Chapter 18
“You’re a fast learner,” Doc commented as he watched me easily jump from table to table, my prosthetic seeming to give me little trouble.
“Yeah, I get that a lot,” I replied as I backflipped off the last table, landing on all fours.
The others were around us, enjoying the remaining rec time we had.
Remi held up a juice box, shaking it at me.
I couldn’t help but chuckle as I took it, taking a few sips before returning it to her.
“So, Scampy,” Moxxi began, smoking a homemade cigarette, “What were you doing fighting Leem?”
“Long story,” I sighed, but all of them looking at me now, I continued, “I’ll need to give a lot of context before it’ll make sense.”
“We got the time,” Beans clicked, getting nods from the others.
“Okay,” I said as I pulled a chair to myself, “it all starts with this book…”
ooo000<^>000ooo
I finished my tale, telling them about basically everything that had happened since finding the Bronies. Ending with fighting Leem.
“That is honestly pretty impressive,” Moxxi said with a smirk. “Especially all the throat eating.”
“Kind of barbaric,” Drake commented. “But I am moved by your drive and willingness to do what it takes.”
“I’m interested in this ‘living flesh’ you spoke of,” Doc said as he lifted the wing that had been replaced with said flesh.
“I got nothing to tell you there,” I admitted. “Ominus never would elaborate on it.”
Remi held up her chalkboard to show a picture of me with a cape on, standing heroically. She smiled at me and gave a thumbs up.
“Thank you,” I said sheepishly, rubbing the back of my head.
“So if I understand,” Drake began, “Your goal is to find this Watcher and kill him to save the friends of another person? Just to restore his world but not yours?”
At my nod, he laughs lightly, placing a hand over his heart. “My my! I’m both moved by your dedication and selflessness. I may actually give you the chance to date me.”
I just laugh out loud, followed by the others, “Calm down, lover boy. You also aren’t my type.”
He frowned at the group laughing at him, but he just flicked his hair and tapped a finger against one of his small horns on his head.
“All jokes aside,” Beans said, bringing the laughing down, “this all hinges on you actually getting out of here. And only a few have ever earned their way out.”
“How did they do it?” I ask, turning to face him.
“By joining Leem and his employer. And believe me, they are very picky.”
I furrowed my brow. There was no way I’d get out that way, I was against them and they’d never believe I wanted to join them.
“Leem would never take her,” Moxxi stated the obvious.
“Yeah, which just leaves beating him or escaping,” I say, frowning.
“Or getting bought,” Drake said, a charming smile on his face. “That’s my current plan.”
“Good luck,” Moxxi teased, poking his arm. “The only person who’ll buy you is a lonely old monster with a fetish for submissive fuck boys.”
Drake placed a hand to his forehead, looking up dreamily, “if only I was so lucky.”
“Gross,” I say, rolling my eyes. “What about you guys? What are you doing when you get out?”
“If we get out,” Beans corrected. “But I’d love to open a shop for others to bring their pets too. Sell them all kinds of services to improve the lives of their little critters.”
I blinked at him, not expecting that from the man sized praying mantis.
“I’m going to start my own practice,” Doc replied, waving an arm around. “Free for all who are in need of medical help.”
“Movie star,” Drake said flamboyantly, striking a pose. “It is my destiny after all.”
“I’m definitely opening a shop to build shit,” Moxxi chuckled. “Or maybe even join a air ship crew.”
Remi held up her chalkboard; it was a drawing of her sitting on a throne with a crown and scepter in her hands. The words ‘Queen Remi’ sat above it.
“What of you, Scamp?” Beans asked, gesturing to me with a mandible. “What do you plan to do once your adventures come to a close?”
I sat back, looking upwards as I thought about his question. “After everything I’ve seen and done, I think I’m going to take a break and relax. Maybe start a farm like my mother always wanted to do.”
“Farming?” Drake scoffed. “Trivially boring. Think bigger.”
