His Moonlight, Her Starshine

Diamond Flare. The Crazy Diamond. Feared and respected leader of the Hay-lem Haymakers. In all of his life, he looked at the challenges I was given and took them on with a cocky grin and an insane mindset. His unpredictability and savage nature meant that very few even tried to question or confront him. Even when age mellowed him out, most feared what would happen if he ever snapped once again.

So it was a shock to find North in his office with his marefriend and ex-marefriend, along with his own biological niece and adopted niece, all of them with very serious expressions on their faces. That look in North’s eyes, it told him that he just learned everything. It was an eventuality that he dreaded. He tried to remain calm as he smoked.

“Good to see you kids got out of there safely…” He muttered, blowing a puff of smoke. “Although that look tells me that you all found out the truth.”

North leaned in. “Uncle, I want to know what happened. I heard everything from the Black Dragon’s Claw, but I want honesty from you. I want to confirm what I know. And I think it’s only fair that everyone else knows as well.”

“Yeah… You’re absolutely right, kid,” Diamond nodded while putting out his cigarette. “It isn’t fair that you all get left in the dark about my war with that gang… I’ve been trying to hide it, hoping that you’d learn after I die… Looks like I can’t keep that promise.”

He turned to the window, looking out at the gym as he began to weave his memories into a tale…

~~~

Diamond Flare was a young stallion, growing up as a ragged homeless pony with his brother, Star Seeker. The two pegasi operated as pickpockets and thieves, taking what little they could just to survive. Eventually, a young mare their age named Feather Lights.

The mare’s father never liked that her daughter hung around these vagabonds, and expressly prohibited them interacting with her or even stepping into his home. When he died, that rule came right out the window. After all, Feather and Star were in love.

When Diamond saw that, he felt three things: repressed jealousy at losing such a beautiful mare, happiness for his brother to be the one to claim her, and absolute caution. It was only a matter of time before the money left by Feather’s father would run dry, and if they wanted to get married and have a kid, that money would be running out fast. Star’s new job peddling trinkets to tourists was never going to keep them all solvent. He had one option. He needed bigger, riskier targets.

He was looking out the docks at a boat that was pulling in. If what he heard from the bars were true, this was the ship that supposedly had a cargo of stolen goods. Goods he could fence to make a bit of extra money. He didn’t need a lot of it, just enough that he could pay for their wedding. Then, he’d have another go to help pay for their child’s schooling, and so on and so forth. A mosquito leeching on the gangs of the city.

As the ship came to a stop, Diamond adjusted his mask and clothing. Dark navy blue, much harder to be seen in the night. He flew up, making sure he was well above his target before diving straight down and silently landing among the massive crates. He wandered among them, muttering to himself almost silently.

“5-B… 5-B… There…”

He spotted the crate he was looking for, noticing a special lock on the door. The first thing he noticed was that any normal lockpick wouldn’t do, as the keyhole was oddly shaped. The symbol on it was the second thing he noticed, and the thing that froze him in place: a dragon’s claw, painted black. His biggest lapse in detail was who this cargo belonged to. The Black Dragon’s Claw were a powerful force from Neighpon that planted seeds in Manehatten. Even if they weren’t the biggest, their speed of growth made it hard to deny that they were here to stay.

And Flare was now on their ship, trying to steal their stuff.

“Well… Not much I could do…” He muttered as he produced a crowbar from the duffel bag he brought with him and bashed at the lock with as much speed and force as possible. It only took a few swings to break the lock, but the stallion knew that the sounds of him breaking in meant he now had very little time to take anything. He took out a flare, lighting it and dropping it near the entrance. It was enough light to show him the container’s contents: pots of glowing plants, seeds, swords, and oddly glowing gems.

What the… He muttered, looking at the unusual objects inside. He heard the sound of hoofsteps approaching. No time. Grab whatever.

He stuffed a number of items from each of the shelves inside his bag, getting enough of a haul before turning to leave. There he heard the sounds of Neighponese and saw two members of the Black Dragon’s Claw looking right at him. He had no time to wait. He rushed and headbutted the first into a container before kicking the second off the edge. He found more and quickly rushed them. His movements were sloppy, not just because of the weight of his loot, but also because he wasn’t accustomed to fighting in general. However, his ability to move like a mad dog terrified even these members as they watched this masked stallion headbutt one of their members over and over. It wasn’t like anything they’d seen.

