//------------------------------// // (14) Pavlov's Legacy // Story: The Ballad of Echo the Diamond Dog // by Rust //------------------------------// CHAPTER THE FOURTEENTH PAVLOV'S LEGACY "...That is why you need to leave. Because he'll stop at nothing to make sure you don't, that you never will. Even... even if that means taking a life." Ginger's warning from before the memory spell resounded in my head like the nagging of an angry spouse. Persistent, grating, and currently not making me a sandwich. All the things I disliked about spouses. But she had good reason to warn me. After all, I had quite the foe itching for my head on a pike. Frost Snap is, in a sense, a superhero's worst nightmare. Mainly because he's not actually an evil pony. He'd been mayor for a long time, and had done a damn good job of it, apparently. He is capable - does things himself, and gets them done well. He didn't rely on inept henchman, something all cliche villains tend to do. He is respected, admired, even feared a little. He has a position of leadership, and ponies listen to him because he'd been there for them time and time again over the years. He wasn't really a villain at all. Just... warped. Warped enough to kill somepony, even if he thought he was doing the right thing. Was simply staying here endangering the town? Was I putting them all at risk of suffering from the wrong end of Frost Snap's wrath? Would he really resort to harming innocents if it meant he could get at me? I didn't know, and I surely didn't want to find out. But then again, I'm not here for him. I'm here for the hydras, the real danger. And I made a promise to help. So if Frost gets in my way... well, then I'd have every right to fight back. It's considered good manners to keep a promise, you know. --- It was hot out. So hot, if you were packing candy and stepped outside, you'd have soup in your pocket by the time your sneaker hit the pavement. I was grateful for my hood - it provided a delightfully thick shade. Without the sheltering cover of the canopy, which the ponies had cleared away to build their wall, the tropical sun struck full force, baking the ground into cracked earth where the regrowth of life had not yet reached. It was in this area, outside the relative protection of the wall, that I found myself working alongside some of the guards, sinking shafts into the ground for the magical charges that were supposed to wipe out our scaly foe. "Take a breather, mate. Gotta heave this blasted thing to the pile." Coconut heaved another large rock I'd tossed up onto an already-overstuffed cart, before hitching himself up and slowly dragging it away, the heavy wagon leaving deep ruts in the loam. I deeply exhaled, wiping some sweat from my brow and shaking myself a little to shed some of the dust and dirt that had gotten into my coat. The small pit I was in, something I'd been digging out for a while now, was gradually taking shape under my paws, more so from instinct than actual skill. The other two pits, each with three or more ponies armed with shovels and carts of their own, were significantly shallower, despite the fact that I was all alone. Each one of these holes were intended for the impromptu explosives that Sparky's team had managed to rig up. They were quite powerful, or so I'd heard, each being an incredibly dense concentration of magical spells and the like intended for the Summer Sun Festival. Tythus had been quite specific when he'd told us the depth he'd wanted them buried at. Any higher, and they actually might damage the wall itself. My head was a least a foot below ground level by now, and the hole with a diameter as wide as my armspan. Coconut and I had spent most of the morning working on it, and I was quite proud of my work. A smaller pile of rubble and debris was already perched somewhat precariously on the pit's edge, ready to be carted away once Coconut got back. Giving a satisfied nod once I determined that I was far ahead of schedule, I took this time to sink down to my stomach, relishing the sensation of the cool soil on my fur. A glance up at the pale sky revealed a solitary pegasus, nothing more than a dot, wheeling and soaring high above the world. I groaned and rolled over onto my stomach, contentedly wriggling around in the dirt, my tail beating a soft staccato on the packed floor. After about ten minutes of rest, I heard the sound of hooves on dirt, of regular, deep breathing, accompanied by the many noises a cart makes when it travels. "Oy! Get off yer lazy flank - nap time's over." Coconut's chocolate head poked out over the edge of the pit. I gave a vaguely affirmative grunt and proceeded tearing into the ground, heaving up large chucks of compacted soil and rocks. Most of the projectiles landed in the cart, but a few missed, Coconut picking up these, as well as the leftovers from the last trip. We talked as we worked, as friends tend to do. Coconut was understandably curious about me, given that I was completely different from what he'd expected a Diamond Dog to be. "So, where exactly