All the Queen's Horses

by Bluespectre


Chapter Fifteen - Dog Days

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

DOG DAYS

Despite the time of year it still felt unseasonably hot outside today, so much so that sweat had begun to soak through their fur making the already heavily laden saddle packs and panniers even more uncomfortable than they had been to begin with. The two fillies had been walking through the forest for hours now, after having been dumped unceremoniously into the middle of… well, nowhere. That was how Di had described it too: ‘nowhere’. At least the trees offered some level of shade, but it was probably going to be a bitterly cold night when the sun finally dipped behind the distant mountains. What was worse was that there was no way back home. What had probably once been a portal back to the manor the same as the one they’d originally entered, was now only a broken and overgrown pile of stones which nature was slowly but surely reclaiming as her own. By the looks of it, the structure had been in that state for a very, very long time too. Celestia’s furry bum, where were they? The map had proved to be utterly useless and the diary said nothing at all about this place either. As for Erin, he was keeping noticeably quiet about everything for once, and for that at least Silver felt decidedly relieved. The last thing she needed now was to have a conversation in her head with a snarky colt and give her friend ever more reason to believe she really had gone completely off the deep end. As for Di, she had given up complaining after the first half hour; probably realising the futility of it. Now, all they could do was follow her ‘guiding light’ as she’d come to think of it, and even that was looking increasingly dubious. Was she starting to doubt herself? Was this, all of this, nothing more than a child’s foolish fantasy? What if… what if her father really was gone? What if she had doomed herself and her friend to a lonely death, lost in a world of silence where only the woodland creatures would know of their passing? Oh Celestia, she was so frightened! It was so dark in here under the trees, and the unbroken forest seemed to go on and on into distant horizon – not that she could actually see any horizon, it was just darkness, and ever more forest. She used to like trees too...

Silver gave herself a shake and took a breath, trying to calm her racing heart. Who knew what beasts lay within this forest: manticores, timber wolves, cockatrice, maybe even...dragons! She’d heard the stories of ponies walking off into the forests never to be heard from again, and not just the Everfree forest either, although that was the biggest by far. There were forests that even the famous explorer Daring Do wouldn’t enter and she was super brave! Oh, Celestia, what were they to do? They were just two fillies, two helpless and-

“Silv? Are you alright?” Di was looking at her with a concerned look on her face, “Do you need to stop for a while?”

“N...no, I’m fine.” Silver closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, trying in vain to force the frightening imagery from her mind. Her ancestor wouldn’t have been thinking this way. Golden was brave, strong and valiant – a pony with a sharp mind and wit to match. She was everything Silver wished she could be some day, except perhaps the things she did with that pegasus stallion. Yuck! Silver gave herself a shake and smiled at Di, “Don’t mind me, I’m just being silly.”

“So long as your homing beacon still works, I can put up with a bit of ‘silly’,” Di huffed, “But do you think it could take us on a route that doesn’t include miles of smelly old forest? Its muggy, dark, and we haven’t seen proper daylight for ages.”

“I know” Silver said quietly, “I don’t know what else to do, Di. The light is saying to head this way, and there’s not much more I can tell you.”

“I know.” Di nodded and gave her friend a quick nuzzle, “Look, come on, let’s pick up the pace and see if we can find somewhere to camp.” She paused, “We did pack the tent, didn’t we?”

Silver nodded, “It’s in the red pack.”

“The one you picked up, right?” Di asked.

Silver shook her head, “No, you picked it up remember? It was on the table in the hall and you said you would-”

“-Oh, no! Oh… pony feathers! Don’t tell me...” Di looked at her packs and squeezed her eyes shut, “Please tell me it’s there, please!

Silver’s heart sank like a lead weight, “No. It’s not there, Di.”

“Oh, goddesses...WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO NOW?!” Di’s eyes went wide in panic, “We can’t sleep under the stars, we’ll die of hypothermia!” She stomped a hoof in fury, “Goddesses damn it all! Can this get any worse?”

“It’s not that bad, Di” Silver reasoned, “Besides, we’ve only been walking for a few hours you know.”

Not that bad?!” Di shrieked, “We’ve no tent, Silv! I nearly died the last time I got caught out in the rain, and as much as it was a fascinating experience, it’s not one I'd care to repeat!” She dropped to her haunches, burying her muzzle in her hooves, “The world hates me, that’s what it is, I’m cursed...”

“Now you’re the one being silly!” Silver said pointedly, “We can’t just give up Di. Listen, let’s get something to eat and then we can-”

SHUSH!” Di put her foreleg out and stopped her friend suddenly, “Can you hear that?”

Silver froze, her heart rate suddenly increasing, “Hear what?”

Di strained her ears to their limit, but… there, just on the edge of hearing, there was definitely something. She frowned in concentration, “It sounds like… singing?”

The two girls listened, and sure enough, faint but not too far away, somepony was definitely singing. The friends looked at each other in silent agreement. “Come on! Where there’s singing there’s ponies, and where there’s ponies there shelter!” Di nickered and headed off at a trot.

Silver hurried up alongside her, “Di! Slow down, we don’t know that for sure. Ponies aren’t the only ones who sing!” But was she right? It was an Equestrian trait to give verse to just about any given situation for sure, but… this song? The tune was catchy but the lyrics were very specific. Her ears were picking it up more clearly now, and up ahead the light of a lantern and campfire could be seen flickering faintly between the trees. They slowed as they approached and ducked behind a thick bush as the mare by the caravan tended her fire and continued singing the peculiar song:

I used to think maybe I loathed you, now Twilight I'm sure,
And I just can’t wait till the day when you grovel at my door.
Now every time I go on the stage, I’ve gotta hold myself down
‘Cause I just can't wait for day I’ll make you look like a clown
I'm walking on Twilight, Whoa-oh
I'm walking on Twilight, Whoa-oh
I'm walking on Twilight, Whoa-oh
And don't it feel good!

“Does she look familiar?” Di whispered, “I’m sure I've seen her before somewhere”. She kept low to the ground, watching the peculiar blue mare carefully as she snapped another branch in the glow of her magic before dropping it onto a pile beside the fire.

I used to think maybe you feared me, now I know that it's true
And I don't want to spend my whole life, just punishing you
Now you may look stupid for the whole weekend
Not just for a day, no no no
I said Twilight I just want you embarrassed
And I want you to say... Oh yeah now!

I'm so sorry Trixie, Whoa-oh
I'm so sorry Trixie, Whoa-oh
I'm so sorry Trixie, Whoa-oh
I know you are the best!

“Um...yeah,” Silver nodded, “Wasn’t she the one who-”

“WHO’S THERE?” The blue mare’s magic flared brightly, flooding the darkened forest like a searchlight, “I know you’re there, so come out or I’ll turn you into chickens!”

Di went to stand up but Silver held out a hoof, shaking her head silently. Something else was going on here. The blue unicorn wasn’t looking at them, she was looking at… Silver swallowed; what were those things? Beside her she could feel Di trembling as the two legged beasts shambled into the light in front of the campfire. They were… dogs? No, not normal dogs, these were bipedal, but…

“Diamond dogs” Di whispered.

Silver frowned, “I’ve heard of them from papa. I don’t think they’re dangerous.” She shivered involuntarily, “Are they?”

One of the beasts was talking to the unicorn, “This diamond dog land, pony. What you doing here?”

The mare sniffed imperiously, “The great and powerful Trixie, mistress of magic and spectacular sorceress supreme, does not need to answer the likes of you, you cur! Leave me, or face my wrath!” She struck a pose that had the unfortunate effect of looking as much comical as it was intimidating.

The dog like creature blinked its beady brown eyes and shifted a claw down its waistcoat to the hilt of a wickedly curved knife, “You say what?”

“I said...” The mare hesitated, her eyes drifting to the knife, “I said I have no quarrel with you, good sir. I shall be leaving in the morning and shall trouble you no further.”

The dirty brown coloured diamond dog curled its lip, displaying a battery of yellowed teeth, “Boss want to see you, pony.”

The other creature, a brown and black patched beast that was slightly smaller than the first and wearing a long green coat with a crossbow slung across its back, giggled manically, “Yeah! He want to see you!”

“I don’t give private audiences, my good sirs, especially when it’ll be dark soon.” The mare replied nervously, “If you would be so kind as to tell your ‘boss’ that I’d be happy to entertain his request in the morning, then-”

The knife whispered from its sheath, “Pony come… now.” The diamond dog’s blade glistened in the firelight.

Looking round in alarm to the second creature, the blue mare’s eyes alighting on the cocked crossbow. She swallowed and gave a nervous laugh, “But of course, gentlecol- er… dogs. I would be happy to see your boss.” She turned to her wagon, “Naturally I shall need to bring my things with me.”

“Leave things here” the first dog growled, “Too heavy.”

The second creature hurried over to the first, “Boss may want things inside, Wag.” He turned to the worried looking mare, “You bring, pony.”

The diamond dogs stood impassively while the blue mare with the white mane began repacking her caravan before putting out the fire and strapping herself into the caravan’s harness. Silver hung her head and sighed; they could have used that fire too, not to mention the shelter of the caravan. Ponies usually helped one another and if it hadn’t been for those horrible dog things then they could have enjoyed a nice cosy nights sleep. As it was, there was something going on here that made her blood run cold. Should they do something? Could they even do anything? Di shifted beside her, her breathing heavy despite her efforts to control her fear. Silver knew exactly how she felt. All they could do now was wait until-

Silver shrieked as a sharply nailed claw grabbed her around the throat and hauled both her and Di from their makeshift hiding place. The girls were dragged helplessly through the bushes, the branches snagging painfully on their equipment and packs, but such things apparently didn’t concern their captor, nor slow it down. The other two diamond dogs in the clearing turned to stare with their small cruel eyes at their companions approach.

“Found these” the creature said coldly. It effortlessly held them up for the inspection of the others.

The larger of the two, the one Silver thought of as the leader, spoke “Who they?”

“I… I don’t...” The blue mare stared at the fillies and swallowed, “I-”

“WHO THEY?” The diamond dog roared, “SPEAK!”

“They-” the mare began, but Diamond Tiara spoke up, drawing the dogs attention to her, “We’re her assistants” she said, “And I would appreciate it if you would put us down. Now.”

