Deep Within Mt. Canter...

The sounds of hoofsteps echo throughout the cave, a red light slowly illuminates the caverns, revealing the towering walls of crystals and varying gemstones. A lone figure treads the mountainous cavern, his head swiveling back and forth, his eyes carefully taking in their peripherals with each turn. He brings himself to a stop, looking down at his own hooves. He gives a nod before taking a piece of flint, enchanting it with his magic, and carving a deep recession into the crystalline walls. The flint carves an arrow pointing back to the location of his start.

Xerxes unburdens a sigh. "I've been venturing around this mountain for ages. I'd be lost if I hadn't had the mind to start marking into the walls where I've been. Obvious enough to see, deep enough to not be easily weathered or erased." He summons a piece of parchment, starting to draw out the places he's been. A variety of winding passages are drawn, some previously explored with reconnections to the world above, some with written triangles of warning to indicate unstable conditions, others with a solid X to notify a dead end. Some are written with a straight line downward, indicating the long drops. But having undergone a few, he's made his way to the current cavern.

However, he is not alone.

A quartet of stallions peer from one of the higher paths, seeing the expeditious prince. The first whispers to his counterparts. "Hey. Who's that bastard?"

"I dunno, but a male alicorn is a pretty exclusive find, a literal one in the tens of millions. Possibly hundreds." The second replies.

"Check out the digs though." The third points out the prince's cloak, seeing how interestingly the patterns have been adorned into the fabric. "Can't be from around here."

"We should go tell the boss about him." The second advises.

"Seems he's using his magic to mark the walls." The first explains. "I say we follow that back and see what it leads to."

"But what about the boss?" The second insists.

"Well there's more than one of us, so we can do more than one thing, you dumb shit." The fourth bitterly calls out.

"I don't know." The third speaks cautiously. "I've never seen a male alicorn. He must be pretty powerful to be wandering through here alone."

"Do you always have to act like a pussy every time there's something different walking through here?" The first questions mockingly.

"I'm just saying, something doesn't quite fit with this one."

The prince finishes carving his piece of flint into the walls. He sends a weak bolt of magic back at it to test if his earlier accident still rings true. The red bolt juts from his horn, ricochets from the surface and smacks against a piece of stalactite hanging from the ceiling. The earthen javelin crashes to the ground with a loud presence. Some of the stray rocks skittle towards him, which he easily deflects. "Well this just confirms all of my earlier suspicions. These walls are made of gems with magic reflective properties. Gems like this are better off used for energy conversion than currency. Though it's dual purpose would easily fetch a high price. No wonder their technology is so advanced and compatible with two-legger items."

Overhearing his report to self, the four watchers converse with one another. "Two-legger? Does he mean the humans?"

"He's obviously not from here, but somehow he has knowledge of the humans. That's a bit odd." The second watcher responds.

"Maybe we should keep scoping this guy out." The first recommends.

The second continues to contest his point of view. "But I really thing we should tell the─

Finally, the first silences the concerned lackey. "Look, there are four of us. Count it, one, two, three, FOUR. We can keep going with either or. Flotsam, you trail those markings to wherever he came from. Jetsam, you run off to the boss and let him know we've got a straggler. Mash, you're with me. We're gonna keep our eyes glued to this dumbass."

Flotsam speaks out with concern. "But Mish, what if he's─"

"Who fucking cares!?" The aforementioned unicorn instantly dismisses any concerns. "I've seen unicorns break those gems with less of an output! He's weak! Now get to it!"

"Right." The stallion agrees as the four split off to go on their assignments.

Having overheard the loud bickering from down below, Xerxes nods with the approval knowing that his journey in darkness will soon reach it's end. "It seems I'm being followed. Very well then, I'm sure you'll follow me to wherever I may go. Probably go tell off to your superiors that I'm straggling about." He raises his voice, illustrating part honesty in his annoyance, but also fake exuberance. "This annoying cave seems to go on forever! I sure hope not to fall into any strange pratfalls along my journey!"

The remaining pair keep their heads low as they track down the prince. "This bastard will be an easy lick."

2407 Golden Oaks Way Later That Night...

Once more for the consecutive night, the young alicorn princess stays up at the kitchen table, getting the first few spoons of a new tub of my favorite ice cream. I drop by as soon as I hear the sound of something sobbing softly. I halfway expected her to do it again, especially when all she's been wanting is answers. At least this time, I can be willing to offer something back.

She notices me walking in, and immediately goes into apologies. "Sorry for being so loud."

"No it's okay." I tell her as I politely grab a spoon and go into the fridge for some chocolate sauce. I pull out a waffle cone and start distributing a scoop for her. "You know, this is my favorite way to eat this. Peanut butter ice cream with a frozen chocolatey shell. Add the cone, and you get a perfect blend of sweet and sour softness with a bit of texture." I offer her the cone. "Try it."

She takes me up on the offer, biting into the cone. Her eyes expand for a moment, but then shut close as the frostbite sets in. In the midst of her scrunching up, I take notice of something about her. It's barely noticeable, but she seems to have some freckles dotting her cheeks. Not as prominent as Applejack's, but give it time and they might be.

A soft smile comes after her recovery, but it subsides as she looks down at the teeth marks in the cone. "Thinking about my mom. She would kill me if she found out I was eating this so late."

"Your mom will be alright." I reassure her. "She's tough, and she'd probably understand you taking up after one of her secret habits."

"One of her habits?" She asks.

"Oh yeah! Like you wouldn't believe it, she used to go through a whole gallon of ice cream every time she came over to foalsit your auntie Twilight. Reading romance novels to her, talking about how cute your dad was, how unfair the law was for her to even consider dating him at the time, then the whole..." I lower my head, pausing myself before I could speak of Shining's experience with trauma. "...Yeah, let's just say that the whole dating phase between them made her go through like three tubs a night, each of them being a gallon by themselves."

"Wow, mom was bad."

"Oh yeah." I confirm. "Pistachio Almond was her favorite."

"That's what mom would call me sometimes. Her little Pistachio Almond." The filly starts to shed tears all over again. "Now I only hear her call me that in my dreams. I don't even hear of daddy anymore. I miss them both. Miss Ocellus tried calling him today to get me to talk to him, but he never answered."

I take a seat right next to her, pulling out my phone. I check the time. "Tell you what. I know it's pretty late, one in the morning ain't exactly prime time. But I'll give him a call, and we'll talk to him together. Sounds good?"

She wipes her eyes, sniffling back her sadness. "Okay."

I dial the number, and lay the phone on the table, letting it sound through the speakers. Eventually, he comes through on the other side. "Hello."

"Hey, Shining. Just checking in on you. Seeing how you're fairing through."

