//------------------------------// // A New Fur-end // Story: Beyond My Grave: Nightlight // by AnnEldest //------------------------------// Laughter filled the air; silence was not known to the land. The sun was setting on an ever-growing festival.  The little cat was far out of her element and the overwhelming enthusiasm was more than she could take. She felt like a more ant crawling along huge mountains. Los Pegasus was the place for all party ponies; it was a shining light that attracted so many bugs to it.  Shira walked along the luminescent street as she admired all of the glamorous decorations and decor. Restaurants and stores lined every corner of the city. Large amusement parks encased the city making it all more breathtaking. Even the sky lit up far more than any other city in the land of Equestria. She walked along until she came to a cross-section. The street had a sign with a pony walking with a big red x a crossed it. She understood its message and patiently waited. Many ponies rode up and down the road in quick selection. Everyone was in a great hurry to get to their destination, yet none were more concerned than Shira. She needed to reach her destination; it was imperative that she did.  She looked down at the ground and closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. She stood there still for a few moments. She tuned out all the chaotic noise that was meaningless to her objective. As the red x disappeared for the pony of the sign Shira opened her eyes. She instinctively began to walk forward. She looked up to a large sign in the sky, “Blue Diamond Cocino”. She chuckled a little; it was bound to be an exciting experience for her. The small vision she had at the cross-section had shown her target at a building related to a diamond somehow. She really wasn’t expecting a casino of all places, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. She traveled a short distance before she saw the large Beacon in the distance. It was a large tall blue light that came from a large building with a huge diamond atop of it. She smiled as she knew it was the right place. She took in all of its glorious aurae. The travel was lengthy and slower than she would have liked. The sun had fully receded from the sky and the moon took its daily dominion over the land.  The blackened sky was chased away from all the lights that engulfed it. The Blue Diamond casino was truly glorious. Shira stood in front of the humongous entrance that a full-size dragon could fit through. She gasped insight of all its awe. She walked through the entrance and was hit with a wave of “the true party life”. An ocean of roars and screams flooded over her nearly knocking her over. She pushed forward towards the main hall. The ceiling was grand and lined with gold and gems. It stretched almost beyond sight. She looked in all directions only to find an endless ocean of golden slot Machines, water slides and huge 100-foot rides, and huge screens that stood in large posts.  She had heard of such technology that allowed colored images to be displayed digitally on different surfaces. It had started as simple projectors that had advanced to large boxes and then to thin screens that had clear realistic pictures. She was in awe at the alien technologies. It was at that point when she realized that she had hit a roadblock. The building was far too large for her to simply search for her target, but she really hadn’t gotten a specific exact location on him. All she knew was that he was somewhere lost in the ocean she was in. She took a deep breath as she tried to think of her next move.  It was then that she remembered that the item she had carried all that way had one little trick to it. It would glow if it was in the presence of its true owner. She took the cloaked item off of her back and held it out in front of her. She then started walking slowly trying to see if she could get a ping on his location. Eventually, after quite some time she froze in her tracks as the item shot a glare of light for a split second. She continued down the path that eventually led her to the gambling section.  It was the place where ponies went to get rich and live, and where ponies wallets went to die. She walked along the slot machines observing all the gamblers on their crusades to fortune. She saw many ponies that had spent far more than they should have and some that were downright broke. There were a few creatures that had luck on their sides. A griffin stood with hundreds of bits next to them as the machine continued to pour more out. As she walked by the griffin she pocketed a hand full of bits as she figured she might need them.  She passed a table where a large group of various creatures huddled around. As she passed it the item she held let out a bright silent gold flash. She froze and backed up as she realized she had hit the jackpot. She walked up to the crowd and started to squeeze her way through it. When she had reached the center she saw what all the fuss was about. A group of two ponies, one griffin, a dragon, and a cat were locked in a battle to the death of their life savings. The pile of rewards was breathtaking all in itself. It was almost large enough to cover the view of the gamblers. Shira was sucked into the intensity of the situation and for a moment she had forgotten her motives. She stood and waited for the outcome of their game. She looked around at all of the contenders. The two ponies looked like they had a good head on their shoulders, but it was clear that they weren’t good enough to win that particular battle. The griffin was tapping his leg ever so slightly which meant he was probably betting on luck. It was the last two that caught her eye. The dragon was calm and collected with not a hint of worry. The cat was relaxed and still. Its green eyes moved quickly across the table and Shira could tell that there was a secret intention behind every gaze.  