//------------------------------// // An Uncertain Future // Story: A Disparate Bond // by the7Saviors //------------------------------// Stepping into the residential district of the Grey Asylum was like stepping out of the day and into the night. It seemed as though there were half as many citizens and twice as many Defenders roaming about. The increased number of Defenders didn't make the two fillies feel any safer however. On the contrary, it made them more nervous than anything. Still, they kept close to Burning Comet as they observed their surrounding with wary eyes. The buildings didn't really look any worse or better than those in the market -- at least not the ones near the market. It didn't start getting really different until they made their way past the first few houses. The further in they travelled, the more dilapidated and worn the residential district looked. That wasn't even mentioning the creatures. They didn't see as many citizens walking or trotting about as in the market, but the ones they did see either ignored the fillies, eyed them hungrily, or stood in the shadows of windows and alleys where they couldn't fully be seen. They had begun to see why Burning Comet had said to stay close. Even if he hadn't said anything, neither of them would've dared to stray far in this kind of oppressively hostile atmosphere. That's not to say there weren't the occasional normal looking creatures roaming about -- though they were rare to see. Even then, there was a hardness in their eyes that even Twilight and Starlight could see plain as day. "Is... is it like this all the time?" Twilight found herself whispering nervously, "everypony... everyone around here looks so... dangerous and paranoid..." "That's because they are dangerous and paranoid, Purple," Comet answered in his normal oddly accented drone, "it's like I said, these creatures have lived hard lives, fighting against both the monsters from both outside of and within these walls." He glanced down at Twilight and Starlight with a grim look. "You two should count yourself lucky the Hunters found you first," he said with a solemn frown, "had you wound up at the Grey Asylum's front gates, things would've gone very differently for you, and not in a good way." Twilight swallowed, trying not to think about the implications. Starlight furrowed her brow and looked up at Burning Comet with a bemused frown. "That's right, I was meaning to ask you," she said slowly, "how did you find us? What was that fog we saw in the desert?" "Oh yeah," Twilight added, her previous trepidation momentarily forgotten as she remembered the assault on her senses. She frowned and rubbed her horn, "whatever it was, it made my horn hurt really bad." Burning Comet smiled slightly before letting out a small, low chuckle -- as though he remembering a particularly funny joke. "Believe it or not, that fog wasn't magical in nature," he explained -- much to the fillies' surprise, "that fog is actually a gas developed by some of the diamond dogs here in the city. "It's created using a combination of different chemicals and a particularly nasty plant that grows out in the desert called Manabane." "Manabane?" Starlight repeated with a frown, "that... doesn't sound like anything I want to be near at all..." "You and most unicorns would do well to stay away from the stuff," Burning Comet agreed with a single nod, "self explanatory name aside, we use it to create what the brainy folk back in the Fortress call an anti-mana cloud." "Wait, but I swear I saw ponies coming out of that cloud," Twilight argued, furrowing her brow in confusion, "they didn't look affected to me." "That's because we have masks and such to protect against the stuff. It's only effective if the stuff gets into your system through the eyes, nose, or mouth," he shrugged, "honestly we didn't even know you two were out there." "What?" Starlight asked in disbelief, "then why were you--" "One of our teams of Hunters had just fought off and killed a small group of Feral Umbrum," Comet interjected, "the things are deadly in groups, but they can't do much against the anti-mana cloud." He jabbed a hoof in Starlight's direction, causing the filly to take a step back in surprise. "You happened to waltz right into the cloud just as we finished off the last of them," he shook his head and frowned at Starlight disapprovingly, "in other words, you were in the wrong place, at the wrong time." "Oh..." Starlight shrunk back slightly, pressing her ears flat against her head and looking away, "so you were all fighting demons then." "Yup -- well not me specifically," Burning Comet amended, "but I was there when the Hunting team brought you both into the city," he turned to Twilight, his expression softening slightly, "you already had magical burnout, so you probably got the worst of it." Twilight grimaced as she remembered the intense pain she had felt when she had come into contact with the cloud. Twilight could tell the burnout had finally worn off on its own and she