The stallion answers, his voice a bit shaky. "I'm... I'm working hard to keep it together."

"Yeah, I can only imagine." I mutter as I scan my eyes to his daughter. "Flurry's been wanting me to reach out to you, she misses you a lot. She tried to call you earlier."

"Aw, did she really?" The stallion on the other end sounds defeated in hearing he missed the call from her. "You know, I've had a number of calls trying to reach out. Way too many for me to process right now. So I've only taken the ones from family, any other numbers goes straight to my voicemail."

I nod quietly, watching as the filly chomps down her ice cream in time enough to go through another bout of brain freeze and get ready to start talking. "I think she was using Ocellus' phone. But yeah, she's here with me now."

"Oh. You can put her on if she's up."

"Daddy I'm here!" Her voice rings out surprisingly loud, I'm almost expecting the others to wake up from her annoucement.

"Oh, hey sweetie." His voice is shaky, but he stabilizes it enough to bring her reassurance. "It's pretty late, everyone else is sleep. So let's try not to be too loud, okay?"

And of course, she lays the heavy one on him. "Daddy, what's wrong with mommy?"

He pauses for a moment, trying to process a gentle way of explaining to her what's taking place. "She's... she's hurt, kiddo. She's hurt pretty bad. Mommy can't talk right now, she's sleeping. You know it's really late, and she's gotta get her beauty rest."

"I just want to see her." The filly demands, turning back over to me. "Uncle Spike, can you do the thing that lets me see daddy's face too?"

Already wary of her intent, Shining denies her. "I'm sorry, sweetie, you can't right now."

"Why not?" She whimpers.

"Because mommy isn't ready to be seen yet. She wouldn't want you to see her like she is right now. It would scare you too much. I'd think she'd want you to focus on your studies, and do your best to be good while you're away. You wouldn't want to make her upset now, do you?"

Instead of accepting her father's reply, she drives the conversation straight to the point. "Daddy, tell me the truth. Is she gonna die?"

I can hear from his sigh on the other end, he's fighting his hardest not to admit to that possibility. The shakiness of his voice comes back in overwhelming force. "...I don't know. I truly don't." He takes a moment to gather himself, not wanting to unleash all of his emotions and remaining strong for his little girl. "Your auntie's here to see her too. As is your grandma and grandpa. They've been here to help. We're doing all we can to make sure she knows that we're all here to see her pull through."

"Then I need to be there too."

"It's too dangerous, kiddo. I can't let you be up here in all of this and you get hurt too. I'd be really upset if something happens to you too, everyone would be really sad." Shining clears his throat. "Mommy knows you're with her. And she'll always be with you. She can feel you wanting her to get better, all the way from there. Our love is a very powerful thing, and we can use that no matter where we are in the world. Even in the darkest places, it'll always come through. Okay?"

The filly sniffles back. "Okay."

"It's late, kiddo. I know it's not easy sleeping right now, but you gotta get some rest. I know I'll need some too."

Flurry doesn't shy away from the call just yet. "Promise you'll call me every day. Tell me if something changes."

"I promise, sweetie. Promise."

"I love you, daddy."

"I love you too, sweetie. Good night."

Meanwhile in the Crystal Empire...

Shining lifts his head as the three tones sound on his phone, indicating the end of the call. He wipes his eyes, clearing them of the tears he tried not to shed hearing his daughter's voice. Twilight approaches her brother, seeing him still holding the phone, but not being present for the call. "Who was that?"

He answers with a tremoring rasp in his voice. "Spike and Flurry. She was trying to reach out."

"That girl is something else." Twilight comments, standing closely with her brother. "Seriously, she's only six years old and she's developing far faster than we need her to. She's already got the body of an eleven year old to boot."

"And the mind of one far beyond her years on this earth." Shining adds. "'Tell me if something changes,' you don't say that unless you're already expecting the worst. I can't believe she's already so grown in the mind. I feel so terrible for leaving her there alone. I know Spike's with her, but there's already so much she's wrestling through."

"You mean her... otherworldy abilities?" The high princess alludes.

The emperor sighs as he pulls up a picture of his family, seeing the smiling faces of his wife and daughter. "Cadie was always so scared to see embrace that side since the whole debacle those years ago. So scared that she tried to keep her from being too idle. Now it feels like she's just waiting for her mother to go so she can see her there too. Maybe she's just anticipating it at this point, already trying to process the heartbreak before it happens. Maybe that's just her way of coping."

Twilight drops her head, clenching herself as she reminisce of her legalized sibling. "I'll admit, I haven't been so unnerved by anything like this. Being princess and a protector of Equestria has conditioned me to see a lot of cruel things. But seeing Cadance the way she is, knowing the smile that used to be on her face, the kind and gentle voice that used to burst with authority every once in a while... it's terrifying."

Walking in from further down the hall, a well-dressed man approaches with clenched jaws and fists. "Alex." Twilight calls to the human.

"...Man. I can't do it. I can't do it, I can't deal." He angrily expresses. "Like seriously, what the actual fuck did she ever do to anyone to deserve... that?"

"These are cultists. It's always like this." Twilight replies. "It's just that it hits a little closer to home this time."

"I know it is. But..." The man furrows his brow as he tries to calm himself. "This is the shit you'd say if you were in my world, this happens more back home, but now it feels too personal. And it's only made worse by the fact that it's here of all places."

"Goes to show that no matter what world you're in, conflict always leaves a painful reminder that life isn't always good." Shining adds.

The man nods, already coming up with measures of a wide-scale response. "I'm doing all I can to not give the order to glass the tundra and salt the earth. I'm that pissed off right now."

"You're doing far more than what we've could've asked from you." The high princess compliments.

"Well we're here now. Hell, I guess we might as well do the damage we didn't want to put out there." The man nods once more. "Yeah, I think I got just the idea we can use."

"What do you suggest?" Shining asks.

"I'll confer with intelligence, get an update on all sightings and possible bases. We'll also send probes to layout any and all seismic changes within a ten mile radius. If anything so much as takes a shit on the ground, we'll know exactly where they'll be. And if we have confirmed visual, we'll be sure to give them a nice warm escort to the deity of their choosing."

The emperor looks to his sister, who shows a sagely agreeance. "That's promising."

Alex claps his hands, getting himself perked up to act. "In all other words, we'll jump right on that. I'll update you in about six hours. Expect results."

Twilight hears a notification on her phone, seeing that she's gotten a message from each one of her friends. Shining inquires her of the coincidence. "Everyone seems to be reaching out at the perfect time."

The purple mare exhales heavily. "Our friendship summit. They're wanting to spend it wishing Cadance well. I should probably chase down Alex before he gets too busy."