However, a large stallion, their greatest bodyguard, rushed forward to take on the stallion. The two made contact head first, gritting their teeth as they began to attack. Diamond punched so hard, horseshoe indents were being left on the body of the Black Dragon’s Claw member, but it wasn’t enough to take this stallion down. Instead, he received a number of well timed strikes, each one causing intense pain. Two was the highest amount anypony could’ve withstood.

One hit.

Two.

Three.

Diamond was still punching, although substantially weaker. His body felt like it was about to explode, but he still kept fighting.

Four.

Five.

FWUMP!

Diamond’s body hit the ground, unmoving. He appeared to be dead. The BDC member turned away with the bag. Then he felt a tug on his tail.

That move was designed for total immobilization, with 4 punches meaning death for anypony. No one had ever gone above 2 without collapsing. As he turned back, he saw Diamond, beaten and immobile, gripping on the tail with his teeth. He still wasn’t going down.

“G-Gimme… Dat…” He gargled out through gritted teeth.

The other members of the BDC rushed forward to finish him off, but the largest stopped them. He muttered something Diamond couldn’t understand, especially with his hearing going out. Then, things went dark when they put a bag over his head and tied him up.

He wasn’t sure where he ended up, but when the bag was over his head, he found himself lying in a small bed, his body bandaged and medical supplies surrounding him. His heart felt like it was beating again, but his body ached with every movement.

“I would be careful, young one…”

His eyes darted over to see the voice’s origins, an adult stallion in robes indicating his Neighpon origins. His eyes were closed, and he quietly sipped a cup of tea. Despite the pony’s kind smile, it felt like Diamond was being pushed down by an unnerving energy surrounding him.

“Your wounds are still healing. And I would not want a pony like you dying on me.”

“Rrgh…” Diamond struggled to move, muttering softly. “W-What… Who are you, old fart…?”

“Language, foal…” The stallion calmly responded with a chuckle. “Talking to your elders like that isn’t how you resolve your problems… Especially when that elder has saved your life.”

Diamond went quiet, then looked around again to get a better look at his surroundings. Screen dividers and imagery of dragons, flowers, and mountain scapes. Well… I either ended up in Neighpon or Little Neighpon… Either way…

“You… You’re the leader of the Black Dragon’s Claw…”

“Sharp too~ I’m assuming you don’t have an extensive information network…”

Diamond shook his head. “Just… Context clues…”

“Oh, you are indeed a treasure, Diamond Flare…”

The injured stallion froze in place. Chills ran through his body as his gaze turned towards the smiling stallion. “You did not think we wouldn’t find out about you and your brother, did you? A perfect pair of swindlers, looking to make a profit at every turn… And that mare you stay with… I assume she is who you work through…?”

“L-Listen, listen!” Diamond jolted out of bed, wincing in pain as he struggled to stay up. “He’s not involved, I promise! He’s gone straight, the mare too! It was just me!”

“Oh? And who were you going to fence through?”

“T-To one of the distributors! There’s tons of fencers all over! My brother’s got no place when those two are together!”

A slight pause came between the two, and even then, Diamond bowed before the leader and continued, pain rocketing through his body.

“M-My brother and that mare… They want to have a wedding, but we’re low on money! My brother’s job peddling things to tourists isn’t going to cut the cost, and I want them to have the best wedding! I thought if I took a few things you smuggled in and sold them off to a fence, I’d be able to afford their wedding…!”

Tears began to flow down his cheeks as he muttered under his breath. “They… They’re the world to me… I don’t want them to suffer in poverty… E-Especially if they have a foal…”

“Oh dear…” the master muttered as he shook his head. “A troublesome youth… Thinking crime can be the solution but afraid of the consequences that come from stepping on the wrong hoof… Had you not impressed me, you all could have perished.

Impressed… Does that mean…? He looked up, seeing the old leader take another sip of tea.

“That pony you faced… He is known as Oni… His family mastered the art of pressure point combat… Two of those punches he gave you could immobilize nearly anypony… Four is guaranteed death… You withstood five… Now tell me,” He opened an eye with a sharpened gaze. “Do you believe that Oni was weak… Or do you believe you can prove yourself useful to our organization?”

Diamond’s head jolted up. “I-I can be useful, I promis-AGH!” The pain finally caught up to him, falling back into the bed.

The old stallion chuckled and tucked him back in. “Well, you aren’t ready just yet. Rest, and we’ll discuss your arrangement.”

Diamond only nodded, looking up at the ceiling. The job didn’t go quite how he liked it, but it might’ve given him a better deal in the end.

~~~

It took Diamond about a month to recover, and the moment he was deemed fit, he was given the deal: If he worked to secure and expand the holdings of the Black Dragon’s Claw for a year, he would earn the bits needed to provide for Star and Feather’s wedding. They put him to work in many jobs, from security and extortion, to low effort grunt work, like cleaning up the remains of their crimes. Every opportunity he could take, he took. He did not waste a moment to rest, and only did so when his employers insisted and sometimes outright demanded.

