My Little Fortress: Dawnpick

by Paaaad

109

The Dining Hall was empty, lone for ponies down on their luck, Amor was one such luckless pony. The Mare was drowning her qualms with the worse liquor for the job, water. The thing that raked the Little Pony’s mind was that giving up her alias as Kiln was not the hard part, it was reclaiming herself. By the Crown’s will she had taken the pseudonym in the year 249, traveled to places like Bangkolt, Gecekondu and many others. Here In Dawnpick she wanted to be free from it but unfortunately, a pony was making her regret it; learning of her new friend’s involvement in the reserves had left her mind disquiet.

Amor’s heart was at command of her body but her mind raced with visions of rage. Curse the water purifier, flood this place; cast a sinkhole under Virtue’s keep or simply stab that asinine blue Unicorn in the back with a crossbow bolt. The mere thoughts ached her soft heart as she peered down into the mug of water. “Old Master was right; we sow our own sorrow.” The mare whispered into her mug before finishing its contents in a swig. She usually avoid setting in a belligerent Pegasus’s chair but her mind was too clouded.

Jaxler entered the meeting hall with a barrel of booze. He had put with a day of long patrols and target practice and was ready to go drink away another night. But as soon as he reached his favorite seat he was surprised to see another pony sitting there. “Aye Kiln, that’s my seat.”

Amor was too deep in her own world to hear the Pegasus behind her, not to add that calling the mare by her abandoned alias was in vain. Maybe I was mistaken, to give-up what I had and detachment was better then this pain. She thought, ignoring the stallion behind her and looking into her empty mug.

Jaxler poked the back of the mare hoping to get her attention. “HAY, Kiln this is my seat.” Jaxler figured that if she wouldn’t respond to that then she was probably drunk as a dwarf. “Are you smashed or something?”

The metallic mare was dead to the world and stuck between two chores: fill up her mug or set there and think. One day there is going to be a siege and he is going come back with a bolt jammed in his skull. Amor was busy reflecting over her century plus life as to why things still do not go her way, too deep in thought to notice the actions of the stallion behind her.

Jaxler was starting to get fed up with Kiln’s unwillingness to respond. Jaxler slammed his forehoof into the table infront of her. “KKKKKIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLNNNNNNN!!! ARE YOU THERE, THAT’S MY BUCKING SEAT!” He then started shaking his seat violently hoping to snap kiln out of her trance. “YO, DA’ BUCK AREN’T YOU RESPONDING!”

The world outside Amor’s mind is disturbed and an unstable equilibrium follows, the mare jumps up and lands to Jaxler’s right. Where am I, whose present, what weapons are… The mare reflects until she sights the guards-pony’s crossbow and is traumatized. He may as will be the one who killed her. Considering but her heart and knowledge of the truth gets the best of her. “Sorry, I… was distracted.” She says before grabbing the empty mug with her teeth from the wooden table and heads for the exit. “Also, I prefer Amor.” The mare mouthed.

Jaxler sat down in his seat and laid the barrel of booze to his left. “Before you go ‘Amor’, do you mind telling me what’s bothering you? If I could yell at you that much without a response then either you’re drunk, or something is really troubling you.” Jaxler then took a swig of booze.

The mare turns back around, pondering at the situation and how best to proceed. She then ambles to the opposite of Jaxler’s barrel, takes a chair and places her mug on the table. “Understand I care not for boozes…” Amor speaks but her voice trails off. “Are you certain you want to know my troubles?” asking as she stares at the mug and turns to face Jaxler.

Jaxler took a swig of booze. “I know of trouble and knowing yours really wouldn’t bother me too much.” Jaxler took another swig “So go ahead and tell me what;s on your mind. For all you know I might be able to help.”

Amor takes an inhale and talks. “Ok… just learned that my only friend in Dawnpick has become a part of some reserves. I know he can handle himself, but I thought that before and lost somepony… dear to me.” The mare said with wet eyes as she rolls the mug around on the table with her left hoof. The wounds were old making it not too grueling to talk about, but it was the fresh ones she would sustain if anything would happen to Indigo.

Jaxler took a long swig of booze and started to think. “So, what you’re telling me is that you’re worried about your friend will get hurt. Well have you talked to him about it, and if so what did he say?”