"You know, doing something for you is probably nothing for him to pull off."

The high princess closes out the messages in her phone and takes to the air to make her quick pursuit of the human. "You know, I wish his brother had the heart to do the same for me. Then again... I gave that away, didn't I?"

Shining's eyes level to the floor, his sadness growing once more as he mutters to himself. "And that's where Cadance usually steps in with her usual romantic advice. Sure could use Spike in those moments too, he's gotten pretty good at dealing with her romantic shortcomings." The prince produces a brief chuckle of irony. "No wonder, he's been chasing after Rarity all these years. And she's been chasing everything but."

Canterlot Sometime Later...

While talks of war still stew in the minds of the general public, many operate as though the tension isn't as heavy as widely advertised. So far for many, it's out of sight, and well out of mind. Granted, it's a spoken topic every so often, the citizens carry about their regular duties as though the declaration hasn't been made. And with the added security of the humans wandering through town, many feel safe enough that they simply live as nothing is wrong.

The cloaked Ponyland prince, however, errs on the side of extreme caution while navigating away from such
lumbering creatures. Just their height is enough to pick them apart from a crowd, so it becomes quite easy for him to take a back street or two and reach his intended destination.

While under most circumstances, he would be lost through streets unknown. But with his new device in tow, he easily locates the restaurant through the chaos of constant reroutes. "This thing is absolutely bewitching." He mutters as his phone notifies him of his reaching the intended destination. "Had I not found some means of an overnight stay, I'd be lost wandering these alleyways. To think they've adapted the buildings themselves to provide energy for these strange devices." He snaps himself out of his mesmerized trance towards the illuminated screen, and gives his head a jolt of reminder. "Focus! Remember, Agamemnon. This outing is for information, and nothing else. Any possible engagement outside of that is just a role to play. Keep it together."

Following the instructions of his mind, he walks into the foyer of the cafe, where a male waiter greets him. "Good afternoon sir. How many are you seating?

"Just two."

The stallion pulls out a notepad and jots down the number. He grabs a pair of menus and guides the prince along. "Right this way, sir."

He's brought to a table, a small marble circular top with the legs being wrought iron curls blooming from the floor to the marble. The chair seats him comfortably. He places down his phone, still admiring the novelty of the revolutionary item. His eyes glance back to the door. Another couple walks in, showing much more of an affectionate connection. The pair flirts openly bouncing along as the waiter guides them to a window seat. The clock on his phone reads 11:43. "Almost noon. Maybe if I come here and drop out five minutes before the hour, I'll have fulfilled my obligations to this engagement. I should be able to leave without seeing carapace the first."

A hoof taps his shoulder, he looks to his right to see the smiling changeling bouncing with her waving hoof. "Hiiiii!" She giggles.

"Ah." He grunts, turning his head back to the phone with disappointment. "So much for that plan."

"Let me guess, you just couldn't wait either and decided to join up a bit early? It's like we're already connected! Almost convinced you got some little red twine in your foreleg pulling me wherever you go."

"If you say so." He answers outwardly. "Hardly the case."

"I was actually here like maybe five minutes ago. I saw you walk in. You probably didn't see me though, I got a booth, I think you'd be a little more comfortable there."

"Rather an inconvenience to the staff to be seated and then seat myself elsewhere. I'll stay."

"Oh that's not a problem." She chimes before she trots over to the wait staff. "Um, excuse me. That white stallion with the pretty eyes, that's my plus-one. Could we move him over to our booth so that we don't take up too many tables?"

"Not a problem, ma'am. I'll open that back up." The waiter replies as he finishes seating the other couple and guiding the prince towards her booth. "This way, sir."

As the prince move along to his new seat, the changeling scoots herself in on her side, bobbing her head in excitement as she waits for the albino stallion to sit. The waiter dismisses himself as he tends to yet another group coming in. "You're just overtly assertive today."

"Well I'm the kind of girl who doesn't let a little bad weather ruin my day. If it rains, I'm out in the streets dancing in the freedom it represents." She says as she taps her hooves on the table excitedly. "So, how are you liking the phone? Pretty neat, huh?"

"It's... overwhelming." He answers with a bit of hesitation. "As much information as it contains, and how fast it all can be offered is blindingly overwhelming."

"No kidding! I just wanted to know if I could still book a reservation thirty minutes early, and it told me that there are no seats taken at all! It's insane! I just rushed over here thinking I could greet you here, even turned out I beat you to the punch!"

"What is this bug, clairvoyant?" He thinks to himself. "Yes... pretty much the case."

The waiter drops by again. "Alright, you two ready to order?"

"I'll take the special of the day." Larvae speaks out, even cutting the prince off before he can get a breath in to speak for himself. "In fact, we'll take two! Two specials."

"Two specials, coming up." The waiter replies before addressing the prince. "She's an excitable one, isn't she?"

"A bit too much for virtually nothing at all." He things to himself. "She's... very lively."

The waiter walks away, prompting the changeling mare to dive headfirst back into her conversation. "So, I know that we've been pretty much back and forth, here and there, in and out, I know, subtle. But I feel like I've been pretty much skipping several steps in the process. Like for example, I spent a lot of time last night looking at your number. And then I realize that I don't even have a name to put you under, just a picture. I mean, I could go on calling you 'Cute Alicorn Guy' but I'm sure you'd even say that's a mouthful."

"The last thing I need to be known to her is exactly that. Thankfully, I have an alias thought up before we left that seaside town." He internalizes before speaking his faux name. "Agape. Agape Hearth."

"Oh, oh my." The changeling mare melts in her seat, her eyes beaming down the prince in front of her. "That's such a warm name. No wonder we resonate so strongly."

"I resonate with you about as much as I can scream into a pillow." He taps his hoof against the table, growing a little less patient. "In speaking of skipping steps, don't you think we've gotten a little too familiar for just one night of drunken mishaps?"

"You weren't that drunk when you were talking to me."

"Obviously not, I still remember you." He complains inwardly. "I'm still feeling the aftereffects of that hangover even now."

"Really? You weren't that sick the morning we spent together either."

"If only you knew the state of confusion I was in." The prince grimaces. "The bottom line is this, we don't really know each other and you're already buying me gifts. Don't you think that all of this is a bit... mistimed?" He asks, sliding his phone back to her.

"I'll be the main one to say it, we did just go full speed that first night." She nods.

"Exactly." Both his mind and body speaks in unison.

"Which is why I'm looking to try this again, but way slower." She answers as she slides the phone back to him with a smirk.

"Ridiculous." Again, his mind and mouth reaches a consensus.