are ya from, again?" he said as he heaved another rock away from the pit's edge. "Far away. Very, very far away." I had decided not to use the whole 'amenisia' shtick I'd read about in situations like these. Instead, I gave vague answers; telling the truth, but not all of it. As far as I could tell, it was a good method, and had thus far served me well. After all, it's one thing to be a foreigner from a distant land, and another thing entirely to be an alien from another world. "Like, how far away? Where exactly is that, mate?" I paused from excavating rather large boulder. Where exactly was Earth from here? Was I in a new dimension, or simply at another point in the universe? I took a sophisticated guess, and chose the latter. Hell, life was entirely possible somewhere in the cosmos, and it was even more possible that this is what it would be like. Unlikely, yes. Impossible? No. "See the sun?" I pointed a finger at the glowing ball of heat hanging midway up the eastern sky. "Yup?" "Past it." He scratched his head, frowning in thought for a few moments. "So... east?" I shrugged. "... Pretty much." "What's it like there?" That one made me pause for a bit. How could one ever summarize Earth, with all of humanity included? We are an indescribable kind, humanity. Full of different people, faces, and ideas. It's very hard to generalize us, becasue there are always outsiders to any specific group you try to put us into. Plus, we're violent, somewhat sadistic, corrupt, and often times completely idiotic. We have the power to destroy our planet in a single blast, but instead are slowly chipping away at its ecosystem, bit by bit. But humanity has some good qualities, too. We're curious. We actively seek that which we do not know. We're ingenious when it comes to technology. We make fantastical art of every kind. We're incredible engineers, even more impressive is the fact that some of the architectural feats of Earth rival anything I've seen in Equestria, and they were constructed without the use of magic. Plus, we invented the internet. That's gotta count for something, right? It took me a few more seconds to think of a response, but then it hit me like the time a midget popped out of the ball pit at Chuck E. Cheese's to punch me in the nuts - I totally deserved it, by the way (I'd thrown him in there in the first place, but we were cool after he delivered a Falcon Punch to my babymakers). If you're wondering how that's even remotely possible, I have two words for you. Vegas. Weddings. "Take the best dream you ever had, and mix it with your worst nightmare. That's what it's like where I'm from." Coconut looked taken aback. "That sounds pretty wild, mate." "You've got no idea." I remembered a night of complete debauchery, somehow ending up butt-naked, slathering a bacon-cheeseburger across my chest in a public restaurant with a police officer giving me the evil eye... yeah. That actually happened. Again, Vegas. Some guys just can't handle it. Like me. We stated talking about nothing in particular, and kept at it for another thirty minutes or so as we worked. Eventually, the conversation shifted to cutie marks, something I was eager to learn about. "Do Diamond Dogs have emblems?" "Emblems? You mean cutie marks?" He snorted with laughter, and wheezed a little as he caught another large rock on his back. "Hay, Echo. Cutie marks are fer mares. I'm a stallion! Hoo-ah!" The large earth pony flung the rock off with a mighty heave, and struck what I assumed to be the Equestrian version of the Captain Morgan Pose. A swooshy background wouldn't have looked out of place, here. I rewarded his efforts with a shower of dirt. "Ach! Ptah! Knock that off!" he grumbled, brushing some soil from his short, yellow mane. "Ya got one or not?" I craned my neck to look at my rear. Nope! Just two cheeks and a tail. I parted some of the fur on my haunches to make sure a mark wasn't covered up on my skin, but no such luck. I shook my head, somewhat disappointed. "Sorry. I'd think if I had a picture of something on my bum, that would have been obvious. After all, I'm not wearing any pants." I turned to one side and slapped my ass. "I'm really loving the breeze, by the way!" He roared with laughter. "Ha-har! Who wears pants? Pants are fer squares!" "Agreed. So, on the subject of 'emblems', how did you get yours?" Coconut pointed to his mark: a whisk, a spatula, and a smiling face, arraigned like a skull-and-crossbones. "This ole' thing? Well, I got it when I was still a liddle colt. Me mum and pop, see, they weren't exactly gettin' along well at th' time. Had a big fight or somethin' recently - can't remember exactly; it's been a long time - and I got it into me head that if I could cheer them up, everythin' would be right 'n' dandy. So, I tries gettin' them together to talk it out. That don't work, 'o course. Then I tried doin' the housework for 'em; ya know, the cleanin' the chores, etcetera. Hay, that only gave 'em more time to keep arguin' and bickerin'." I hauled up another load to the edge of the pit, solemnly