Their biggest job, however, was as a circuit fighter and enforcer. Bars, restaurants, and other venues under their domain were often attacked, and so as Manehatten rules dictated, two ponies would fight to see who would claim the venue. The Black Dragon’s Claw were already making slow headway with their fighters, but the recruitment of Diamond Flare sped that up. He fought like an animal, his form sloppy, but his results nonetheless effective. As such, he was tasked with training under Oni in some martial arts when not working, making sure that he had some level of finesse and skill on top of brute strength.

When he was allowed to return home, Star and Feather saw how beaten he was with shock. They would press him for questions, but he said that he was simply taking care of business.

“Don’t worry about money,” Star mentioned every time. However, Diamond saw something behind the look of concern his brother gave him. Resentment, envy, and a small but growing rage.

He ignored it for the time being. After all, he had work to do, and there was still much to do if he was going to pay it off. One of his favorite jobs was the escorting of the daughter of the Master, Lotus Pond. Her aquamarine coat was always pristine and her long light pink mane was always long and silky. Her gaze was still, never making eye contact with her escort as she moved like a mechanical doll along a set path.

It tore him up to see her like this, so every so often on duty, he would crack a joke, make a quip or perform a little trick in the air. Nothing too serious or distracting, and nothing that took his attention away from his job, but Lotus began to giggle and smile at his antics. Before long, she was requesting Diamond accompany her everywhere, much to the chagrin of the others. The Master did not seem to mind, and that was all that mattered to Flare.

One day, he moved with Lotus to one of her favorite shops for mochi. She watched as they prepared it, entranced by the process. Diamond smiled as he watched with her.

“You like that stuff, Pondy?”

Lotus blinked and looked at Diamond. “Pondy?”

The stallion’s eyes widened as he looked away with a blush of embarrassment. “Sh-Shoot, my bad… Just a… N-Nickname I thought for you. Thought it sounded cute.”

Lotus, in turn, blushed and looked away. “It… It is… I like it…”

The awkward tension between them grew, Diamond’s hooves shifting about while Lotus played with her mane.

“S-So…” Diamond quickly cleared his throat. “Mochi, right? It any good?”

Lotus quickly perked up and smiled. “Oh, yes! Since they’re making this batch home made for me, I could…” She paused, her blush getting larger. “Sh-Share some with you…”

Diamond smiled, him turning his gaze towards the door to adjust his mane. “I’d… Like that…”

Suddenly, his eyes caught a glimpse of something. To most, it was just a flicker, a tiny glimmer that could’ve been nothing more than a nearby window reflecting the sun. His mind told him otherwise. He rushed to Lotus Pond shouting, [GET DOWN!] before shielding her body. Sure enough, the sound of glass breaking and magic sizzling flesh made Diamond grunt in pain. He suppressed it, instead flaring his wings and tossing a knife right in the direction the blast came in.

He saw the distant visage of a pony falling backwards. He hoped for either death or a chopped horn, but the sight of ponies heading towards the shop proved that it didn’t matter much. The pegasus picked the mare and put her behind the counter. “Stay here and keep your head down. You two!” He pointed to the ponies making the mochi. “Keep working. Let me know when you’re done.”

The two nodded in response and began working in double time, all while Diamond went outside and adjusted his suit while a group of eight grizzled ponies approached. “Alright… Let’s dance, fillies.”

They charged at him, but he was quick to grab a nearby sign with his teeth and swing it about to keep distance. A couple took the hit and stumbled back, but it was far from the heavy hits Diamond could deliver. A couple dove back in for him, which he easily dodged and smacked one backwards right before he was trampled by a carriage. Left groaning, the distraction was enough for him to go after the second on, flying up then delivering a diving headbutt. The stallion stumbled and hit his head with one hoof, but he barely had a chance before his opponent kicked him across the street.

The six remaining looked in shock as Flare cracked his neck and smiled. “Alright, I’ve warmed up. We still dancing, or you fillies getting cold hooves?”

A pegasus in the group flew up and dove straight down with a flying drop kick, but Flare was quick to leap up and dodge, meeting her in the air. “Oh, you’re a sky dancer, huh? That’s cool, I dig it.”

“Rrrgh, shut up and fight!” The two exchanged fast punches and kicks, but Flare was able to block or tank the hits. To him, it felt like nothing, but to his opponent, it was like punching lead.

One of the attackers decided to risk it, rushing towards the store with a knife in his teeth. Diamond quickly spotted it and grabbed hold of his opponent. “Oh no, you don’t!” He shouted before spinning backwards and diving straight down, using the pegasus to knock out the earth pony. With half of the attackers down, he looked at the rest. “Last chance. We finish the dance now and you can head home, or you can come at me again.”

The rush of a blast of magic was all Diamond needed to rush forward, tanking the hit while also grabbing the unicorn who cast it and repeatedly headbutting him. After a solid minute, he rushed to the ponies trying to break in, delivering punches and kicks to any who tried to get close until finally, they all fell.

