//------------------------------//
// Chapter 17: Homelands 
// Story: Harmony's Creed 
// by Gapeagle 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 17: Homelands


By Octavia Melody


The barracks was bustling with Assassin activity. Brothers gathered food from the Templar kitchens and storage. We held a large feast in the barracks. The Templar flags that surrounded the fort were used as tablecloths. Dishes and silverware were laid off to the side as many of the Appleloosans preferred to use their hands. I sat with the Bearers, Spike, and Braeburn. I did not take much interest to their conversation as the interior of the barracks fascinated me.

The entire barracks appeared to be small from the outside, but was actually very large and spacious. The barrack's walls were well crafted with interweaving logs. It was a design I had not seen before in the rest of the town. This made the structure sturdy and tough unlike the other buildings in Appleloosa. The floor boards were also of great quality, being smooth and tightly wedged together. The ceiling was a large triangle with several beams crisscrossing from side to side. My mind pondered how the soldiers constructed such a masterpiece with only limited supplies and no lifts and in the constant threat of Assassin ambushes. I wanted to ask them how they accomplished this, but I soon remembered that every soldier's soul was no longer with us.

"You could have fought him fairly in a duel, Den Master." I heard Twilight tell Braeburn.

"And give that bastard a chance? He didn't deserve one." Braeburn seemed confused.

"Well, maybe not. However, we cannot be this way. The common folk and the Empire would not approve of our ways if they saw that."

"Why not? 'Cause of honor right? Like I said, there ain't honor in this war anymore."

"That does not give us a right to be unlawful. Silverstar was following Equestrian etiquette and law. You could have easily followed it."

"I don't see why a simple movement of your torso means so much. He made a mistake in trusting me. I used his mistake to my advantage." The Den Master slightly raised his voice. "That man, if you could call him that, he.....he launched his artillery on the Appleloosans. He didn't care if he got an Assassin or a bystander. He sat in this barracks for all the days of battle. That ain't a General if I saw one. He didn't deserve a bow, especially one by me! This is a war of extermination. We shouldn't care about how we kill them. We jus' need to kill em. All of them. The only way we will save this Empire is when every single Templar soul is in Tartarus."

With that, Braeburn stood up and walked away. Twilight shook her head slowly. The Bearer of Honesty seemed to have ignored their conversation as she gulped down cider. Twilight then turned to face me. Her expression possessed mixed emotions and her eyes did not seem to be focused on anything particular.

"Octavia, we shall travel back to Canterlot in the early morning. The Bearer of Honesty is going to stay and watch the southern efforts, and maybe Braeburn. I would advise gathering your possessions now and bringing them here. We shall spend the night here. It is much better than the old houses we had been living in before."

"Are we going to go through the Everfree again?" I heard Spike ask.

Twilight smiled at him. "No, we are going around the Everfree this time and travel through the Rock Ridge instead. We do not have to make a stop at Ponyville, so we shall skip it entirely."

"Wouldn't that add another day to our journey?" I asked.

"Yes, Den Master. Though it should be far less dangerous."

Twilight then looked at Spike again. "I think it's time for you to get some sleep. I do not need my assistant sleeping on the job tomorrow."

Spike lifted his chin in defiance. "I don't need sleep! I have the heart of a dragon!"

Twilight chuckled. "I have never heard of a sleepless dragon. Dragons couldn't be so strong without sleep."

Spike lifted his eyebrow. "I'm not gonna win, am I?"

"Nope."

"Fine..." He turned and left.

The Bearer stood up and faced me. "Well Octavia, I shall also retire for the night. Remember that we leave at dawn."

I bowed and watched her leave before heading to the inn.





Our horses were packed and ready to depart. I had not seen the horses since my arrival, but they were in good shape and health. Spike did a superb job in caring for them. The sun was only half way above the horizon, creating a brilliant orange light to the town. The heat had not yet reached us. The storm had greatly cooled off the land. The town itself was quiet, as the Assassins no longer needed to move supplies to another hideout. I was standing next to Vinyl and Spike. We were waiting for the Bearers to complete their adieus.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to see Meadow Song. The large man was no longer in his friend's robes, but in leather traveling gear. He smiled and patted me on the back.