Moxxi slugged his arm, causing him to whine in annoyance. “Don’t listen to him. Do whatever you want!”
I grinned at her, then looked around the area, at all the creatures going about their own activities.
“Is there anyone here who might possibly know of a way to win? Or escape?” I ask, chewing on my lip.
“No one of present,” Beans remarked, clicking sounds coming from his mouth.
Doc snapped his fingers, “there is Miss Reinhardt.”
“The bitch that keeps beating Remi in the tournaments?” Moxxi asked with a laugh. “She ain’t going to help.”
“Why wouldn’t she?” I ask, looking between them.
“Reinhardt is an asshole, sticks to herself,” Moxxi said, picking something out of her teeth. “She’s one of very few who have faced Leem and was allowed to live.”
“She’s probably the closest to being allowed to leave and join his crew,” Drake said as he coolly ran a hand through his jet black hair.
“Where is she?” I asked, glancing around.
“Can’t miss her, she’s the only one who’s wearing real armor, a large Orc lady,” Moxxi said, pointing to the sixth floor.
Looking up, I scanned the railing, quickly taking note of a woman in gray armor leaning on it, looking out over the creatures below her.
“Her?” I asked, getting a nod from Moxxi. “I’m going to talk to her.”
“Bad idea,” Beans clicked, “if you two get in a fight, it could bring about… bad consequences.”
“I don’t plan to fight her,” I reassured them, but they all looked back at me with unsure faces. “Just going to ask her for advice.”
“Yeah, good luck!” Moxxi said, making a peace sign with her hand.
I took to the air and flew upwards, heading for the armor clad woman. Once she saw me approaching, she kept her eyes on me till I landed beside her.
She was a very imposing woman alright; light grayish green skin with deep blue eyes. Blonde hair sat braided upon her head, and two small tusks stuck out of the corner of her mouth.
“Can I help you, horse?” She asked in a gruff voice, her displeasure at my disturbance clear.
“I’m a pony,” I clarified, which just caused her to grunt in response. “I heard you’ve won a tournament and survived fighting Leem.”
She spat on the ground between us, snorting, “I’m not talking to a little magical pony from a child’s fantasy book.”
I narrowed my eyes up at her, then snorted hard and spat a glob of mucus by her foot, “I ain’t a little pony from a child’s fantasy book.”
Reinhardt grunted in response to me, a sly smirk on her face. “Why do you care about me facing Leem?”
“Because,” I replied as I put my front hooves on the railing next to her, “I’ve fought him too, and I want to know if he can be beaten.”
She laughed in response, “you fought Leem? Guess that explains the missing leg. Ate it, didn’t he?”
Raising the prosthetic and curling it, I gave a nod.
“He has a thing about humiliation and eating his victim,” she said as she raised her hand, a robotic looking appendage where her left hand used to be. “I didn’t win when I fought him. He just liked how I fought, and decided to keep me around for a second round.”
“Do you have a plan for facing him again?” I asked, getting a glare from her.
“I’m not talking about my plans with anyone, especially the new horse in the block who’s not even fought in the normal arena yet.”
“I can handle myself,” I said evenly.
“Handle a gumdrop maybe,” she retorted, laughing roughly.
I took a deep breath, keeping my cool.
“Want a bag for the rainbows you shit out?” She asked, laughing even harder.
“Look, I’m just…” I started but was cut off.
“Want me to find you a little saddle so you can make a little girls dreams come true?” The laughter from the Orc only increased in volume.
“You wanna go, cunt?” I snapped despite myself. Oops.
Her laughter died immediately and she turned, squaring up with me. “Want to say that again, twinkle bell?”
I stared up into her hard eyes, and sighed. With a twist of my body, I spin and slam my right hoof into her face. She stumbled back in shock, but quickly recovered as she roared and tackled me.
Alarms began to blare all around us, but we didn’t pay them any attention.
She was on top and was laying into me, my only saving Grace was our close proximity as I pressed into her, causing her hits to barely affect me.