"Aw, you don't like slow and steady?" The prince's ears perk up as he feels one of her hind legs venture between both of his, playfully knocking them apart. "I mean, we could totally speed things up right now. I'd love to see if that connection still lands as good as it did the first time."

The stallion's magic sparks alive, trying to guide her leg away. "Can you not?"

"But you seem so against the idea of keeping it slow. I just thought you'd like the change in pace." She teases with a bitten lip.

"Okay, maybe we should pull the brakes on a bit." He pleads, still feeling her leg gently guide itself between his.

At his request, she retreats from her clandestine taunts. "Alrighty then, we'll keep things just a little slower."

"Damn bug bitch." The stallion pulls his cloak over his side, making sure that the other patrons don't see how worked up he's gotten. "Are you changelings always this immodest?"

"We can be." She coos softly, drawing her hoof to her phone. "We don't really have an off-switch."

"Lady, you are killing me." He mutters to the side.

She smirks as she taps on her phone. The glass-like notification sounds on his device. He looks over to see he has a message in his inbox. "You may wanna check your phone." She whispers to him.

He does as she suggests, seeing the words at the top of the screen reading 'media attached' in bold letters. He squints as he taps on the button. But his eyes shoot wide open as a rather compromising image comes to the screen.

She proudly presents herself in welcoming fashion, her legs splayed open as she offers her bountiful gifts to the lens of her phone. She's even roused to the point where her visible interest oozes from between her darkened clefts. Her eyes are beamed for him, her tongue freed for debauchery's sake, and her tail is draped well out of the way. The prince's eyes seem entranced for a moment as she whispers to him. "Like what you see?"

"Damn you, foul bedbug! I may know what you are, but my nethers are blind to your schemes! Why must you be designed to entice me as such? I spent that whole day in my room trying to cleanse you from my thoughts, and here you... you..." He flips the phone over, not quite understanding how to get out of the picture. The changeling smiles coyly as even his ears run red of blush. "You are mad."

"I am, actually!" She stamps on the table. "I'm mad that you spent all of last night not even trying to text me, and all I could think about was you. I waited for you to send me something. I literally took that last night thinking I could shoot a message to you before you could go to bed. At least you'd have me on your mind before you got here. But nooooo, you left my imagination to wander the land, sea, and skies while you had so much of your peace of mind. How unfair is that!?"

"Okay, what do you want?" He grits through his teeth, trying not to cause a scene.

She slumps back into her seat, reading his cue. "Duh, your time."

"You have that right now." The mare rolls her eyes, her horn lighting up as a warm glow starts to spread his legs open again. "You must be sex deprived."

"Well... yeah. Coupled with last night and this morning, I did wanna keep going that time you ran off. I mean really, the gaud of you. You give me that one moment of clarity, shoving around that fifth leg of yours and making me realize that the night before was just you going through the motions, and then you leave me without any way to get back to you! And then we ran into each other in a store, exchanged contacts─no messages last night, by the way─and now here we are on this little date out in public. So yeah, I'm pretty anxious to get back into the heat of it all." Larvae closes her legs and places her hoof on her lip, twisting and giving a puppy-eyed plea. "The girl is purring but she's not getting her milk."

"Confound this bug and her outright debauchery. I'm losing my composure AND my patience. Either I find time to get back to the hotel and work this out or I'll be right back in that wonderful invitation she just gave me.... Dammit, I'm fiending again." He jolts his head, rapidly shaking his thoughts away to maintain composure. "Why are you like this?"

"Let's just say that some changelings are known to overfeed on emotions. Particularly love, but emotions in general. And because we do, we don't have much of a choice but to try to give that back to someone." She continues her juvenile mannerisms, all in hopes of goading the cloaked prince to speed things along to her preference.

The stallion glances at the turned-over phone, gulping down his stirring ideas. "And I'm your target?"

"Target is such a mean world. I prefer the term 'selection'." She answers while cocking her head.

"And you couldn't think to partake on your friends or something? Why am I your selection in particular?"

"Because two things." She begins. "The first thing is that they're great friends, but even I feel like they miss out on giving me that deep, filling sensation I get with males. Plus with them, I'm usually the 'male' whenever the season gets rolling."

"That's understood. You're a changeling, you can make yourself whatever sex you deem necessary to bait your feeds." The prince comments.

"And that brings up my second reason for choosing you." She says as she straightens her posture, folding her forelegs and eyeing the prince directly. "From the moment we met and they told you what I was, I felt that you have a strong trepidation for changelings. Obviously, we can pick up on that vibe too. But instead of playing out to that fear and abandoning us for the night, you dared to comfort me in my time of hurt. Then you really messed me up with the grief sex. After that, it was a done deal for me." She leans forward, getting closer to the prince. "So, now I'm on a mission to clear your mind of any and all misgivings pertaining to the changeling race. And I have a good feeling that it starts with a lot of... let me word this for a more public setting..." She my phone back over to me, flipping the screen back over. "Give and take."

Seeing the image on the screen again, the stallion grows taut under the table. He tries to conceal his aching interest with his cloak. "So... in short, you give me gifts."

She circles her magic around his length, giving him a tantalizing stroke under the table. "And I take this as a method of payment."

The stallion grunts, his head tilting back while he harbors more swears against the changeling mare. "Whatever happened to that 'public setting' idea?"

"For a stallion who seems really rough around the edges, you seem to buckle under the slightest bit of pressure." She gives a final tug and allows her magic to dissipate. "I think it's pretty cute, honestly."

"Dammit, I can't stand this anymore." He grumbles, inadvertently speaking his thoughts aloud. "And you think that promoting your promiscuity is going to win me over?"

"Be honest. How many mares have you dug into thus far? Do you even have a number?" This time, her leg trails back between his, her body slouching a bit to reach the warmth of his inner haunches. "Or do you simply not keep count, because there's so many? You can be honest with me, you know. I won't tell your secrets."

His magic stirs, trying to goad her hind hoof to reach further along. "...I don't really have a number." He moans softly.

She licks the frog of her hoof and taps it against his horn, quenching his magic altogether. "Then what's one more?"

"You're playing a dangerous game. I just want to point that out." The prince growls.

She takes pride in hearing the grit in his voice, the low-pitched rattle of the moans he tries to keep stifled. "I like games, especially if I get to play them with you."

"Being so forward isn't exactly a turn-on." He expresses verbally.

"And you're still hiding something underneath this table." She mewls with a tilt.

"It's involuntary." He glances off.

"Then I volunteer to assist." She whispers into his ear. She takes her seat watching as the cloaked stallion squirms in his seat. His eyes dart back between his legs, noticing a growing stain on the back of his cloak where he covers himself. He groans with discomfort as he scoots himself closer to the table.