crossing my arms. "I know what that's like. My own folks split up a long time ago." Coconut bucked a circular boulder over to the cart. "Anyway, I was gettin' pretty desperate by now. So I go stop by that place in town; the tavern, ya know what I'm talkin' about?" At my nod, he continued. "I knew the old cook at that place, we had a thing goin' where I'd drop by and he'd tell me stories about the places he'd been and the ponies he'd served. Used to be a chef at Canterlot, apparently. Made food for the Princess herself!" He shook his head, as if still not able to believe it. "When I told him about th' trouble goin' on at home, he pulls me close and he says; 'There's nothing better than a good, hot meal to bring ponies together and forget their troubles.' "So, I asked him to teach me how ta cook, and when I had enough skill to make somethin', I decided that I'd make me parents some chow. Oh, and did they love it, mate! Ya shoulda seen the looks on their faces! They completely forgot what they were arguin' about in the first place. And that's when this thing popped up on me arse, right as you please." He proudly pointed to his mark. "And ever since then, I've been doin' what I love; makin' good grub and bringin' ponies closer together." "That's a good story." "Yeah, mate. And I'm gonna be givin' it a better endin', too." I cocked an eyebrow. "Oh?" "I'm gonna see the world, once this is all over. Travel here and there, learn new ways of cookin', new recipes... and one day, when I've learned all there is and become a master chef like the old cook, I'm gonna go to Canterlot and give the Princesses the meal of their lives." That gave me an idea. An idea that was crazy, admittedly. But so crazy, it just might work... "Coconut, why don't we travel together?" "Eh?" he said, as he spat out a smaller rock onto the pile in the cart, which was once more creaking and groaning under the weight of its burden. "See, I'm doing something similar. I want to travel all across Equestria and learn as much as I can about this place - it's a lot different from where I'm from. But instead of just fine cuisine, I want to learn everything, go everywhere. See the world. Once I'm done here, of course." He looked at me weirdly then, as if to make sure I was real and not a figment of his imagination. "Mate, you've got to be the strangest Diamond Dog I've ever met." I snorted with amusement. "I've heard that before." "But I like the sound of that. And I'm gonna need somepony to try out a new recipe once I've learnt it... all right. I'm in." I offered up my paw from where I stood in the pit, which he met with a hoof. We shook. "Right. This pit's just about done. Let's head back to the barracks now, yeah?" Coconut nodded and hitched himself up to the cart, while I tensed by powerful hind legs and leaped straight up out of the pit. I joined him at his side, and we set off for the debris pile. There were two piles, actually - small hills, to be honest - forming a sort of earthen ramparts in the ground at two specific points along the walls. This was the area the hydras would be led to, and pinned against the wooden wall, while ground troops, led by Tythus and the commanding officer from the reinforcements, would stand atop the smaller dirt walls to keep the hydras from running off to the sides. The entire trap was shaped like a bucket, if viewed from above, the wooden wall making up the bottom and the dirt walls being the sides. The explosives were to be placed inside the bucket, towards the top. The dirt walls themselves were about two stories high, most of the material being dug out by other work crews in different areas and carted here. Coconut tipped the cart up where a forepony directed him to, dumping the heavy load in a shower of rocks and soil. A lot of the ponies working on this weren't actually guards, but they were capable nonetheless and had offered to help. A good thing, too - the thirty-something or so guards simply didn't have enough numbers to do all of this fast enough. As we passed under the gates, I couldn't help but glance up at the solitary figure still standing in vigil atop the tower. Ginger Snap's signature scowl was visible even from the ground. I waved good-naturedly at her. Surprisingly, the mare waved back, although only once, her scowl deepening. Sour-puss. "Might want to hurry up, mate," said Coconut, who pulled ahead once we were behind the walls. "I think Tythus is having us fitted today for the battle." I nodded earnestly as I padded alongside him. This could be a good chance to repair my busted gear. --- Whoosh! Clang! "No." "No?" Whoosh! Clang! "No." The smith paused from his work, setting his trusty hammer down against the anvil and wiping a stream of sweat from his forehead. On the anvil itself, a molten hunk of iron was slowly taking shape into one form or another under the watchful eye and steady strikes of its operator. The smith snorted, and spat to the side, before taking the hammer back with one hoof and resting it over his powerful shoulders. "Can't do it. Much as I'd