.

As the primal was being swarmed. There was a notable build-up of green light that was shining through the gaps. Within seconds, the tendrils of shadows were blasted away. This was quickly accompanied by a storm of half-hazardly aimed feathers.

One of which, had managed to reach all the way back to the tree line and broke a larger tree near its base with the amount of force and speed that it was launched with. The other feathers however, either impacted on dirt, thereby bearing themselves deep underground.

While some just flew in random directions. A few had even impacted on the side of the train car and had board holes clean through, but luckily none of the passengers or the engine were damaged. Brex himself had to pull out one of his daggers to deflect one of the feathers and it had nearly knocked him off his feet. But there were a few that were on a direct path for both Ryu and the dark elf Thalya.

Ryu pulled out a bottle that was recognized as something that the hero Singed would have and he took a big swig. Red, smoky mist started to come off of him. He moved with an insane amount of speed. Then, he brought out a syringe and inserted a needle into his arm and he got even faster.

At this point, one could hear a bone-chilling howl and he was now moving like a blur. Ryu was all of a sudden at the Primal, attacking at such speeds that it was hard to follow with the naked eye. Thalya had a huge magic force that was being cast at the feather coming at her and when they met, it turned to ash. Thalya then started on blasting the Primal with her staff.

It appeared that the combination of high speed, physical attacks from Ryu. Along with Thalya's fiery magic attacks, were wearing down the Primal. As her body was being cut and bashed, what clothing it had, along with a number of feathers were being burned away.

The Primal then let out another ear-piercing screech and swung one of its arms towards the Wolfman and struck him in the side of the head. As soon as it had done this, it spun on the spot and slashed at his guts with its right leg, which had three long, black bird talons coming out of it and manage to draw quite a bit of blood as it passed across his body.

It threw up both of its arms and it's one good wing towards the sky and called forth a mighty gust of wind that began to circle its body and acted as a barrier against the dark elf’s onslaught.

During this time, it appeared that its feathers were beginning to come in rapidly and the broken wing was beginning to straighten out. It didn't go unnoticed with how there was a barely noticeable stream of lights filling the air that were being pulled towards the primal in the direction of the forest, near where that one tree was knocked over.

Ryu kept his assault up, his wounds sealing shut fast. During this, he called out to the elf and gave out an order, “Thalya! Go check out that light!” When she heard that, she rushed over to the forest. What she found was a three meters wide, rectangular crate with a smashed lid that was revealing it to be full of crystals. Thalya then used her magic to remove the tree and pushed the crate into a portal that she had just opened with the use of her magic, cutting off the Primal from the crystal.

Even with Ryu still not relenting and constantly striking over and over again. It appeared that the more vital sections of Garuda’s body, which consisted of the abdomen and chest, were being guarded by a piece of black armor that was on the verge of bursting off with how the Primal was slowly growing in size.

By the time that Thalya had gotten the power source that was feeding the primal out of there, a considerable amount of damage had already been undone. Garuda was now twice her size and was able to stand nearly a foot taller than Ryu.

(Here is the Primals form after healing.)

Name: Garuda.

Class: Primal.

Level: 27.

Difficulty Level: Very High.

The pony like features that were visible before, we're long gone and now stood what could undeniably be the Primal of wind. When this had happened, Brex called out to the pair fighters and said, “Be careful! Now her level raised and she's fully healed. She's at level twenty-seven!”

Ryu grunted out as he said, “Great, then cover your ears! Let my voice, Thunder!” Ryu's voice amplified before he continued with, “let my voice Boom!” Thalya, knowing what he was doing, had already put up a soundproof barrier. Ryu was gathering a huge amount of air into him as he started to howl point-blank at Garuda. I wave of ghostly energy was pushed out of his now howling maw.

Even with fully restoring itself, the Primal was quite literally getting an earful from the Wolfman in front of it. A booming voice that could have put Canterlot's royal one to shame came out. The force not only threw the Garuda back into the air, but had dislodged a number of feathers and even began to crack the hard body armor that it was currently wearing.

Garuda attempted to shield itself with not only its wings, but magic to condense the wind. But those were pushed aside easily with the sudden concussive force being produced.