"It would be a better idea to just skip the formalities. The waiter is taking too long with our order." He thinks to himself. "To hell with it, let's just leave and get this over with."

"Hey, not so fast, remember?" She teases, her magic tugging at his cloak, threatening to reveal him. "We agreed to slow things down a bit. I know you're not in such a rush where we don't even try to get to know each other."

His magic battles back with overwhelming resistance. "You are such a nuisance right now, I know that much."

"I am not, I'm a good girl who does things the right way. And obviously, you really like the way I do things."

While her mind is clearly on the journey and the many obstructions she looks to toss his way, his mind is solely on reaching the finish line. "I have a room at a hotel in town, we can go by there as soon as we finish here."

The mare hums with glee. "Hmm, tempting. But if I'd give it up to you so easy, you'd probably want me to leave me right after."

The alicorn rolls his eyes with dread. "Fine. I'll oblige you. What do you want?"

She goes through her phone, seeing the picture they took with one another. His awkward smile juxtaposes strongly against her expression of jubilance. "Well, you're on this date with me. The pickings are quite lush. And yet before the evening is over, you might give me the brush. You might forget your manners, and you'd probably refuse to have me stay. So... I'd like to extend this. I'd like to extend this a lot."

"Given what you've already extended, what more would you require?" He complains with a quiet grunt.

"Maybe a little more open mindedness that leads to some much more open exchanges." She answers while showing him the picture on her phone. "Make no mistake, I want this to end with not just this picture being reenacted today, but I want to reenact the one I sent you later tonight. Memories to be made, forever etched in our minds as they are in these phones."

"So in short, you want me to try to appease you?"

The mare hums with delight. "Just for today, tonight, the morning after. If all goes well enough, maybe a little longer than that. I don't know, let's just see where the day takes us. You've got time, don't you?"

The stallion continues to harbor discontent, but the arousal as of the moment far outweighs that. "Fine, I'll placate to your request. Whatever gets us to the end quicker."

"I gave it to you easy the first time. This time, you'll have to put in work before I decide on how much I'm giving you." The changeling's eyes blink as she sees a shadow move in her peripheral. The server arrives with their meals and drinks. She makes yet another request. "Oh, can I get an ice water, heavy on the ice? Thanks."

The server gives her a nod and briefly departs. The stallion groans as a desperate thought dances through his mind. "You're a changeling, aren't you? You should be able to turn into a stallion and sneak into the restroom. I'll sneak after─"

"Tried it already." She groans. "That's so high school. Plus you obviously don't know how to control yourself, considering that fifth you got jumbling around." She looks up to see the server return with her requested beverage. "We've got a full day ahead of us. Let's make the most of it before we go into... performance evaluations."

The stallion looks at his plate, snatching the silverware and keeping his imperial manners while hurrying through the food. "So... after this, where do you suggest we start?"

The mare sips from the cold water and stirs the glass with her straw. She picks out a large piece of ice and tilts her head. "I say we start by cooling things down." The ice in her magical tow disappears, but the prince winces strongly in the second to follow. A frigid, wet obstacle glides gently up the length of his sex. The sudden sensation jolting him to biting down on the empty fork in his mouth. "See? You'll be right back to normal in no time."

The prince quietly complains. "You are a cruel wretch."

Larvae snickers in kind. "I told you I'm a good girl."

Later at Mt. Canter...

Xerxes continues his trek through the crystalline cave. As per his method, he continues to mark the walls of the cave with a piece of flint imbued with his magic. However, he's considerably slower with his venture, trying to do what he can to lure the stallions following him in the shadows.

His journey comes to a brief stop as he notices a strange item resting upon the center of the floor. "What is this?" He asks as he approaches the item to inspect it.

His horn gives off a little more light to better see what dangled from the wall. It appeared to be a cane with a carefully crafted ruby laid at the top of it. He picks up the cane, taking admiration of it's simplistic shape, but rather pristine shape. The inlaid golden trim swirls and weaves the length of the rod, coming to the apex of a golden claw gripping the ruby with an unwavering strength.

He sees a reflection of himself in the jewel and smirks with a fantasy of power playing in his mind. "By the power vested in me as primus, I hereby sentence you to death!" He declares, giving the item a strong swing outward, hearing a soft rattling noise inside. "Huh... It's not solid? I wonder what's inside."

As he asks himself the question, a bright light shines on him from the end of the hall. A large crystal-fueled lantern bathes a mighty light upon him, causing him to shield his eyes. The sound of a number of voices surrounding him rings out loudly in the caves, prominently one voice yelling from above him. "YEEEEHAAAW!"

Xerxes holds the rod with the intent to use it for his own defense, but a painful jolt disrupts his magic, sourced by the same rod that he aimed to use. The disruption causes him to wince painfully. "The hell!" As the rod falls, it's caught by a orange aura. The rod quickly doubles back to the prince, smacking him against the pressure point beneath his chin, causing him to stumble. A hoof rains down from above, causing his head to bounce against the crystalline floor. With a weakened daze, he offers a brief insult. "Cheap... trick." His eyes roll back and close, losing complete consciousness.

"I don't know, chief. Cheap seems to be pretty affordable these days." With a smirk, the ringleader of the rowdy group comes before him, lifting his head with a proud smirk. "And you can't get any cheaper than free."

The others gather around, taking note of the prince's condition. "Looks like he's out, boss. Good and gone, at least for a little while."

"Aw, he didn't even get to hear me talk shit. Guess we still got it." The ringleader chuckles heartily. "Anyhow, lets round this bastard up and see where he hails from. Maybe we can get a good price for him." The stallion lifts the unresponsive prince by his mane, seeing the rather extravagantly stitched cloak on his body. "But first, let's see what else he's got."

He yanks the cloak off of his broach, giggling until he sees a pair of wings dangle from either side of the prince. The group sigh and gasp with awe as one one of the subordinates state the obvious. "Boss, this one's got wings and a horn... and a dick?"

"Male alicorn, huh? Oh, he's gotta be worth a really good price." The ringleader confirms just as scrawny pegasus flies in from above. "Oi, Flotsam! What info you flyin' in here with?"

"Boss, this guy has markings leading back to a whole ass airship."

The stallion snickers confidently. "An airship in the cave? Holy shit, that's gotta be chocked full of some useful tools we can load up on."

"Not just that, but there seems to be another alicorn on the ship. Androgynous as all hell, but a male upon closer glance at the undercarriage."

One of the underlings excitedly claims as the others ooh and awe with speculation. "Another alicorn? Did we just hit the fucking lotto?"

"The lottery ain't got shit on our chances right now. We're swimming in the good." The ringleader replies. "One alicorn is like one in a million, a male alicorn is like one in ten million, two in the same day is basically a one in a billion crapshoot."

