//------------------------------//
// Ch.4 The outside world 
// Story: The Epic of a Diamond Dog 
// by Ravencrofte 
//------------------------------//

Ch.4 The Outside World

Both dogs whirled around as we came charging out of the underbrush. The one with the spear leapt into a good fighting stance and leveled his weapon at us, guarding his companion who attempted to escape with the stolen prize. The spear wielder tried to block me, but I simply ran around him. Rob and Spoke could contend with him. The dog with the goat was mine!
I unlatched my spear. Stopping momentarily to aim, I threw it, hard. The Diamond Dog raised the goat as a shield, and the spear embedded itself in the body. Growling, I drew my sword and lunged. He dropped the goat and drew a long dagger. The ring of metal on metal sang through the air as he parried the thrust. Then he attacked and I parried.
We traded blows. He fought aggressively, but from the start it was apparent that I was winning. My sword had twice the size of his dagger, and my reach was much longer. Whenever he parried my sword, I swung at him with my other paw. He would dodge and duck away, and then bring his dagger up in time to block my sword. I pressed him, driving him backwards. 
As we crossed blades I really saw my opponent for the first time: he was Pittbullton, shorter and skinnier than I, with a grey coat. The skin around his eyes and cheek were a little too tight. I could see his eyes flash with every strike of his blade. He wanted to kill me. He wanted to win. Too bad!
I brought my sword down in a heavy chop. He raised his dagger to parry. The weaker metal of his dagger could no longer stand the abuse and shattered just above the hilt.
We both looked at the broken shards lying on the ground. I grinned at him.
“Run,” I said. 
He stared at me, trembling. He took a step back but then changed his mind; instead he dove for the segments of his broken dagger. I drove him away with a sharp kick.
“Mine,” I said, and this time I emphasized my point with that of the sword. He glanced once more at the metal and then turned and fled. I saw Spoke and Rod’s victim, now spear-less, chase after his friend, sporting several long cuts across his flank. 
Bending down, I collected the broken bits and placed them carefully in my pouch.
Rod and Spoke joined me. 
“We showed them, that’s for sure”, said Spoke.
Rod gazed after the fleeing intruders. “They’ll be back,” he said.
“Eventually,” I replied as I went to retrieve my spear. I had to place a foot on the goat and wiggle it around before a hard yank set it free; it had nearly gone all the way through.
I groaned when I saw the sun. “Let’s load up this goat and get back to the village.” I would prefer not to be late for dinner.
The trip back was uneventful. We traded carrying the goat and the captured spear. It made running awkward. We spotted the village just as dusk was beginning to settle. It was completely dark by the time we made it to the western gate. The sentries actually growled as we approached but let us through once they saw who it was beneath the helmets.
Most of the village had already eaten. Even the servants had sat down. I frowned when I didn’t see Kitty Hawk amongst them.
I made straight for my father. He was talking with the elders but fell silent when we neared. So did the rest of the clan.
I groveled before him. “Chief, apologies for being late; we have successfully defended the clan’s land from thieves.” Hastily I laid out our offering from the day and a brief report.
My father stepped closer. He carefully looked over each of us, and then examined the broken knife and the spear. I thought I spotted a small grin spread across his muzzle, but it was gone the next instant.
“You have done well. Take the goat to the kitchens. You three may sit in the place of honor tonight. Dirt Claw!” The last part was directed at another dog. “See to it that we keep a pack of scouts along the border, night and day. Any strange dog that enters our lands will leave with only his spirit.”
The dog in question leapt to his feet and disappeared into the night.
We sat to the left of the elders, facing the clan. Kitty Hawk appeared and handed us our dishes.
“Where were you?” I asked, accepting my dishes.
“With Elder Rose. She’s been really nice to me.”
I noticed she had a strange double-sided pack on her back.
“What’s that?” I asked, pointing to her pack.
“It’s a saddle pack. Elder Rose saw how much trouble I was having carrying things, so she asked me how we do it back home. I told her about saddle packs. She had one brought to me. I think this one belonged to a mare named North Star.”
Indeed, the “saddle pack” was several sizes too large, so big in fact that it almost dragged on the ground.
Another servant appeared with the food. It was substantially better fare than last night. I gobbled it down greedily. Kitty Hawk disappeared with the other slave.
I was busy munching on a greasy bird leg when Elder Rose sat down beside me. I set my food down and washed my paws as best as I could.
“How was Kitty Hawk’s first day?” I asked.
“She’s a good worker, but she has her moments. I asked her to bring me a chicken; when she saw me kill it she burst into tears. She has absolutely refused to help with the food, but she’s eager to do everything else. Many clansmen don’t like her, but as long as I’m around they won’t try anything.”