He quickly gazed in her direction as she shifted her eyes away. She looked back to see that his gaze had moved on. He seemed to be too focused on the game to worry about anything else. She watched him closely as he looked down at his hand of cards. He looked up at the dragon and back at his hand. The dragon had lots of jewelry on and had a lot of friends behind him. He was clearly the king of the table. Shira watched as the two ponies folded as the dragon rose the bet even higher. The griffin started a steady sweat and the cat just pushed more money into the pile. She saw the dragon smile as he rose the bet even further beyond. The griffin instantly folded at that event. The cat simply obliged to the dragon's demands.  It was then that Shira understood the crowd's interest. It was the king of the table being taken on by a kid who seemed to stand a decent chance; The titan vs the player. The titan simply pushed more money into the pile. It was half of his huge pile on the line. He squinted at the player as he awaited his response. The player's dead emotionless eyes showed nothing. He looked at the pile of money and then back at his hand. His eyes strained at his cards for a few drawn-out moments. Suddenly as if someone had flipped a switch the player changed. His eyes lighted up and showed a slight hint of fear. It wasn’t much but they were no longer dead. He clenched his hand slightly and took a small deep breath. The titan smiled at his response; he knew he had finally got the upper hand. The player swallowed as he pushed half of his pile to the middle. The titan went wide-eyed. Certainly, the player wasn’t stupid enough to play on a doubting hand. The titan froze for a moment as he looked back down at his hand. He looked back at the player who stared Him down. The titan started to doubt his hand and even considered folding. However, the titan wasn’t going to back down quite yet. The pushed the rest of his money to the center  “I’m all in”, said the dragon. The player sat staring at the huge reward. He smiled as the tension firm his body seemed to be stripped away. His eyes went dead again and he even chuckled a little. He looked back at the titan and then put his cards down on the table. “I fold”. The cat's words sent a shockwave through the crowd. Shira went wide-eyed as she couldn’t comprehend what had happened. The dragon smiled at his success and pulled the pile towards himself. The crowd went wild and everyone began to cheer. The cat walked up to the dragon. “Damn it, you must have had an Ace.” “Eh doesn’t worry about it kid you played well,” said the dragon. “Had me on the ropes there for a bit. Not bad, kid.” The two shook hands and departed. Shira chuckled at the outcome of the event. Something about it didn’t seem right to her. It seemed as if someone’s plan had played out perfectly during the game, it wasn’t the dragon's plan that played out. The gold flash of the item broke Shira out of her thoughts. She tooled down at the wrapped item and then looked up. The cat had passed her delicately just as it had illuminated. She gasped as she turned into his direction. The item lit up once more and only got brighter as she walked forwards.  It can’t be, she thought to herself. The cat that owned the item was supposed to be a witty warrior and before her, she saw a gambler who had lost. Of course, she still wasn’t convinced that what unfolded before her was quite what it seemed.  She started to follow him as she put the item back on her back. She wanted to approach him delicately and without alarm. To her luck, he walked up to the bare counter and sat down to settle. He pulled out a couple of bits and bought a couple of drinks. She watched with curious eyes as he walked over to a large table. The dragon from the gambler battle sat with a large group of friends. She couldn’t hear what was being said but she could see as the cat sat next to the dragon and placed the drink in front of him. The dragon seemed to accept his gift and welcomed the cat to his gathering. Shira got the idea that there was certainly more to the cat than meets the eye. She really had to question what his game was. He lost to the dragon and lost a huge load of money, so why would the cat be playing buddy with him. She watched for a while until the cat got up and walked away from the table with a few farewells. She quickly followed him and this time she caught up with him. “Excuse me, sir,” she said as she tapped his shoulder. “Can I have a word with you?” “Oh, why of course miss. What could I do for a rather dashing felon such as yourself.” He graced her paw and kissed it with elegance. He certainly knew manners and how to make a first impression. “What is your name, sire?” “The name is Dapperpaws, Capper Dapperpaws”.