The dog holding them suddenly dumped his charges onto the ground and stared at his claws, apparently surprised at his own actions. The others too, looked at him as if they couldn’t understand what had just happened. After all, they were the ones in charge here, not some bossy little pony! Their leader leaned forward and growled menacingly, “You her assistants?”

Di nodded, “We both are.”

“You not unicorns” the dog observed. A claw reached out and grabbed Silver’s muzzle making her squeak in fright, “No horn on you. How you do magic?”

The blue mare cleared her throat, “They help with the magical props and all the more mundane tasks the great and powerful Trixie has no time to concern herself with.” She lifted her muzzle proudly, “She is, after all, the mistress of the arcane arts and cannot concern herself with mere… trivia.” She nodded to the girls, “Come along now, help me pack the last of my, er our things, and we can be on our way.”

The diamond dogs looked at each other before the leader finally spoke in its guttural rumbling manner, “Follow.”

Di and Silver didn’t even look at one another as they hurried to pack the caravan. Right then it didn’t pay to think, only to act. Hopefully if they did everything their brutal looking captors told them, then they could be on their way again before too long. Hopefully. The girls went to their task with a will; anything they weren’t sure of they packed inside the colourful yellow and red painted mobile home – if it was wrong, they could sort it out later. Inside the wheeled home, from the little they’d managed to see of it, the mare’s caravan was extraordinarily neat and trim. Not an inch of space was wasted its small interior: there was a bed, just the right size for a pony, and covered in a deep blue blanket embroidered with stars and moons. The cupboards were all decorated in the same red and yellow paint scheme as the exterior and the doors were all fitted with sturdy latches to retain their contents during their no doubt normally bumpy journeying. In one corner sat a small stove with a chimney that popped out of a hatch on the roof. There was an equally small wash basin, cups, and finally a large box under the bed marked with a moon and wand, the same as the mare’s cutie mark and securely padlocked in place.

Di and Silver finally put the last of the mare’s belongings away, the final pieces of firewood being tied up with rope and hung from hooks on the rear of the caravan. Fortunately a lot of where things went was self explanatory, and besides, if it was wrong then their new ‘employer’ wasn’t saying anything. She was just stood there, staring at the ground with an expression of cold, hard fury. Whatever was going through her mind right then, probably fortunately for the girls, remained unspoken.

“Done!” Silver announced jumping down from the caravan, and almost immediately the band set off through the trees accompanied by the rumble of heavy wheels and the clop of hooves. Nopony spoke, the atmosphere one of uncertainty and almost tangible fear. Trixie closed her eyes and sighed; tonight just couldn’t get any worse could it? Here she was, preparing for a pleasant evening before practising for her next performance and-

Hey...

The blue mare rolled her eyes.

Hey!

“Will you stop saying ‘hey’?” Trixie glanced irritably at the pink filly walking beside her and groaned inwardly, resigned to be spoken to by… children. “What?” she hissed.

Di gazed up at her with her big blue eyes, “Are you really that magician who faced down Twilight Sparkle?”
“Faced down?” The mare frowned in thought, “I… well… yes, I suppose I did.”

Di muttered something to Silver and said, “Did you know that was the princess’s personal student? She’s like, super powerful!”

The mare raised an eyebrow dismissively, “Mmm...”

“I mean, nopony I know would have had the nerve to do that! And from I heard you even took on an ursan single hoofed!” Di gave her friend a shove, “You see, I said it was Trixie!”

“Shhh! Keep your voice down!” Trixie hissed, “‘Assistant’, remember?”

Silver trotted up beside her, “Mama said you were really good and that a lot of her sewing circle thought you were very brave to face an ursan on your own. They’re really, really strong!”

“Well, it wasn’t quite like that...” Trixie muttered under her breath.

“Yeah!” Di nodded to Silver knowingly, “I heard they can gulp a pony down whole, just like that!”

“Yes, well, they are big and mean! Ha, ha, ha!” Trixie blushed bright red.

Silver nodded furiously, “And modest! Mama said that a real hero is modest and papa said that the very best heroes are the ones ‘you never hear about’.” She looked up at Trixie with big shining eyes full of trust, “You’re a real heroine!”

“I… I’m not… really” Trixie whispered.

“Yeah, right” Di nickered. She leaned in conspiratorially, “So, any idea how we’re going to get out of this? These guys look really mean.”

Trixie swallowed, “They are really mean.”

“But you-” Di began, but Trixie cut in, “Will you two shush!” She looked over her shoulder and back again, making sure the diamond dogs were out of earshot, “Look, this isn’t a game, okay? What I do is… well, it’s a stage act, right? An act that pays my way and keeps food in my stomach from one town to the next. I’m not some great warrior or anything like that!” She sighed, noting the looks of disappointment on the girls’ faces, “Okay, look, I’ll do what I can to sort this out, alright? But in the meantime, what are your names?”

“Diamond Tiara,” Di said, “And this is Silver Spoon.”

Trixie bobbed her head, “And what are you doing up here? Where are your parents?”

“They’re...” Silver huffed and lifted her muzzle, “They’re up north. We’re going to meet them, him that is - my father.”

“You sure about that?” Trixie asked dubiously, “You’re trotting around the northern forests with only some camping gear to meet your father. On your own?” She snorted, “And people think I’m mad.”

“Are you mad?” Di asked curiously.

“Am I… what? No!” Trixie let out a whinny, “Shut up! And just… oh, I don’t know!”

The three walked on in silence for a while following the diamond dogs and threading their way between the trees. There was little undergrowth here, but it was growing darker all the time. Eventually, Silver plucked up the courage to speak. She moved up and spoke quietly, “Um, Miss Trixie?”

“Mmm?”

“Why are you going north?” Silver asked, “If there’s nothing there I mean.”

Trixie shrugged, “I heard there’s something going on up there; an archaeological dig or something. Heard about it on the quiet from a friend of a friend of a friend. All it took was a few bits for a few drinks and tongues soon start wagging.” She smiled to herself, “And where there’s ponies, there’s bits to be made by an enterprising mare.” Trixie snorted loudly, “A mare like the great and powerful Trixie!”

“And we’ll be going once we’ve seen this boss of the dog things, right?” Di asked.

“We?” Trixie asked, “What do you mean, we?”

Silver tried a smile, “Well, we thought we could, you know, help out with things in exchange for food and shelter until we get up there.”

“Did you now?” Trixie huffed, “Do I look like a mobile charity worker? You want to go north you can do it yourselves and leech off somepony else.”

“Please!” Di whined. Silver noted she was using that horrible voice she’d heard Spoiled using with Filthy whenever she wanted her own way, “We can cook and clean and fetch fire wood – all sorts of things!”

“I don’t care!” Trixie snapped, “Foals are nothing but trouble, always have been always will be.”

“You’d abandon us in the forest?!” Di couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“I can’t abandon you if I hadn’t brought you with me in the first place now, can I?” The blue coated mare clucked her tongue, “Sort yourselves out. I had to do it when I was your age; there was nopony there to wipe my hooves when they got muddy.”

“But...”

“But nothing!” Trixie hissed, “Now shut up!”

“What you talking about, pony?” one of the diamond dogs called over, “Be quiet! Your whining
hurts our ears!”

Trixie balked and leant down to the girls level, her voice low and menacing, “If you keep whinging they’ll kill us! Have you seen those teeth? These things aren’t exactly vegetarians, you silly girls!”

Silver closed her eyes and took out the chitty from her pocket, holding it out for the blue mare to see.

“What’s that?” Trixie asked as she caught sight of it. Her magic glowed and she floated the piece of paper in front of her.

“It’s a promise of payment” Silver explained levelly, “You help us, and you’ll be well paid. My family is the Spoon family from Ponyville.”

“And my father is Filthy Rich” Di said proudly, “You help us and we help you, right?”

Trixie swallowed. Two fillies, the daughters of Ponyville’s most prominent families, and two of the wealthiest in Equestria at that! She licked her lips subconsciously; all that money… all those beautiful, shiny bits! She could buy new props, new clothes, maybe even a new caravan!” She grinned wolfishly, her mind conjuring all manner of possibilities. Oh the things she could do if only she had… She looked down at the girls, “Money” she whispered to herself, and grinned.

“Miss Trixie?” Silver asked hopefully.

The blue mare tossed her two toned pale mane and nodded her head, affirming her decision. “Don’t you worry about a thing, girls, Trixie Lulamoon is here. I’ll get us out of this and find your parents – father I mean. And you’ll be sure to tell him that I rescued you, right?”

“Of course” Di said, shooting Silver a glance. “But you do have a plan, right?”

Trixie rolled her eyes, “Of course I have a plan! I wouldn’t be much of a hero If I didn’t have a plan for exactly this sort of situation, would I?” She smiled and laughed a little more nervously than she’d intended. “I just haven’t thought of one yet.

“Huh?” Di asked.

“Nothing! Just… finalising my plan!” Trixie joked, “Everything will work out, girls, you’ll see.” Quickly she looked to her front and fixed her eyes on the diamond dogs. Wherever they were taking them she wished they’d hurry up so she didn’t have to keep answering these incessant questions! Fortunately, for now at least, the girls had gone quiet; it was better for all their sakes really. What did these dog creatures want anyway? She’d encountered them before on her travels and they’d always given her the impression of being little more than cave dwelling scavengers, beggars and thieves. You couldn’t leave anything lying around near them, regardless of how valueless it might be – it would nearly always be taken: buckets, rope, pans – anything that wasn’t nailed down was a target for these things. Now, apparently, that had been extended to kidnapping ponies themselves. As a rule a quick display of magic would have the simple creatures running back to their underground lairs, but these three, or more specifically the tall one, was decidedly more intelligent than any of the others of their kind she’d met and there was also the fact he was armed too. In all her travels across Equestria she’d never once met one who was carrying a weapon before. Perhaps a little naively she’d supposed that when you had sharp claws and teeth, it seemed somewhat pointless to carry more… ‘complex’ weapons. It was, she had to admit, puzzling as well as worrying. Trixie looked up and noticed the sky changing colour. It was getting darker, and would be full dark within the next half hour by her reckoning. She was tiring too, and the girls were looking exhausted. If they didn’t stop soon she’d have to speak up and see if-

“We here” the tall dog creature said over its mouthful of teeth, “Put cart there.”

