//------------------------------// // Twelve Years Old Pt.2 // Story: Only Human // by Merotik //------------------------------// ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MARCH~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was sleeping in my bed when I felt somepony shaking me awake. "Obsidian, hey, Obsidian, wake up!" "Give me five more minutes mom!" I said, grumpily. The pony then gave me a cup check, I yelped in pain as I curled into a ball. I looked up and saw my attacker. "GRAY! What the tarterus bro!" Gray chuckled, "sorry about that, you didn't wake up, so I figured this be the quickest way". "The pain, its lingering!" I said weakly. "Don't be such a baby, hurry up and get ready! Gold has an assignment for us". I slowly lifted myself off the bed, and went into a chest that I kept hidden in my closet. The chest was full of stolen goods, and a set of full black and gray thieving clothes. Although Gray had just cup checked me, I wasn't angry. I was SO happy to see him, I hadn't stopped thinking about the nights we spent together. Pick pocketing ponies, breaking into homes, it was such great fun! We had been doing this every other night for the past three months. Lately however, I've been starting to feel . . . weird around Gray. He was one of the first friends I had made ever since I had been trapped in the castle, if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be able to leave into the night and just BE myself. I could finally breath in the fresh outside air of the night, and be out in the open! All thanks to Gray. It was my favorite thing to do nowadays, just escaping into the night with Gray and cause trouble in Canterlot. The more we did this, the more I couldn't stop thinking about it! I just couldn't wait until the next time we would escape into the city! . . . But . . . that wasn't exactly true. I was excited to go out into the city, but what I was more excite about was seeing Gray again. Sure it was because I was excited to see a friend, but . . . I don't know. It doesn't feel the same as just waiting for a friend, it feels . . . different. I just don't know, I'm so confused! Every time I see Gray I can feel my heart beat faster, and it becomes difficult to breath! I didn't have these feeling before when I first met Gray, so why do I have these feeling now? And why does it only happen when Gray's around? Why not when anypony else is around? I'm so confuse, I wish I had somepony to talk to about this, sadly, no pony within the castle will talk to me (not even mom), and I ESPECIALLY can't ask Gray why I felt these feelings. I didn't feel comfortable asking any of the fillies at the Diamond Back shack about these feelings. So, all and all I decided to just keep this a secret for now. Maybe I'll find out when I'm older what these feelings are. For now, Gold had an assignment, and I had to get ready. "What kind of assignment?" I asked, as I slipped on the black and gray pants. Gray shrugged, "who knows, but he say's its something that he's had planned for a LONG time". As I was strapping the pouches to my belt, I asked, "is it the one he's had planned since I first arrived?" "Could be, I've never seen him this excited" said Gray. Once I had all of my gear set, I turned to Gray and said, "all right, lets go!" Gray entered into the tunnel, and just as I was about to enter, I flinched, and grabbed my crotch. "Agh! Jam it! You know I'm going to get you back!" I said, angrily. Gray chuckled, "yeah, yeah, whatever, just hurry up!" It took us five minutes to go through the tunnel and out into the castle front yard. Gray and I quickly made our way to the shack that had members of the Diamond Backs inside. "Took you long enough! I thought you were never going to get here!" said Gold, as Gray and I entered the shack. "It took me twenty minutes!" said Gray. "That's twenty minutes too long, now, Obsidian, its been a year since you've became a Diamond Back. Tell me, have you grown at all since that time?" Gold asked. I shrugged, "I don't know, probably. I don't measure myself". Gold whipped out his measuring tape and quickly checked my height, once he finished, he gave a sinister chuckle. "Yes indeed you have! Your the perfect height to put my plan into motion! Now, Gray, Obsidian, remember a year ago when I said that I had a plan, one that Obsidian would be perfect for?" Gold asked. Oh so it WAS the plan he talked about when I first arrived. "Yeah, I remember" I said. "Sure, of course" said Gray. Gold had a very devious look, as he reached into his flank pocket and pulled out a map, handing it to us. Gray unfolded the map, and handed it to me. It was a map of a two story building called "Daisy's Flower shop", it had a color key explaining what all of the dots on the building meant. Some dots would show where guard posts where, other dots would show which guards would walk around, and one dot in particular was the objective. "This is your big plan? Brake into a building full of guards and steal . . . flowers?" Gray asked. Gray laughed, sinisterly, "oh my dear friend Gray, its much more complex then that! You see, I did a bit of research and found out that that flower shop is keeping a priceless flower inside the safe on the second floor. If you two can get in there and steal that flower, we'll have enough cash to finally get out of this crummy shack! And the Diamond Backs can officially have a place they can truly call home!" "What I don't get is why you needed Obsidians help?" Gray asked. "Well isn't it obvious? Look at the map" said Gold. Gray and I did so and saw what Gold had meant. There were more guards on the first floor then there were on the second floor. It was virtually impossible to break in and get to the second floor, unless you climbed through the window. However, the building was made with spikes sticking out along the railings that were underneath the second floor window. It was impossible to climb to the second floor, unless you were tall enough and had fingers! "A two story building may be high for us fillies and colts, but for Obsidian, who's now five feet tall. A two story building is a simple jump away! All he has to do is grab onto the sides of the spikes, climb his way up and through the window, break into the safe, and get out of there!" explained Gold. "Sounds like you just need Obsidian for this job, what do you need me for?" Gray asked. "Ah, you see, aside from me, your one of the best lock pickers the Diamond Backs have to offer. So, once Obsidian makes his way onto the window sill, he'll drop some rope down for you, then you'll climb up and help Obsidian break into the safe, grab that priceless flower, and get out of there before anypony notices!" explained Gold. Gray thought this over for a moment, then asked, "I