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// Chapter 10 - Doolit's Den 
// Story: For the New Lunar Republic 
// by Moxypony 
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	The streets were getting darker. Moxi eyed their surroundings as Chaser led them deeper and deeper into the city’s twisting maze of alleyways and she noticed that while it was happening slowly, their surroundings were getting darker, as if the sun was setting.
“Ya noticin’ sumfin,” came the twisted voice of the black unicorn from beside her ear, moments before her head reappeared, hovering along as they walked, “ain’tcha, girlie?”
Moxi eyed the unicorn warily, her eyes held a visible gleam of madness, at least when they were visible. The dark unicorn disappeared into nothingness too frequently for Moxi to be properly comfortable around her. “It looks like the sun is setting,” Moxi spoke, defiantly keeping her voice firm and strong, “but-“
“But we all know that can’t be the case,” Chaser spoke, without turning to face them, “don’t we, love?”
“Too right,” the unicorn spoke up, her face once more fading into invisibility, “I don’t fink Luna’s evah gonna waste her precious time comin’ to this lil’ rathole of ours. Don’t you lads go finkin’ da cavalry’s arrived, you all’s on your own for the time bein’.”
Chaser approached a doorway set into the wall of an old brick building, turning around and kicking it twice with his hind leg causing a burly earth pony on the other side to open it for him. He faced Catcher and Moxi with a dark smirk saying, “Now lass and laddy, welcome to my humble lil’ abode, here’s where we’s gonna discuss your business prospects in our fine city.”

A den of ill-repute, or at least that’s how the aristocrats would label Chaser’s establishment, but even they would have to have marveled at its sheer scope. After descending a flight of stairs just inside the alley doorway, they’d arrived in the foyer of what appeared to be a rather large casino. The floor beneath them was glass and revealed a second floor of the operation below them. Waitress wearing seductive makeup and suggestive expressions moved from table to table, doling out refreshments to the ponies at the tables, eating or playing card games, as well as a number of lounge areas where there hung clouds of smoke far more pungent than that of tobacco.
“Now this,” Moxi muttered to Dreamcatcher, “is a bit closer to what I’d expect from a city.” 
“For that, m’dear,” Chaser exclaimed, shooting Moxi a toothy smile, “y’can ‘ave a drink on the ‘ouse.” 
“I never said it was a compliment, Chaser.” Moxi shot back, narrowing her eyes at the crime lord, but her hard expression was tinged with a pleasant quiver up her spine as a passing waitress brushed Moxi with her tail, the hairs maintaining contact a little too long for it to have been completely unintentional. Moxi turned back to eye the waitress’ departing flank, catching a glance and a wink from the attractive earth pony as she did. Moxi forced her expression forward, blushing but focusing with all her might on Chillwind. 
Chaser watched the exchange with a dubious look on his face. “I din’ say you’d wanna take the drink either,” he chuckled, “there’s only two types o’ ponies what drink fer free in my establishment. Those what leave and those what don’t.” He eyed her darkly, “Now which, I s’pose is you, love?”
Moxi swallowed hard, but tried to keep a calm face. She knew full well that by this point there was no turning back, they were in too deep. If Chaser decided to kill them, there was little Moxi or Catcher could do to stop him. She felt Dreamcatcher press up lightly against her side, a subtle but unmistakable sign of solidarity, a reminder that she was not in this alone. The simple act did more than it should have to comfort her as they followed Chaser into his office.

The heavy wooden desk sitting in a dimly lit room was nearly as large as the map table back in Luna’s war room. Chaser sat behind it, resting his head on his hooves and leering at the pair. “Why don’ you folks ’ave a seat,” he said, gesturing to a pair of chairs opposite him, “how ‘bout that drink now, love? Any preferenciations?” 
“Something non-toxic would be preferable,” Moxi remarked, sitting down in one of the chairs Chaser had indicated, and noticing as she did faint dark stains. 
“You’re gonna have to answer my question ‘fore I can make any recomendations on that front, lass,” 
“And what question would that be,” Dreamcatcher retorted, eyeing the crimelord with visible distaste.
Doolit leaned over the table to glare into their eyes, his wide grin not touching his eyes, “Told you, lad. There’s only two types what drink fer free in my establishment, you fillies is definitely one of ‘em, but you ain’t answered as to which.”
“Given the choice,” Moxi spoke up, “I’d go with the latter.”
“Oooh, but she is a quick one, ain’t she boss!” The black unicorn had reappeared once more, lounging across the table and grinning her jagged grin at the pair.
“She’s a cocky one’s what she is,” Chaser shot back, glaring at Moxi, “you any doubt at all in that pretty little head that I could kill you where you sit, lassie?”
“Obviously not,” she remarked, keeping her voice calm and praying that nopony could hear her heart pounding like a bass drum in her chest, “you’ve gone out of your way to implant a fear in us.”
“Have I?” Chaser laughed, “How you figure that, lass?”
“Your ‘establishment,’ as you so call it, is spotless, so I find it hard to believe that the only place you’d have neglected that overzealous hygiene would be on the bloodstains in your own office. You kept them to show us that you have killed in here before and to express your willingness to do so again. And don’t think for a minute that I believe you just coincidentally found us right at the moment when we were at our most vulnerable, you were tailing us, which means you know who we are and you know why we’re here, you’ve already decided what you’re going to do with us.
“An’ what makes you fink I know that?”
“Because you’ve been distinctly looking everyone about us but at my back,” she remarked, seeing his eyes widen slightly she knew she’d read him right and pressed him on it, “you’re overcompensating for something, aren’t you, Doolit?”
There was a long moment where no one said anything, Dreamcatcher’s eyes darted between Chaser and Moxi, lingering occasionally on the unicorn. Chaser had put up his poker face, but it was too late, Moxi knew she’d read him right, but after nearly a minute of silence, she decided it had to be her who broke the tension, “So how long have you been loyal to the princess of the night, Doolit?”
Chaser scowled and for a moment Moxi thought she’d made a grievous miscalculation, but then the earth pony burst out laughing. “I can see why Luna chose you,” he said through gasping breaths between laughs, “I see you’s the brains o’ the outfit, makes you brawny, eh Catch?” 
Dreamcatcher snarled, but Chaser raised a placating hoof. “Only foolin’ wif you, lad,” he chuckled, “Luna don’t choose ‘er Black Ops teams haphazard-like. I’m sure you got more goin’ fo’ you than that pretty little knife on your neck there.” He turned back to Moxi, his expression more serious, “as for ‘ow long, love, there weren’t ever a time when we wasn’t loyal to Luna. Though I don’t fink she’s too fond of how we go about business. To be frank, though, I don’t fink it really matters long as we get results. My network’s got money, muscle and information, all three of which I’m willing to lend to Luna’s war machine at any time she asks, and while we ain’t had much call fo’ that, I’m gonna take you two fallin’ in our laps as a sign the time’s come to pass on what we know, but we could take up days of your time wif that, and I take it you’s in a hurry, ain’t ya?”
“Very much so,” Dreamcatcher murmured.
“There is supposed to be a research lab here, the experiments were recently moved here from Fillydelphia,” Moxi told Doolit, “do you have any leads on anything like that?”
“Lass,” Doolit smirked at her from across the table, “I fink you’s forgot what I told you earlier, so I’m gonna remind you one last time…” He planted his hooves firmly on the table and shot Moxi a glaring smirk, “I. RUN. THIS. CITY.”