Trixie complied, noticing how the fillies stuck by her side as if she were some sort of mother hen with her chicks. She didn’t like that at all! There was a reason why she didn’t bother with children, and here it was in full effect. The annoying pests always got under your hooves, didn’t they? Everywhere you went they were there, moaning, mewling and whining. They always wanted something, they always needed something and you were constantly having to put aside what you wanted to do for the endless demands for attention and various ‘requirements’ that having a child entailed. On the road it was just her and her caravan; she went to bed when she wanted to go to bed, she ate when she was hungry, and also ate what she wanted. There was no whinging about ‘I don’t like that’ or tantrums because the little pest wanted to stay up when the adults wanted to have some time alone – and in peace! “Well, come on let’s get this over with” Trixie snapped at the world in general. The tall diamond dog glared at her, but she was past caring right then. “Do you have a name, big guy?” she asked.

The diamond dog sniffed, “Scratch.”

“Is that your job description, or your name?” Trixie asked pleasantly.

“Name” the creature replied.

“What about the others?”

Scratch paused, frowning with the apparent effort of thought, “He Wag. Other Sniff.”

“Scratch and Sniff?” Trixie asked raising an eyebrow, “I expect you two would make a good pair.”

The dog curled its lip as it turned and lead them away.

Trixie rolled her eyes, “Good sense of humour, too” she mumbled under her breath. Before them, numerous burning torches came into view, lighting what was a surprisingly large split in the earth that was being utilised as the entrance to the diamond dogs’ home. Around them, the smell of moist earth, roots and loam tickled her nostrils and almost overwhelmed her senses. She was no stranger to nature of course, but to be this up close and personal with it was disconcerting to say the least. She liked the sky outside, and most definitely above her, not… mud. Trixie shuddered; this was not what a pony of her calibre should be doing at all! They walked on, ever deeper into the earth. Every so often she could see side chambers lit with yet more torches where the myriad denizens of this dank place resided. Females with pups, males carrying baskets of some sort of food, and occasionally what were obviously guards of some kind, shambled around in the shadowy gloom apparently oblivious of the newcomers to their lair. The guards she noted in particular; she hadn’t seen armoured armoured dogs before – ever! The diamond dogs she’d met had always seemed disorganised and like a kind of canine vagabond, living off whatever they could find. But these… these were different, and although she hated to use the word… civilised?

Scratch, as he called himself, halted them before a large musty looking curtain covering a wide entry flanked by two of the heavily armoured dogs. Their eyes were all but invisible beneath thick steel helmets and their spears, wickedly sharp by the looks of them, appeared as though they were well cared for. Trixie swallowed; hopefully they were only ceremonial – a hope that she knew, with horrible certainty, was most likely forlorn.

The curtain was pulled back.

Something warm and furry pushed into her; it was the pink filly, and on the other side of her… now the other one was doing it too! Trixie sighed; she hated being touch like that. Ponies, or… or anything touching her without her express permission was an invasion of her personal space and it made her hair stand up along her spine. Luna’s arse, she couldn’t wait to get out of this stinking hole, and the first chance she had she’d put as much space between her and these vile things as equinely possible. Still, there was the matter of the reward money of course – she would just need to keep that in mind and simply tolerate the presence of these fillies until she could get them delivered to the grey ones father. Once that was done it was back on the road for her, together with a sack load of bits and her own precious peace and quiet! The party halted before something Trixie thought looked decidedly out of place for these creatures: It was… a throne, or more specifically, a large chair that had been draped with an assemblage of coloured cloths and furs. In normal circles it would probably be considered to be no more than a disgusting mess of rags, but here, amongst the ranks of diamond dogs and guards that lined the room watching the three equines approach, it held the unmistakable and overwhelming presence of absolute power. The ponies were the strangers here, they were the guests – or prisoners – and it would take some clever word play to get her, or rather, them, out of there. ‘You’ve really got yourself into a mess this time, Trixie old girl’ she thought bitterly. She couldn’t blame the fillies of course, it wasn’t really their fault, but why was it every single time there was problems it seemed to include children? Like those two morons she’d had working for her in Ponyville that time; who was it now? Snips and Snails? More like Thick and Thin! Why had she trusted those two imbeciles?!

“You. Stand here.” The tall dog motioned to a spot before the ragged throne. Sat there, ensconced in the riotously coloured seat of power, the large grey diamond dog with the bright blue eyes stared down at them impassively. Trixie swallowed; the thing was flanked by two sinewy females, each watching her as though she were the next item on the evenings menu. She wasn’t sure what sort of standards their society had compared to equines, but if beauty was measured by the length of your teeth then these two topped the bill all right. How in Equestria they managed to speak without biting their own tongues off was anyponies guess. Between them though was the real focus of this pantomime: the grey creature, as muscular as he appeared, he seemed surprisingly quite… normal. At least for a diamond dog.

Trixie bobbed her head,“Your Majesty.”

The diamond dogs all began muttering and rumbling at each other in that strange yipping, barking and growling dialect of theirs. Whatever she’d said, and however she’d said it, she wasn’t sure if she’d put her hoof right in it or not.

“Boss” the tall dog beside her corrected. “He the boss.”

“Boss” Trixie corrected herself and bobbed her head again. “Your subjects requested I attend you?”

The grey dog raised an eyebrow, fingering the large sceptre lying across its lap. “I told them to bring you here.” He grinned, displaying a fierce array of sharp teeth, “And so, here you are.”

“Um… how may I help you… Boss?” Trixie replied. A sudden sense of foreboding gripped her; Diamond dogs didn’t speak like this! Other than the familiar growling undertone to his words, if you didn’t know what he was he could almost pass for an equestrian! She swallowed nervously, hoping he couldn’t detect her increasing anxiety.

The boss stood slowly, holding his sceptre tightly in his claw, the large black crystal embedded within it catching the light of the lanterns and glistening coldly in the chill damp air. “You are a unicorn and can perform magic, correct?”

“That’s right.” “Boss” Trixie corrected quickly.

The dog’s face never lost the menacing smile as he walked towards the three ponies, “I expect you are wondering why I brought you here, yes?”

“Erm, yes” Trixie nodded, taking a step back worriedly, “Boss.”

The diamond dog halted, looming over them, “Food” he said quietly.

Trixie’s heart leaped into her throat, F...Food?!”

The boss watched her for a moment, taking in the gleam in her frightened eyes, her thundering heart… and smiled, “Of course. You are guests, are you not? You must be hungry.” He clapped his claws together, “FOOD FOR OUR GUESTS!” He glanced down at the fillies who pressed ever harder into Trixie’s legs, “So small. Your children are they?”

Trixie tried to speak but could only manage a strangled cough. “They… they’re...” She coughed again and managed, “My assistants, Boss.”

“Ah! Excellent!” the grey creature chuckled, “Good help is such a rare commodity these days, wouldn’t you agree?” Trixie quickly nodded. “Now, you will eat with us and we can discuss… business.”

“Business, Boss?” Trixie’s ears pricked up, much to the diamond dogs leader’s apparent approval. He raised an eyebrow and smiled, “Why of course. I wouldn’t want to take up your time without some form of recompense, my magical friend.” The boss laughed, and with him the rest of the court laughed, “You work for me now after all.” He leaned down, gazing into the eyes of the two girls, “All of you...”

************************

Silver stared at the plate of steaming vegetables before her and balked. Despite being hungry she’d completely lost her appetite. Truth be told, she’d nearly lost her bladder too when that… that thing had loomed over her. Celestia’s mercy, she’d thought they were going to be… to be eaten! And that horrible beast had laughed, actually laughed! She couldn’t believe that vile monster had thought such a dreadful thing was funny! Oh, how she hated it here, and she hated these diamond dog things most of all. They were frightening, terrifying in fact, and every part of her wanted nothing more than to run for the entrance and keep running… but where? North? How long would it take before these creatures managed to run her down with her short legs? Why, oh why, hadn’t spoken to somepony before embarking on this stupid adventure?! She wanted her father home, she knew she had to do this, but she was so confused, and so frightened! Was this the sort of thing Golden had had to do? She wanted to be brave, she wanted to be like her ancestor, but… but she wasn’t her, was she? She was just a small filly, barely coming up to the waist of these musty, frightening monsters.

“So tell me, what sort of magic do you perform, Miss Lulamoon?”

Trixie, busily munching down her root vegetables, looked up at the boss, apparently unconcerned by the intimidating monster, “I am a stage performer,” she replied, “I perform acts of magic to entertain and amaze, bringing joy to the hearts of millions.”

“Millions?” the boss asked a little sceptically, “As many as that? My goodness.”

“Well, maybe not quite millions, but some day I intend to perform in the larger cities and perhaps even on bridleway itself.” The mare beamed, “Is that why you brought us here boss? I’d be happy to put on a performance for you.”

The grey dog shrugged, “And you may. But first, I want you to accept my hospitality. Your small ones are tired, and I suspect you are too, Miss Lulamoon. The hour is late and we have an early start ahead of us tomorrow.” He motioned to one of his servants, “Is our guests room in order?”

The diamond dog bobbed his head, “Yes, boss.”

“Good.” The boss clapped his claws together, “We shall retire!” he announced, “A new day brings new opportunities my people, and with the help of our new friends here, the realisation of our dreams is one step closer to fruition!”

“This way.” One of the females beckoned to the ponies and lead them off down another of the hard packed earth corridors. As dark as it was, even here deep underground, there was light. Gone were the burning torches of the hall, now it was… gemstones? Silver looked closer at one of the curious stones that was firmly embedded in the wall. Did they grow down here? It was giving off a faint blue-white light that was strangely soothing, if a little eerie, but there was something about it that tugged at her memory for some reason she couldn’t quite put her hoof on. Realising she was lagging behind the others she hurried after the others and stopped at the curtained entry to what turned out to be a small side room off the main corridor.

“In here” the diamond dog female snarled. “Do not come out. Boss call you in the morning.”

“That’s us told, then,” Di snorted, “Miserable-”

Trixie shot her a look, “Keep going like that, little miss pink flanks and we’ll all end up on tomorrows menu.” She turned to Silver whose mouth hung open in horror, “The same goes for you too. Keep. It. Zipped!” She motioned across her muzzle with a hoof for emphasis.

“I was just saying-” Di began.