Within the time it took for that one attack to be launched by Ryu. Only two or three seconds had gone by. Garuda’s form was now vibrating to the intense frequency and had locked up all of its joints. The black and eyes suddenly shot open and within an instant, her entire form erupted, seeing as its body could no longer contain the unwanted vibrations being caused by the destructive howl.

Instead of there being blood, guts and other types of gore like material. The parts simply turned into condensed vapors of Aether and dispersed through the air until there was nothing left.

Ryu's ears were folded and was clearing showing signs of server discomfort as he was now muttering, “Ow!” Thalya popped her bubble a rush over to him, but only touching him enough to be able to get his attention.

All of those who were inside of the train, started to file out when the commotion had ended. Fancy Pants was currently fiddling with his ears when he said, “Oh my! And here I thought the princess had a loud voice. That sure beats her from what I heard the other day.”

The others were in apparently the same shape as they were either picking their ears in an attempt to hear again or flicking them nonstop. Brex was the next to speak when he called out in a loud voice, “What! What's that about priceless beats... No thanks! Not hungry!” As those words escaped his lips, the Roegadyn was slamming the side of his gloved hand on the right side of his head to knock whatever it was messing with his ears loose.

Ryu was pushing into Thalya as she was petting him and his fur was slowly changing from his normal black, to that of a cobalt blue. Small whimpers were currently escaping him.

It took a few moments for Brex to finally regain some of his hearing and heard the distressed sounds coming from his displaced partner. After rushing over, he changed it to his White mage class and this caused his outfit to undergo a shift from his usual yellow attire, to that of his white robes with the red trim.

Immediately, a series of cure spells, along with the Esuna spell for clearing status anomalies was used on Ryu. While in the middle of rendering aid, the others watched what was happening from a respectful distance.

When the series of treatments were completed, Brex asked just above a whisper as to not cause any more discomfort than what was necessary. “OK, that's all I can do. You're fully healed. But I don't know what the damage did to your ears.”

He then turned towards Thalya and said, “Make sure you keep an eye on him. If that hurt us all as badly as it did from just an indirect hit, then I don't want to know what he went through with those sensitive ears of his.”

Thalya kept petting Ryu as she said, “Thanks for healing him, but he is not in control right now, this is Dread.” She has a softer tone than normal and pointing to Ryu. She then went on to say, “This happens when he gets unstable, one of the other personalities will take over for a bit.”

“Dread is sorrow and fear. What helps define Dread is his favorite color is blue and he is nothing more than a scared child like this.” Brex could hear whimpering coming from him as Thalya continued with, “What he needs is to rest.” She opened the portal and was slowly helping Dread into it. The dark elf then finished with, “Come along, he will want to talk when he wakes up. But it is not surprising this happened after what happened in Zaun.”

Brex quickly asked Thalya in a lower volume, as to not get the attention of the others. “What about them, should we bring them along? Their train is beaten up, nevertheless, they can still ride it. It’s just with seeing what just happened, I'm not sure about leaving them alone.”

Thalya responded by saying, “Ryu would not mind. You can give them a tour, whatever you want. I'll let you know when he is back up and ready.” She said all of this while already in the middle of walking through the portal.

While looking over his shoulder, Brex motions with his left arm to approach. All of the Changelings, along with the two Unicorns were gawking at the black spiral portal that was created and the pair that had already gone through.

When they got close enough, Brex began to say, “Everything seems to be OK, for now. However, with the way your train looks, I would very much be opposed to you going back in it right now.” He then gestured towards the portal with his right hand as he continued on with, “That last attack took a lot out of them and he needs to rest. This portal leads straight to his dwelling.”

“It would be a good idea to go there and wait for him to get back on his feet. In fact, you can have the train start heading back right now. I'm sure we can find you another means of getting you all back to Canterlot.”

This got them all to look at one another, clearly unsure as to what to do. Soon their eyes rested on the portal and they slowly nodded. Fancy Pants was the one to speak up as he said, “I do believe that would be a prudent course of action. Our conveyance does seem quite... Unreliable at the present. It does resemble Swiss Cheese more than a functional locomotive now.”

Brex then turned to one of the Changeling maids and asked, “Could you send a message to your sisters that are with Blaze Caster and tell them to hold on and keep an eye on the kid until we get back?” This got him a quick nod from the Changeling before her horn lit up for a few seconds. Afterwards she said, “It has been done my Lord.”