"That's not all boss!" Flotsam adds. "They've got weapons and saltpeter out the ass!"

"Well that settles it then!" The ringleader announces proudly. "Boys, I think our underground arena stint is about to be back in full-swing! Let's go and pay our little alicorn friend a visit, maybe trade this one in for that ship and all the shit they got on board!"

"Hey boss, why don't we do what we did last time with that prince from Ponyland? You know, that black unicorn low-end prince that gave us nothing in bounty. These two gotta be pretty important to be hiding around, much less with a full installation package." Jetsam proposes.

"You know what..." The leader replies. "You might be on to something."

Eros stares back at the orb that once bellowed with his father's voice. A number of meandering thoughts of his current place in the royal family plague his mind. A quiet worry stirs as ideas of his younger sibling being given the reigns of the empire play out in his head. A litany of images flash between his eyes, sights of political adversaries being strung up on the rafters of varying homes and businesses, each with an unholy degree of torment evident upon their faces and bodies. Guilds given the power to conduct the business of law enforcement. A courtyard full of mares of varying ages, a line of mares filing out of the gates of the keep and ending at the length of the city streets, each awaiting their turn for his inspections. The imaginary screams of citizens in the dungeons, each being seen as nothing more than rats in a lab for his sadistic methods. The emperor's words echo in his mind.

"If he shows no part, then I will simply anoint Militades with the crown position instead."

One of the centuries approach the prince as he's caught in the passing thoughts. "Sir prince, is something the matter?"

Eros slowly releases a breath of growing anxiety. "My brothers have gone. One to the town to collect information, the other to the caves on some so-called mission from the almighty. While I can almost guarantee that Agamemnon is far too invested in the commoner mares that populate the streets, as penis holds far too much real estate in his mind to make coherent decisions, Xerxes is probably gone about and gotten himself lost, or worse. And all for what, because he thinks some talking scroll is the word of the great Doctor himself." The prince rubs his head as he expresses his concerns. "And as all of this is happening, Militades is showing competency in the north. That spoiled bastard gets a free run at the crown, and Xerxes is busy chasing shadows in the mountain, Agamemnon is chasing mares in town, now I'm stuck here wondering if any of this is even worth it anymore."

The officer offers words of encouragement. "If I may provide a consolation, your highness, that would mean that there would be two less competitors for the crown position when you return home, my liege. Possibly three, if Militades is slain in his efforts."

"Do I look like I want to manage an empire with the stress of millions of undercuts looking to climb their way to the surface each and every day? Do you not know how much of a load that is on the mind? Why do you think we all forwarded our paperwork to Zenobia, it's so that she deals with the problems the rest of us don't like looking at. Hell, the lesser bloods deal with that ugly mess more than we do. It's because of them, we haven't yet seen the stirs of a revolution taking place under our hooves. And as long as we keep that lot satisfied, they won't conspire to do as much."

"Well in this case, it would prove favorable if Xerxes were to find himself lost in the caverns of this land. You and your brother could return home, and he'd be made the crown prince."

The lavender-streaked prince shakes his head. "You know nothing of my father's mind. He sees Agamemnon's constant citations of caution as a show of weakness. The manner in which he's eliminated Stephanos, father's favored first born no less, he will never see power more than what he has now. Father would rather crown Militades."

"But he's much like you, he doesn't desire the crown either."

The prince snaps his head towards the officer before him. "You mind your tongue, we are nothing alike!"

"I'm sorry, sir. I misspoke." The officer steps back and gives the prince a bow of respect.

The prince calms himself after his outburst. "No... I shouldn't have lashed at you so violently. I just think of him and see how little care he has for anyone but himself. His maids, his branch, even his own mother... Just... no. The thoughts I would have if my father were to excommunicate my mother... after all that was done to her, I'd─"

"SIR!" A young century calls to the prince, distracting him from his dark thought. "Brigands approaching the ship from the caves! Heavy unicorn presence!"

Not wanting to waste time, and finding an appropriate outlet for his inlaid violence, he jumps into action and barks orders to all onboard the ship. "All centuries to arms! We defend our position and give the engineers time to warm the engines!"

"Sir, what of Prince Xerxes? He hasn't returned from the caves."

"What of him? He made no contribution, he's useless now." He sternly replies, continue to move towards the armory for his own weapons. "Arm all cannons, I want a volley ready to be fired in good form, take formation 6, four to a row, three columns deep! Affix bayonets and do not fire unless I give the order!"

"Sir!" Everyone shouts as they file in behind him.

As he finishes getting his own supply of armaments, he walks out to the main entrance of the airship, seeing a few of the armed protectors pointing back at the growing formation of thugs. "What the hell are they doing?" One of them asks.

"They've brought torches... and just themselves."

"What does that even mean?"

The prince replies. "These lot are unarmed rag-tag thugs, just as quickly as they've arrived, we'll quickly dispose of them! So take no mind to them, we have the advantage here! Remember your pride, your nation's banner, while we hide it now, we know what blood proudly flows in our veins!"

"YES SIR!" The collection of centuries calls out as they file into their formation along the ramp of the airship.

Upon the opposing side, the group of mountain dwellers chatter with excitement over their prospective victory. The ringleader smirks as he takes to the front of the chaotic formation. One of the lackeys call out to the heavily armed prince. "Hey! Whatcha got there!? Looks kinda familiar!"

Another calls out. "Aw, put that thing away! We don't wanna hurt ya's... too much!"

The prince steps forward, his voice usually light to the timber, reinforced with a little more bass from his chest. "Who is the leader of this band?"

"You could say that's me for now!" The white unicorn stallion calls out, taking a gander at the airship and giving it a whistle. "You got some pretty nice digs! Shoddy paintjob, but it looks pretty damn close to the real thing! But you know, you gave yourselves away with those weapons of yours!"

"Who we are is of no concern of yours!"

"Beg to differ, bud!" Replies the ringleader. "Running some real cozy shit for hiding out in a cave! Must got some serious pedigree!"

The barrels of the muskets raise to point themselves at the encroaching group of mountain dwellers. "I'll assure you that our stop for maintenance should pose as no threat to you or your operations! Hence I'll ask you to consider turning the other way!"

"No 'would you kindly' or nothing!? Damn, and I thought you were a pretty decent cutie to be running up!" The crowd of thugs laugh heartily at the expense of the armed prince.

"I assure you that while I strive to be the source of aesthetic inspiration, I am more than happy to inform you that my tastes are only for the finest and fairest of the daintier sex!"