don't know, this plan seems legit, but what if we get caught? This isn't the same as pickpocketing or doing graffiti. If we get caught doing this, we'll surly go to jail". "Oh, I have a simple solution to that, you see, if you don't want to get caught, then here's all you have to do . . . DON'T GET CAUGHT!!! Simple, right!?!" Gold shouted. "Yeah, sure" I said. "Whatever" said Gray. "Enough talk, you only have a certain amount of time to break into that store before they do an inspection, which will be in about two hours! So both of you get out there and BRING ME THAT FLOWER!!!" Gold shouted. "Alright we'll get the flower! Sheesh! Come on Obsidian, lets go!" said Gray. "Right behind you!" I said. We both rushed over to the corner of the shack the held the trap door. Inside the trap door was a tunnel that led us to a sewer which took us underneath Hoofers Street, which was in the lower part of Canterlot. After we made our journey through this, we traveled through the streets of Canterlot, hiding in bushes and through alleyways as to not get detected. It took Gray and I thirty minutes to make it to the flower shop. It was in the middle part of Canterlot, which was a bit far from the lower part. Once there, we hid behind a dumpster that was behind the shop. Gray dropped and opened his saddle bag. He reached in and took out a pair of metal gauntlets. "These should protect you incase you get a bad grip on the spikes" said Gray. He handed the gauntlets to me, and I strapped it in quickly. I flexed my figures and moved my hand around, feeling how comfortable the gauntlets were. Something about wearing armor always made me feel so comfortable! I don't know why, I guess I just feel safer, knowing that I'm wearing protection. "Nice! How did you manage to get a gauntlet with fingers?" I asked. "A couple of Diamond Backs stole it from some ponies house. It was originally made for dragons, but we had the ends cut down and smoothed. That way, it would fit fingers instead of claws! Oh, and sorry about there not being metal for your smallest finger, what did you call it again?" Gray asked. "Its called a pinkie" I said. "Yeah, that, most creatures only have four so it was a bit difficult to make this, seeing that you have five. But seriously though, are you the only creature who has hands?" Gray asked. "Yup, everypony else usually has hoofs, claws, or paws, not me though, I'm unique!" I bragged. Gray rolled his eyes, "well when your done strapping in the gauntlets then why don't you take that "uniqueness" of yours and make it usefull already!" "All right, just give me a sec . . . and, there!" I said. With both gauntlets fit comfortably on my hands, and a bundle of rope rapped around my back, I was ready to begin. I looked around to see if the coast was clear. When I saw it was, I rushed over directly underneath the window we were supposed to break into. I jumped as high as I could and reached my hands in between two of the spikes, I gripped on to the sides tightly, making sure I didn't lose my grip and fall. I used every ounce of upper body strength I could muster to pull myself up while making sure I didn't accidently stab my torso into the front of the spikes. It took thirty minutes, three attempts, four breaks, an argument, and a possible trip to the infirmary when I returned the castle, but in the end I had somehow managed my way up and around the spikes, and onto the window sill. I pick the lock to the window, and silently opened it. I placed the lower half of my body in, and with the upper half sticking out, I took the bundle of rope from my back, and dropped one end to Gray. He took hold of the rope, and I tied the other end to the spike so that he could climb up. Once he was up and in, I close the window gently and surveyed my surroundings. We were in a dark office, and just as the map said, there was no guards, at least, not until inspection. The map said that the objective is somewhere in this room. So where would a safe be hidden? Oh, behind a painting, that was easy! "Over here" I said to Gray. I led him to a large painting of a white stallion wearing a military uniform. I silently took the painting off the nail and placed it on the ground, reviling a large silver safe. "Nice work, I got it from here, you keep watch" said Gray. I nodded and walked over to the door. I leaned my ear against it to make sure no pony was going to enter. I could hear two guards talking to each other outside the door. "So, I heard a rumor that you and Martziah had a bit of fun at the party last night!" said one guard. "That's an understatement, we had MORE then just fun at the party last night" said the second guard. "Oh really? How'd that happened?" the first guard asked. "Well, you know, one minute we were by the pool, hanging out, talking, and all that. But two bottles of Apple Jack Daniels later and she was GONE man! I mean she had completely just LOST IT!" said the second stallion. "Dang! Two bottles each!" exclaimed the first guard. "Nope, she drank those bottles all by herself, and she did it with three shots of Everfree Dandelion" said the second guard. "Dang! That's insane! So, what happened next?" asked the first guard. "Do you really want to know?" asked the second guard, in a sarcastic sort of tone. "Come on man, tell me? Did you and the mare do a little . . . you know" ask the first guard. "Well, if you really want to, me and her found a nice spot near the party that didn't have anyponies around. We laid down behind some bushes and-" "Jam it! This lock is tougher then I thought! Obsidian, do you hear anypony coming? . . . Uh . . . Obsidian? Are you alright?" asked Gray. He had just turned around to talk to me. When he did, he saw my face drawn with an expression of a pony who had just seen the dead come back to life. My eyes were bulging, and my jaw had dropped. All color on my skin had faded completely to white, and my cheeks had blushed to a very dark crimson. I gently shook my head when Gray had asked me if I was alright. "What's the matter? Is something happening?" Gray asked. "I . . . I . . . I think . . . I think I'm . . . losing my innocence . . . I don't like it!" I said, slowly and weakly. "Uh . . . what?" asked Gray. "My ears . . . my poor virgin ears . . ." I said, once again slowly and weakly. Gray stared at me for a few seconds, before shaking his head and returning back to his work. "So, sounds like you had a lot of fun, but what about your wife? Aren't you married" asked the first guard. After hearing this, my shock disappeared, and had immediately been replaced with curiosity. I placed my ear against the door harder, listening closely. "Yeah I am, but she doesn't know I'm cheating with her" said the second guard. "So what are you gonna do? Break up with the