//------------------------------// // Chapter 10 // Story: Adopting Hellhounds // by Lord Shadow Eclipse //------------------------------// With Shuck, Ripper, and Killclaw The trio of Sin Hunters have spent weeks searching the mortal lands for Frightfang. They scoured every single village, town, city, and even lone homesteads for the pup. They weren't able to find sight nor scent of him. The mortal world's positive energy muddling their senses certainly complicated things further. Their search brought them to a mortal town called "Appaloosa". The town was decently sized and was surrounded by trees full of fruit of varying shades of red, green, and even gold. Why they favored such fruit was beyond them, but they couldn't focus on fruit. Shuck and his comrades stuck to the outside of town in order to keep the mortals from panicking. Each of the trio was sniffing for any sign of Frightfang. They couldn't find him, but they did detect the distinct scent of another Hellhound. It was faint, but recognizable. "You smell that?" Ripper asked. "Yeah, must be another Sin Hunter assigned to hunt this region," Killclaw replied. "Maybe they've seen my nephew," Shuck said. Shuck threw back his head and howled. Unless they wanted to frighten Sinners, mortals weren't able to hear the distinct howls of a Hellhound. It sounded canine, but it also had the ability to cause immense terror in any mortals who heard it as well as sounding like it echoed in an unnatural way. Shuck and the others waited for a reply. A reply howl sounded in the distance a few seconds later. It had to be the Sin Hunter for this region. The trio took off in the direction of the howl. They got to a tall hill overlooking the orchard. When they arrived, they were greeted by a Hound that Shuck recognized. "Deadeye, you sack of bones! How are ya, ya old dog?" Shuck asked. The Hellhound in question, Deadeye, was an unsightly creature to behold. He looked as if nothing but dark bare skin covered his clearly visible bones. His eyes had no eyelids and looked like giant pearls gleaming in the moonlight. His lipless mouth showed yellowed fangs with drool dripping from his jaws. He was clearly happy to see some old friends judging from the wagging of his tail. "Good to see you, you old fleabag!" Deadeye said with a raspy high-pitched voice. "What brings you here?" "My nephew Frightfang is here in the mortal world," Shuck replied. "Really? Is this his first hunt for Sinners?" Deadeye asked. "No. The Lord Hound told us that the poor thing was accidentally sent here and is now living among mortals," Killclaw replied. "That sounds depressing," Deadeye said flatly. "But that aside, he may be in great danger." "Why do you say that?" Ripper asked. "I was assigned to this region along with another Hound, but then she up and disappeared one night," Deadeye replied. "I found her scent near the town and signs of a struggle, but not her. I fear there's something out there attacking us." "What do you think happened?" Ripper asked. "Given the large amount of mortal scents I found, I think there's a group of mortals out there kidnapping our kind for malevolent purposes," Deadeye replied. "What would they be taking us for?" Shuck asked. "And how would they be able to take us so easily?" Killclaw asked. "All I know is that they're out there hunting for us," Deadeye said. "I fear for not only your safety, but dear Frightfang's as well." Shuck's fur bristled upwards from his back and neck. He pulled his lips back in a snarl and his eyes gave off an intense glow in anger. "If those mortals do anything to hurt my little nephew, I'll make 'em beg for death!" he growled. "Good. I hope you'll find him," Deadeye said. "I hope you stay safe out here, old friend," Shuck said, nuzzling his friend. Shuck and his comrades took off running away from the town. They'll head east to search more mortal towns. It would only be a matter of time before they found Frightfang. They hoped he would be alright until they got there. With Frightfang Frightfang was having a nice time walking through the streets of Ponyville. Fluttershy was walking alongside him to show him around the town. But he began to notice that some of the mortals he saw wouldn't look at him. It seemed that some of the townsfolk were afraid of him. Made sense since his species evolved to look menacing. The pair approached a flower shop run by three particular mares. These mares took one look at Frightfang, gasped, and fainted. Fluttershy rolled her eyes and approached the prone mares. "Hello, Daisy. Can you get me a few potted flowers?" Fluttershy asked. The aforementioned Daisy jumped up with a big grin on her face. "Of course I can, Fluttershy!" she said. "What are these roses for?" "I'm using them to feed my beehives. A bigger flower field means a healthier hive," Fluttershy replied. Frightfang tilted his head in confusion. The mortals were very weird with what they liked. Why did they love flowers so much? Was it their colors? They didn't look that impressive to Frightfang. "Fluttershy, why do your kind like flowers so much? Is it their color or something?" Frightfang asked. "Well, that and the fact that they smell nice. Smell them and see," Fluttershy said. The young Hellhound craned his head downward to sniff some of the flowers. They did indeed smell good, a combination of sweet and fresh. As soon as he exhaled, though, the flowers all withered and died in a matter of seconds. The flower mares all stared in shock as their entire stock died. Fluttershy draped a wind over Frightfang's back and began to gently push him backwards. "Uh... I think I'll try looking for flowers elsewhere," Fluttershy said nervously with a smile. Frightfang lowered his head and his ears in shame. He killed these mares' flowers. It was accident, but he still killed their flowers. He didn't know his breath could kill flowers. Once they were far away from the shop, Fluttershy petted Frighfang with her wing. "It's okay, Frightfang," Fluttershy cooed. "You didn't mean to do that." "Still, I feel pretty bad for doing that," Frightfang said, his ears still flat against his head. "Why don't we go over to Sweet Apple Acres?" Fluttershy suggested. "You and Winona seemed to get along when you two met." It took a while for Frightfang to reply. "Okay. I guess we can go there." ... On the Way to Sweet Apple Acres As the two made their way