like to - Celestia knows you're going to need one - it's the law. Now get back. I've never made anything for a D-Dog before, so this is going to get messy." The only smith in Wethoof, a stalwart earth pony called Bellows, turned back to the anvil and whipped the hammer down with a tremendous force, sending up a shower of sparks and heat as the molten ingot warped and twisted under the blow. Clang! I sighed, and plopped myself down on a nearby bench next to Coconut, who was standing nearby, trying to get used to the weight of his new suit of rudimentary armor and a long, wooden spear kept in the crook of his foreleg. Bellows was not a member of the town guard. If he was, then this wouldn't be such a problem. Tythus had sent us here to be properly equipped for some protection and a weapon each. Coconut had gotten his almost immediately - the smith had a small stockpile already made and ready to go. But for me? I had to get my things made fresh out of the forge. Clang! Well. Most of my things, anyway. The smith absolutely refused to make me a weapon of any kind. Apparently, a new law had been enacted almost overnight that made it illegal to sell or give arms to any non-pony inhabitant in Wethoof. Namely, me. I had to hand it to Frost Snap, he worked fast. The law applied to the citizens, not the guard, which was why the smith had to abide. While he couldn't give me a weapon, he could still make me some protection. For that much, I was grateful. Besides, I was more than capable of making my own weapons. Humans have a natural talent for turning the most basic of instruments into tools of death. After all, words might not be able to do much damage, but sticks and stones can definitely break bones. Clang! Or worse. A few hours later... Bellows had finished his work. He showed me each piece of armor, and instructed me in it's proper maintenance, before showing me how to strap it on. A chain-mail shirt now covered my chest and the upper parts of my arms, and covered my head in a metal coif, as well. There was one pauldron over my right shoulder, and a wide band of metal across my left bicep. Large, overlapping segments covered my spine in a manner similar to a dragon's scales. Thick, heavy bracers were now strapped to my forearms, attached to a sort of finger-less glove with plating for the back of my paws and the knuckles. There were two thigh-plates on my legs, and metal wrappings for my lower shins, with extensions to cover the top of my lower paws. A three-point harness, connected a the waist be a new belt and wrapped under the shoulder plate, held it all together. Bellows had even cut holes in the coif for my ears to poke through. In short, I looked like a complete and utter bad-ass. But something was missing... "Is there anything I can wear over this? I'm used to having a shirt or something." My ragged, stained sweatshirt had actually fallen apart while I waited for the armor. "Give me a second." The smith retreated from the forge into a nearby closet and came back with a large sheet of tough, green cloth that he wrapped around my shoulders into a hooded toga. I made the obligatory cuts in the hood for my ears, and stepped back to admire myself. "What is this?" I asked him, intruiged by the garment, feeling it between . "Spidersilk tablecloth. The wife doesn't like it, doesn't go with the dishes or something ridiculous like that. So it's been out here for a while now." He snorted and shook his head. "Mares." "Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em." Coconut quipped from where he'd been standing by the door. A tablecloth? Well, if it works, it works. I was more than grateful for all the help, and both myself and Coconut thanked Bellows profusely before leaving. In short, I looked like a complete and utter bad-ass. But still, I couldn't help but feel a little strange under all the gear. It was heavy and uncomfortable, yes, but it was that armor only serves one purpose, and that is to prevent the wearer from being killed or injured. The fact that I was wearing it in Equestria, of all places, reminded me of how little I knew of this world. --- We were halfway back to the barracks when a loud, screeching, horn-like blast shook the air for several seconds. It reminded me faintly of an air-raid siren, and it seemed to have an effect on the town in the way that one actually would. Ponies quickly dropped what they were doing, and the tension became thick. "Look! To the north!" one called. There, as if shot from a flare gun, a long, thin trail of smoke arced high over the watchtower, ending in a brightly pulsing orb of light. The wailing blast was repeated twice more, in three rapid bursts of noise each. I turned to Coconut, who looked deathly afraid. "What's going on?" The earthpony rolled his shoulders nervously, before galloping away to the wall. "We need to get to the wall, mate! It's Big Momma!" Big Momma? I tore after him, somewhat awkwardly due to the armor. We sped through the town as fast as we could, dodging ponies who were running around in one direction or