He breathed slowly, trying to catch his breath. That felt a bit too easy. He wasn’t nearly as beat up as he usually was. Something was off, and it was only when she heard the sounds of a mare screaming that he realized that he forgot about the back entrance.

He burst into the shop to see the mochi makers slashed up and a stallion standing over Lotus Pond. Instinct took over. He didn’t stop to think if what he was about to do was smart, he just kept running and dove forward.

“GCK!”

He didn’t need to look to know it was bad. For all his strength at taking punches, knives were a different story. He didn’t have time to waste. Adrenaline was rushing through him. He forced the attacker to the ground and grabbed the mochi hammer. Then, he swung down. Again and again. Until he was sure the pony wasn’t getting back up.

Then, he collapsed on the ground, coughing into his hoof. Lotus rushed to his side. “Diamond!”

“Tch… So much for invincible, heheh-Rgh…” He winced in pain as he lay on the ground. “Oh, hurts to laugh… Must’ve hit a sweet spot…”

“Diamond, hold on!” Pond cried as she tried to dress his wounds. “I’ll… I’ll call Father! We can get you help!”

“Tch… Dunno if I can last that long-”

“Then I order you to.”

“... What?” Diamond’s eyes widened as he looked at Lotus, now looking very serious.

“As daughter to the Master of the Black Dragon’s Claw, I order you to stay alive until we can treat you.”

The two stared at each other, and Flare could see that behind the aggressively stern tone, Lotus was very afraid. He only nodded and muttered. “... Yes… Mistress…” He laid his head back and took slow, deep breaths, trying to slow his blood flow so he could last as long as he could. Then, his eyes began to drift…

~

He awoke in that same BDC infirmary, once again in pain and once again looking at the Master. His energy was far less imposing and more… Concerned. There was anger, but not at him. It seemed unfocused. He quietly sipped his tea.

“You are quite the troublesome stallion, Diamond. It’s quite maddening, considering the circumstances.”

“M-Master, I’m sorry, I-GCK!” He winced as he tried getting up to bow to him, and despite the Master gesturing not to, he still did his best to do so. “I… I failed… We were ambushed… I couldn’t… Hold out…”

“You failed, you say, yet…”

The door opened as Lotus came in with tea and bandages. “Father, I have replacement bandages, has he-?” She paused as she saw Diamond out of bed, her cheeks going red. “Father! Are you making him bow in his current state??”

The Master chuckled and shook his head. “Oh no… He did this on his own accord.”

“Diamond! You’ll rip open your stitchings! Get back in bed!” She grabbed a fan and began swatting at his head.

“Ow! Ow! Hey, knock it off, Pond! You’ll-Ow! Fine fine, I’m going back!” Diamond complained the whole time he was whapped by the fan, slipping back into bed while Lotus Pond began changing his bandages. As they quietly bantered, the Master’s smile became slightly wider. The way these two interacted, it was a genuine bond. His whole life, he’d watched as her daughter acted as a doll, as was customary for the leaders of gangs in Neighpon to do with their children. Every child born was judged very early, whether they were a tiger or a hare. Tigers ran the gangs, hares were for strategic marriages. It didn’t matter if the foal was a colt or a filly. All that mattered was whether they were tigers or hares. Anyone not directly from the family might as well have been a coyote.

And here was his daughter, a meek and gentle hare, passionately working to soothe an ailing coyote. Here was that coyote, a young stallion just trying to make ends meet in life for his family. He pondered many things, then spoke.

“Diamond Flare…”

The two ponies looked towards the elder, who quietly sipped his tea before continuing. [The situation that occurred… No one besides a small number of ponies knew about that visit. We had some sort of leak. If there was anypony who failed me, it was my eyes in my own organization. The ones who wanted me to see blinded me. You, on the other hoof, an outsider doing everything you could for the family, sacrificing your body for my daughter’s life and the future of the Black Dragon’s Claw. For this…] He bowed to the injured pegasus, shocking both of them. [I am eternally grateful.]

[M-Master, please get up! I’m not worthy of such praise! I just did my job!]

[And you’ve done it well.] The master rose up, looking at the two. [Your debt to us has been fully paid off. Tell your family to plan that wedding as they desired.]

The announcement just hit him. He didn’t realize that a year had passed since he had robbed the boat, and he still technically had a couple of months left. He did that good a job? His eyes shifted to Lotus, who behind her look of joy was burdened with grief. Was it because…?

[Master.]

The elder looked up, awaiting the response from the stallion. [When the wedding is over… I want to come back and work for you. I don’t care if I have to start from the bottom. I feel… Being here has been the purpose I needed in life.]

Hearing that made the Master beam with joy. [I believe that is the truth as well. I am very fortunate to hear that you will be staying.]

The two would visit Diamond every so often to check on his state, but fortunately, despite being worse than what happened before, he was back on his hooves in no time. He was handed a scroll, dictating that any costs regarding a wedding would go to the Black Dragon’s Claw.

