Rainbow Dash looked at herself in the mirror of Larkon’s bathroom. A well combed and braided mane framed a frowning face staring back at her. Despite her protests and desire to go back to her normal manedo, Shibu would have absolutely none of it and made sure Rainbow Dash kept up this style as long as she was living in their house.
So she just had to endure the laughs from Larkon and Alykon and deal with how weird it felt whenever she was out flying. But once she was out of this city it was back to her old, way cooler, style of just letting her mane fall free.
Shibu had offered to give her twintails instead if she preferred them but Rainbow Dash shot that idea down instantly.
Rainbow’s eyes glanced to the hoop earrings she was still wearing as well and an embarrassed blush crept up her face. “Applejack would never let me live this down. I would never let me live this down.” The necklace and hoof bands were still on her as well. The hoof bands at least were kind of cool looking, she just wanted ones with something engraved on them that wasn’t flowers. But she could deal with them.
“Ugh,” Rainbow Dash groaned and jumped off the counter. She could deal with all of this later, it was just about time to eat.
Moving through the house she made it to the dining room and took her usual place on the table. Samarkon still looked at her like she was crazy but she had gotten used to that. It was a smaller meal than usual for these mammoths since Shibu had recently made a feast for Alykon but there was, as always, more than enough for Rainbow Dash. The kelp salad was surprisingly the first thing she went for, having developed quite the taste for it over her time here in the mammoth city.
“Enjoying the kelp?” Larkon asked, giving her a knowing smirk.
“Well after swimming for and harvesting some of my own I guess I kind of have an appreciation for it,” Rainbow Dash grinned back at him.
“Or maybe just the way mom cooks it,” Alykon said.
Rainbow Dash smiled over at Shibu. “Yeahhh, I suppose that could be it too.”
“Stop,” Shibu playfully smacked her with her trunk but Rainbow Dash could tell she was just about bursting with pride.
Samarkon rolled his eyes at the silly display and silently ate his own food. He had gotten quieter ever since the attempt to run off to the slums and even Larkon hadn’t tried speaking to him as much since. Rainbow Dash wished she knew what to do about that, anytime she had tried speaking to Samarkon he just completely ignored her. Probably learned that kind of coldness from his idol. And she just didn’t really know how to relate to him. She could definitely understand some of his grievances with his life and maybe some of the issues he had with mammoth society (since even Dash thought they were just maybe a little lame) but there was no way she could agree with siding with Karkona, and she definitely had problems with any mammoth that wanted them to go back to being a bunch of ruthless warmongers and tyrants.
Rainbow Dash gave him a brief look but went back to just eating her own plate full of food. Maybe she could talk with Larkon about it all soon.
“So what’s going on in the future for everyone now?” Rainbow Dash asked the table. “Anything else happening in the city?”
“Not particularly anything major,” Larkon said. “No real celebrations, or parties, or anything like that.”
“There are still a lot of games for the Trunkball junior division coming up,” Alykon said.
“But there’s nothing like the spring festival or anything I haven’t already seen?” Rainbow asked.
Larkon shook his head. “Afraid not. Not until the fall festival where we put on a big celebration for the last time before the cold winter begins.”
And I doubt I’ll be around for even close to that long. I hope not at least. Rainbow thought to herself as she emptily nodded along to what Larkon had said.
“It’s fine to just take every day as it comes,” Shibu said. “I’m going to start getting dessert ready for us.”
The moment she rose from the table there was knocking on the front door. Larkon raised an eyebrow and looked off down the hallway towards it.
“Who could that be?” He said.
“Do you want me to get it?” Shibu asked.
“No, no, you just get dessert for the others, I’ll see to it.” Larkon said and rose to answer the door.
And Rainbow Dash, curious as ever, flew up alongside him to see who their visitor was. “Let me check it out too.”
The pony and mammoth traveled through the house to make it to the entryway and front door. Their door didn’t have a peephole so they couldn’t look out to see who it was. But in all the days Rainbow Dash had been living here she couldn’t remember anyone knocking on the door, it was probably just a friend of the family or someone from Tarmok’s Hall with business for Larkon. Maybe she should’ve just stayed at the table so she could chow down on dessert?
But upon Larkon opening up the door they were both greeted with the visage of a mammoth unfamiliar to them.
He was a gangly and grungy looking mammoth with a sneering smirk on his lips and a long scar going down the front of his trunk. His tusks too weren’t filed down but were still left naturally sharp. Instantly Larkon and Rainbow Dash both regarded him with wariness and suspicion. They could both take a guess as to where this guy had come from.
“Who are you?” Larkon asked, raising an eyebrow at the stranger.
“My name is Murrank. I come at the behest of Karkona,” he said.