With it seemingly taken care of. He then ushered them all to go through with him being the last to enter. As soon as he had stepped through, he had nearly bumped into Fleur De Lis. Apparently, they had all stopped just a few paces from the portal's entrance and had their mouth nearly hitting the floor, while their eyes were bugging out at the site in front of them.

(Here is a picture of the city.)

With it being underground in all, it wasn't much of a surprise when a portion of the buildings were mostly constructed using stone. But what made it stand out, was how they were lava channels carved out that were zig zagging between some of the buildings and even running along the one's higher up and going down the sides of the tall walls.

Even with this being both a source of heat and a light source, it wasn't as hot as one would think. They were currently standing on an elevated section of the city that allowed a good view of most of it.

From where he was, Brex surveyed what he could and spotted the various sections of the city. On one side, he could spot the area that had both the prison and the labs where the mad scientist that he didn't much care for was currently residing in and working tirelessly for Ryu.

He then scowled in its general direction before turning his attention back towards the group and pointing in some far-off area that was on the other side of the city. As soon as he saw that they were looking at him. He started to say, “There's a lot to see. Any of you have any particular interests?” As soon as he had said those words, he began to bring them towards a set of steps heading down.

Over the course of a few hours. Brex was acting as their tour guide and showing Fancy Pants, Fleur De Lis and other Changelings around. They would check out some of the hotels that were already built and it seemed that they were quite interested with some of the design concepts and utilities offered.

But when it came to the point that they were apparently passing by, what could have been seen as the, Red-light district. It was fun to watch the Changelings having a reaction to what was obviously being emitted from there.

He had to actually stop a few of them from nearly wandering in, out of instinct. It also didn't help when a number of sounds were being produced from just beyond some of the open doors that could be seen through the large open archway that led to that section of the city.

Even Fancy Pants was apparently being hot and bothered and his future wife was picking up on this. Seeing as they were all grown adults, they went in. Purely as a way of determining what was happening in those walls.

It took less than ten minutes before they were all running out and the Roegadyn was practically steaming from his mask's eye holes with how red he was under the collar so the speak.

He could practically hear Rory moaning from the deepest parts of his mind, before she came out and started to speak in a lusty tone. Master~, Do you think we could try out some of those activities later on in your dreams?! They are so interesting! Especially with that one involving straps and a-.”

Her words were interrupted by Brex mentally yelling, “RORY! NOT NOW! WE CAN TALK ABOUT WHIPS AND CHAINS AT SOME OTHER TIME!” This was then emphasized with him in visioning the girl being bound and gagged with duct tape and affixed with a rather large ball gag. Rory was then tossed into a small cage that was within a locked room and had its lights turned off.

The rest of the group was not faring so much better. As they were all pretty much beat red. Brex knew they had things like that in his Equestria, but seeing that much being used so openly, was a little too much for their group to handle all at once.

The next stop was the garden that another displaced had created within Ryu's dungeon. This one was obviously the most eye catching, out of any part of the underground city with how much it stood apart from the rest. There are a great many types of plants that range from small to great. A number of which, Brex was sure were extinct with the way they were looking.

When he had caught sight of a large, yellow plant that was fighting to get up while most of it was sitting on the ground. He had a sudden flashback to a certain movie about a board game. This caused him to avoid it like the plague while keeping an eye out. All the while muttering under his breath just low enough for none of the others to hear. “Just watch out for the purple ones...”

The park was where they spent most of their time. When they had finally gotten enough of that, they wandered around until they found an area that was looking more like a bizarre of types. Brex was rather thankful that they had not run into a single one of the Arachnids or zombies yet. He wasn't quite sure how to explain something that is obviously the main focus of a lot of phobias.

They had seen plenty of the Orc's and Succubi's. There were quite a number of ponies already coming and going as well. The whole thing had a busy vibe with how lively things seemed.

At the Bizarre, they could see stalls filled with meats, furs, food, vegetables, many different fabrics, and magic items of all sorts. An orc came up to Brex and offered a heavy bag of coins that had some words printed on it that said, “For Brex Mith.” While making sure it only showed it to the displaced Roegadyn. it had a note that read, “Ryu just woke up, be ready in about thirty minutes and here is some of our currency, enjoy.”