The leader snickers back. "So you call yourself top!? Damn, thought you were the bottom!" The rest of his group laughs alongside him. "To be fair, any one of us could make that makeup of yours run real nice! You'd be the prettiest fucking thing with a dick shoved in your throat, could bust a nut all over that face and couldn't tell the difference! I mean our dicks can't, mouth is mouth!"

"I do not take kindly to your insults!" The prince replies, infuriated that his sexuality is continued to be thrown into question.

"And we're all short on some goods that you may have on that ship of yours, guess we're both hurting today!" He turns back to look at his compatriots. "Am I right, boys!?"

As the opposing group holler in agreeance, the prince gives the visual to ready their weapons. "I warn you for the last time, turn back to where you've crawled from! If you refuse, we will give no quarter!"

The cult leader, while ambitious, proves not to be too hasty in his provocations. He turns to the others and quietly signals for them to cool their temperatures before finding themselves in a disadvantageous situation. "Actually, I was seeing if we could run a deal! Maybe a trade or two! Could be a thing you'd be down for!"

"Not interested!" Eros vehemently declines.

"Oh trust me, you'll be interested in what we've got for you!" He nods his head to the side, signaling for Flotsam and Jetsam to drag an unconscious alicorn to the forefront. "Wings and a horn, just like you. And you two seem to have the whole white on white thing going too! You guys must be related!"

Eros staggers at the sight of his brother being dropped before him in the short distance. One of the centuries beside him confirm the sight. "Sir, that's Prince Xerxes!"

"I have eyes too, you know." He mutters. But yet another thought comes to the mind. He opts to bluff over the situation. "We have no affiliation with that stallion! Do with him what you desire!"

"Nah, he's yours!" The ringleader confirms. "The bastard marked his way through the caves, leading all the way back to your ship! And if you ain't notice, we don't really do alicorns down here!" He approaches Xerxes from behind, lifting him by the base of his horn. "So let's make it happen! I give you your guy, you give me all the saltpeter and food on that vessel of yours! Hell just get your guys off the ship and we'll run it from there! And we trade your guy back, you all can go about your way, and no one gets their feelings hurt! Fair!?"

Slowly in the midst of the chaos, Xerxes' eyes start to flicker open. "Ugh... aah... damn."

"Aw, sweet prince is waking up! Think you might wanna make your decision quickly!"

With little wait, Eros calls to his centuries. "MAKE READY!"

"Make ready!" The group calls out behind him, cocking their weapons.

The ringleader shrugs as he looks back to his compatriots. "Well you heard em, boys, we're doing this! Ready up!"

Suddenly, the formation that once appeared chaotic tightens to a taught semi-circle. The unicorns in front weave a series of shields to defend against the oncoming volley. While the unicorns behind them easily weave spears of their own auras, pointing the tips beyond that of the arcane shield wall. "Weapons... of their own magic?" Eros asks himself. "Since when could we do anything like that?" He shakes off the sudden development and fortify his mind to carry out the attack. "TAKE AIM!"

"Take aim!"

"Guess we can play a little defense to start things off!" The ringleader announces proudly. "Go on, give it your best shot!"

Finally understanding the situation that everyone's embroiled into, Xerxes shouts to the top of his lungs a plea to the centuries across the way. "HOLD YOUR FIRE!..." He tries to turn his head over to the ringleader and mutters to him. "...All... drinks... on the... dock."

Hearing those words, the shields of the front line falter completely, the weapons of magic dissipate in the seconds to follow. The ringleader even orders his guys to stand down, but also pleading out to the ones standing on the ramp of the airship. "Oi! Oi! Time-out, pretty boy! Your guy just said some shit, we need to confirm! Give us a minute... straighten some shit out!" He gently places the dazed prince back down to the ground, the other surrounding him with newly vested interest. "Now... run that by us... one more time."

Grimacing from the ache of the blows he took earlier, he slowly speaks through the pain. "I was told... from the most high... to say those words. All drinks on the dock."

The others slowly raise their eyes to look at one another. Mash speaks softly. "Ay, boss, he said that came from the 'most high'."

Trying to make sure that he heard right, he leans into the prince. "Run that one by us one good time."

"'They have dismantled all that I have created in favor of their narratives. But I believe that there is hope beneath where the light touches. And wherein lies that hope also lies kindred company. You must send for the remnants of my most ardent followers, my lackeys of both past and current. You will meet with them first.'" Xerxes quotes the words of the whispering spirit, still dwelling onboard the airship they currently look to. "Those were the words give unto me. Along with these words: All drinks on the dock."

Having overheard the injured prince, one of the centuries whispers to Eros. "Sir, I think your brother's concussed."

"There's no water around here." He responds.

Meanwhile, a chorus of smiles start to fade onto the faces of the torch-bearing mountain-dwellers. "Hey boss." Mish calls out.

"All drinks on the doc." The ringleader begins to sing slowly. "♪All drinks on the doooooooc.♪"

"♪A whole fuckin' week, we'll drink a whole lot.♪" Jetsam sings a bit faster.

"♪We'll drink a whole lot, we'll drink a whole looooot!♫" Mash shouts out with Flotsam, rocking side to side, linked up by their forelegs. Everyone soon joins in.

♫The whole goddamn week, we'll drink your whole stock!
We'll drink your whole stock,
we'll drink your whole stooooooock,
down to the last drop, ALL DRINKS ON THE DOC!♫

Boisterous cheers fill the cave, the mountain-dwellers being the main component of the noise. Many of them hug one another and dance in celebration, giving confusion to the watchful group of centuries and their prince. The ringleader waves over to Eros with a show of warm greeting. "Oi, brethren!" He turns back to Xerxes to ensure that he's not calling out to them for no reason. "Wait, these are your guys, right?"

"That one up there is indeed my brother, yes." He confirms as he gets back to his hooves.

"Oh great then." He once more hails to Eros. "Brethren! Come!"

The lavender-streaked prince looks upon the approaching duo of his brother and the ringleader with caution as the officer whispers over to him. "Do we still await your signal, sir?"

"Of course. It could still be an ambush."

Xerxes shares no semblance of animosity as he points to the stallion next to him. "Eros, meet our new associates in our local conquest." He stammers for a moment, realizing an important issue. "I don't quite remember a name of yours."

"Oh yeah, we got you pretty rough back there, you know how it is. Apologies, brother." The ringleader taps his chest. "The name's Tap Out, head of the Old Rotty Committe, and overseer of the Tamers Guild."

"Tamers guild?" Xerxes asks curiously. He sparks up his magic to summon a silver medallion, the face showing a dragon's head and six spears embedded in it with vary flags. "Familiar with this one?"

"Dragon hunters!? Oh you gotta be the real deal then! I didn't know you were a guildie too! Hell, next time start off with that shit!"