Larkon’s gaze hardened and he frowned at Murrank. “I’ll have to ask you to leave then.”
Rainbow Dash fiercely glared at him too. “Yeah!”
The obnoxious smirk only widened as Murrank narrowed his eyes at them. “But I’m not even here for either of you.” His eyes darted between the both of them before he looked back further into Larkon’s house. “Where’s your son?”
Larkon’s eyebrows shot up and he stepped right up to Murrank, thrusting his face close enough that he almost headbutted him. “What did you just say?”
“Uhh, Larkon...” Rainbow Dash buzzed by his head, she was almost worried that he, Larkon of all mammoths, was about to get violent.
“Karkona heard about Samarkon’s little visit to the slums,” Murrank grinned, unperturbed by the angry mammoth in his face. “He was impressed by the boy’s courage to try and make it out there on his own. He’d like to extend an open invitation to Samarkon for next time; the drawbridge will stay down and no other mammoths will accost him. He’s free to come and join Karkona whenever he wishes.”
Rainbow Dash could tell Larkon was about to explode. The historian was red in the face and Rainbow didn’t want him to go against his morals—so she would just do that instead.
“You can take that invitation back to Karkona and tell him to shove it!” Rainbow said as she pushed herself between the two mammoths and actually forcefully knocked Murrank back, almost making him fall down the steps of Larkon’s porch while Larkon got some much needed space to breathe.
Murrank looked at her in anger. “You pony—this doesn’t concern you! Stay out of mammoth business or you’re going to get hurt!”
“Make me! I’m not letting you mess with my friend and his family, got that?” Rainbow floated in front of him.
“Rargh!” Murrank growled and swung his trunk at Rainbow.
It was a powerful attack that would’ve sent her out of commission had it connected. That was true for likely any straight hit she took from a mammoth. But fortunately he was too slow for her. While the mammoths had certainly surprised her with their agility and athleticism in certain cases, the fact was that they might as well have been snails moving when it came to her. Big Mac would’ve had an easy enough time dodging this trunk swung at her.
His tusks came up to try and gore her too but their lack of articulation made them easily avoidable. She tried kicking him on the scar of his trunk but he didn’t even wince at it.
“Stop! Stop it!” Larkon yelled after regaining his wits. “Enough of this!”
Rainbow Dash frowned but flew back to him and the two stood in the doorway, Murrank glaring at them.
“Leave my home. You can forget about Karkona ever getting his trunk on my son!” Larkon said with barely constrained anger.
“Feh,” Murrank spat. And then looked past them again into Larkon’s home. “Does your father speak for you, Samarkon?”
Rainbow Dash and Larkon turned around to see Samarkon standing right in the entry room by Larkon’s hat rack. His eyes were wide in surprise and he quickly backed up and ran back off into the house towards his room. At least he had the sense to not say anything or try to leave with Murrank. But Rainbow Dash and Larkon both really didn’t like where their thoughts were taking them on this matter...
“Hehe,” Murrank chuckled, his sneer reappearing. “Why do I have the feeling we’ll be seeing him soon?”
Larkon gave him one last angry glare before he stepped back inside his home with Rainbow Dash. “Stay away from my family!” He yelled and slammed the door shut.
“Dear?”
Rainbow and Larkon looked at the source of the voice, Shibu and Alykon were standing there in the hallway leading to the dining room, looking worried. Larkon took a few breaths to steady himself before replying.
“Just… just eat dessert. Rainbow Dash and I have something to talk about,” Larkon told them.
Shibu quietly nodded and guided Alykon back to the dining room. Larkon sighed deeply and leaned up against the door. He looked older and more tired than Rainbow Dash had ever seen him before, and he lifted up his trunk to rub his head, probably trying to fight off the impending migraine. She really couldn’t believe he almost came to blows with another mammoth. He likely regretted letting his temper get the better of him.
Rainbow Dash wanted to give him more time to collect himself but they needed to talk too. “Uhh… this really isn’t good, is it? Samarkon is-”
He held up his trunk to stop her. “Samarkon is going to attempt to go back to the slums and see Karkona.”
“Yeah,” she grimaced.
“And I wouldn’t be surprised if he tried to sneak out as soon as he possibly could,” Larkon stood up straight, no longer leaning against the door, and looked at Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow Dash, I need to ask another favor of you tonight.”
In the dead of night, Samarkon silently opened up the door to his bedroom without even a creak. With footsteps far gentler than any he’d ever made in his life before tonight he stepped down the hallway towards the stairs. He had to be careful not to be heard. His father probably already suspected what he was going to do, there was no way he could allow himself to be caught. Once his foot hit the top step there was the slightest of groans from the wood. Samarkon winced and paused for a second, listening for if anyone had been woken up.
Nothing.