Brex saw the bag and began to examine its contents. Fleur De Lis, who happened to be among those who saw the exchange asked, “Has there been any word on your friend's condition?”

He then nodded to the question before saying, “Yes, I just received word that he recovered and we can see him in the next thirty minutes. Also, I got some of their currency now, is there anything here you want as a souvenir?”

This got Fancy Pants to immediately speak up with an amused tone as he said, “My good sir, you have no idea what you have just unleashed.” This only earned the stallion a light tap on the shoulder as his fiancé as she gave him a pouting face before saying, “You make it sound as if I'll buy everything that’s not nailed down!”

Fancy Pants then raised one of his eyebrows questionably before the mare shrunk down and started to speak in a weak voice. “It will not be the same as that last time I went to that one boutique...”

In the end, what caught her eye, was a bolt of thread that seemed to almost glitter with how finely made it appeared to be. Seeing as it wouldn't hurt to have some new materials, Brex also bought a few for himself.

It wasn't until they were leaving to head to meet up with Ryu, that he went into his item box window and examined what he had just purchased. From behind his mask, he raised an eyebrow when he saw the text saying it was called, Demonic spider silk. He then started to turn his head in some random directions as he muttered under his breath, just low enough for the others not to hear. “Where are those spiders anyway?”

It took up pretty much the entire thirty minutes to finally get to one of the larger buildings situated at the center of the underground city. When they arrived, they were led in through the front gates and right up to the throne room itself.

Instead of waiting for them to be opened by the guards outside, Brex had gone ahead and did it for himself and stepped inside. Immediately after, the rest of them began to follow and filed into the large room.

The throne room was marbled red walls and floors. There were also black banners with a blood red thresh lanterns that glowed with magic on them. The throne looked like it was made up of a material that resembled black gold.

Ryu was sitting on the throne, with his hand steeped between the armrests, with a smile on his face. The Wolfman then said, “Greetings, allow me to properly introduce myself.” Ryu gave a small bow to the group before continuing to say, “I am Warden of The Dammed. King of monsters. Alas, not the one that is responsible for attacking the planet.”

That statement alone ended up getting the full attention of both the Unicorns and the Changelings present. Some of which, looking a bit more fearful than others.

Brex stepped up to calm the group down before things escalated by saying, “Not all monsters are bad. The ones that attack and are causing us problems are not under his control.” This managed to cool down the group after hearing that they were not on the same page as the others that would constantly attack the ponies.

This got Ryu to add to the conversation by saying, “Yes, I can't control monsters that are unwilling or are feral. So, it leaves me with just a few options. I could march in armies to deal with them, but we all know that the other nations don't like the idea of foreign armies running amok in their lands. It is a massive mess. In all technicality, Changelings are a monster race, but you wouldn't consider yourselves to be monsters, do you?”

A few of the Changelings present, we're looking more than a little appalled by being called monsters. There was one or two that were actually bearing their fangs in rage, even though they were in their pony disguise.

It was Fleur De Lis that spoke up to save the situation and calm her sisters down. While using a professional tone that even Brex had yet to hear from her. She said, “I will not deny that we have been seen as that. Nevertheless, we like to say that we see ourselves to be on the same level as ponies, as well as the other races.”

She had paused for a moment before going on to say, “But I do see your point. We have already seen what is in your city. The large green ones, along with the females with the horns and wings are perfect examples. They are quite nice.”

Ryu then said, “Exactly, that is my point. It's not your race that matters, but the deeds you do and what you are given. The true monsters are the nobles that abuse the less fortunate and the guards that looks the other way, now they are the real monsters. In this city, if you obey my law, you are given the same freedoms and chances that everyone else has. This is the future I wish to see throughout the world.”

“I understand my people for my blood is one and the same as theirs. It was not us who started to call us monsters. But we bare the title to show them we may be monstrous-looking. But we will still be better than those others and show them just who is the real monster here.”

Brex was the next to speak as he said, “Now that we have gotten the pleasantries all taken care of. We can move on to what we were originally talking about, before that little tussle. I do believe that we were about to have a taste test when we got interrupted. But as far as I can see, things are pretty well settled as they are. All that is required are the last small details. Wouldn't you all agree?”