ZIPPED!” Trixie snapped, “Now, for Luna’s sake let’s just try and get some sleep, okay?”

Silver hung her head and sighed. Inside she felt unusually numb, as though this was all some awful dream that was happening inside her head and at any moment she’d wake up in her cozy warm bed, safe at home. Foolish… She smiled bitterly and walked over to lie down on what was, presumably, the nearest thing the diamond dogs had to a real bed. It was quite sad really that these creatures, these primitive beings, lived like this. But what was the alternative? Have the princesses drag them kicking and screaming into the modern age? Maybe this was how they liked to live? To her knowledge nopony ever discussed them nor even saw them much except when they happened to encounter them whilst travelling, and even then they were considered to be just about as important as any other random forest or woodland creature. Now though, seeing them here in their natural habitat, Silver began to wonder: did anypony really talk to one another anymore? In her world everypony was… well, not to put too fine a point on it, they were all ponies. There were griffins, certainly, and they knew about many of the other races that lived in Equestria and even abroad, but she’d never even spoken to one. She could remember a griffin coming to Ponyville once and there was nearly pandemonium! As for that… what was she again, a zebra? Goodness! You’d think somepony had turned up and threatened to murder everypony in their sleep. The poor creature had ended up having to live in isolation in the forest for some peace from the hysterical equines in the town! Well, probably. It really was a strange, strange world. Maybe this was what papa had to deal with when he went to the royal court? Someday she’d like to go along and have a look for herself. How exciting it would be to see the princesses again! And all those foreign dignitaries with their exotic dresses… It was something to dream about…

Something pushed her.

“Silv?” It was Diamond Tiara.

“Wha… huh? Oh… Di...” Silver blinked in the peculiar light, “What’s going on?”

“You need to get up, that’s what’s going on” Trixie called over from the corner of the room, “It’s morning.” She looked around at the hard earth room, “Apparently.”

“Oh...” Silver groaned, “I can’t even remember falling asleep.”

“I can attest to the fact that you most certainly did; you snored enough for the three of us!” Di sniffed, “Oh, Celestia, I wish I’d had some earplugs with me.”

“I do NOT snore!” Silver protested.

“No, of course not” Di replied sarcastically, and began fussing with her mane, “And look at the state of me, I’m covered in filth and leaves!” She groaned, sinking to her haunches, “Tell me, why did we leave all our things in the caravan? There must be some reason why we thought that was a good idea at the time, right?”

Trixie pushed a bowl of ‘something’ into her hooves, “It’s because the diamond dogs would steal your ears if they weren’t attached to your head, that’s why.” She took a mouthful of the mysterious goop and swallowed, “Now get that down you. The boss wants to see us and I don’t think it would be a good idea to keep him waiting, do you?”

Di stared into the rough wooden bowl and wrinkled her nose, “What is this?” She sniffed at it and closed her eyes, “It smells like sick!”

“You want to starve instead?” Trixie snapped, “Look, on the road you eat what you can, when you can. We’re not all sitting down to three course dinners with silver service like some pampered ponies I could mention, so I would suggest you don’t think too much about it and just eat it.”

“It’s… not that bad, Di,” Silver said, wrinkling her own muzzle, “It might look like wallpaper paste, but… I’m sure it’s good for you.”

“Yeah...” Di said quietly, “Slop a-la-mode.” She squeezed her eyes shut and tipped the contents into her mouth in one go, swallowed, and snatched up the mug of water. At least that was cool and fresh tasting – a damned site more than that… gloop! She gasped and gave herself a hard shake, “Done.”

Trixie turned to Silver who nodded too, “Right, come on then girls, we’d better see what our benevolent boss wants. The sooner we get this over with the sooner we leave.”

“Are you sure he’ll let us leave?” Silver asked, eliciting a look of horror from Di.

Trixie shrugged, “He’d better, I’ve got ponies to see and places to be. Besides, I have to get two little ladies back to their parents, don’t I?”

Silver nodded but said nothing. She had a horrible sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, and she doubted that was purely down to the gunge she’d swallowed that masqueraded as breakfast. It was a terrible thing to accept, but she had the distinct impression that their ‘saviour’, Trixie, only seemed to be concerned about one thing – money. She could live with that of course, as much as she would have liked to have met a mare who actually saw them as more than walking piggy banks, but if it meant that both her and her friend got to where they needed to be safe and sound, what did it matter? Right then, putting up with a grumpy and snarky mare was the least of their problems.

Outside, one of the dog creatures lead them silently towards the throne room where the boss was apparently already waiting. Around them more of the shambling beasts passed by wearing an assemblage of rags, cloth, and whatever else the creatures had been able to scavenge. By the looks of it, the diamond dogs made very little themselves and appeared to have built a society centered around looting and scrounging whatever they could lay their claws on. Nothing fit, nothing was clean, and the smell! Fetlocks and feathers, they all stank like wet blankets! To her surprise however, Silver noted how without exception each one of the hairy beasts lumbered by as though the fact that equines were walking through their home was of no interest whatsoever. Where there other ponies here too somewhere? Or were the dog creatures so completely self absorbed that they simply didn’t have any interest outside of themselves? It was an interesting conundrum. She’d have to think on that later however, as the boss had noticed their approach.

He turned to face them as they entered what Silver assumed passed for a throne room, “Ah, you’re here” he announced, “Excellent. Now, come with me.”

And off they went again. Di gave Silver a look that said it all. She wasn’t happy, not at all, but it wasn’t as if they had any choice in the matter was it? Trixie was keeping quiet too, and had barely spoken to them since breakfast. Goddesses above, she could still taste it! Whatever it was lingered on your taste buds and lined your throat like glue. What it was doing to her insides she had no idea. Still, it wouldn’t be for long. Once they’d done whatever task it was that… Silver gasped.

“Here we are” the boss announced, “The treasure room.”

Di gave Silver a nudge, “It looks like...” she trailed off at the warning glance she got from Trixie.

Silver shook her head in amazement. It was a room, a larger earth packed room than the one they’d been sleeping in, but this one was completely jammed floor to ceiling with… stuff. It was actually hard to focus on anything really, and not just because of the bad lighting in here – it was simply that there was just so much… stuff, that your eyes couldn’t focus on any one thing long enough to work out exactly what it was you were looking at. Silver gave herself a shake.

“It’s… um… very interesting” Trixie said obviously trying to sound enthusiastic.

“Isn’t it, though?” the boss agreed happily, “Hundreds of years of history, all in one room.” He stalked over to one of the piles and plucked out a small casket, “Treasures from the Llamalian empire.” He opened it up and Trixie gasped in awe at the glow from within. It was a necklace, a
necklace of rubies and emeralds as large as chicken eggs. The boss grinned and leaned down to pluck another of the items from the pile, “Spiced wine, a speciality of the griffin kingdom” He held it up as though it were the most precious thing in all of Equestria, “Aged one thousand years” he breathed, “Can you imagine?” Slowly, he put the bottle back and swung his arm around making his cloak flare out behind him. “Do you like what you see?”

Trixie nodded slowly, subconsciously licking her lips, “I… yes… yes, I do.”

The boss smiled his toothy smile, holding out the casket, “One gift, one of these, I will give to you...” He opened the lid. From within, the inner light of the gemstones illuminated the blue muzzle of the mare and reflected in her eyes. “It will be yours, my dear unicorn, if you would but help me and my people, with one small task.”

Trixie’s eyes went as wide as saucers; she was all but salivating, “Yes…

The boss smiled, “Of course. A mare after my own heart.” He snapped the casket shut and stalked away to the other end of the room, “This way.”

Diamond Tiara hurried up to Silver’s side. “I don’t like this, Silv” she said quietly, “Did you see the look on her face? I don’t trust her.”

Silver nodded, “I know, but we need to stick together for now. If it all goes wrong, we get the hell out of here, grab our things from the caravan and keep running until we can put as much distance between us and this place as possible.”

Di nodded in agreement.

The two friends walked on, following the adults along more corridors, through more rooms and past more of the armoured dogs. Lots more of them. To her surprise however, Silver felt distinctly less intimidated by the peculiar creatures than she had at first and found herself becoming more curious than anything now. Father had never mentioned anything about diamond dogs, other than in passing as though they were of no real importance, but… did he know about ‘the boss’? These creatures lived in Equestria and had not only kidnapped ponies but were definitely organised, at least to some degree. Curiosity overcame her. “Excuse me, Mister Boss?”

The grey dog’s ears perked up and he looked round at the small filly, “Yes?”

“Are you like a king?” Silver asked, “Are you in charge of all the diamond dogs in Equestria?”

The boss frowned and then barked out a booming laugh, “Ha! No! No, I’m not my young friend… not yet anyway.” He threw his arms open, “Diamond Dogs are spread out all across the land of Equestria, living in packs under the leadership of no one alpha. Our pack is one of the largest, true, and one day, very soon, it will be the biggest pack in the land.” With a flourish he drew back the curtain into the next room, “And this, is where you come in.”

It was another store room. Rack after rack of boxes, neatly stacked beside wooden barrels and crates. The three ponies stared at it all in open mouthed incredulity; compared to the first of the boss’s store rooms it was as night was to day – the complete polar opposite. Standing beside the stunned trio, the boss smiled quietly to himself, clearly aware of what they were thinking. “Lost for words, ladies?” he asked. His words carried a faint hint of bemusement at the equestrian’s reactions, “I can understand. Most of my people are what you might say, a little less than organised?” He chuckled under his breath, “Ah, such simple creatures.”

Silver looked up at the large canine, “You seem a lot more eloquent than the others we’ve me, sir.”

For a moment the boss seemed taken aback, but then grinned widely, “Such a forthright girl, aren’t you!” He turned to Trixie, “Very polite, these… ‘assistants’ of your Miss Lulamoon.” He nodded as if deep in thought before suddenly clapping his claws together. The sharp sound made the girls jump in surprise, “Now! On to business!” The leader of the diamond dogs walked over to one of the crates and ran his sharply tipped claws over the plain wooden lid in what was an almost loving caress. His voice dropped to a near gentle tone as he spoke, his eyes never leaving the object before him. “Do you know of the truth that lies beneath, Miss Lulamoon? Have you ever imagined, even in your wildest dreams, that there could be a rotten, filth stained, worm ridden core that sits just beneath the thinnest glaze of sunshine and smiles, of rainbow candies and ice cream treats, that the princess of Equestria has made for you all?”

