There are three tests. Three, simple tests in any guild I run, to determine where you rank.
The first test is, of course, getting my interest. It's not easy, I've lived for a while, and I have remarkably high standards. Those that pass that test and accept my offer become apprentices.
The next test is the one apprentices take every time I train them. They have to spar with me for five minutes and not get hit. Once they've shown they understand that the first step to dominating combat is to read their foes and be exactly where the blow won't be, they pass and become full-fledged members.
The final test is the one that only so many members can claim to have passed. When they desire it, we spar again, and this time, the time limit is, again, five minutes. They have that long to land a single blow on me, and of course I'm fighting back as well. They that pass are dubbed Masters of the craft.
I've gotten lucky in my last few attempts in running a guild, I found quite a few worthy of the title of Master. The training facilities are also easy enough to understand. Doors with incremental lock difficulties, safes from every major manufacturer, ponyquines with saddlebags and fancy get up...laced in tiny, tiny bells. So much as one goes off, you've failed to pick that pocket.
Digging out a basement is gonna take a while, as is rigging up target practice and a dexterity course. Along with a couple of abject lessons in 'if it looks too good to be true...'
Gilda was doing well at the training. For an apprentice, anyways. She'd managed to make it so I only hit her five times in our latest session today. Better than yesterday's low of ten.
"How are you...so good at this?"
I smiled and tapped my head. "Killer instinct. My kind took kill-or-be-killed to an artform. Several, actually."
She glared at me a bit. "Is that what you're teaching me? What you've taught all the others?"
I shook my head. "Goodness, no. I'm teaching you to try and read your opponent. Try to see where the blows are coming from, and then be where they aren't. Barely dodging the blow is seen as foolhardy by some, but you would not believe the amount of startled looks I get when I do it myself. It's almost like the ponies don't believe anyone could dodge so easily."
In the immortal words of Piccolo: DODGE! That is the first lesson. If you can dodge, you won't be hit. If you're not hit, they will be. Gilda seemed to get it a bit and got up again, breathing deeply. She closed her eyes, focusing on the rhythm of her breathing, before snapping them open and nodding at me once, sharply.
And then the combat was on again, and I have to say...
It was amazing. She dodged and flowed around near every blow I threw at her. I would aim a punch at her wing, it would dip just enough that I could see the feathers ruffle. A kick aimed at her talons ended up in her leaning away just the right amount. It was like I was water, and she was oil. We flowed around each other in a dance of limbs, wind, and fury.
And then, just as I finished counting five minutes, her wing didn't quite dip far enough, and I landed a hit. A feather came off with it, and she squawked at me. I twirled it in my fingers and sighed. "So close. Not bad, for someone I've only begun to train."
She ruffled her wings, trying to get the sensation of having a feather plucked worked out most likely. "Yeah, just messed up on that last one. If I wasn't so tired, I'd have made it."
I nodded and let the feather fall to the ground. "Most likely. Want another, or are you done for the day?"
She shook her head. "Nah, I think I'll go try the doors and the pick-pocketing tests."
As she turned around, I felt the sudden urge to ask, and gave in to it. "By the way, who trained you?"
She halted for a moment, then turned a baleful eye back at me. "What?"
I shrugged. "I can recognize when someone's had training, from martial artists, to self-taught, to military. You had all the markings of someone who was trained to do combat a certain way, and only when I told you what I was aiming for did you let go. Who trained you, and in what?"
She sighed. "I told you that griffon culture values military exploits, right? There's a branch of our military that's dedicated to trying to bring up a crop of griffons that can do even half of what you're said to have done. My dad...he's pretty involved in that, and that's all I'm saying."
I nodded, piecing the story together. "I think I can guess from there, thanks, though if you ever want to talk about it, my door's always open...or will be, when you pass your training."
She smirked at that. "Eh, no real reason to hurry just yet. But I might take you up on that offer one day."
All in all, a nice day.
And that was when the damn Diamond Dogs showed up. I swear I felt my eyes go black as the three mounds of earth were pushed up from below. Three scruffy-looking dogs popped out of the holes, and I glared at them. They went from full of indignant anger to pants-pissingly terrified in seconds, and I would be lying if I didn't get a thrill from that.
"You have to the count of three to explain why you're here."
The smallest one squeaked then, after which he cleared his throat and spoke up. "We were just coming up to complain about noise..."
I blinked at that. "Really?"
They all nodded, and the thinnest, tallest one spoke up next. "Us Dogs can feel vibrations in earth. All your running around is like if you went in pony town and started screaming 'look at me.'"
I blinked again and started laughing at that. "Well, that's interesting. Learn something new every day."
I made a shooing motion with my right hand. "I'm just training my next apprentice. Go on, off with you."
They looked from me to each other, then back to me. "You...not going to harm us?" Middle asked, beefy as all get-out.
I shook my head. "Nope. You know who I am, and I have no problem with you...yet. Keep it up, though..."
They gulped at that and the small one called for a huddle. After a moment passed, they broke it up and the small one came forward. "You were training your next minion?"
I blinked and waved a hand around. "Minion's a little harsh. They've always been free to do as they will, even leave. I make suggestions and requests, and provide training and facilities. The fact that they stick it out with me is just a happy coincidence."