“Alright. I should go tell the others about the good news. I’ll be gone for some time planning this, but I’ll come right back as soon as the wedding is done. I promise!”

“We will be waiting here,” The Master bowed his head, which Diamond quickly followed and did the same. As they finished, Lotus rushed in with a tight hug. She looked him in the eyes, smiling.

[I’ll wait for you.]

[I’ll wait for you too.]

They nuzzled snouts quickly, and before long, Diamond was out the door, spotting one of the higher ups about to walk in. He gave a dirty look tossed Flare’s way, but he ignored it. The last thing he heard as he flew out the window, was info regarding the mochi shop incident.

~~~

“You did what??”

Star Seeker looked furiously at his brother, who looked equally frustrated. Feather Light tried to go between them to stop their fighting, but they continued.

“Are you really going to be this ungrateful?? You know what I had to do to make sure you two had your perfect wedding and honeymoon??”

“Did I ask you to break our flanks to help me??”

“Why don’t you be grateful for once in ya buckin’ life??”

“STOP IT, YOU TWO!!! PLEASE!!!”

The two froze as they saw Feather, panting with reddened cheeks. Tears flowed from her eyes as she looked at Star. “Look what he went through to get us our perfect life! Just be grateful and take it! Please, let me handle this!!!”

Star went silent, still seething as he glared at his brother. Diamond was genuinely confused. How could his brother be so aggressive against him? After everything they went through, he was suddenly against crime? Feather quickly looked at Diamond. “Flare. Genuinely, thank you for this. You must’ve gone through hell, all for our sake… But we want to move away from crime.”

Diamond froze up, and Feather continued. “Star and I… We’re going to have a child… I know it’s a bit too soon since, you know… But we want to commit ourselves away from that life.”

The stallion was quiet. He had spent a year serving a gang, and now he was supposed to pick one life or another. He didn’t know what to say, but the visage of Lotus flashed through his mind.

“Feather…”

“Hmmm?”

“Would you… Mind if I chose against you… Not because of a grudge, but because I… Found somepony?”

Feather gasped and covered her snout, and even Star’s eyes widened slightly. Feather looked between her lover and his brother, then took a breath with a smile. “We wouldn’t hold it against you, no… I think we’d be very proud of you, even if we can’t see each other again…”

Diamond smiled slightly, looking down at the scroll. “Then yeah. My choice is made. Let’s make this the best wedding of your life.

~~~

Sure enough, the wedding was more than anypony could’ve dreamed. Good food, good music, beautiful clothes, and pictures that would last a lifetime. Some of Manehatten’s up and coming stars and top brass arrived at the behest of Diamond, and with the aid of his brother, Star got to have a lot of conversations regarding his small startup business and his ideas. He was so busy with that at the reception, Feather seemed to feel ignored by her husband and moved out to the balcony of the venue, where she found Diamond looking out at the sky with a cigarette held gently by his teeth.

“Stargazing, Di?”

Flare turned his head to see the bride. He gave a slight smirk. “Nothing serious. Just letting bro have his moment.”

“You don’t think he’ll realize you set everything up?”

“I mean, if he does, I’ll be long gone,” He blew out a puff of smoke. “Can you tell me why he decided to go completely against the underworld?”

Feather shook her head and sighed. “No, all I know is that he stopped at a fortune teller one day and came back… Quiet and clammy. He didn’t talk about it and any time I brought you up, he got irritated.”

“Ugh, great. A soothsayer got in his head again…” He shook his head and spat out the finished cigarette before getting another one from his coat and striking it against the balcony, causing it to light. With a quiet puff, he muttered. “Oh well. Too late now.”

Feather Light watched how casual Diamond Flare was acting about everything. Not once had he tried to fight to stay, and that bothered her. She looked out with him. “This mare… How valuable is she to you?”

Diamond smiled. “More valuable than all the bits in the world…”

Feather smiled slightly. “Then that’s all that matters. I hope… I hope that you’re happy with her.”

“Thanks, Light. And remember, if there’s anything you need, just look around. You’ll find me.” He looked at the clock on the venue’s exterior. “Shoot… I better get going.”

Finishing the cigarette, he started walking towards the edge. For a split second, Feather could see Diamond moving towards the maw of darkness, the jaws of an unknown force opening wide to swallow him whole. Panic set in and she moved forward.

“Flare. Are you sure there isn’t… Any way I can talk you out of this?”