first mare and go out with the second mare?" asked the first guard. The second guard chuckled, "Na! I think I'm just gonna keep both!" "Why do that?" asked the first guard. "In case I get bored with one mare, I can just go have fun with the other, if you know what I mean!" said the second guard. After hearing this, I . . . I didn't even know what I was feeling. Such emotions, it felt like a combination of pure rage, and a lust for vengeance. I don't know why I was getting these thoughts, I had never had them before. But right here right now, I was getting these thoughts. Thoughts that told me of what I should do to ponies like this. Thoughts that told me what my course of action should be. Thoughts that told me what must be done! I wasn't going to let this stallion do as he pleases! I'll make him wish he had never betrayed the trust of his wife! I'll make him feel pain! I'LL MAKE HIM SUFFER!!! HE WILL PAY FOR HIS ADULTERY!!! "Hey Gray, what time do the guards have dinner?" I asked. Gray checked the map, "It says here the guards will have dinner at around eleven o clock, that's in fifteen minutes". I deviously chuckled, "good, that'll be plenty of time. I'll be right back". Gray turned to me, "whoa! Where are you going?" he asked. "Lets just say I'm off to do a little "errand", you keep picking the lock to the safe, I'll be back" I replied. Normally Gray would question me, and make me stay. But my over serious tone caused him to simply give me a nod, as he returned to his work. "Oh, and I'm gonna need the map" I said. Gray tossed me the folded map. I unfolded it and searched for the Guards break room. It was right across the hall. I listened closely to the door again, and waited, luckily, I didn't have to wait very long. "Sweet Celestia man, I can't believe you managed to win that bet! You must be on a roll Bronze Wight!" said the first guard, excitedly. I deviously smiled. 'Prepare yourself Bronze Wight, for you will be punished, and I will be your warden!' I thought to myself. I checked the ceiling to see if there were any air vents. When I found one above the desk, I climbed on top of the desk, opened the air vent, and climbed through. Following the map, I made my way over to the guards break room. I opened the vent, and dropped down. The guard break room was dark and empty. Along one side of the wall was lockers all placed next to each other, and on the other side was a counter with a microwave, coffee maker, and other assorted kitchen appliances. That's not what I'm looking for though, I need to get to the fridge. The fridge was right next to the counter. I opened it and searched inside. All of the foods inside had labels indicating which food belonged to which guard, I'm looking for the one with Bronze Weights name on it. It took a couple minutes to find it, it was placed in the back of the fridge behind some left over pizza. Bronze Weight was originally going to have enchiladas for his dinner, now, he's getting a little something extra! I reached into my back pocket and pulled out a small container full of Sanatonian Apple Spice. Sanatonia was a city inside the Changling Empire. Sanatonian Apple Spice is very difficult to obtain, because it is made only in the Changling Empire. Changlings don't eat normal food like we do, they feed off of love and other positive emotions. So why would they create Apple Spice? Well, its not actually Apple Spice. This so called "Apple Spice" was given its name because of its similarity to actual Apple Spice. It looks, tastes, and smells like Apple Spice, but it is actually an ingredient used in certain potions. In a potion, it can be used as an antidote for certain poisons. By itself however, it is a poison! Although Sanatonian Apple Spice cannot physically kill ponies, it can caused the pony who had eaten it to be in sever pain for days on end. They'll have extreme nausea, bad head aches, cramps, vomiting, and diarrhea for a minimum of at least a week! And the best part, there is no antidote for this! Once its been digested, and you haven't taken an antidote within the first five hours, then the Sanatotian Apple Spice will have settled into your digestive system, and will remain there until the end of the week (give or take). Gray had given this to me as a gift, I was planning on practicing my potion making skills with this, but I wouldn't mind sacrificing a small amount for a "greater cause". I did a sinister chuckle, as I sprinkled the spice into Bronze Weights dinner. "Revenge is best served POSIONED!" I said to myself, happily. I place the dinner back into the fridge, and silently closed it. I then went back to the air vent and jumped, reaching for the vent. I pulled myself inside and closed the vent. I then returned back to Gray. Once I dropped from the air vent, I looked over to the where Gray was picking the lock to the safe, expecting him to ask me what I had just done. But he wasn't there, the safe was open and it was empty, but no pony was here. Suddenly, I heard something click, and felt something pressed against my back. "Put your claws in the air, and turn around slowly" I heard a familiar voice say. I pulled the bandana I had tied around my neck above my nose, as to keep my identity safe (I have one tied around my neck incase of these exact situation) and raised my hands into the air. I then slowly turned around to see two guards. One had Gray in his fore hoofs, and the other was pointing a crossbow at me. It was Bronze Weight and the other guard. "Well, well, well, what do we have here? A filly and a dragon trying to steal the priceless flower! Well, unlucky for you, the flower ain't here! It was never here to begin with! So you'll come with me quietly, or I'll be forced to shoot you" said Bronze Weight. He thinks I'm a dragon? Guess that makes sense, I do look like one when I'm fully clothed and my face is covered. Its funny, this stallion thinks he has the upper hoof. "Oh you won't be shooting me, and I won't be coming with you either. You see, my friend and I were just leaving, so if you can just let him go then we'll be on our way!" I said to the guard. As I said this, I dropped my hands behind me for only a second, then lifted them back into the air again. That second was all I needed. I also made my voice sound dark and grunge, as to not be recognized. "Ha! As if! You and the filly are coming with us now!" said Bronze Weight, angrily. I chuckled, "So tell me, Bronze Weight, how does cheating on another mare feel? Do you feel pain, or any emotional suffering? Knowing that your poor wife out there hasn't the slightest idea that her husbands with another mare? Do you have even the slightest bit of conscience left to feel such pain? Or are you truly and empty, heartless, pig who will do what you want to any