On one of her sloppy swings, I latched down on her good arm, the metal bracer saving her from my teeth.
“Let go!” She yelled as we fought back and forth, me finally pushing us back to a standing position.
Forgoing her trapped hand, she pulled me forward and kneed me in the chest. The air was knocked out of me, but I remained locked to her arm, my eyes aflame as I stared back at her.
She reared her knee back, preparing for a harder strike this time, but I suddenly let go of her arm and dropped, swiping her leg out from under her and bucking upwards. My hit sent her into the air a bit, eyes wide. Then she went over the railing and fell towards the floor below.
“Ah shit,” I groaned as I shot forward and followed her over the railing.
Luckily I caught her by the leg and began to flap as hard as I could, trying to slow her fall.
We both hit the ground, but not as hard as we could have thanks to my wings.
Reinhardt let out a groan as she slowly sat up and looked at me with a perplexed look. “Why the hell did you save me?!”
I just grinned back at her, breathing heavily, “I have no fucking clue.”
Before she could say anything else a beam hit her, causing her to slump back. I started to scramble up, but a beam hit me as well.
“Everyone back!” A guard yelled as the crowd around us started to disperse back to their cells. “Rec time is over!”
A guard roughly grabbed me and glared at me, “you two just earned yourselves a night in the Hole!”
“The fucks the Hole?” I asked, but got no answer as they began to drag the two of us away.
“Don’t worry, Scamp!” Moxxi called from her cell. “I’ve been there! Just don’t freeze to death!”
Oh shit, I feel like I have an idea of what the hole is.
ooo000<^>000ooo
With a grunt, the guard kicked me over the ledge, causing me to fall into a pit that smelled of death.
A crash behind me signified Reinhardt was thrown into the same pit as me.
“Don’t murder each other, and if you’re alive in the morning, you’re going straight to the preliminaries,” a guard called down to us.
Two beams hit us, allowing us to move again.
“Wait!” I called up, “will we still get breakfast?”
He just laughed in response as he disappeared, followed by a door slamming shut.
“We’re in the Hole, and you’re worried about breakfast?” She asked, a frown on her face.
I just sigh and look around, seeing both but dirt and bones. “Breakfast is literally the most important meal of the day.”
She blinked at me, then laughed loudly. “You are very strange!”
“Says you,” I say back, sitting down hard. The temperature felt like it was dropping.
Reinhardt sat down with a clank of armor, looking me over. “You could have let me die back there, you earned my death with that move of yours.”
“Yeah,” I replied, starting to shiver since I had no clothes on. “I just had the urge to save you, don’t look into it too hard.”
With a smirk, she wagged a finger at me, “someone isn’t as hard as they pretend to be.”
“Don’t critique me, you don’t even know me,” I say in annoyance, shaking heavily now.
She reached down and began to undo straps on her body, then removed her waist cloth. She tossed it at me, “you’re going to freeze to death being this stubborn.”
I eye her as I take the heavy cloth and wrap it around my shoulders. It wasn’t enough to keep the cold away, but it was better than nothing.
Leaning back, she looked up at the lip of the pit. “You really should have let me die back there, Orc’s can hold a grudge for a long time.”
All I do is wave her off, “then I guess my mistake.”
But then she smiled, “but we have a tradition as well; honor the greater warrior. Doesn’t matter how you won, you still beat me. Then saved my life. That bonds us.”
“Oh geez,” I groan. “I’m not out here to get bonded with anyone!”
She just laughs, then slams her fist into her chest a few times. “I, Reinhardt Torebas, pledge my fealty to you, Scamp.”
“No no,” I said as I shook my hoof at her. “We’re not bonding and we are definitely not pledging fealty to one another.”
“Too late,” she said smugly. “It is done. We are battle buddies now.”
I facehoofed, groaning loudly, “this is so ridiculous.”
She just laughs louder at my suffering. “You and I are going to become the best of friends, you watch.”
Not responding, I just sit there and shiver. Morning couldn’t come fast enough.