Fancy Pants and Fleur De Lis, both nodded in agreement. When Brex saw this, he turned to Ryu and said, “Is there anything that you would like to add before we go into the final details?” Ryu replied with saying, “Not really. But we can do the tasting now if you want? and after that, we can go over the details.”

Fancy Pants looked rather delighted at the idea of finally being able to try some of the drink and happily nodded. After that, they we're all served their own glass when Ryu called over some servants that looked identical to the ones from before.

Each and every one of them were basically grinning from ear to ear after what they were having. Some were rather surprised that each of their interpretations turned out to be different. Some had some more refined tastes, such as Fancy Pants himself, while others were getting the taste of something that was on the other end. Either way, it was the personal favorites for everyone drinking.”

When they were finished, both Fancy Pants and Ryu both ended up shaking hands in sealing the deal.

They all remained for a while longer to enjoy Ryu's hospitality as the discussions went on in regards to their plans. Just over an hour had gone by when it was decided that they would all start heading back through the portal. However, there was a slight snag with the location in which they were going to come out at.

So, it was both Brex and Ryu, who went through first. While the rest had to remain until a new portal could be created. Thankfully, it only took a few minutes after the pair had used the Roegadyn's transport ability to get them near Ponyville once they arrived on the other side. From there, it was a simple matter of locating the hotel that they were all using and finding Blaze Caster, along with the remaining set of maids.

After giving a brief introduction between Ryu and his recently discovered original character. The new portal was opened up and Brex went through to get the others who were waiting on the other side.

Once he had notified them of where the other end was now going to take them. Fancy Pants led the group as they all filed through in an orderly fashion. However, there was a small problem when it came down to the very last of the Changelings.

Just before they were about to go through the portal. A small pebble had apparently dropped nearby and caught her attention after clattering on the stone ground.

With just one foot barely through the event horizon of Ryu’s portal and on to the other side. The Changeling swiveled her head to try and find out where it had come from. Just as she was about to give up on the mystery and go through, she instantly looked up and her eyes went comically wide almost instantly.

When seeing this, Brex wondered just what would have caused the Changeling to have a reaction like this. So, by following her gaze, his eyes began to trace the stone ceilings high above and noticed how there were some moving objects up there that appeared to be in large clusters.

Upon squinting his eyes to focus a little better, he realized almost instantly that those were the Arachnid demons that he had not seen during the entire time there. When he returned his attention back to the Changeling, he found a comical sight.

Brex then thought, “Huh, I suppose that’s the normal reaction when seeing something like that crawling all over the ceiling. Also how did I not notice them up there?” Rory answered that question by saying, “Master, I believe it has something to do with how there’s so many others in this underground city that it was somehow masking their overall presence. Also, they’re at the very edge of my range of detection.”

Her mouth was opening and closing without any sound was coming out. Brex merely rolled his eyes from behind his mask and went up to the Changeling and picked her up in a bridal style and went through the portal together.

Once on the other side, he had gone over to a chair that was within the room and sat her in it. He leaned in a little closer and started to hear some noise coming from her lips. When he did, he heard the words, “Spiders, really, really, really… Big spiders.”

He then patted her on the shoulder and said, “They belong to him as well. They won't harm you.” With this, the Changeling just nodded silently while still looking straight ahead. Fortunately, she did seem a little more calmed down after he had patted her on the shoulder a few more times and got a small smile from the girl.

After getting that small reaction from the changeling Rory couldn’t help to start speaking in a joking tone, “Master you better be careful. I have no doubt that if Rin and Lin were to get word of this, they would be very jealous but you got this close to another Changeling.” This got Brex to ask in a confused tone, “Why in the world would they be jealous?” Afterwards, Rory stayed silent after letting out a drawn-out sigh.

What came next, had pretty much blew by how busy everything got after all meeting up again. Over the course of the following four weeks. Properties were being bought up left and right.

Afterwards, the Roegadyn had taken up Ryu's suggestion about purchasing an abandoned mine to smelt down some of his Gil currency into golden bars. That way, they had some quick capital to use for right now and claim that a fresh vein was found as an excuse for the large influx of gold on the market.

At the moment, it was just a Brewery and the Gobbler farm that were being focused on. With Fancy Pants being the financial guide, they had already started on producing the dummy corporations that would soon go out of business. This was so that that the plots of land or buildings that they had been using, would be available for the real ones on a later date.