mare you fancy?" I asked. Bronze chuckled, "so, you were eavesdropping huh? Well I'll have you know that I do know that cheating is wrong. But let me tell you a secret, If I could do it again, I would!" At this, I stared at him, angrily. "Tell me Bronze Weight, what happens when you look into a bright light after your eyes have adjusted to the dark?" I asked. "I assume you'd be blinded" Bronze responded. I chuckled, "exactly!" That second that I had dropped my hands behind me, I had reached into a pouch on my belt and took out a small device that detonates into a bright light when thrown against a hard surface. I dropped it, and turned around, shielding my eyes. The device exploded, and as it did, the two guards were blinded. Not Gray, Gray kept a pair of sunglasses to keep his identity safe, just like how I had my bandana. Except for Gray, he can use his disguise to shield his eyes from the blinding device. While the two guards were blinded, Gray bit into the guards leg, releasing him. "COME ON!" I shouted, changing my voice back to normal. Gray leapt into my arms, and I sprinted towards the window. Bronze Weight (having recovered his vision) fired the crossbow at me. I used my arms to shield both me and Gray from the impact, as I jumped through the window. The bolt of the crossbow had missed my ear by just an inch, and I dodged the spikes outside the window by the same amount. I landed and somersaulted onto the ground. I grabbed the saddle bag that Gray had left near the dumpster and began sprinting back to the lower part of Canterlot. "Stop them!" I heard the guards shout behind us. I sprinted as fast as I could, carrying all of the equipment and Gray in my arms. I sprinted through alleyways, behind dumpsters, through bushes and backyards, all to make sure they weren't on our trail. Behind a couple building away from us, I could hear dogs barking, and flashing lights, searching for us! "Gray! How much further until we get to the sewer entrance!?!" I asked. "Its still another ten minutes away!" he shouted. "Jam it!" I shouted. I continued to sprint, Gray was looking over my shoulder, giving me feed back on how close they were. I had never ran so fast in my life! My lungs felt as if they were collapsing on me! But I couldn't stop now, if I did, then they would surly catch us! "Obsidian, they got pegasus!" shouted Gray. "WHAT!?!" I shouted. And sure enough, when I looked up, I saw three pegasus, flying in a "V" formation, searching for us. "Son of a ditch! All of this over a flower!" I shouted. "Gold did say it was priceless!" Gray shouted. "Well if Gold wanted it so bad then how come HE DIDN'T JUST GET IT FOR HIMSELF!!!" I shouted. There was no where left to hide. With ponies both on hoof and in the skies, there was no where left at ALL to hide. The only option left was to sprint as fast as I can, sadly, the pegasus were faster. As soon as they spotted us, they dived straight toward us. "Use this!" I shouted. I had reached into one of my pouches and had taken out a can of pepper spray, handing it to Gray. As the pegasus dived close to us, Gray pushed the button on the can, covering the pegasus in pepper spray. Two out of three of the pegasus were hit, they shouted, covered their faces, and crashed. The third had dodged the spray, he rose back into the air and shouted to the guards on the ground (who were still a fair amount of distance away from us), "two guards down! Permission to use lethal force!" "Permission granted!" I heard the ground guards shout. "Aw ship!" I heard Gray shout. "Don't worry, he's most likely going to use a spear on us!" I shouted. "Oh, he's going to use a spear? Well THAT makes me feel SO much BETTER!!!" Gray shouted, sarcastically. "Hey! Being attacked with a melee weapon is a lot better then being attacked with a ranged weapon if you ask me!" I shouted. "How do you know there going to use a spear? Why don't they just use a crossbow like those other guards?" Gray asked. "The guard with the crossbow wasn't a Canterlot guard! He was a private guard working at the flower shop, therefore he's allowed to use a crossbow. Canterlot guards are different, there specially trained to use standard guard weaponry!" I explained. "So the pegasus that's chasing us isn't a guard from the shop, he's a city guard?" Gray asked. "Yup!" I shouted. "Whelp . . . were bucked!" Gray shouted. "Not yet were not! I've got one more trick! Here, drop these when I tell you to!" I shouted, handing Gray a two white canisters. "What are these?" Gray asked. "Smoke bombs! Built them myself, when activated, it releases a large amount of smoke in the surrounding area!" I explained. "When did you suddenly become so good at using gadgets!?!" Gray asked. I chuckled, "I spend WAY too much time by myself in the castle. And not by choice either!" "Well . . . fair enough" said Gray, bluntly. The pegasus had reached behind his back, retrieving his spear. He then dived back towards us again. As soon as he was close enough, I shouted, "now!" Gray released the canister. The moment the canisters hit the ground, the entire area was filled with pure white smoke. Hiding us from the pegasus view. I took this chance to hide behind the closest building. I decided to hide here until the guards were completely gone, giving Gray and I the chance to make our way to the sewer entrance. Even so, I needed to rest. My legs felt like they were made of lead, and my lungs felt as if somepony had just bucked me. "Can you keep your panting down! They might hear you!" Gray whispered. I glared at Gray angrily, "oh I'm SO sorry if my panting is too loud! Why don't you try running three miles straight none stop with me on your back!" I whispered. "Do you see them?" asked a guard. I peered around the corner of the building, and saw a group of five guards and the pegasus that had tried to attack us with the spear. "Negative, I lost sight of them when that smoke appeared" replied the pegasus. "Well, they can't have gone too far! Keep searching the skies! The five of us will continue to search on hoof!" The pegasus nodded, and flew back into the sky, as the five guards left with their search dogs. "How did the guard dogs not sniff us out?" Gray asked. "Beats me, but who cares, their gone. Now, we just need to make it back to the sewer entrance without getting detected!" I said. "Oh I don't think that'll take too long" said Gray happily. "Why's that?" I asked. He pointed to the building we were hiding behind. It was the old Freddy Fazbears Pizza that had shut down over a year ago! I sighed with relief, "well, if that isn't good luck then I don't know what is!" I looked around to see if the coast was clear, when I saw it was, I rushed into the middle of the street, opened the sewer entrance, and hopped inside. Once