"M'lady, me task here is done. I don't have to worry 'bout me friend. He's gotten his Justice. I'm gonna leave this town. Return to me wanderings. Take care Octavia."

I smiled back at him. "Thank you for your help, Meadow. I hope that we see each other again."

"Aye. I hope so to."

The large man turned and headed east. He was a mere silhouette against the rising sun. I saw him lift his hand and I returned his wave. Vinyl gagged in immature disgust at the slightly saddening departure.

"Oh it's just too much. The hero leaves his dear friend and journeys alone into the unknown. Will we ever see him again? Only the Sun knows..." She narrated in a fashion similar to dramatic poets.

"Vinyl! Don't be so bloody insensitive." I scolded her.

She lazily turned her head toward me. "Alright, Mother."

I gave her an annoyed look. I could not tell what her expression was, as her mask blocked her face. However, I could easily assume that it was a mischievous grin. Our attention turned to the Bearer of Magic, who was with the messenger. They walked over to us together.

"The messenger would like to accompany us to Canterlot. She also has a horse, so there is no issue with that. Now, since we are ready, let us be off."





My mind was running with the excitement of returning to my home. My head was cycling through every emotion I could feel when I rode through that massive stone gate. However, we had only been riding for a few hours, as the sun was almost directly above us. The journey had been quiet thus far. The rolling hills and tall grass were the only thing we saw. The town of Appleloosa was out of sight. I did not feel any pangs of guilt for leaving such a place.

The messenger was humming a tune. She appeared to be the most relaxed individual in our group. This was probably due to her always being on the road. She was so used to traveling that it didn't bother her in the slightest. Vinyl was riding her horse backwards, using the horse's neck as a headrest. The stallion did not seem to mind, as he steadily walked on. Twilight and Spike were discussing about the lands outside of Equestria. Spike was telling about superstitious stories of of travelers who ventured to far to the south and were eaten by giant worms. The Bearer of Magic giggled and told Spike how ridiculous the tales sound. She, however, did not completely deny their existence. I was left to my own thoughts. My mind switching from the bliss I would feel from arriving at my Den and the pain of knowing the West Den's destruction.

I feel that I must inform you on our current situation. With the West Den destroyed, Canterlot has only one major den left. That one is mine. The East Den and the North Den are too small to even have a Den Master. They are more of small hideouts than anything else. Canterlot has always been a hive of Brotherhood activity. We have never held the capital under complete control like Ponyville and now Appleloosa. Canterlot however, is by far the most important city to control. Having Assassin influence close to the Two Sisters is vital to our cause. If we can get our politics into the government before the Templar, we have a sure chance of protecting this Empire. So we must keep the Southern Den functional for as long as possible.

"You know, ever since I left Cloudsdale, I haven't been in one city for longer than a week." The messenger piped up.

My thoughts on Canterlot immediately vanished. I turned to look at the odd-eyed Sister. She was smiling and gazing to the far hills to the south. Spike and Twilight did not seem to notice the messenger, so I thought I would reply.

"You are from Cloudsdale? How is that ancient city?"

"Oh....it's.....different. The high mountains it sits on make it in constant fog. Once you get used to it, it ain't a problem. The winters are very cold though. The summers don't get very warm, well.....sometimes it can. The thing I remember most of Clousdale are all of the Olden Families that govern the city."

"Olden Families?" 

"Oh, you haven't been there, have you? Well, the Olden Families are a bunch of old clans that formed the city hundreds of years ago. They still follow ancient Cloudsdalian traditions such as names, forging, architecture, marriage, and fighting.  These clans are now called families and they basically own the city more than the Sisters. No one talks about this since the Olden Families are not considered rulers in any way. They just have the money."

"Intriguing." My mind pondered the information I had been given. Ancient names? I began to remember a certain young man with a strange name. Flashius Senti. "Is Senti a Cloudsdalian name?" I asked.

The messenger nodded. "Yup. The Senti family mostly deals with trade from the far west. I myself am also part of an Olden Family, but they rejected me at a young age. You see, My Cloudsdalian name is Dupia Hous. My Equestrian name is Ditzy Doo. But, everyone calls me Derpy."

"What...Why were you rejected?" I asked cautiously.