“Nah… This is my choice. I think that’s where I belong, under Manehatten. See you, Light.” With that, Diamond flew up into the sky and towards the stars. It would be the last time Feather would see him do so…

~~~

Diamond Flare lied on the ground, staring up at the cloudy sky. His tuxedo was in tatters and his body in an even worse shape. The entire night had been a blur. He was told that his initiation would start immediately, and when he was led into a room, his closest companions beat him. The last thing he remembered hearing was “This is the cost of your betrayal,” before he received a punch by Oni. Now, he lied in the middle of the abandoned industrial district as rain washed the blood off his body. The thing that terrified him the most was that he couldn’t feel his wings anymore.

He heard the sound of ponies shifting toward him, the sounds of muttering coming out.

“Fresh one… Go check.”

“No, you go check.”

“I checked last time…!”

“If you’re going to rob me, just kill me…”

Both ponies in ragged clothes looked in shock as the stallion who seemed to be dead struggled to pick himself up. Despite being inches from death’s door, he still managed to be on his hooves. Both moved with intent to attack, but one stopped as they recognized the stallion.

“Hey, wait up,” they said to their companion. “This is that pony… The fighter for BDC.”

“Good, all the better to finish him off and strip his stuff.”

“No no! Listen, just… Follow my lead.” The hooded pony approached hesitantly. “Hey. Need a hoof?”

“Nice try…” Diamond muttered as he tried moving towards them. “You just tried to kill me…”

“Yeah, that was before we realized we were looking at the Crazy Diamond himself. Come on, we can help you get revenge on whoever did this to you, and the only way you can fight is if we help you. Like, right now.”

Diamond wanted to retort, but he could feel himself dying. He needed medical attention, and these ponies were offering. With a quiet nod, he was led to one of the abandoned warehouses and inside, a crude approximation of a gym. The eyes were on him, but he just ignored it and limped along into another room, where the pony began to delicately strip him down.

They gave him some medicine which seemed to have knocked him out, as the entirety of the procedure was a blur. All he knew was that when he woke up, he was crudely bandaged and lying on another small cot. The thing that woke him up was an argument.

“Boss, he’s useful!”

“Yeah, and he’s BDC. What you did was waste medical supplies on the enemy.”

“But even if he is, they might be willing to negotiate something for saving their own!”

“If your negotiations actually had any merit, then we wouldn’t have lost everything to him.”

“For what it’s worth…” Diamond butted in. “The BDC aren’t gonna give you anything for saving me.”

The two looked over, the larger Earth stallion snorting. “Yeah? And why’s that, Crazy Diamond? Everyone knows you’re their crown jewel.”

“I was. Then they took my wings.”

Diamond slowly got up, grunting in pain while trying not to rip open the stitches. “They did this to me. Said I was behind an attack. Didn’t even get a chance to refute it. And if the Crazy Diamond can’t fly, well… He can’t fight.”

The two stayed quiet, watching as this broken stallion just lied back down. “If you give me a bit of time to adjust to the… Handicap, I’ll pay you back. Get you some turf. You got a manageable gym setup here, I think I can work with it.”

“Hmph…” The Boss turned around, keeping his glare on the injured pony. “You better. If you go down again, you’re not getting back up.”

“Yeah… I know.”

That was the day that Diamond Flare joined the Hay-lem Haymakers.

~~~

Much like every time Flare was at death’s door, he was back on his hooves within a month, but what took him more time to get used to was living life perma-grounded. Fighting meant he couldn’t rely on airborne moves. Fortunately, he had help. The Haymakers, while small, had some fighters that could teach him a thing or two about fighting like an Earth Pony.

The first was, weirdly enough, a yak who went by the name Rockbreak. Banished from his home, he found his way here and lended his strength to The Boss. He was very unpredictable, moving in ways that seemed erratic but always hit his targets. He taught the lesson that overthinking was what made him predictable. He needed to not only reduce his time planning, but also take big risks on things only an insane pony would. As Rockbreak put it, “You Crazy Diamond. Why think like normal pony? Normal pony easy to see coming. Crazy pony very hard.”

The second was an even stranger inclusion, a former member of the Royal Guard, one by the name of Blazing Centurion. He was somepony who had the technical capabilities to teach Diamond everything he needed, from basic hoofboxing to submission holds, to improvised weapon training. Even Diamond’s new crazy movements weren’t enough to take Blazing down, as he seemed to adapt to everything Flare did on the fly. Simply put by him, “If your opponent thinks quick enough, they can account for anything you can do. In a fight, it’s not just about being the strongest or the fastest, but also the smartest.”

Unpredictable offense, split-second defense. This was what would be known by the newly invented Crazy Diamond as he took a bite out of the criminal underworld and delivered it to the Hay-lem Haymakers on a silver platter. Their base wouldn’t just have the crude equipment found in scrap yards anymore, but soon, new facilities all provided by Diamond Flare’s endless combat. He helped assimilate smaller gangs by force, and when new gangs popped up, he was sent to take them down. Soon, he was taking bites out of the same gang that betrayed him.

A few years after his inclusion was the next major event of his life. He had been training some new blood when he heard a very familiar voice near the door.