Still looking to maintain some semblance of cover, Eros grabs his brother and chews him out for his blatant disclosures. "What the hell do you think you are doing?"

"You didn't think Zenobia was the only one getting word from the Good Doctor himself, did you?" Xerxes replies with a smirk.

Tap Out nods with a fond chuckle. "Yeah, gotta love good ol' Doc. He was always one of the boys, you know."

Eros shakes his head at the two's interactions. "Now I am confused, what is this again? Old Rotty committee, some guild, none of this makes sense to me."

"Yeah, I should probably clue you in on things." The prideful ringleader explains. "So back in the old days, we were up there in the city proper. The locals used to call our little slice of freedom 'Canterrot' like we were some plague on the city. But now, we're a bunch of holdovers from the heyday of Doc running the place. Been pretty much hidin' like a bunch of cockroaches now that they put up all those bright lights and shit. Everything's been pretty fucked, and it's all thanks to that purple bitch and her pearlescent predecessor, not to mention that human bastard that's got his dick in the both of them."

Eros stares slackjawed at the stallion. With no proper reference to anything, he remains confused. "I'm... empirically lost."

Xerxes is more than able to put context to the story. "The rogue apostle, the two legger... fornicating with the likes of your high princess?"

"Oh yeah, turns out she and he had some pretty deep history." Tap Out summons an old newspaper article of the moment commemorating the previous captain's graduation from basic training. It captures the moment where a younger Princess Twilight leaps up to fully display her affections for the human. "Tongue deep, obviously."

Both the brothers look at the picture with confused disgust. "What in heresy." Eros tilts his head.

"Not just her, obviously." This time, the guild leader produces another newspaper headline, but this one revealing the moment the former high princess Celestia embraces the man in similar fashion, but with a lot more tact and a wedding dress. The pair's jaws fall almost to the ground. "Yeah, her too."

Xerxes nods shortly after, his mind flashing back to both the moment when the man ran onto the ship after killing much of his centuries, and then the wrathful rant the aforementioned mare gave of her husband. "Well... that just answers a lot of questions."

"You know of these two?" Tap Out inquires.

"The rogue apostle and nightmare from hell. He's got a litany of weapons capable of immense bloodshed. And she's got a fiery temperament, and a halberd with the beauty of the setting sun─"

"With a blade with the strength to cleave a thousand stallions without ever dulling." The guild leader concludes. "So you do know about her?"

His eyes close to recount the ease in which the flame-maned alicorn easily sliced through more than half of his air fleet over the ocean. "Truly demonic."

"Glad you see that for yourself." Tap Out shudders, remembering her time walking through the town and cutting off the heads of his fellow guildmates with little pause. "Though I gotta say it, it's strange how the last pair of bastards we had coming in saying they supported the Doc never really had any idea of what he stood for. Free living, loving who you want, living how you want, doing what you want, true justice, a place to belong, and the unflinching protection against those in highest seats of power. He didn't mind letting a few heads roll for public enjoyment, but he also put together a myriad of ways to regain the life you lose throughout his time being around. Never afraid of the dirty work, but always looking for ways to keep you around. That's our Doc, always have been, always will be."

"The two that said they supported the Doctor, what happened with them?" Xerxes asks.

"Eh, they got out. They were helped along by that stupid scaly son of a bitch known as Princess Twilight's so-called 'Royal Friendship Advisor' or whatever the fuck that means."

A glint appears in the eyes of the intrepid prince. "Scaly?" His wings ruffle at the smallest means of the description. "Those scales wouldn't happen to be purple, would they?"

The stallion nods. "...Yeah. Tall, walks on two legs like the humans. You know him?"

For the moment, the prince's eyes grow cold and threatening as he questions the guild leader. "So your guys specialize in taming creatures, right? How good are you at hunting dragons?"

"Xerxes!" Eros calls out.

"What, I'm only asking questions, hypotheticals even. Besides, you of all creatures should remember that father gave me exclusive rights to hunt him down and bring back our sister. Or did you forget our father's words so easily?" He turns back towards Tap Out, with violence growing in his eyes. "Now if I were to say that I wanted a certain dragon brought to me for the express purpose of collecting his head, would I be any less of right?"

The guild leader shakes his head. "Sounds like the case of a beast gone feral, and you're looking to take responsibility for that beast biting someone out of term. You'd ask me, I'd call you a responsible pet owner."

"I like the analogy. We'll discuss matters of that at great length." The prince's eyes shift back towards the entrance of the airship. "But first, I believe we should go and speak with the almighty. He's expecting you."

"Now that's a welcome I can get behind." He cosigns as he looks to enter the airship. However, the pair are hindered by Eros' magic, specifically holding back Xerxes.

"I don't know what any of this is, but if you so much as deviate from father's orders─"

"You know damn well what my new orders are. If you want to continue this pointless search to find the holy mother with Agamemnon, the let that be your pursuit."

Tap Out quirk a brow at the squabbling siblings. "Holy mother?"

"A zebra unicorn mare. The doctor once requested for her to be brought before him, along with the offspring." Xerxes elaborates.

"Zebra unicorn mare?" The guild leader ponders for a short moment. "Ah... the village mount! She's a good fighter, but she's even better in bed. Could suck your dick like it was water to a deserted wanderer, takes a lot of punishment like a sinner looking to repent, a steadfast crusader in the sheets... or whatever back alleyway you happen to be in. She's got an ass built for breeding, a throat ordained for ministry, and a body built by scripture."

Both the brothers blink wildly at the vulgar description. "That doesn't sound as holy as I was made to believe." Eros replies.

"Oh trust me, she's holy, she's got the holes. But the only one who got her best work was─wouldn't you guess it─that human bastard she worked under." He summons another newspaper article, this one with a zebracorn mare standing next to the former captain. "Yeah, that's what she used to look like. But now she's changed everything up, dyed her fur, grew her mane a bit, wearing all sorts of dresses to hide the fact that she's a blank-flank. Any identifiable means, she's altered to shed that image of herself. She's a family girl, got responsibilities, decent livin', and a so-called 'public reputation' to uphold. Her and the brat lives on the back end of the mountain."

Both of the princes stare in awe of the wealth of information so easily laid at their hooves.

"If the Doc wants her, we can get her too. The Tamers Guild prides itself in the apprehension and collection of ALL creatures, living or otherwise." He also lays out a few photos of the royal friendship advisor standing next to a skinny albino alicorn mare. "And if you want this one, we'll be more than happy to fetch him. No need of a price, it's personal."

Xerxes cracks a smile back at his brother and whispers. "The Doctor. Always. Provides."

Author's Note

To be continued...