Gray and I had made it to the tunnel, we stopped, and panted for the longest time. Slowly, realization began to dawn upon us. We were just chased through Canterlot by a huge group of guards, AND WE GOT AWAY!!! Slowly, Gray and I started laughing. "Oh man! That was insane! I thought those guards were gonna get us!" said Gray. "I know right! They were right on our tails! If you hadn't taken down two of those guards at once, then who knows what could've happened!" I said. "Oh, and the way you jumped out that window! Son of a ditch man! You were like a boss!" said Gray. "Well I couldn't have done it if you hadn't cushioned my fall!" I said, jokingly. "Ha, ha, what ever. But seriously, all those things you did! The smoke bomb, jumping out a two story window, the pepper spray, AND not to mention you just ran through the entire city none stop while carrying me and an arm full of equipment WHILE being chased by guards and STILL got away! Like, my mind is blown right now! When did you learn to do all those thing!?!" Gray asked. "I already told you, I spend a lot of time by myself in the castle" I said. I was telling the truth too. Ever since I joined the Diamond Backs, I had been spending a lot of my time teaching myself what to do in these very situations. Using gadgets, making strategies, and improving my lock picking and pickpocketing skills . . . well what am I supposed to do with my free time!?! Play Jenga! The game gets boring after two thousand, three hundred, and seventy two time (and yes, I've counted!). "And besides, if you hadn't sprayed those guards and use the smoke bomb, we would have never gotten away" I said. "Only because you handed them to me" said Gray. "Oh come on, you helped out too! We would've never had the safe opened if it wasn't for you! Speaking of which, sorry about not being there, I guess its my fault we almost got caught" I said. "Don't worry about it, it wasn't your fault" said Gray. "It wasn't?" I asked. "Na! A couple minutes after you left I finally managed to bust the safe open! But it was a trap from the very start! You see, after I got the safe open, there was a string attached to the door. I guess when the string was pulled it triggered an alarm. Cause as soon as I opened the safe those guards came busting through the door! Pointing crossbows at me!" Gray explained. "So, this whole assignment was all for nothing?" I asked. "Well, it sure seems that way. But hey! Look on the bright side! At least we'll have a good story to tell when were older, am I right!" said Gray. I laughed, "ya, I guess your right!" "Hey that reminds me, what exactly did you do while you were gone?" Gray asked. "Oh! Well, lets just say I was teaching somepony a lesson" I said, deviously. Gray looked at me confused for a moment, then shrugged. "Ah well, lets just get back to the shack, I'm pretty tired from everything that's happened tonight". "Yeah, me too. Don't want to stay out too late or else a guard might find out that I left the castle" I said. "Yeah, and that wouldn't end well" said Gray. "No it would not!" I agreed. We walked on for a few minutes before Gray said, "Uh . . . Obsidian". "Yeah?" I said. "Um . . . your still holding me" said Gray. "Oh!" I placed Gray back onto the ground, and handed him his saddle bag. "Sorry about that" I said, embarrassed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "YOU DIDN'T GET THE FLOWER!!!" Gold shouted. Gray and I had just gotten back to the shack, and sure enough, after we explained to him what had happened, Gold wasn't exactly "happy" to hear the bad news. "The flower was never there to begin with, it was all a trap from the start" Gray explained. "Do you have any idea what I had to go through to get that type of information? To even have the basic knowledge that a priceless flower was inside that building? Do you have any idea what I had to do!?!" Gold shouted. "We assume it wasn't nearly as bad as what we had to do" I said. "Don't you dare speak back to me Monkey Boy! I am still your leader, and you wouldn't be here if it wasn't for me! So shut up or else!" Gold shouted. Monkey Boy, their always calling me that! I hated that insult so much! I bent over Gold and pressed my face into his, menacingly, as I glared at him. I was done being treated with disrespect! "Or what? Your gonna kick me out of your little club? Ha! As if! I know how you do things Gold! You use your status as leader to take advantage of those your supposed to be leading. So while your safe inside this shack, all of the fillies your supposed to be leading is out there doing all the dirty work for you! You'll never kick me out Gold! You need me!" I growled. "I gave you friends, and you dare to speak to me this way!?!" Gold shouted. "You gave me nothing!!! These fillies became my friends on their OWN behalf! You on the other hand! You've just been taking advantage of me from the very start! I'm not even an official member of the Diamond Backs! Obsidian isn't even a legit nickname!" I shouted Gold took a step back, "but, but, h- how did you-" "I overheard you and Gray talking to each other two months ago. He was trying to convince you to let me become an official member, but you wouldn't let him" I interrupted. "If you knew, then how come you continued to stay?" Gold asked. "I stayed because I still have friends here" I said. Gold looked over at Gray and chuckled, "oh sure, you say you stay because you have friends, but I know why you actually stay". "What do you mean?" I asked. Gold walked over to Gray, and patted him on the shoulder, smiling. Gray gave an awkward smile back to Gold. Gold turned Back to me, smiling for a moment. Suddenly he swung around, socking Gray in the face. Gray fell to the ground, placing a hoof on the cheek that had just been hit. I glared at Gold, my teeth were clenched and I was shaking from rage. "What the hay are you doing!" I shouted. "How does it feel, Glee, seeing me hit Gray? Does it make you angry, watching me hit the pony you like?" Gold asked. He walked over to Gray and hit him in the gut with his fore hoof. "Stop it!" I shouted. "Oh I've seen the way you look at him, Glee. You like him, more then just a friend. That's why you stay, you stay because of Gray!" said Gold, as he hit Gray in the face. "I'M WARNING YOU!!!" I shouted. "I'll stop, once you admit it. You like Gray, don't you?" Gold asked. Gray looked up to me, his nose was bleeding, and he had a black eye. A small trail of blood was dripping from his mouth. "Obsidian, don't listen to him, he's just trying to make you angr- AAGH!". Before Gray could finish, Gold bucked him, causing Gray to drag back a couple feet. Why didn't Gray fight back? Why was he just taking it? "Gray! Fight back!" I shouted. "Oh Gray wouldn't dare hit his leader, he'll get kicked