through the town and to the countryside on their way to Sweet Apple Acres, a puff of smokes and sparks exploded in mid-air. The smoke dissipated to reveal a bizarre creature Frightfang had never seen before. This creature was long and serpentine in appearance as well as looking like a mishmash of various animals. His head was like that of a horse with a deer antler and an ibex horn. It had a lion paw, an eagle leg, a lizard leg, a goat leg, a snake tail, and the wings of a bird and a bat. His eyes held a look of derangement. Frightfang didn't like this creature for some reason. He smiled at Fluttershy in a familiar way. "Fluttershy! How are you today?" the creature asked. "I was wondering, what flavor of tea will we be having at our next hangout day? Should we have chai or Darjeeling if we want to go exotic?" "I think any tea you chose will be fine, Discord. Would you like to join me and Frightfang today? We're heading to Sweet Apple Acres," Fluttershy replied and invited. The creature Fluttershy called "Discord" looked down and seemd to acknowledge Frightfang for the first time. His eyes grew wide at the sight of the young Hellhound. He put himself between Fluttershy and Frightfang and conjured up a suit of plate armor and a sword. He pointed the weapon directly at Frightfang, who growled in response to the blatant threat. "Fluttershy, stay behind me! There's a Hellhound next to you!" Discord said mindlessly swinging the sword. "Discord! He's not a threat! He's my new friend!" Fluttershy pleaded. Discord stopped and looked back at Fluttershy in shock. "I'm sorry, but I could've sworn you just said that this hellish beast was your new friend!" Discord said in disbelief. "That's because he is, Discord," Fluttershy said. "This is my new Hellhound friend Frightfang. Frightfang, this is my other friend Discord, the spirit of chaos." That explains why Frightfang had such a bad feeling about this creature. He had heard his parents and the other adult Hounds talk about beings like this Discord fellow. They hated them due to the sheer amount of power they possessed. Even the Lord Hound himself says he thinks spirit beings could potentially interfere with the natural flow of life and death. The Lord Hound has even expressed curiosity in taking their souls. And if the Lord Hound hated spirits, all Hellhounds hated them too. And this Discord gave the impression of having extraordinary power, and it was really pissing him off! Frightfang took a step towards the spirit and chaos and growled even louder. His eyes, red neck scruff, and heart gave off a threatening red glow and his jaws leaked drool. Curiously, Discord's face twisted into one of fear as he backed away from Frightfang. "What's wrong, Spirit of Chaos? Afraid of a little Hound?" Frightfang asked menacingly. "I won't let you hurt Fluttershy!" Discord shouted in fearful defiance. "You won't let me? Then why is your sword shaking?" Frightfang replied mockingly. Fluttershy got between them to stop a potential fight from breaking out. "Boys!! Stop!!" Fluttershy shouted, startling Discord and Frightfang. They two stared at Fluttershy until she managed to regain her composure. Once she caught her breath, she turned to Discord. "Discord, Frightfang came to our world by accident. We simply have to wait until Twilight will be able to re-open a portal to the Underworld and we can send him back to his family. But for now, he's staying with me and I want you both to get along," Fluttershy said. Both Frightfang and Discord looked at each other and both silently agreed to not fight each other. Fluttershy smiled in relief. "Now Discord, we'll have our regular tea time later. Right now, though, I'm going to spend time with Frightfang," Fluttershy said. "... Okay, Fluttershy. I'll try to be more pleasant when we meet next," Discord said before turning a wary eye to Frightfang. "I trust you'll protect Fluttershy?" "If I can strike fear into your heart, I can keep Fluttershy safe, Spirit?" Frightfang replied. "Very well. Then I guess I'll prepare for our next tea time then," Discord said before poofing away. Once Discord was gone, Fluttershy turned to Frightfang with a warm smile. "I'm sorry for Discord's um, 'hostile' introduction," Fluttershy said. "He really is quite kind once you get to know him." "For a spirit, he's a bit protective of you," Frightfang said. "Perhaps I'll take your word for it." "Why did you act so aggressive towards him?" Fluttershy asked. "Because he's a spirit, something that all Hellhounds hate," Frightfang replied. "They act like they have the power to tamper with the flow of life and death. That kind of power infuriates us." Fluttershy put a hoof to her chin in thought. "Are you saying your species is bound by the laws of life and death?" Fluttershy asked. "We act as the reapers of damned souls, the punishment for lifelong sin, and the enforcers of Death Itself," Frightfang replied. "If there exists a being that can manipulate reality, and thus interfere with our work, we take extreme issue with that. Perhaps Discord's soul will be reaped one day." "Discord can die?" Fluttershy asked worriedly. "I don't know. None of our kind have reaped a spirit's soul," Frightfang said. "But the Lord Hound has expressed interest in spirit souls." "So, it's like a 'cat-and-dog' thing you have with spirits?" "Yep. But the fact that he fears me brings me some satisfaction." Fluttershy seemed to want to change the subject, so she started to talk about something else. "How about we go to Sweet Apple Acres, now?" Fluttershy asked. "Okay. I want to play with Winona again!" Frightfang replied with a playful hop. The two then went off to Sweet Apple Acres as planned. But in the distance, Discord was watching them. He watched his best friend leave with the Hellhound. The presence of the Hound set something off in the Lord of Chaos. When he was facing Frightfang, he felt a strange sensation in his chest. He didn't like it, at all. "Is this what fear feels like?" Discord asked himself. "That's the first time I've felt fear ever." Beyond that, Discord found it very concerning that a Hellhound was living with Fluttershy. He avoided any and all contact with the creatures before, but he knew Hellhounds didn't appear in the mortal world without reason. "I'll have have to keep on eye on them until the Hound finally returns to the Underworld," Discord said.