She pointed at her eyes. "The Hous family are mainly made up of warriors. They along with the Becips family provide protection for the city. When I was young and in training, a terrible accident left my eyes like this. I was too young to remember what caused it. I was then removed from the family because my eyes were no longer fit for combat. So they threw me on the streets. I survived as a thief for some years, until a Cloudsdalian Assassin let me join the Brotherhood. I've been a messenger since."

I silently brooded about the sad story. It reminded me of myself as a lonely musician. Though my story was far less painful, it seemed similar. The Brotherhood gave us both an opportunity to make something of ourselves. I looked at Derpy. She was now gazing at the sky with a slight smile. She whispered something to the air that made my heart ache.

"The Assassin's name was Soarin...."

I turned away from the messenger. Hearing a Wonderbolt's name brought me to the present. The traitors were still at large. I wondered if I was going to engage them again in Canterlot. It seemed likely. My eyes caught Twilight moving in her saddle. I focused my eyes on her to see her   look back at me with a contemplating expression. She then slowly turned her head back to its normal position. I assumed that she was listening to the messenger and I after all.

"Well, hey, the best part of being a messenger is this." Derpy gestured to the land. "It's beautiful. I've traveled the Empire many times, and it still hasn't grown old on me. You should enjoy it Den Master. You don't see these things from inside city walls."

My gaze then turned to the land. The hills had become smaller as we went northeast. The grass was a deep green, no longer to dead color of the rolling hills. To the far north were massive dark trees on the other side of a wide river. This was the Everfree. To the distant south was the vague appearance of a town. Appleloosa was far out of our sight, so I assumed that this was Dodge Junction. A rural town known for its cherries and rich farmers. To the east was flat plains. My eyes caught the motion of a large herd of animals. I looked closely and saw that they were wild horses.

Wild horses were common in rural Equestria. They are the reason this country has such a name. Equestrian horses were the best steeds in the world. The only challenger to that would be the Crystal Republic's horses, which many consider to be the same species as the Equestrian's. According to legend, the first Cloudsdalian, Commander Hurricane, decided to inhabit the Equestrian lands solely on the horses. Such a legend seemed like a stretch to me, but as I watched the herd gallop across the fields, I could see its validness.





When evening engulfed us, we arrived at the Rock Ridge. The sound of hooves on grass was replaced with the clips and clops on stone. The Rock Ridge was more of a small canyon than anything else. The floor of the ridge was mainly dirt with large rocks jutting out. The place was dark and eerie. It was nothing compared to the hostile Everfree Forest, but it had the similar sounds of animals in the shadows. 

We soon came upon a large dig site. There were stone tools for digging in a pile nearby. We stopped the horses to investigate. Everyone except Twilight dismounted. The large hole was filled with gems and jewels. It seemed that whoever dug here was a lucky and now rich individual. I bent down and grabbed a loose gem. The gem was about as large as my hand. I could clearly see my reflection in the crystal. I stood up and showed the Bearer it. She raised an eyebrow. 

"What a find, Den Master. It seems odd that the miners would leave it here." She said while stroking her chin.

"Maybe we should pack some for the trip." Vinyl suggested.

"I do not like the idea of stealing Vinyl." I started. My eyes fixed on the valuable crystal. "But....there so many.....They will not miss a few..."

"Octavia." The Bearer said sternly. "Put it back now."

I sighed and turned to toss it back into the hole. Suddenly I heard many footsteps tumble down the ridge's steep sides. I glanced around to see bright eyes glowing in the dark. The shadowy figures made odd and quick movements.

"Whys theys heres?!" A sharp voice yelled from the shadows.

"Theys heres to robs us. Likes burglars!" Another screamed.

"They's can'ts has it."

"Smellssss delightfulssss..."

"Wes earneds that gems!"

"Filthies thieves."

"They's comes into ours homelands!"

"We's has to kills thems."

"Sends thems to the voids!"

"Kills thems nows!"

I threw the gem in the hole and pulled out my dagger. The shadowy figures approached us slowly. As they came closer, I could make out their deformed bodies. Their faces barely appeared human, as their noses and mouths were large and jutted forward. This gave them the appearance of a dog's snout. Their large hands had long and filthy claws. They were hunched over as they walked. I finally saw them draw their own weapons. A fight was on our hands.