Elder Rose produced a wine skin and took a long draught before offering it to me. I took a sip of the sweet liquor, feeling its warmth spread to my limbs.
Elder Rose continued, “I would hate to see a life of slavery crush such a young, independent spirit.” On a darker note, she said, “Your father will insist on having her wings clipped.”
I avoided looking at Elder Rose. She was right, of course. Kitty Hawk was never meant to be here, slaving for Diamond Dogs. Once she couldn’t fly, there would be little hope of getting her back to her own kind.
How would I keep the oath I’d sworn to her only yesterday?
I took another sip of the wine and handed it back. “He can insist all he likes, but she’s my property.”
Elder Rose leaned in closer so as to not be overheard. “Do you plan on releasing her?”
I hadn’t really thought about it, but then again I’d known the answer all along. 
“Yes,” I said, but then added, “I swore on my ancestors that she would see her parents again. Once her wing is healed, I’ll set her free.” Elder Rose raised an eyebrow but made no comment.
The voices around us descended into a meaningless babble, and I felt like a solitary island in the middle of the river Yark. Elder Rose turned away from me to look at the stars, occasionally sipping from the wine skin.
Why wouldn’t she talk to me? Did I do something wrong? Did I somehow embarrass the clan? What if my father found out what I was really up to? Would he take Kitty Hawk away?
I began to squirm in my seat.
No, I couldn’t run around, chasing my own tail about what the clan thought or what if’s. This was my choice, my decision. Not to follow through now would prove my incompetence as a leader.
Elder Rose finished off the wine. When she spoke again, she did so slowly. “You have my support in this. The clan won’t like it, but I gave up long ago on what they think of me. You, on the other hand, have a tremendous amount to loose. They will see you as weak. If you ever want to be chief, you will have to fight twice as hard.”
With those words she stood up and left. I looked at my food but suddenly I didn’t feel very hungry. I excused myself and returned back to my hut. There was light coming from inside. I rolled back the door flap to find Kitty Hawk on the floor, reading one of my books by candlelight. I plopped onto my bed.
“Did you find a book you like?”
“Ember,” she said, looking up at me, “these books are all wrong.”
I glanced at what she was reading: History of the Empire.
“How so?” I wasn’t that interest in arguing the finer points of Diamond Dog history. Sure, they might have gotten a few things wrong, like ponies eating meat. Right now though, I needed to think about my future and how I was going to keep my oath to Kitty Hawk.
“It says here that this Emperor Uni raises the sun and the moon, but only Princess Celestia can raise the sun, while Princess Luna raises the moon.”
I stared at her. What she was suggesting was traitorous, that our emperor didn’t have control over the powers of this world. Not having control of the two greatest objects would completely undermine his authority.
I prepared a sharp reprimand, but held my tongue. She was only a kid. They were so easily influenced, especially by ignorant parents.
The books had already been wrong about ponies eating meat, I wonder what else they had messed up on?
“Do have any proof? Have you seen this Princess Celestia raise the sun?”
“Yes,” she answered, so fast that she caught me off guard. “I’ve seen her do it every day, but it’s really awesome at the Summer Sun Celebration.” She then launched into a detailed recollection of the event, about its history and meaning, and finally ended with Princess Celestia flying into the sky and using her magic to bring the sun up behind her. “It was the most amazing thing I’d ever seen,” she concluded.
I stared at her dumbfounded. “So you’re saying that in your country, Equestria, everyone has seen these two raise the sun and the moon? And that this Princess Luna was the Pony in the Moon, because she turned evil, and was banished by her sister?”
Kitty Hawk thought about it for a second. “Well no, probably not everypony. I live in Canterlot, so I get to see them do it all the time. Princess Luna was evil, but now she’s good. I met her at the Nightmare Night Festival. She was so pretty.”
I could only stare helplessly at Kitty Hawk. She had on the biggest smile I had ever seen. The confidence of how she spoke and the level of her enthusiasm left little doubt in my mind. She really did believe everything she had just said.
“Kitty Hawk,” I said, “I need you to promise not to tell this to any Diamond Dog, ever. They will get really angry at you, and they might hurt you. Do you promise?”
She looked puzzled at my words but promised.
“Good.” I smiled at her. “Time for bed,” I said, and I blew out the candle.
I curled up on my mattress, forcing myself to relax. My body complied easily enough, but my mind refused to give in. Instead it ran wild: going through Kitty Hawk’s words, seeking for possible explanations, recalling paragraphs from my books. There was no possible way Princess Celestia could raise the sun, or that Princess Luna had been the pony on the moon; there was no way any of that could be true. Could it?
I would just have to go to Equestria and find out for myself. 


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