out of the Diamond Backs! Won't you Gray?" said Gold. Gold turned and walked over to where they keep the kitchen appliances, he opened a cupboard and extracted a knife. "What are you-" "Those who make me angry, must be punished!" said Gold, as he walked over to Gray. "TOUCH HIM AND I'LL MAKE YOU PAY!!!" I shouted. He walked over to Gray, he place one hoof on his back as he pointed the knife towards his ear with the other hoof. "If you touch me, then I'll kick you and Gray out of the Diamond Backs. Then you'll lose your friends and Gray won't have anywhere to live anymore" said Gold. "Obsidian . . . he has a knife . . . don't try to stop him . . . he'll hurt you" said Gray. He was having difficulty breathing, having just been bucked, kicked, and Gold was standing on top of him. "He's going to cut off your ear!!!" I shouted. "I don't care! If you get hurt then I can never forgive myself!!!" Gray shouted. I froze, as tears began to form in my eyes. Gray was whiling to sacrifice himself for me . . . But I won't let him! "Enough talk! Now you'll see what happens when you make the leader of the Diamond Backs angry!" Gold shouted, he placed the knife to Gray's ear and- "GAAAGH!" Gold shouted, as I pushed him against the wall. All of the fillies who had been watching had to jump out of the way. One moment Gold was about to take Gray's ear off, then the next, I had Gold pinned against the wall before he could cause any further harm to Gray. Gold had made me so mad you could practically see the veins on my head throbbing. I was shaking uncontrollably, I was breathing heavily, and I had the knife that Gold was about to use on Gray place against his throat. "You, will, SUFFER!!!" I shouted. Now Gold looked afraid, he glanced back and forth from me to the knife. His eye's pleaded for mercy, something I was not willing to give. "Please" Gold begged. I chuckled sinisterly, "you expect me to let you go after what you did to Gray?". I kneed him in the gut, then, with my free hand I lifted Gold into the air, holding him by his throat. "YOU DARE EXPECT ME TO LET YOU GO AFTER WHAT YOU DID!!!" I shouted. Gold had his hoofs to my hand, trying to pry it off his throat as best as he can. Yet he couldn't do it, my grip was to strong. His face turned Blue, as he started losing consciousness. "Obsidian! Let him go!" Gray shouted. I turned to Gray, "he tried to hurt you! HE WAS GOING TO CUT OFF YOUR EAR!!!" I shouted. "Let him go! Your killing him!" Gray shouted. I turned back to Gold and froze. Gold was a deep shade of blue and purple, my grip was so strong. I was strangling him. I WAS killing him. I threw him by the neck across the room, and he slammed into a table, breaking it into pieces. I walked over to Gold as Gold held onto his neck, panting. I kicked him in the face, then placed my foot over his chest. I then pointed the knife at his throat. "If you ever hurt my friends again, I will end you. Understand?" I asked calmly. Gold nodded. I tossed the knife over to Red and stood on top of a chair. "Listen to me, all of you! You pathetic, worthless, scum! All of you stood around Gray and watched as he was beaten to a pulp! You watch Gold hurt Gray all because you were scared of your leader! We'll I'm telling you right here right now! Just because someone is the leader doesn't mean you have to follow their orders! If they command you to commit an unjustified action, then will you do as you are commanded? No! You show them that just because they have the authority, just because their rank is higher then yours, just because their your boss doesn't mean they can do as they please!" The fillies and colts that had been cowering in the corner had now come closer, listening to what I had to say. "You are a living breathing being! You have your own mind to commit your own actions! You make the choices for your self! And just because somepony comes along and claims to be your leader, doesn't mean you should drop what your doing and begin following the actions of somepony else! You decide who you are! You decide what your actions will be! YOU DECIDE WHAT YOU DECIDE!!!" I shouted. The fillies and colts cheered, and raised their hoofs into the air (Red raised the knife into the air). "And if you decide to follow a leader, then at least make sure that leader is worthy of such status! A leader thinks of the ones he is leading before himself! A leader helps to show the path to victory, guiding his followers to achieve their goals and pursue their dreams! A leader doesn't stand in the safety of his base while his followers go and do the dirty work themselves! No! He gets out there and helps the followers accomplish their quests! A LEADER LEADS!!! A BOSS COMMANDS!!!" I shouted. The fillies and colts cheered. "WHAT IS GOLD!?!?" I shouted. "A BOSS!" the fillies and colts shouted. "AND WHAT DO WE WANT!!!" I shouted. "A LEADER!!!" the fillies and colts shouted. "Then from this day forward you will no longer follow the commands of a boss! But the requests of a leader! A true leader!!!" I shouted. The fillies and colts shouted, and as they did so, I turned to gold, glaring at him. "You will leave this place and NEVER return! We will find a pony who is fit to lead, and the fillies will never have to follow your commands ever again!" I growled. "You think I'll just allow you to kick me out of my place! Once I tell the Rattlesnake, you'll be sorry!" Gold shouted. "Tell them! I dare you! Run off and tell the Rattlesnakes! Tell them Glee Sunrise kick you out of the Diamond Backs! Tell them where I live, who I am, how to find me! Tell them everything! I DARE YOU!!!" I shouted. I jumped off the chair and took a step towards Gold. "Tell them you were defeated, by a human!" I growled. Gold took one last angry glance at me, before galloping towards the window, and leaving the Diamond Backs for good. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gray and I had just arrived in front of Canterlot castle. We sat down in a tree, above the very spot where we pranked the couple (Edward and Sandy I think it was). We stared into the horizon, looking down upon the city. "So . . . your going to be the new leader for the Diamond Backs?" I asked. Gray sighed, "looks like it, you did scare off our original leader". I chuckled, "ya, I guess I did". There was a long and awkward pause, before I said, "about what Gold had said, I-" "Don't worry about it, I already know" said Gray. "Y-you do?" I stuttered. "Of course, we were always going off into the city most nights so I tend to notice these things. You, always giving me that look. The look that a pony only gives when they like another pony" I blushed when Gray said this. "And I also assume your feeling confused right now too? Huh?" asked Gray. I nodded. Gray sighed again, "well, it figures. Your always alone so there's no pony to explain to you what it means to have a crush". My blush grew darker, "i-is that what it is?" I asked. He nodded. There was another long pause, before I spoke. "Your not . . . mad . . . are you?" I asked. "Mad? Why would I be mad?" Gray asked. "Well . . . you know . . . were both boys so . . . I kind of assumed that-" "Look, I'm flattered that you like me, who can blame you, I'm a sexy stallion!" Gray interrupted. I chuckled. "But the thing is is that, well . . . have you ever heard the farmers metaphor "my barn door doesn't 'swing' that way?" asked Gray. I tilted my head to one side, and stared at Gray with a confused expression. "No? O.K. lets try this, I don't plow my fields that way". I continued to stare with a confused expression. "I'm not curved, I'm straight?" I continued to stare. "I'M NOT INTO STALLIONS!" Gray shouted. "Oooohhhhh!" I exclaimed. Gray face hoofed. "Look, I know you have these feelings for me, but it just wouldn't work out. I'm not into stallions, plus, were not exactly . . . the same species". "Oh . . . yeah . . . I-I guess your . . . right" I said, as I hung my head low. Now I understood what these feelings were, this is what it feels like to "like" a pony for the first time. And this is what it feels like to be rejected for the first time . . . I don't like it . . . Gray shifted closer to me, and lifted a hoof to me, "we can still be friends, you know that don't you?" he asked. I slowly lifted my head, and when I saw his hoof, I smiled and formed my hand into a fist, "yeah, still friends". His hoof and my knuckles pounded, then we jumped of the tree onto the ground. "I guess I'll see you later?" I asked. "Yeah, see ya later" said Gray, he smiled, then turned and walked in the opposite direction. Just as I was about to make my way back to the castle, I heard Gray shout, "oh, and would you stop staring at my flank! You perv!" I turned around, blushing, "What! I- I wasn't!-" Gray started laughing, "I'm just messing with you! Calm down! See ya!" he shouted. I gave a weak chuckle before shouting, "ya! See ya!" 'I'm going to get him back for that!' I thought to myself. I turned, and made my way back to the castle. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As I was making my way through the tunnel underneath my bed, I was thinking about the next time Gray and I would meet up. Maybe he'll make an exception if it was hearts and hoofs day? Then again, I might end up making him uncomfortable if I hung out with him on THAT particular day. Who knows, maybe I'll find somepony else who feels the same way as I do. As I popped out the tunnel, the bed was suddenly removed from above me. Standing there was mom, and three guards. I stood there, frozen as an ice sculpture, with my eyes bulging and my jaw dropped. "Hey mom . . . lovely night were having" I said, weakly. "Its morning" said mom. I looked over to my clock and saw that it was 7:50. "Oh . . . so it is" I said weakly. "The guards just found the entrance to a tunnel in the front yard! Care to explain?" mom asked. I thought for a moment before replying, "uh . . . you should really call somepony to fix the gofer problem . . . heh . . . heh". Whelp . . . I'm bucked . . . ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MAY~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ever since she found out about the tunnels and the stolen goods mom had all of my possessions taken away, including my bed. It was night time, and I was sleeping in a sleeping bag in the middle of the hard stone floor. They even ripped the carpets out, bucking flank holes! The only thing mom allowed me to keep was a stuff teddy bear that she had given to me when I was a baby. I still have not idea why I had this old thing, I felt like I was to old to have a teddy bear, then again it hurt to much to even think about throwing it away. It was the first toy that mom had ever given to me, so it had sentimental value. She had given it to me during the time she used to love me, or pretended to love me, I honestly don't know. "Well Kevin, its just you and me. They sealed the tunnels, so I can't see Gray anymore" I said, sadly. I rolled over to my side, and had attempted to fall asleep, until I heard something tap against my window. I opened my window (which had bars on it so I couldn't escape) and saw Gray. "What are you doing here!" I shout whispered. "You didn't . . . you dyed you hair black?" Gray asked. "What? Ya! So?" "When did you dye your hair black?" Gray asked. "Never you mind! What are you doing here!?" I shout whispered. "You didn't show up for the longest time, and when I came to check on you, the tunnel was gone. What happened?" Gray shout whispered. "My mom found out about the tunnel, so she has me on lock down for a while" I explained. "Is she treating you right? She's not starving you or anything like that?" Gray asked. "No she's not, I just had all my things taken away, and I'm not allowed to leave my room" I explained. "Good, cause if I hear she's mistreating you, I'll bust in there and show her a thing or two!" Gray shout whispered, as he punched the air angrily. "That's really cool and all, but I don't think you'll want to break into a castle" I whispered. Gray rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed. "Heh, yeah, good point. So what now, you want me to dig another tunnel?" Gray asked. "No! Don't do that, my rooms empty so you'll get caught. Just wait until I have all of my possessions back, then build a tunnel" I whispered. "O.K. and how long will that take?" Gray asked. "I don't know, mom was really mad so I assume a couple months, most likely more" I explained. "A couple months! Shoot, that sucks. Well, alright, I guess I'll see you in a couple months then, right?" Gray asked. "Actually, there's something I need you to do" I whispered. "Yeah sure, what Is it?" Gray asked. "Well, something's come up recently, and I might not be staying for long". "What do ya mean?" Gray asked. "Well . . . my mom's just told me recently that she's sending me somewhere, somewhere far away" I explained. "Like, out of Equestria?" Gray asked. "Yeah . . . something like that. All and all, once she sends me to this place I'm never going to return. So we'll never see each other again" I explained. Gray looked shocked, "what! But, she can't do that! She can't just send you away! Do you have any choice in this?" Gray asked. I shook my head, "no, I don't. I wish I could leave but I can't. I'm going to be sent to that place forever, and there's nothing I can do about it. Unless you help me". "You know, I just realized, all this time you've been stuck in a castle, forced to be alone and be punished. I was wondering, where's Princess Celestia been this whole time? Why