The other two dogs tilt their heads at that, but the small one smiles and nods. "We'd like to sign up."
...Jaw, meet ground. Ground, meet jaw. Here's a ball, play nice.
After my moment of confusion, I looked at the three with what had to be a glare, because they flinched back. "Why?"
The smallest one cleared his throat; he was either the spokesdog or the smartest one. "Because living with you promises to be better than living with the colony. You at least care about the ones under you."
I blinked at that, then smiled a cruel smile. "You sure? Cause it's been at least a hundred years since I had any Dog recruits." I jerked my head over to my house and continued. "Something similar for the griffons. And we both know why."
The three winced and nodded, and I held up a hand to my chin and hummed. "We'll do it like this. On any given day, I spar with one of you. Another one will recover from the sparring of the previous day, and the third will spend a few hours digging out my basement, seeing as how I know how good you are at that. Once the basement is done, we'll work on a series of quick access...and escape tunnels from here to the nearest settlement."
They nodded as the schedule sunk in, and I continued. "I have a few gems on me right now that you all can have to munch on, and three-quarters of what you dig up during excavation is yours. With the last quarter being mine, naturally. Don't fret, all I'll do is save it for later, in case of a dry spell. All I ask for is a fair share."
The three looked to each other, nodded, and then the small one nodded as well. "Sounds good."
I smiled at them. "Can I get your names then, my new apprentices?"
"Rover," the lanky one said.
"Fido," the muscled one replied.
"And Spot," the small one finished.
-----
Twilight Sparkle was not a happy pony.
Ever since the whole Smarty Pants incident, she found herself with a lot more free time on her hooves. Seeing as how the schedule for writing letters to the Princess had never actually existed, she had more time to study the mysteries of magic and friendship.
Her latest subject, however, was the one known as Marketh Shadeblade and his various titles.
Forestwalker? Nopony knew much of anything about the Everfree. It could very well be true.
Ageless? More than likely, considering his previous claims, but nopony knew how it was possible.
Runner of every major den of thievery? Far too many of those in her history books to count. It only made sense when combined with the Ageless one.
Doom of the Diamond Dogs? Nopony knew anything about that, there hadn't been any recorded major skirmishes with the Dogs in a good long while!
She'd inquired about what her friends thought about the titles, and they'd all put in their two bits. She had yet to ask Dash, but all her other friends had agreed that her previous conclusions sounded right.
"Dash!"
The blue pegasus landed in front of her and swept her mane back with a hoof. "Oh hey Twi, how's it going?"
Twilight sighed. "I just have a question to ask you, Dash."
Dash nodded. "Sure, lay it on me."
"Marketh Shadeblade. Any of his titles ring a bell with you?"
And then Rainbow Dash actually winced and looked aside. "Eh...kinda?"
Twilight narrowed her eyes. "Dash..."
Dash sighed, breathed deep, and looked Twilight in the eyes. "Okay. When I was in flight camp, and friends with Gilda, she shared all sorts of stories about griffon culture with me. I responded with some of pony culture. But one of the major ones was about the Doom of the Diamond Dogs."
Twilight blinked, but motioned for Dash to continue. After a second to mull over her next words, she did. "They have this old legend. About a hundred years ago, the Diamond Dogs began to attack Manehatten as sneakily as they could. Most ponies didn't notice, but one being did. He didn't take the crop failure, the town being cut off, or the ponies disappearing all too well."
Twilight blinked at that. She could certainly look up those statistics. "And what happened next?"
Dash grimaced at that question. "Well, the Diamond Dogs got this huuuuge war party. And then they showed up about a mile away from Manehatten, to find one being standing against them. It offered them one chance to turn away and live, and they laughed at it."
Twilight waited. "And theeeeen?"
Dash looked around and noticed that despite being in the middle of the day, nopony was close enough to hear if she whispered, so she got close to Twi's ear and did exactly that. "And then he closed his eyes, and when he next opened them, they were as black as pitch. And then he slaughtered most of the war party, to the point where the only reason the story exists is because of the guys in the back seeing what was happening and running like the demons of Tarturus were chasing them."
Twilight's mouth dropped in shock as Dash backed up and nodded. Eventually her jaw responded again. "How is that a griffon story?!"
Dash shrugged. "Griffons are all about honor and valor and military accomplishments. That's one of their legends and motivating stories, and they know about it cause a griffon trader showed up at one of their colonies a year or so after it's supposed to have happened. They loved it, naturally. Gilda even told me that her dad's in charge of the branch that's trying to make a griffon that can do even half of what happened in the story. He tried putting her through the same training, but...well, that's kinda why she ended up in flight camp. It was either she didn't want to put up with him anymore...or she couldn't quite handle the training."
Twilight tilted her head to the side. "Interesting...when did he start trying that on her, then?"
Dash shook her head at the question. "Probably when we were fillies. So I can understand the first one. Maybe he was just trying to train her wrong?"
Twilight shook her head. "Thank you for answering my questions, Dash. I have a letter to write to the Princess, it would seem."
Dash smirked. "This doesn't sound like a friendship lesson, egghead."
Twilight shook her head. "It's not. We should tell her that such a dangerous being was in...and might still be around Ponyville."