It took less than a week for the two different companies that were being provided by Ryu to be up and running. Unfortunately, there was a slight catch at the end on construction. Unlike with Ryu's dungeon, there was no, Dungeon Heart to act as the main source of power that was typically needed to keep Ryu’s creations running. It took a bit of work on both of their ends before the pair of displaced had come up with a work around for the problem.

Thanks to the container of crystals that they found during that last Primal attack. Brex fashioned it into a type of miniature, Heart Stone replacement. In a sense, it was an Aether crystal that was roughly the size of a large, double door refrigerator. Once a structure had been built for it just underneath the ground, a power line was stretched between the two complexes and everything was up and running.

The Gobbler farm was already starting to produce a steady amount of the fowls in the enclosed area thanks to the heater lamps helping with the incubation possess. The lamps somehow had the additional effect of causing the ground to create something that could be consumed by the animals.

As for the Brewery. The fully automated machines were going at full speed. Seemingly as though it was made for the primary purpose to break the laws of physics. The thing would not only toss crates around into a number of trap doors and launch others on spring loaded pads. It somehow was able to make not only the beverage, but also needed no input of anything at all. This meant it did not require any boxes or ingredients.

With Fancy Pants calling in a few favors. There was even a plot of land that was available for later use just over the ocean and near the Griffin territory for when the Gobblers became more well known.

Brex even got some assistance in requesting for Ryu to transport the Changelings that were going to become students over with the use of his portals. It helped that they had been notified ahead of time thanks to the hive connection.

Whenever he wasn't needed. The Roegadyn would either be training the new Changelings in different classes by taking them deep into the Everfree woods. Or be at the manor to see Prince Blue Blood during the few times that he would come over to visit.

Fancy Pants would even frequently visit the castle, just to meet up with the young Prince now and then to check up on the kid and inform Brex as to the current situation there.

This of course, led to Ryu learning of the young Prince’s current predicament. It was safe to say that the Wolfman was not at all happy when he found out about this one particular mare that had made a move at getting to the prince.

It didn't take long until a plan was hatched among all of the males there. With Fancy Pants having connections and frequently heading over to the castle on either personal business or meetings with the Princess. The stallion was able to discover just who this mare really was and where to find her.

So, when the four weeks had come to an end. Everything was pretty much all put together and ready to go. The plan was then set into motion to expose what was being done to Prince Blue Blood.

After going through with saying they're farewells to Ryu. The Wolfman then proceeded to sneaking into the castle and easily evaded all detection by the guards as he made his way to the princess's bedchamber, shortly after the sun had gone down. Once inside, It didn't take too long for Ryu to have to wait, before the princess went to bed.

(Here is a picture of the house on the mountain.)

It was close to a half an hour by the time Brex saw Ryu reappearing at their predetermined meeting spot after executing their mission. The Roegadyn was currently leaning up against the side of his house and just a few steps to the right of his front door.

At the same time, he was tossing something in the air that glinted in the sunlight repeatedly with the use of his thumb in the same fashion that a person would be flipping a coin. After doing this for just a few more times, he caught it in his palm and while holding it between a thumb and index finger in his right hand, he showed it to be the white link pearl that was meant to be his token.

Without removing himself from his leaning position, Brex tilted his head inquisitively before asking, “From the sounds of things, I take it that the Princess got pretty messed up with what we found out? I couldn't see anything of what was happening, so I was going purely off of the sounds coming from this.”

Ryu, who had just fully exited his means of getting around quickly, replied with, “Yeah, everything worked out better than planned. Shall we be off then?”

That was when Brex brought out the golden key once again and used it on his house's front door and opened it for the other displaced to enter before he did. The Roegadyn then said while gesturing with his right hand, "After you."

Brex watched as the Wolfman entered and could be seen approaching a type of dial that was affixed to a wall and gave it a turn. Once that was done, he said, “We are back in my world.”

After hearing that. The Roegadyn stepped inside and started to close the door still connected to his own. He turned and pulled off his mask just enough to lower it and expose his hazel-colored eyes. In a small voice, that was just barely above a whisper. Before he said, “Goodbye. I’ll be back before you know it.” Then the door was closed the rest of the way with a small click that seemed louder than it was meant too.