The Pegasus’s words pains her as she thinks of all the things to say against Indigo’s involvement into the reserves. Death, maiming and mental trauma could come out of it; He could spill innocent blood or that of his companions and worse that he may never come back. She looks at the boozed stallion and answers. “I can not argue with someone I believe in and he just wants Dawnpick to proper in the only way he knows how… This world does not revolve around me, I can not deny others’ what they will just because I see the least bit wrong in their actions.” Her voice rises above her usual level but as always not carried but a few hooves span away. “And he has a temper and I do not want our friendship to end because of a petty desire of mine.” Amor lays her head on the table and huffs.

I’If you’re this concerned about it then I wouldn't call this pettey. You should talk to him, but if it makes you feel any better I haven’t died and I’ve been in the guard sense it was founded, and I haven’t killed anypony yet. Also, you forget that nopony in the militia or guard have ever died.”

“…I could talk more about it with him… just for the last decade he is the only friend I can claim.” Her upper jaw weighs on the lower jaw pressed against the table suppressing her speech. That record of no causality could change at any time. The mare huffs at the thought. “And I do not want to lose him to something stupid such as resentment delivered by a bolt of one of our own…” Amor picks her head up fearing what she just said and where this conversion could take her.

Jaxler started leaning back in his seat.“As long as Partisan is commander of the guard and I’m the second in command, I can promise you that we will not shoot at our own troops out of malice.” Jaxler took another swig of booze before continuing “Also, If you’re lacking in friends, I’m always willing to make a new acquaintance.”

The mare peers at the stallion beside her and loses herself. “Can you promise me that he wouldn’t catch a bolt from some irate hunter who holds a grudge… or… promise me that he won’t die from something more stupid than a Badger-pony theft?” Amor seemed incapable or unwilling to raise her voice barely above a talk in the rant. Why do ponies fight wars when they are just as busy fighting each other in the homefront? She contemplates and snaps out of it by Jaxler’s observation remark. Once I spied this Pegasus as a broken stallion but now see a booze-fueled fire in his eyes. Friendship would be nice, and is this too far along to excuse myself and curtsey out of here. Amor dwells in her mind for a moment. “Jaxler, is it? Making a friend sounds nice at this time, but forgive me for saying; it could just make my problems worse.” The Unicorn’s voice returns to her normal but see returns her gaze to her mug.

“Meh, your loss. Also, I can’t promise you that he won’t get hurt, but I can promise that as long as i’m second in command of the guard I will personally try by best to ensure that your friend will not get hurt. And seeing how my best has kept this fort safe for the last 3 years, I doubt your friend will get hurt so long as I’m a guardspony.” Jaxler took another drink of booze.

The metallic colored Unicorn ponders as she spends her mug. “Thank you Jaxler, for your consideration and the talk… maybe later we could have a friendship, but at this time I would like to focus on keeping one first. Her hoof stops the mug and the mare gets up from the wooden chair. “Jaxler, it has been a pleasure, but it is very late for me. It… would be nice to talk with you again.” Amor said sheepishly as she curtseys, than grabs the mug and heads for the door.

Jaxler took note that Amor was leaving. “Tell Indigo I said hi”

Amor does not even mentally flinch at Jaxler’s perception, turns around and she mouths with the mug between her teeth. “That Jaxler says hi, I will.” The mare sets off once more for the doors.

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Jaxler spent the rest of the night drinking, as usual and didn’t stop until he blacked out. He didn’t think twice about his encounter with Amor, or how strange it was that she changed her name all of a sudden, but he figured that he wasn’t one to complain about others changing their name. Jaxler woke up the next day with a splitting headache and a strange bruise on his foreleg while laying in a pine tree.

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Amor leaves the Legendary Dining Hall, proceeds to the well for a drank in the autumn moon-lit night and back to her room thinking along the way. Within Dawnpick’s walls is a different realm than what is experienced outside, no pony here holds a grudge against the military. In her bed the mare thinks more on the dilemma before finally getting sleeping. The next day she finds lying in a pine tree the same dark colored Pegasus she had the pleasure of talking to the night before. The Unicorn finds herself speaking more with the guards-pony but avoids the stallion at best.