One of the diggers charged at me with a shoddily crafted ax. The Bearer of Magic teleported off of her horse and appeared in front of the grotesque being. In a clean motion, she cleaved the head off of the beast-man with her sword. Woah! I rolled away from a wooden club. The creature swung again. I rolled and rolled, dodging his endless attacks. The creature bent over and unleashed a high-pitched roar. I took the opportunity to throw a knife into his gaping mouth. The digger gagged on the knife. I ran towards it and punched the knife deep into its head. The creature's glowing eyes rolled into the back of its head and it fell over. 

One of the diggers gave a long howl. It was cut short when a lead ball passed through its brain. I saw Vinyl start to reload her musket. I looked around to see Spike and Derpy were crouched behind a boulder and hiding from the battle. The diggers swarmed us. Many of them had plates of carved stone as armor. The creatures only seemed partially sentient, as their tools and weapons were extremely primitive.

The Bearer of Magic was dealing with most of the dog-like men. Her pistols were constantly firing as they floated in the air and reloaded themselves. Twilight dodged the beasts' attacks by teleporting from location to location. She often appeared behind a creature to perform a back stab. The creatures were relentless however, and continued to attack us.

Quick! I sidestepped out of the way from an oncoming attack. The creature in front of me was different from the rest. Its armor was red and its eyes were green. It wielded a large ax. The beast hissed at me and swung again. I expertly disarmed the attacker with my hook. It then swiped at me with its large claws. I stabbed one of its hands with my dagger. It yelped and then pounched on me. The creature pinned my arms to ground. Its long tongue slowly swiped over its frightful jaws. Without thinking, I kicked it in the chest. This made it lift its arm up. I seized the opportunity and stabbed its face with my hidden blade. The creature screamed and fell silent. I pushed its large corpse off me.

"Chiefs Roverss deads!" One screamed.

"Wes losts!"

"Gets aways! Runs fors the hills!"

The remaining creatures scampered off. I still held my dagger up in defense. The Bearer of Magic teleported next to me. She was panting and blood was lightly flowing down here face. I guessed that she did not evade all the attacks. Vinyl walked over to us. Her musket's barrel was smoking from use. Twilight was not looking at any of us, but the dead creature that tried to eat me. She poked its head with her sword.

"Filthy diamond dogs...."

"Wait...Ya know what these things are?" Vinyl asked in a shocked manner.

"Of course. Read a book and it will probably tell you. These things live underground, looking for gems. According to Equestrian Bestiary: Volume II, they were mostly extinguished by General Firefly of Cloudsdale in the First Imperial Era. I guess they have been doing well since."

Vinyl glanced over at me and shrugged. It was clear she did not care for the Bearer's information. I looked back and saw Derpy and Spike emerge from their hiding spot. The little boy did not seem frightened, to my surprise. It must mean that he was getting used to the wild dangers. He inspected the dead diamond dog curiously.

"Why is everything out to kill us?" He said rather emotionlessly.

Twilight chuckled. "If they weren't, we would have boring lives."

"The sun is down and we have only a few minutes of light left." The Bearer stated. "We shall have to spend the night in this ridge."

There was a collective moan from out group. We mounted our horses again and departed from the dig site. In the corner of my eye, I saw Vinyl picking up some gems and storing them in her pouch.





We set up camp at a large tree in the middle of the ridge. Derpy started the fire with her "survival pack" that she carries in her leather traveling pack. The ridge had plenty of trees in it, so fuel for the fire was not an issue. Our small tents circled the campfire. There was not much talk among us. Vinyl was whistling while adjusting her hidden blade. Twilight was reading a book aloud to Spike, who listened intently. Derpy was laid back on her sleeping mat, gazing at the night sky. There were many stars out to accompany the bright moon. I sat back on a rock and wrote the words that you have just read. 

Canterlot is so close, yet so far. I cannot imagine what welcome I shall receive upon returning to the South Den. Will I get a new device from Lyra? Will the chef give me a special meal? Probably not. My mind has just remembered who is currently in charge of the South Den. I hope Rarity left it just the way it was. If there was something I did not miss from Canterlot, it would be that pompous Bearer. It looks like my time for writing is over. Twilight is going to have the first watch tonight. I better put away my quill and get some rest. We are still not halfway to the capital.

Adieu and goodnight.



~