“Please, is Diamond Flare here? I need to talk to him!”

“Back off, filly. Take your foal and get out of here.”

“Guys, keep practicing! I’ll be right back!” Flare shouted to his recruits before running to the entrance. His ears hadn’t deceived him. Standing at the front was Feather Light, looking much thinner and exhausted, and right behind her, a small pegasus foal, shivering from the cold fog. “Feather…”

The moment Feather caught sight of Flare, she gasped at the scars and most importantly, the nubs on his back. “Di… Your wings…”

“Don’t worry about me. Why are you here?”

The mare looked down, silent as she muttered softly. “Star… He… He threw away all of our savings… He said it was for an investment… That it would pay off…”

Diamond grit his teeth, trying his best to not go after his brother and beat some sense into him. Instead, he moved closer. “Are you asking me to stay?...”

Feather shook her head. “I need to be by his side, to support him. Even in this, he’s my star… But… North Star here, he doesn’t deserve to starve. Can you…?”

Diamond smiled and nodded. “Of course. He’s my nephew after all. Finally get to meet the little colt!” He caught sight of the little pegasus and leaned down. “Hey, kiddo! You hungry? I know a place that makes great pasta!”

The foal looked at the stallion nervously, but still mustered a little nod. Feather, smiling sadly, nudged North along. “North, you need to stay with Uncle Diamond for a little. You’re not in trouble, but mommy needs to make sure that you’re safe and well fed, and right now, we can’t do that at our house. Mommy promises to come back when things are okay. Promises.”

The foal nodded meekly and looked down. “‘Kay, mommy…”

The mother smiled and lifted his chin. “Be safe, my little starlight…”

“You sure you don’t wanna come for food, Feather? My treat.”

Feather smiled sadly and shook her head. “Thank you, but I need to get going soon. I can’t afford to be late. Please, keep him safe.” With that, Feather flew off, the last time that Diamond would see her again.

He would continue to raise North for a few years, teaching him how to defend himself. North took to fighting as easily as Diamond Flare had, and even if he didn’t want him participating in fights, everyone in the Haymakers, including The Boss, was impressed on how quickly he picked up fighting.

One day, though, Diamond would receive a letter, a note simply reading:

Keep him. We don’t want North around. We won’t accept him.

He recognized the writing immediately, crushing the paper in his hoof. His brother, so adamant to avoid the underworld, would abandon his own kid. He looked over at North Star, play-fighting with Rockbreak. He promised to take care of him as best as he could, if not for his nephew’s safety, then to spite his brother.

As years dragged on, North Star managed to convince The Boss to participate in a couple of circuit fights, and shockingly, despite barely being a teenager, he won. Everypony was proud of him, but Diamond, secretly, was worried. He didn’t want his nephew falling into his same pathways.

It would all come to a head when the wingless pegasus went into The Boss’s office. He gave his proposal: He was going to step down and make Diamond Flare the new head of the Hay-lem Haymakers.

Flare was shocked, but he maintained his composure. “Is this a ploy to kill me, sir?”

The Boss chuckled and shook his head. “Nah, if I wanted you dead, I’d have done it already. No, I just need you to do something for me. The one thing, and I’m gone.” The large stallion leaned in. “Kill the daughter of The Master and her husband. The whole family, wipe them out.”

Flare stayed quiet, and The Boss continued. “You see, Flare, The Master married her off to another powerful family, and that is the only thing binding them together. In truth, they hate each other. You get rid of them, fighting occurs, and we can sweep in.”

“That has to be the dumbest idea you’ve had, sir,” Flare spoke frankly, keeping his stoic expression. “They’ll just unite against us and wipe us out.”

“Ah, I figured you’d hesitate. You have a lot of history with that mare…” The Boss sighed and shook his head. “I suppose I’ll ask somepony else. Maybe…” He looked out the window at the ponies fighting. “Maybe your nephew.”

Diamond’s nostrils flared. “You wouldn’t!”

“He’s been looking to get his hooves dirty in our organization officially. This is just the thing to prove his loyalty.”

“FINE!” Diamond shouted, turning away. “I’ll go… I’ll do it.”

“Very well. I do suggest including him for a lookout. I’ll be able to settle with just that.”