Trixie shook her head, “I… I don’t know.” She seemed genuinely perplexed by his question.

“No… no I don’t suppose you would.” The boss smiled softly, “After all, why would you care for what lies beneath your hooves?” He slowly lifted the lid of the chest, his eyes going wide as his voice rose an octave, “It is here, below the surface where we dwell; this world of earth and rock is where we look for our treasures, deep beneath the hooves of the surface dwellers.” He took a breath and sighed it out slowly, closing his eyes as a strangely rapturous expression ghosted across his face, “There are none so blind as those who cannot see” he said quietly.

“Or those who will not see” Di added.

The boss opened his eyes suddenly, and slowly, his features calmed as he nodded, “Yes… those… who will not see.” He sighed, “Your people have made a deal with the devil, Miss Lulamoon. Demons, creatures from another world who have have bartered away the lives of the innocent for power and money.” He slipped back the lid of the box, “They thought they could hide it all from the gaze of the white mare and the dream walker, but to us, the unseen, the ones who live in the darkness… nothing can be truly hidden.”

Silver stared at the large grey canine as he slid his claws into the crate and extracted something metallic. She blinked in surprise, but also puzzlement. What was that?

The boss held the slick, shining black metal construction up to the light as though it were an item of religious reverence. “This… this is the future, Miss Lulamoon. Your people brought these devices to our world and then buried them away, thinking them safe until such time as they would again be brought to the light of the sun for the nefarious deeds of their new owners.” He slid a part of the device back and let it slide forward again before pulling a small lever. There was a sharp ‘click’ that made Silver’s ears twitch. “These are ours now.” He waved a claw around the room, “There are more, and other things beside these that those who have failed to protect their own people from the approaching darkness have left… for us to find.”

Trixie swallowed, her purple eyes reflecting the unusual device, “Um… not that this isn’t all very interesting of course, Boss, but what has this to do with us?”

The boss raised an eyebrow, “I want you to show us how they work” he said as if it were the most natural thing in the world, “That is all. For now.”

“For now?” Trixie’s ears twitched, “And… if I can discover how these things work, then we’ll be on our way, yes?”

The boss grinned, “Oh… of course.” He looked down at the fillies, “Meanwhile, your ‘assistants’ will no doubt be only too happy to assist our digging teams in locating gems.”

“Gems?!” Di squeaked, “We don’t know how to locate gems!”

“Oh, I think you do” the boss said pleasantly, “Earth ponies have an affinity with the earth around them, and it is well known how they are are able to locate geological features.” He chuckled, “I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it girls.” Rolling his shoulders he ran his tongue over his needle sharp teeth, “We have all the time in the world.” Suddenly he clapped his hands together and two of the dog creatures entered, “No time like the present!” he said animatedly, “Take these two to the mines.”

“Hey! Now, just a minute…!” Di began to protest but was quickly shooed away beyond the curtain.

Trixie could only watch in horror as the tattered sheet of material swung back, leaving her alone with the musty smelling leader of the diamond dogs. He looked at her askance, “You know, I always found ponies… fascinating” he said quietly. Slowly, he walked past the blue mare and lifted his claw, hovering it barely and inch over her flank, “Absolutely… fascinating.”

Trixie swallowed, “You’re… you’re not going to let us go, are you? That’s why you told us all of this. We’re prisoners here.”

“Prisoners?” the boss said in surprise, “Not at all! You are our honoured guests, and our pack make all our guests very welcome… very welcome indeed.” He smiled, “Of course, we may be able to come to some sort of, how can I put it, mutual agreement?”

Trixie felt her hair standing on end as the lecherous dog creature moved closer. “What sort of agreement?” She tried to sound confident, but her treacherous quavering voice was failing her.

The boss leaned towards her, his teeth glinting in the artificial light, “Give me the girls.”

“What?!” Trixie took a step back in shock, “I… I can’t!”

The boss shrugged, “Can’t? Or won’t?” He lifted a claw and began to idly scratch his neck, “You don’t honestly think for a moment that I actually believed your fantastical tale about those two being your assistants, did you?” He shook his head in mock surprise, “Goodness me, Miss
Lulamoon, do you really have such a low opinion of my intellect?”

“NO! I mean… no, boss, it’s just that-” she began.

“Those two are the daughters of aristocracy, my fine mare, and far from just a couple of simple wayward fillies who happened to hook up with a travelling magic act.” He sniffed loudly, “I could smell it on them the moment they walked into my domain. They reek of money.”

Trixie closed her eyes and felt as if the ground beneath her hooves was swallowing her up.

“They mean nothing to you” the boss said pleasantly, “All I ask is that you work with me, help me understand how these things work, and you will leave here with a gift that will make you a very, very rich mare.”

Trixie took a breath, “And… if I say no?”

The boss burst out laughing, the raucus sound echoing around the room, “You won’t!” he rumbled, “You’re like me, you understand the power of money and the price that sometimes must be paid to gain that which your heart desires.” He walked over to the doorway, “You have the freedom to explore my kingdom, Miss Lulamoon, but not to travel beyond the entrance hall. If you do, you would find your stay here with us, shall we say… less than agreeable? Of course, whatever you decide is up to you, but I think that an intelligent mare like you will see what is in her own best interests.” He pulled the curtain to one side, “Now, please, you have a task to be attending to and I am keen to see results. Food and drink will be brought to you and for now at least, you may share your bedroom with the children.”

“Remember,” The boss called as the curtain swung back, “it is your decision, Miss Lulamoon… but do please think carefully before you tell me your decision.”

Trixie sank to her haunches and lifted her muzzle, closed her eyes and took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. Again; breathing in, breathing out, breathing in, breathing out… until gradually, mercifully, her heart rate began to return to as close to normal as it was probably ever going to be while she was in this horrible nightmare. Great galloping alicorns, how had she ended up in this mess? If it had just been her then everything would have been fine; she would have helped this boss dog thing and then been on her way. But no, along come two fillies into the middle of nowhere and all of sudden a problem becomes a catastrophe of epic proportions! She took another breath and stretched out her forelegs, working on the muscles that had stiffened considerably since being stuck underground. Underground… Goddesses above, she hated it down here! Everything was so damp, dark and… smelly! For an instant the faces of the fillies flashed through her mind, the light in those innocent and gentle eyes sending a whisper of guilt into her heart. She wasn’t seriously thinking of agreeing with that diamond dog, was she? She couldn’t, surely? But… in reality, what could she really do? Maybe if she’d been on her own her magic would have been enough to help her slip out of this place; she’d escaped worse over the years, but all three of them? No, it would be suicide, and besides, if the boss wanted he could simply take everything, girls and all. Worse however was the possibility that the boss was lying and he had no intention of letting any of them go, regardless of what she decided. She groaned and rubbed her muzzle in confusion; what was she going to do?! When it was just herself things were so much easier and there was nopony else to worry about, yet here she was, worrying about two fillies she had barely met only the day before!

Trixie shook her mane, setting aside her concerns for later consideration. For now at least she would do as the boss asked; not that she had any real choice in the matter. She took a breath and channelled her magic, focussing it, wrapping it around the peculiar black metal device and began to probe it for any clues that would give her an idea of what it did. Perhaps if she concentrated on working out what this stupid thing was then she could give that information to the boss and then he’d be so delighted, or at least distracted enough, that he’d let them go, right? Yeah… right. Still, at least doing this would take her mind off the dreadful reality of the situation they were in right then. She gave herself a shake and lifted the thing onto the table - the neat and tidy table. For that at least she was grateful; these dog things were the messiest, smelliest, most selfish things she’d ever met in her life. Trixie shrugged to herself; did it really matter all that much? Messy, tidy, who cared? Anyway, back to the task at hoof…

The black metal object floated in front of her, bathed in the purple light of her magic. It was definitely… something that did… something. Well, that was a start at least! She could see a protrusion on it, a small lever of some kind which made it go ‘click’, and a long tube that seemed to have spiralling grooves running down its length. There were buttons and catches on it too, and… writing? It was in a foreign language and she doubted that the diamond dogs would be much help in deciphering that! There was another lever, with cross hatched grooves cut into it that she’d seen the boss pull when he’d given his little ‘demonstration’ earlier. The application of a little magical force in the right place and sure enough, a length of metal slid out, opening a small flap in the side of the device. Trixie looked closer; there was definitely an opening here, and it looked to be the other end of the tube. She let go of the metal protrusion and it shot forward with a loud ‘clack’ that made her jump in fright and she had to quickly catch the thing to stop it from tumbling to the floor. She took a steadying breath and shook her head at her own skittishness. It was only a metal device, it wasn’t as if it could do her any harm, was it? Besides, considering how the boss had been all but drooling over the thing earlier, the last thing she needed was scratches on the stupid thing! Trixie nickered loudly, stomping her forehooves, “Right then!” she huffed, brushing her mane out of her eyes. At least she was getting somewhere! She repeated the process: pull, clack, pull, clack. Now, what if she pushed that lever?

CLICK.

Ah! So to make it click, you had to pull the metal bit back, let it go, and then you could push the lever, or pull it if you had claws, and it made a satisfying click. She rolled her eyes; how exciting! Stupid thing... Still, If there was one thing that was jumping out at her though, it was that the unusual device had clearly never been designed for pony use, and in fact was probably far more suited to one of the boss’s minions manipulations than an equestrian. The boss was certainly no fool, so he must have realised that already. So, with that being the case, why didn’t the reeking beast have one of his moron’s play with it instead of her? Didn’t he trust them? Ah… yes… at least that question was easily answered wasn’t it? When they were dishing out the brains to these creatures the boss must have received ninety nine percent whereas the final one percent was distributed evenly amongst the rest of the cretins. It may also explain the tidiness of the room she was in compared to the dumping ground they’d originally entered. This was like a mirror of the boss’s mind, all neat, tidy and calculating, whereas the first room he’d shown them was a reflection of the rest of the population – a chaotic bloody mess. And here she was… right in the middle of it all. Oh, Luna help her…

Trixie returned to the device. “Right…” she muttered, “So if I do this, then that happens, and… Oops!” Part of the device suddenly dropped onto the floor with a thump. “Oh, no...” She leaned down and picked it up in her hooves, swiftly placing the piece on the table as panic gripped her heart. Oh goddesses, she’d done it now! How was she supposed to know the blasted thing was going to fall to bits when she touched it?! The boss was going to go spare! She’d have to try and do something, to try and shove it back in somehow and-

Click.