could use her magic freely once more. She resolved to never overtax her spells again, though she was unsure of whether she'd be able to keep that promise in the near future. "Either way, unless Aeon makes one or both of you Hunters, you won't have to worry about the weapons used when Hunting," he started off down the path once more, prompting the fillies to follow after him, "keep the info in mind for now, though." As they continued trotting through the streets, Burning Comet reiterated that the increased Defender presence in the residential district wasn't just to keep the peace, but to respond quickly to any breach in the gate by monsters or demons. He also explained that Grey Asylum's food and water supply were shipped in from various other towns around the desert, who themselves got the food and water from the more bountiful patches of land in the area. He explained that it was an often deadly job, and the creatures that went out to collect were always guarded by the most experienced Defenders available. Supply runs were also the only time Defenders left the city to do their work, as their training specialized in the defense and protection of creatures rather than the assault and elimination of monsters and demons. This made them uniquely qualified for escort missions and the like. As Burning Comet went into more detail about the roles of Hunters and Defenders, the fillies listened with rapt attention -- interested in the subject matter despite their fear of having to become one or the other at some point. After roughly an hour or so, Burning Comet opted to return to the Fortress with Twilight and Starlight in tow. Though the fillies got odd and often unnerving looks from the residents, Burning Comet's presence was enough to deter any creature that wanted to start trouble. By the time they had all arrived back at the Fortress, the afternoon was pushing into evening, though the sky remained as overcast as it had been all day. The fillies were also glad to see that Bannon had packed up and left at some point, though Twilight remained somewhat curious as to how he and Burning Comet knew each other. "While this took far longer to finish than I would've liked, it could've been worse I suppose," Burning Comet mused as the three of them passed through the front gate of the Fortress, "you two didn't wander off and that made my job easier." The two fillies smiled for a moment, expecting some kind of praise, but when the stallion merely continued to trot along with nothing more to say, their smiles fell and were replaced with flat looks. "Now that we're finally back, I'm supposed to take you both back to the library," Comet explained as they all trotted through the halls of the Fortress, "Aeon said she wanted to discuss your training regimen along with a few other things before you both turn in for the night." "Do you know what we're gonna be doing at all?" Twilight asked tentatively, "like what kind of training she's gonna make us do?" "No clue," Burning Comet said with a shrug, "I was never trained by Aeon herself, but I've heard her methods can get pretty brutal, so I hope you girls are ready for some pain." He flashed them both a big smile before facing forward once more. The girls glanced at each other with matching looks of dread on their faces. Each of them silently prayed the burly unicorn was just kidding, but deep down they knew he most likely wasn't. They eventually reached the library and the stallion stopped in front of the entrance before turning to fully face the two fillies. "Alright, I've done my job," he exclaimed, "if you both have any questions about what you saw today, just ask Aeon," he smirked, "hopefully you'll get some answers out of her, but don't count on it," he then frowned thoughtfully, "though she does seem to like you two for some reason..." He thought for another moment before shrugging and trotting past the two bemused fillies, going back the way they came. "Well, at any rate, good luck to the both of you, and try not piss off the boss lady, alright?" he called back, "she really isn't pleasant when she's angry, trust me!" "Don't have to tell me twice," Starlight muttered bitterly before turning to Twilight, "so what do you think about all of this?" Twilight frowned as she continued to stare down the hall after Burning Comet. Her mind was indeed filled with all sorts of questions about what she had seen and what her and Starlight's future held. Despite her fear of what they may have had to do, or what they might've had to go through, Twilight still couldn't help but feel a bit of excitement at the prospect of what she might get to learn, especially having access to a library of this magnitude. With all the information she had to take in, the grim events of her past were pushed to the back of her mind to make way for the many trials the future would no doubt bring. With a determined grimace, she turned to Starlight and nodded once. "I think we should find out what kind of training Aeon wants to put us through."