He internally sighed in relief and continued his trek down the stairs. It was nearly pitch black in the house and he had to be careful not to accidentally trip. Thankfully with his care and steadiness he didn’t stumble nor did he make anymore sounds, a single step too loud or too heavy could spell doom for his plans. As he reached the bottom of the stairs he took a deep breath and continued on down the hall until he could make it to the front door.
His eyes looked down each other hallway he walked past just in case, he knew that pony slept down here but it didn’t look like she was awake or aware of anything right now either. But he still needed to be quiet. Nothing bad would come from him being extra careful. Despite the fact that he might’ve been able to just make a run for it at this point he wasn’t going to ruin anything. He could be patient.
Samarkon’s eyes had more or less adjusted to the darkness by this point as he crept along to the front door. It would be easier with the stars and the moon outside to see when he finally made it out of this house. The night air would be cold and the journey back to the slums long but he could handle it.
Just getting to Karkona would be an impressive feat. Karkona would be proud of him for it, he’d respect him for getting to the slums and getting away from his father.
A grin appeared on Samarkon’s face at the thought as he reached the front door. This would be another feat though, opening and closing it silently. His trunk went up and he fully turned the handle before pulling to make sure there wouldn’t be any scraping, then he slowly pulled the front door open and listened to make sure it wouldn’t squeak or anything. Satisfied that he had stealthily opened up the door he slid right out onto the porch while still making sure the door was held open by his trunk. And then he just as stealthily and quietly closed it.
Larkon’s house was now short by one mammoth.
Samarkon’s grin widened and he walked towards the steps leading down the porch. Once he finally stepped down to the street he’d put this life and this home behind him.
“You can stop right there, kid.”
Samarkon’s eyes widened and he looked up, seeing Rainbow Dash hovering right above the doorway. She yawned, kicked the door three times, and floated down till she was just about eye-level with him. “I almost fell asleep up there on the roof, took you long enough.
“Y-You?!” Samarkon glared at her, his face almost getting as red as Larkon’s had earlier.
Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Sorry, your dad knew you were going to do this though. He’ll be coming downstairs right about now.”
Samarkon looked over his shoulder at the steps and dark street behind him.
“Don’t even try it. You know you’re not outrunning me,” Rainbow said.
Samarkon turned back to face her. “Why do you even care?! This isn’t your city, we’re not ponies, stop messing around with us!”
“I’m just helping a friend,” Rainbow Dash folded her hooves over her chest. “And stopping a bad guy.”
“Karkona’s not a bad guy! You don’t know anything about us mammoths, you don’t have the right to do any of this!” Samarkon yelled, silence thrown out the window.
“I think it’s you who doesn’t know anything, kid,” Rainbow raised an eyebrow at him.
“Rainbow Dash is correct,” Larkon said as he opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch with the two of them.
“Dad...” Samarkon said.
Larkon’s face was stony as he held the door open. “Go back to bed, Samarkon. I am never going to let you go to those slums and join Karkona’s band of thugs. Even if I have to start locking you indoors.”
Samarkon’s trunk curled and he angrily glared right at his father, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. “It’s not right!”
“It’s for the best! Now go inside!” Larkon yelled. “Time and again I’ve told you that Karkona is wrong, that what he wants is wrong, and tried to show you how much better we have it today, but you refuse to listen. I am done with trying to do right by you. Go to bed, and we can discuss the future later.”
Samarkon wiped away the budding tears at his eyes with his trunk and ran past his father back into the house. “I hate you!” He yelled before disappearing down the hallway.
Rainbow grimaced and looked at Larkon. “You okay?”
“Not really, no,” Larkon shook his head.
“I’m sure you can get through to him someday,” she rubbed the back of her neck. “I hope.”
“Hm,” Larkon grunted, staring off into the distance.
Rainbow raised an eyebrow at him. “Uhhh, you seem kind of distracted.”
Larkon continued to stare for a minute longer before looking down at her. “I was just… I still love him, you know? He’s my son. I just don’t know where I’ve gone wrong.”
“I don’t really think it’s your fault,” Rainbow flew up and patted him on the shoulder.
“Thank you, but regardless, I know what else needs to be done now. It’s been too long in the making,” Larkon said to her and walked to the edge of his porch. He stuck his head out to the street and looked down in the direction of the slums. “I can’t let Karkona harm my family or any others in this city. And I can’t rely on Bakol and the others either.” He looked back at her. “But I think we can rely on each other.”
Rainbow Dash grinned, she liked where this was going. “Just tell me what the plan is.”
Larkon grinned too and stepped up to clap her on the back with his trunk. “First thing tomorrow morning we’re going to the slums and meeting up with Abalun. And then, we will uncover Karkona’s misdeeds and finally put a stop to him.”