“Oh...” She blinked and scratched her head; It was back in place. How curious! Now, what had she done to make it do that? She tried various combinations until eventually she pushed a small button on side of the thing that was apparently intended to detach the small metal box. Taking the box out once more she stared at it, floating it before her for closer examination. It seemed there was a small metal plate inside that was spring loaded, and if she pushed down on it, it pushed upwards. Carefully, she lifted the box, turning it around in her magic and slid it back into place. She pulled the metal piece back slowly, watching how everything moved back and forth, back and forth. Interesting… She rubbed her muzzle with her hoof; it seemed as though something was missing.

***************************

Silver looked down at her hooves and sighed; they were encrusted with a thick layer of mud and it was clearly going to take a lot more than just a good scrub to clean them properly now. Not that there was any chance of doing that so long as they were stuck down here of course. Down here… She couldn’t believe it. Only yesterday they were safe in her home thinking about this ‘grand adventure’ to rescue her father, and now… now they were trapped in a tunnel with a bunch of these vile animals, all pushing and shoving them around as if they were… nothing. Perhaps to them they were. Despite the little she know of them, it soon became apparent that the aptly named ‘diamond dogs’ were only interested in one thing: gems, and as many as they could get their greedy little claws on too. From what she’d been able to determine so far, it was quite obvious that the wealth of the clan was determined by the amount of gemstones they possessed, both collectively and individually. And that was about it really – nothing more, nothing less. What a waste! Meanwhile Diamond Tiara was arguing with one of the dimwitted creatures yet again. It was pointless; no matter how many times they’d tried to explain to the miners that they weren’t able to simply conjure gemstones out of thin air, the things were either willfully ignorant or simply too stupid to understand basic Equestrian. They’d been at this for hours now too, and as much as she’d genuinely tried to find the elusive gemstones in the rock walls of the mining area, they’d barely found anything at all, and even that had been more by luck than anything else. Her father was the real quarrypony in their family, not her, and he was only really interested in aggregates, marble, sandstone, and other minerals – not fancy stones like these dogs wanted. Naturally they were valuable, being coveted by unicorns for use in magical applications and fashionable accessories, but they certainly didn’t have the real world value that these creatures put on them. She closed her eyes and leaned her muzzle against the wall; why wouldn’t Di just… shut up!

“I keep telling you I’m a minor, not a miner!” Di roared, “What is wrong with you people?”

The diamond dog shook its head angrily, “You miner!”

Di was putting on her sarcastic tone, not that it made much difference to the creature she was shouting at. “Me not miner!” the filly snapped, “You dig, me not dig. Understand?”

“Boss say you dig, you dig, pony” the dog replied. It pointed at the wall, “Find gems.”

“And just how are we supposed to do that, genius?” Di asked rolling her eyes, “Magic?”

“Yes! Magic find gems!” The dog barked.

“And there you have your problem, do you see?” Di groaned, “Well obviously you don’t see do you? Of course not!” She pointed to her head, “No horn, see? ME NOT UNICORN!”

“You pony” the dog replied.

Di let out a loud breath, “Remarkable observation, mister diamond dog, do you know any other tricks? Like roll over and beg?”

Suddenly the filthy brown furred creature grabbed the little filly by the throat and slammed her up against the hard tunnel wall. Silver’s eyes went wide in fright as the beast’s teeth snapped together right next to her friend’s neck. “You… work… pony...” it hissed, “Find gems, or boss have no need to keep you.” It rumbled low in its throat, “Then you beg… understand?”

The atmosphere was almost palpable. Silver didn’t dare blink, her throat going dry with fear. Before her, Di filly hung like a rag doll in the monstrous creature’s claws and she just… looked at it… impassively. Slowly, Diamond Tiara’s mouth opened, her words slow, deliberate, and carrying all the weight of command that hit Silver like a sledgehammer.

Put. Me. Down.

As though acting on instinct, the diamond dog immediately obeyed. It was unquestioning, automatic, and left the creature with an expression that was as devoid of emotion as the rock walls of the tunnel itself.

Now work...

In absolute silence, the tall creature turned and slowly collected its pickaxe before shambling off to join its fellows. Silver couldn’t believe what she was seeing, “Di?! What… what was that?!”

Diamond Tiara closed her eyes and swallowed, “Silv?”

“Yeah?”

Di gritted her teeth as she began to tremble, “I think I just wet myself.”

Silver shook her head sadly and took her friend in a comforting embrace, “It’s alright, Di” she whispered calmingly, “It’s going to be alright, we’ll get out of here somehow.” By the goddesses she hoped she was right. The two of them walked over to a water butt that had been set up below a small fissure in the wall where fresh spring water was flowing steadily, the excess flowing away down a channel into the distant darkness of the mine. Carefully, Silver ladled some of the water over her friend’s back and hind legs, dampening a cloth so that Di could clean herself up as much as she could. The filly was clearly embarrassed, and no wonder, the whole nightmarish situation had been absolutely terrifying for both of them. And what was worse, it looked as though they were going to be here a lot longer than they’d originally thought. A lot longer.

Further along the tunnel more dogs were at work: digging, hewing at the rock and speaking to each other in that guttural, barking language of theirs. Not that they spoke often; for the most part they seemed to be thoroughly absorbed in what they were doing. Silver however, hadn’t been able to do much at all. She’d tried the tricks her father had shown her of course, in fact she’d done everything she could think of, but she was just a child – she didn’t know how to mine! Didn’t they understand that? And what about Di? That monstrous boss creature couldn’t seriously expect two young girls to hack rock out looking for gemstones! Luna help them; all of this, everything about it, was sheer madness. And they were trapped within that insanity as surely as a fly in a spiders web.

Di finally finished drying herself off the best she could and began to shiver. The water was near freezing, but at least she was clean. The cleanest you could be in this awful place.

“Silv...” Di stared at the rocky floor as she spoke, her voice heavy with despair, “I don’t think we’re going home.”

“Oh, don’t be silly, Di, of course we are” Silver said, giving her friend’s mane a rub, “Trixie will help us.”

“I don’t think she will.” Di let out a long sigh as her eyes filled with tears, “We’re going to die down here.”

“Stop that!” Silver gave her friend a shove, “If you talk like that and give up hope, we really will. Good grief, we’ve only been here a day.”

“Have we?” Di gave a mirthless chuckle, “It feels like an eternity already.”

Silver gave her a hug and a friendly nuzzle, “We’ve got each other, haven’t we? And where these two friends go, the worlds quakes in fear!”

Di snorted, “You believe that?” She frowned, “Hang on, that’s out of the Wear Panda and the Biscuit Caper!

“Yeah, but it still sounds good to me” Silver grinned, “Anyway, with that super power of yours, I think we could have our ticket out of here.”

“Super power?” Di asked.

Silver rolled her eyes, “Yeah? The voice thing you did with that diamond dog, remember - ‘put me down’. And he did too!”

Di chuckled despite herself, “Ha! Did you see the look on his face? Don’t ask me how I did it though.”

Silver lifted a hoof in surprise, “You don’t know how you did it?!”

“Not a clue” Di admitted honestly, “It just sort of happens sometimes, like at Wheat Halls that time.” She shrugged, “I’m sorry Silv.”

Hope dipped once more in Silver’s heart. They were so close! She shook her head and tried to keep a smile on her face, “It’s alright Di, perhaps it just responds to need. I’ve heard of talents like that before.”

“Huh! Some talent. It’s probably some sort of bossy boots rubbish I’ve inherited from that horrible mare my father married.” Di looked back at her cutie mark, “I wish I could trade this in for something else.”

“Di! Don’t say things like that!” Silver looked scandalised, “Your cutie mark is part of who you are!”

“It’s part of who ‘she’ is.” Diamond Tiara sank to her haunches as hopelessness gripped her once more, “I don’t want anything to do with that vile mare. Nothing! This…” she waved a hoof taking in the tunnel, “This is partly her fault. If she hadn’t been the way she is, we wouldn’t be here.”

“I don’t think that’s quite right, Di” Silver said quietly.

“Don’t you?” Di snorted, “If you were stood where I am right now, you’d think differently – trust me.” She lifted her muzzle, “Do you think they’re looking for us?” Di motioned towards a couple of diamond dogs walking along the tunnel, clearly searching for something… or someone. To their surprise and relief, the dog creatures passed them by as if they were invisible. Goddesses, how Silver wished they were! She watched the dogs carefully, noting how they kept stopping, sniffing, and listening.

“That’s odd,” Silver said curiously, “what do you think they’re doing?”

“Who cares” Di replied, “I’m just going to wait until we can get back and-”

A crash of rock and a deafening rumble was followed by a terrific blast of dust and grit that rolled out down the tunnel with a sound like a runaway freight train.

Get down!” Di grabbed Silver and the two of them lay themselves flat to the ground as the choking dust cloud blew over them, covering the girls head to hoof. Sight and sound vanished, their nostrils and mouths thick with the cloying, choking dust, but In seconds… it was over. The once pink filly coughed loudly and rose slowly to her hooves before checking on her friend, “Silv! You okay?”

“Y… yeah, just.” Silver gave her mane a hard shake, dislodging the gritty debris, “What was-”

And then the howling came. Louder and louder, the sound coming as if from far away but steadily rising in volume and urgency. It was coming from all around them. The fillies looked at one another in surprise a moment before the barking and baying started from where the rock wall had collapsed. Silver stared closely… it hadn’t collapsed, it had been… broken in. A heartbeat later, the screaming began.

Barking, howling, biting and clawing, a mass of diamond dogs flooded through the breach in the wall and tore into the creatures who had been mining there only moments earlier. Fur flew through the air like torn carpet as blood sprayed and teeth rent flesh in a merciless, maniacal frenzy of violence the likes of which neither of the fillies had ever seen. They could do nothing, nothing but huddle together while the tidal wave of chaos broke around them. From further along the tunnel more dogs came, from the opposite direction now too, and with them the armoured ones carrying spears and axes.