isn't she helping you? She lives in the castle doesn't she? Shouldn't she have helped you out a long time ago?" Gray asked. I paused, before answering, "Celestia is my mom". Gray's jaw dropped, then slowly, he chuckled, "y-your joking, right? All this time you've been trapped, it couldn't have possibly been because of the princess, right?" I didn't answer, but Gray understood that I was serious. "Oh, my, Celestia. I can't believe it, the princess has had you trapped this whole time! Is that why you haven't been able to go to anypony for help? Gray asked. I nodded, "no pony would dare question the princess's authority. So there's no pony I can go to to help me, except you. Are you willing to help me, knowing that the princess won't like what were going to do?" I asked. Gray thought about this for a moment, then said, "of course! Anything for a friend! Even if it means going up against a princess!" I smiled, "good, alright here's what I need you to do. I need you to dig a tunnel starting on the outskirts of Canterlot. Then I need you to have that tunnel stretch through Canterlot and underneath my room. The start of the tunnel that connects to my room needs to be small enough so that only I can fit through. At the midway point I need you to make the tunnel large enough to sprint through, that way I can escape the city faster". "What! You want me to make a tunnel that huge!?" Gray whisper shouted. "Yes, but don't worry, you'll have six months to get it finished. By then I should have my possessions back so we'll be able to hide the tunnel" I explained. "Oh, six months huh, well then, I guess I better get a move on. But, what happens next, you gonna run away and live your life as an out cast?" Gray asked. I shook my head, "no, I have to go to the place that mom is sending me to. If I try to run away they'll came after me, and they'll never stop searching until they find me. I'll have to be on the run for the rest of my life, and that's not the kind of life I want to live. I have to go to that place, but if I'm force to leave my home, then I'm not leaving without a BANG!" "What do you have planned?" Gray asked. I chuckled, "its a surprise, just know that once its all over then I'll be leaving. And once Im gone I'm never coming back. So, I just wanted you to know that you have been a really good friend Gray. If it wasn't for you, I would have been trapped in this castle with nothing to do. I would have sat in my room day after day, just rotting away. But after you showed up, I finally had something to look forward to again. I was finally able to go outside and go on all kinds of crazy adventures with you. And even though I've never been able to leave Canterlot, I just wanted you to know that if I had to spend the rest of my life trapped in this city, I'm glad I could have been trapped here with you". Gray blushed as I said this, and he took a step closer to me. He smiled, "Kevin, my real names Kevin Melody". "Kevin? Is that so!" I exclaimed. "What? You don't like it?" Gray asked. "No, its just, I have a list of names that I like. Maximo, Sarah, Pustulio, Maria, and Kevin " I explained. Kevin smiled, as he was about to turn, before I stopped him. "Wait! Before you go, I just want to say thanks for always-" Before I could finish, Kevin turned to me and implanted a kiss on my lips through the bars. I blushed, as my eyes bulged from shock. Once Kevin released, he blushed and turned away. "Don't get the wrong idea kid, I'm not into stallions. J-just consider that a gift until we meet again, got it!" "Yeah . . . sure" I said weakly. He turned to look at me one last time before saying, "whelp, see ya around kid!" He then galloped off into the distance. "Yeah . . . see ya" I said weakly. I slowly and shakily let go of the bars and walked back to my sleeping bag. My mind was racing, still processing what had just happened. My heart was pounding, and I can feel my vision beginning to blur. " . . . Wow . . ." I said weakly, as I passed out on the cold stone floor. I awoke the next morning with a minor concussion. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~NOVEMBER~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was thirteen years old now. I had been waiting for months, being patient and acting like a good little boy, keeping myself out of trouble. And it worked, my plan is coming together perfectly! I had gotten all of my possessions back, and in doing so, I was able to have the perfect hiding spot for when Gray returned with finishing the tunnel (we decided to continue calling each other by our nicknames). When Gray had returned, he and I escaped into the out skirts of Canterlot, giving the new tunnel a test run. It was perfect, after crawling for a good five minutes or so, I found that the tunnel becomes bigger, large enough for me to stand on my feet and begin sprinting. Just the way I wanted it to be. Turns out Gray hadn't done it alone, all the fillies and colts from the Diamond Backs helped him. After we had given the tunnel a test run we returned to Canterlot, braking into the Party store and stealing as many fire works as we could. Everything was perfect! Every part of the plan was perfect! To be honest I was actually expecting the plan to crash and burn within the first few weeks so for the plan to have turned out this well really surprised me! One week after everything was set, the time had come. It was the day that mom would be sending me to the other world, but I wasn't going to leave without a BANG! Gray and I escaped through the tunnel, and on the outskirts of Canterlot we began to make our way towards Pony Ville. It took several hours, but eventually we had made it close to the home of one of the riches ponies in Equestria: Filthy Rich. His mansion wasn't in Pony Ville, but it was close enough to where you can nearly see it. Jam it! I wanted to go to Pony Ville so bad! But I didn't have the time! I had to put my plan into motion immediately. Gray and I sprinted close to the outer wall and hid behind a tree. I reached into my bag and pulled out a couple of fireworks. "Are you sure you want to do this with me? You know I intend to get caught, so if your caught too you'll get in trouble" I asked. Gray took out one of the fireworks and began reading the instructions. "I told you, if your going to pull a stunt like this, then I want to be part of it! If this is going to be your last time being in Equestria, then I want to be with you until the end!" I blushed, then smiled. "Alright, then you know what to do?" I asked, as I pulled off my shirt. I hated having to wear clothes, and if I had to leave Equestria, I wasn't leaving fully dressed. "Of course, this isn't my first time pulling a prank" said Gray, smugly. I chuckled, "alright! Then lets do this!"