another to seek shelter in nearby buildings. My paws thudded against the decking in a frenzied rhythm as I managed to keep pace with the smaller pony. Where he was able to weave through the crowd, more often than not I had to leap clear over groups of ponies, though fruitstands, and in the case of the bridges that joined together the wooden platforms, now acting like narrow choke-points, I chose instead to simply to vault across the gaps, my toga flapping wildly behind me. Despite the panic and the confusion, we managed to reach the northern section of the wall. After ascending the staircase hammered into the inside curve, we came to a screeching halt next to the guard tower, where we found Captain Tythus and a group of guards at the edge, looking out. "Ginger, give us a distance!" roared the captain. Ginger's voice called down from the tower, now shrill with fear. "One and a half kilometers, sir! She's going to spot the work crews soon!" I frowned and joined them at the edge, squinting hard to try and pick out what all the commotion was about. There, in the shimmering heat of the noonday sun, I made out movement. "Coconut..." The earth pony was at my side, nervously biting his lip. "Why are those trees moving..." "Those aren't trees, mate. That's Big Momma." His eyes, shrunk down, never left the horizon. "...Hydra?" "The hydra. Matriarch." FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU- "Cloud Nine!" The captain barked. "Take all the pegasi here and begin air-lifting the ponies outside back into the walls. I don't care if you have to carry two at a time, just get it done! Get help from the town if you have to. We've got over fifty souls out there, and I'm not about to let them become lunch for that overgrown lizard." "Baritone! Gather a crew together and be ready to close the gates on my mark. Ginger!" he called up to the tower. A cinnamon head, capped by a fiery red mane, poked out over the edge. "Y-yes, sir?" "Your time to shine, so suit up! You know what to do. Seven kilometer minimum, leave her with something that'll burn long enough this time, do you understand me?" At her weak salute, Tythus turned, eyes scouring the assembled ponies before setting on me. "You're outfitted. Good. You'll be going with Ginger Snap. She'll explain when she's down here." With that, he turned and began hurriedly exchanging a rapid discussion with Sparky, who had just arrived at the scene, the twitchy unicorn mare panting heavily from the run from the barracks. Well, shit. I plunked myself down on the ramparts and quickly looked over my armor, making sure everything was tight and snug. I began one of my oldest habits, that of a round of joint cracking. It helped me relax in the face of severe stress, I usually got some kind of sick satisfaction from how it annoyed anyone nearby. I started with my knuckles first, followed by my wrists, then elbows, working my way up to my shoulders and spine, before finally wrenching my head to one side, sighing as my neck cracked like bubble wrap. It sounded more like the drumroll at a hanging. Meanwhile... "What the hay is that?" Daring nervously asked as she peered out the window of the room she had booked in the inn. Disarray, who was busy examining a chessboard on the other side of a table, frowned and moved his black queen forward into the open. "Signal flare," the draconequus moodily replied, before giving a thoughtful snort, small burst of smoke shooting from his dragon nostrils. "For the hydras. And judging by the size of it, they've spotted a big one. Our furry friend may have to be called in to lure it away." Daring swallowed, eyes narrowing in determination. "We've got to help him! Nopony should have to face a hydra alone." "Oh, goody! I've always wanted to be turned into a steaming pile of hydra dung," Disarray replied flatly. A single glare from the pegasus silenced him, however. He sighed, "But as it's not like I've anything else to do..." He suddenly snapped his fingers, and a backpack like object appeared over his shoulders. "Daring, grab my tail!" The explorer hesitated for a moment, before chomping down on the thick, kangaroo tail. Disarray slammed a big red button on his chest, and the backpack sprang open to reveal two flat purple wings made of metal, lights blinking softly on the tip. A high-pitched whine began screaming out of the bottom, accompanied by a small stream of blue fire. Daring was about to say something when he struck a heroic pose, one bear fist clenched to the sky. "To Infinity, and Beyond!" With a mechanical roar, Daring was ripped from the ground, suddenly rocketing away at a speed she'd never been able to achieve before, crashing through the roof and punching through several clouds. She debated screaming in terror, but that would mean letting go. To hay with that, she wanted to live. The draconequus smiled as he leveled out his standard-issue Star Command booster pack, adjusting a pair of goggles that had magically appeared over his face as the pair screamed across the sky. And so it begins... he thought to himself.