Silver looked up and felt a tingle run down her spine, “We have to get out of here.”

Di looked up in horror and just nodded. Without another word the girls, hugging the walls to avoid being trampled on, dodged past the charging dogs and ducked behind a pile of fallen rock. When the way was clear, they ran for all they were worth. It was a nightmare: screams and barks were all they could hear now, other than the thundering of their hooves and the hammering of their hearts. There had to be a way out of here somewhere, there had to be! Silver stared around her, checking to see if there was something, anything that could indicate a way to the surface and blessed freedom. She’d had enough of this place, more than enough, and she’d be damned if she’d spend the rest of her days as a slave to these sickening creatures. Fortune however, had finally smiled upon them and this distraction was like a gift from the herd. If the dogs were preoccupied with ripping each other to pieces then they had a chance to escape!

“Silv, what about Trixie?” Di gasped, “Are we leaving her here?”

“I think we should worry more about ourselves right now” Silver replied, leaning to take another corner, “We can get help for her once we’re out of here.” She hated to think like that, but something within her was driving her now and overriding any sense of morality she would normally have had. Once, Silver would have quailed at the very thought of leaving a pony behind in this hellish place, even one whom she strongly believed would likely sell them to save her own hide at the first opportunity, but right then, self preservation was king. Her father would know what to do, and there had to be other ponies they could inform, right? There was the army too, and the princesses who-

“Girls!” Trixie was standing in the doorway of a side room bathed in the glow of her magic as she floated a peculiar metal device before her. Silver and Di slammed to a halt. “What’s going on, is there trouble?” the blue mare asked, “All these dogs are running around and shouting and-”

Di grabbed her in her tiny hooves, “We have to get out of here! Now!”

“What?!” Trixie gave herself a shake, “We can’t! The boss said he’d kill us if we-” “There’s a war going on!” Silver gasped, trying to catch her breath, “They’re fighting each other and… and there’s blood and fur and everything! We can’t stay here!”

“Sod this for a game of soldiers then.” Trixie glanced at the metal device she’d been examining and shrugged, “Huh, I just about worked this stupid thing out too and-”

BANG.

The girls shrieked in alarm, covering their ears at the sudden, sharp noise. Sound, piercing and painful screamed in their ears, deafening them. Silver gave herself a shake and grabbed her stunned friend; whatever that was it meant nothing now, they had to concentrate on their goal and escape this mad house. She turned, the diamond dog in front of them staring at them in surprise. Slowly, it looked down at the hole in its chest and sank to its knees as the others moved around it to stare at the ponies.

“Well...” the boss said levelly, “All my little ponies together, and they’ve brought me a present too. How thoughtful.” The grey diamond dog snatched the object from Trixie’s magical grasp, “How does it work, mare? TELL ME!”

“Y… you...” Trixie dropped to her haunches in fright at the looming, snarling thing above her, “You put these small brass things in here, put that in there, pull that, and then point it before-”

“I’ll work it out” the boss snapped and grabbed a clawful of the brass cylinders, “You stay here.” He motioned to the two heavily armoured dogs, “Make sure they don’t leave.” And with that, he was off down the corridor, leaving the ponies in the room as the heavy weight of despair crashed down around them. They’d been so close… so, so close.

Silver hung her head, her heart still racing, “Damn it all.

Di flopped onto the ground beside her friend, her chest heaving, “This isn’t happening is it? I mean, it’s all just a dream, a really, really bad dream.”

Trixie shook her head and huffed loudly, “A nightmare, you mean.” She walked over to one of the crates, “At least we’ve done what he asked.” She motioned to the drag marks where the dead dog creature had been taken away, “And now we know why.”

“That thing...” Silver said in a surprisingly calm voice, “There are more?”

“Oh, there’s more” Trixie said offhoofedly, “Boxes and boxes of them.” She waved a hoof at the crates behind her, “The dimwits just didn’t know how to use them.” She groaned, “And now they do, thanks to muggins here.”

Silver stared into one of the open crates, “If you could use one again, we could use it to-”

“NO!” Trixie pushed Silver away, “No way, no how! Did you see what that thing did? It… it killed that dog thing! I haven’t… I’ve never hurt anypony before! Nothing! And now… oh… oh, Luna, what have I...”

“Oh, be quiet” Silver snapped, “Get a grip of yourself, mare.”

“What?” Trixie looked up at her in amazement, “Don’t you dare speak to me like that, you’re just a child!”

Silver ignored her, “Is there anything else we can use in here?”

Trixie, her mane twitching in indignation at the arrogant little fillies words, motioned towards one of the smaller boxes, “There’s something in there, but don’t go touching them, they’re alive with magic – dangerous magic.”

Carefully, Silver leaned forward and gazed into the box. It was full of straw, but beneath the packaging, nestled in thick felt that had been shaped to fit and protect its contents, sat six metal egg shaped objects. Curiously, each of them had two gems set in them: one red, one green. Beside each of them was a small rod about two inches long with a short screw threaded end. Her ears twitched; she didn’t know what they were, but… inside… somewhere at the back of her mind…

“You, come!” The angry voice behind her called into the room, “All of you!”

Silver turned to see a group of diamond dogs, steaming with sweat and filth motioning to them to follow them into the corridor outside. She gritted her teeth and shuddered; she would have to endure this, for now. Her father had told her once that the last thing you should ever lose is hope, and her memories of Golden’s diaries showed that all too well. She had endured, she had stood up against the storm of unrelenting cruelty that fate had thrown at her, and she had shown them all… She had won! Silver was her descendant, her bloodline, and she would never allow dishonour to taint her family name… NEVER. She took a breath, held her muzzle high, and followed the others out. Let them think they had beaten her, that they had broken her, it didn’t matter. Soon, soon they would learn to fear her name and howl in terror at her approach…

“Come!” The diamond dog lead them along the corridor and into the deafening noise of the throne room. It was packed to capacity with howling and highly animated diamond dogs, all of them without exception, wild eyed and utterly exuberant. And there in the middle of it all, bedecked in a long bloodied fur, matted and stinking, was the boss himself – waving his scepter in one claw and the metal device that Trixie had shown him how to use in the other. Silver’s blood ran cold…

“VICTORY!” the boss screeched, “VICTORY!”

The howls intensified to the point where the girls had to cover their already tortured ears, the audible assault beyond anything they’d ever experienced. Back home, ponies cheered at celebrations of course, but these dog things just… they just screamed!

Gradually the excited cacophony died down and the boss, his arms help out wide spoke, “My people” he began, “Today our age old enemy foolishly thought they could attack us in our own home. Today they tried to sneak into our tunnels to rob and kill us like frightened and
defenceless sheep. What they found, were not sheep… they were wolves… wolves with teeth!” There was a roar of agreement. “Wolves with teeth and claws!” The boss began to walk amongst his pack, carried on a wave of adulation, “Our teeth are long, our claws sharp! We bite, we tear, we rip, we kill! NOTHING CAN STOP US!” The roaring of the dogs continued to even higher levels. “We have taken their den, we have taken their gems and we have taken the hearts of their pack into our own. WE WILL BE THE ALPHA PACK!”

Silver Spoon, Diamond Tiara and Trixie huddled subconsciously together as they watched the spectacle before them. The boss continued his speech, exulting his people to greater deeds, encouraging them to work ever harder for the betterment of the pack. But above it all, like some symbol of sheer unstoppable power, he held the black metal device. Silver closed her eyes and felt the rage of her ancestor burning in her veins. These… creatures, these monsters, they were a threat to Equestria, to all of Equestria and all ponies.

Something had to be done.

*************************

Drink, food, and noise – all the components of a wild party had been assembled, and amidst it all the boss with his scepter in his claw and the long black metal device beside him, sat slouched across his foul throne. “I believe you wanted to put on a show for us did you not, Miss Lulamoon?” the boss asked, grinning widely, “Then as thanks for helping us achieve this magnificent victory, I shall allow you to perform for us as part of our celebrations.” He waved a claw at one of the armoured creatures, “Take them to their caravan and help them bring whatever they need here.” His raucous laugh boomed out across the throng, “Quickly! The mood is good and night is young!”

Trixie glanced at the fillies and suddenly found herself being shooed out of the hall and through the heaving mass of sweating hounds. She’d been down here for what felt like an eternity, but then, just on the very edge of her senses, she smelt it: air, fresh air! Her nostrils flared and her ears perked up as the headed upwards. She could see it now, the light of the forest at the end of the long sloping entrance to the diamond dogs’ den. It was dark outside, but to her eyes now adjusted to the constant dim light of the underground it was like a beacon fire, drawing her to it. She could feel her heart rate speeding up even as her legs and hooves pulled her on. She had to leave, she had to get out of here and away from this awful, awful place!

“Get what need, pony” the diamond dog snapped, indicating her caravan, “Hurry. Boss not like to wait.”

“Yes, yes...” Trixie stared up at her caravan, her heat sinking. “Oh, no...”

“What is it?” Di asked, moving up beside her.

“It’s filthy!” Trixie complained, “It’s covered in pine needles and filth and-”

One of the diamond dogs pushed her roughly from behind, “Hurry!” The barking creature waved a spear at her, leaving no doubt in her mind as to what would happen if there was any attempt at escape.

Quickly, Di, Trixie and Silver opened the door and dashed inside. Di was the first to speak, “We have to get out of here! They’re all crazy, they’ll kill us!”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Trixie hissed, “But we can’t just make a break for it, there’s half a dozen of them out here with us. We’d be cut to pieces.”

“I thought you took on an ursan!” Di whispered angrily, “What are a few diamond dogs? Come to think of it, there were only three of them when they captured us!”

I know!” Trixie snapped, “Look, I can look after myself, but do you think I can protect all three of us? What would your parents say if one of you got hurt, or worse?”

“No payout, huh?” Di snorted, “That’s all you’re bothered about isn’t it? It’s all about the money.”

Trixie’s hoof shot out and grabbed the filly around the neck, hauling her up until they were nose to nose, “Now you listen to me, you little shi-”

There was a knock on the door, “What you do in there? Boss say hurry!”

Trixie sighed, “Look, I don’t care about money. Well, not right now anyway.” She began pulling things out of cupboards and unlocked the chest beneath the bed, “You sure as Tartarus can’t spend it when you’re dead can you?” She began hauling out the heavy box and lifted the lid, passing several cloth wrapped jars to the girls, “Put them in the cart and for the goddesses sake, don’t take the cloth off them. Okay?”