Diamond didn’t respond and just left the office, rage and anguish filling his being.

~~~

It was supposed to be a simple assassination job. North Star kept watch outside the fancy house while Diamond scaled the building with hooves and a rope. Slip inside, slit throats, get out. But something went wrong. A hesitation which led to the husband waking up and struggling. Diamond stabbed over and over, making sure he wouldn’t get up, but he ended up waking Lotus Pond, who tried flying off. Diamond pounced and pinned her down. He did what he was tasked, looking her in the eyes. He had a mask on, obscuring his face, but the final word of his former love hit him like a brick.

“Diamond…”

As she lied unmoving on the floor, he felt the rush of agony smother everything but what he was supposed to do. The skirmish, however, seemed to have woken somepony else in the house. A soft, foalish wail made him stop, and he slowly and robotically followed the noise. He entered another room and found a filly, crying and wailing for somepony to comfort it. He heard the sound of The Boss’s words. The whole family, wipe them out. He slowly raised his blade up…

And North Star slammed into his uncle. “Uncle, what are you doing???”

Diamond looked at his nephew, muttering softly. “Have to… Wipe them all out. Boss’s orders.”

“Uncle, it’s a foal! You can’t do this!”

“It has to be done…” He moved back towards the foal, but North stood in the way.

“No. You want the baby? Kill me first.”

Diamond moved forward, raising the knife in his hoof as he prepared to do just that to North Star. And then, he saw himself, in place of his nephew, a younger him, who threw himself in front of danger to protect Lotus Pond all those years ago out of nothing but love for her. And suddenly, everything he did, all the pain he put himself through, it all finally got to him.

He fell to the ground, crying out in agony as he brought the knife towards himself, but North stopped this as well. Instead, the two held each other, and after a moment, the young stallion went to the foal and cradled her, humming the tune he used to be hummed every night by his mother. It was enough to soothe the baby back to sleep, and it cuddled into North Star’s embrace.

~~~

Back in Diamond Flare's office, everypony watched with various forms of emotions. Diamond Flare, for the most part, seemed to be a nice uncle with a bit of a violent streak. None of them knew the extent to the things he'd done.

“The Boss stepped down after that… but he said that me not getting rid of Dance was gonna cause more problems for me in the future. I told him I didn’t care… Ever since, The Master's been coming after me to try and get her back… I told him I wanted her out of this damn life as soon as possible.”

The ponies were in shock, but the most in shock was Lotus Dance. She never knew the full details, and never bothered to ask. She always looked up to her uncle, and she wanted to lead the Hay-lem Haymakers, despite her uncle's protests. Her mind became a whirlwind of confusion and emotion that all she could do was sit there and cry. Everything she knew and looked up to felt like a lie…

And then North Star moved up. “You have that match for her soon. How much longer?”

“About a week and a half, but you can’t do it,” Diamond shook his head. “You already swore off the gang, you can’t go back in.”

“Actually, I can.” North produced the Night Guard crest and slammed it onto the table. “Starting from today, I’m going to be leading the rescue operation.”

Lotus watched with wide eyes as her cousin, the one she looked at like a big brother all her life, as he became serious for her sake. “I’ll be using your facilities to train and from there, I’ll participate in place of any Hay-lem Haymaker member. Upon victory, I’ll be taking her in my custody and bringing her to Canterlot, where I’ll allow her to choose her fate, away from this place.”

With that said, he turned to his cousin. “Lotus… I’m sorry. I know you must hate me for what you found out about it… I’ll be honest, I didn’t know the extent of it all. You don’t have to stay with me after the match, but I want to give you some freedom. Uncle’s right, this life isn’t for you. Let me save you from this…”

Lotus looked at North, tears falling down her face before she embraced him. As she squeezed him tight, she muttered softly. “Big bro… Thank you…”

Diamond sighed, looking at the others. “I know you all hate me right now, but please at least allow the courtesy of an escort. They might still try and attack you.”

Moonshine nodded slowly. “I think that would be for the best. Although I can handle myself well, additional aid wouldn’t hurt.”

Nebula Feathers sighed and looked down. “I suppose staying together wouldn’t be that much of an issue. I’ll have to make up a serious lie to mom and dad…”

“Ugh, if I have to…” Suri muttered, glancing over at North. “Just… Promise to win.”

North nodded and stood up, moving to Moonshine. “Moony… Sorry we have to cut a bunch of our plans-”

“Don’t. No apologies.” Moonshine held up a hoof. “This is important. We can manage. Do your best…”

The two embraced, and Diamond watched them, seeing ghosts of what might’ve been for him…

~~~

Within the main building of the Black Dragon’s Claw, Oni was being mended. His jaw, fortunately, wasn’t badly damaged, but he was being kept in observation for a concussion. The Master sat before him, calm as ever. Oni could only bow before him and mutter. [Master, I am sorry. I have failed you. I could not kidnap the mare.]

[Fail me?] The Master commented as he sipped his tea. [On the contrary. You’ve done as I asked, and the results were expected.]

Oni looked up. [Results? But I-]

[I wanted the Bloody to fight, and I have gotten him to fight, according to my ears… Now is the great gamble. Is your son ready?]

Oni went quiet, then bowed again. [Yes. Tiger is ready, Master. He has already mastered the forms. I believe he would be our best fighter.]

[Wonderful. We can settle this once and for all…] The Master looked into his tea, frowning. [Now you, Diamond, will know what it is like to lose a child…]