“Why?” Silver asked.

“Just do as you’re told, girl!” Trixie hissed, “Luna’s ears, this is why I don’t work with children!”

Finally the pile of equipment and other colourful tools of the stage magicians trade was complete. Securely tying the last of it onto the small cart, Di peered at it curiously, “There doesn’t seem as much as I’d expected” she muttered.

Trixie pulled the two girls to one side, checking to make sure their guards weren’t listening, “Look, just follow my lead okay? Keep your mouths shut and when I say, we run like hell, got it?” Di and Silver nodded silently. “Good.”

Back in the chaos of the throne room, Trixie quickly began to erect the props. Despite the noise and commotion the creatures gave them a wide berth, whether because of the boss or some fear of magic she wasn’t sure, but at least it gave her some breathing space to get everything she needed in order. Normally she would have arranged for a proper stage with banners, lighting and props, but this time… this time she would probably have to leave all of this behind her. She cringed inside at the very thought of it; all her beautiful, beautiful props! She’d had the banner hoof sewn too – not some cheap paper or painted tat, this was the real deal and had cost nearly every bit she’d made from that show she’d put on in Fetlock. Still, with the reward money from saving these two pain’s in the hocks, she’d make more than enough for a new one. She hoped so, anyway. Trixie spoke over shoulder, “Silver Spoon, pass me one of the-” She blinked in surprise, “Where is she?”

Di looked about in alarm, “I don’t know!”

“Well never mind that, she’s probably gone to the toilet or something. Just give me a hoof with this stuff will you?” Trixie gave Di a nudge with her muzzle, distracting the distressed filly from worrying about her friend. Besides, the last thing she wanted was the silly creature running off and taking other half of the reward money with her. Trixie winced at the selfish thought and pushed it to one side. What would be would be, and Fate would make her play regardless of anything she did. Speaking of play, what had happened to Silver Spoon? Damn it all! She took the last of the props from the cart and began setting up the lanterns. Despite the filthy conditions and the foulness of the ‘things’ she was performing for, an audience was still an audience, and the show always had to go on. Trixie sighed; she’d often wondered if her professionalism would be the death of her one day...

Around them, the laughing, singing and baying dogs drank and caroused, celebrating their victory over the pack that had attempted to attack them through the tunnels. Silver was actually quite impressed really, not only at the speed of the enemy pack’s attack, but the rapid counter-attack had been like lightning, overwhelming and wiping out the intruders in a savage flood of teeth and claws. The boss too, for all his cold and selfish personality, had quickly realised the potential of the weapon Trixie had inadvertently provided for him and used it to deadly effect. Despite the primitive conditions his people lived in, he clearly knew the potential of those things, even if he hadn’t understood how they worked. Unfortunately, now he did. She slid the lid back on the crate and nodded to herself, it was time to-

“Going somewhere?”

The grey diamond dog stared down at her with his dark emotionless eyes, “And what, exactly, are you doing in here little filly?”

Silver gave herself a shake and shrugged nonchalantly, “I was looking for the toilet” she said calmly.

“Were you now?” The diamond dogs’ leader leaned closer, his breath reeking of alcohol, “And did you find it?”

“No” Silver replied, “But I don’t really need to go now.”

“That’s good...” the boss grinned, “Very, very good.” He straightened up and glanced around the room, his voice taking on an unusually jovial tone, “Do you like my toys, Silver?” He took off his cloak and let it drop to floor. “I have more, you know, many, many more. Toys that a little filly like you would love to play with.”

“I… No, no thank you” Silver replied and sidestepped the boss, “I have to help Trixie to-”

“No...” the boss’s claws shot out like lightning and grabbed her around the neck, “I don’t think so.”

The temperature in the room suddenly dropped like a stone as Silver’s heart began to race. She swallowed, “What do you mean?”

“Oh, I think you know” the boss said quietly, “Now, come and join me. Here.” He sat himself down on the rotten cloak and patted his claw on a patch beside him, “I think it’s time we got a little better acquainted, don’t you?” His eyes bore into Silver’s, his toothy smile showing the foul teeth that had so recently been ripping his enemies to shreds. She knew she wouldn’t stand a chance against him. He was in charge here, and he knew it. “Come, sit beside me.”

Silver closed her eyes, “No.”

“What did you say?” The boss’s face darkened, “Don’t play games with me, girl!” His long pointed ears flattened as his anger flared, “You do as I tell you and I do what I want!”

“Yes… you do, and you will.” Silver smiled gently, letting her big eyes catch the light, “But… will you let me play... with you? Please?” She licked her lips slowly, “I’ll be ever so good… I promise...”

The dogs’ leader chuckled low in his throat, “I knew it… I KNEW IT! I’d heard you ponies know how to please their males, and I was right all along!”

“Mmm...” Silver leaned closer, “Yes...” She walked over to one of the boxes and took out one of the silver eggs. Carefully, she moved over to the dogs’ leader and held it before him in her forehooves, “Here, you see how it glints in the lamplight, like my name? Like… silver.”

The boss chuckled and stared at the mysterious thing, “You know what it is?”

Silver smiled softly, “Oh, yes.” She leaned down and slowly took one of the small rods out from the box with her mouth, running her tongue over it seductively, “You need to… insert this into that little hole there.” She smiled, “It may be a little tight, but a big fellow like you will manage, won’t you?”

The boss shuddered, his grin widening, “Oh, I think I manage that.” Obediently he slowly pushed the rod into the hole of the egg.

“Give a little twist. That’s right.” Silver nodded as the dog did as he was shown. “Now… watch...”

She leaned forward and pressed a hoof against the green gem, “Now, close your eyes and count to three… and you’ll have… everything.

“Everything?” the boss said lustily.

“Oh, yes” Silver whispered as she backed away, “All that you deserve.”

She was galloping at full tilt when the earth shook violently around her. Silver shut her eyes and ran, ran as hard as her hooves would carry her, but even she couldn’t outrun the billowing howl of green fire as it spewed out of the store room and into the corridor. Rounding a corner, the blast wave blew her off her feet, throwing her like a rag doll along the passageway and showering her in dirt. She didn’t think, she didn’t make a sound, now was the time for speed and action, not for reflection. Considering what you had done, second guessing yourself, could leave you as no more than a rotting corpse on a hillside, and she had seen more than her fill of the empty eyes of the dead.

She ran. First one passage, then another, and then another…

The sound of applause and barking hit her as a hard as the wall of fire. In there, amidst the chaos of noise and drunken revelry, a familiar blue mare with a pink filly standing beside her announced the next act, “And now! Fillies and Gentlecolts, a piece I call, a day in springtime!” A shower of multi coloured blooms popped into the air, flared brightly and then fell to the ground like petals of flame, “And here is the autumn! A little unseasonal this year it seems!” The audience yelled and bellowed, howling for more. Here and there fights had broken out, but by the reaction of the rest of the diamond dog pack, it was as normal for them as drawing breath. “See the winter winds come, bringing the snows of the north with them!” Trixie stood on her hind legs, billowing her cloak out behind her, her large wizards hat perched on the back of her head. With a wave of her hooves her horn glowed and out of the air above the diamond dogs, white flakes gently began to fall. That set the party alight; the creatures became increasingly excited and leaped about trying to bite or catch the snowflakes. From the corner of her eye, Trixie caught sight of… “Oh, Luna...

Silver looked up at her, her eyes bloodshot, her fur scorched and smouldering. The hollow expression on her face froze the breath in Trixie’s throat as much as her words chilled her soul, “The boss is dead. We have to move, or we’re next.”

“He’s…?!” Trixie closed her eyes and tried to steady her pounding heart. Slowly, carefully, she reached into the box and removed the two large jars covered in slick black cloth. “AND NOW!” she bellowed, “For the grand finale!” The diamond dogs, still partially distracted by the snowfall, looked up in anticipation. “A little room, please!” The blue mare waved her hooves, holding them out as the crowd parted slowly, “I like to call this one, SHAKE!” She took the jars, one in her forehooves and the others in her magic, giving them a shake, “RATTLE!” She began to shake them even harder, “AND ROLL!” The black covers slipped off as the jars sailed through the air. Trixie looked at the girls, “RUN.”

Without a word they took to their hooves while behind them the diamond dogs watched the glittering jars arc over their heads and fall as if in slow motion into the cleared space. In the background, muffled by the revelry, another sound of high pitched barking and howling was rising up from the passageway Silver had emerged from and some of the diamond dogs were starting to turn to see what the commotion was about. Others, distracted by the performance, turned to look in surprise at the retreating ponies. But it was the act they had really come to see, the act which had now culminated in the three jars that landed with a thud and a crack on the hard earth floor. From within them, the shimmering and silver crackling light grew into a ferocious storm of brilliance, until the glass could contain it no more. In a burst of intense silver fire, the swarm were unleashed – and they were angry.

Very angry.

Trixie and the girls hurtled up the slope and into the chill night air as behind them the shrieks and cries began to build. “Get on the caravan, quick!” The blue mare all but threw the girls into the open doorway and rushed around to the back, yanking off the oil cloth covers from the two long tubes that were strapped to the sides of the caravan’s chassis. As quick as a flash, she ran round to the front, flipped down a seat and climbed up before flipping up two long levers on either side of her. She took a breath, steadying herself. “Hang on!” she shouted, and closed her eyes. Her magic flared, sending a tiny flame into the tubes at exactly the same time. For the first time in as long as she could remember, Trixie gritted her teeth, and prayed.

The world burst into flame.

All three of them screamed as the caravan lurched forward and rapidly began to accelerate in a dazzling shower of colourful sparks and the shriek as of a thousand cats. Behind them, as if in answer to their howling victory cry, the great gash in the earth that lead to the land of the dead king erupted in a plume of silver and green flame, illuminating the forest as bright as day. The fire, built of an unholy blend of raw magic and natures wrath, built until it roared with the naked fury of a crucible, drowning out the screams of the dying creatures trapped below the earth. But from within the careening caravan, hanging onto the window ledge, the small filly could only look on impassively. Silver closed her eyes, “So fall all enemies of the princess.” She smiled, as the world she knew whirled away into darkness.